Women of noble character are few and far between these days. Proverbs 31 talks about a wife of noble character and how she rises before her family to make them food and feeds her servants. She buys land and with the profit plants a vineyard. She goes out to far regions to get food and brings it home. She makes clothing and bedding for her family and also sells it at the local market. She's a business woman, a mother, a wife, and wonder woman. She takes care of those in her life and is the pride of her husband.

Looking at this from a single standpoint, I want to be that kind of boss to my staff, that kind of girlfriend someday, that kind of friend, roommate, daughter, sister, aunt, granddaughter, etc. I want to show my family, friends, community and workplace that I will take care of them, work with them, help them, be a woman of good character to them. God's called us to be the most we can and although this proverb is a bit outdated, it still rings true at how women have always been the ones who take care of everything for everyone.

I know that I have the best staff available from marketing and administration to design and development - not only because they know what they're doing but because they're dedicated to me. I believe that my hard work shows them that I am dedicated to them, that I will never let them down, never fail them, never give up. I will work as hard as possible for the greater good of my company which in turn gives them the chance to succeed in every way possible. If I work hard, they will also work hard. If I give to them, they will give back. While learning to be of noble character, I've learned to see the best in everyone who works with me and it has allowed me to use them to their full potential and push them past their normal boundaries. Being the best boss allows my employees to be their best selves.

Through networking I meet so many different types of people. It seems that my networking events attract the good-hearted, noble people that I want to surround myself with. If others come and don't find a fit, they don't return which allows us to continue to build up this incredible group. I have to be at my utmost during these events, introducing people to new faces, making sure no one is alone, allowing conversations to start flowing. Growing into this woman of noble character is allowing me to find my center and to give back to those people in need. I want all the people I touch to know that they are welcome, that I am happy to have met them and that I am not a woman who talks badly about others no matter the circumstances. We are only human and it's not easy to be at our best all the time but we can hope to hit our groove at some point.

In my personal life I touch so many people. Through church, at home, friends, dating, family. I have serious struggles with people in all areas of my life. Over the past 2 years I've learned more about myself than I ever have before. Just in the last 2 months I've grown in painful ways that have allowed me to open my eyes to a lot of new situations. Noble character-building is a huge part of what I am trying to accomplish in all areas of my personal life. Being a woman that God has called me to be, expects me to be and loves me for, no matter how many times I've failed. It's been a really bumpy road but growth is never easy. I keep hoping to wake up and feel that I am done growing but we're always learning about ourselves. Being the best friend I can be, loving those who cast their hate on me, figuring out how to fit in a family that is round holes when I am a square peg, finding a groove in who should be spending time with, finding new friends along the way. I feel like it's an uphill struggle but getting to the top will be so worth it.

Finally, I want to be a wife of noble character someday. Being a boss, a friend, a family member, a church community member, a lover, a networker, a roommate - these are all things I strive to be better at. Someday I hope to be the wife someone is looking for. Not that I am trying to find a husband, but my ultimate goal is to know that I have the noble character to be a partner to someone in a way that he can trust me, know me inside and out, understand that I am growing every day and accepting everything about me without my having to hide anything. To be allowed to give myself fully to one person without worry of persecution would show me that I am finally being a well-rounded woman of noble character. To find my equal - a man who hopes to be the same in return would be incredible.

A woman of noble character - I hope to be her someday in every aspect of my life. I am growing in that direction, pushing forward to the goal and know that whatever I put my mind to I will achieve. I wish this on my friends, my family and my church community. It's a tough road but a fruitful one once you find what you're looking for.

Knowing that my real plan for the day was to clean my house, get laundry done and do some catching up for work, I send a quick text to my fantastic friend Shelly-Belly and let her know I have no definitive plans for the weekend which prompts her to call me and announce she is at a flea market but free for the day. This causes us to realize that we should spend the day together so we devise a quick hiking scenario for Front Royal, VA and Shenandoah National Park. My face quickly turns from sadness to cheeriness. My gloomy outlook on my day became a bright and sunny outlook. As I opened my curtains, the sun opened me eyes and showed me that I really needed to be outside. Cleaning could wait.

We packed the dogs into the car and headed off on our journey of relaxation and adventure. The drive to Front Royal was uneventful aside from a short stint of ridiculous traffic on I-66 but the beauty of God's green earth was all around us and becoming more appealing the further from DC we got. The trees were in full effect, the sun was shining, the clouds were puffy and the sky was blue. I knew God had a plan for us today and it included a day of blissful rejuvenation.

Upon arrival in Front Royal, Michele & I went to Soul Mountain, a place I've been many times, and we had a fantastic lunch outside with the dogs sitting at our feet. Everyone walking by was so friendly, saying hi and petting the dogs, it felt like we were back in the 1950's. Small town mentality is just so positive and smiley. The restaurant was full and the wait staff was slow today but we were on the no-plan plan and were not in any hurry to get moving. We stopped by the local Daily Grind and got coffee and set off for Shenandoah National Park.

There are not words to describe the beauty of this park. The hills and valleys, the lusciously-filled forests, so green and captivating. Slow 'Sunday driving' and just taking in all the views was part of the no-plan plan. Instead of figuring out where we were going, we felt like God needed to lead us to a place to hike. At the same time we pointed to a quiet spot we could park and walk into the woods. Not 10 minutes into the walk did we come across huge stones overlooking the whole valley. Sitting on top of these stones with the dogs was a little piece of heaven. The peace and quiet, the views, the sun and clouds, the obvious love from our animals, the friendship... God. Everything was right with the world at that moment. Everything was perfect. No worry, no stress, nothing. Bliss.

Hiking for another 30-45 minutes, we found our way back to the car with tired dogs and relaxed glances at each other. I had been tweeting about our little trip and received a message from a good friend of ours, Raelinn, telling us we should come by for dinner with the dogs. We found our way to her place and had a fantastic dinner with wine, grilled chicken and interesting conversation on the huge porch of her beautiful house. Nestled into the woods in the peace and quiet, we found just the perfect end to our day.

On our way home tonight, we found the Christian station and were belting out uplifting music all the way home. The unending love He showed us all day allowed us to just revel in His peace. He knows just what we need but we have to let Him lead us to it. I know this is true about so many things in my life. I need His peace and His comfort, not the physical comfort of anyone else. I need Him and should call on Him when I need it. He never said he wouldn't allow things to happen in our lives but He did tell us that when we needed it, we'd be held. Today, He proved that He would hold me by placing a strong woman in my life who would allow me a little bit closer and just enjoy an incredible day.

Cheers to the no-plan plan and the rest of this incredible weekend of God-filled love.

Before your head hits the pillow at night, you start to review your day... sometimes your week and at other times the month. You say your prayers and ask that God helps you by giving you peace about your decisions, the direction of your life and who you have become. As a child you might have recited the old poem/prayer:
Now I lay me down to the sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep
and if I die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take.
Amen.

When you really think about it, you're tucking yourself into a little cocoon of quietness and peace where you can empty your mind and allow everything to complete itself as you drift off to sleep. This is where my problem lies. As much as I wish, pray and hope that my mind will quiet, it doesn't. As much as I beg for peace in my sleep, I never find it. When my daily life is so overwhelming through business and personal interactions, most of which I bring upon myself, I have so much to think about before I fall asleep. This, in turn, causes nightmares which causes random mornings of frustration which bleeds out throughout the day and then a calming overtakes me when I have been bled out.

My spiritual journey has kind of taken a quiet leave of absence for the last week or so. I continually do my devotions and seek time with God to pray and reflect but I seem to do more apologizing than listening. I get small epiphanies throughout the day about how I want to change, grow, listen, reflect and generally spend my time with God but I rarely write them down so I can remember them and learn from them. I know that He is still up there listening to me and hearing my cries for peace & quiet but when I can spend 2 hours fiddling around with work and only 5 minutes in His presence, is that ever going to be quite enough? It's a similar feeling with the piano. Over the last few days, I've walked by the piano in the chapel and glance in and tell myself I'll take 15 minutes to go play it and sing with the incredible acoustics but then I never do. Something that could give me so much pleasure, just like God, gives me nothing because I don't take it.

I have realized even more so lately that I've been given incredible women in my life to keep me occupied while I try to live in my 'non-dating' world. Dating my girlfriends has become quite an honor and an adventure that I am happily growing into. I met with a few of the #DCTwirlies on Tuesday and some of the late-30's women were talking about how it seems that they were pushed as college grads to move into the next step of life which was marriage and kids. They realize now that it might not have ever been what they were to do and they are happy with how their lives have turned out. Single, entrepreneurs with great friends and a healthy, traveling lifestyle. I listen to them at almost 29 and find myself happy to hear it. Everyone keeps saying 'you have time' - what do I have time for? What if I don't want time? I am very happily settled into my life as a single entrepreneur sans children.

As I've said before, I have a hard time being 'alone' but really enjoy my alone time. My ex-husband is re-married, my most recent ex is already actively dating and I've realized that the lyrics are true: 'You aren't the first, you won't be the last. I don't have anything you want, you don't have anything I need.' I'm happy that everyone is finding what they are looking for... I've just come to realize that I don't know enough about me to even know what it was if it smacked me on the mouth. That is what this year is for... finding what I need, figuring out what I want and, in the end, being me. My friends like me and it's not like I only have 2 friends. I like me, which is more than I could ever have said 6 months ago.

This is my stream of pre-sleep thoughts. Maybe if they are released from my head onto this screen I'll have purged them all along with the Barbies I dropped in the trash last night.