Our routine for Cheer is coming along really well!
He said
Well last week we spent the weekend at home—the first in some time where we hadn’t beelined for the trailer the second the work week was done. Sure, we got a lot done around the house that had been nagging us, but we’d be lying if we said we didn’t miss being able to get away and sit around the campfire. We’re getting closer and closer to the end of the 2021 camping season so we’re trying squeeze in every last moment we can get. There’s really 2 weekends left and the last one will spent packing up the trailer and bringing it back to London for winter hibernation.
So, with that in mind and knowing that The Sherwood’s would be up at the trailer this weekend in addition to our friends Holly & Ted and their kids would be there too, I booked the weekend off from work so we could all be up there together. There was talk of some paddling down the Maitland River and perhaps some adult bevies and of course there would be laughter around the fire pit. I had Friday off in order to run a mess of errands for the weekend to make sure that when Danielle was spring from work we could make haste to the trailer and our weekend.
No sooner had we got to the campground on Friday night, than we were all collected around the Sherwood’s fire pit, and working on our collective dinners. Before long, under a clear, star-filled sky we were laughing and carrying on and unwinding from a very busy work week for all of us. It is so great for us to have this place with friends to be able to unpack the challenges of our day-to-day lives. We’ve already put down the deposit for next summer as this place has come to mean so much for us, but the biggest part has been the contribution to our collective mental health.
Saturday early I got out on the bike and onto the G2G Rail Trail for my daily ride. I’ve tacked on a couple extra kms to my everyday ride going all the way into Blyth on the trail and coming back for a total of 25km. This time of year the trail is absolutely stunning with the fall colours. The weather was unseasonably warm and the sky was blue and sun-filled. I couldn’t have asked for better conditions. I was out and back to the campground from my ride by 11:30am feeling so much better with all that fresh fall air in my lungs!
As soon as I had some breakfast in me, it was off to our next adventure: paddling down the river. While I was wrapping up my ride the rest of the crew took and left our truck and Ted & Holly’s truck at Ball’s Bridge at Little Lakes Road as the plan was to canoe (and we, in our borrowed Sherwood’s kayak) from the campground to the bridge for an adult afternoon of sun, water and… paddling. We dropped in and paddled off at noon and got out of the water at the bridge just under 2 hours later. Sure, we had some fun sorting out paddling and would much rather had some proper canoe paddles rather than the kayak ones, but the good news is our marriage is in tact, and we actually had fun. I think.
Overall, the weekend was just what we all needed. We have had some challenges with Emelia’s mental health the last few weeks, Danielle’s work load has been overwhelming to say the least, and well we launch a bunch of new products last weekend. This weekend, away at the trailer, and with friends, was just what we needed. There was such a great mix of amazing weather, plenty of time spent outside in fresh air, and all kinds of laughter—the best kind of soul recharge. It was the perfect balm for us all!
She said
As John mentioned my work has been a lot, and that is a nice way of putting it. I have been putting in very long hours and even with very early days and late nights the work is just still too much to get done. I am really feeling the burn out. It has been a lot and I really needed this weekend as a family with close friends to recharge. We had hoped I could take the afternoon off on Friday or at least leave a bit early but that was not allowed so I was able to actually leave work on time-ish and with John having Friday off he was able to get almost everything together so we could hit the road as fast as possible.
Shortly after 7:00 we were around the fire eating some supper, having some drinks and as always lots of laughs.
Saturday was the day we were really looking forward to. Stephanie and Justin had just got a new-to-them canoe and the plan was to canoe down the Maitland River. We had to borrow Steph and Justin’s inflatable kayak but we all made our way down the river. The kayak experience wasn’t exactly smooth, between a decent current, my first attempt at ever kayaking we were challenged to keep the boat going the right way. Thankfully the water was flowing strongly so we were able to make it down but it was a test on our patience for sure. But it was still a blast, we loved being out with our friends on a beautiful fall day.
Today we had to head home so Emelia and Olivia could get to cheer. Emelia came out tired and happy from practice today, they are working really hard on their routine as they are only 2 months from their first competition. The hope for this week is that things calm down at work so I can get a better work/life balance again. I am signing off to relax, watch the Jays game and soak in the last of our family weekend.