Oh To Be A Kid Again….

Well, another magnificent jog w/ MG and his sister this morning. Not that many people were out exercising as early in the morning as we were, so it was nice and quiet. We ran on the road and on the beach again. Might as well use the sand while we have it to intensify our jogs. Followed up w/ some more yoga. I’m really enjoying being back in to yoga. It helps w/ breathing, sinuses, toning, stretching, strengthening and more.

After a healthy breakfast of coffee and cinnamon buns, it was out to play. Ok, so I get to cheat a little while on vacay. I just really enjoy going for a coffee on a patio overlooking the beach. I got to be a kid again for just a little while. We blasted the ipod player and danced around to whatever song was chosen next. Free of concern or care of what I looked like or what others thought. It was just all of us. All of us having fun and being free. Back like the days of when we were kids. Now sharing our dance moves w/ the little ones. We drove around and found a park w/ a nice area to see some fish and tiny waterfalls. There was even one area where you jump off the rock and in to a deep water hole. In this pic the lady was actually pushed off by her daughter. You might notice her turning to say something while in mid flight. See, being a kid again. Jumping, playing w/ a little nudge from her daughter.

We all got to wander around from waterfall to waterfall, looking for fish and other animals and exploring like a kid w/ the kids. Loads of fun!

Then, it was off to the amusement park. We went w/ our nephew b/c our niece was shopping to find new shoes. My kind of girl, already loves her shoes and she’s only 7 yrs old. It is so nice to feel like a kid again. I got to go down the big slide w/ our nephew and MG took him on the big go carts. We all had a great time and so much fun.

These couple of days away are not only fun and relaxing, but have reminded me of some very important life lessons. We can’t always be so serious, uptight, worried about what we look like and who is watching. Make time to be a kid again. Have some fun, be silly, dance like no one is watching. Nonetheless, just make sure you are having more fun in your life than stress. Get out and enjoy! Feel young, be young!

“Make It A Great Day–Go Inspire!”

Sauble Beach, ON–Aaaahhh the Beach!

We are getting away. Wooohooo!!! It is only 3 hours away, going further North in Ontario and only for a couple of days, but it’s a getaway. MG’s family goes to this cottage in Sauble Beach, ON every year. We get to tag along for a couple of days w/ them. We are only able to go for a few days b/c luckily work (real estate)  is very busy. Usually the housing market around here is not at the hottest in July/August, but this year it has been steadily busy. No matter–the next couple of days soaking in the sun, having fun, swimming, walking on the beach will be fantastic.

So, we came up late last night, which works out well. Just in time to get a good night’s sleep and be there ready to go for the first full day. Myself, MG and his sister woke up bright and early to get in some early morning sunshine and exercise. We welcomed the cooler weather. In Hamilton, ON we have been having record heat w/ over 90’s F every day of July. So, it was a pleasure to go for a jog outside and it was only in the 70’s w/ amazing beach breezes. Somehow exercise always seems much better at the beach. We went back and did some yoga and the day was ready to begin. By the way, we ran 1/2 of our jog on the beach–whoa! what a difference. We were all much more tired. It is way harder, but supposed to be much better for your joints. My legs were shaky for a bit after b/c of running in the sand.

Afterwards, we all headed to the beach. We played some soccer and football, but w/ the high winds it was too chilly to swim. In fact, we decided to go have a coffee and muffin on the patio. Beautiful! The good thing about all of us is that we can find the positive in anything. See it may be too chilly for the lake water, which is on Lake Huron, but there is this place called Oliphant that is fun! The water is generally very shallow for as far as you can see, so it is warm. The sun heats it up quickly b/c it is so shallow. You can walk out for miles and never be in water higher than your waist. We were able to catch a few creatures (turtle, sunfish, crayfish, etc), but of course we immediately turned everything loose. Don’t want to harm any animals. Then, we stopped to roll down a gigantic hill of sand and off to the cottage for some asparagus and grilled veggies.

After all of this, it was a serene night of fishing. Not a lot biting, but we caught a few and of course turned them loose. See a pattern going here? Doesn’t my sis-in-law look like a pro?

Even the kids were fishing. Beautiful night. Then, it was off to a local ice cream shop for a tiny bit of yummy treats. Well deserved. Back to the cottage for some chill and relaxation and off to bed and ready to start a whole new day. Aaaahhh the beach–we make the most of time away. Heck, make the most of every day. Life’s a beach, but if it is too chilly, go make your own fun elsewhere. There’s always something else to do and be excited about. The weather is perfect, not so much for swimming, but for everything else–Magnificent!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Oh and a little shopping never hurt anyone. A pair of the most comfortable shoes ever and some adorable Diesel rainboots for only $40. Cool deal. Too bad we haven’t had rain in over a month. I’ll get to wear them sooner or later!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 “Make It A Great Day–Go Inspire!”

Animals Have It!

I’m a HUGE animal person in general. It seems lately that I have had so many encounters w/ all types of animals. I’m not sure why this is, but sometimes the universe plays a funny role w/ us. I have really been missing my two boys lately (my Australian Shepherd dogs). As you know, I lost my 12yr old dog last March and my other dog in December at 11.5yrs. I miss them each and every day and I always will. They were family to me, so it is nothing short of losing a person near to me. Anyway, I have been thinking about them a lot lately and enjoying the amazing memories we shared during the best 12 yrs of my life. We went everywhere together–the beach, lake, hiking, jogging, they even went to my real estate appointments w/ me. In missing them, I have had the pleasure of so many other encounters w/ animals.

My in-laws have a fun, loving, full of energy dog that I get to walk and hang out with and you know about the woodpecker that they adopted. They still have “Woody” and he is doing really well, but I don’t know if he will ever be able to live on his own. Any suggestions, send them to me. He seems to be able to walk and can fly short distances, but not well enough to get away from danger. So, they buy him mealworms, but he also enjoys blueberries, banana, earwigs. He has a cage, but during the days (while someone is home) he stays out on his own. This gives him the opportunity to peck at the trees, he climbs a few feet up them and gets to hang out w/ other birds.

At our house we have a family of 6 raccoons that come around. They aren’t friendly w/ us (thank goodness), but they know we are there and that we won’t mess w/ them. They drink out of our bird bath, catch worms in our yard and practice their climbing. We watch them almost every night. They have a pattern and it is the same every night. It is so fun to sit back and watch. Here’s 2 of them drinking in our back yard. The other pic is hard to see, but it is a mother and baby skunk. Yes, they live under our shed (or the neighbor’s shed). It is a  family of about 5 skunks. Crazy feeling the other night when we were out watching the raccoons and nearly 2ft away was a mother skunk and her babies. She saw us. We sat über still and didn’t move. She stared, gathered the babies and kept going through the yard. Phew! We were so nervous she was going to spray. Not only bad for us, but all of our new, expensive patio furniture. They have made a few more appearances as well.

This brings me to how smart animals are. Animals just have it!!! I read today that they have dogs in the navy seal program, in fact, Cairo is the only known navy seal who took down Bin Laden. They use dogs for sniffing out drugs, cancer, guide dogs, they help people w/ seizures and the list goes on. Animals in general know the weather, how to take care of young, how to work together to prevent danger. Have you ever seen all the little birds bond together to scare off a hawk? Amazing, humans could learn a thing or two. Take some time and read about how the snakes, elephants, monkeys, etc were acting before the Tsunami. They were running away, climbing trees. Dolphins even helped guide a boat further out to keep them out of the way of the wave. Kind? I don’t know how animals think, but they are lifesavers. They are best friends. Companions and just plain smart. I feel animals have a step up on us. Of course there are things that we can do that animals never could and feelings that they would never understand, but just think sometime. They don’t have hands, toes. Watch how observant, knowing, gentle, protective they are. They can tell you the weather better than any meteorologist. I just love animals, find them amazing and learn from them every day.

I feel so lucky to have the connection w/ animals that I do. I have trained dogs since I was 6 yrs old. My family did a great job teaching me respect and kindness towards all animals. They trained dogs as well. I feel that we have to be a voice for all creatures and help them. They do a lot for themselves, but sometimes they need us. Please don’t ever let any abuse occur to any creature, but do sit back and enjoy them. Let them be, live and just observe. What you see might surprise you. It might even change a few things about yourself. I strive to be the person my dog thinks I am. Done! That said, you will lead a better life.

 

“Make It A Great Day–Go Inspire!”