A Bear Went Over The Mountain

The kids and I have been craving a mountain adventure for a while now. Olive has been busy with swimming lessons for the past 2 weeks so we’ve been stuck hanging out in the city. I asked her what she wanted to do to celebrate her passing and surprise, surprise she wanted to go to Waterton.

We packed up the car and pick my bestie Rachel up along our way. Once we got to the park we decided to attempted Bears Hump. While it’s a short hike it is strenuous, but the view from the top is unbelievably breathtaking.

The key to hiking with littles is, patience, treats, and more treats. Our hike started great, Olive was just wanted to go go go and was annoyed when she’d have to wait for Kevin and I to cath up. They climbed every rock and fallen tree that they could see.Kevin struggled with keeping up with everyone, that was until he took his shoes off, then he was in his element and took off.Our hike was very leisurely. We stopped to eat snacks, look at bugs and talk about the wild animals that lived in the trees. Kevin was scared of the crocodile he saw in the bush! It was crazy windy at the top of the mountain surprise, surprise so we only stayed long enough to rest on the bench, eat m&ms and take a few pictures. How insanely beautiful is that view behind us??? I’m so impressed with both Olive and Kevin for making it to the top with only a little bit of help towards the end. Kids are troopers!

We hustled down the mountain and headed to our favourite place to swim in the park, Driftwood Beach.

When we got to the beach it was windy and cold. We stayed long enough for the kids to explore the the teepees people built out of the drift wood, get their feet wet and play with the rocks. What is it with kids and their love for rocks? My kids are obsessed. Once we had enough of the beach we headed into town for sweet potatoe fries from Weiners of Waterton and the kids and I were excited to see that they sell kombucha now, so we got one to share.  After lunch we grabbed our ice cream from Big Scoop and walked over to the park to burn off some more energy, You’d think that after hiking a mountain they’d be pooped, but no. My friend Rachel took pictures of me playing with the kids which I’m truly grateful for because I’m the one always taking picture and because of this I’m hardly in any with the kids. After the park we headed home, the kids were starting to turn into pumpkins.  They were both passed out by the time we were out of the park.

I love spending time with my friends and family in the mountains, there is something about the fresh crisp mountain air that is healing for the soul.

A day in the mountians is never a day wasted.
Cheers,

Cat

A

Ollie it’s your birthday.

Olive’s birthday usually lands on May long weekend. This weekend is the kick off to summer camping in Southern Alberta, and opening day for Waterton Lakes National Park that closes in the winter. Every year for her birthday we have go to Waterton, wandered the paths, play at the park, roast hot dogs and finish the day off with ice cream from Big Scoop.

Since Olive has been in preschool she has been invited to a few of her classmates birthday party’s so I gave her the option of inviting her friends over for a party or going to Waterton with the family. My heart melted into a giant puddle when she said that she wanted to go to the mountains with her family.  She is a girl after my own heart. On out way to the mountains we picked Bryce’s mom up so she could join us. 

We stick with simple hikes when we have the kids. We decided on Blackiston Falls it’s an easy 2km there and back. The path is clear and easy enough that you could take a stroller on it.  Another reason we chose Blackiston is because Bryce was over seeing a construction project that was being done and was excited to see the finish product. Kevin was pooped and had fallen asleep on my shoulders by the time we reached the truck. After our hike we roasted hot dogs and ate birthday cupcakes while we played along the shore of the river.  Once we were finished at the river we packed up and got ready to head home. While driving out of the park Bryce decided that he wanted to take a drive out to Castle Falls and insisted that it wasn’t that far from the park.  It turns out that it was a little over an hour away.  And I’m so glad we went, the river was so high from spring run off that the water falls that we normal jump off of into the river weren’t even there, they were a rapid. I sat on the rocks by the rivers edge with Olive and Kevin watching the water when all of the sudden we saw rainbow trout “swimming” (jumping) up stream! It was one of the coolest things I’ve ever witnessed in nature. Bryce and I explained to the kids about spawning and how some fish make their way back to their place of birth. It was a really neat experience that I’ll always remember. Olive is in the other side of me, you can’t see her. ☹️

After our exciting fish encounter we headed to the general store to grab some ice cream before heading home for the day.

Happy birth Olive, I pray that you’ll always stay your adventurous, wild, soft hearted self.  We love you more then you’ll ever understand. 

Over due update…

Life happens and I completely forgot about my blog for a few months, let’s be real I’ve never been very good and posting thing regularly. So here’s a quick update on our lives

MARCH- I had breast reduction surgery with a lift, hands down the best decision I’ve ever made next to marrying Bryce and having our 2 pretty cute kids.  Dr. Johnathon Lee of Calgary Institute of Plastic Surgery has very talented and skillful hands.  We flew my mom up from California to help me out with the kids for a month.  My mom is pretty kick ass in that way she is always there for us. My dad is pretty kick ass too. Ollie and Kev enjoyed some major Nanna time to the point where I was a little envious that they wanted to hang out with her more then me. Nanna time is few and far between so really I don’t blame them, I let them soak it up. 

April- I left my job at a local Salon where I had been working for the last 9 years. If you don’t know me personally I am a creature of habit and big changes lead to big anxiety and massive panic attacks for me.  A lot of things had changed in the salon and I was wanting change but didn’t know where to go, and I didn’t want to deal with starting over from basically scratch. Que a good friend that I went to hair school with. She’s had a beautiful successful salon in the heart of our little city, I call it a secret gem. She had asked me a few time to come and work for her both times I was actually just coming back from mat leave and I was too scared of change to take a chance. But this time she reached out to me at the perfect time and I couldn’t refuse the job offer.  Being my own boss has been an amazing experience so far, not without its panic attacks, but if teachering yoga has taught me anything it is this, BE PRESENT, FULLY PRESENT IN EVERY MOMENT AND YOU WONT HAVE TIME TO WORRY. It’s unbelievably true, it’s only when I start to think about the months ahead that I my anxiety flares and panic attacks ensue. This new buisness venture has really taught me how to be more present in my daily life. 

MAY- 5! My baby girl had a birthday. Olives birthday falls on May Long weekend and it is usually the kick off weekend for summer camping. We usually head to Waterton for a  short hike, hot dogs and big scoop ice cream. This year I gave Olive the option of inviting her friends over for a party and she told me that she’d rather go to the mountains with her family.  A girl after my own heart. I’ll write about our day out later..

JUNE-  I had set in stone all these events that I was going to participate in this year case and point the Banff Half that I registered and half assed trained for, only to be in able to make it.  I’m learning quickly this year that life happens, and as much as I try to control things I have to be okay with not being able to sometimes. Another case and point Calgarys Wanderlust Mindful Triathlon: run 5km, yoga, and then mediation. My dream event. This the the second one I’ve registered for and have not been able to attended so I’m really bummed about not making this one.

JULY-  Bryce and I celebrated our 10 year wedding anniversary. We had big plans for celebrating but once again, the universe is teaching me that I can’t control everything. While our big plans fell through we were able to get away for the weekend just the two of us to one of our favourite mountain towns Fernie. I’ll write more about our weekend away later, but it was lovely. This picture is from 2009 and it’s not only one of my favourite pictures of us, but it’s also from one of my favourite nights out together. This selfie was taken with my digital camera with a self timer. Lol (we both didn’t even have cell phones at this point in our lives) It was taken right after a Del the Funky Homosapien concert at the good ol Blarney Stone. It was an awesome night filled with unforgettable, hilarious memories.

That’s it that’s all folks. And by folks I mean  Beckie and Rachel because you are the only ones who read my blog. You girls rock-

Till next time

Cheers

Cat

Ollie’s World

My little girl turned 5 today and my mind is literally blown. I feel like it was just yesterday that I was walking myself to the hospital so that she could make her entrance into this world.

Words can never truly express how much I love this little girl. God, the universe, what ever you want to call it brought this precious gift into my life just when I needed it the most. She has helped heal my broken heart and fill it with more love then I could have imagined.

She is my wild child, a girl after my own heart. She loves the outdoors, wether she’s in the back yard or exploring in the mountains. She is strong willed and there are times it makes me want to pull out my hair but she has a tender heart. She loves her family and her dogs, especially Copper. She loves to run, climb trees and dig for bugs while wearing the frilliest dress. Whenever she accomplishes anything she shouts out “boys drool, girls rule!” 

Every year I do a birthday interview and save save them, they are fun to look back on. Here are Olives answers for this year.

What is your name? Jessica Olive Ruth Dudley

How old are you? 5

What is your favorite thing to do? Pet and play with puppies and kittens

What do you want to be when you grow up? A cop (this kills Bryce for some strange reason. It has been her answer for the last 3 years)

What is your favorite food? Cake

Who do you like to spend time with? Mom and Dad

What do you do really well? T-BALL 

What makes you laugh? When I chase Copper with a balloon and she runs away because she’s scared

What is the best time of day? When I’m allowed on my leap pad

What are you afraid of? The dark becuase there might be ghosts, but Copper makes me feel better

Who are your best friends? Thiago, Ivy and Clarity

What do you like to do with your family? Go on adventure walks and bike rides

What do you like learning about? Insects

Where do you like to go? Auntie Beckie house,  Nanna and Poppas house

What is your favorite book? The Pout Pout Fish

If you had one wish what would it be? To meet Hello Kitty in real life

Happy birthday Ollie, thanks for making our lives that much more exciting 

💓Mom

Oh HAPPY DAY!

I dread grocery shopping. I dread it even more with 2 kids, and my kids are pretty well behaved for the most part while we shop. I dread long lines for the till, wondering up and down the isle only having to go back to the other end of the store because I forgot something on my list. I dread the unessasary things that end up in the cart because I’m starving and have no sense of will power. I dread unpacking the groceries only to find out that I forgot a handful of items. Finally there are others things I’d rather do with my day.

I remember having a conversation with a girlfriend of mine about how some grocery stores in the states you can order your groceries online and then pick them up at the store. Um, how amazing is that? It sounds like heaven. 

How many hours in our day to we spend mindlessly scrolling through Facebook, instagram, and lets not forget PINTEREST! Now imagine sitting on your phone or computer with a glass of wine, a hot cup of coffee, or whatever your cup of tea is and doing something productive like ordering your groceries for the weeks or month to come. No more long lines to the till, no more children meltdowns over wanting anything and everything. No more expanding waistline becuase you went shopping on an empty stomach and have no will power so everything ended up in your cart.

Well heaven is a place on earth and it’s called The Real Canadian Super Store. You are now able to order grociers online and pick up in the slotted available time. It’s perfect for those who hate grocery shopping, who just don’t have time after work becuase you’re juggling your schedule and your children’s after school activities.  We’ve ordered online a few times and we haven’t has a problem or mix up with our orders yet. If something on your list isn’t available they’ll send you an email with suggested changes and you can email them back or they’ll let you know at pick up a date they’ll quickly grab whatever it is for you.

XC skiing.

This past weekend I was able to sneak a girls trip to Waterton for some cross country skiing. Okay this trip had been planned for about a month and the funny thing was, I was so excited to have a kid free day but the entire time I kept thinking about how much fun the kids would have had. It’s a mom guilt thing Haha.  I headed to the mountains with a group of girls my friend Rachel had rounded up. Yay for making new friends. 

When we got to the park we headed straight to Waterton Lakes Lodge Resort to rent our cross country ski’s, boots and poles and they were only $30 to have them for the day. (they also have snowshoes to rent as well.) We headed up to Cameron Lake to start our winter wonder land adventure.

Full disclosure non of us had ever been before except for Rachel. And for some strange reason I had it in my mind that I was going to be terrible, I have never been on ski’s except for in the water. But as it turns out it was easy, all together we only had a few mishaps on our way to and from the lake and I did the entire trip with a broken boot. The weather was cold when we first started out but we warmed up quickly and were all sweaty and gross when we finished.

The scenery was breath taking as usual, and the fresh mountain air renewed my soul and everything that seemed to be plaguing me dissolved from my thoughts. Everything felt right again.

We trekked out onto the lake and do you want to know who the real unsung heroes are, the people who forge the cross country ski trail tracks, so thank you, thank you, thank you. I tried to make my own path on the way back to the shore line and it was tough. 

After wondering around and taking pictures we headed back down to the car wich ment that those hills we conquered going up we got to go down. It was fun, you build up just enough speed to think to yourself,”oh geeze how do I even stop?” and just when you start to feel a little bit of panic you’re at the bottom and have almost come to a complete stop. And you carry on with that bit of thrill pumping in your chest. 

All I could think about as we were coming back down the mountain was how much I wanted to eat sweet potato fries from Weiners of Waterton. When we got there it was crazy busy and I thought I was going to have to wait an eternity to eat, but our food came quickly and it was everything my taste buds had hoped for. I also found out that the have deep fried pickles and they are heavenly.

It was an awesome day in the mountains I am definitely a fan of cross country skiing and I can’t wait to go back with the kids and Bryce.

Cheers,

Cat.

New Years Resolutions

Am I the only one who feels as though 2016 came and went way too fast. I can’t believe that it’s January 1 2o17. My New Years Eve was wild. I spent it watching The Goonies  (Olive’s pick, and a great pick might I add) eating appies, sipping hot cocoa and being in bed by 11pm. I totally crashed while putting the kids to sleep, but as the great Bob Dylan said,”the times, they are a changing.” And I wouldn’t trade my night for anything.

My last year’s resolutions went really well, I feel that my relationships with people have grown, some more then others, but I am incredible grateful for those that have grown. I learned something too, no matter how much you try or make an effort if the relationship is only one sided it’s time to redirect your time energy to relationships where it’s going to blossom.

This year I’m focusing living authenticly. Living authenticly for myself, my children and my husband. 

HAPPY NEW YEAR
CHEERS,

Cat

Christmas Vacation

I love Christmas. The lights, the trees, the goodies, the 10 pounds I automatically gain just looking at the goodies. But mainly family. My sister Jessica’s birthday is on Christmas day and she passed away almost 5 years ago to the day. So it’s a bitter-sweet time of year.

This year we decided to venture down to Dallas, TX to visit my sister and her kids. My parents and little brother met us there from California.

Our adventure was off to a rough start. AMERICAN AIRLINES LOST ONE OF OUR CAR SEAT, AND THE SECOND ONE WAS DAMAGED TO THE POINT WE HAVE TO PURCHASE A NEW ONE. Then the following day the package that my brother over nighted from London England had been opened and one of my kids Harry Potter wands had been taken and the package was resealed. Who steals from kids???!!! Let alone at Christmas. And Dealing with FedEx customer service has been a COMPLETE nightmare to say the least.

Besides those 2 bumps in the road we’ve been having a blast. The kids love seeing and playing with everyone, Olive especially loves the 3 dogs; Boomer, Roscoe and Lucy. She’s in heaven. We’ve spent the majority of our week relaxing and lounging around the house. Friday Bryce and I went out with my sister and little brother for drinks and applies and shared in some good laughs.

 

Christmas day my kids slept in. We didn’t open presents until 11:30am. Olive and Kevin we’re spoiled and she was so elated when she opened her gift from her Uncle John that had her ticket to Hogwarts and her very own wizards wand. And if you’ve read my You’re a Wizard Harry you’d understand her excitement.

Telling stories to our older cousins who listen intently.
 and riding the merrigo at the mallFor our last day we went to the Perot Museum with the kids and my sister. This place was amazing and we all had so much fun.I LOVED BEING WITH MY FAMILY over the holidays.

Remember at the beginning of this post when I said that American Airlines had lost one of our car seats and damaged the other one. Would you believe that when we arrived home in Calgary that our other car seat had been lost!!!! No word of a lie, both our car seats had been lost. As annoying as the situation was, West Jet saved the day. Apparently lost car seats are a common thing, so common that they keep brand new ones in stock. So we were off with our new car seat and if they ever find our lost one they’ll mail it to us. haha How crazy is it that we lost both car seats? Have you ever lost anything while traveling?

Cheers,

Cat

Santa Shuffle #2

I participated in the Santa Shuffle for the 2nd year in a row. I love this race, the course is nice, everyone gets finishing medals, hot chocolate and once everyone has crossed the finish line they do a random draw for gift cards to the Running Room.

My friend Rachel asked if I wanted to join a team she was putting in with some girls from her education program.

We all won gift cards to the Running Room from the raffle!!

 I showed up late and didn’t get my bib on until after they started the run. Haha.  I’m always running on mom time lately, which drives me bonkers.I’ve been running naked as I’m positive I left my charger for my garmin in Vancouver when I ran the Seawheeze.it has yet to show up anywhere in the house. I should really check and see if I can order another one.  Until then I’ll just enjoy my naked runs. I don’t know how far I’ve gone and my only timing is when I check my phone before and after I get back. It’s been pretty nice.

That being said I finished with a time of around 40mins. Not to bad considering I was pushing 50lbs of kids in the stroller. Time to start training for the Moonlight Run.

This picture kills me, I totally(not on purpose of course. I dont know how I missed the giant red man) left Santa hanging on the high five. I hope I don’t end up on the naughty list.

31 trips around the sun.

Since it’s my 31st birthday today I thought I’d share 31 things about moi.

1. I am the most indecisive person on the planet (to the point its crippling) when it comes to small things like what paint I want on my walls, which pictures to hang where.. BLAH BLAH BLAH.

2. Louis C.K is my favorite comedian.

3. I’m a very loyal person when it comes to relationships.

4. I can touch my nose with my tongue.

5. I have played 4 instruments in my lifetime. the recorder, trumpet, piano and fiddle.

6. I love the mountains, they are seriously good for the soul.

7. I have an  obscene collection of nail polish that I never use.

8. I really enjoy yoga. It’s mentally and physically challenging.

9. I’m the least flexible yogi for how long I’ve been practicing. I blame running for my tight hamstrings.

10. I’m notorious for reading books 3/4 of the way through and never finishing them. They sit in a pile on my nightstand haunting me

11. I love Jesus, but I cuss a little

12. Okay I cuss like a sailor. And where did this saying come from anyways? Are sailors prone to swearing more than any other jobs?

13. I’m sarcastic, but not in the mean way, in the fun-loving busting your chops kind of way.

14. I’m  bit of a tree huger. but hey, if we don’t take care of mother nature who will?

15. I have 2 pretty amazing kids. and I know every mother says that but in my case it’s true.

16. I’m terrified of birds.

17. I have monkey toes. I can pick things up and pinch with my toes.

18. I teach children’s yoga.

19. I love to run, but I have to give myself a 30min pep talk before I go on one.

20. my top 5 favorite movies are

• Pineapple Express
• The outsiders
• the big labowski
• The interview
• The princess bride

21. I love to dance even though my husband likens my dance moves to Elaine Benes

22. I always talk to myself to the point where my daughter always asks who I’m talking to.

23. My husband says that I remind him of  Cam Tucker from Modern Family.

24. I’ve love cheese. Like I once I start eating it I can’t stop.

25. I don’t have a favorite color, but I love stripes.

26. The older I get the more I hear my mother coming out of my mouth when I talk and I’m okay with that.

27. My left thumb is double jointed.

28. If it were socially acceptable and I lived where it never snowed I’d never wear shoes again.

29. I love camping in tents.

30.  I’ve been a hairstylist for 8 year

31. It took me 31 years and 2 pregnancy to truly love my body and feel comfortable in my own skin.