60 More Adventures…

2 Comments September 16, 2014 drworobec

Whew! Another busy Summer is in the books, as Fall officially rolls in next week. The Summer of 2013 brought my family 60 adventures in 60 days, and while we didn’t set out to match that number in 2014, we did try to enjoy a fun experience each and every day.

If you live in the Burlington area, bookmark this list, as nearly everything we did was within a two-hour drive. We re-visited some favourites from last year and found some new hidden gems:

1. Canada Day 5k race at Spencer Smith Park.

2. Hot Spring Spas video promo shoot. You can watch it here.

3. Wild Waterworks at Confederation Park.

4. Fern Resort in Orillia.

5. Picking strawberries, raspberries, peas, and beans at Uncle Scott’s Farm.

6. Swimming in friend’s/family’s backyard pools.

7. Watching my husband play touch football.

8. Outdoor food truck picnic.

9. Playhouse delivery! Read about it here.

10. Feeding the chipmunks at LaSalle park.

11. My 5-yr-old’s T-Ball league.

12. Within Range driving range and mini-putt.

14. My son getting his first pair of glasses.

13. My son getting his first pair of glasses.

14. Alton Village splashpad/skate park.

15. Safari Niagara.

16. Hosting playdates.

17. Celebrating 8 years of marriage.

18. Eating outside, or in the playhouse, as much as possible.

19. Patio nights with my girlfriends.

20. Crossfit, running, hot yoga; staying active.

21. The Tim McGraw concert at the Molson Amphitheatre.

22. ‘Planes: Fire and Rescue’ movie.

23. Burlington Beach.

24. Golfing at Lowville.

25. Tansley Woods library trips and the BPL Children’s reading club.

26. A Bluejays game.

27. Nelson outdoor pool/splashpad.

28. Bronte Park outdoor pool.

29. Running hills at Bronte Park.

30. Family skate at Appleby Ice Centre.

31. City bus ride on the Upper Middle Road route.

32. Orchard park splashpad.

33. Millcroft Park splashpad.

35. Our neighbour's cottage on August long weekend.

34. Our neighbour’s cottage on August long weekend.

35. Helping with my in-law’s basement after Burlington’s August 4th flood.

36. Hiking at Cherry Hill Gate.

37. Mountainside pool/splashpad.

38. The Brantford Twin Valley Zoo.

39. Neighbourhood playgrounds.

40. The Jordan Harbour shipwreck.

41. Burlington Mall Farmer’s market.

42. Oakville’s Valleyridge splashpad.

43. Central Library’s showing of ‘The Lego Movie’.

44. Back-to-school shopping.

45. Lil’ Monkeys Indoor Playground.

46. The Butterfly Conservatory in Niagara Falls.

47. ‘Camping’ in a tent in the backyard.

48. Tough Mudder.

49. Burlington Children’s festival.

50. Backyard BBQs with our awesome neighbours.

51. The odd (gasp!) sleep-in.

46. A visit to my sister-in-law's cottage.

52. A visit to my sister-in-law’s cottage.

53. Giving “Injury Prevention, “Biomechanics,” and “Movement Screening” talks at the Running Room.

54. Naturopath appointments.

55. Chalk-painting furniture.

56. Assumption High School football camp.

57. Meeting Baby Charlie in Washington, DC.

58. Fantasy Football draft.

59. Skyzone Indoor Trampoline Park.

60. Ribfest.

This is 35.

6 Comments September 9, 2014 drworobec

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This is 35.

This is what 35 looks like.

More accurately, this is what a grainy, mostly-in-the-dark iPhone photo of 35 looks like.

It was my birthday this weekend. I love my birthday. The beginning of September signals new back-to-school beginnings, and as a school-loving Type-A, September was something to look forward to. Throw a birthday into the mix of excitement, anxiety, and anticipation, and you’ve got the perfect combination for someone like me.

But this year felt different. The tides have shifted, the tables have turned, the timing has changed. I’m not a kid anymore, I’m not a twentysomething, and I’m rounding the bend to 40. If you’re reading this in your 40’s, you’re probably laughing at me. If you’re in your 50’s or 60’s, you probably think I’m still young, and if you’re 70+ I’m sure this all seems trivial. But to me, a change has come. This is the first year that I’ve ‘felt’ my age, or rather, felt my aging.

35 is children. 35 is a husband. 35 is a career and a mortgage and lots of real-word-really-big responsibilities.

35 is too-old-for-that-skirt. 35 is wrinkles. 35 is bags under the eyes and slower recovery and much more fatigue.

I recently read that people are at their most-stressed at age 35. I believe it. I am acutely aware of the fact that my brain feels 21 and my body feels 51. My world has ramifications and consequences and pressure. My world has two little people counting on me, and they actually think I know what I’m doing. My world has moved past sleeping until noon, weekend afternoon movies on the couch, and eating dinner at 9pm. My world has become RESPs and age spots, property taxes and achy knees, retirement planning and knocks on the bathroom door.

35 is slobbery kisses. 35 is a hug whenever I need one. 35 is 8 years and 80 more.

35 is understanding. 35 is acceptance. 35 is love.

35 is pretty. Damn. Good.

What-Shall-We-Do-Today Mornings

Leave a comment September 2, 2014 drworobec

PLEASE NOTE:
I will be expanding my practice to
include MORNING appointments on Tuesdays and Thursdays,
effective Thursday, September 18th.

For more than five and a half years, I haven’t had to rush out of the house, amidst the madness of a morning routine. You see, I’ve been very lucky to be able to manipulate my work schedule around the needs of family life. And with young children, those needs have involved me at home every morning.

I don’t want you to get the impression that my mornings are wide open, because they most definitely are not. We always spend mornings out of the house and on-the-go, going about the daily ritual of teaching, building, and growing little minds and little bodies. We’ve done dozens upon dozens of registered programs over the years, and hundreds of playdates, playgrounds, and trips to the library. We’ve done Nursery School, swimming, skating, and story-times. We’ve done Early Years drop-ins, indoor playgrounds, and trips to the mall. We’ve done more day trips than I can count and more overnights than the norm, but we’ve never had a daily early morning deadline. No rushing kids through breakfast, no frantic searches for shoes and water bottles, no we-need-to-leave-five-minutes-agos. Until now.

Gone are the days of the pyjama-lounging, coffee-drinking, what-shall-we-do-today mornings. For nearly six years, this has been our luxury. But that all changes this week, as my son begins full-day Senior Kindergarten and my daughter starts Nursery School twice a week. Morning routines will begin. Clock-watching will start. I may even have to (gasp!) wake my children up.

I’m sure we will manage. I’m sure we will find our ‘new normal’. I’m sure we will scramble through September, only to find that October comes quickly. And soon, very soon after that, I will look back at September 2nd and not be so scared.

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