Category: maryland girl

Weekly Mindset: Appreciate the Simple Things

I’m totally appreciating so many things right now. I took a walk today at lunch, and frolicked (if you will) a little. I even played around on the neighborhood playground and giggled. I realized how that little bit of play brightened my mood pretty significantly.

It brought back memories from childhood when my friends and I used to create obstacle courses on my swing set. It got my heart pumping. The air made me smile. Plus my endorphins were flowing. It was so simple and such a mood booster.

“As the heart flourishes, the mind eases, and so gratitude practice can help to lessen our experience of anxiety and stress, improve the quality of our sleep, and enhance the equanimity we find within ourselves and within our relationships at large.”

mindfulexercises.com

Appreciating simple things has certain benefits, such as improved sleep quality, overall mood improvement and improved emotional regulation.

Author and thought leader Mike Robbins says that there are two things that can help you to appreciate the simple things. They are 1) being easily impressed and 2) being hard to offend. When we are appreciating life’s small miracles, we are opening ourselves up to being grateful and fulfilled.

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This makes me think of a conversation I just had about celebrating birthdays. For one person, a small celebration is an evening outing to the local Top Golf. Whereas for another person, a small celebration is a quick trip to Vegas or a week in Dubai. I would never say that someone shouldn’t treat themselves however they see fit, or that people shouldn’t aim high, but it’s easy to see how one is more attainable than the other. Attainable, simple joys are needed just as much as large scale treats and rewards. But if you only look forward to the large scale events, how do you enjoy your daily life? Every day just will not be a trip overseas. How do you find a reason to smile each day or to feel grateful for the little things that make life wonderful?

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I believe in appreciating the small things, and this week that list includes:

  • the amazing crisp fall air
  • the BEAUTIFUL leaves and all of their awesome colors
  • being able to be a digital nomad
  • a healthy family
  • my health
  • good shows to binge watch
  • amazing friends
  • a healthy relationship
  • stable employment
  • access to modern healthcare
  • a roof over my head
  • safety
  • a neighbor who plays the saxophone (after living next to HORRIBLE, loud, aggressive neighbors)
  • peace

There are so many daily things to appreciate. And the benefits of acknowledging the little things in life are wonderful for your mental and physical well-being. Don’t just save appreciation and gratefulness for the holidays. Do it today, and do it often. I’m going to make it part of my daily routine.

What are you grateful for this week?

justamarylandgirl5 Comments

A Reflective Moment

Photo by Sarah li on Pexels.com

I got some sad news this week about the passing of a high school classmate. The whole thing just hit me in such a weird way. I wasn’t particularly close to this classmate, but I went to such a small school in a small town so everyone in my school knew everyone in some way. Even as a grown-up 25 years after graduation, if you hear a name, you immediately remember the classes you had, or how you went on a class trip, or how you crushed on so-and-so’s older brother, or how you used to play kickball in the cul-de-sac.

So I heard about this classmate, I saw a recent picture of her, and though I could see remnants of the person I remembered, her face in the picture carried the weight of the mental illness that she lived with throughout her adult life. I had no idea. She was a popular girl. A cheerleader. Cute as a button and sweet as can be. Her life was supposed to turn out perfectly. She was supposed to be the one we admired at the reunion because everything turned out as perfectly as you’d expect for the adorable, smart, bubbly cheerleader from high school. She rode on floats and got lifted to the top of pyramids. She was kind. Seeing that picture, with the wrinkles and dark circles, yet with the slight glimmer of the cheerleader from days past that I remember…and reading the family tributes about how things were for her later in life, it all just settled on me so heavily.

Of course your life is more than a picture, and there’s no telling what twists and turns life can throw at anyone over the course of 25 years. You never know what people are dealing with and what demons they battle. You don’t know what trauma they encountered or how that trauma impacted their life. She wasn’t someone I’d keep in touch with but she’s definitely someone I assumed would go on to great things and someone I thought would live well. It threw me for such a complete loop.

It’s all just a weird and sad reminder to be grateful for my health, to not make assumptions about what someone is going through, to live while I can, that life is short and that tomorrow is never promised.

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Five pics Friday: Fall and stuff

Photo by Madison Inouye on Pexels.com

This week was the epitome of early fall here in Maryland. The leaves are changing, the weather was warm, cool and crisp all at the same time, and the evenings are coming earlier and earlier every day.

While fall is awesome for weather purposes, it definitely lets you know that we are properly in the fourth quarter of the year. Winter is waiting in the wings and all of the holiday prep is about to get started in full force.

But in the meantime, I am enjoying my morning walks for coffee and my afternoons with fresh air and open windows.

Here are my five pics from my week.

From top to bottom:

1. Sometimes mail is a good thing I ordered some fun stuff from Etsy, and can’t wait to try it out!

2. The cold, rainy, wind advisory weather on Tuesday was perfect for a dimly lit bar and a glass of Tempranillo.

3. I bought a couple of accessories from Avon recently and these are two pieces that I really love. A simple dainty knot bangle and a sparkly ring. Great pieces to throw on with any outfit! And they were on clearance, so it’s a double win for me!

4. I snatched this cozy number up from Columbia. It will be the perfect addition to my fall wardrobe. The weather dropped while I was out so I wound up wearing it before I even got it home. I am proud of myself because I also bought gifts for my niece and nephew and I am NEVERRRR this early with my holiday shopping. Ever!

5. Sometimes the best pics are out of focus, amiright?

How was your week this week? Did you do anything fall-ish?

justamarylandgirl3 Comments

Airbnb Journey: The two-story condo in Frederick, MD

The next stop on our airbnb journey was a two-story condo in Frederick, Maryland.

I grew up in southern Maryland, so with Frederick being in the northern part of the state, it always seemed like it was SO far away. And I never really had any occasion to go there. So although it is in my home state, this home was still a part of the state I had never been to, so it felt like a new experience for me.

When this host described the two-story condo in Frederick as “serene”, it felt like exactly what we needed. It fit our price point, and though it only had one review at the time, it just felt like it a good move. I truly love quiet…and “serene” is basically “quiet 2.0”, right?? Plus it had three bedrooms, 2.5 baths, modern fixtures, a workspace…everything about it felt right.

Well…lol…

Let me start by saying, the home was exactly as described from a visual standpoint. The rooms were identical to the pictures, if not better. The community was fairly new and very picturesque. Parking and check-in were both simple. It felt like the perfect place to call home for the next month. We unpacked the car, sat down to catch our breath, and literally the moment we started chillaxing, we heard it.

It was definitely the sound of footsteps and tumbling in the unit above. The way the home was set up was that our unit had the bottom two levels, and then there was another two-story unit stacked on top of ours. So…ok, if the unit is described as serene…aka quiet 2.0…then clearly this was the sound of a visitor’s child, right??? It had to be a total anomaly. Nobody would describe their home as “serene” if there are children ripping and running upstairs….RIGHT!?!?!

Well…1am came along and the running and tumbling was still happening. 2am. 3am. WHAT. ON. EARTH.!?!?!?!?! They definitely must have some family staying with them for the weekend, RIGHT!?!?!?!

Next morning, running.

Evening, running.

Night, running.

Middle of the night, running.

OH. MY. GOD.!!!! What in the actual eff is going on!?!?!? So I sent a note to the host. The host told me that was not the norm, and assured me that he would speak to the homeowner. OK, so that’s that. RIGHT!?!

Only it wasn’t. Next night, running, tumbling, jumping….through the day, and also at night. I remember waking up at 3am and still heard it. For a quiet person with no kids, this was an absolute nightmare. We were on day 3 or our 30-day stay, and I already felt like crying! I don’t have kids and I know I’m not one for parenting advice but…this is ridiculous!!! I’ve lived in townhomes before, I’ve lived in apartments before…this was some next level ish! It felt like I was living below a gymnastics studio that doubled as a bowling alley! WHO LIVES LIKE THIS!?

Well, I’ll spare you the details. It did calm down for a day or so, but ultimately wound up being an every day and every night thing for the duration of the stay. Some days were better than others, but this was an overall theme for the stay in this home. I wound up running into the tenant who told me that their child has some issues (no apologies, no offers to do better…more like just deal with it), and while that is so incredibly unfortunate, it totally impacted my stay.

But let’s move on to the things I did like about my stay, which I tried so hard to use to offset the upstairs chaos.

The Community. The airbnb itself was in a newer suburb. It was well-manicured and well taken care of. The location was fairly convenient to the grocery stores, there wasn’t a ton of fast ridiculous traffic, and everyone that we passed on our near-daily walks was always super duper nice! We were in a really heightened climate as a nation during that time, and personally I had a lot of issues with just feeling physically and mentally safe for many reasons. But I was put at ease when we took our walks around the neighborhood. I loved that people would speak to us, offer a smile, and even maybe make a funny comment about the weather or something… instead of just maneuver as far away from us on the sidewalk as possible when they passed by. So this, I loved.

Frederick is a bedroom community of both DC and Baltimore, so while a lot of people commute to those cities to work, Frederick has culture all its own. It is located where the Catoctin Mountains meet the Piedmont Mountains, so very crisp air and gorgeous mountain views even when you’re just driving to the craft store. And definitely a great escape from the pace of a major city. There were tons of farms and open space, there was suburbia and shopping centers, and then there was also the downtown historic area which was a short drive away and full of entertainment. And one of the best parts of the city is Carrol Creek, which is a mile-long riverwalk area that has restaurants, shops, an art museum, seating, a distillery, ducks…just a really cool spot for hanging in the city on a nice day.

The Wineries. And then there were the vineyards tucked away in the mountains. I have always been a lover of wineries. I typically hate crowded spaces, so with the pandemic, there was even more reason to find activities that were naturally socially distant. Wineries totally fit that bill. On several occasions, we would pick one of the several local wineries and trek out for a day of wine tasting, gorgeous views, and fresh air. There were so many to choose from on the Frederick Wine Trail. We visited four wineries (a couple of them more than once), and each winery was so unique and peaceful. We even had a couple of guests come visit, and we took them to the wineries as well. If you don’t stay in Frederick for any other reason, definitely go for the vineyards!

Decisions, Decisions… The timing of our trip prevented us from doing some things. We were still in the middle stages of the pandemic. We personally were only opting for outside dining. And a lot of places were still grappling with covid protocols and reduced business hours. It was also still cold-ish (it was March at the time) so that also impacted how long we wanted to endure outdoor activities. While we did a lot of walking around and standing outside, there were things we totally passed on because it didn’t line up with our social distance preferences.

Towards the end of our stay, we had a decision to make. Knowing that the world was starting to open up a little more, and realizing that there was more to see and do in Frederick now that temperatures were warming up, we decided to stay another month at this home. It was a hard decision because the rowdy neighbor made being in the home very difficult, but we knew there was more that we wanted to see and do…and aside from the neighbor, we really liked the space, the area, and price point for the home.

Overall. We thoroughly loved the condo in Frederick, and if not for a crappy neighbor, this home would have definitely been an excellent and serene stay. But because of our visit, we have now added Frederick, MD to our list of possible places to settle down once we get called back into the office. I never would have even considered Frederick before staying there but feel like it’s the place to beat at this point!

It’s so unfortunate that we had the issues that we had in this home, because otherwise we truly loved the space. We would definitely airbb again in Frederick, MD and highly recommend the area if you’re considering a trip there for any reason.

Have you been to Frederick, MD? Have you stayed in an airbnb that was a great space with one or two exceptions? If so, how did that impact your overall feeling about the home?

justamarylandgirl2 Comments

Airbnb Dilemma: I don’t want to leave a bad review but…

Photo by Erik Mclean on Pexels.com (* pic is not of the actual home I’m writing about)

UGH! So…I’m closing out my month of staying in an airbnb and…for the most part, it’s been a lovely stay. It’s a well-appointed, spacious beach condo, with a very well stocked kitchen, an amazing showerrrr (my God!) and thoughtful touches. We have not wanted for anything in the kitchen, the wifi has been flawless, and the furniture is all quite comfortable.

HOWEVER…there is one issue that the host included in her welcome packet, but never mentioned in her listing…because why would you, right? So now here we are, on the one hand, totally livid about this particular issue…and on the other hand quite happy with our stay, and we don’t know what to do when it comes to review time.

Of course, the purpose of the review is to give some feedback about your stay so that future guests can know what to expect from the home and the host. But on the flip side, this is how hosts make their money, and do I want to be the reason that a host may have problems obtaining future renters? Because I’m pretty sure this would be a deal breaker for a lot of people. That’s a lot to put on my plate!

So…I’m honestly not really sure what the answer is and we have a couple weeks to decide what to do. We have let the host know about our issues, so it’s not like we’d be catching her off guard. But…I don’t know…I just don’t want it on my conscious if I’m taking money out of her pocket.

What if our experience was a fluke? The host has hundreds of other reviews and they are all glowing. I really don’t have any good advice, but if you have some, please let me know what it is!

What to do, what to do…

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