- We were given a warm welcome by hundreds of people gathered in downtown Midland, MI, Dow’s corporate headquarters. People started meeting us at exchange points 20 miles out of Midland, and supported the whole team throughout the day. Dow has been overwhelmingly supportive throughout the event, and I think the run has been a great strategy for employee engagement. Thanks, Dow!

- Sean and I celebrated our first wedding anniversary in Toronto. With a great stroke of luck, our anniversary coincided with our day off, and we were able to sneak away for a night to celebrate! We shared a yummy brunch with our Torontonian friends, Doug and Chantel, and we then lounged at a great artsy boutique hotel called The Drake, followed by dinner at a wine bar. I have absolutely loved this first year of marriage and feel so honored to have such a warm, bright, fun-loving husband and best friend.

- I bought a great book called “The Everyday Activist” at a wonderful bookstore in Toronto (it’s called Type, if anyone is headed to Toronto soon). The book gives 365 ideas for how to make a difference in the world, ranging from simply smiling at strangers on the street to joining a union to fight sex slavery. What I thought was most encouraging, however, was how frequently safe drinking water was mentioned. Multiple days were dedicated to what everyday people can do about the safe drinking water crisis. Hmmm…this book might top my holiday list this year.

- Before our run out of Niagara Falls, Sean and I met up with an old friend, Ian. Ian showed us around Niagara’s beautiful wine regions and shared his thoughts on everything from eating local to being a dad. The night before, we were joined by another friend, Melanie. It’s been really great to connect with old friends along the route.

- Jason and Taeko, two of our teammates, got hitched at Niagara Falls! They ran 10 miles into downtown Niagara Falls in a wedding dress and suit, and tied the knot with all of our Blue Planet Run teammates in attendance.

- We gobbled up buffalo wings in Buffalo, NY. Yum!

- Sean and I played a game of Yahtzee in a local café in Wellsville, NY. Games – such simple pleasures – have helped us make it around the world.

- Our teammate Mary (Chervenak) is from Elmira, NY, where the run made its mark on Wednesday. Mary’s mom cooked wonderful quiche, veggies, salads and desserts for all of the runners and staff. Wow, do I miss home cooking!

- Sean finished his run and the rest of us warmed up the BBQ under a bright lightening show Thursday night in Pennsylvania. Lightening pulsated in the sky, mesmerizing all of us and inspiring Sean to run really, really fast!

- We had a great event outside of the Museum of the American Indian in Washington, D.C. A respectable line-up of speakers representing the EPA, Chamber of Commerce’s Center for Corporate Citizenship, state of Maryland, and the Kenyan Ambassador graced the microphone to talk about the water crisis. My cousin Dan stopped by to check out the event, and it was great to connect with him after many years.