Friday.
Who’s happy that it’s Friday?!
Since there’s no rain in the weekend forecast, I sure am!
Friday Faves.
I’m going to delve right into my Friday Faves.
Vacation Clothes.
I have slightly less than three weeks before I head to the U.K. and am still missing a few clothing items I’d like…namely, black leggings.
Any suggestions on brands that don’t… bunch up around the knees…look like I’m wearing opaque stockings…aren’t made for the under 5’5″ crowd…and recognize that some women have leg muscles (this is why I love shorts so much..but, alas..I need to keep warm!)?
So I’ll be heading off to peruse some shops when I finish chatting with ya’ll.
Hiking.
Last Saturday the hubby and I took advantage of the one sunny, warm day (I was wearing a tank top and shorts! 2 days later I was back in a thigh-length down coat!)
I’ve been wanting to head over to the Peaks of Otter in Bedford and hike the Fallingwater Cascades trail. It has been one of my go-to hikes since hiking it for my 21st birthday (1998 if you don’t want to do the math). I’ll be doing a post on it once I finish post-processing my photos, but you can catch another glimpse of one of the shots here.
Outdoor Photography.
I didn’t come fully prepared for the photography.
It was intentional.
I hadn’t been to the falls in a while and knew that we’d return as we delve into spring. This was mostly about enjoying the sunshine and spending time with my husband. As such, I did not carry a tripod and (though not fully intentionally) didn’t bring along my ND filter.
I still wanted to see if I could capture the movement of the water. I used shutter priority for the setting and then adjusted to capture the least overexposed shot I could manage. I was able to edit it in a way that I was pleased with, but I will be returning with the tripod and filters once it warms up!!
Peaks of Otter Lodge.
When I hike out at the Peaks of Otter, I must dine at the Peaks of Otter Lodge.
We ate there for my 21st birthday. We always returned there when we’d come to Virginia for a visit. Its interior just has something like a classic nostalgia. It feels somewhat reminiscent of Dirty Dancing (which, FYI, the filming location of that movie is within driving distance and I’ve already requested it to the hubby as a spring expedition).
Vegan.
The hubby and I watched the documentary What the Health and he decided that he wanted to give vegan eating a try. We’d already been hearing quite a bit of its health benefits prior to watching the documentary.
As I mentioned when we did the vegetarian challenge, autoimmune disease, heart disease, and thyroid problems (which may be autoimmune as well) run in my family. I have already tested positive for autoimmune antibodies but was negative to the specific autoimmune diseases they were testing for.
The hubby had his own reasons for wanting to attempt it. We are now finishing up week two. That’s not to say we’ve been perfect. On day one, we ate a croissant and then later realized… “oh wait, there’s butter in that”. We also ordered this vegetarian meal at the Lodge. We don’t know if it included butter because we didn’t ask.
However, we took the concept and for many of our dinners, we have been cooking up pans of veggies cooked in olive oil and garlic and serving it over pasta.
I don’t know if I’ll remain fully vegan. We are doing it for health, not necessarily ethical reasons. I am not sold on the idea of there being a problem with eating eggs, although the ones I feed my teens are free-range, pasture raised…whatever I can find that’s the closest to a chicken roaming in its natural habitat.
I also won’t be putting constraints on my eating habits when I travel to the U.K. One of the experiences I love about travel is trying new foods.
Peaks of Otter.
After our lunch, we strolled around Abbot Lake. Then we sat for a bit and admired the view. The Peaks of Otter are three mountain peaks overlooking the town of Bedford (you learn something new every day…because I only have heard of two). I’ve always known about Sharp Top and Flat Top. The third is Harkening Hill.
The view here from Abbot Lake is of Sharp Top, whose highest point is 3,875 feet. Flat Top is actually the tallest of the three, rising to an elevation of 4,001 feet.
Alex and Ani.
I shared about snorkeling trip in yesterday’s post, but I didn’t get a chance to share my “souvenir” from Aruba. I love Alex and Ani bracelets. One of my friends has one from St. Maarten so when I saw the store in Aruba, I knew it was likely they would have some bracelets exclusive to the Island. There were a couple different options, but I prefer the rafellian finish to the shiny finish.
Soccer.
Due to some snow earlier in the season, Miss Sunshine had three soccer games in a row this week.
In one of those, she scored a goal!
Miss Sunshine and I spend a lot of car time together due to soccer and there are moments when I pause and realize how precious that time really is.
Books and TV and Movies.
I got sucked into some non-fiction books. I’m still perusing them to see if I want to invest fully into them, but I’m not abandoning the reading challenge that I’ve decided to do this year.
Are you reading any good books?
Although I don’t watch a lot of TV, I decided to join in on watching American Idol. While we were in Aruba, a series called The Crossing started after Idol. I admit…I’m hooked. Last night, the hubby and I watched the movie The Mountain Between Us. Have you seen it? I knew as soon as she asked him what type of doctor he was that he was going to say “neurosurgeon”. I even said it out loud before he did.
If you know my older backstories, then you know that we’ve had an incident dealing with neurosurgeons. While it can still be found in the search box, I don’t link to the post any longer because the story is only partially mine and has now become one of those moments that you can pinpoint as defining, but that you don’t often go back and rehash.
However, after having conversations with three different neurosurgeons and then later reading (because I love knowledge and was trying to learn everything about the brain) Another Day in the Frontal Lobe by Katrina Firlik (who, at the time, was one of only 200 or so female neurosurgeons), I knew that was the personality that they were attempting to portray.
Have you seen any good movies lately?
I hope you have a sunny weekend and many reasons to smile throughout the week.
Let your light shine!
Amy
I haven’t read anything good for a couple of weeks. I have Carrie Rubin’s new book, but I’ve not read it yet. My guess is it will be the good thing I’ve read lately for awhile. I’ve not watched any new movies, either.
I concur with your disappointment and expectation for leggings. I’m not a leggings person outside the gym, but my girls are obsessed with them, and I agree, too many look like tights and the ones that are reportedly the most comfy and opaque in the knit-wear department DO sag at the knee as the day goes on. It’s unfortunate.
I’m glad you’re open to vegan, but I couldn’t give up dairy, as I am not you. I’m also glad you’ll not be fussy about UK food — because as you said, much of travel is trying new things, and eating is included!
I’m not mad about the flip-flopping weather, but I find it increasingly difficult to dress. I hate that about the in-between times. What’s good at 7am is often too warm by 4pm and I am not made of jackets. lol
Peaks of Otter looks amazing! Never heard of it, and love that you’ve shared it!
Happy weekend to you!
I’ve slowed down somewhat on my reading with trying to up my decluttering process.
I was thinking leggings might be easy to wash and hang dry while in the UK. I’m trying to pack light. The knee sagging thing is quite annoying.
I do like cheese, but don’t feel like I’m overly missing it. We did a vegetarian lunch day out over the weekend so that we could have pizza with the teens. I like food too much to miss out on the new things when traveling! 😉
Our weather is all over the place. I can’t wait until it settles in to its spring self.
I love the Peaks of Otter! I’m glad you enjoyed learning about their existence! 🙂
Lots of the gals in our yacht club are wearing yoga pants instead of leggings. Not bunching up at all. Just a thought.
I feel so much better when I take just meat out of my diet. I don’t do very much dairy anyway, but meat can weigh me down.
Have a fabulous day and weekend. ♥
Thanks so much for the recommendation about the yoga pants. I do have a very old pair and you’re right about the fact that they don’t bunch. Mine happen to have a waistband that folds over which doesn’t look well with some shirts, but I’ll have to get out and look at others.
It’ll be interesting to see how I feel on this new approach to food. My body is still adjusting and I am trying to listen and figure out what it wants. 🙂
I hope that you’ve had a fabulous day!!
I love Alex and Ani bracelets, too. And I thought The Mountain Between Us was a pretty good movie, even though some of it was predictable.
I don’t watch many trailers since these days they seem to give the entire movie away so I didn’t know the complete angle of the movie. However, as it went, I did think some parts were predictable.
I’m behind with reading at the moment. I have two books to finish. I watched…binged watched season 4
of Bosch an Amazon Production. I really like cop shows and this one is a fav. I can’t wait for season 5.
Leggings- I don’t really wear them outside, but I found some on Amazon that don’t bunch up at the knees. They’re a one size fits most sort. They fit the Dark Haired Beauty who is 6ft tall. They’re opaque which I like, but they pill like mad which I don’t like.
If you find some you like I’d be interested in hearing about them.
I haven’t seen Bosch. I do love when I find a series so much that I can’t wait for the next season.
I don’t wear leggings often. I was thinking leggings might be a good wash and wear for packing lightly. I’ll let you know if I find some!
I love the shot of the stream! looks like you were going for a long exposure? Or maybe me eyes are blurry!!👀
Thanks DeeDee! Yes, I wanted to do long exposure even though I knew that I didn’t have the proper tools. I was pleased to capture what I did, but I will be heading back with the necessary gear to get an even better shot!! 💕
Can’t wait to see it?
I have a brand of leggings ha that are great! I’ll try to remember to get back to u with the name! I’ll be home Thursday night! The Seven Husbands of Evelyn Hugo, Stolen Marriage, the Nightingale are some of my faves! No good movies unfortunately!!
I’d love to hear the name of the leggings brand when you get back!! I’ll have to look into those books!
They are awesome…I’ll see if I can find the name in the meantime!
Ok! Look at Susana Monaco leggings!
Thanks!! I will do that!!
Hi Amy! That meal looks delicious! Yum! The egg debate is a big one huh?
I am currently reading two non-fiction books…Your Life in Color by Dougall Fraser and Intuitive Eating by Evelyn Tribole and Elyse Resch
I’m really loving Dougall’s book. His writing style speaks to me. 🙂 The other book is very informative too. 🙂
The meal was delicious. I completely understand where many are coming from in their opposing of the egg. I haven’t found that I need to add it, but I am very big into listening to my body when it comes to nutrition. I can tell that I haven’t gotten my eating tweaked to the best for my body…but I’m hoping that it’ll come together.
Thanks so much for sharing the books Nikki. I’ll have to look into those. I love some good non-fiction. 😊
I really love that last quote, for some reason it particularly resonates. I haven’t read any good books lately though I’ve got right back into The Lord of the Rings Trilogy.
I live in black leggings but mine don’t last either! Good luck with the vegan diets and have a great week Amy. xo
I’m glad that you enjoyed the quote Miriam. I found it seemed true at particular moments in my life. I’ve still not actually read Lord of the Rings. And I’m embarrassed just writing that. I need to remedy that quickly.
Thanks for the luck wishes on the diet! It’s a work in progress! I hope you have a great week too Miriam! 💕
No need to be embarrassed. I haven’t read it either, just watched the movies. Maybe one day …
It sounds like you’ve been busy. I still believe in a balanced diet, but there’s no harm in increasing the vegetable intake on a daily basis. I agree with you about trying the food when travelling. That’s part of the fun.
I think food balance is good. I’m still trying to figure out what that looks like for me. But I absolutely love trying new foods when traveling!!