INSPIRED! Experiences, Exposures, and Mindset....
She looks so tiny here to me, surrounded by this big big world that she so beautifully is going to be a force within!
I am definitely inspired by quite a few things in this world! People, views, emotions, colors, light, attitudes, to name a few...and believe it or not 😉...photographs!
I was in Grand Junction for 2 days visiting Gabby, and walked away feeling ridiculously inspired in my own life, based on what I was able to experience with my daughter.
I - AM - INSPIRED!
I have been noticing a trend within myself. I noticed it when I went to CMU for freshman year with Gabby, I noticed it when Farron enrolled in UCD last year and especially when we attended her orientation for her major at her dream school this year, CU Boulder. I noticed it again this weekend while spending valuable time with my oldest, one on one, just doing us.
The insane possibilities that my girls have ahead of them, inspire ME to stay young, keep going strong in my own efforts, and never give up or give in to something that doesn't make me happy! Lead by example as I KNOW they will do what I do, not what I say!
Such a college image that I had to grab..bikes, buildings and sidewalks!
I'm proud, a proud mom, who is PROUD to say that I'm inspired by my kids!
This post is more of a photo essay, and lets be real, most of my blogs are lol. I love to tell a story with images. You may see a different story than I do, but that's part of the fun!
OUTDOOR PROGRAM
One little thing that left me feeling giddy and inspired about doing something NEW in my home was our trip into the Outdoor Program office. Now funny, I have been in there before about 3+ years ago, and loved the little space, but wasn't quite as blown away as I was this time! I told Gabby I would have been happy just chillin out for a bit and looking at the giant photographs that COVERED the walls, of adventures of ALL types!! Just the right place, at the right time, for my frame of mind...Since Chris sand I are in the process of weeding out the clutter in our home, renovating and making things fresh and new for the new stages of life that all 6 of us are entering into, I thought what better time to start a new tradition!
Below are scenes from the walls...that I am going to replicate in MY home, with my own families adventures, as we have had a lot of them!!
THE HEART OF THE MATTER
The true heartbeat of my trip was my time spent connecting to my daughter. I want to share a small piece of the trip and the little pieces of happiness I experienced along the way with my baby girl, who is budding into a full fledged remarkable adult.
I rolled into town about 7:30 pm Friday, faced with a frightening thunder and lightning storm, plus a torrential downpour! I got to see her new apartment, first one ever, and just spend time taking selfies in huge bathroom mirrors and calling it a night early!
LET THE ADVENTURES ROLL
We started our day early-ish on Saturday, and had a hearty breakfast at the hotel! How MUCH do I love a buffet with huge bins of bacon?? Very much...
A trip to see the location where she gets to create the magic she creates in her field of interest left me feeling like I had just come across an elusive discovery! I hear so much about her journeys and I finally got to see where it all goes down! This is one place she finds her happiness!
We checked out a newer coffee shop downtown and enjoyed a relaxed pace while we waited for the campus to open.
Heading on over to campus, we hit the bookstore, because I need more t-shirts...duh.... ;-) and then headed off to a hike that the guy in the Outdoor Program suggested!
We ended up in the wrong place the first time around, but after some friendly people helped us, we made our way back to the monument to find our trail! There are so many incredible views, pretty much all around the entire loop of the monument, so naturally we stopped a couple times to grab some shots.
Dude hanging out the sunroof shooting footage...my kinda guy!!
After finding the somewhat hidden road to our destination, we ended up in a dead end so got out and checked out the spot! Saw some cool views, cool cacti and some odd white snail shells ALL OVER!! Not sure where they are coming from!
After driving for 1.5 hours, on a dusty, single lane off road rutted out area...lol...we didn't make it to the trail. BUT, we did find a cool place to stop, explore a little and yes, take some pictures! I LOVE watching her explore her world. She was interested in EVERYTHING, identifying things, being curious about other things! I adored this part of our day! We laughed, A LOT, and I was pleased that she took the lead and showed me what's what!!
We made our way back to the main road, stopped at quite a few MORE places for epic pictures and to enjoy the quiet.
We had made a plan for the evening as we were driving, so planned to hit a really cool second hand outdoor gear store, then go to dinner at a fun restaurant with a really nice outdoor patio area.
why not....
While walking around downtown before dinner, we came across the coolest murals, all over! Of course...we stopped.
She was bummed that she is too short to have the wings hit her in the right spot!! Took care of that problem!!!
Finally... being 5'9" paid off!! lol
This reminded me of pizza...
This mural was one of my favorites!
Dinner, was Gabby's choice, so we ate on the patio, enjoyed a burger and yes, a piece of cake, and wrapped up the day!
MY TIME HERE IS COMING TO A CLOSE...JUST FOR NOW
I had some time in the morning while Gabby went to work, to be alone outside a quiet downtown coffee shop, looking at these gorgeous sunflowers and checking in with Chris and Farron at home. I had contemplated going to the monument to see sunrise, but eating breakfast with my girl and staying a little closer to home sounded more appealing. I got the chance to share my excitement and my deep sense of happiness, calm, and inspiration that I had gained in these two short days, while I sat feeling the cool air and wrapped in the warmth of my sweatshirt and sweatpants, sipping steaming coffee. So much good stuff...
It was hard to drive away this time...as it always is. I think its because of how truly happy I am for her, and how proud I am of her. I will make it a point to give her my undivided attention more often than not. She is a true angel and one of my most two most valued treasures in this world.
Thank you dear reader as always, for following along my journey, both professional and personal. I love to share and hope that my sharing maybe can be of inspiration, or help, or just be something to someone. I get a ton from others and hope that in my own little way I am giving back by sharing my world.
I'm always open to connecting so please, reach out.
Until next time...
💓