Sunflowers & Such

Whew. It was a weekend y'all. I mentioned on Friday that I was just feeling tired and in regard to certain things, that feeling just continued for most of the weekend. In spite of those tiring emotions, I still had a good weekend and did my best to find the positive. 

Friday night I had dinner with my family at a little hole in the wall style spot called Soul Mountain that has all kinds of "soul" food - BBQ, Cajun-style food and home-cooked goodness. I had the pulled chicken plate with baked beans, fries and a corn muffin - and it was all delicious! We shared a strawberry shortcake and wandered down Main Street just a bit. 

I got home and changed into exercise clothes and took Watson on a walk/run of about two miles - Watson started the outing off going at full tilt and I was running to keep up with him! We saw a family of deer on our return to the house and then I spent the rest of the evening doing some tidying in my bedroom and watching Into the Unknown: The Making of Frozen II on Disney+.

 

Saturday morning I got in 3+ miles before getting ready to conquer the day. My Mom and I went shopping and I got some great deals at Loft and Old Navy before grabbing a quick lunch at Panera and making a quick Target run. After a couple hours at home that I spent relaxing and changing my clothes, we headed to Ashburn to have dinner at Clyde's Willow Creek Farm - such a divine spot to eat!

I had the most delicious herb & cheese ravioli with ratatouille and we all split a dish of blueberry bread pudding with a lemon glaze drizzled on it - it was all so very good! We left from Ashburn and headed over to Nokesville where we picked sunflowers at Burnside Farms - and the sunflower fields were beautiful! 

 





 

I've never been a huge sunflower person but after this, maybe I'll be changing my tune. We have picked tulips at Burnside Farms on previous occasions but this was the first time picking sunflowers and the fields stretched out in every direction with the bright yellow flowers making a field of sunshine. 

 

The tickets included three sunflowers per ticket, so as we made our way through the sunflower maze and in between the rows of flowers that were (some of them at least) as tall as my head, we chose the ones we thought were best. It was so much warmer than I'd thought it would be and by the time we'd wandered just a bit, I had sweat rolling down my back... but even still, we kept on going. When it was all said and done we had nine beautiful sunflowers and my new jeans were so tightly stuck to my legs they felt like a second skin! 

 

 

Sunday was a pretty relaxed day - after church and some lunch out, I spent the afternoon around the house chatting with my sister, doing my nails and generally just being a bum. I had Monday off because I got to go have a root canal done... the first of two... thankfully it went well and by 11:30 on Monday I was done with that and headed home again. 

 

Next week I get to go have the second root canal done - but I feel much better going into it now that I know what to expect. Like I said - it was a good weekend even if I felt (and still sort of feel) emotionally and; at times, just physically exhausted. Here's to a less stressful work week and a good weekend on the horizon. 

Friday Feelings

It's Friday but honestly - I don't have a whole lot to share this week unless you want to settle in for a session all about my feelings. I like to think this whole pandemic skewed world we are living isn't affecting me as much as it is - but then there are weeks like this one where I just feel tired.

Tired of the endlessness of this pandemic and the constant wondering when life will return to something resembling normal - if ever. I am trying to embrace this season and find joy in it and honestly - I've been able to to do that here and there. However, some days (or weeks) just feel particularly draining and on a whole just leave me feeling a bit tired of it all. I'm sure y'all understand! 

I've shared an article before by Erin Moon - she's involved in the Popcast and is all around just a lovely human being. I get her newsletter each week and she shared today the ways that each Enneagram was (potentially) coping with this whole pandemic - and as a six, I thought I'd share that list here with you. 

6️⃣ Sixes “Stay informed about all sides of the argument. And drinking.” “All the news, because if I can know enough I’ll be safe obviously.” “Deliberately avoid the news yet stay informed so I can try to stay prepared.” “I play “It Could Get Worse” and find random catastrophes that are yet to happen.” “All things murder/true crime. It could be worse!” “Laughter and comedy - watching funny stuff and telling funny stories.” “Re-watch TV series where I know the ending.” “Comfort shows like The Office and Great British Baking Show" “I read cookbooks for things I’m never going to cook. Very little chance of failure there.” “To be honest the only thing that has helped is Prozac.” “Showering in the dark!”

I can honestly say that one of those points that 100% rings true for me is deliberately avoiding the news but still trying to stay informed. I can't stand the news - I didn't trust the televised stuff to begin with and then a friend that works in the news media told me print was my best bet, so his advice just solidified my thoughts on that. 

I generally play "It Could Get Worse" sometimes when life is normal (whatever that means anymore) and I absolutely love re-watching favorite shows. I read somewhere that people that have anxious tendencies love watching their favorite shows over and over because the ending isn't surprising and that's a comfort... which, I'll buy that. Although nothing about Game of Thrones ending was a comfort... *sigh*

I'll cease and desist with the rambling for now. I'm going to do my best to find some joy this weekend and try my best not to let the craziness and monotony of the day to day get me down. I'll be back next week and hopefully be feeling like my normal delightful self. 

Watson Wednesday

He's the cutest - especially when he scales the furniture to beg for bites. 

August Already?

Oh hello again. It's already Monday - how did that happen so quickly? I think the pictures I took goofing off in my office on Friday are pretty on the nose in regard to how quickly the weekend passed - it's all going so well and then *pop* the weekend has ended. Oh well - onward into more of this weird year.

 

It rained for a good chunk of the day on Friday - but by the time I'd finished dinner at Macado's, the sun had come out and the temperatures were not sweltering, so it was off to Strasburg to grab ice cream from Sugar Creek Snowy & Sweet - which has; hands down, some of the best ice cream I've ever tasted in my life. I chose Lemon Bliss and Birthday Cake - and they were to die for! 

  

Strasburg is just a small Northern Virginia town but the murals on Main Street are pretty fascinating to me and I enjoyed taking the time to wander up and down Main Street and snap some pictures of the murals (those I could get a good picture of...) and enjoy that the weather didn't feel so oppressive. We also attempted to figure out where there might be a good spot to hop into the river to go tubing on our own...  

I have no pictures from Saturday morning - I joined my parents in Middleburg to have lunch at Red Horse Tavern and explore some of the shops on the Main Street that were taking part in the annual Sidewalk Sale. While having lunch out on the patio, there was a constant parade of face masks making as people ambled past the Tavern and I just sort of sat back and marveled at it all - 2020 continues to be one of the strangest years I've ever lived. 

  

We stopped back by the house for a little over an hour to walk the dog and just chill out a little bit. I took some headache pills and proceeded to take a nap and thankfully the combination of both knocked out the headache I'd been battling all morning. We headed into Shenandoah National Park for dinner at Skyland Lodge - the Pollock Dining Room recently reopened for dining and we always have such good meals there, so we decided Saturday evening was the perfect time to go. 

 

After dinner we made our way slowly back down the mountain - stopping at multiple viewpoints here and there. The pictures above were taken on opposite sides of the mountain - the one with my hair down is looking East and the one with my hair up is looking West - you can see beautiful views in both but that was an anomaly when looking to the West. The rain that had been forecast for Saturday was hovering in clouds that drifted over the peaks in waves of mist, obscuring the views to the West.

 

At one point we stopped and just sat along the rock fencing at an overlook and watched the mist roll around the trees and wildflowers, moving like a living thing as it wound in between branches and over the rock wall, continuing it's journey up and over the mountain. I took a couple time lapse videos that show the mist moving eerily along - perhaps I'll share one later in the week; I couldn't get them to upload today!

 

Once back at home, we discovered that a huge thunderstorm had come through the area and Watson went a little nuts - spiraling rugs around in his panic - bless his heart. I gave him his cookie from the pet shop in Middleburg and then watched a little Somebody Feed Phil. It was a good Saturday. 

Sunday after church we drove deep into the backwoods to the Woodstock Tower - a metal fire tower structure that is perched atop the peaks of the mountains and offers stunning views of the Shenandoah Valley spreading out around it. There is a small hike to it - maybe 2/10ths a mile - if that... and then, up the stairs and the views unfold out in front of you. I love living in the mountains. *sigh* 

 

 

 

The views were great - I think the pictures are proof enough of that! It was pretty warm on Sunday but thankfully the combination of being a little higher up and there being a pretty stiff breeze made it tolerable! We wound down the mountain and I snapped a picture of the Shenandoah River spilling over a dam as we made our way into "downtown" Woodstock - which is another small Northern Virginia town. 

We grabbed an afternoon snack from Katie's Custard - my Peanut Butter Sundae was divine! It's been ages since I've had a sundae of any kind and it was definitely a treat! Not the kind of treat I should be having too often since I've still got a way to go to meet my fitness goals - but a free weekend every once in a while, that's fine too. All things in moderation! 

We met up with friends for dinner at our favorite Mexican place and as we left, I snapped a picture with my sweet Jimmy. When I moved here six years ago he was a scrawny six year old obsessed with Star Wars and Marvel and he was a short little shrimp. Now he's almost thirteen and more interested in his cell phone and *gasp* girls... but thankfully he was happy to snap a picture with me. 

After winding through Wal-Mart following the "Walk This Way" signs (Aerosmith anyone?!?) and grabbing a few things for the week ahead, it was home to watch Somebody Feed Phil, read and prepare for another work week! I can't believe it's already August - but this weekend was a good way to start it!