New Year's Resolutions

One of my major goals this year is to build exercise into my life. I also need to prepare for my flamenco dance performance in June!! I have signed up for a program at work where you get "miles" for completing health tasks like weighing in, increasing your steps on a pedometer, taking regular health assessments etc. 'Miles' equate to cash which can be spent with a bunch of retailers like Target and Circuit City. You can earn up to $400 for completing all of your goals! It's a very cool program that the company has adopted this year and over 100 of us at work are in it already. It funny seeing everyone taking the stairs to meetings and we have bought desk bikes so that we can cycle while working in our offices! At the moment I need to do 7,000 steps per day as my first goal. Mum and I went shopping and bought workout gear (accessorizing is the first step to any hobby - if I don't have the shoes, I'm not doing it) and started walking each night. We really enjoyed it and saw a huge barred owl one night from about 10 feet away which was amazing! I'm determined to keep it up now that my walking buddy has gone home :( so mum treated me to an ipod holder for my arm and I've downloaded a book to listen to if I need to walk alone. I'm 2 weeks in and apparently it takes 21 days to build a habit so I'm sticking at it! Today, we all went for a family hike at Trout Creek Park which was really amazing. During our walks we are taking pictures for a wildlife book that Maddie is making - we saw a hog today but didn't grab the camera in time! After the walk we went to a gorgeous tea house (Miracles) run by an English lady and had Earl Grey and High Tea. I think I could do this every Sunday!

Mum and Dad's visit

We were so glad to be able to see both mum and dad on their 70th birthdays! We had a great party at home on mum's 70th with Richard and Sue and Rich, Jen and Mya. We had a fire outside and looked at photos from when me and Michael met and when Maddie was born. It was a perfect night!

Happy New Year!

2007 has been a great year for us. We made a fire at midnight last night, watched fireworks, refected on the year and made our family plans to have a busy and fulfilling year! In 2007, I am most thankful for: my flamenco classes, giving up smoking, and 10 years of marriage. Mike is grateful for his exercise/eating routine, reading, and 10 years also. Maddy is grateful for her goldfish, Webkinz and dance classes. We started out 2008 with a long walk at Lettuce Lake Park. We saw lots of wildlife on the walk today and managed to take a video of a pair of pileated woodpeckers looking for bugs to eat. What a perfect start to the year...


Happy New Year to our wonderful friends and family - we love you!