Snow Walk

Snow

...something we haven't had much of this winter

...transforms the woods into a 

wonderland.

Even abandoned farm equipment is

beautiful with a

dusting 

of snow.

...cloaking

seed heads

...even the shoveling is magical

...when it's someone else 

doing the shoveling.

Happy walking,
Marisa

Night Walk

You may have noticed that I haven't posted on this blog for quite some time. Blogging has kinda gone the way of my weigh loss and exercise journey...sputtering in fits of get up and go...to not moving at all. The only thing moving are the numbers on the scale. Unfortunately, while my exercise routine has been mired in a gully, my weight has been on a steady incline. I am trying to psych myself back into "moving" and with the days gradually becoming longer, I am getting out more...and now that all the Christmas "junk" is gone, there is no excuse for not eating better.

The other night, in anticipation of the forecast rain for the next day,  

Hubby and I cleaned the snow off the pond so we could get some skating in, 

something we haven't done in over fifteen years. 

Tonight, I walked back to check the ice

...it was perfect, 

although I didn't venture on it because of the mild temps over the last few days.

Notice the dark circles in the ice...

Close up they looked like giant eyeballs.

The night sky was beautiful!

I had a great walk and came home to

... a healthy meal

of fresh veggies with hummus,

a sandwich, orange sections and a glass of vegetable juice.

Getting back on track with healthy eating,

avocado

...a batch of yogurt 

...and seeds in my sprouter 

for extra greens next week, 

...one lonely candy cane, 

the last of the Christmas junk.

Happy walking,
Marisa

The First Real Snow

We've been lucky so far this year, 

enjoying spring like weather right up to Nov. 23rd, 

but when the snow finally came

...it really came!

And it's still coming!

I headed out for a 

first cross country ski,

but there was too much snow for skiing.

I should have traded the skis

for snowshoes,

but decided to help the hubby with 

some shoveling instead.

The snow was up to my knees

...and another 15 cm. forecast overnight.

Finding Joy In The Going

Though they bear the weight of the world, 

let your feet proclaim their joy

…not just in getting somewhere, but in the going.
~Jeffrey Willius~

One Man's Wonder 

It seems that my mantra "just move," far from progressing to a new mantra "move more" has petered out over the past two weeks...with only sputtering bits of activity here and there ...only to come to a complete stop. I haven't walked in three or four days. It started a few weeks ago with the sound of an animal moving in the woods as I walked down the gully... probably only a large raccoon... ...but being unable to see in the darkness, it was just enough to instill the fear of walking alone in the dark. So for the past two weeks I've been trying to replace my morning walk with exercise on the treadmill, but getting up at 5:30 to walk is hard enough...getting up to go downstairs to run on a treadmill is a real killer... thus I found myself choosing to forgo exercise for some extra morning zzzzz's. Looking after a house full of preschoolers all day usually leaves me too wasted to walk in the evenings but I did get out last night for a beautiful fall walk.

I started out on my usual route but veered off to follow a trail that runs through the orchards and past a series of ponds, following as close as possible the path that is kept groomed all winter for the snowmobile enthusiast and serves as a cross country trail for us. I enjoyed my walk so much that I wasn't ready for it to come to an end, so, after stopping at the house long enough to deposit the spoils of my walk, (must remember to wear jacket with bigger pockets next time) I headed out again. 

...through the woods

...to the fields and ponds behind our house.

I love that someone placed an old chair

beside the pond,

a place to sit 

and enjoy the quiet.

It was not until I reached the ponds that I remembered it was deer hunting season, and while I make it a point  to never go into the woods when there are hunters jacked up with the prospects of bagging a deer, it was too late to turn back now.

I wasn't wearing hunter orange

but surely no one could mistake my bubble gum pink jacket 

for a deer?

A moment of serenity against our magic tree, 

an old giant hemlock in a little alcove in the woods behind our house
...a magical mysterious place for a kid
...or a kid at heart. 

I found the beautiful quote at the top of my page on a wonderful blog,

One Man's Wonder 

so stop over and check it out.

Jeffrey Willius has  a lot to say

...let him inspire you.