January Thaw, NOW BRING ON THE SNOW STORMS!

Well, January in Michigan was NOTHING like a Michigan January should be. I think at least half of the month was 30+ degrees! SO NOT NORMAL. A little thaw was nice, but bring on the snowstorms!

While in New Zealand Kwin and I were so excited to getting home (to the 2 1/2 feet of snow) so we could do all the winter activities! That first week of being home we managed to Fat Bike at the Single Track VASA trail almost everyday! We were kicking ass with our 1 mile a day biking! 

Kanyon also got some new glasses to protect her eyes during our activities! 

We were also able to cross country ski a ton; It’s my favorite when there is a lot of snow on the ground! Trails are a little slower…which is definitely my preference 🙂

Would you just look at how beautiful these sunsets are! We were defiantly spoiled these past couple weeks! Sunset paddle boarding and hiking, a must do on nights like these.

It just doesn’t feel like winter without snow…but one good thing that came out of the most recent warm episode was POND SKATING!

The combination of:

Rain+Wind+Below Freezing Temperatures at night= Perfectly Smooth Ponds!

Something exciting that happened this January:

Stand Up For Great Lakes ‘Crossing Lake Huron’ documentary (by Corey Adkins) was the feature film in the Thunder Bay International Film Festival! It was so awesome watching the documentary and getting all the emotional feelings from the crossing again! Not only that…but seeing Kwin, and all the other team members get a standing ovation for their tremendous efforts brought a couple tears to the eyes again.

If you’ve never been to the Thunder Bay National Marine Sanctuary museum in Alpena,MI it’s definitely somewhere to check out! Learning about the history of “Shipwreck Ally” in Lake Huron is awesome!

January- Goals Check In

Kwin and I love being active and preach living a happy and healthy life! This includes setting goals and challenging yourself  to be a better person everyday!

This month, my challenge was:

• NO MEAT: To some people this would be extremely challenging, and to others it would be extremely easy! Growing up I ate meat at almost every meal, but after much research I’ve slowly started to cut back. I don’t think I will ever completely get rid of meat (because I believe everything in moderation)…but I wanted to see how I could do. Honestly, it was easy and I really enjoyed it! It challenged me to get creative with other foods: Tempeh, Lentils, Quiona, etc.

Goals for the 2018 year:

• Reading everyday before bed: I did OKAY on this…definitely something I need to continue getting better at! I still tend to browse through my phone and social media a little too much. So February to be more successful at this I will plug my phone in somewhere else NOT NEXT TO MY BED!
• Yoga 3x per week: Man, this was definitely a great goal to set! Yoga has helped me physically and mentally in SO MANY WAYS.
• Being more Green: This is A LOT harder than expected! Especially being that it’s the middle of winter, and it gets dark so early (which means lights on in the house more.) I love my new reusable produce bags [I got theses] that I’ve been using at the grocery store, and switched over to reusable laundry lint balls too [Got mine form Woolzies]! Making small steps, but better than nothing. This month I want to get better at unplugging outlets that I am not using!
• Blogging more: Still struggling with this one. I feel like what I want to blog about would not be very relevant to people…but I need to get past my fear and JUST DO IT!
• Biking: Kwin and I have a goal of getting better at biking this year, so we have either been fat biking outside…or using the new Bike trainer in the basement. Getting 1 mile a day has been pretty easy (with a .5mile penalty for every day missed). I’m really hoping that all this biking helps (M22…inspiration point…you are my motivation!)

My monthly goal for February is to cook 1-2 NEW MEALS every week! I tend to get into a slump at times…especially with cooking! Thank goodness for Pinterest though, I’ve already got a lot of new recipes on the list! If any of you have must try recipes though I would love to hear them!

Puppy snuggles are the absolute best! Thankful that my mother-in-law (Chocklabs.com) breeds the cutest pups ever!

I hope that everyone’s 2018 started off great and January was a success! Now, lets make February a huge hit too!

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New Zealand Honeymoon!

New Zealand, where do I even begin? It truly was the vacation of a lifetime! Kwin and I are so fortunate to have spent our honeymoon making such great memories. I’m sorry that this blog is kind of on the long side…but I could write forever about how amazing this country is. I hope you enjoy(:

Christchurch

We arrived in New Zealand on Christmas day, ready to start our adventures! Little did we know that ALL of Christchurch was shut down for Christmas! It was a ghost town. We ended up renting some bikes (Next Bike) and headed to New Brighton Beach for the day. It was a nice ride (mostly because nobody was on the road). PS-For those who do not know the ozone layer in the Southern Hemisphere is thinner than the Northern Hemisphere so the sun is INTENSE! Unfortunately we both got pretty burned that day….

Christchurch also has a Botanical Garden and Historical Museum which we were able to walk around on our last day. Such a cool place!

Lake Tekepo and Lake Pukaki

 December 26, we picked up our Mighty Camper van as early as we could, stocked up on groceries and then started on our adventures. Our first stop was Lake Tekepo, this was our first glimpse of the crystal clear, aqua blue water of New Zealand lakes. TRULY INCREDIBLE. After hiking around a little bit we finished our journey to Lake Pukaki and stayed at Glenntanner Holiday Park (Just outside of Aorki National Park-Mount Cook). Something pretty neat about the Holiday Parks in New Zealand was that they have community kitchens for everyone! It was such a cool atmosphere to be in: people from all over the world, cooking and eating dinner together! NOTE: We did not stay in holiday parks all the time, but in specific areas in New Zealand its illegal to Freedom Camp, so just know the laws wherever you are!

Mount Cook-Mueller Hut Hike

This was probably Kwin and I’s favorite hike of the whole trip! It was a 3-hour round trip hike. It was definitely a challenging hike: with steep incline and mostly stairs the whole way up. We stopped multiple times (both to catch our breath, and also take in the beautiful views.) Once at the top we had an amazing view of Mount Cook- The tallest Mountain in New Zealand- along with the surrounding glaciers and glacier lakes. Kwin got this crazy idea that we should hike back down, grab our Tahoe SUP  inflatable paddle boards, do a shorter (less vigorous hike) to the glacier lake and paddle it. Unfortunately, after carrying our boards almost 2 miles, we got to the lake and found a nice cliff, which meant NO ACCESS to the lake. Frustrating, I know…but hey, at least we got some beautiful pictures!

Queenstown

New Zealand is the adventure capital of the world…and well Queenstown is the adventure capital of New Zealand! It is perfectly located in the middle of the Southern Alps, and along Lake Wakatipu. A perfect set up for hiking, biking, paddle boarding, white water rafting, paragliding, etc. WE LOVED THIS CITY! It has so much to offer, we could have easily spent a week there! However, due to our limited time we only had 4 days, so we packed them full of fun!

–Bungee Jumping: We went to the Nevis Canyon Bungee jump (part of the AJ Hackett company) and jumped off a 137m (440 feet) platform in the middle of a canyon! This was the scariest thing that I’ve ever done, but let me tell you it was amazing! Felt like I was flying!

–White Water Rafting: We went down the Shotriver, which is full of grade 4 and 5 rapids. It was a fun and a beautiful ride! I would have to say that the scariest part was the bus ride out to the river! The roads in New Zealand are unbelievable… drivers have no fear and the roads are in some crazy areas! This road specifically was an old Gold Trigging road: dirt, pot holes, winding through the mountains, steep drop offs, spots of erosion- FREAKED ME OUT! (These roads are considered historical, so no repairs are allowed to be made.)

–Hiking: We did the Queenstown Hill hike which was also pretty steep, but definitely do-able. It has beautiful views overlooking the entire city of Queenstown and Lake Wakatipu.

–Bike Wine Tour: Queenstown and all the surrounding towns have this awesome trail system (mostly mountain bike friendly) extending for miles! It’s hilly, winds through the mountains, and alongside vineyards and wineries.

–Paddle Boarding: Lake Wakatipu was is one of my favorite paddles EVER! Seriously, the scenery of the crystal blue water and mountains was just amazing. Also it was pretty easy to find secluded beaches to relax on. DISCLAIMER: It is illegal to paddle board in New Zealand (or any watersport) without Life Jackets! We did not know this at first! 

Milford Sound

We were advised to go to Milford Sound by everyone we talked too! While here we did some paddle boarding through the coves, but didn’t end up making it too far out due to the strong Sea Breeze that came in! It was a beautiful place, and the ride out there was beautiful too! I would definitely suggest getting out there and either doing the kayak tour (these are early in the day due to the sea breeze that always comes in) or the bout tour-if that’s your kind of thing!

Roy’s Peak

We completed the Roy’s Peak hike which was LONG and tiring. It was all steep uphill hiking. (Talk about a calf and butt workout!) The hike took us about 4.5 hours to complete but is slotted to take about 5-6 hours. The views were incredible the entire hike up, overlooking Lake Wanaka and the surrounding Mt. Aspiring National Park mountain range. If you’re ever in the Wanaka area hit up the Burrito Food Truck! It was possibly the best burrito I’ve ever had in my life! 

Fox Glacier

A guided  Helicopter/Glacier Hike is pretty popular to do while in New Zealand, so we figured why not! There are a couple different glaciers to choose from, but we did Fox Glacier.  It was really cool to be able to walk around on-top of a glacier, while also learning the history them. This was also my first time ever in a helicopter!

Arthurs Pass

First we did the most iconic hike in the Arthurs Pass National Park- Punchbowl Trail. A beginners hike, but has a really cool waterfall at the end of it! After, we hiked the Mt. Aoiki trail (stems off the Punchbowl Trail) which was intense! Very steep, mostly like rock climbing at times, but a super fun hike up. It had a beautiful view at the top of the whole Arthur’s Pass valley.

Freedom Camping

 Before leaving for New Zealand, Kwin and I were extremely nervous about freedom camping and the laws/regulations on it. For anyone who is planning on traveling to New Zealand (the South Island) the best advise I can give to you about freedom camping is that IT IS ALMOST EVERYWHERE! Most of the cities/towns do not allow it when you are within city limits, but they have signs everywhere telling you where freedom camping is and is not allowed. Some of Kwin and I’s best camp sites were ones that we found freedom camping!

Our Itinerary 

Day 1: Christchurch- Bike to New Brighton Beach

Day 2: Glenntanner Holiday Park- Lake Tekepo and Lake Pukaki

Day 3: Queenstown Holiday Park- Mt.Cook and Walking around Queenstown

Day 4: Freedom Camping along Lake Te Anu: Milford Sound

Day 5: Queenstown Holiday Park- Nevis Bungee Jump, Paddle Lake Wakatipu

Day 6: Arrowtown Holiday Park-White Water Rafting, Queenstown Hill Hike

Day 7: Freedom Camping in Mountains- Bike Wine Tour (Arrowtown, Queenstown)

Day 8: Freedom Camping along Ocean-Roys Peak Hike, Swimming in Lake Wanaka

Day 9: Greymouth- Fox Glacier Helicopter Hike

Day 10: Freedom Camping, Craigburn Skiing Area-Arthurs Pass Hikes

Day 11:Christchurch-Botanical Gardens & Historical Museum

 

 

 

 

2018 Goals! What new and old things will this year bring!?

2017 was one of the best years of my life! It was a year of continued growth, and full of traveling and many adventures. It was a year of developing new friendships and pushing myself past my comfort zone. And the best yet, 2017 was the year I married my best friend and our life long journey together began.

Like I’ve said before, I don’t like to make ‘New Years Resolutions,’ because I feel like everyday we should be working toward bettering ourselves! Plus, lets be honest…after the first few months the excitement of the resolutions usually fades away. Instead of ‘Resolutions’ I like to start new goals and continue with ones I previously had been working on.

Now, what’s a better way to stay accountable to these goals than sharing them with you all?

Megans 2018 Goals

• Be more Eco-Friendly: Kwin and I have always tried to live more of a “green” lifestyle. We love our planet and all the beauty that it provides us! Our house runs on geothermal energy and we bought a small wind turbine (plan on installing it this upcoming spring) to hopefully create some wind energy (northern Michigan is known for it’s windy weather). We also have decreased our trash we accumulate by recycling more and having a compost bin! This year I want to be better about using recyclable produce and grocery bags at the stores, unplugging things from outlets when we aren’t using them, and continue to use non-chemical household items (one of my favorites are the Norwex brand, check them out here!)

• Read More: growing up I hated reading, especially during school-when you were usually forced to read books that you didn’t enjoy. However, as I’ve gotten older my love for reading has returned. My goal this year is to spend 5-10 minutes before bed reading a book, and not surfing through Instagram and Facebook!

• Yoga: Stress occurs in everybody’s life, and how we deal with it differs amongst everyone. Some people sit and meditate, listen to music, go for a run or maybe even stress eat! I’ve tried them all, but not until last year did I realize how amazing Yoga really helped me. I use to think it was boring, slow, and a waste of time..but just like reading, as I’ve gotten older I’ve learned to really appreciate it! Yoga allows you to escape from reality and get in your own world, to stretch and recover, and become more familiar with yourself. I’m really excited to start incorporating this more often!

• Build my blogging platform: What exactly do I mean by this? I love writing blogs, but sometimes feel like what I have to say would have no importance to anyone. I need to get out of my comfort zone and just DO IT. I plan to write more blogs and be more proactive with what I am posting. I hope to make connect with companies that I believe in, and maybe develop partnerships. I want my blog to grow into a place that inspires others regarding health, nutrition and an overall happy lifestyle.

• Increase my cooking creativity and eat more wholesome foods: Kwin and I try to eat 80/20 (healthy/non-healthy) foods, but like everyone we get caught eating processed foods occasionally. After being in New Zealand and seeing the fresh ingredients that people were using to cook with I became inspired! I love cooking, but have a tendency of making the same things and using processed/easy ingredients. This year I hope to not buy as much processed things (like black bean burgers) and instead make my own, and get out of my comfort zone (yes, again) and make new things! RECIPE SUGGESTIONS ARE GREATLY APPRECIATED!

• Continue to live a well balanced life: In the past I’ve struggled with obsessing over exercise and foods. 2017 I found myself, I found balance…AND IT FEELS GREAT! Kwin always says “train for life” and I completely agree with him! I hope to continue with what I have learned this past year and continue to live a happy, healthy and active lifestyle.

• Increase my knowledge about holistic health: Being a nurse, I am fairly educated on the ways of western medicine (what it taught in nursing/medical school). However, this is not the only form of medicine out there! Holistic medicine has always been extremely interesting to me; especially herbal medicine, acupuncture, and essential oils. This year I hope to read more and become more familiar with the alternative measures to living a happy and healthy life. Ways that doesn’t completely revolved around pills. I want to be able to teach to my patients and help them make lifestyle changes to help PREVENT them from coming into the hospital!

Although 2017 was an amazing year for myself, I have a feeling that 2018 is going to be even better! Happy New Year everyone, and I hope that all your goals and New Years Resolutions help guide you to living a happier and healthier life.