Wonder Grace Joy: Goodbye Summer

While thinking about this post, I had mixed emotions about this Summer. There were some really really good parts to it and then there were some not so good parts to it. Now that I am sitting down to actually write this post, I have good emotions about the Summer. It's definitely weird to think that another season has come and gone and its even more weird to that we are basically in the 4th quarter of 2022. Shocking!

This Summer was filled with so many things and it felt like it was back to normal...kinda.

One of the best things that I did this summer was spending time outside. Between going for walks at parks, running, amusement parks, gardens, a pool party, paddleboarding and just soaking up the sunshine, I got a lot of vitamin D this Summer. That was a big goal for me this year, in general, spending time outside and I feel like I have accomplished that pretty well so far.

Vacation in North Carolina was so good. We were able to see so many different things and packed a lot into a few days. It was a great first vacation after the crazy few years we had. I was so happy with how much fun and adventures we went on and how saying yes to adventures took us to some pretty cool places. That seemed to be a theme of the Summer, saying yes to things I normally wouldn't do. Ride many roller coasters? YES! Go to a pool party? YES! Run a 5K? YES! Drive to the summit of a mountain? YES! Go on an overnight work trip? YES! Wanna see Lady Gaga at MetLife? YES! Want to go listen to Green Day in Asbury? YES! You get the jist of it. I said yes to adventures that ended up being some pretty great memories.

I put myself out there and did a few things by myself; things that I truly love and missed. Going to Crafter Dark at the Library and going to Yoga at Gravity Vault. I was pretty nervous going to both by myself, in a new setting and trying to meet other like minded people. Crafter Dark at the library ended up being really cute and while it was hard for me to get to it this Summer, I am hoping to go in the Fall. Yoga ended up being better than I could have imagined. I knew going to yoga at Gravity Vault would be different but I didn't realize how welcoming and kind the teacher AND the other people practicing would be! I truly look forward to it each week and I have seen improvement in my practice so much. The climbing community is in general so kind and welcoming, I should have realized that yoga in a climbing gym would be exactly the same. This is something I wished I thought of sooner because I feel there are so many benefits in yoga and maybe it would have pulled me out of my little meh-ness quicker. (You always see things in hindsight huh?)

One surprising thing I really enjoyed- even with my eyes closed and my hands gripping the handles are ROLLERCOASTERS! Kyle and I ventured to 3 amusement parks together this summer and if I had to rate them on how much I enjoyed them, it would go as follows:

1. Knoebels 2. Carowinds 3. Dorney Park

I can gush on about how adorable Knoebels is but I will spare you on that because you have to experience it yourself to fully understand. I think the only reason why Dorney is last is because I was tired and the bathrooms were so far apart! (#ibdproblems).

My very first coaster Fury 325 at Carowinds was SO tall and SO fast. Kyle made the right decision not telling me how fast nor how tall it really was. I went into that one completely blind. (Literally blind because I couldn't wear my glasses!) AND getting me on this one first, made all the other ones not so scary (no, they were still scary but I knew I had conquered a huge one already so these seemed easier.)

My favorite coaster was Phoenix at Knoebels because it was an old wooden one and the only 'safety' thing was a lap bar. Kyle put his arm around my shoulders and we had so much fun (I opened my eyes at one part on this ride!) and we I just giggled and squealed the whole time. There were a few times we got some 'hang time' and it was the coolest feeling. I think my roller coaster count by the end of the Summer was at 20ish.

I spent a lot of time with my parents this Summer too. That was super important to me. Besides spending the week together in quarantine, we got a chance to go out to lunch, brunch and have some fun days doing things we used to- errands together, playing trivia and eating family dinners. I have realized my time is precious and I need to make time for things that are important to me and family is definitely one of those things. We were able to take some great family photos this summer, and I will cherish those for a very long time. My parents went on a few adventures, by themselves too! I loved getting selfies from them where they ventured to.

Earlier this month, I hit a big savings goal of mine and it made me feel REALLY happy and proud. As you know, I have been saving money to buy a house. While I don't think I am fully really to dive in again to house hunting, it is nice to see that the money I have been saving is growing and when the time is right, I will be able to purchase my own home. I think this is the first Summer in two years, that I did not go see a house that was for sale. I am hoping that the housing market levels out for us commonfolk to be able to afford to purchase something other than a cardboard box.

As one of my goals this year, to be the best version of myself, I feel like I have been working hard towards that and while its hard to actually quantify that metric; I have seen results of things I have been repeatedly do and the feeling of gratefulness and kindness has really been shining through the last few weeks. I feel a sense of accomplishment and calmness that I haven't felt in a long time.

I have been chasing things that bring me joy; whether its been pulling over to take a photo of a sunset, or buying the crocodile pencil case or being drawn to bright colors in the store, I feel like joy is all around me and I try to show it to others too. You never know what a smile or a kind "have a great day!" will do for someone.

In the beginning of the Summer, I made the post about looking forward on what I want to do with Wonder, Grace & Joy. One of the things I wanted to do was to monetize my blog. I dipped my toes into the influencer pool and its been interesting. I am still trying to figure out how I want to go ahead with that and how I want it to align with my true self. I have some ideas and contacts that I am eager to get together and figure out how to fit it all into the Wonder, Grace & Joy umbrella. Its a work in progress and while this might take a while, it has been a fun adventure.

When I signed up for Couch to 5K program in the beginning of the Summer I had NO idea that I would fall in love with running so much. I really got a big push when I ran the 5K and did better than the last one I ran. I thought to myself, I did that! and I kinda enjoyed myself! I challenged myself at the beginning of September to run at least 1 mile a day. Well, here we are 21 days into the month and I am really proud that I have stuck with it for this long. I can't wait to see what my total mileage is at the end of the month.

Summer has always been in my mind, a time for adventures and I truly can say, this was an adventure filled Summer. New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina were the five states I traveled to; within those states (and New Jersey, of course) I got to go a variety of places. Some of the highlight adventures were Brooklyn for pizza and Ikea; Staten Island for cupcakes; Kennett's Square for Longwood Gardens; Elysburg for Knoebels; East Rutherford for Lady Gaga; Asbury Park for the Berkeley Pool and Green Day; Hamilton for Grounds for Sculpture; Long Valley for Hacklebarney State Park; Navasink River and the Cedar Creek for Paddleboarding;North Carolina for Mount Mitchell, Sliding Rock and Asheville and finally New Jersey for all the small everyday adventures I went on.

Summer, overall you were pretty awesome. Thank you for all the wonderful memories and photographs I took. I will think of you when there is snow on the ground and all I can do is just dream about sunny warm days ahead.

Did you miss any of my Summer themed posts? Find them below: