When I say almost I mean, I’m not due back until Monday August 16th at the clinic. Phew. I need time to rest after my vacation ‘home’ to the Island. As you can see from my previous post it was alot of hard work shuttling between swimming holes and cold beers, sun-tanning and late nights. We got back last night, had some settling in to do and needed to lavish a weeks worth of attention to My Boys who actually didn’t seem to notice someone else had been looking after them and I was now HOME. Sigh.

One thing I did when I was back home, that I’ve missed in my life here…is get outside and appreciate what nature has to offer. I think I forgot to stop and appreciate where I do live, and it took a trip for me to stop and take in all the smells and sights of just being outside. I may be biased, but the air sure feels a helluva lot cleaner back home, the water just that much clearer and pure…the mountains that surrounded my parents house literally took my breath away.

We vowed to get off our butts once we got back and get out and GET MOVING more…to feel as alive as we felt there….here. I may live in the city, and probably always will, but my heart will always be in the small town I grew up in, and I value that way of life. My goals this fall are simple: get more active, continue to eat well and conquer what ails me- NATURALLY. I have an amazing support system in My Guy and I have treasured friends who constantly motivate me to embrace each day. I’m lucky. I’m truly lucky to have my entire life before me and to be in control of how I approach it. I’m happy I’m not alone in facing it and thankful for the little things.

I wanted to end this post by acknowledging a few things I’m thankful for:

- I’m thankful I had a good friend who watched over My Boys while I got to go home. Knowing that they were taken care of and happy, made all the difference.

- I’m thankful I had this time to visit with my parents. I miss them very much.

- I’m thankful My Guy got to experience my home-town memories and see the place (and people) that made me who I am…

- I’m thankful I have a car that could take me home without any worries!

A few snapshots of my vacation, to sum it up for you…

Here's the slug we named The Great Canadian Leopard Slug...

The best shoes to wear in a river...can walk with ease!

Our version of that Corona Commercial, but with Stella.

The Deep Hole. One of the swimming holes of my youth.