And sometimes, good habits just happen--like three weeks ago when I started walking.
Since we live, literally, on a highway, there are no easy places for me to go walking with Cambrie. But my determination to become a little more active and spend more time outside with Cambrie must have supplanted my list of excuses. A little exploration unearthed a neighborhood just a minute's drive away that has a perfect little mile and a half loop. Since that discovery, Cambrie and I have made the hop-skip-and-a-jump trip four days a week. Not too shabby for a previously inert mommy and daughter pair.
I love being able to get my heart rate up, even for a short time, while enjoying the breeze and chatting with my baby. ("GA-gah!" "Yes, that's a dog." "Uh GA-gah GA-gah! Rahf!" "Are you barking at the dog? Yes, dogs say 'ruff'' " "Mama! ah Bihd!!" "Oh, yes, a bird, too!"...Scintillating, I know. But strangely wonderful at the same time.) But that's not all. I think I just may have found my dream neighborhood.
I love this place. The houses aren't too big, and the lots aren't too small. It is an older neighborhood, so the trees are large, lush, and mature. It isn't immaculate--there is the occasional sore thumb--but for the most part the yards are well-kept and nicely landscaped. Perhaps my favorite part is that every house is totally different. No cookie cutter homes, no matching mailboxes, no color scheme.
Perfect.
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| Even a lake! Maybe that's a little upscale from what I'm used to, but a girl can dream, can't she? |
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| This is my current favorite house. I think because it's blue. |
My favorite part is how quiet it all is (if I ignore my little girl jabbering on and on). By quiet, of course, I mean filled with the songs of birds and the rush of wind and the rustle of leaves. I mean quiet from anything electronic, digital, fake, synthesized. I mean peaceful.
There are still undeveloped lots in this neighborhood, mostly wooded. This one had a little pathway back into the trees:
If I'm in the mood, this little pathway can start to seem very mysterious, magical, even. Not a bad place to start my mornings.
By the end of our walk, Cambrie and I have felt the effects of both the exercise (me) and the whipping wind (her):
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| Keep growing, little hair! You can do it! |
I am still very excited that somehow, so far, this habit has simply stuck. It makes me feel a little more capable, a little more in control of my own life--like I can beat mediocrity if I have that steady determination.
I guess the real test will be if I can beat mediocrity with the put-the-clean-clothes-away-the-same-day-you-wash-them habit I'm currently working on. I'll have to keep you posted on that one.
4 comments:
Congrats on the good habit! Logan's always hoping I'll develop a similar one, but, sadly, that has yet to happen...
I love dreaming about new neighborhoods and beautiful houses. I really like the picture you posted. There's something about blue houses that is just so comforting!
p.s.--Your blog design is beautiful! Is this a template, or did you do some fancy html thingy?
Thank you! The main background is just a background that comes in Blogger's template designer--it seemed clean and simple and seemed to fit with the colors in my header. The header was me playing around in Photoshop, but I'm really happy with how it turned out. Of course, that background pic of Cambrie is what makes it, and that's all Brinn's fabulous work.
Ahhh, the South is so LUSH and green and peaceful! Did I ever tell you I grew up in Tennessee? Seeing those pictures of "your neighborhood" reminds me of my childhood. I love looking at streets full of houses and trying to decide which one I'd choose to live in. It's a fun gaem. ahh, and walking really can be refreshing! I adore going on a quiet stroll now and then. (Though I think I get the same high you're talking about from going on an early morning run). Therapy. Amazing what nature can do for us!
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