WANDERING WEDNESDAYS

“Unexpected kindness is the most powerful, least costly, and most underrated agent of human change.” (—Bob Kerrey) There is no greater gift that we can give our children than to teach them to be compassionate and kind. In a summer filled with so much laughter and so many blessings, we set out this Wandering Wednesday to share the love and some kindess, to give back to our community, and to hear the stories of how some truly great organizations are making a big impact in the

“Happiness, that grand mistress of the ceremonies in the dance of life, impels us through all its MAZES and meanderings, but leads none of us by the same route.” (-Charles Colton) The BIG MAZE at the National Building Museum has been on our "bucket list" this summer, so we wandered this weekend to Washington, DC, to check it out! (http://www.nbm.org/exhibitions-collections/exhibitions/the-big-maze.html) "The Museum, in partnership with BIG-Bjarke Ingels Group, has created

“To pay homage to beauty is to admire Nature; to admire Nature is to worship God” (author unknown) As we spent the first part of summer on the go (we don't sit still well), we decided to slow down a bit this Wandering Wednesday and stop and smell the roses... except the roses were blueberries. Our day was filled in awe and wonder of nature's gifts. (Check out our photos at the end of the blog!) Our first stop: The Swift Creek Berry Farm to pick blueberries. This family run f

"Mermaid Tears" by Nancy Crossman Oh how many tragic tears, 
Must mermaids weep each day? To leave behind the trail of gems, 
Washed up on the shore in the bay. Beautifully sculpted sea glass, 
Is mermaid’s tears they say, But it may be magical, mystical dust, 
Sprinkled by mermaids at play. Maybe the sparkling pieces of glass, 
Were not really theirs to keep, So every day, when the tide goes out, 
They toss them back onto the beach. Perhaps they’re being playful, 
Teasing us

It was formed 400,000 million years ago. It was discovered 136 years ago. Scientists from the Smithsonian felt compelled to write that “there is probably no other cave in the world more completely and profusely decorated with stalactite and stalagmite ornamentation than Luray Caverns." (Photo source: Luray Caverns) Growing up in early 70's in the DC area, I remember the uber-kitschy TV commercials for Luray Caverns with its groovy rainbow colored lights, the world famous stal

Every adventure, every journey, every road trip, needs an ANTHEM. Or at least that's what happens in the movies. The heroes and heroines embark on their quest in a rousing blaze of emotive music that motivates them and creates excitment. The kiddos and I thus decided that we needed an anthem of our own for Wandering Wednesday. We think we have found just the right song: "Wake Me Up" by the Swedish band Avicii. Our new tradition is blaring this song as we start the engine

eman-ci-pate - to free (someone) from someone else's control or power With the 4th of July right around the corner, I was thinking this week about what it means to be free. Freedom comes in many forms: freedom from bondage, freedom from tyranny, freedom from social constraints, freedom of expression, freedom of religion, freedom of education, freedom from fears and self-doubt, "free to be you and me" as the song goes. How truly blessed are we to be in a country that champi