Brownies & Brownie Pie

Tuesday afternoon already? This week is going by at lightning speed! Lately I have realized how prone I am to counting down: days until my next trip, miles until my run is over, minutes until 5 o'clock. It's such a funny thing though... the minute I stop paying attention to the minutes in the day, I find myself enjoying them more. 


You know how I mentioned my "big speaking engagement" this past weekend? Well, Sunday afternoon I was invited to share with two Brownie troops (twenty 2nd graders!) about QH2O. I was nervous. Explaining the global clean water crisis to a bunch of 7-year-olds is a daunting task . I didn't know if they would understand. I worried they wouldn't be interested. I also was afraid of upsetting them. How do you look at a child and say "Every 15 seconds a child, just like you, dies from a water related illness." But the minute I entered that room, my anxiety left me. 

They were enthusiastic and passionate. Empathetic, interested, and attentive. They asked intelligent (heartbreaking) questions. Questions I don't have the answer to. But most importantly, they were moved to act. When I talk with adults about what we are doing, many don't understand. They refuse to believe that they are capable of making a difference. Children are different though, they still know they can change the world. Even if it means saving up coins in an old milk jug in hopes of someday financing a well. I left feeling inspired, encouraged, and reassured that this field, nonprofit communications, is exactly what I want to do. 

In honor of the Brownies, I made a Brownie Pie Friday night. That's a lie. I've had this recipe marked on Pinterest for weeks and I finally got around to making it. It is delicious. The kind of thing that each bite makes you happy to be alive. And, since there are no guarantees in this life, I found it perfectly delectable with strawberries for breakfast. Brownies and brownie pie... whatta weekend. :)

winter doldrums

The days are short (but getting longer) the air is cold (but feeling colder) and the light that glimmers at the end of the tunnel seems awfully dim. It happens every year. The holiday season goes out with a bang, and then I find myself lost in the quiet stillness of the days that follow. One minute I'm driven, inspired to do great things, and suddenly I oscillate to feeling unmotivated, tired, and underwhelmed. I'm doing everything I can to fight it. From little things, like extra lattes and bright manicures to the bigger, more important stuff, like pouring myself into a project that I am passionate about and diving deeper into the Love Letters of my Savior. 


Sometimes beating the winter blues means allowing yourself that extra hour of sleep, indulging in a great book and an even better glass of wine, and taking the time to tell people you love and appreciate them. And other times it means rallying, going for that run when you don't feel like it, turning down dessert (on occasion, only because it makes it taste even sweeter the next time) and understanding that you can't do it on your own. 

As of late...

I have been flying by the seat of my pants, living out of a suitcase with reckless abandon for nearly 2 weeks now. Oh, and loving every minute of it. This is what this week looked like…

[Wednesday I got to represent QH2O at the Sysco Food Show in Raleigh. We were able to talk to so many great restaurants and some great partnerships came out of it! Very exciting. Also exciting, feeling moderately legit and almost adult. Traveling for work, staying in my own hotel room, this girl is grown.]

[And if all this adult behavior wasn't enough, I picked up my cap and gown. This girl is graduated. Well... almost.]

[but evidently, I still have to do schoolwork. I know, right? Throw in a random midnight panic crazed frenzy to put together something for a group project because group member x dropped the ball. This girl was not happy, but c'est la vie.]

and not pictured: an art studio open house, wild blueberry wheat ale (what?! a beer that is actually palatable?), my Kentucky Wildcats beating Ohio State, another trip to Raleigh (because 32 hours in the car these past 2 weeks just wasn't enough), and a fun Friday night with friends.

Gosh, with all this over-sharing the details of my personal life, I might as well get a Twitter. :)