POWDER TO THE PEOPLE!

What a day!! Saturday was our first trip to Hudson Bay Mountain in Smithers. It was the perfect day for snowboarding. The conditions were amazing with a 4' base, fresh powder and spring temperatures. The kids were so pumped to get on the mountain.

I must admit that the first run was a little daunting. It was hard to keep up to the rest of the gang. I always marvel at how fast the kids go and how unafraid they are. They could not go fast enough. I always try my best to keep up, but I just cannot bring myself to go down the mountain in a straight line. I'm always reminded of the old adage, the bigger they are, the harder they fall!! Of course, there is my expression, the older you are, the easier you break.

It was nice to have a family day together. Now that the kids are getting older, these days are becoming fewer and farther between. It's not easy to find something that we all like to do that will work with everyone's schedules. I cherish these times with my family!! We had a lot of laughs on Saturday, enjoyed the beautiful scenery and had one heck of a workout. It was the most fun we've had this winter!!

Dylan and I gearing up for our next run!

My world!

Smithers townsite from the triple chair.

DORK IN DISGUISE

Reading through my old journals recently, I realized that I have not always been the ubercool person that my kids think I am (drop me off at the corner, puh-lease!!). I guess you could say I was a dork growing up. I cringe reading my angst-filled entries on being left out of a clique, not being invited to the party of the season, and wondering where to sit in the cafeteria. Photos of my teenage self only confirm this. Dressed in some of the most tragic outfits the 80's had to offer, I stand smiling in all of my dork glory. I always longed to be the popular girl but it was not in the cards for me. Grasping the latest fashion trends in an effort to fit the mold, usually ended up with me looking like an unfortunate collage of fashion don'ts.

I remember one day, not long ago, a colleague said, "I bet you've always been a Barbie." I don't know what made me laugh harder, the fact that she thought I was a Barbie now or the fact that she thought I was a Barbie in highschool. I thought to myself, if I'm a Barbie, then I'm in disguise (albeit not a very clever one), because I am and always will be a total dork.

Turning 40 was a milestone that allowed me to embrace my dorkiness. I no longer care if I fit the mold (boots with yoga pants?), sing for all to hear (Gawd, mom. Honestly!), trip walking into the mall (I'm heeere!), or say the wrong thing (my special gift). I don't worry about the fact that my kids are easily mortified or that they can't believe from which they came. Not at all. Now I just laugh. Laugh because in 41 years, nothing has changed. Laugh because I am a klutz and goofball rolled into one dorky package. Laugh because I get the inside joke and I don't care if anyone else does.

So if you ever found yourself coming in 9th on track and field day, getting your hair caught in your boyfriend's watch, or trying to work "Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock" into a sentence, you are probably a dork and you shall always be one. Embrace the essence of being a dork! You are not alone. Remember, being true to yourself is the coolest thing you can do.

Spring Dance - 1983

Dorkalicious

TO BLOG OR NOT TO BLOG? THAT IS THE QUESTION

I'm sure this a question that many people first contemplating a blog ask themselves. I have read other blogs and often thought about starting my own. Fear has kept me from creating a blog long before now. Perfectionism, failure, self-consciousness are all demons I have wrestled with. Then it occurred to me that blogging is just journaling in the 21st century. Public journaling albeit, but journaling nonetheless.

When I was younger I always kept a journal. I laugh when I read those journals now. The trial and tribulations of a teenage girl seem so trival now, but these entries are the bits and pieces that make up the the fibres of my life. The things that made me the person I am today. This line of thinking led me down yet a whole other path. Who am I now? Do my children know this person? If I died tomorrow, would anyone really know who I was? A journal is a great legacy for those left behind, and for this reason, and this reason alone, I will blog. I will leave a story for my children, my family, my friends. A story that goes beyond the mother, wife, friend and daughter they see. They will know the woman I am and the child I was. They will know, unequivocally, the love I have for all of them, especially my children.

Am I scared? Absolutely! There is a certain vulnerability that comes with exposing your soul for the world to see. However, I will tackle this as I tackle all new challenges - full steam ahead!!