Today

I just finished one of my favorite snacks, and it's a super healthy one! It's a banana chocolate smoothie, and it's delish! I got the recipe from Kristen's Raw Blog and then just tweaked it a bit. It's made with about a cup of water (I substitute some almond milk), a frozen banana or two (you can add ice cubes if your banana isn't frozen), some protein powder, hemp powder, a little coconut, some raw cacao nibs (makes it crunchy and soo yummy), some raw chocolate powder, and a big scoop of almond butter. This is my favorite thing to have after a workout. (Today I went for a run in the cold, wind and snow!). I sometimes add some Starbucks Via (instant coffee) and that makes it even more of a treat. I also had a cookie or two with it, but don't worry, because these were the healthiest and yummiest cookies EVER!! They're made with things like olive oil and maple syrup and oatmeal and spelt flour - no butter or eggs. I was shocked at how delish they are, and the kids all love them too! The chocolate chips decrease the health factor somewhat, but they are mandatory to the yumminess of this cookie!

We've been watching tons of Olympics around here, and I'm going to miss them when it's all over. I am a true patriotic Canadian and tend to get tears in my eyes whenever a Canadian athlete gets a medal. Talk about teary-eyed last night with TWO medals, a gold and silver!! I love the sappy part where they play the I Believe song and replay the athlete finishing their event and all the celebrating and flowers and medals. Yes, I'm a sucker, but I don't care! A friend who lives close by but is originally from Britain told me that people in her country aren't patriotic like we are, and she loves cheering for Canada. It's a great country to live in and would be even better if it just had a few more palm trees and sandy beaches! But I digress... Can't wait to see some more exciting events later today. What's your favorite sport to watch?

I am constantly amazed that athletes all around the world can train themselves to finish their sporting event within hundredths of a second of each other. If you really think about that, it's quite incredible! I am constantly amazed by the speed skaters and skiers. I have realized that I love watching the drama of short track and the pure, raw strength of long track. I also realize that I love watching the ski and snowboard cross. Talk about drama! Curling's pretty low on my list, but I'll still cheer for Canada. I even got right into that hockey game last night! I'm not a huge figure skating fan either, but I know I'll be watching Joannie Rochette, and I'll probably have tears streaming down my face while I watch. Like I said, I'll miss the Olympics when they're done!

I must get on with this day, but wanted to say hello! Hope you're having a fabulous week!

Reality

Yes, I am back to reality after a fantastic vacation. All did not start well, though. Saturday (the 30th) was the day to drop off all the kids before we headed out earlier Sunday morning. Well, right after we'd dropped Connor off (we were still in Burlington) Logan throws up in the van. He had been feeling a little off all day, but this was definitely worst-case scenario. We headed back home to clean up and wait awhile before beginning our hour drive to Barrie (where Logan and Taya would be staying). Two hours later, he was feeling a little better, and hadn't been sick again. However, we felt terrible bringing our sick boy to our friends' house and then leaving right away! But what were we supposed to do?! Not a good predicament, as you can imagine.

Once we arrived in Barrie, we got the kids to bed and then left at 5am the next morning. Thankfully, things did improve for Logan after a couple days of fever and feeling very lethargic. My dear friend Angie deserves a medal for being so caring (or at least the gift I sent her in the mail!). The kids did have a great time - the bonus being that they got to play with our friends' dog and cat all week! They were definitely happy to see us when we got home on Thursday evening and we were even happier to see them, I think!

More reality hit on Friday night, when Connor couldn't sleep because of sinus congestion, and then Logan woke up with a bad earache. Taya woke up in the morning with a sore throat and headache. To make this long story short, Taya and Logan are now on antibiotics (Taya for strep throat), and they have now missed more school. I have hardly left the house since we've been home and we're experiencing a little cabin fever. They are on the mend, however, and I am very thankful that we are home to look after them. We are so grateful for the wonderful friends who looked after the kids - this gave us a lot of peace of mind.

So, yes, the trip was amazing!! Aside from worrying about a sick boy back home, everything went incredibly smoothly. From having an extra seat on the airplane both ways (which was almost full - this is a very huge bonus for my long-legged husband), to our luggage arriving (never take that for granted!), to the fantastic weather and great food, to Stefan not needing a hospital visit - we have no complaints!! The resort was beautiful and we thoroughly enjoyed walks on the beach with the waves crashing, lying for hours by the pool reading our books, with the occasional dip in the pool to cool off, eating whenever we felt like it, nice refreshing drinks, and one of my highlights, playing tennis every afternoon! Another highlight was having a very invigorating spa treatment - so lovely! I have posted an album from our trip on my facebook page, but for those of you not on facebook (you know who you are), I will attempt to add some photos to the blog. You probably won't get to see as many, though, as I added about 25. All in all, the trip was wonderful - relaxing and reconnecting and much too short! I am so thankful we had a chance to do this.

Now I'm looking out the office window at snow and I can feel the slight ache in my back from shoveling it this morning and I remember that this is reality. St. Lucia feels like a dream or a fantasy, maybe even something I imagined. I will savor those memories so fondly, but truly, I am grateful to be back home with the kids - I think perhaps we all appreciate each other just a little bit more after having some time away from each other. I guess the saying "Absence makes the heart grow fonder" really does have some truth!!