tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-78122326368049038572024-03-05T04:31:52.481-08:00Where in the world are the 3 peas?We are a family of 3 determined to experience the world beyond our fence.Unknownnoreply@blogger.comBlogger246125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-50147494471052147852011-12-29T11:57:00.000-08:002011-12-29T18:50:42.310-08:00Why are you asking me "Why?"?I made a comment about mind mapping yesterday and since then I have had people asking me "Why?", and I don't know how to answer them. Every year for my birthday (which happens to coincide with New Year's) I take the day to look back at the year past and look forward to the year coming. I wouldn't say I make resolutions per se, but I do like to have a project to work on. <div>The biggest thing for me is that it drives me nuts to sit still and feel like I'm doing nothing to move my life forward. I used to think everyone did that, but more and more I am learning that a lot of people just carry on day after day in their lives without giving much thought to it all. I suppose each person's past would play a great role in how they live out their present and plan for their future. And don't go getting all Biblical at me about planning for the future. I am well aware of the folly of future planning. BUT, I think if your plans are prayed over and made from the desires of your heart and involve the allowance of God to evaporate your plans in an instant, there is nothing wrong with plans. Plans give me something to hang on to. Plans give me a focus. Plans give me something to do. And ironically, plans keep me flexible and able to adapt to whatever God hands me each day.</div><div><br /></div><div>I have 4 significant life events that were completely out of my control that have contributed to me and my planning.</div><div><br /></div><div>1. A near death experience in March 1994. </div><div>I stopped in to our little local hospital on the way home from lunch one day because I wasn't feeling the greatest. Nothing I could really put my finger on, but I just didn't feel "right". I was looked over by the Dr and declared completely fine and sent on my way. I had recently started the pill (I was getting married in two months) and she figured it was something to do with that. I can only tell you that I wasn't convinced and asked if she would do a blood test (the only explanation for that is God). It wasn't busy and she ordered the test. (Let me also point out that I really had NO symptoms that would indicate I needed a blood test or that I was even sick - no fever, no pain, vitals were normal, etc.) After waiting for about an hour, the Dr returned with another Dr and they asked me if anyone was with me. I said "no", and they suggested I call someone to come and be with me. According to my blood work I had a massive infection, but they didn't know where it was or what kind it was, and I was being admitted. For the rest of that day I was watched round the clock by a collection of nurses, until just after midnight when I lost consciousness and a fever spiked. My appendix had ruptured the previous day and I had been a walking, talking body of toxic waste since then. The next days were two more surgeries in order to save my life and then 2 more weeks in the hospital. When I saw my surgeon for a follow up 6 weeks later he told me if I hadn't asked for that blood test and had been sent home, I would have died in my sleep that night. He had never seen anything like it before.</div><div><i>When all this happened I wasn't married yet and I didn't have children. I had a future that looked exciting, romantic and full of adventure. The promises of the world were before me. My fiance and I had big plans. Almost dying made me realize that I was kept alive for a reason. God had a plan for me and it obviously hadn't been completed yet. What I thought the plan was then is VASTLY different than the plan I would walk over the next 15 years. I had the plan wrong, but the purpose right. God's plan hadn't been fulfilled in me yet.</i> </div><div><br /></div><div>2. I have a child who lives with a chronic, severe mental illness.</div><div>He is my second son and I knew something wasn't right from the time he was about 2 months old. After the loss of my marriage, and moving around the world, he was diagnosed at the age of 3 and hospitalized for the first time at the age of 5. He has been depressed and suicidal for the majority of his 13 years. I can't adequately explain the lack of control I have over 98% of the things that happen in our world because of mental illness. He has the best care and the best medications, but mental illness is still winning. It is impossible to plan for anything, let alone the "future". The uncertainty of life is made very clear when you live along side mental illness. It as a world with very little light, very few people and a lot of despair. It is also financially, mentally and physically exhausting.</div><div><i>This is where I learned that plans are for the weak and faith is for the strong. So my "plans" are my stubbornness. Plans are the last of the fight in me. Don't get me wrong, my faith is strong and I lean heavily on it, but I am an imperfect, fallen person and my plans are sometimes the only thing that keep me moving forward. I know it should be God, but sometimes it is not. My plans have failed to come to fruition many times because of mental illness and every time they fail I am reminded of Jeremiah 29:11-13 "For I know the plans I have for you declares the Lord, plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart. I will be found by you, declares the Lord."</i></div><div><i>So for all of my failed plans, there are the plans that succeed and are truly blessed by God.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div>3. The loss of all of my "stuff". </div><div>I was on an extended trip to Canada with my two boys when my husband called me and announced that he didn't want to be married anymore. I was in Vancouver to seek medical care for our youngest son (he hadn't been diagnosed yet) and my husband was back at home in London, England. The boys and I had our suitcase of clothes with us, but because of the timing of events I was never able to return to England to go through our belongings and every thing I owned was sold or thrown away. Clothes, books, kids toys, photos (baby and wedding) all of our papers, etc. It was the equivalent of losing all your belongings to a natural disaster. My husband dismissed our belongings when he dismissed our family. I never realized how attached to things I was at the time, but it turned out to be a turning point in my faith and in how I lead my life now. It is hard to have all of your worldly possessions at the whim of someone else. I was very angry for a long time.</div><div><i>One of my biggest goals at the moment is to become as possession free as possible. By the time I turn 50, I don't want to own anything beyond the personal things I need on a day to day basis. How does this fit in to planning? I have a dream of getting on a plane the day I turn 50 and not having an attachment in the world except for my sons. I want to see and serve around the world and I want my ties to be to people and experiences, not things. I don't want to be remembered by the things I have acquired. I want to be remembered for the things I have done. </i></div><div>(more on this to come in a future post....)</div><div><br /></div><div>4. My mother.</div><div>I'm not sure if it's fair to call my mother a significant life event, but most of you will understand what I mean. My mom passed away a year ago. We had an interesting and complicated relationship and it was a VERY different experience being her daughter than for other people who were her friend. It's hard to remember that when people talk fondly of my mother and how much they miss her, that they had a good and friendly relationship with her. Here's the thing... as harsh as it is to say, I didn't really have much respect for my mom. I appreciate the things she did for me throughout my life, but I didn't respect her and I never wanted to be like her. My mom let life happen to her. She never fought back against the crap or did anything to make her life better. When she and my dad divorced she became bitter, angry and depressed (all totally natural responses) and she never moved past that. </div><div>When she passed away, I was tasked (along with my aunt) to go through her house and get rid of everything. That was the turning point for me and the last push I needed to start down the road I am now on. I was angry cleaning out her house. The amount of waste and selfishness that was in every drawer and closet was overwhelming. I have always fought against my mom and cleaning out her house was the final battle.</div><div><i>My mom has pushed me to my current plans. Because of my mom's lack of plans, I learned how important plans really are. I learned that making a plan and giving direction to your life is part of what will keep you moving in a direction. I learned that plans and a purpose will keep you from sinking and letting life pass you by. I learned that the expression "Life is what happens while you're busy making plans." is a very true statement. My mom made more pointless lists than anyone I know. She was great at writing it down, but seemed to have no ability to carry out any of the plans. She is where I learned that you have to have drive behind your plans. My mom disagreed with the majority of my plans, but if I had listened to her, there are so many things I wouldn't have done. I learned from my mom what can happen to your life if you DON'T have plans.</i></div><div><i><br /></i></div><div>So, why am I mind mapping? I am mind mapping because I need the illusion of some control in my life. I need to know that I am working towards something. So much of my world is out of my control (and I'm ok with that) that I need to have a purpose that I have some say in. It's ok if none of it works out the way I want, but at least I won't have been sitting idly by watching life out of the window (really it would be being watched out of the car window, because all I do is drive kids to their places...). Ultimately, I want to grow and become a better person. I want to make sure I'm using my gifts and talents in a productive way. I want to learn new things. I want to achieve new things. I want to one day be able to fulfill my real plan - the Jeremiah 29:11 plan.</div><div>And <i>that</i> is why I am mind mapping.</div><div><i style="font-size: medium; "> </i></div><div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span><span style="line-height: 16px;"><i><br /></i></span></span></div><div style="text-align: -webkit-auto;"><span><span style="line-height: 16px;"><br /></span></span></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-71814470282215483822011-12-28T10:17:00.000-08:002011-12-28T10:24:50.934-08:00I'm just too lazy.I had big plans for a blog post yesterday, but do you know what I did instead? I took a nap. I am just too lazy to put fingers on the keyboard and pull the thoughts out of my brain. And don't be fooled by these words either... these are just "tide you over" words until I get less lazy and write about something real. <div>This isn't going to even be a post looking back over the year of 2011. Nope. Too lazy. There isn't even a funny story to tell. Sorry.</div><div>I am sitting on my couch, the dogs and one boy are sleeping (yes, they are lazy too) and the other boy is at his dad's. The Christmas tree and mantle are lit up and the rest of the lights are off (I am NOT one of you Christmas freaks who has the tree pitched over the balcony already) and I am sitting with my computer, reading other people's blogs and drinking a cup of tea. I am going to meet a friend for lunch and if I feel really inspired and the wind won't blow me off the dyke, I will go for a run later. </div><div>I have many thoughts popping around my brain and ideas for blog posts are piling up, so there is some good stuff to come - I promise. But for today, I am going to enjoy no stress. I am going to look around my world and be content. I am going to be thankful. I am going to relax.</div><div>Tomorrow is the day my world can go back to normal.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-65245269228475623532011-12-15T22:23:00.001-08:002011-12-15T22:53:53.868-08:00I hit the wall.You all know by now that I am working my way through a few different programs to get lean and mean. I am doing sit ups, push ups, dips and squats. They are each a 6 week program to reach a goal. When I started the programs I read through all the stuff that talked about expectations and pushing yourself, but not pushing yourself so hard that you break. The stuff also talked about "the wall". I was assured that at some point in the programs I would hit a wall and have to repeat a week before I could continue on. I, of course, thought that was ridiculous and I would definitely NOT be taking the time to repeat a week.<div><br /></div><div>I hit the wall tonight.</div><div><br /></div><div>My body will just not co-operate. I simply can not heave myself up for one more dip or push up than this week is requiring. While I was doing dips tonight my arms were shaking and my shoulders were burning. At one point I stopped mid dip thinking I would be stuck there for the rest of the night because I couldn't make my arms move up or down. And next week there is a fairly big jump in the reps. The most disappointing thing is that this will put me a week off of meeting my goals by my birthday. I know, I need to keep focussed on the big picture. </div><div><br /></div><div>On an entirely different note, I went in to a store today for the first time in a VERY long time (grocery stores not included). Dylan had a bunch of gift cards to spend at Chapters and they were burning a hole in his pocket so we headed out to lighten his wallet. The store was packed with crazy people. Having not participated in any Christmas shopping this year, it was kind of a shock to the system. I used to LOVE to shop and be out with the people filling my arms up with bags full of treats and gifts. And now the whole process makes me cringe. The thought of spending money on things that I can get in other ways (library, borrowing, thrift stores, etc) seems almost irresponsible. I'm starting to sound sickening (I know, I can hear it!), but the point is, I am happy with where I have come in the past year. I am glad that I am no longer held hostage to the consumerism that society promotes to me. I know I am not part of the norm, but that's ok - I never did like to be in the middle of the pack. Don't get me wrong, there are times that I long to be spending money on something frivolous or buying something just so I can feel like I am like everyone else (how stupid is that?), but I committed to stick to a no spend plan and I am happier and more relaxed because of it. When there are not bags of stuff coming in to the house, the house is a lot less cluttered. And a lot less clutter means a lot less stress. And with no extra money to be buying things that aren't food, meds or gas, it takes a lot of pressure off. I will definitely continue my minimalism quest in to 2012.</div><div><br /></div><div>And P.S. - I received so many private messages about the post I wrote about my ex marriage. It is amazing to me that God uses my little blog to help people. Thanks to everyone that shared their stories with me.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-88806252441350392952011-12-08T22:48:00.001-08:002011-12-08T23:08:12.918-08:00Wait... what WAS that???I think I have talked here before about my at home, no expense necessary, workout regime - haven't I? I am on a mission to complete the 200 sit ups, 200 squats, 100 push ups and 150 dips program by my birthday (January 2). I work on a schedule of reps 6 days a week and then I walk/run 3 days a week. To be honest, the reps schedule I do without fail, but I am not so consistant at the run/walk 3 days a week part. As in, I haven't done it once this week. I know, I am only cheating myself. But that's not the point of this blog.<div>Tonight, as I was on dip number 18, I glanced sideways and saw the outline of a muscle in my shoulder/arm that I am pretty sure I haven't seen since 1987. That spurred me on to more dips so I could check it out to make sure it was what I thought it was and NOT a new fat roll that was casting a shadow. Can you believe it? It was really a muscle. AND, there was one on the other shoulder as well. Of course you can only see this muscle when I'm heaving myself up from the bottom of my dip, so all you people who will be craning your necks in church to check out my new found muscles.... save yourself the trouble - there is nothing to see.</div><div>Another success tonight? While I was on sit up number 57 I opened my eyes to check out the lay of the land and I'm pretty sure I am down a stomach fat roll. Or maybe the big one above my belly button absorbed the medium one below it. Who cares? I say. As long as I can't see it, it isn't there. (hmmmmm, that is a fairly bad life philosophy, but I think it can apply here.) </div><div>Ever since I gave my scale to Cheryl (I was getting a bit obsessive with it.) I have had to rely on new ways to measure my progress. I did have one cheat weigh in when I stopped by her house a week ago, but that's it. I am so determined to make my goals by my birthday. I can't think of any better birthday present to myself than to look down at that scale and see the results of effort. If I do it, I will have broken through a weight barrier that I haven't crossed in 15 years. I get excited just thinking about it. </div><div>I dream about these things you know. One day I might lie in the bath tub and there will be room for the water to swirl AROUND me. One day I will look down at my stomach and not mistake it for my butt. One day I will walk down the street and there will be daylight between my thighs. One day I will raise my arms and all the hanging down bits will raise up too. And, one day there just might be an angle from my chin to my neck that is closer to 90 degrees rather than 45 degrees. Oh, one day, how I long for you to be here....</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-20283735499466769952011-12-06T10:27:00.000-08:002011-12-06T11:06:35.454-08:00Why I miss being married.I've been thinking a lot about my ex marriage this past week. Probably because I have been emailing with the ex about a kid and the kid's needs and all that emailing has led me to thinking. (you have to understand I don't normally spend much time on this topic as it's not one that leads to thoughts of butterflies and rainbows) All of this thinking has turned distracting and is sometimes depressing and sometimes empowering. Here's the thing... if you were holding a gun to my head and made me choose "married or not married" I would choose "married". I know this is surprising to many of you and to be honest, it is a bit of a surprise to me too. I came out of my marriage shell shocked and a bit worse for wear, but I also know I have become a very strong and faith-filled women because of it. I have always said I would take the me I am today over the me I was back then any day. I can't pick and choose circumstances to wonder what I would be like if I was still married, but I am pretty confident I would be quite a different person. I appreciate where God has taken me in the last 10 years and what He has trusted me with, but at the end of the day, when the house is quiet, I miss having a husband. <div>You know what the biggest thing is? There is no one to talk to. My ex and I would go to bed early many nights to just lie in bed, in the dark and talk. We'd talk about our days, his students, his research, the kids, our future, our dreams, our families, philosophy, news, travel, education, and on and on. We could talk about anything. That's what I miss. I have great friends and I love them, but it's not the same as having someone to talk with on an ongoing basis. I process things by talking about them - over the course of days, or even months and that's tough with friends.</div><div>I have some huge things rolling around in my brain right now and those things are going to need decisions at some point, but it's hard for me to process because there is no sounding board. There's no one to tell me I'm crazy or brilliant or both. :) There is no one to hold me accountable for moving forward and making progress. Everything is on me, 100%, all of the time. Of course, as a Christian, I have God. Walking right along with me, ready and willing to carry the load, offer guidance, available to listen whenever I want to talk and won't be rolling His eyes if that happens to be at 230am. I don't dispute that God is with me always and can provide all those things I'm missing, but it is different. It is hard to find fulfillment and have complete reliance on a God that is not physically present. I wonder how married people do that. I wonder if anyone really does that. Are there people who genuinely rely on God for EVERY single one of their needs? Hmmmmm.....</div><div>I know if I was married, I wouldn't. It would be too easy to find many of the things I was missing in a husband. Hmmmmmm.... this is not where I thought this blog post was going.</div><div><br /></div><div>I have been asked many times, by many people if I would ever get married again. Usually my answer is an unhesitant, clear, "No". I have nothing against marriage, but I've found my groove as a single parent and I can't imagine upsetting <i>that</i> apple cart. (I know, I know, God is bigger than my little apple cart and if He brought along the perfect person it would all work out...) Not only that, but I can't even begin to imagine trying to have sex in this house - I'm just sayin'. </div><div><br /></div><div>I talk with so many friends who are struggling in their marriages and I know I have friends who are struggling and don't talk about it. Work it through people. I know it's hard in the middle of it and lots of times it doesn't seem worth the effort, but being single is hard. It wears you out. Sure, it's fun at times and there are definitely perks (lots of them actually), but at the end of the day you are alone. Not just the kind of alone you dream about, where no one bugs you, creates a mess for you to clean up, criticizes you, uses your stuff, etc. But the kind of alone that is actually lonely. All the friends in the world can't fill that. As a Christian it is a hard growth curve to truly have God fill that loneliness. I used to think that I was filled up with God, but I was wrong. If I was truly filled by God I wouldn't have a gaping hole longing to be filled by a person. If you are married, unentangle your partner from yourself and God and see who is filling what inside you. Are you relying on God or partner? I think it's taken me 10 years to figure that out (apparently I am an incredibly slow learner). </div><div><br /></div><div>When I started typing this I thought I missed being married, but maybe I'm just missing God. Hmmmm... </div><div><br /></div><div>Oh how I wish I was a person who didn't question things and just rolled ignorantly through life. Is it too late to change?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-75738045920149995632011-12-03T20:59:00.000-08:002011-12-03T22:08:38.884-08:00This was supposed to be MY year.This past year was supposed to be about me. (I realize the delusion in that sentence, considering I have 2 teenage sons at home.) However, I really wanted to focus on things I wanted to do and I really wanted to meet my weight loss and fitness goals before my next birthday. Well, my birthday is in a month and I am not going to make it. Don't get me wrong, there have been improvements in both diet and exercise, but I am not where I wanted to be and sometimes I don't think I will EVER get there. The year started off with lots of progress, but I stalled out around the end of May and I never really got my mojo back. I continued to eat well, but I lost the motivation to exercise with gusto. So of course, my gut reaction, knowing my birthday is a month away, is to go in to panic mode. I don't really need to eat do I? (Who am I kidding?!) And if I worked out Biggest Loser style for a month, I might at least get close to my goals. But, NO. I am going to fight my gut (literally and figuratively) and continue on at my VERY slow and steady pace. After all, I want to do it right and I want to do it permanently. I have managed to make a life change with my diet by becoming a vegan and sticking with it for a year (small exceptions on our trip when I had dairy and some bites of seafood). I know I will never go back to a traditional diet. I feel better eating as a vegan and that is good enough for me. Now, if only I could conquer the exercise part of it. The gym is too rich for my blood right now, so I've been looking for things to do that I can do anywhere and without equipment. Logically, that would be things like squats, push-ups, sit-ups, dips, etc. And I should be able to get some cardio in with some runs and bike rides. So simple. <div><br /></div><div>NOT.</div><div><br /></div><div>It is soooooooo easy to get distracted or be called away when I'm at home. At least at the gym it was an out of sight out of mind situation for the boys. Not so much at home. I need a plan of attack to make it happen. I don't think there is anything I want more than to meet my goals and know that I was able to do it. </div><div>After a quick google I found a plan. A 6 week schedule to 200 squats, 200 sit-ups, 100 push-ups and 150 dips. I took the initial test for each one and I didn't suck nearly as much as I thought I was going to! Yay me!</div><div>The reps have been put on the calendar and I have an actual plan. I will add in 3 runs a week and reassess in 6 weeks. That will be after my birthday, but oh well. Small victories. I will still be at least 20lbs lighter than my last birthday and 55 lbs lighter than when I started almost 2 years ago (or is it longer than that? I've lost track.). At least I am still going in the right direction. </div><div><br /></div><div>Yes, this was supposed to by MY year. In some ways it was. I learned to box. I became a vegan. I took the boys on a once in a lifetime kind of trip. I bought a car. I adopted us a beautiful new dog. I got the majority of my house cleaned out and pared WAY down (one room to go!). I paid off debt. </div><div>It's good to take stock of the positives - it helps me distance myself from the negatives (and there are plenty). It's almost time to reassess my goals and make new ones for my next year. And in the midst of all the hard stuff that is surrounding me at the moment, that is something I can look forward to. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-88517070737908339382011-11-25T12:58:00.000-08:002011-11-25T13:38:12.766-08:00That's not how I thought it was going to happen.I have been following a blog by a lady named Jo, who lives in the UK. Her blog is called <div><a href="http://simplybeingmum.com/">Simply Being Mum</a> and she does this great thing called "No Waste Tastes Great". Check out her site and read this post about her <a href="http://simplybeingmum.com/2010/11/26/no-waste-tastes-great-26th-november/">Friday routine</a>. She has found a way to greatly reduce the amount of food her family wastes each week and it inspired me quite a while ago. It is amazing how much food we waste without even realizing it. Some of you may be on top of your fridges and pantries but I was NOT and I HATE throwing food in the garbage because it has spoiled in the fridge or on the counter. And do you know what I hate even MORE than throwing food away? Cleaning out the produce drawers in the fridge after things have.... what's the word I'm looking for? Hmmm... How about "deteriorated". I can handle a lot of things, but cleaning out produce slime simply grosses me out.</div><div>Anyways, since I discovered Jo's blog, I have been more conscious of what I buy, how I use it and when I use it. My ultimate goal is to have a menu planned for the week and then shop weekly and only buy for the menu. I am close, but not quite there. (I should add in here, that the boys are not a fan of this new shopping strategy, because as a result of my new awareness, there is very little "easy" food in the house. They are slowly adapting and I'm trying to ease the pain by baking a little bit more.)</div><div>All of this fits in to my whole quest to travel farther down the minimalism road and simplify our lives as much as possible, but I have found myself getting stuck a bit and hitting the minimalism wall, so to speak. Well, I was forced to move forward today when the shelves in my fridge collapsed. Yes. Collapsed. As in, big noise, things crashing, the door popping open and jars rolling around the floor while the dogs moved in for the kill. You don't know how thankful I was that my fridge was CLEAN and had nothing rotting in it! (I did a big fridge purge and clean before we went on our trip and I have kept it up since we have been home.) I took everything out and surveyed the problem. It appears that the center post that holds the shelves in place let go of the back of the fridge. Upon further inspection, the top screw in that post actually broke off inside the fridge and I can't fix it. </div><div>Ugh.</div><div>Or is it?</div><div>Looking at the stuff on the floor around me, I figured it would all fit back in the fridge without the shelves and we would be A-ok. When we lived in England for all those years, we lived just fine with our tiny little British fridge. (If you've ever been in a British person's house in Britain, you know what I'm talking about. And if you haven't been in a British person's house in Britain, think of a very basic, very small bar fridge.) Therefore, we will be just fine without our much bigger North American style fridge. So, instead of paying someone to come and fix my fridge I am going to use it as incentive to step up my goal of menu planning/shopping and finishing each week with a clean and nearly empty fridge. </div><div><br /></div><div>FYI - I found this fantastic guide to storing fruit and veg and it has helped a lot with how I use my fridge. Check it out... <a href="http://myplasticfreelife.com/images/Berkeley%20Farmers%20Market%20Tips%20for%20Storing%20Produce.pdf">Fruit and Veg Storage</a></div><div><br /></div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-33276668676416639882011-11-22T23:00:00.000-08:002011-11-22T23:34:50.243-08:00Sometimes it just works out perfectly.I was sitting on the couch flipping back and forth between The Biggest Loser and The X Factor (wow, by the way!) and I was thinking through the dinner I had just made. Something just wasn't quite right with it. I tried a new recipe - Roasted Acorn Squash stuffed with Quinoa Mushroom Pilaf. Sounds good, doesn't it? And it was good. But... something was missing and it tasted a bit flat. It has promise, it simply needs some more help. Really what I was thinking about while I was sitting on the couch was "were the leftovers really worth heating up and eating?" I just wasn't feeling it. What I really wanted was something crunchy and, dare I say? sweet. (I blame this on my friend Carol, by the way. We had just recently had a long conversation about how I don't like sweet things. I always pass up dessert in favour of more dinner. Sweet just isn't my thing. I think talking about sweet stuff for so long triggered something inside.) Anyways, I walked around the kitchen praying there was something hidden in a cupboard that I had forgotten about, even though I really knew there wasn't going to be anything there. I had done a bunch of Christmas cookie baking and it was all sitting on the table on the cooling racks, but none of it was vegan and not even close to healthy. <div><br /><div>Come on!! There HAS to be something in this house that will fit the bill!</div></div><div><br /></div><div>I remembered that earlier in the day I was thinking of making some homemade granola to have on hand for a snack, so I pulled out a couple of my favourite vegan cookbooks and started looking for the perfect granola recipe. After some comparing, I found the one I wanted in Alicia Silverstone's book, "The Kind Diet". I started pulling out ingredients and putting them on the table. And then... I have no oats. How is that even possible?? I always have a spare bag of oats in the pantry. Ugh. Back to the drawing board.</div><div><br /></div><div>I'm starting to think I will give up on the sweet part and just go for crunchy. When I was making dinner I toasted up some raw pumpkin seeds and once they started popping, they smelled soooooooo goood! Out came the pumpkin seeds. Wait. There are some raw sunflower seeds in the cupboard too. Ooooooo, and some raw almonds. And peanuts. I'm feeling a toasty, crunchy trail mix coming on. I pulled out the frying pan, gave it a VERY light spray of Safflower oil and dumped the seeds and nuts in. There is nothing like the smell of toasting nuts... ahhhhh.</div><div>When they were all toasty and popping, I took them off and dumped them in a bowl. And then it hit. The brilliant, light bulb moment that was about to change the course of trail mix snacking. (You may think I've gone a bit crazy here, or that I'm exaggerating the excitement. You just wait.) As I was putting the nuts and seeds back in the cupboard, I pulled out the jar of vegan, dark chocolate chips. I had always intended to add some at the end, but when the mix was COOL. So what did I do?? I added the chocolate while the mix was still warm. Yes I did.</div><div>Not very much chocolate at all, but it transformed my little trail mix. Why? Because it melted and coated all those warm, crunchy nuts and seeds. </div><div><br /></div><div>I don't blame you if you think this is the end of my trail mix story and you can stop reading, but hang with me, it gets better.</div><div><br /></div><div>I took my bowl of warm, crunchy, chocolately goodness and I spread it out on some parchment paper on a cookie sheet. And then I put some rock salt on it, put it in the fridge and walked away. An hour later, I came back and prayed it was going to be as good as I was dreaming it to be. Let me just say, it did NOT disappoint. UNBELIEVABLE.</div><div>The real brilliance of it all is that because I have been baking through the evening, the smells have lulled the boys in to complacency and they didn't even stick their heads out of their rooms! Perfect. </div><div><br /></div><div>My new concoction is safely stored in a glass jar and well hidden from the children. And I have found my new motivation for putting my runners back on.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-78649452286964561092011-11-09T20:47:00.001-08:002011-11-09T21:01:38.544-08:00Stop talking.Did you ever notice that people get in the way of you being a loving, compassionate, caring, forgiving, gracious kind of person? You can have all the great intentions in the world, but then people come along and mess it all up. Let me tell you, if I didn't have to deal with actual people I would be awesome! It is so easy to think about doing the right thing and practice doing the right thing and even talk about doing the right thing. Try doing the right thing - sometimes seems impossible. People talk back and interrupt you and cry and yell and go silent and walk away and then what do you do with your good intentions? Mine tend to go out the window at that point and I get frustrated, mad, impatient and often say things I later regret. We are often very focussed on being right and being heard, rather than being focussed on listening and understanding. As a society I think we have conflict resolution all backwards. If we all stopped trying to be heard and understood and started listening and understanding, we might just get somewhere.<div><br /></div><div>Thank you for that pep talk, Diane. You're welcome, Diane.</div><div><br /></div><div>Yes, sometimes I need to talk to myself out loud.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-44199336324962088742011-11-05T09:49:00.000-07:002011-11-05T10:24:50.675-07:00It's like we never left.Hard to believe that after a countdown of 100+ days and a 5 week vacation that we have now been home for a week and it's like we never left. It is no surprise that our trip was full of stress and challenges, but there are also some happy memories that we will carry with us for the rest of our lives. Why is it though, that it is so much easier to hang on to the bad memories? I have been asked countless times how our trip was and it's been hard for me to come up with an answer that I am happy with. So after trying to describe it to friends this past week, the best answer we came up with is that the trip was "life as usual for the Pearsons". <div><br /></div><div>This past week has been filled up with trying to get the boys back in their normal lives and I've been trying to continue on in my pursuit of minimalizing our home. Our whole "American" experience really cemented in me the desire to get rid of all the unnecessaries in our lives. I want to live in a home environment that we can enjoy and appreciate to the fullest. The distractions and stress that clutter brings just isn't worth it. This was the first trip that I have EVER been on in my life that did not involve any shopping (I realize that a few of you are cringing at the moment...) and it was hard at times. When we were walking through Downtown Disney there were so many moments that I wanted to buy something, but I kept coming back to the thought "what was I actually spending my money on?". I had just spent weeks selling, sorting and donating boxes and boxes of stuff from my house. Did I really want to buy something else to fill up the space? And did I really want to part with my money for another "thing"? And everytime, the answer was "no". The boys did spend their own money and they bought a few things that they wanted/liked, but we left home with carry-on luggage only and we returned with even less. It was so refreshing to come home and not have a few days worth of unpacking and putting away to do. At the end of the day, I liked it. It shocked me though to think about how pulled I was to spend money on "stuff". The emotions that surrounded shopping, money, and wanting things were strong and powerful. I made a conscious decision in the summer to not spend any money impulsively this year. If I wanted or needed something I had to be able to walk away and wait a week or so before a purchase and that is hard. But it is proving to be a worthwhile ambition for me. </div><div><br /></div><div>This week is full of Dr's, dentists, teachers, etc and hopefully a return to normal life. I am also going through the Christmas stuff and determining what we are going to use and keep this year. With my mom gone, this is the first year that we have to break the patterns of all the Christmases of the past. This is the first year I have to establish traditions for my own family. This is the year that we get to have change. We will keep the best of past traditions and we will add some new ones to the Pearson's list. One thing is for certain, the Pearson's are ready to wrap up this year and continue to move forward into the next one. No regrets. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-87478501262171826312011-10-25T19:35:00.001-07:002011-10-25T19:54:13.279-07:00I didn't see that one coming.Today I spent the day with Brendan. We rode Disney's Transportation system and went to a couple of resorts, and then hit up Animal Kingdom and Hollywood Studios. We were together, alone, for about 7 hours. Did I ever learn a lot! The kid talked non-stop the whole time and I don't think I even really got out more than a sentence at a time. <div><br /></div><div>While we were waiting for a bus at the Caribbean Resort I learned that his dislocated toe has a bump on it now, but doesn't really hurt anymore. </div><div><br /></div><div>While we were in line for Expedition Everest I learned that he really likes doing things without Dylan and that he really wants to go away, just the two of us.</div><div><br /></div><div>While we were on Expedition Everest I learned that he likes that I go on roller-coasters with him.</div><div><br /></div><div>While we were watching The Festival of the Lion King I learned that he knows all the words to all the Lion King songs and it doesn't bother him to sing them out loud.</div><div><br /></div><div>While we were waiting for The Tower of Terror I learned that he thought I had bad B-O and I shouldn't raise my arms up.</div><div><br /></div><div>While we were dropping down an elevator shaft on The Tower of Terror I learned that it wasn't me with the B-O after all (phew!).</div><div><br /></div><div>While we were waiting for a bus to take us to Downtown Disney I learned that he loves playing music, but isn't really sure he wants that to be his career. </div><div><br /></div><div>While we were riding a Disney bus to somewhere I learned that for the last few months he's been researching joining the Canadian Armed Forces to be a Dr.</div><div><br /></div><div>While we were walking through Downtown Disney I was reminded how smart he is.</div><div><br /></div><div>While we were driving home in the car I learned that he is serious about the Armed Forces.</div><div><br /></div><div>WHAT?!</div><div><br /></div><div>From the ages of 4 to 13 Brendan wanted to be a trauma Dr. He wanted the excitement of an emergency room - the guts and the glory. Once he turned 13, he discovered he had a great talent for music and he has been affirmed of that talent over and over. And he got swept up in to the excitement of being a musician. His reasons and rationale for NOT pursuing music as a career are quite well thought out and I really can't argue with them. The same goes for his reasons for wanting to join the Armed Forces and becoming a Dr. He wants to meet with a recruitment officer to ask questions about it all and he already has the questions thought out. </div><div>What happened to my baby? The kid who day dreamed his way through elementary school and charmed his way through everything else? I can't believe he is talking about his future so seriously and making plans to accomplish things he wants to do. He so desperately wants adventure and excitement. He wants to see the world and be a hero and have a walk on the wild side. </div><div>You know what? He has become everything I always wanted him to be. </div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-70045015625283105702011-10-24T09:42:00.000-07:002011-10-24T10:44:06.050-07:00Almost back to real life.In less than a week we will be home! It's hard to believe we have been gone for a month already. A byproduct of being away for so long is a better appreciation of home. There are so many things we take for granted that I have never thought about before. The biggest one for me at the moment is the ability I have at home to buy good quality, fresh food at a reasonable price.<div>You know how we see on tv all the time about poor, obese Americans talking about how it's impossible to buy fresh fruit and vegetables and feed their families healthy food? And how the reason they are overweight is because it is so much cheaper to buy the junk food, packaged food and fast food instead of healthy, fresh food? IT IS TRUE!!! </div><div>Since we have been in Florida I have shopped at Publix, WalMart and Target superstores and a couple of smaller, local grocery stores. No matter how much I plan a grocery trip, it is impossible to do a week's worth of healthy meals on my budget. On the other hand, it is very easy to do a week's worth of pre-packaged, processed, frozen or all you can eat buffet meals. </div><div>Now, I have never believed it when I have seen people on tv bemoaning the fact that they can't feed their families healthy food. I have judged right along with the rest of you. I have always thought, "Give me a break! How hard can it be?" Now, I understand and I empathize with the people. We have spent a month eating poorly, because, to be honest, it was too much work to shop and feed us well. We are on vacation after all! For the first couple of weeks I did my best, but the boys were always hungry and it is soooooo hard to spend $6 on subpar apples! I had assumed that coming to Florida, we would be eating tons of oranges, avocados, and other local fruits and veggies. WRONG!!! Oranges (from Florida) are more expensive here than they are at home! The Florida avocados that I buy at home for $1.49 each are $1.89 here - does that even make sense?? </div><div>One of the things that I have learned as I went through the process of changing our diets at home, was that when you eat the processed, packaged, bad food, you get addicted to it. There is a huge detrimental cycle to eating poorly. It must be incredibly depressing to be poor in the USA. The amount of money that is poured into the production of packaged food is incredible, it is pushed at lower income families as their only option, it promotes obesity and disease, people end up sick, they have no health insurance and it goes on and on and on... and it really alters how you think about things.</div><div>When Brendan dislocated his toe the other day and our travel insurance wouldn't cover it, I called the hospital to find out what the costs involved would be. I shocked myself when I said to my kid, "Sorry, but your toe isn't worth it." Who says stuff like that??? People without health insurance, that's who. If we had been at home, I would have taken him straight to the ER without giving it a thought. When it happened here, I took care of it myself (now in fairness, I have done my share of first aid training and had years of experience) because we couldn't afford to pay almost $3000 to have his toe x-rayed and put back in place. </div><div>We are all sold on the great American Dream. It's a load of crap. There is very little hope in the lives of most of the Americans I have met. These are working class people struggling to keep their families going. It has been so shocking to see all the cracks in the image that America tries to portray to the rest of the world. </div><div>I will be so happy to touch my feet back on Canadian ground next Saturday. </div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-49822913811364420442011-10-15T17:30:00.000-07:002011-10-15T18:10:54.561-07:00A little perspective.One of the things that I have always tried to do with the boys when we travel is to have them be "in the culture" of wherever we are. We do not stay holed up in a resort and we try to meet as many local people as we can. When we stayed at Atlantis at the beginning of this trip, that was the first time we had ever "vacationed" like that, but I knew that we would be ending our trip more in the manner that we are accustomed to.<div>When we first got to the townhouse in Kissimmee, Florida, I was disappointed. It didn't measure up to our "vacation expectations". We got spoiled in the Bahamas and on our cruise and the townhouse was a bump back in to reality. I am surprised that there has been so much to learn by living in a little townhouse in the middle of Florida. We are in the American vacation mecca. One of the largest tourist destinations in the world. Depending on who you ask, "The Happiest Place on Earth". Amidst all the happiness though, is a city that is suffering greatly in the throes of the american recession. As soon as we got here I could feel something was "off", but it took me about a week to figure out what it was. Everything is just a little bit broken and run down. WalMart is full of BMW's and well dressed families buying no name pasta, cheezits and wine - all the while trying to keep their kids from touching anything that the "poor" people have been touching. It is odd. There are townhouse complexes all around that are typically full of vacationers, but are now full of people who have lost their homes. Then there are large, gated suburbs with big, beautiful houses and they are full of For Sale signs and garbage. All through the streets and shopping centers, there are boarded up businesses, broken signs, clearance signs and overgrown landscaping. It is like that all around us for miles and miles - unless you drive down the 192 or the 536 - both those roads go straight in to Disneyworld. Once you cross the last junction on the way to Disney, you are transported to another world. The grass is perfect, the streets are spotless, the cars and buses are clean and shiny. There is not a piece of trash out of place or a chip of paint missing. It took the boys until day three of Disney to notice this. Since then we have been talking and learning a lot about recession. What is it? What does it mean? Why does that make people lose their houses? Does it end? What happens to all the people? Why didn't it affect Disneyworld? Big questions with mostly crappy answers.</div><div>It is weird to be vacationing in a land of prosperity, but living in an area of despair. It is hypocritical. It is uncomfortable. It has also been an eye opening experience for us and a humbling one. </div><div>"How can we help the people?", one kid asks me. Hmmmmm, that's a tough one. We know that there is a family in our complex that is struggling so we will pack up all our unused and leftover food and things at the townhouse and leave it at their front door when we leave and we will donate the clothes and books we brought with us to a little thrift store that we found that has pretty bare shelves and racks. Those are just the little things though and I know the question that he asked was meant to be answered with a bigger answer. That is going to take a few more days I think.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-19974352550693412172011-10-13T16:58:00.000-07:002011-10-13T18:55:19.469-07:00A day at EPCOT.I learned some things today and for what it's worth, I will share them with you.<div><br /></div><div>1. Disney farms its own fish and grows its own crops in order to sustain the food in their parks and on their resort properties (including the cruise ships). </div><div><br /></div><div>2. They work with the US Agriculture Dept. to develop sustainable and ecologically friendly farming practices - including aquaculture and a lot of hydroponics.</div><div><br /></div><div>3. They grow up to 35,000 tomatoes in a year!</div><div><br /></div><div>4. If your child has a meltdown, you get a magic pass that gets you to the front of the line on any attraction. And just to be safe, they give it to you for the entire time you are visiting Disney.</div><div><br /></div><div>5. When you don't have to wait in any line-ups, you can get through a park in half a day.</div><div><br /></div><div>6. The EPCOT Food and Wine Festival is worth returning for. There are food and drink booths set up all through the park, from all of the countries represented in the park. I think Brendan and I might come back for it next year.</div><div><br /></div><div>7. The strangest things make me lose it. (I don't care if that water fountain doesn't feel as good as the other one, DRINK OUT OF IT!)</div><div><br /></div><div>8. People will pay A LOT of money to make their kid stop whining. (this was not me, by the way)</div><div><br /></div><div>9. Michael Jackson was an awesome dancer. (was reminded of this while watching Captain EO)</div><div><br /></div><div>10. There is ALWAYS something to be happy about.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-82867359556987597362011-10-11T16:56:00.000-07:002011-10-11T17:52:40.973-07:00The Disney Dream was exactly that - a dream.I realized in the midst of all my complaining, I never told you about the cruise. WOW! It was so worth every penny and we've been told by all the frequent cruisers we met that we have now been spoiled for any other cruise on any other cruise line. We were on Disney's brand new ship, the Disney Dream (it's inaugural voyage was in January 2011) and it was magnificent. Yes, I do have pictures, but they are still to come....<div>I splurged a bit on our room and we were in a Deluxe Family Oceanview Stateroom with a balcony. The room was large, airy and spacious and most importantly, we all had our own bed! </div><div>Our room hostess was great and very accommodating with Dylan (who spent a lot of time in the room). </div><div>When we arrived at the cruise ship terminal the Dream completely dwarfed the other three ships in the docks. The Disney terminal was an experience in itself and it was Disney through and through. The process of checking in was seamless and fast, we were greeted by Captain Mickey and on the ship in about 40 minutes. Dylan was not too impressed that as we crossed the gangplank onto the ship that we were announced, greeted and applauded by everyone in the ship's atrium (Brendan and I loved it!). Our rooms weren't ready for about an hour, so we headed upstairs for lunch. The elevators were crazy mental, so we hiked it up the 8 flights of stairs with our bags (yay for carry on luggage!). Lunch was being served in the top deck buffet and was a casual setting. We picked a table by the window and the boys went off to fill their plates while I sat for a moment and took a breath. They returned with heaping plates and I set off to check things out. There were sooooooo many choices, it was all hot and there were chefs all around to answer questions or prepare something that you may need done differently. There was food from all ethnicities, seafood abounding, a decent salad bar, a kids only buffet and lots of dessert choices. And I have to say, for the amount of kids that were around, it was fairly calm and orderly. There were crew members around just to help kids navigate the food and ease the process for moms and dads. Disney really does think of everything.</div><div>By the time we were done eating our room was ready so we headed back down the stairs and found our new home. It was so much more than I was expecting. Now, in fairness, we have never been on a cruise before, so I didn't have anything to compare it to, but our room was equal to a hotel room. The bathroom was split in to two rooms (one for toilet and sink and one for bathtub and sink), there were three closets, a desk area, seating area, dresser, tv, etc. and the balcony had a table and 2 chairs. I had a queen size bed, Brendan had a bed that came down from the ceiling and Dylan was on the couch that turned in to a bed. </div><div>After we had a minute to sit and take it all in, Brendan and I headed out to explore. The ship was HUGE! We got Brendan registered for VIBE (teen club) and found 2 movie theaters, 2 live show theaters, the pool deck with a water coaster slide (the AquaDuck) and an outdoor movie screen, the adult only deck, the spa, gym, adult clubs, kids clubs and all the restaurants. Disney does their dining on a rotational system. Each night you eat in a different restaurant and your servers move with you. The three main dining rooms were The Royal Palace (French), The Animators Palette (Pacific Rim) and The Enchanted Garden (Continental Marketplace). We started in The Royal Palace on our first night. The most unbelievable part of all of it was that Dylan tried EVERYTHING!! The kid had lobster, escargot, crab, beef, souffle and more (this is a kid who eats everything plain, no sauce, nothing touching and nothing new). We had a great serving team and they went out of their way to keep Dylan happy. The food was probably some of the best food I have ever eaten in the world and there was nothing in 5 days that was even so-so. There were a lot of vegetarian and vegan options, but I have to admit that I strayed from my vegan ways because there was too much stuff that I wanted to try. I didn't eat any meat, but I did have some seafood, cheese and cream. The theming in the restaurants was amazing, and it was all interactive - so much fun! We tried all different things for breakfast (a sit down breakfast, a buffet breakfast and room service breakfast) and for lunch we all did our own things. Dylan made best friends with the room service people and used it frequently! He would get cookies and milk at bed time, and blt sandwiches and steak sandwiches were his favourites.</div><div>For the majority of the cruise Dylan stayed in the room watching on demand movies and ordering room service, I spent my days lounging in a fantastic chair or in a pool seat on the adult deck reading my book. I don't know what Brendan did. He left the room by 10am each day, came back to meet me for a show at 6pm, had dinner with us and then went back to his peeps for the rest of the night. His curfew was 2am. He went ashore with the teen counselors and went kayaking, snorkelling, bike riding, etc - I think he had the best time of all of us!</div><div>I wasn't comfortable going ashore and leaving Dylan on the ship, so I didn't do too much, but it was still relaxing and a good time. I did make Dylan get off the ship at Castaway Cay (Disney's private island) and we did a quick tram ride/walk around to see what there was to see. As you would expect, it was an exotic paradise. There were family beaches, adult only beaches, teen only beaches and every type of water entertainment available. If you were off the ship for the day they had a large bbq place with ribs, chicken, burgers, salads, ice cream, etc for your lunch and snacks. I would definitely go on a cruise again - next time with friends and no kids!</div><div>We had a late dinner seating so we went to the early show (well Brendan and I went). I have seen a fair number of big name musicals around the world and the shows on the ship were on par with some of the best. Way more than I was expecting - even Brendan was impressed. The staging, effects and quality of music was fantastic night after night. </div><div>All in all, the cruise was a great experience. None of us had any issues with the motion of the boat and we really enjoyed everything we tried. There was also minigolf, ping pong, shuffle board, foosball, a Pirate night, fireworks and more. I could go on an on, but I think you get the picture.</div><div>Oh, the best part? Every time the ship sounded its horn... it was the tune of "When you wish upon a star".</div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-67139612145702755452011-10-11T07:31:00.000-07:002011-10-11T07:50:35.195-07:00Just frustrated.I think God is trying to tell me something. From the first time we dreamed of this trip, we wanted to plan a trip unlike one we had ever done before. We wanted to stay in nice places, do some extra things, go somewhere exotic - we wanted a bit of luxury. This was to be the once in a lifetime Pearson vacation. The bottom line is that I am thankful that we are here. I am glad we have gone the places we've gone and that we are enjoying theme parks, etc. <div><br /></div><div>BUT.</div><div><br /></div><div>It just seems that at every turn there is a problem. The townhouse we are staying at has a lot of problems and none of them are being resolved quickly. They aren't big things in the scheme of things, but I booked this place because of the fantastic reviews. And I have to say, I really think it is just the luck of the draw that it is like this for us. It's like there was a bad renter in here before us and they covered things up on the surface so that the management company didn't really notice. Dylan is sleeping on the couch in the living room because his bedroom has a broken bed (the frame is shattered and it was propped up with the bed skirt pulled down) and his cable outlet is broken. The taps in the bathroom drips, the shower door doesn't latch, the fridge water filters need changing, there are a lot of missing linens, the community gate is broken (someone drove through it) and there is not a gym anymore.</div><div><br /></div><div>So, while the "dream" part of our vacation was upheld with the cruise part, the rest of it has been a bit lackluster. We are still having fun and we will always find the good things, but I'm disappointed that we didn't get to have the "luxury" part. Makes me think that we should just stick to what know from now on. It's the expectations that mess things up. If we had come on this trip knowing our budget would be so restricted by unforeseen problems and that we would be staying in so-so places, it would be a different story. Oh well. As I said, I am thankful that we are here, just disappointed in the details.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-32141828369971781112011-10-09T18:14:00.000-07:002011-10-09T18:37:52.257-07:00Hold on to your shorts, everyone is happy.We have a had a great day. Unbelievable, I know. Brendan and I got up early and tiptoed around the house so we didn't wake up Dylan. We checked outside to see what the weather was doing and we opted for our bathing suits. yes, it was raining THAT hard. (kidding on the bathing suits, by the way). The plan was for Brendan and I to do all the roller coasters at Islands of Adventure and Universal Studios, as well as any rides that Dylan was unsure of (that way we could report back on the exact specifics of the ride) and Dylan would spend the day at home, sleeping in, playing his new computer games and generally chilling out. Weather wasn't going to stop us, so Brendan and I dressed for rain (board shorts, quick dry shirts, flip flops and ponchos), snuck out of the house and headed for fun! Most importantly, we made it out of the house without waking up Dylan!!<div><br /></div><div>When we arrived, it was raining soooooooooo hard! How hard was it raining, you ask?</div><div>It was raining so hard that Shamu was in the queue at Hogwarts with us.</div><div>Hahahaha - I crack myself up. Seriously though, we were walking in ankle deep water, my glasses were useless, the shop attendants were trying to keep the shops from flooding and people were whining all around us. We, however, made use of the weather and got on tons of rides! One thing I have come to hate about Universal/Islands of Adventures is that every time you go on a ride you have to put your bags and assorted stuff in a locker. It takes so much time! Half the time the lockers don't work and the locker areas are crammed full of people. So frustrating!</div><div>We managed to get almost everything done today that we wanted. AND, Dylan only called us once! Yay! The roller coasters were awesome and Brendan and I got to hang out and have a stress free day. Even better? When we came home around 530pm, Dylan was happy. </div><div>Thank you God.</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-73654711884255735012011-10-07T07:13:00.000-07:002011-10-07T07:57:13.989-07:00Wow! Who knew a vacation could be so stressful!It has been a week, but let me tell you.... it feels like an actual lifetime! The night before we were to get on the ship (and after I had written the last blog post) I got a message from my dog/house sitter that things weren't going well and we needed to make some changes. If it had been any other day than the one before we were getting on a ship for 5 days, I would have handled it MUCH better. I don't think I've been that stressed in years! You know the kind? Can't focus on anything? Feel sick in your stomach? Can't eat? Yes, you read that right! I didn't eat for 2 meals!! All I could think of was how much money would be going down the drain if we had to fly home the next day, rather than get on the ship. Long story short... we got on the ship, alternate plans were made for the dogs while we were on the ship, and we are sticking out the remainder of our vacation.<div><br /></div><div>Maybe.</div><div><br /></div><div>Hmmmmm.... how to explain the next vacation interrupter appropriately... Let's just say, Dylan has been "challenging" on this trip. </div><div>"Challenging" enough that I will never leave home on a vacation with him again. </div><div>"Challenging" enough that I paid $10.50 for a Rusty Anchor drink on the ship (that would be a heck of a lot of rum and a bit of cranberry juice).</div><div>"Challenging" enough that I promised Brendan I will spend the rest of my life making it up to him.</div><div><br /></div><div>and the thing is, I feel badly for him (Dylan). I really, really do. But this time, I feel more badly for Brendan and me. Judge me if you want.</div><div><br /></div><div>Next up on the vacation interrupter list... (there's more you are asking?) The rental car "situation". When we got off the cruise ship, I had a car waiting to pick us up (a great, brand new Escalade) and our driver took us to the airport where we were picking up our rental car for the next phase of the trip. I had booked the car online with Thrifty.com and had booked the Wild Card option. Which basically means we don't know what kind of car we will get, but we pay based on the price online the day I booked (ad adventure, if you will). Anyways, I got to the check in counter and the first thing that comes up is that they are unwilling to accept my insurance. According to the lady, Florida does not recognize any out of state liability insurance on rental cars and the only way I am leaving the counter with keys is at the additional cost of $14 per day (ironically, more than the daily rate of my car). And then, I had a $1000 hold placed on my credit card. I, however, had all my paperwork right in front of me that said I would have a hold on my credit card for the cost of the car plus 20%, which worked out to just over $500. When I pointed that out to the nice lady, she simply said "that's not our policy anymore". And yes, I talked to a supervisor. And yes, I held firm. I even almost cried. Yes, that's right - I almost cried. At the end of it all, where did I get? Nowhere. I was held hostage to a set of car keys. So I did what every self respecting girl can do. I paid the money, took the keys and promptly called my brother to ask for a loan to my credit card. (and yes, my brother saved our day!) And now I am fighting with Thrifty's online and on the phone.</div><div><br /></div><div>The final straw in my long day yesterday? Just because everything else wasn't quite enough to push me all the way over the edge, I split open my favourite and only pair of shorts that made the cut in to my suitcase. I have some capris, but now no shorts. I know it is a simple thing, but you have to appreciate the magnitude of yesterday. (there is an Old Navy outlet store down the street, so I will stop by today and see what I can find.)</div><div><br /></div><div>Today we are doing nothing. We are in our townhouse, it is sunny outside, there are groceries in our fridge and a car in our driveway. For all intents and purposes it looks like we are a regular family on a regular vacation. </div><div>Oh how looks can be deceiving...</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-90094428358675872442011-10-01T16:11:00.000-07:002011-10-01T16:37:37.774-07:00I'm drawing a blank.I've been thinking of blog post things for the past couple of days and every time I come up with something good to write about, Brendan has the computer and by the time I get it back I've forgotten all the good stuff!<div>I'll try and give you the highlights in point form...</div><div><br /></div><div>~walking out of Atlantis on our last night with one kid crying "I never even asked to come to the stupid Bahamas!" I'm sure you can only imagine the looks we were getting.</div><div><br /></div><div>~almost being late for the taxi taking us to the airport because we didn't want to miss the end of "Keeping up with the Kardashians"</div><div><br /></div><div>~we got to go through the secret exit at the Orlando airport to get to our private town car to drive us to Cocoa Beach. It was so worth pre-booking a car - so luxurious! We were watching other cars on the highway look at our car and wonder who was inside! (If only they knew...)</div><div><br /></div><div>~Brendan and I went wandering through a grocery store in Cocoa Beach and he wanted to buy every American junk food treat known to mankind. Twinkies and HoHo's anyone?</div><div><br /></div><div>~Dylan and I braved the Cocoa beach public transit system and took a bus to a local mall to find a GameStop. He perked up immensely when he found 2 games at great prices. We discovered there are a lot of crazy people that ride the bus (and I'm not including us in that statement.)</div><div><br /></div><div>~Brendan and I had to return from the grocery store in the WORST rain we have EVER seen. It was incredible! A true wall of water falling from the sky. By the time we had crossed the parking lot, we were walking in ankle deep water and the cars had pulled over. An unbelievable experience!</div><div><br /></div><div>~JetBlue is now our favourite airline. So friendly, tons of room in the comfy, big seats and the BEST snacks!</div><div><br /></div><div>~I am going to buy a cord for the camera once we are off the cruise and back in Florida so pictures will come your way in a week or so.</div><div><br /></div><div>~We all agree that we could never live in the USA. Not sure I could put words to our reasons without offending anyone or staying even remotely, politically correct! Glad to be a Canadian!</div><div><br /></div><div>~Tomorrow is cruise day and I can't wait! I am most excited to see what vegan delights the chefs have prepared! (and of course I'm super excited to use the state of the art gym...)</div><div><br /></div><div>~ Oh, did I tell you about going down the crazy wild waterslides at Atlantis? Brendan and I got to the top of the Leap of Faith (named that for a VERY good reason!) and I chickened out. Then he told me to "grow a pair" in front of all these cops from New Jersey and then they agreed with him. What was I supposed to do?? So I took a leap of faith and went. And lived. Same thing happened at the Abyss. I know. I have a very rude child. Who raised him anyways?</div><div><br /></div><div>~As for the cops from New Jersey... there were 1800 New Jersey cops at Atlantis while we were there. Atlantis = very safe. New Jersey? Not so much. Not bad to look at either, no they weren't.</div><div><br /></div><div>I think those are the main highlights from the last couple of days. No posting or facebook while we're on the cruise, so see you in a week!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-17322772911207776762011-09-27T19:26:00.000-07:002011-09-27T20:01:55.308-07:00it was worth the wait.We arrived in the Bahamas around noon and stepped off the plane in to suffocating heat. And the humidity? Wow! Because we only had carry-on luggage, we breezed through customs and were then greeted by a Bahamian drummer dressed in traditional Bahamas gear. Just before we exited the airport we were welcomed by someone from the tourism board and he promised us the vacation of a lifetime - amazingly, he has turned out to be right. <div>Our taxi driver was a fantastic start to our trip. He took us on a bit of a tour, hit it off with Brendan and talked history with us for awhile. He stopped at the grocery store his wife shops at (as opposed to the tourist grocery store closer to our destination) and didn't charge us a dime extra. He pointed out all the little shacks that had the best seafood for sale and I swear he knew every person in every car we passed! Anyways... moving along...</div><div><br /></div><div>We checked in to our hotel and just decompressed from the day. Went for a swim, ordered Chinese food to our room and watched a Criminal Minds marathon on tv. It was at some point in the evening that I realized that without having access to Brendan's computer we were going to have a camera issue. Our camera has an SD card and only Brendan's computer can read the card. Not only that, I didn't bother buying a bigger card because the plan was to just download the pictures each night - so I kept the card that only holds about 50 pictures. That means that we don't have a way to get the pictures off the camera until we are home (unless I buy a cable when we get to Florida) or we only take 50 pictures in 5 weeks. I have my Blackberry and I've taken some shots on it, but I have my data plan turned off to avoid roaming charges, so I can't get those on to facebook either. All of that to say that's why you haven't seen any pictures yet. Oh Brendan...</div><div><br /></div><div>Now let me tell you about Atlantis. Unbelievable. Worth every penny. We would come back here in a heartbeat. Such attention to detail. And the best part? Once you get in your tube and in to the water, you NEVER HAVE TO GET OUT! Seriously. There is a rapids river that goes around the water park and there are conveyor belts that take you up to the different slides. Some of the slides are more like water roller coasters with a combination of water, rollers and belts that shoot you up hills after you've dropped down the hills. If you just ride the rapids river, the whole circuit takes about 25 mins. </div><div>Besides the water park, there are numerous pools, aquariums, casinos, beaches, marine habitats, etc. So much to see and do. Every person we have encountered has been so welcoming and helpful - just such a friendly place. On the other hand, it is ridiculously expensive here. Dylan's comment sums it up perfectly... I made a comment about how it seemed that every woman in sight was carrying a Prada, Gucci or Coach bag. Dylan's comment? Those bags aren't for us. We're a ziploc bag kind of family. Hahahahaha - so true! I have ziplocs in all our bags/pockets so we can take leftovers, extra bagels from breakfast to have for lunch and to pack snacks to the park. For the most part, if you can afford to be here, you can afford to eat here. On average I would say a family of 4 would have to be spending an easy $60 for lunch and $100 for dinner. On our second day here, I stalked the local workers from around the hotel and found out where they bought lunch. For about a 5 min walk we can eat fresh, yummy, Bahamas food for about $6 each. I WILL stick to our $20 a day food budget! </div><div><br /></div><div>The weather has been great. Hot and humid with some great thunder showers here and there and then some brilliant sunshine thrown in. We are all sunburnt, nursing blisters on our feet, sleeping well at night, drinking lots of water, eating well and having a great time. Two more days here and then it's on to Cocoa Beach, Florida...</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-76150625480682084412011-09-27T07:52:00.000-07:002011-09-27T08:23:04.905-07:00Are we there yet?Let me start by saying that the Bahamas are unbelievable. Perfect, in fact. Before I get to telling you all about it, let me back track to the beginning of the journey here....<div>We left home on Friday morning when Susie picked us up at the farm and drove us to to the Ladner bus loop. Now don't go thinking Susie is too cheap to drive us all the way to the airport, no, my children wanted to arrive at the airport by bus and skytrain. We got out of the car and the fighting began. And lasted pretty much until the next morning. We were hungry, anxious and we just wanted to get somewhere. </div><div>The flight to Toronto was uneventful and we had a smooth check in to the Sheraton in the airport terminal. Then the drama really began. The plan was for the boys to plug in their electronics so they would be charged up for the next day and then we were going to go find something for dinner (it was 9pm). While I was organizing boarding passes and getting stuff ready for the morning, the only words (amidst the bickering) that I tuned in to were from Brendan..."where's my computer charger?" "Mom, where did you put my computer charger?" </div><div><br /></div><div>[Let me take a moment here to tell you all that for a week before we left I had a master packing list typed up for each kid and there were many offers of help from me and that on the night before we left, I went through each item on the list with each kid and checked off that each item was indeed in a bag.] Back to the story...</div><div><br /></div><div>"Brendan, I don't have your computer charger, you packed it in your backpack last night."</div><div>"I know I did, I remember putting it in with my headphones. BUT IT'S NOT HERE!!"</div><div><br /></div><div>A few text messages home and his computer charger was found still plugged in to the power bar next to his bed. Hmmmmmm, I wonder how that happened. </div><div>If you are the parent of a teenager, you can appreciate the drama that ensued when he figured out that he wasn't going to have a laptop or a way to charge his iPod for the next 5 weeks. </div><div><br /></div><div>Anyways, that drama was put on hold while we wandered downstairs to find something to eat. The restaurant in the hotel was struck off the list when we looked at a menu and the average entree was around $37. Oh, and by the way, we checked out the room service menu before we left the room and a burger and fries was $29 plus an $8 delivery charge and an automatic 18% tip. We decided to head back in to the terminal and just get something there. That is until we discovered that all the airport restaurants closed at 9pm. Does that not seem a bit ridiculous to you? An airport in a major metropolitan city and the food options close at 9pm? At this point, one of us is seriously cranky because he needs to eat, one of us is sulking because he has been cut off from the rest of the world and one of us is stressing because we are going to be out of money a week in to our trip. Whatever. Because God knows my limits, when we turned the next corner, there was a little hamburger place that was still flipping burgers. Yay!! We chowed down some food, and headed back to our room to put on swim suits for a dip in the pool before we headed to bed for a good night's sleep.</div><div><br /></div><div>We enjoyed an "included with our room" buffet breakfast in the morning and then got on our plane headed for paradise...</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-88788993731699730192011-09-18T10:05:00.000-07:002011-09-18T11:27:14.440-07:00are you a crazy person before you leave on a vacation?I turn into a very crazy person before I leave on a vacation. It doesn't matter how long I'm gone for, it could be a weekend or months, if it involves packing, I turn crazy. Now I realize there are people out there laughing and saying to themselves "what does she mean she TURNS crazy? isn't she already there?", but if you thought I was crazy before, this brings it to a whole new level. <div>For example, I can live in chaos and clutter all the days of the year, but if I'm going away, I need to have my house spotlessly clean. Not just a little bit clean, but suck out the air ducts kind of clean. The problem with that is that for all those other days of the year I don't really care, so you can imagine the size of the job I'm facing in the days leading up to leaving. At the moment, the two biggest obstacles to me getting on a plane in a relaxed and happy fashion are my fridge and my bedroom. Doesn't sound so bad, does it? If I had the guts to do it, I would take a picture and show you the state of my room. I haven't actually slept in there since moving back here at the end of April. It became the room that accumulated all the extra boxes and stuff from my mom's house, so there are laundry baskets, boxes, furniture and filing cabinets full of papers to deal with - all before Thursday. So where does the crazy part happen? I won't sleep until it's done. And once it's done I will have to finish cleaning out the fridge and then the front storage room. Seriously, I get crazy obsessed. And just to be clear, this is all my mother's fault. She too, didn't sleep before a vacation and cleaned things around the house that at other times could go unnoticed for months. After all, what if the house were to catch fire while I'm not here to defend myself and my messy house to the fireman?</div><div>So, while you are all enjoying my countdown on facebook and being excited for me because I'm leaving in 5 days, please remember that I am a basket case at home and not in my right mind. Did I just write that I'm leaving in 5 days???!!!??? I should be holding a dustpan and a garbage bag, NOT a laptop!</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-6442624864674837102011-09-17T14:09:00.001-07:002011-09-17T14:20:03.246-07:00Didn't think I'd be back here again...Hey there everyone! I have to say that I didn't think I would be writing back here again... there is a new site on the way, but it's just not going to happen before we go on our trip. I suppose it can be something to look forward to when we get back. <div>In 6 days we are leaving on the trip of a life time! We are flying to the Bahamas to play at Atlantis for a week, then we are spending a couple of days surfing in Cocoa Beach, Florida before we board the Disney Dream for a cruise through the Bahamas and finally on to Kissimmee, Florida for just over 3 weeks of playing in the sun. People keep asking us if we are excited. Ummmmm, is that supposed to be a rhetorical question? Dylan has some anxiety about it all, but he will be fine once we're in the air and Brendan and I are obviously excited. But, first we have to finish off the next 6 days at home. For me that means, cleaning out the fridge, sorting the front storage and mud room closet, dealing with the linen closet from hell and finally, trying to make some semblance of my room. Ah yes.... my room. The room I haven't slept in since last November. It's a long story, but lets just say that it became the room that stored boxes, furniture, books and more boxes. I really want to go away knowing that when I come home it is to an organized and clean room, so that is my project for these last few days at home. Wish me luck.</div><div><br /></div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-582644715728758392010-11-03T12:19:00.000-07:002010-11-03T12:44:32.236-07:00I've been talking to some people.A year of frustration around losing weight has made me question people who are at a healthy weight on how they got there and then how they stay there. The most common thing I hear is that it is a top priority for them. That means that they have a plan, protect the plan and always execute the plan. Interestingly, when I sat down to think about what my top priorities are, it was hard to come up with any. So many things compete for my attention that they become priorities by default, but there isn't really any intention behind them and therefore I feel like I have no control and no say in the things that happen in my life. That makes me quite cranky. <div>Unfortunately for me, the only time that is virtually <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">uninterruptable</span> in the day are the VERY unsocial hours of the morning. In order for me to have a time to go to the gym/pool/or a class I would need to go at 6am. Now, if you know me at all, you will know that is not my best time of day. It is actually the OPPOSITE of my best time of day. So, the question becomes, how badly do I want what I say I want? I would have to completely change the patterns of my day and night if I am going to exercise that early in the morning. Or, I guess I could give up sleep. Although, maybe I would need less sleep if I physically felt better.</div><div>I think I will make a committment to myself that for 2 weeks I will try the early morning thing (M-F) - I am NOT getting up at 545am on Saturday and Sunday. I think that may even be against my religion.</div><div>So, for the weeks of Nov 8 and Nov 15 I will give it a go. I really do want to make a change and clearly I need to be doing something different than I've been doing. </div><div>Life changes are hard, no?</div>Unknownnoreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7812232636804903857.post-45086088131333697892010-10-31T20:54:00.000-07:002010-10-31T21:03:04.081-07:00A hypothetical question.A conversation I had with Brendan on the way to dropping him off at a Halloween party...<br /><br />"Mom? If my friends and I were walking along the road, minding our own business and a group of people was walking towards us and they had fireworks and at that exact moment the police came and stopped all of us and busted the whole group for having fireworks, would you be mad? Would you bail me out if they took us to the police station?"<br /><br />"Brendan, if a group of kids was walking towards you with fireworks I would expect that you would keep moving past them, or cross to the other side of the street. If the police came at the exact second that you appeared to be a part of this group of kids with the fireworks, I would be sure to mention this conversation to the police when I come to pick you up from the police station."<br /><br />"Oh."Unknownnoreply@blogger.com0