observing the moment

What a nice and relaxing Thanksgiving weekend it’s been. I love when time slows like this and I focus on spending my time reflecting. We can get so caught up with our day-to-day experiences that we forget where we’ve been and what we learned. Reflecting. It’s been a year rich with experience. It overwhelms me to think of all that’s happened, all the places I’ve been, all the people I’ve met, all the friendships that have strengthened, and all the spiritual and personal growth that’s occurred. Growth – when I start on that train of thought, my mind, body and soul just teems with electricity. I have to take a moment to catch my breath because I’ve grown so much.

I’ve decided to change the name of my blog to: observing the moment. I like to slow down and observe the moment and that is when inspiration occurs for me. Gusts of gratitude follow shortly thereafter because I am just so blessed. I am happy to be who I am. I am happy that I can look at, with love, the path I’ve been on and be grateful for each experience. I am happy in this moment knowing all is perfect.

Meat-free October!

Yesterday marked day-one of my plan to go meat-free for one month! What changed this “I could never be a vegetarian!” girl’s mind? The documentary Forks Over Knives.

The title is significant and explains why I’ll be making this dietary change, but you must watch the flick to fully understand. At first I thought the title described a salad fork conquering a steak knife, but the imagery might actually be referring to diet (a fork) and medicine (a knife, or scalpel). Forks over knives. Food over medicine. Love it! I would rather choose forks over knives any day.

I don’t predict this change in diet will be too difficult for me, but we’ll see. If I like it and feel good at the end of the month, meat-free will become a way of life for me. Now I should clarify, I will not be becoming a full-fledge vegetarian as I will be allowing myself to consume fish. Eggs and dairy will also continue to be a very minute portion of my diet (I hate the thought of limiting myself that much and having too many restrictions!) Gluten free, meat free – here we go!

New motto

New motto I have placed on the wall above my desk at work:

Truly experience all things that you do during your day. Try to escape the habitual feelings and thoughts you experience and stay in the present moment. Enjoy each of your actions fully.

dear Universe

Back, in body, on Sunday from a 10-day road-trip with my gorgeous man, I feel I may still be “there” in mind and spirit.
“There” being:
…on the road
…riding my bike down the beautiful trails of Whistler mountain
…sipping on beautiful wines at the Okanagan’s best wineries
…waking up in sleeping bags in the back of the truck
…camping on mountain tops
…cooking up gourmet foods in parking lots
…lying on the beach
…admiring the changing landscapes and forests
…bathing in lakes
…having no access to FB, email, Internet, or news
…driving with no music, just conversation
…looking for Ogopogo
…sitting fireside, enjoying its warmth, next to my best friend
Another dream vacation this was. If I won the lottery, I would simply do trips like this more often. Visiting places I have not been before gives me such a profound sense of pleasure. Even if that place is a restaurant in my own city, or a small town in Spain, or a beach in the Okanagan Valley. While my life is filled with plenty of adventure – I would love more of these trips please, dear Universe.

My future

While enjoying Fernie’s open-air Sunday market yesterday, after a Saturday spent downhill biking at the resort – I had a dream.

I own a Bed & Breakfast in Fernie. Fortunate financial circumstances came my way so it’s a Pay-What-You-Want B&B. The service, experience and comfort are that of a paramount quality so I am quite successful with this type of business model. I love taking care of my guests! Often, my guests are friends from Calgary – in town for the weekend biking or boarding. Or, friends from Ontario or Newfoundland – here for a week-long mountain getaway. A lot of guests are friends of friends (soon-to-be friends) who were told about our quaint place in the mountains and its fantastic, world-class hospitality. Our guests are free to stay with us, as long as they like – we have lots of space so it’s quite comfortable for everyone. While Logan offers Mountain Biking and Snowboard lessons to our guests, I offer a warm and comfortable setting, home-cooked meals, day hikes, tour guide, arts & crafts, and simply company if someone requests so. Speaking of arts & crafts – I even sell some of my work in my B&B. I have it on display around the house, and I’m just so happy to have that time to be creative. I love that this is my life – that I spend my days taking care of my guests and showing them a good time.

sprinkling kindness and scattering joy

I’m in a very good place. I feel nothing but joy. As per usual, so much to look forward to, so much to be grateful for. Let me share with you this moment’s gratitude list.

The past two weekends have been the picture of perfect summer experiences. Panorama biking/camping with the boy, the first weekend. Fernie biking/camping with the boy and the brother last weekend. Loved every moment of these two weekends. Every moment.

Tomorrow evening, a very dear friend of mine, Carolyn, will be in town for one night only. She is from Windsor (the one who wrote the quote in the picture below) and has been visiting w/ family in Edmonton for the past week. I love her so much and simply can’t wait to be in her presence, celebrate our friendship and smile about our future. Dinner reservations are made for Mango Shiva, one of my fave restaurants!

Next Tuesday, myself and the colleagues will be gathering together for our first Crafts & Cocktails evening, organized by Me! We will make cards. Cards for each other, and cards for our patients. The objective: sprinkling kindness and scattering joy. Let’s make the world a nicer place, starting right here at Lasik MD!

August/September = lots to celebrate! Mine and Logan’s 4 yr anniversary is quickly approaching, as is my 4 yr anniversary here in Calgary. Also, my 29th birthday and a 10-day holiday (road-trip with my man)!!!

I love my boyfriend. My favorite thing in life is sharing a pillow with him every night. He is the most incredible, genuine, peaceful, loving influence in my life. I never imagined love to be like this, to be so real. I now know why some people call their partner their “rock” – he is my rock. He is my best friend. He lights me up, lifts me higher, levels me out. He always understands, no exception. He truly possesses the most amazing qualities. I feel overwhelmingly blessed to share my life with him. A very profound thank you universe for bringing us together and keeping us so solid.

In October I will spend 4 full days, in Toronto, hanging with my best girls ever! My girl Leah will be wedding dress shopping accompanied by Lindz, her Mama and her Aunt (all arriving from Newfoundland). In addition, I will get to see my girl Jen (from Windsor). I am over-the-moon with this upcoming trip and am so excited I could pee in my pants!

In November I get to see my favorite band of all time, Hey Rosetta! And – another favorite – Dan Mangan! Thank you so much Holly and Ashley for recommending his music. These ladies have amazing taste, in everything.

I can’t make a list like this without acknowledging my health, which serves me so well. I love this vessel, its strength, its energy, its physical and mental performance, its peace of mind. I am so blessed.

Wham!! Kabam!!

I’ve been back from my trip for 2 months now, and haven’t written a single blog post in 3. I’ve found this piece of information crossing my mind quite a bit in these past few weeks. Judging myself, I guess, I feel disappointed and wonder what’s taking me so long? No inspiration having occurred? Too busy?

Wham!! Kabam!! Walking home from work one day last week, during a magnificent thunder shower, I get answers.

On the contrary, so many wondrous things have happened, so many new thoughts have sprouted, so much inspiration has occurred – that I simply can’t keep up with it all! Inspired living right here folks, and I am thoroughly enjoying it. I’ve simply been spending a lot of time exercising my powerful mind these past 6 months – and it’s getting me places. Ultimately, I guess you can say I’ve been practicing my belief in the Law of Attraction. For those who are unfamiliar with this belief system, as per Wikipedia: “The Law of Attraction is a metaphysical New Thought belief that "like attracts like", that positive and negative thinking bring about positive and negative physical results, respectively.” This has essentially been my way of life for about 5-6 years now. The simplicity, I adore.

I want a job that I love going to every morning. Done.
I want to travel. Done.
I want to obtain the new CSS position. Done.
I want to make more money. Done.
I want quality relationships at work. Done.
I want to feel good, all the time. Done.

Of course, “the want” has to be filled with passion and believable for you. But, nevertheless, it’s that easy.

So – at work earlier, on the day of the thunderstorm and speaking with Ashley, I tell her the reason why I haven’t been blogging is because I feel the need to backtrack, to write about my trip to Europe and all the amazing thoughts and experiences since. I go on further to tell her how overwhelming that feels and that is why I have felt deterred from blogging. She simply reminds me to let it flow, there are no expectations when writing, it’s just about you and the need to be in the moment, write about what is going on now. Thank you Ashley for your inspiration, which lead to the correction of my writer’s block. I love you bigtime.