Deep breath in..

..deep breath out..

..is not just something I say to my patients when I have my stethoscope on their back to assess their lung sounds. It's something I've said to myself a lot lately, as I try to turn my big sighs into big, deep, fulfilling breaths. (Now, don't worry, I'm not forgetting how to breathe just yet, I'm just more consciously and more frequently remembering to take a deep breath.) Breaths that allow me to take in every ounce of positivity around me. Breaths that let me smell the (hypothetical and real) roses. Breaths that force me to slow down a bit-- something I'm not particularly good at. Whether you know me solely from this blog or you know me in real life, you know that I'm always going full speed ahead, trying to take in as much of life as I can (which is in part why it's taken me so long to publish another blog post, so sorry haha).

While I find myself with the trusty reminder thanks to a lot of things in my life right now, there are a few things in particular that are good at reminding me every.. single.. time..

..and the first will come as no surprise, I'm sure. (psst, it's sunsets)

A sunset has such a powerful way of making me take a pause. This year was full of chasing the sunsets and the happy that came along with them. The way that I will stretch my neck as long as it can go and stand on my tip toes to see just a few more inches of the colors painted across the sky.. or drive a little slower over the bridge so I can catch the view just a little longer.. it smakes me smile every single time. This video is about a minute long but includes glimpses of about 50 of the sunsets I got to enjoy and capture in 2022. This year seems to be off to a pretty solid start. If you find my secret insta, you can take a peek at some of my 2023 views so far (as well as a handful or 40 of old sunsets).

Some of my favorite sunsets have been captured while I was on a boat, on a plane, or in a car. The trouble is, I'm still trying to find that happy medium between slowing down to enjoy it longer and not slowing down too much to get honked at by other drivers. It helps that recently I've been getting to play co-pilot and don't have to worry about the speed of the car, I can just pick the soundtrack and watch the beauty unfold in front of me.

I find myself smiling and taking a deep breath a lot when I'm looking up at the sky, heck I was smiling just while finding all of these photos. I know I give sunsets a lot of praise, but I've gotta give honorable mention to sunrises, the moooooon, and people (most recently my momma) seeing the sun/sky and sending me their view because it made them think of me-- debatably my favorite text to get..

..maybe only second to, "here's a recipe I found, can we make it together sometime" or more specifically, "I'm gonna need you to come early to the party to do up one of your charcuterie boards" or most recently, "how about we cook up this extravagant menu of seafood and sides for new year's eve with one of our tablescapes and fancy dinnerware to ring in the new year in style?" I may be paraphrasing a little, but you get the gist.

Now what's food without a nice drink to pair it with?! I've got to say, I think my new found favorite way to remind myself to take a deep breath is drinking bubbles surrounded by bubbles-- in the hot tub of course. What can I tell ya, I love a good theme.

Some of the best drinks have received that title simply because of the company they've been enjoyed with. I made a lot of really great connections in Charleston and am already looking forward to my next visit back into town. I strongly believe that the people make the place and while they then also make it that much harder to leave a place, they also make it that much easier to come back to it.

I simply cannot forget to shoutout some of my favorite new friends, the ones I met at the studios. If you missed it, I challenged myself to get back involved with dance during my time in Charleston, and I am so incredibly pleased that I did. I met some of the most amazing people and got to perform in two shows! It is so special to share the stage with people who share your same passion and are tapping back into something that they did growing up. I'm not one for new year's resolutions, but if you are, I may challenge you to make yours to tap back into a hobby, sport, or interest you had when you were younger. Or to pick up a new one! Give yourself the space and grace to be bad at something this year. Try something new and remember to take plenty of deep breaths while doing it. You may surprise yourself! I know I sure did on the stage!

So much so that I felt like a celebrity, but that was largely due to my fan club. I definitely couldn't have done it without y'all. Your support and love throughout my long rehearsal days and crazy schedule where when I wasn't at work, I was at dance.. and when I wasn't at dance, I was at work.. and somewhere in between there (I promise) I ate and slept.. meant the absolute world to me. Seeing you so excited for me after my shows was incredible as well. Thank you.

Leaving my second show to be greeted by a TON of the friends I had made along the way definitely was smile worthy as if I wasn't already grinning from ear to ear with how good it felt to dance (after wiping away the bittersweet tears of course). The second show was more of a recital style show where I had the opportunity to perform a solo (that was entirely improv) and two group dances. I would like to find some classes to take here in Baltimore on this next contract, so maybe I'll save telling you about those dances for next time.

For Christmas this year, my mom gifted me an aerial dance workshop which had been on my bucket list for quite some time. It was particularly neat because the class was in Baltimore and if it works with my nursing schedule, I'll be able to take more classes in the future! While I'm trained in dancing on the floor, I could definitely see myself in the silks again hopefully soon!

I took the silks class with my most favorite dance buddy, my youngest sister, which is the perfect segue into the last thing that hands down.. without a doubt.. 100%.. will always make me smile, take a deep breath, and enjoy myself. My sisters. (even the two bonus ones, iykyk). Whether we're dancing and laughing or just lounging and existing together, we always seem to have a good time. I'm very much looking forward to being closer to them/home in Baltimore here for this next contract.. that starts tomorrow! Woo! I may though be more so looking forward to first day ice cream though, the jury is still out on that one.

Until next time!