The 52 Dates Weeks 12 – 16

Holy Cats! We have a lot of weeks to catch up on! Here we go…

March 21st – Week 12: Ice fishing!!

So if the weather was still winter-y which I’m betting it was go ice fishing. It’s a nice activity done in the fresh air of the beautiful outdoors. So put on your mittens, get your gear, a couple of chairs and a thermos of your choice, just go do it. If you’re enjoying what you’re doing and who you are doing it with the cold wont matter that much. Refresh yourself on ice safety before you head out there though, would hate to see any accidents happen. Have fun kids!

March 28th – Week 13: Get your garden started!

We are nearing the end of winter (hopefully) and soon the ground will thaw and the last frost will come and go and it will be time to put in a garden and buy the jump started tomato plants and flowers for planters. Why not buy the seeds and make your own jump-start plants for the garden? Its cheap, its fun, and your making something you can either eat or enjoy. Get out there kids, get some potting soil, a little tray to plant you plants in and some seeds to plant, your choice. A lot of plants need an indoor start, so get on it and reap the benefits in a few months!

April 4th – Week 14: Rock Climbing

So since everyone is eager for spring to sprung, you’ll probably be seeing a lot of people out chomping at the bit to become active outdoors again. While all these people are soaking up the weak welcoming rays of spring go hit the rock wall. Its active and indoors, but if you like it it could be priming for an outdoor climb. Go do it! Take a class on belaying, or if you already know how to belay get on that wall. Can anyone spell trust exercise for me. You are relying on your date to keep you secure and tight on a rope while you mountain goat up a rock wall. Even though it may be an artificial one it can still be pretty high, and requires trust and energy. Get at it!

April 11th – Week 15: I have a feeling at this time winter may have returned for a short stint, so take advantage of it and go build some snowmen and a snow fort, heck why not even get into a snowball fight! The air is warming up so it’s not entirely unbearable to be outside in minimal winter clothes, and the snow should be in prime conditions to build and maybe hit stuff. Cheap free and fun, get at it and enjoy the curve balls mother nature throws during spring.

April 18th – Week 16: Volunteer

Now is the time of year everyone is itching to get out and do something, so why not go do something nice for someone else? Go walk some dogs together, or help a neighbor scrape and paint their fence, or volunteer at another kind of event like a charity run, some sort of fair or other local event being put on. Look online there are tons of options, because it may still be too early for a lot of yard work I suggest going and walking dogs from the shelter, who knows maybe you’ll come home with a little friend. 🙂

Ok there are 5 ideas, stay tuned for the rest – leela

2013: Thirteen Things

Thirteen Things of 2013

This is always so much harder when you try to look back and pick the best things out of the past 365 days. Struggling trying to remember all the great stuff that happened over the past year. This upcoming year I’m making it a goal to write about all the things I do weekly. Maybe at the end of 2014 it will be easier and I’ll look back upon all the fun times and adventures fondly whether they are big achievements or little things that I’m proud of. Anyways here are thirteen things I did in 2013.

1.  Academics & Scholarships – this year was pretty big for me academically, and I’m pretty proud of it. It’s always nice to be recognized for your achievements and its a bigger bonus being rewarded for them.

2. Stella – Bought this little beauty on a whim. She’s a pretty old windsurfing get-up, I’d say circa late 80’s maybe early 90’s if I was to guess. She is one of those investments that will keep on giving, and boy am I glad we have her.

3. Jasper/Banff – This summer we (my family and I) were able to go to Lake Louise for my cousins wedding (HOW EXCITING!!!). Not only did we spend the day at the Chateau for the perfect wedding (literally perfect, every family event we talk about how perfect it was) but we were able to check out Jasper and the Columbia Icefield’s the next day. Something I would have probably just have kept putting off for who knows how long cause its one of those in your own backyard things.

4. Ashley Lake/Going to the Sun Road – Always always a great time. This summer was no different, although my stay down there was shorter than other times I was still happy I was able to do it. On the way back to Canada I did the Going to the Sun Road and it was pretty great, Logans Pass is UNREAL!

5.  Summertime Rides – My goodness did I ever enjoy these, and I had a great friend to join me on them this year. She not only took great pictures while we were out riding, but it was SO nice to ride with someone.

6. Snowboarding – Winter is hands down my favorite season. That white fluffy stuff is the best thing that can come out of the sky! I was able to go snowboarding a fair amount and the conditions were pretty great for the most part. One of my favorite parts of snowboarding is showboating what you can do and what your friends can do, it always pushes me to do something more ballsy and hopefully at the end of the day it’s those runs that make me a better rider.

7. Fishing –  I am not a fisher-lady at all, actually nowhere even remotely close to being proficient with a fishing rod, if anything I am a much better net-manner. The whole fishing process is not for me, I don’t find it relaxing and I am horrible at taking the hook out of them once they are caught. But I tried it again, and it wasn’t half bad I caught a little sucker and did well with everything up until pulling the hook out. Oddly enough it wasn’t pulling the hook out that I was terrible at, it was keeping him out of the water. I just kept putting him back in the water cause I didn’t want the fish to die while he was out on the deck and I was struggling to get the hook out. I didn’t end up getting the hook out myself, someone else had to do it for me. To be completely honest it would have taken way longer if I had been left to my own devices, that fish was in and out of the water in 10 second intervals when I was trying to get the hook out.  Maybe this year I’ll figure out this hook removal business.

8. Kin Games ’13 – Pretty top shelf weekend full of a lot of great people, fun activities and beer.  It was pretty great, and I’m pretty happy that I did it. ’nuff said.

9. Moonlight Run – I participated in my very first running event. It was 6k and for my first run, minimal preparation and no goals or expectations I am pretty happy with how I did. I came in 39/119 in my age group and 630/1688 overall with a time of 43:19. For my first race ever I’m alright with that time, something to beat in this next year. 🙂

10. Won some of the LOTTERY!!! – I’m not a millionaire because of it, but I did have ~ $100 fun money and that was pretty exciting within itself. Between my Dad and myself one of these times we are bound to win big. Usually we’ll text about the big money draws and then go in on a ticket not every week just an occasional thing. If we don’t buy one together I’ll usually buy one if I’ve had a pretty hectic week, or a pretty great one I’ll pick up a lottery ticket near the end of the week just to see what happens. In this case it was the Friday before my birthday so I got pretty lucky and won some fun money for the birthday weekend. 

11. Cliff Jumping – Something I have never done before but had always, always wanted to. So out on the Koocanusa this summer my family and another family we’re friends with went up to the jumping rocks and my brother and the other two boys climbed up there and jumped off. We did it for 20 minutes or so and it was pretty top shelf, great day and a fun activity what is better!? I do recommend wearing swim shoes or something since those rocks were slippery and sharper than I thought they would be on wet feet. 

12. Consistently (like first time 95% of the time) can get up from the water on slalom – Doesn’t seem like a big thing, but really it is. In the summer we don’t go boating that much and if we do it’s during the week since the weekends are way to aggressive with everyone out on the lake. So I had been able to do this before, but it usually one or two attempts first, pretty much what I’m saying is I could do it before but my confidence wasn’t there 100% until this year. So now I’m pretty flawless at doing it now! Just up and cut, up and cut.

13. Meatspiel – In the Spring curled with my parents and one of my friends in the Nanton classic and we won some meat. Curling in this house is a family affair, not only do my siblings, and parents do it but my grandparents still do it! So since its such a family sport my sister and brother both put in teams and I not to be left out joined up with my parents and we curled all weekend and inevitably had to play each other at some point. It was a fun weekend, much better than just watching and we all won some meat!