Thursday, October 9, 2014

40 by 40: Take a yoga class

About 2 months after my 30th birthday and I have completed my first 40 by 40 task!

I have been taking a kickboxing class for a little while now and I really really like it. It's a good workout that I enjoy and the hour goes by quickly. Last week, though, I had to miss a class due to another event, so I asked about doing a make-up class so I didn't lose the money. They said no problem so I signed up for the Vinyasa Yoga class.

I've been wanting to try yoga for a while so I was excited to see what's it's all about. Yoga girls are always skinny so I figured it must be a good workout. And Vinyasa yoga is also known as "power yoga" and is a bit more of a flow of movement which sounded interesting to me.

There were 5 other people in the class and the room was dimly lit with some nice music and fake candles lit - a good ambiance.

We started with some deep breathing and feeling your body melt into the mat. Then we moved on to different movements with a lot of focus on downward dog and planks. It wasn't easy. I'm not as well balanced as I thought and all those planks and push-up type movements were exhausting.

At the end of the class I felt relaxed, but not like I had done a workout. Without the sweat and the desire to chug the rest of my water bottle, it didn't feel like an exercise class to me. And there was a lot of lying on our backs and stretching, or sitting in child's pose. It was a nice break from the plank, but the whole class left me without the feeling of accomplishment I get from kickboxing.

I haven't ruled out yoga entirely, I think I would probably try a class or two again sometime, but I still love a good cardio class.


Tuesday, September 2, 2014

40 by 40 List

I'm no longer a twenty-something, but I think I'm taking 30 in stride. What seemed scary a few years ago isn't so bad now that I'm in it.

I posted a few weeks ago with a re-cap of my 30 by 30 list. I did ok with it, but there were a few misses. Now, it's time for a fresh start and a new list.

I've included the items from 30 by 30 that didn't get done, because they're still things I want to accomplish. And I've layered in other items on my life-long bucket list, new items I'd like to try and some great suggestions from friends. Another suggestion I really liked was to categorize my goals so I don't end up with 25 travelling to-dos and nothing that involves giving back. So here it is: my official 40 by 40 list.


Live A Little





  • Bungee jump
  • Scuba dive
  • Be in a game show audience (or better yet, be ON a game show)
  • Ride a mechanical bull
  • CN Tower Edgewalk
  • Hot air balloon ride


Just Because






  • Use valet parking
  • Wear a ball gown
  • Smash a guitar
  • Get bangs
  • Let someone else order dinner


Wanderlust






  • Celebrate New Year's in a big city
  • Vacation at an all-inclusive resort
  • Visit 5 new baseball stadiums (and watch a game there of course)
  • Family trip to the East Coast
  • Family trip to the West Coast


Improve Myself





  • Learn to drive stick (without panicking and requiring a completely empty stretch of road)
  • Get to my goal weight
  • Run a 5k
  • Go to a movie alone
  • Take a yoga class
  • Grow my own veggies


Spread Goodwill

  • Go on a short-term mission trip
  • Write letters to 5 people who have impacted my life
  • Donate blood
  • Invite the neighbours for dinner


Get Creative







  • Be in a flash mob
  • Write a short story
  • Learn an instrument
  • Year of Dates project
  • Learn the Thriller dance


For My Kid







  • Back yard projector movie night
  • Get a dog
  • Coach Kai's sports team
  • Family trip to Disney


Date Night






  • Go to a Ben Rector concert
  • SUP with AJ
  • Binge watch a TV series
  • Try Adventure Rooms Canada
  • Go skeet shooting

 If you see any that sound like something that's also on your list, let's do it together!



Thursday, August 14, 2014

30 by 30: The Final Recap

Well it happened, I've turned 30.



Interestingly, the closer I got to it, the less scary it was. I've accomplished some pretty big things on my unwritten life list. Married, child, job in my field, house, car, done some travelling. I think 30 will be ok. 40, now that's scary, but that's for another post.

Time to recap my 30 by 30 list, originally posted 4 and a half years ago.

  1. Blow up at least 3 of our own photos to use at art in the new house
  2. Make a calendar in Photoshop to give as Christmas gifts
  3. Teach Snax a new trick
  4. Serve at a soup kitchen at Christmastime
  5. Take a wine tour
  6. Play ice hockey
  7. Try (and hopefully enjoy) running
  8. Bungee jump
  9. Road trip down the California coast
  10. Scuba dive
  11. See the Goo Goo Dolls in concert
  12. Go on a short term missions trip with AJ
  13. Weigh 160
  14. Read the favourite book of at least one friend each year
  15. Spend New Year’s downtown in a big city
  16. Read the Harry Potter series
  17. Spend a day painting on canvas
  18. See the Grease musical
  19. Take kickboxing
  20. Learn to drive stick (better)
  21. Go white water rafting
  22. Pay off our debts
  23. Recover the dining room chairs (didn't do this, but we got new chairs so sort of the same?
  24. Learn to sew so I don’t have to get my mom to fix my buttons
  25. Get a great permanent job
  26. Buy a design program (probably Photoshop)
  27. Host a family Christmas
  28. Bake a pie from scratch
  29. Be in a play
  30. Have a baby
7 to-do's left undone. Almost 80% isn't bad I guess. Most of what's left is travel related and some of the other items (like buying a house, having a baby, paying off debts) kind of took priority over those. So overall, I'm pretty proud of myself.

But that means, dun dun duhhhh, it's time for a 40 by 40 list. Being 40 seems crazy right now, but hopefully by the time it comes, I'll feel the same way as 30.

I am currently working on my list of 40 things and will post my to do list soon. Feel free to send me any suggestions.

Goodbye 20's, I'll miss you.


Friday, August 1, 2014

Starving the monster

Three years ago a friend of mine, Sarah, went on a year-long spending fast. I was blown away and inspired, but I never got around to doing it myself. Two years ago, inspired by Sarah, our Pastor, Carey, did the same thing. This summer, Carey spoke about it at church in a series called Starve the Monster, all about entitlement and challenged us to try it for ourselves, whether it be for a week, a month or a year.

After 3 years of thinking about it, I'm ready to act and AJ is on board to embark on this challenge with me.


So today is day 1 of a 9-month spending fast. Not quite a year, but a pretty daunting amount of time.

Why are we doing this?

This is not because are church has told us we have to or we think it's the holy thing to do. It's not about saving money, although I hope that's a nice bonus. For me, there are 4 main reasons I've wanted to do this, ever since Sarah talked about it.

1) We have so much stuff. It just happens. We're not hoarders by any means, but we have more than we need and don't need to add to it.

2) Appreciating things more. I want something, I buy it, I enjoy it: sometimes for a while, sometimes for an embarrassingly short time. I'd like to pay more attention to the things already have that work just fine instead of just buying things on a whim.

3) Considering my purchases. This really goes with number two, but how many of the things I buy do I even really want that badly? If I abstained from buying that thing I want for a week, would I still be thinking about it a week later? For most things, the answer is probably no. I'd like to be more intentional about purchases and less quick to pull out my debit card.

4) Battling entitlement. I never thought about it in those terms before this series at church, but I do feel entitled. I work hard at work so I deserve a couple new shirts or I had a bad day so I need an ice cream. I could and should be so much more thankful for the things I have and the things I'm able to have. And if I can be happy with less stuff, maybe I can afford to do more with my money – do more family activities, treat friends and family to a night out and give more away to great causes.

I think everyone deals with money in a different way and your reasons for a spending fast might differ from mine, but I think most people would agree that we all have too much stuff and aren't thankful enough for it.


So. The rules. We obviously are not planning to spend zero dollars for the next 9 months.

1) This spending fast does not apply to necessary expenses. Mortgage, utilities, car expenses, groceries - not affected. Although I do think we'll be a little more intentional about our grocery spend.

2) This spending fast does apply to discretionary money. Clothing, shoes, accessories, eating out, music downloads, etc. Yikes! (And no buying that stuff for AJ because he can't buy it for himself)

3) Gifts for others on special occasions are ok.

4) Spending gift cards is totally fine.

5) Spending on family/date experiences is ok, but we'll be more conscientious about our choices.

6) If we find there's something we truly need, try to buy second hand first.

So of course, Target just opened 5 minutes away from my work and I can't go shopping, but I'm excited to see what this little adventure teaches us. I imagine we'll both be very easy to buy for come Christmas.

I'll aim to post an update once a month or so. If you've ever thought about taking control of your discretionary spending and become a little more thankful, would you like to join me?

Friday, July 18, 2014

An exercise in thankfulness

For many reasons, 29 has not been my favourite age. This year has been really hard on me and my family. If I'm honest, I'm probably a good deal of what's been hard on my family. Health complications, job transitions, a new house and a toddler who has found his will -- I have felt just drained and kind of lifeless for much of the past year.

And that list of the tough things, I think about it often. I hate feeling so down and knowing I'm bringing others down, but I'll often play through the list of things that are tough in my life. It certainly doesn't make me feel better, but it does make me feel justified in my self-pity.


I've talked about pieces of this with different people, those who have gone through some of the same problems or those whose opinion I value and there has been a recurring theme of advice. "Yeah, that's tough and it might not seem like it, but you'll get through it. What if you started dwelling on the good things instead of the bad?"

I got no quick and easy solutions, no "well here's what I did and I was better after a week." These aren't those kinds of problems. But maybe they've got something there. What if I changed the way I dealt with these struggles? Even if the bad things don't go away, can I choose to focus on the good?

I'd like to think so.

And I have to admit, my attitude is probably the biggest problem of all. It's why no matter how many empathetic conversations I have, how much my husband dotes on me and how many wonderful little hugs I get from my toddler, I have had trouble feeling happy.

So, maybe I should actually take some of that advice. To be more of the person I want to be and less of the person I feel like. Feelings follow actions I've been told. In that spirit, here are some of the things I'm thankful for, despite any other circumstances. (in no particular order)


  • My unfailingly patient husband
  • My caring (if emotionally precarious) toddler
  • Awesome parents and in-laws (and other immediate family)
  • Overall pretty good health
  • A new house we love
  • A steady job
  • The ability to allow AJ enrol in school and chase his dream
  • Good friends who talk me through darkness and know how to make me smile, even through faraway texts
  • A church our whole family loves
  • Nachos
  • Summer and sunshine
  • Events to plan
  • No major debt
  • So many nice things we own
  • Time spent reading
  • A God who waits for me to come back
  • Enough (often more than enough) food to eat
  • Date nights
  • Sleep
  • A list that could go on and on

Making a list like that certainly feels a lot better than listing what's going wrong. And this list is much longer too. I'm still praying and working toward solutions to all those other problems, but in the meantime, I'd really like to just enjoy what's in front of me. Because it's a lot of really great stuff.

Monday, January 6, 2014

30 by 30 Update

It's 2014, the year I turn 30. Crazy. But I'm in good company. Here are some other things that turn 30 this year:
  • Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
  • Tetris
  • The Cosby Show
  • The Mac
  • TED (that one's for AJ)
  • Transformers
  • The Karate Kid
  • Footloose
  • Muppet Babies
  • Ghostbusters

Not bad.

In 2010, I set myself a list of goals. 30 things I wanted to accomplish by the time I'm 30. Now that I've only got about 6 months left, I should probably see what kind of work I've got left to do. Here's what I had left as of my last update. You can see the full list here.

  • Serve at a soup kitchen at Christmastime – not a soup kitchen, but I did man a Salvation Army kettle and spend a few hours cleaning bathrooms and sorting foot at the Food Bank
  • Take a wine tour – AJ took me to Johnson's Cranberry marsh last year for geocaching and wine
  • Bungee jump – Not yet. Not sure if this will happen this year.
  • Road trip down the California coast – Yes! It was awesome.
  • Scuba dive – Nope, hopefully next vacation will be a tropical destination. Also, probably not this year.
  • Go on a short term missions trip with AJ – This is probably on hold until our child(ren - to be soon we hope) are a little older
  • Weigh 160 – yeah...no
  • Read the favourite book of at least one friend each year – This has been fun. I actually did several a year and am going to do at least one more in 2014.
  • Spend New Year’s downtown in a big city – Too late for this year, add it to the 40 by 40 list.
  • Learn to drive stick (better) – I haven't practised in a while. This is definitely do-able before the end of July.
  • Recover the dining room chairs – This is just me being lazy. It can be done.
  • Be in a play – I would still love to, but I don't think I have the time margin right now. 40 by 40.
  • So I have 8 left, 2 of which are likely to still happen. 24/30 ain't bad right?

    I'm going to have to start thinking about that 40 by 40 list. If you have any suggestions, send them my way!