Travels, Adventures & Giving Back

I have been travelling a lot for work lately. My travels in January took me to both oceans - the Atlantic & Pacific.

I did a whirlwind tour of Atlanta, Huntsville, Raleigh, Charlotte, and Greenville all in one week. There were lots of "little" planes involved... eek. Of course I managed to catch the sniffles on one of those many trips.

Then I went to Orange County and San Diego. The best part is being able to find a little time to reconnect with old friends. In Atlanta I had dinner with Kristin and her husband - she is a friend from high school that I haven't seen in years. Got to see their amazing home and peak in on their sleeping kids. And in California, I met up with Nicole for dinner. In between my blowing my nose, we had a great visit and caught up on post-married life and recent adventures.

I'm off to Dallas, Austin, and New Orleans in about a week. I'm planning to meet up with an old co-worker in Dallas to do some networking and a friend from college in New Orleans. I'm leaving New Orleans just before Mardis Gras so that should be CRAZY!

I've been voluteering with a group of ladies in a club called Soroptimists here in Chandler. It stands for "the best in women" and we work through service projects to advance human rights and the status of women. We meet weekly for lunch and plan fundraisers to raise moeny for charities that help women.

We sold soda at Chandler's Multicultural Festival in January. The higlight was this amazing African fold band and tribal dancing. See "man dancing on stilts" photo - absolutely amazing.

We also just donated $500 to an organization called Heifer International which donates animals to families internationally who are struggling with poverty and starvation. They have an amazing mission to end world hunger. Check them out at: http://www.heifer.org/

These amazing Soroptimists ladies also have a bookclub, which I attended in January. We discussed My Sister's Keeper by Jodi Piccoult. It was the bookclub I've alway dreamt of. 20 women ranging from 30 to 85 years old. We shared a great dinner in an amazing cozy home, then discussed the book for over 2 hours. And the discussion was moderated by a retired librarian. It was inspirational!!

And to top it all off I had a great evening of red wine, hummus, and my favorite girlfriends this month. Kelly was in town so what better excuse to get together with the girls and compare notes on life, travels, work and fashion!!