Sister Love

I spent the last 10 days visiting with my sister and brother-in-law in Penticton. This was an exciting trip as they've recently moved from Houston to Penticton. I remember saying to Dan about one year ago how much I love my life and how happy I was and the only thing that could make it better is if Brandi moved closer. I got my wish.

It was amazing how quickly we got into a rhythm. Firstly, travelling with a baby, any major changes can be pretty stressful so in that sense, it was not the most relaxing trip I've ever taken. On the other hand however, we spent evenings practing Tai Ji 108 together and stretching and it felt great to go to bed with the relaxed post Tai Ji/Stretching sleepies. We walked a lot on a daily basis, and being as Simon and Brandi are vegan, ate pretty healthy the whole time we were there. I also got to take a look at their plans for their curriculum and bounce some ideas around with them. 

It's so easy to get caught up in day to day life with a baby and a home to maintain. I'm happy I could take this trip to remind myself that I can incorporate more and more practice into my life, even if it's only stretching before bed and brainstorming ideas. 

Morning Routine

I have been reflecting on my goals for this year recently. As I mentioned, I am behind with my goals setting. Not in deciding what the goals are, but in my plans to actually achieve them. I'm quite aware that a goal without a plan is just a dream. Physically I have some catching up to do. I've lost a fair amount of strength and movement in certain ways since becoming pregnant and having Claire. Although I've allowed myself a certain leeway here, it's about time for me to step up my game.

The problem lies in the execution. I'm already over tired a lot of the time, and hate to lose any sleep, but I feel that the morning, before Claire is awake, would be the best time for me to get practice in. I mean sure, she goes to bed at 730. But, by the time the evening happens, the kitchen is a mess from cooking throughout the day and there's usually a significant amount of baby cleanup. So I'm going to start setting an alarm (up to this point, I allowed Claire to be my alarm). Drag myself out of bed in the morning, and make some of my dreams into goals again. I know how beneficial a morning routine can be, and so I need to work on my follow through in this aspect.