Enjoying this season of Winter

Being in my LATE 20's, single without kids, and having a stable career for the past few years has allowed me to be able to afford some fun activities- and having friends to partake in these activities has been great! During Martin Luther King, JR day weekend in January, I had a chance to meet some old college friends and a high school friend in Utah for a ski trip. The snow wasn't great for skiing, but we got to ski some really fun runs, and I got to get used to my new (slightly used) skis that my friends got my for my birthday last year. The company was the best part. We laughed so hard we cried all 3 days. We shared meals together, drank good beer and boxed wine (ha), spent hours talking in the hot tub, and made ridiculous jokes. You can only really experience things like this with people you have history with. People you have known for awhile, spent lots of time together, and know you so well! Laughter and being surrounded with friends is just great medicine for the soul.
Augustana Swimmers reunite for a ski trip!

Love getting to spend time with my old friend Nick!

3rd year in a row that we've taken a ski trip together! Love this tradition with my best buddy from high school!

The ski group, which consisted of Notre friends, Augie buds, and BGHS friends who flew in from Chicago, Denver & DC

Getting to hang out with these characters was so fun!


And then a couple of weeks ago, I went on a snowshoeing trip with some great Denver friends. We could not have asked for BETTER weather. It was a GORGEOUS day. The sky was blue, the sun was out, and the snow was deep and fluffy! We snowshoed up Tennessee Pass in Leadville to a yurt, where we ate lunch at a cookhouse. We had so much fun playing the snow together. It was a 2hr drive, and it was just nice to get away from the city and be together.
Gorgeous day in Leadville, CO

Posing for a photo with Cal & Anna

The whole snowshoe Denver group

Las chicas y mi amigas

Fluffy fun snow for snow angels

Taking a break on the trail
Eating a nice meal at the Tennessee Cookhouse

Almost approaching our lunch spot
Last week, I had the opportunity to go skiing with my students in Winter Park at the National Sports Center for the Disabled. It's always so great to see the joy in their faces when they get to go skiing. I've never been a winter weather girl, but this winter has given me many reasons to enjoy the season.

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

St. Patrick's Day

Image
Essentially this holiday seems to be a drinking holiday (at least in the US). I've always enjoyed the holiday mostly from growing up in Chicago and seeing the different traditions like dying the river green, watching parades on tv, and wearing green. Our house decided it was a good idea to throw a party.. mostly because we may have to move out soon, and it was a good excuse for everyone to get together. So... I think we invited almost everyone we knew in Denver to come to our house on a school night. It was a blast. We had around 70 people there.. all random... friends, co-workers, neighbors, people we went to church with, friends of friends, family members of friends, etc. It was a bit overwhelming... but a wonderful excuse to get together. So, thank you St. Patrick for this holiday you have started. I'm thinking about making it a new tradition! (pictured is my roommate, Laura with our neighbors Jim & Dave).
Read more

Life is Beautiful...

Image
I recently heard this quote, and it really rang true for me:  Life is beautiful not because of the things we see or do, it is beautiful because of the people we meet. I got to babysit my nephew and play with him at Gymboree! Sweet college friends, celebrating John's birthday! My roommates on Halloween My roommates took a road trip to Albuquerque for the Hot Air Balloon Festival Closest friends from high school help my nephew celebrate his first birthday! I constantly encounter people on a daily basis with my job. I am blessed by the kids I get to work with and my colleagues. There are so many people in this world that really want the best for kids and people, and I need to remember that. Those people make life beautiful. I recently started volunteering with a group of woman who are refugees from Somalia. They have taught me more about culture, overcoming adversity, and beauty more than I could ever teach them. I have been energized by conversations with really...
Read more

tres semanas en Cusco

Image
The Therapy room at Manos Unidas Asiya & I at Sacsayhuaman Out with Maite & Asiya 3 of the students in the younger autism classroom at Camino Nuevo At Wachuma reggae bar with Maite, Asiya, and Sandra Universal cuffs I made for the classroom with children with Cerebral Palsy Hola y buena tardes de Cusco. My time here has been very satisfying and interesting. Traveling alone really forces me to branch out and meet people and get to know people who are different from me. It´s been so encouraging and rewarding to meet people from all over the world with various different backgrounds, while learning the culture and getting to know many Cusquenians and Peruvians. I had to say goodbye to my volunteer buddy, Asiya last night. She is a physical therapist in Baltimore, Maryland. She taught me a new appreciation for Reggae music and was my travel buddy around Cusco. I´ve also been spending time with two girls from Spain who are doing a education psy...
Read more