Lazy Days

Other than the couple of exciting events in early July, our summer has been filled with lazy days at home. Here are some things we get up to on a daily basis:

Gardening. Now that the garden is ready for harvesting, I'm typically out there every other morning, harvesting raspberries, beans, kale, chard, and zucchini. Coming soon: tomatoes! On days that I'm not harvesting, Steve is usually watering or weeding. Sadly bugs ate quite a few of our seedlings and lettuce in May/June, but otherwise it's been a good garden year.

Sunrise harvest ♥

Exercising. Whether it's the treadmill, yoga/pilates/stretching, kettlebells, calisthenics, or strengthening exercises, Steve and I are in the gym nearly every day. I love my daily workouts and really see the improvements in my strength and cardio abilities.

Playing Mario Kart. Ever since we got the Nintendo Switch in April, the game of choice for the whole family is Mario Kart! We like to play at least once a day and attempt to get triple star in all the cups (currently working on 200cc races). Entertainment for all!

Watching Survivor. Speaking of entertainment, watching an episode of Survivor every day is still a family favourite. We just finished watching the most recent season, 44, and are now checking out season 23 for fun.

Crocheting. Jessi's still going strong on her new crocheting hobby. She sits at our living room craft table randomly throughout the day to add a few stitches to her projects. She completed the jellyfish, then followed it up with a turtle, and now she's working on a collection of eggs. I also recently (finally!) finished the peach I started back in June.

Walking Lucy. We rarely miss our daily walks with Lucy! It's hard to believe we've been walking our neighbour's dog for over three years now. Lucy's age is definitely showing (she's 12!) as we used to walk 3 blocks, then lowered it to 2, and now only 1, especially on hot summer days.

Swimming. A few times a week we head over to our neighbour's pool for a refreshing swim. We are so grateful for this!

Playing. The girls often spend a couple hours a day playing with their neighbourhood friends. If their friends are not available, then they happily play their own games in the basement or upstairs. Their imagination is still strong!

Coding on Scratch. Scratch is a kid-friendly coding program that Emily and Jessi use to make their own games. They usually get 30 minutes a day on Scratch, and even though it's extra screen time, something feels wrong about saying no to coding/learning. 

Throwing Frisbees. I love my daily practices with Steve!

Eating. We are in the kitchen for three meals a day and snacks in between. It takes up a lot of our day, but I wouldn't have it any other way. 

Reading. Reading happens on a nightly basis for all of us. Emily is currently reading through The Heroes of Olympus book series, Jessi just started re-reading the Harry Potter series (for the 7th time!), I recently finished The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, and Steve loves helpful books like Deskbound, Outlive, and Do Hard Things.

August will definitely be more exciting with relatives visiting, our 15th wedding anniversary, a quick road trip, a skydiving adventure (for Steve), a wedding, tickets to a musical, Emily's birthday, and orientation days at the girls' schools. Then before we know it we'll be in back-to-school mode!

Nathalieland Update - Cherry/Running/Snake/School/Colds

Goodbye Cherry Tree. Our cherry tree did not have a good season, including half of its branches looking dead all summer, so we decided it was time to say goodbye. I'm glad we at least got one great year (2021) out of it, but the rest of the time it was more in the way of our other garden veggies, always growing suckers all over the garden bed, and not producing worthwhile fruit. With it gone, we'll have a lot more space to plant our three main crops: beans, chard, and kale. 

Treadmills & Frisbees. I've officially been a treadmill owner (and user) for one year now! I'm so glad I started this new hobby and still enjoy getting on it nearly every day. I definitely feel the benefits of daily cardio exercise, especially on my lungs, heart, legs, and sleep. The best part is: my new skills and endurance have allowed me to join Steve in playing Ultimate Frisbee! We are playing together for the first time this Fall (we are on the orange team). It's like a mini, sporty date night.

The One and Only. Surprisingly, we only caught one snake this summer! We really didn't see that many around, and didn't go on as many snake-hunting excursions as we had the previous two years. We finally found a little one in our front yard a couple of weeks ago. The girls named him Cluckser. We had him for a few days, fed him worms, and enjoyed his cuteness!

Welcome Pizza Picnic. I've been busy with the school's Parent Council, helping to organize a Welcome Pizza Picnic event. Pizza, music, face painting, games, popcorn and treats, all to welcome new families to the school and reconnect with old ones after 2 years of no socializing through a pandemic. Should be fun! 

Back-to-School Colds. Last weekend it was Jessi who was down with a cold, now it's Emily's turn. 'Tis the season!

Treadmill Update

It's been a little over 3 months since I got my treadmill and I'm so happy with my purchase! Much like the ukulele and scroll saw, I've gone from having zero experience/interest to finding a hobby that I truly enjoy.

I'm a fan of creating good habits, and after reading James Clear's Atomic Habits, I was able to use a few of his tips to make the treadmill part of my regular routine. I run every other morning, before I shower (habit stacking!), and always make sure to prepare my accessories the night before. I also wear running clothes for pyjamas, making everything as easy as possible.

Ready-to-go accessories

In October I started keeping track of my runs in a calendar. Each entry records the total time, top speed, lowest speed, and what program I did. It is motivating to see the progress and work I've put in!

I started off mostly walking and jogging, to slowly build up my endurance and speed. It was important for me not to push too hard -- I wanted to avoid injury and early burnout.

For weeks my main routine was doing intervals: 2 minutes of walking followed by 2 minutes of running, for a total of 30 minutes. Then in December I started exploring the other built-in programs with varying speeds and incline settings. I'm loving the challenges and alternating between all the programs.

Built-in programs

There are lots of perks to running on my treadmill over running outside (which I have to admit I haven't attempted): consistent temperature, softer surface, running in PJ's in the dark, privacy, and easy access to a water bottle, towel, and fan.

On days when I don't shower, I still often end up using the treadmill as a warm up or addition to my other workouts (kettlebells, yoga/pilates, calisthenics, stretching/foam rolling). I think I'm hooked!

At 38 I feel stronger and healthier than ever. I have less knee/foot pain, more endurance, and better sleep. Plus I get to catch up on plenty of audiobooks! This new hobby might be here to stay.

Nathalieland Update - Colds/Treadmill/Hair

Back-to-School Colds. It came as no surprise that once the girls were back in school, the cold virus would find its way into our home. Jessi was first, and unfortunately because she developed a cough, she ended up getting a COVID test (which she absolutely hated!). A week later Emily caught a bug and missed two days of school. Hers never turned into a cough, so she was able to go back to school on Monday without a COVID test. Lucky girl! Steve and I have avoided getting sick so far (fingers crossed).

My poor, sad girl

Feeling much better!

(Bugs make her happy)

Treadmill Owners. Early this month I had a sudden desire to add more cardio to my workouts. We have a rowing machine in our basement gym, but I stopped using it years ago after a wrist injury. I started thinking about treadmills and their versatility: the ability to walk, jog, or run, no matter the weather. I did a bit of research, then scoured Facebook Marketplace for days until I found a good model at a great price. Getting the treadmill home was more complicated than we thought, since it weighed over 200 lbs and needed to be folded flat and carried up steep, narrow basement stairs. It took us three attempts (on three separate days!), but we finally got it home. A few more kinks had to be worked out before it was fully functional, including a good cleaning, lubricating screws/belts, and tightening/loosening bolts to eliminate a squeaking noise. But it is good to go now and I'm enjoying my time on it!

Got it home thanks to G-P!!

G-P did the first test run

Workout time!

Emily's Home Haircut. Emily also had a sudden desire this week: for a haircut! She was tired of her long hair and wanted something closer to shoulder length. I complained that we had just gotten our hair cut in August, but she casually replied, "Oh, you can cut it mom! I don't care." I'm glad she has confidence in my skills! It went alright, though I always feel like I learn by doing and would make a few adjustments if I could. Well, what matters most is that my client is happy, which she is!

The before

New hair