Happiness in the Moment

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We left our hotel in Virginia around 10 am and stopped in DC to see the Iwo Jima Memorial statue and tried to see the MLK Memorial and could not find parking before heading out of town.

It was a lot cooler today and we appreciated the irony from the car as we drove to Maryland.

We wanted to checkout Annapolis and try crab cakes for lunch. The United States Naval Academy is a beautiful campus and the town by the water was very quaint. We enjoyed our brief visit before spending the rest of the day in the car, which wasn’t exactly how we anticipated the day unfolding.

serving others = happiness

Midshipmen walking across campus

beautiful landscape on the USNA, campus

USNA

sea themed stained glass window in the chapel

Maryland blue crab cake. YUM!

We hit lots of standstill traffic as we approached and eventually crawled across the Delaware Memorial Bridge.

We were hoping to be at our next destination for dinner yet we are still traveling at a snail’s pace and our estimated arrival time is approaching tomorrow.

We stopped at a rest area around 7pm for a “healthy” dinner in the car and stopped again at 10 pm for sugary snacks to keep us awake. I chose Pop Rocks because they make me laugh and I needed a laugh to balance out the weary day of travel.

I choose to focus on feeling lucky to be experiencing the East Coast and being with family despite being tired. We’re creating memories, right? And happiness is a state of mind that we get to choose despite our circumstances, every moment.

I choose happiness.

nAMaste

9Jul2015

Persevere and Don’t Give Up

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We explored Washington, D.C. today during the hottest parts of the day and into the night.

We wanted to turn around and go back to the hotel or find an indoor, air conditioned place to sit. There was a lot of complaining and resistance and whining in the heat. There was so much to see and we only had a day to do as much as possible and we are not quitters, yet we were very uncomfortable.

We bought cold drinks from the corner vendor and continued our journey to the steps of the Lincoln Memorial.

We sat in the shade for awhile and rested more than we usually do, but we wouldn’t let anyone give up. We kept being cheerleaders for each other.

This was almost as important to me as sharing, touching and experiencing our nation’s history.

We were hot. We were sweaty. We were exhausted. We stuck together. We endured. And we shared an amazing day and experience and walked over 20,000 steps which is equivalent to 9 miles, together.

I am proud of my kids. I am proud of my husband. I am proud of our country. And I am proud to be an American.

The White House

Lincoln Memorial

Abraham Lincoln Statue

U.S. Capitol

Peace on the Potomac

Persevere BeLoveRs!

8Jul2015

Duty, Honor, Country

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Today we celebrated the life of a distinguished and honorable man at Arlington National Cemetery.

Jeff’s Great Uncle received a Full Military Honors Funeral and we were lucky to be present to witness such a magnificent and formal celebration with friends and family.

I will share a couple pictures that hopefully display the grace and significance of this day, while respecting the privacy of the family. I am proud of Jeff’s family and their dedicated service to our country and was honored to be here today.

Peace be with you.

7Jul2015

Liberty and Love

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We visited Philadelphia today and showed the kids the liberty bell. It’s not exactly thrilling for kids, but I felt the significance of it as a big kid.

I’m especially glad we went to see it near Independence Day as it represents our freedom, our pursuit of happiness and our rights to living freely and equally. I think it is just as significant a symbol today as it was 239 years ago.

My dream is that we continue to practice loving one another every day and accept and be curious about our differences that make us all so very interesting!

BeLoved. nAMaste

6Jul2015

Life As A Tourist

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Tonight, Juliana and I sat on the couch of our Times Square hotel, reminiscing about our day and what to blog about…she mentioned our favorite Facebook blog, Humans of New York.

Throughout our time in New York, Juliana has mentioned being interviewed by Brandon Stanton, the blogger behind HONY. She’s constantly thinking of how amazing it would be to be featured on his Facebook page, fantasizing about what the humans of the world would say in the comments section.

So, back to our night on the couch when we were talking about blog themes, Juliana says, “You know mom, I know what I would say to Brandon if he saw me on the streets of New York, he would probably ask me what I was doing. I would let him know that I am a tourist, then I would say that in life, you are like a tourist. Sometimes you find yourself in foreign places, knowing where to go, yet not knowing how to get there.”

I love the way that girl thinks. We didn’t see Brandon today, but maybe there is still time to cross paths before we continue our journey. Fingers crossed, baby girl.

Life is good!

5Jul2015

Vacationing in New York

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Time Square

M&M Store NY Firefighter

Grand Central Station

Show us your love is an appropriate caption on the monitor in Time Square.

How do you show your love?

We are showing our kids love this week by showing them parts of their beautiful world and hopefully inspiring them to explore.

Congratulations to the USA Women’s Soccer Team for winning the 2015 World Cup vs. Japan today.

Life is good!

4Jul2015

America is 239 Years Old!!

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Happy Birthday America, the land that I love!

We celebrated the day together at West Point and enjoyed exploring the campus and watching the fireworks over the Hudson, soaking in the history and American spirit.

We visited the Visitor Center, the West Point Museum and the chapel. This was interesting to me.

Hitler’s Gun was creepy to see.

I also liked learning about the women of West Point. The first female cadet entered in 1976 and the first female killed in combat was in 2005 in Afghanistan.
In the chapel, I loved the stained glass windows and the lit candle reserved in a pew for all missing comrades and prisoners of war.

We loved seeing the new cadets practicing and learning from the upper cadets and watching them march out to Trophy Point for the Independence Day activities.

How did you celebrate the 4th of July?

I hope all Americans enjoyed our freedom and independence and celebrated in red, white and blue!

Happy Birthday!!

3Jul2015

Happy 4th of July Weekend America!

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We are exploring the East Coast this weekend and I loved the friendly, American spirit in the first town we visited of Tarrytown, New York.

We noticed the flags and beautiful hanging pots and brick buildings. We liked the formal hedges and tree shaped hydrangeas. Everything is very lush here. We also noticed that there were many formal, brick and stone churches clustered close together on the sides of the main roads.

People were very friendly here and we’re jovial, enjoying the cool evening air and dining al fresco.

How are you celebrating your independence and freedom?

Life is good.

2Jul2015

Hydrating

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I carry this water cup with me almost everywhere I go. I think I drink more water this way. I actually have two of them in case one is empty or I misplace one or leave it in the car.

The funny thing is that it is always nearly empty. The reason is because I have helpers that help drain it for me.

My kids think my drink is theirs and they always want some. Since I believe in sharing and I want them to stay hydrated, I share, even though I tell them to bring their own. Maybe mine just tastes better. Maybe they are lazy and don’t want to fill their own. Or maybe I’ll just pretend they still need me.

My baby just turned 16. I think I’m in denial. Happy Birth-day!!

Cheers!!

1Jul2015

Living in the Moment

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Yes, I am.

Today, in the heat!!

Got up early to hike with my Julie girl but we were already too late and the sweat was sticking to all parts of our bodies. It was THAT hot and there was no breeze, but we endured. So thankful that we made the time to exercise and chat, and celebrated the hot moment.

I took the kids to the pool and was going to just drop them off with a friend, as I had a huge list of things I wanted to accomplish and was being given a chance to be alone for awhile, but changed my mind. I decided to stay and instead sat on a lawn chair with my friend and relaxed and cooled off and caught up with her for awhile, since I am practicing not being in a hurry. It felt so good to sit and rest in the shade, out of the hot house and having a friend with whom to share the afternoon as we enjoyed our kids too. This is what living in the moment looks like.

And then tonight, I got the “pleasure” of continuing to drive the kids around across town to their appointments. One at 6:30 pm, one at 7 pm, then got gas, and drove straight to pick one up at 7:30 pm and then ate a little bit and got back in the car again to admire the sun setting and dancing in the sky to pick the next one up at 8:30 pm. This was actually quite peaceful and made me smile. Check out what the sky can do!!

And since my little one was running 20 minutes late, I relaxed in the car, put my feet up and watched the pink moon rise up. What lovely gifts I received by not being in a hurry today and being fully present and in the moment. This is the life!
Of course, this living in the moment deal, also included anxiety and frustration and messes but those things aren’t so pretty nor fun to talk about, so I choose to leave out those little details when I write my happily ever after post about BEing in the moment. Perfectly imperfect, remember, with LOTS of imperfections along the way!