Spring is Near
The first day of spring is tomorrow. That’s also my daughters birthday (she’s turning five)! I’ll be sharing her birth story on social media, as is tradition with both of my kids. Such a special season!
We’ll be removing some COVID restrictions this week. It’ll be interesting to see what happens when people shed their masks and start to ‘get back to normal’ in terms of public habits and social behaviours.
Lots to look forward to with the warmer weather. Will probably be getting my motorcycle out this week. I sold Suzi Suzuki last fall and bought a 2022 Triumph Street Twin (Bonneville). It’s a bigger bike and I’m excited to have my first warm weather ride with it. Lots of moto-social stuff on the go, too.
Excited to eventually get up to the cottage and open things up. We’ll be hosting only repeat guests and are fully booked (again). We’ve been very lucky on the ‘good guests’ front. So much so, that I’ve decided to stop accepting rental inquiries indefinitely. It took a while to get into this groove but now that I’m here, there’s no going back.
If you’re reading this and you were able to contribute to my Dry Feb fundraiser: THANK YOU! We raised over $2,000.00 for the Canadian Cancer Society. It was a long month with some unexpected twists and turns making total sobriety impossible for me, so YES, I had two cheat days. Oh well! We still did a good things and I’m very proud of what we’ve accomplished.
It’s a new month and we’re getting back to whatever post-COVID normal life will be and that is something worth celebrating all on it’s own.
DryFeb: Day 21
Living in downtown Ottawa, it sure feels longer than 21 days of DryFeb. Things have settled down in the capital but there is tension. People are tired. People are on edge. It’s been a hectic start to 2022, to be honest.
I used a vacation day to have Friday off, giving me an extra long weekend with the family. I pressed pause on DryFeb and had a couple drinks on the weekend. I’m back to it now, though. I’m proud of making it eighteen days without a drop of alcohol. :-) I am also looking forward to getting back into the alcohol-free routine. I definitely sleep better and feel better, overall, when I’m not consuming any alcohol.
I also am not a super-huge lover of anything in ‘finite’ terms; like never having a drink again! or never giving up <insert item I like here>… life isn’t black and white and sometimes my comfort zone is just doing what I want to do (within reason) and not really worrying too much about it.
Balance! I guess that’s what some might say, ‘balance’. DryFeb is going well from our fundraising perspective. Started with 50$ and our team has now raised just shy of 1.700$. I’m excited to embrace our final (full) week, back in alcohol-free mode. Here’s hoping we can raise even more for our friends at the Canadian Cancer Society!!
If you’re hoping to donate (you will get an official tax receipt) there is still time. Here is the link to give:
DryFeb: Day 15
Happy Dry Valentine’s Day to you! Well, I’m a day late but better late than never.
Thank you for donating to the DryFeb cause. This money raised by us not drinking will help Canadians living with cancer through the Canadian Cancer Society. A noble cause on its own BUT I have noticed some selfish perks to being alcohol free:
no hangovers or lingering foggy brain (Just the regular life induced type)
weight loss (i am down 2.1 lbs and it’s been 15 days, like, woah.)
healthier habits are emerging (eating better, sleeping better, saving money)
Are you doing DryFeb? How is it going for you? You can comment on this post below or in the comments section wherever this gets posted (to social media).
I do have a holiday coming up this weekend (using a vacation day + the STAT holiday) and I am considering having some alcoholic beverages… maybe I’ll feel less guilty about it if we reach our team goal of $2,000… we’re almost there!
It’s been strange times in the capital and being alcohol free during this two week period has been a blessing but WOW, I SURE DO MISS BEERS and/or GIN!
Hope you are doing well right now - Dry or Not. We’re almost there! We can do it! And if we hit pause: that’s okay.
DryFeb: Day 7
One week in and feeing pretty great. Going to do a “weigh in” tomorrow to see if I’ve gained or lost any pounds due to being alcohol free. Going dry has many positive effects on one’s overall health, and pre-surgery, I’ve made it my goal to shed a couple of pounds. I won’t be posting my weight, just a plus or minus in terms of where I was 8 days ago.
Had a very busy weekend with the kids. My youngest started her (mega-postponed) skating lessons and that went pretty well. We’ve been doing some recreational skating here and there, specifically in the valley at the Laurentian Valley Skating Trails beside the Alice & Fraser Rec Centre (highly recommend BTW), so she has really strengthened her skills prior to where she would have been if the course hadn’t been postponed. However, we did a mini-Lunar New Year’s dinner celebration on Friday night so the kids stayed up late and she was tired the next morning during the lesson. We ended up leaving about 5 minutes early but I told her we could leave when she wanted to, and she took that offer sincerely. We will go to bed earlier this Friday night!
On Sunday, we checked out the Countryside Adventures tubing hill (Moose Creek) and had a blast! They have a nice skating area and trail there as well, so we’ll have to return to have that experience some day.
That brings us to Monday. I have wanted alcohol but not in a major way. Any sort of mild craving has been easily satiated by a glass of Diet Coke with ice.
So far, so good! I hope you are doing well in your alcohol-free journey, too.
If you would like to jump on the DryFeb bandwagon, there’s always room: CLICK HERE.
We’ve reached over $1,300.00 in donations for the Canadian Cancer Society - and our goal is $2,000.00. Be proud of yourself for attempting this feat during a hectic time of year. :)
DryFeb: Day 2
No, don’t worry, I will NOT be posting/pushing blogs every day!! I just had to share a funny thought I had which maybe you will relate to.
Yesterday was Chinese New Year and we (as a fam) typically celebrate all the happy events/holidays of various cultures and all religions by educating ourselves and supporting a local business by hosting an epic feast.
We didn’t do that last night and the kids were asking, “why?” I didn’t have a great answer other than, “it’s a school night”. So we will be doing a little feast on Friday to ring in the Lunar New Year.
My daughter’s skating lessons (which heavily involve me skating with her and holding her up) start across down at 9AM on Saturday… so how relieved am I knowing there is ZERO chance of me being hungover?! Yes! I’m feeling very good about being alcohol-free, although I know this is only the beginning.
If you want to try DryFeb, join the team! Share your thoughts, experiences or observations, too.
Quick fundraising update:
