Ending April with My Five Friday Smiles
On a day as busy as Friday, it can be easy to forget the little things in life. But if we take a moment each day to think about all that we are grateful for, our Friday smiles will be that much brighter. I started posting last week five things that I am grateful for or things that made me smile that week. So I am back again to share with some amazing moments that I made me smile this week.
My Oldest Daughter
Now don’t get me wrong I love all of my girls equally. But this week the oldest made me smile because I actually got to hug her neck. If you are new follower of the blog you need to know that my daughter, Maddie is attending graduate school in California. So with us on the East Coast and her on the West Coast- we don’t get to see each other often. (Thank God for Facetime.) It had been almost a year since I had seen her face in person. So when she called and said she was attending a conference in Alexandria, Virginia ( which is a 4 hour drive from us) and would have some free time if we wanted to go visit her, you better believe we jumped at the chance. It felt so good to hug her neck and having some awesome conversations with her. We even got a little exercise in- more on that later. She mentioned that this this was the first time in 25 years that it was just the 3 of us because ever since she was 2 1/2 years old and her sister came along it has never been just the 3 of us.
The Truck
I know I mentioned in the last Friday Smiles about the truck but this time it is for a different reason. Instead of taking my car, a Chevy Malibu which I love by the way, we took the truck to Virginia. It has so much more leg room than my car, it also is so roomy I was able to work on the go so I could spend more time being present with my loved ones.
The Water
I have mentioned before I am a water sign. Being by the water has also been so soothing to me. And I know that whatever is bothering me will float away in the gentle breeze. So when I looked up things to do in Alexandria and I found that there was a waterfront park within walking distance from the hotel. I just knew we had to go for it. What I didn’t bargain for was being able to see planes coming in for landing at the nearby airport, Ronald Reagan International Airport. It was such a cool experience to see the planes over the water. I could have sat there all day if I had the time, I know if we ever moved to Alexandria I would want to be there that park because it was such a great way to get some exercise. Which brings to my next smile.
Walking / Exercise
Alexandria is such a walkable city. We knew once we parked the truck we weren’t gonna leave the parking deck until it was time to leave the city. So we walked the whole time. I will admit that I haven’t walked in a while. I think that incident in the park really scared me. But I was so proud of myself I walked over 4 miles that day. Of course, we did stop along the way to enjoy the view at the waterfront.
And my Last Smile is Comfortable Clothes
I knew that since most of both days would be spent in the truck, that jeans were not going to be comfortable for me. I also didn’t want to wear leggings or sweat pants- because I either run to hot or too cold when traveling. So instead I opted for 2 very cute dresses. The first dress was a simple t-shirt with POCKETS I bought years ago from Jane.com. I have linked a similar one here. That paired with a cute pair of sneakers I bought at Fivebelow was the traveling outfit for day one.
Day two- I kept the same idea in mind. But I will admit I was slightly influenced by someone I follow on Instagram Gretta Nance to buy this cute dress from Target. It was just perfect. It had long sleeves that I wasn’t cold because it was a little chilly that morning. And it was loose enough that I didn’t feel like I was suffocating in it. I paired it with my favorite flats from Lillybee. ( I actually have 2 pairs of their flats and I love them.) I also love that I didn’t have to struggle to put them on when we stopped for bathroom breaks or food. It was a cute, comfortable and functional outfit for the journey home.
So here are my five Friday smiles. I know a lot of my smiles were about the trip, but even if you don’t get to travel much there are so many things to be grateful for in your life. For example, here are five things to be grateful for on Friday: good health, family and friends, a roof over our heads, material possessions that don’t take up space in our lives, and laughter.
So tell me what made you smile this week?
