board games, high park zoo and duck confit french toast

this weekend, as do all good weekends, went by too fast. but it was a good weekend indeed. the type i wish i could just put in a jar for a rainy day.

doug did have to work saturday, so that day was low key. chaeli and i took hobbes to the vet for a routine heart worm check-up. not fun for him since they had to put a needle in his hind thigh to draw some blood. the poor guy starts to shake whenever he’s on top of the examining table.

nothing special happened for the majority of the afternoon. chaeli had homework and i had housework. but then, being the amazing, domesticated mom that i am, i told her to put socks on because we were going to wendy’s. and not just eat food from wendy’s. but eat there.

which is fun for a kid. for me? it just means the garbage can be disposed of THERE and not at HOME. and the mess, should there be a mess would be THERE. and no, not at all at HOME.

i made up for my lack of domesticated skills after dinner though. well, sort of. my intent, in order to win mother of the year, was to just turn on netflix and veg out in front of the tv.

chaeli, however, wasn’t in the mood for tv. she asked, “can we play board games?”

i looked at her and replied back with a question, “really? with just the two of us? don’t you think it would be more fun if we did family game night with daddy home?”

“no… it can be fun with just two people.”

i will admit. i took a moment to think of all the excuses i could think of. i had my heart set on being lazy in my pj’s, lying in bed watching whatever netflix had to ofer, at least for kids. plus, do you know what it is like to play boardgames with kids? they either don’t follow the rules or they take a long time to decide on their move or they whine when they lose.

well, maybe not all of them and not all the time. the potential for any of these things to happen can very well happen.

but suddenly, i was in the mood to play myself. and i’m glad we did play that junior scrabble game, even though it forces you to limit your choices to the words already on the board. because it was a great way to spend the evening.

the next day was quite nice. we met up with ada and hoa at high park so doug could go for a run with them. while they ran, chaeli and i took hobbes to the off-leash trail to get some fresh air and move our muscles a bit.

i was not at all feeling guilty for the fact that i wasn’t joining them. in fact, i was rather happy to announce, “i don’t run. yoga, p90x and wimping out on gym cardio machines… that will do it for me!” they’re all marathon/triathlon types. or at least 10K types. and due to this, doug has been eating healthy and cutting back on the luxuries that happens to be beer. that’s why i don’t do marathons. i like to eat.

ada only did 30 minutes with them and then text-ed us to meet up with where ever we were. which was good. chaeli wanted to go to the zoo but with hobbes, i have to keep him away from the fenced in animals. ada was able to stick closer to her while i stood back whenever hobbes got overly excited from seeing an animal which he probably took as being a very, very large dog. except when he saw the turkeys and peacocks. then he just took them as very, very large birds.

we ended up at origin afterwards for an awesome brunch.

duck confit and french toast… heaven!

healthy shy – the zen of snowboarding

< the zen of snowboarding – post from healthy shy

a quick post i whipped about relating yoga to snowboarding.

i’m back into that beautiful feeling of carving those S’ down the white slopes.

more on our actually 2nd time boarding/skiing.

but for now… read on about how yoga has helped prepare me for this winter sport.

differences in the different types of yoga and classes

differences in the different types of yoga and classes

a note about making a perfect downward dog more perfect. and a rant about how gym classes schedule different types of yoga classes without a description as to what type of yoga is about to be practices (i was not a happy camper yesterday)… read more.

the 40′s club

it hurts to be back at the daily grind. it really hurts.

i wanted to just crawl back under the covers this morning. but one has to make a living!

these past few days were quite blissful, though. so, at the least, we slowed down our pace for a more relaxing way to start the new year.

last thursday, i joined the 40′s club. turning 40 hasn’t been all that bad. when i think back, turning 35 (or more so, 36, 37 and 38) were a little more intense. mainly because ever since 35, i have been preparing myself for the big 4-0.

i do feel older – my body feels it, at least. aches and pains come about more easily and stay a bit longer. but there’s also something nice about turning 40. i think as i age, especially with each decade, i become more comfortable in my own skin.

in fact, as far as my fitness goes, i’m at the happiest level i’ve ever been in. which might seem very ironic, considering that i looked my best in my mid to late 20′s. i was much faster, stronger… tighter! youth was on my side as far as appearance. yet, back then, i was never satisfied with the way i looked. nor my performance. image played a stronger influence in how i pushed myself. and i definitely pushed myself way too much. i, actually, hurt my body rather than love it.

so now, i’m slower, at a higher body fat percentage (though within norm) and my youthful years are far behind me. still… i’m more flexible (thank you, yoga) and only a little less stronger than before. i’ve got more agility and while i do get some minor aches and pain, the chronic lower back pain that i ignored too often is now gone.

do i wish i could have my 27 year old body back? yes – in a heartbeat. but only if it could be accompanied by some of my strengths now.

anyway, chaeli got a bit of the flu over christmas so all birthday plans with my family were cancelled. which was, actually, a perfect way to celebrate my birthday. nothing personal against my family, it’s just that finding solitude and days of doing nothing with just doug and chaeli, are extremely hard to come by. i couldn’t find a better way to celebrate my 40th, really.

on the 30th, ada and hoa came back from the west coast (for good) and met up with most of our posse for dim sum in china town (only 1 family could not make it). it felt good to all be together. and in my heart, i celebrated my birthday quietly with my good friends.

on the 31st, cathy and greg were kind enough to have chaeli and i (plus hobbes) over to celebrate with just them and their two kids. they knew doug was working and took us in to their own household for a peaceful and intimate way of ringing in the new year.

finally, on new year’s day, my last day of my holiday vacation, doug came home and i began 2013 with one hour of yoga, followed by a lazy day in pj’s while starting the 3rd season of The Vampire Diaries.

yoga and vampires – what better way to start the new year?

yoga me

it’s been a really hard couple of weeks for me. i’m actually taking a couple of sick days (well, at least today – i will play tomorrow by ear) due to a panic attack.

doug really wanted me to take the day off. too bad he had to work – it is our wedding anniversary today. but that’s ok – even if this week didn’t pan out as badly as it did, we would have had to postpone our anniversary celebration until next month.

i’m tired. physically, but even more so, emotionally. still, i’ve managed to do some mild yoga. i find the breathing really helps to calm me down. so i decided to post about some of my favourite yoga positions – they are the easier ones but they calm me the most.

read more from my post, yoga me.

presqu’ile park 2012 – last camping trip

i have to admit, i was tempted to just give up on our last planned camping trip.

it was an enthusiastic plan up until we started the school year. and then i was reminded how tiring it can be – just the mad, autumn and back-to-school rush.

but i pushed myself to make that reservation, make those plans and pack our clothes – i just blindly went along with it knowing i would regret it if i didn’t just suck it up and do one more last camping trip.

the incentive was returning to presquile – our old friend, one that never disappointed me in the past.

where i found a great spot for yoga

doug and chaeli are late-risers. i can be but chose to wake up early just to enjoy a longer and fuller day. the mornings are always my favourite with camping. plus, we got a great site just steps away from the lake. i found a spot on the long flat, rocky surface to do my a.m. yoga. obviously, i had to modify my moves as to stay off of my knees (a yoga mat is not protective from the bumpy, rocky surface) and balancing was a little hard due to the uneven ground, but i pulled off a beautiful and fantastic 45 minutes yoga session.

hiking right into the thick of the marsh

go for a walk on the boardwalk

one of my favourite features of presquile park is their unique marsh trail. they built an actual boardwalk that lets you get right into the thick of the marsh. it’s high enough as to avoid flooding on the path should the marsh water level ever rise during a year of high percipitation. but low enough for us to have the privilege to spot some frogs on the lily pads. this truly is a beautiful feature of the park – and i’ve yet to see something like this in other parks we’ve visited.

handsome boy

i’ve said it before and i’ll say it again. it’s important to adopt a dog who has just the right colouring to match the environment of one’s favourite park campground. though, hobbes was not thrilled to be ‘stuck’ on a long boardwalk that seemed to just go on and on.

skipping rocks by the lighthouse

there were at least a few other trails but with just a 2-night camping trip, we decided to spend the rest of the afternoon at the lighthouse point. there are a lot of good skipping rocks available. plus, if you look closely, some of the rocks even have fossils (mostly of prehistoric plants, invertebrates and shells).

dipping little toes and feet in the water

all in all, it was a fantastic weekend. plus, we got to use our little old trailer one more time before the end of camping season.  looking forward to the camping trips for 2013!

view rest of our presquile camping trip 2012 photo album.

a few days as a single woman

doug left early sunday to visit with his family for a few days – thereby bringing chaeli home with him from her summer visit with my in-laws.

i can’t say i am thrilled of having my baby so far away for over a week. last year’s one week visit was hard enough. don’t get me wrong – i love the time i get to be on my own and all the solitude that’s quite rare in my life. but i’m a parent. a mom. worrying is second nature to me.

i did, however, take some advantage of being on my own.  i had an evening with a girlfriend – one of my highschool friends. we’ve seen each other off and on for the past several years and finally got together. as soon as we started to gab and catch up, i had one big, blaring thought in my mind… why didn’t we do this sooner?

what a fun night – we actually were the last to leave. the staff was cleaning up, even.

aside from that, i’ve been able to have longer workouts and so i took this opportunity to try out a new yoga dvd – shiva rea’s yoga shakti. i borrowed it from the library so will need to return it in a couple of weeks. the price on amazon.ca is quite high – $38.99! i question, actually, why it’s only $20.99 on amazon.com (US site). even with shipping fee, i will probably still save $10-12. i figure i would try it out before committing to the purchase.

it’s amazing. first of all, the scenery and music is exquisite. shiva rea is an excellent yoga guru. but what makes this dvd unique is that it has over 250 minutes of yoga. she includes 4 different yoga workouts – one finally focusing on the lunar salutation (i’ve been trying to find something to teach me about lunar salutation flow). on top of that, and this is the beauty of it all, there is a yoga matrix which you can program thereby having an infinite amount of routines right at your finger tips! the different sequences are explained in the dvd guide – along with how long each sequence is so that you can create the length you wish to practice yoga.

p90x plus both upper body strength and total body strength workout dvds were also revisited this past week. the upper body workout isn’t too bad but one of the reasons why i rarely do the total body dvd is simply because it is HARD! my aging body just can’t take the beating from such an intense workout like it use to! but i’m glad i did it – i was dripping sweat at the end but it was well worth it.

i’ve also been reading a lot. my reading list is long and i’m far behind. but as it turns out, a book i had on hold from last year finally came through – i got he automated email message from my library last week and didn’t waste any time to pick it up. and i’ve found it hard to put the book down ever since…

water for elephants – not a hard read but the author really does seem to capture that history of the traveling circus lifestyle so well.

somewhat annoying is that i keep on picture edward cullen’s face whenever i envision jacob, the main character.

i took today off so i could enjoy my last day of solitude. hobbes and i will head out to a dog park and i’ll most likely stop by starbucks on the way back for a nice, cold beverage!

random confessions no. 3

i know i blogged about my milestone yesterday, regarding yoga – and that overall, i maintain the attitude in which i compete mainly with myself. that each milestone is a step towards my own goals. not untrue at all.

but… i am competitive by nature. and this is why i practice yoga mainly on my own. it’s to keep that competitive nature where i compare myself to others in check.

usually, about once a week, i try to make it to a yoga class (bodyflow) for some variety. and while i’m mostly focusing my awareness on my own body and limitations, from time to time, i do glance around to see what others are doing.

yes – i compare. i compare like crazy! i’m definitely ONE OF THOSE!

it’s very bad, i admit. especially in yoga – not at all the proper yogi attitude to take. i’m sure my karma level drops each time this happens exponentially.

my next confession, though… i don’t really care. i like the satisfaction that i’m better than most in class. :p

yoga, my saviour

another milestone in yoga! it’s one that i’ve been working on for two years and i finally saw the results yesterday.

also, i’ve been doing more yoga lately…

read more from, yoga, my saviour.

business trip

business trips are always interesting. people who normally do not go on business trips ooohh and aaahh whenever i tell them i’m going on one soon. then i have to put my hand up and say, “yeah – it’s not that exciting. especially where i’m going. and believe me – i don’t get to do anything fun.”

this week, i was in the state of new york – around the buffalo region. i will admit i had fun with my co-workers (getting out of our main office, dining together, having some good laughs) but the days were long. by the time i checked into my hotel room, it was 10pm.

people also ooohh and aaahh when you tell them which hotel the company has set you up in. it’s never a really fancy hotel but usually around the 4-star mark.

once again, i put my hand up to stop them. even if they did set us up in the most luxurious hotel in the world, the fact that i only get to spend time in it for 3-4 waking hours, of which i’m usually going through my notes from the day, it’s not like i get much time to enjoy the grounds and facilities.

i did, however, manage to workout twice – swapping much needed sleep just so i can throw in some yoga and cardio. but this isn’t something most people do. mainly because they aren’t insane and i, no doubt, am.

my husband emailed me, “hope you guys have an amazing dinner.”

once again, you guessed it, i emailed back what i can only describe as a virtual “speak to the hand” gesture as i replied with, “[CITY NAME] is not a place known for their fine dining. AT ALL. for example, i was at an italian restaurant and they didn’t even know what a Pelligrino was. club soda was the only type of ‘sparkling water’ we could get.”

i will say one thing – the americans do know their quantity. i always get a large serving – one where i can ask for a doggie bag for lunch the next day. and if you go to a nice enough restaurant, you will get decent food. one time, we found a little greek diner – the chicken souvlaki was made of the most tender and fresh chicken breast ever. so not all is at a loss.

it’s just that i admit i can be a bit of a foodie-snob. so while i’ll eat anything without much complaint, just don’t wish me a ‘happy fine-dining’ experience in a place where that pretty much does not exist.