Our Journey to Pregnancy- Infertility Awareness Week

We try all our youthful lives to NOT get pregnant, and then when we try to get pregnant…it doesn’t quite happen. Why is that?
It’s National Infertility Awareness week and I have had a really strong pull to share our journey through infertility. It’s one of those things that when we were going through it I was quite shameful and embarrassed…but I feel like lately it has become a more talked about topic.
Does anyone else agree with me when I say that I feel like infertility has become more prevalent in our generation compared to our parents and grandparents? Not sure why this is, maybe the fact that people are more open with sharing their lives; or just a scientific freak accident?

I’ll be honest, this is quite challenging to write. But I remember when I was in the mix of everything reading SO MANY BLOGS, and doing so much research trying to navigate through everything.
If this blog can help just one person navigate through this process, then I’ll feel good!

• When I was younger, like middleschoool/high school age I had VERY REGULAR periods and almost no “period symptoms.” Yes, I would consider myself very lucky! In my senior year of high school I struggled with an eating disorder and started having irregular periods. So between the irregular periods and the fact that I was heading off to college it was decided that I should be started on birth control.
• Fast forward 4 years, now I’m a senior in college and relapsed into my eating disorder tendencies again.
• August 26, 2017 Kwin and I got married and I took my last birth control pill ever! We had talked about the idea of letting my body rid the chemicals of birth control for a couple months before starting to try for a baby. Well lone behold, after 8 years of birth control and TWO different times of anorexia…. my period didn’t come back. I waited six months of no period before I decided to go see my GYNO to try and figure out what was going on.
• February 2018 I had an ultrasound to check out my ovaries/uterus and some reproductive lab work done.
  • The ultrasound came back insignificant and my lab work showed low FSH&low LH (female hormones,) normal TSH, normal testosterone, normal cortisol, and all other labs normal as well. Great news right? NO..not when you’re trying to find the reasoning behind your issues!
  • I was diagnosed with PCOS and told to start on Metformin. Um no thanks… I didn’t meet the criteria below to be diagnosed with PCOS and felt like this was just looking to put a bandaid on my issues.
  • PCOS Diagnostic Criteria (to be diagnosed with PCOS you have to meet TWO of the three criteria listed)
    • Have irregular periods– this indicates that your ovaries do not regularly release eggs (ovulate,) blood tests showing you have high levels of “male hormones”, such as testosterone (or sometimes just the signs of excess male hormones, even if the blood test is normal,) scans showing you have polycystic ovaries.
    • Blood tests showing you have high levels of “male hormones”, such as testosterone (or sometimes just the signs of excess male hormones, even if the blood test is normal)
    • Scans showing you have polycystic ovaries
• June 2018 I made an appointment with the most amazing naturopathic doctor! We worked on hormone balance and acupuncture.
  • I was getting acupuncture once a month. My Dr’s focus for these sessions was promoting blood flow to the reproductive region. She would also make modifications each session based off life situations and what my pulse was reading.
  • We monitored my hormone levels every 3-6 months. Some things that we did to work on balancing my hormones were seed cycling and looking at my cycle being in alignment with the moon cycle. I will link some resources for seed cycling HERE.
• November 2018 still no periods, but my hormones were getting closer to normal. Kwin and I were both getting impatient with the process so I decided to make a consultation appointment with the ‘Fertility Center‘ to see exactly what they offered and become an established patient for when we truly were ready. I was really impressed with these doctors!
• April 2019 still no periods. So Kwin and I both met with the Fertility specialists and did more tests to rule out any other issues!
  • Kwin got a sperm analysis done
  • I did a procedure called HSG (Hysterosalpingogram) A simple (yet quite painful procedure) where they insert an iodine-based dye through the cervix and take x-rays. These x-rays help evaluate the shape of the uterus and whether the Fallopian tubes were blocked.
  • Again everything came back “normal” so I was given the diagnosis of ‘Secondary Amenorrhea.’ With this diagnosis the fertility specialists felt that I would probably need to do IUI or IVF (eventually, not something you can start with right off the bat) to get pregnant. That was a hard pill to swallow. They also gave us the option to do “timed intercourse” which essentially means that I would still take all the fertility promoting medications, but instead of having them inject Kwin’s sperm into me (IUI procedure) we would have intercourse around time of ovulation. We opted this option to start with!
• June 2019 1st round of Menopur injections– How menopur injections work… I would have to give myself shots every night based off the dose that the doctors prescribed me. Every couple of days I would get ultrasounds done to check how my body was responding to the medications- specifically looking at my ovaries and the eggs developing. Once my eggs reached “optimal size” the doctors instructed me to take Ovidrel (the trigger shot to tell my body to ovulate!) After the shot was done we were instructed to have intercourse for the next three days!
  • We learned a lot over the first month of this process. The #1 being that I needed to RELAX and not try and “force” anything. When it came to “doing the deeds” Kwin felt super pressured and like it wasn’t natural.
  • This cycle was not successful.
  • We took the month of July off due to our big road trip out west!
• August 2019 2nd round of Menopur injections
  • Cycle #2 I was defiantly trying to me more relaxed about everything. Same process as above!
  • This cycle was not successful
  • We had to take the month of September OFF due to cysts being present on my ovaries from the previous cycle.
    • I’ll be honest this was very upsetting to me… I felt like my body was failing me even more than ever.
  • I took the month of September as a “Megan’s ultimate selfcare month” where I dialed in on my nutrition, took more rest days, and just really listened to my body!
• October 2019 3rd round of menopur injections
  • The doctors wanted to change up the dose of medications on this round…AND IT WORKED!
  • Our THIRD round of Menopure injections + timed intercourse was how we got our little miracle baby!

Everyone’s journey is different! So please please please don’t compare yourself to me or anyone.
Use this blog as a resource, as a source of hope!
If you are someone going through infertility treatments please feel free to reach out!
It is nothing to be embarrassed or shameful about.
You are not alone.

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The Great American Road Trip, Part 1. Michigan’s UP to Jackson Hole, WY And All The Stops In-Between.

“The Mountains Are Calling”

A quote I’m sure most people have heard of or seen while scrolling through Pinterest. I love this quote, like a lot, and have ever sense visiting the mountains for the first time five years ago. It was a spontaneous trip out to Colorado and The Rocky Mountain National Park with Kwin and my cousin Jenna. I remember falling in love with the mountains; the views, the wildlife, and the sense of freedom that radiates out there.

Kwin and I drive through the mountains almost every year on our trips out to Moab, Utah. We make comments about how cool it would be to explore this land a little more, and experience what the mountain life would be like. That’s when the idea arose… we could totally do it, a month long road trip!

Three years, yes three years of planning. We knew that we wanted to be in the mountains and see the Western United States; Like Wyoming, Montana, Washington and Oregon. We also really want to explore Western Canada, like British Columbia, Jasper, Banff and Waterton. So much to see, yet so little time!

After lots of research and talking to many different people [and maybe stalking strangers instagram accounts] we finally decided that hitting it all in one 4-week long trip probably wasn’t going to work. However, dividing it up into two summer trips would be the best idea [oh yeah we’re already planning next summers trip!]

The Great American road trip.

So what exactly was our route going to be?

Kwin and I decided to stay in the United States this summer and hit up

1. The Badlands National Park (South Dakota)

2. The Black Hills (South Dakota)

3. Jackson, Wyoming

4. The Grand Tetons National Park (Wyoming)

5. Yellowstone National Park (Wyoming)

6. Bozeman, Montana

7. Glacier National Park (Montana)

8. Theodore Roosevelt National Park (North Dakota)

When planning our trips we like to create a “back bone” of places we want to go and things we want to see. This allows us extra freedom to add or subtract points of interest. Some people might think we’re crazy and get anxiety from not having every second of our trip planned, but we love the “going with the flow mentality.” Going about our trips this way forces us to talk to other travelers and hear about their experiences, as well as diverge into the local communities [because let’s be honest, the locals always know the best trails to hit up, especially if you’re trying to avoid the big crowds.]

Life is crazy, and there always seemed be something holding us back [hence why its taken us three years to plan our trip.] I’ve learned first hand this past year that life is precious and can be taken from you in a second. Neither Kwin nor I wanted to waste anymore time and regret NOT doing the trip we’ve both always wanted to do. Well I’d like to report that the trip was amazing, and I’m so glad that we finally just did it!

I’m going to break up our trip into a couple of blog posts, just because I don’t feel like one blog would do any justice. We had some many great memories that we’ll both forever look back on.

 

June 25,2019

Start: Home Sweet Home

Destination: Porcupine Mountains-Our Cabin

We hit the road, finally! Pulling our A-Liner camper and a truck filled with all the camping goodies. Our first destination was going to be Michigan’s UP! We absolutely love Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and thought what better way to start our trip than with a couple days there.

Marquette

• We stopped in Marquette, MI and did some great mountain biking at the South Naquemanon Biking trails. If you’ve never been to them I would highly recommend going! I would consider myself an intermediate rider, and I love these trails! We did one of our favorite trails ‘Gorge-Ous’ which rides downhill and along the Carp River, ending right on the Lake Superior shoreline. In true Megan fashion, I started off the trip with a couple cuts and bruises thanks to flipping my bike….in my defense, there is just so much beautiful scenery to look at that I may have gotten side tracked a little bit(:

• From there we got a delicious dinner at one of our favorite restaurants, Iron Bay. Not only do they have great tasting food, but the environment is awesome too! Tables made with parts of the Mackinaw Bridge, menus on old Marquette newspapers, and pictures that tell the history of the town. Such a cool place to eat that’s right across from the Ore Dock on Lake Superior!

Canyon Falls

• A hidden gem about an hour west of Marquette. We like to stop here anytime we’re heading to the cabin to give the dogs a nice hike PLUS there is a waterfall that kwin enjoys jumping into.

• The mosquitos were pretty bad, and it stared pouring rain on us…but neither of those stopped us! It was raining so hard that by the time we got back to the car you wouldn’t have been able to tell who jumped into the waterfall and who didn’t.

June 26,2019

Start: Porcupine Mountains-Our Cabin

Destination: Porcupine Mountains-Our Canin

Have you ever been to a place where you wake up and hear nothing but the sound of birds chirping and a creek running by? Well that’s exactly what we get at our favorite little escape, the cabin! We decided that it would be fun to stay here for a day and really be present in what we were about to embark on. Our goals were to do some hiking (getting our legs ready for all the hiking we would be doing) as well as help Kwins’ dad with some chores that needed to be done. I love the cabin, however, I greatly dislike going during late June and July! The bugs are HORRIBLE. Imagine millions of mosquitos plus deer flies constantly buzzing around you; and no matter how much bug spray you apply they still keep coming. Needless to say, a bug suite is 100% necessary. I tell myself every year that I’m not going back up there when the bugs are nasty…and well…kwin always seems to sweet talk me into it. Okay, no more negativity. Despite the bugs, we still had a great time that day. Hiking, swimming in waterfalls, doing chores, and just getting ready for our big adventure!

June 27,2019

Start: Porcupine Mountains-Our Cabin

Destination: Sioux, South Dakota-Big Sioux State Recreation Area

Our FIRST day of new territory! We woke up early and hit the road. Now because our road trip was planned to last 3.5 weeks we didn’t feel rushed about having to be anywhere at any certain time. Man, it felt so good to have a trip like that finally! We didn’t have any set in stone plans, instead we planned to just go with the flow of things. We took the northern route for our trip, because we figured that staying north would be much faster, more scenic, and less traffic!

Superior, Wisconsin

We stopped at a cute coffee shop, The Sandbar, AND a perfect place to paddle. The water was glassy, so why not!

Duluth, Minnesota

Next we both were interested in stopping in Duluth because we’d heard great things about that town. It’s settled in along the western Lake Superior shoreline, and man were we both surprised and how cute this town was!

• We got breakfast at ‘At Sara’s Table Chester Creek Cafe’ and it was so delicious! Something I try to do when looking for a place to eat is: make sure it’s NOT A CHAIN RESTAURANT, if it’s organic and locally based ingredients that’s a HUGE win, and it’s got to be somewhat healthy.

• Duluth has this nice paved trail that goes for miles along the Lake Superior shoreline, and we decided to do some roller blading. It was a great way to get some movement in for not only us, but the dogs too. We made it back to the car with seconds to spare before a crazy storm hit!

Sioux, South Dakota

The rest of the day we spent in the car determined to make it to South Dakota…and we did! We set up camp in ‘Big Sioux State Recreation Area,’ and lucky us it had a ton of paved trails for us to bike and roller blade with the dogs again. It was a beautiful place that Kwin and I would love to return to someday.

 

June 28,2019

Start: Sioux, South Dakota- Big Sioux State Recreation Area

Destination: Badlands National Park-KOA

Like most mornings on our trip we got up bright and early and hit the road, because as the saying goes “The early bird gets the worm.”

Badlands National Park

Our first National Park of the trip! Kwin had been through this area before, but it was a first for me. It was breathtaking and like nothing I’d ever seen before. The sandy colored mountains with intense formations all over the place. Honestly, it was completely different than I thought it was going to be (but I really didn’t do too much research on it to begin with either.)

• We hiked the Castle Trail, Notch Trail and Door trail. Shout out to AllTrails for helping us throughout out our entire trip! I’ve got the app downloaded to my phone, so I can easily find hikes around us at anytime. All of the trailheads are pretty close together because believe it or not, the Badlands is not as big as most other national parks I’ve been to. Besides the handful of backcountry hiking trails, there was only 4-5 shorter hikes in the Park.

• We did catch an amazing sunset on one of the peaks though! The sunset on the mountains created such a picturesque moment, painting the sky in pink, orange and yellow hues.

While watching the sunset we ran into a really nice family from Indiana and started sharing our plans. They encouraged us to stop at ‘Custer State Park’ on our way through the Badlands because it had some Great Lakes we could paddle in. Given we had already hiked most of the trails in the park we decided to head out a day earlier than originally planned and instead do a whole day in Custer/The Black Hills.

 

June 29,2019

Start: Badlands National Park-KOA

Destination: Casper, Wyoming-KOA

Our morning started off at ‘Dunn Brothers Coffee’ in Rapid City, South Dakota. This town, was alive! Lots of active people all over the place; There was a 5K race going on, lots of people out biking, and it just felt like a fun place to be. We didn’t get to spend much time here besides getting our coffee, but we would love to go back here in the future!

Mount Rushmore

Again, a place that’s Kwin’s been to before, but not me. I’ll be honest here, I wasn’t expecting to be blown away when I saw the carvings in the rocks…but it was so cool! I mean just the history behind this sculpting, and the fact that people were able to chisel such a beautiful and articulate sculpture out of the side of a mountain is pretty unbelievable.

Custer State Park and the Black Hills

We saw our first buffalo! Pretty much right when we got into the park, we saw the monster of an animal just lingering around in its habitat. It’s crazy that he didn’t seemed phased at all that there were multiple cars pulled over taking pictures of him. The winding roads lined by tall pine trees (giving it the black appearance in the distance, hence why the settlers called them the black hills) was such a beautiful ride!

• Legion Lake and Stockade Lake- Custer State Park is filled with not only rolling hills, mountains, pines and animals…but also a ton of lakes! Honestly, after three days in a row with 90+ degree weather and NO WATER TO JUMP IN (we’re lake people and really need water) swimming and paddling was all we wanted to do.

June 30, 2019 and July 1, 2019

Start: Casper, Wyoming-KOA

Destination: Jackson, Wyoming-Gros Ventre Campground

If you can’t tell by now, Kwin and I have really enjoyed waking up early and starting our day off at a coffee shop then hitting the road to make up some miles. While in Casper we stopped at ‘Java Jitters’ where the barista was super nice and gave us some great tips about Jackson Hole…our next stop! The drive from Casper to Jackson was really pretty in its own way. Most of Wyoming is grass and prairie land, which was not anything like I expected. However the closer you go to the Grand Tetons and Jackson, the more mountainous it got. In fact, just before we got into the National Park we saw our first grizzly bear! Like the buffalo, it was just strutting through the mountains and grasslands, not phased by the cars and numerous people taking pictures of it.

Jackson Hole

I was super excited about this town from the moment we pulled into it! A cute small mountain town with a river flowing through it, plus tons of active people all over the place! To say kwin and I were in heaven is an understatement.

• We hiked ‘Josie’s Ridge Trail’ which was about 4-miles and a pretty steep incline. After sitting in the car as much as we had, it was tough…but so worth it for the views at the top! Since this trail is in downtown Jackson, it’s dog friendly…huge win in our books.

• After the hike we decided to mountain bike in the same general area, because there was a nice spider web of trails right in the center of town. Like the hike it was tough! When we were finishing we actually noticed a lot of people taking the ski chair lift to the top and riding down….we tried to ride them from the bottom up, so that tells ya how hard it was! We biked around town a little bit before heading back to camp and fell in love with the town even more.

• Our second day in Jackson didn’t start out as planned. After getting coffee at ‘Cowboy Coffee‘ we had to take Kanyon to the vet [Thank you to everyone at VCA Spring Creek Animal Hospital!] Unfortunately she got Giardia while in the UP and had been up all night with diarrhea the past couple days. Once everything was all cleared up, we hiked ‘Ski Lake Trail,’ which again was dog friendly and about 4 miles in length. Definitely not as strenuous as our previous hike, but so beautiful!

• Jackson, like most of the towns we visited outwest, had a great paved trail mostly used for running, biking or roller blading. We definitely did some miles on that!

• Our last hike in the Jackson, Wyoming area was ‘Blacktail Butte Trail.’ It was a strenuous 7-mile hike, but beautiful at that!

Man, if you think the trip sounds amazing so far..just wait for the rest of the blogs! Grand Tetons and Yellowstone will be up next, followed by Bozeman, Glacier and the pit-stops on the way home! Thanks for reading!

 

 

 

 

Sauna’s and Ice Baths-The Best Immune Boosting, and Injury Preventing alternative to Western Medicine!

I’ve got a question for you all. What would be your FIRST reaction if someone told you that they do Sauna and Ice Baths?

-Is this person crazy?

-What kind of sick joke is this….

-Sauna, yes. But What was that second part?

Three years ago, Kwin and I made a pretty big investment and got a barrel sauna for our backyard! We had heard so many great things about saunas from podcasts (Joe Rogan, Laird & Gabby Hamilton, Aubrey Marcus, etc.) and figured why not, we love a challenge! Having struggled with Raynauds- which is a circulation problem that causes my hands and feet to turn white/be very painful whenever I’m cold– I love the heat and was obviously all in for the sauna part. But NEVER did I ever think that I would jump in an ice bath willingly.

Functional health and wellness is a huge part of Kwin and I’s lives, and finding ways to improve our overall health is fun to us! So I’m sure you’re all wondering, what exactly are the benefits of a sauna? How about the benefits of adding in an Ice Bath rotation?

Sauna Benefits

1. Helps Improve Circulation– The heat from the hot sauna has a vasodilation effect (basically means that your blood vessels dilate, which can cause your blood pressure to come down!) In fact, HERE is a pretty interesting article I read a while back about how saunas can help with lowering an individuals blood pressure in the long run! The dilation of your blood vessels helps to make sure that different parts of your body are getting the proper amount of oxygen that it needs.
2. Increases your resting metabolic rate– If you think about how many calories you burn when playing a sport, or riding a bike…this is partially in part to your heart pumping at a faster rate (otherwise known as sinus tachycardia.) Well in a sauna, your heart is also beating at a pretty fast pace! With your heart pumping and your brown fat cells working hard your overall core body temperature rises, resulting in more calories burned while at a resting state.
3. Detoxifies your body– This is a pretty simple concept. 180+degree temps is going to make you sweat….A LOT! When sweating, you loose a lot of water and toxins. These are typically from what you ingest on a daily basis, as well as anything that you may be exposed to without even knowing it. Unfortunately, the world we live in is full of endocrine disrupting chemicals and toxins. So riding them from our body is a pretty good idea! You may notice the next morning a few more zits than normal, but it’s just your body getting rid of junk! ALSO I would advise drinking lots of water after a sauna session to rehydrate all the water lost.
4. Increases recovery time after a workout– As mentioned above vasodilation allows for more oxygen to be delivered to muscle cells. With more oxygen being delivered to your muscle cells they are able to rest and recover at a faster pace!

Ice Bath Benefits

1. Helps Increase Immunity– The initial shock of getting out of the HOT sauna and into a FREEZING tub is exactly the shock the body needs to fight any intruders that may be in your body. Think of it this way, your body is going from somewhere that is close to 200 degrees, to being submerged in something close to 32 or less degrees! Jumping into an ice bath activates the body’s natural healing powers that can promote a sense of health and well-being. If you’re able to do it on a regular basis, they can even provide long-lasting changes to your body’s immune, lymphatic, circulatory and digestive systems! If you don’t have a large tub laying around, jumping into a lake or pool is always a good option. A lot of Naturopathic Physicians have started offering a treatment very similar to this (Hydrotherapy.) Check out THIS article for more information!
2. Allows you to stay in the sauna longer– How many times have you been in a sauna, but only been able to stay 10-15 minutes MAX because it’s just so hot? Been there, done that! Well the ice bath provides you with a sense of relief, so that you can stay in there for closer to 30-45 minutes! The longer you are able to tolerate the saunas heat, the more health benefits you’ll get out of it.
3. Increases recovery time after a workout-Going along with what I mentioned above, the ice bath helps to decrease your inflammation that individuals usually accumulate after workouts! After all, working out causes micro tears in your muscle fibers, which causes generalized inflammation! Recovery is so important for athletes!
4. The Mental Challenge– I’ll be honest, my first couple times of doing the ice bath I defiantly did the “Bird Bath” technique. Meaning I didn’t actually submerge in the tub, but rather splashed myself. I slowly worked myself up to getting into the bath, and now I can’t imagine doing a sauna without it! The exhilarating feeling of being in an ice bath is so empowering!

The sauna/ice baths SAVE US during the winter! It helps to get rid of the chill after being outside in the frigid cold. Plus as you can see in the picture above, the ice bath actually has large chunks of ice in it, which Kwin usually has to chop through with an axe. We average about 2-3 sauna sessions a week during the spring, fall and winter months. When the summer comes around though, it definitely drops down to about once a week!

I hope you all find this information helpful and even try out a sauna/ice bath session in the future!

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MOAB UTAH, Round Two

One of the perks of being married to a teacher, are the breaks that he gets throughout the year. Anyone who knows my husband, knows that he cannot sit still and is always planning our next trip.

Living in Michigan, where winter seems to run forever (from October 1 through May 1,) we are always itching to get to the heat by the time Spring Break arrives. With this in mind most people (Including the Morris Clan) flock to the south, seeking out the sun and warm temperatures!

So, where to go?

MOAB, UTAH!

If you’ve never been before, let me try and paint a picture of what Moab is like. Red Cliffs. Snow covered mountains in the distance. The Colorado river flowing through town. TWO National Parks just outside of town- Canyonlands and Arches. An Infinite amount of mountain biking and hiking trails….basically an active individual’s dream!

It was a no brainer that Moab was going to be our destination for spring break. Kwin and I went out to Moab two years ago (plus Kwin has been to it three times before that too,) we just love it. The road trip out there is long….but exciting (yes its about 25 hours straight…but road trips are fun with your best friend!) 

Going into any vacation, we try to have a “skeleton plan” of things that we want to do. But it’s also important to us to be spontaneous…because spontaneousity is what makes life fun, am I right? With this being said, I’d like to share some of our favorite things to do while in Moab!

• Sunrise and Sunset Hiking– With the two hour time difference, it’s pretty easy for us to be awake in-time for a good sunrise!
• • Some of our favorite sunrises are in Arches National Park and Canyonlands National Park (beware, that A LOT of people also like to see the sunrise at these parks, so it’s definitely busy…GET THERE EARLY.) My advise would be to see the sunrise at Delicate Arch and Mesa Arch at least once in your life, because the view really is incredible! But after that, there are plenty of other secret spots to watch the sunrise that would be a little more intimate and less crowded too!

Some of our favorite sunsets are Corona Arch, Moab Rim Trail, or really hiking up on of any cliff you can find! You’re in the middle of the desert so the sunsets are pretty epic from anywhere.

Mountain Biking– Moab is one of the best mountain biking places we’ve ever been too! Honestly, while driving through town I don’t think you drive past a car without a bike on it. They have biking for all levels…but mostly moderate-to-advanced trails! I remember when we were there two years ago I was terrified to do any of the trails because of how “technical” they can be; But this year (with the encouragement of Kwin) I went past my fears and just DID IT! I’m glad I did because the trails were HARD but SO MUCH FUN!

• • Slickrock Trail– Yup, I DIDN’T do this…but I did hike this one. Kwin and our friend Joe crushed this trail, and had so much fun! It’s an advanced trail with some pretty crazy descents and climbs all on sandstone rock.
• • Canyonlands– The drive to the national park from the town of Moab (which is about 30 miles) is littered with trails! A combination of sandstone cliffs and desert riding. These trails range from moderate to advanced and were a blast.

Klondike Trails– Something unique about these trails is that you are riding near or on dinosaur tracks! Thats right, I said dinosaur tracks! Something unique about Moab and it’s terrain is that the sandstone is actually petrified sand dunes, so the geographical history behind the land is pretty awesome! Kwin and I really enjoyed these trails-note they are definitely more on the advanced side, but walking part of the trail is not too bad because of the views!

• • Porcupine Rim Trails– Again, a trail that I DIDN’T do…but Kwin and Joe absolutely killed it. The crazy thing about this trail is that you descend DOWN a mountain about 4000ft. I’ve hiked part of this trail, and it blows my mind that people can bike down it…crazy people!
• Petroglyphs– The Native American’s- believed to be the Pueblo People- who use to live off the land in Moab left behind some pretty cool pieces of artwork (rock carvings made by hammer and chisel.) Petroglyphs are believed to be a way of communicating and/or celebrating achievements. You can’t see them everywhere, but always be on the look out for the cool pieces of artwork while hiking!

Camping– Kwin and I have created a pretty cool rig that we live in while traveling. With our Aliner camper, an EZ-up Canopy, Solar Panel’s to help keep our camper battery charged, Solar heated shower bags, and all the water and food one could need, we are able to be completely unplugged and off the grid! Camping can be so fun when you have a good set up(:

Being with friends– This year we were lucky to have another family join us…the Shorts! Trips are always so much fun when you’re with other people, and able to make memories with them too. Joe, Leah, Simon and Elmer thanks for making this trip a great one!

As much as we love Michigan, it’s always so sad when vacations are coming to an end (yes, the dogs were sad to be returning to snow again too.) The freedom and spontaneousity of life that vacations bring about are the best! Trips like this one are rejuvenating and make getting back into daily routines exciting. It also excites us for all the upcoming trips that we’ve got planned!

So, can anyone guess where we will be going for next years Spring Break?

If you guessed Moab…YOU’RE RIGHT!

Miracle Morning

Three years ago, I was lost. A ‘soon to be’ graduated college student; searching for jobs, and anxious to be out on my own for the first time in my life!

Here is a little history that has lead me to take my health more seriously, and why I got more interested in a healthy Morning Routine! This part is going to be vey personal, and really hard to write. But I hope that it will help anyone who is going through the same things that I struggled with, and still am struggling with to this day!

I was fighting a demon [a lovely eating disorder] that had taken over my life for the past year, and was trying to get back to living a “normal life.” My husband [boyfriend at the time] suggested that I read the book ‘Miracle Morning,‘ written by Hal Elrod, with hopes that I could find my path, and a way to decrease my self induced stress and anxiety. I remember not being very interested at the time; Thinking that meditation was a waste of time and energy, and if I didn’t get in a “hard workout” before work or class, then my day would start off on a bad foot. Little did I know, but this mindset was setting me up for failure and a total burnout!

Fast forward a year in a half, after Kwin and I got married, I decided to get off birth control with the intentions to “cleanse my body from the toxic-artificial hormones” and thought that soon after we would be able to start a family. BOY WAS I OBLIVIOUS! The years of mental stress, physical stress and not taking care of myself nutritionally had really taken a toll on my body. My hormones were completely wonked out, and unfortunately resulted in me not having a period! How sad is it, that something so serious had to happen for me to open my eyes to the real world? To realize that what I was doing to “live a healthy lifestyle” was actually harming me!

So January of 2018, when I still hadn’t gotten my period back, I decided to stop with the bullshit and take matters into my own hands. I did hours of research on what could be wrong. I saw my gynecologist and and starting seeing a naturopath-both with hopes that they would give me the magic pill to heal my problems. May I note that during this whole experience I was still very stressed, working out 5x a week, and never letting myself rest. It wasn’t until August 2018 [one year after stopping birth control] that I realized the magic pill was to just CHILL OUT! With the help of my Natropathic Dr, we were able to finally give my health problem a diagnosis: Hypothalamic Amenorrhea  [the absence of menses for greater than 3 months, and all other medical conditions have been ruled out.] OK, so now I’ve got a diagnosis but how do I heal myself? The research I had done put a lot of emphasis on the the best ways to recovering was to decrease my stress, cut back on my working out and eat more!

January 2019, still no period and I’m frustrated beyond belief. What else can I do? I’ve cut back on my working out to 3 days a week, and nothing extremely intense! I’ve gained many pounds since our wedding, and definitely enjoyed eating more! So what else?

• Decreased working out- CHECK.
• Weight gain-CHECK.
• Eating More-CHECK.
• Self Care and Decreasing Stress- NOPE, GOTTA WORK ON THIS.

So January 2019 I finally decided to give that book, Miracle Morning, that my husband had suggested I read THREE YEARS AGO a try…and man am I happy I did!

So what exactly is the ‘Miracle Morning’ all about? Basically it’s one of those LIFE CHANGING books that really kicks your butt into gear, and opens your eyes on how to improve your life in SIMPLE WAYS! Hal Elrod uses the platform of ” Life S.A.V.E.R.S” as a way to help organize your miracle morning.

• S- is for Silence.
• A- is for Affirmations
• V- is for visualization
• E- is for exercise
• R- is for reading
• S- is for scribbling

So with this in mind, I’m going to walk you through what ‘Megan’s Miracle Morning’ looks like; and keep in mind it’s not perfect, but it’s what works for me.

A typical morning for me on days that I work [being a Nurse I am gone for 14+ hours a day, so being productive and calm is very necessary in the morning.]

• I wake up around 5am and brush me teeth immediately.
• I then drink about 8oz of warm water, usually with a lemon in it too.
• From there I proceed to a quit room and do about 15-20 minutes of yoga to get my blood pumping and some stretching in.
• Once of yoga is complete I will then meditate for about 10-15 minutes! I’ve found that I need some guided assistance for meditating, so I use the ‘Calm’ app! It’s wonderful and has a ton of options for mediation…keep in mind that after your 7 day free trial, you do have to purchase a subscription.
• After that is complete I finish getting ready for work which usually consists of making my Matcha Tea [I love to buy local if I can and Light of Day Organics has some of the best tea around!] and my protein smoothie for later in the morning.
• Finally I clean my face and listen to meditation radio on pandora.

Nothing crazy, but I’ve definitely noticed a change in my overall mood throughout the day! Now, Hal encourages affirmations and journaling in the morning too. But given my time constraints, I don’t want to be stressed and try forcing too many things in! Gratitude journaling is really important though, so I try and do that at some point during the day. A good time I’ve found to do gratitude journaling is if I’m feeling stressed or just BLAH.

To end the night, I try and do a bedtime routine as well! Going along the same principles as my miracle morning, I’ve found some habits that work for me.

• Starting with making some Nighty Night tea-I use Traditional Madicinals with a dollop of Elderberry Syrup-from Herb Pharm (because who has time to be sick.)
• I then do a skin care routine to help make sure that I’m going to bed with nice clean skin!
• Limiting my phone time before bed is something I’m still working on…but I know that it’s been proven to help with improving sleep habits.
• I journal right when I get in bed as a “Review of the day” or to just get anything off my chest that may impede on getting a good night sleep.
• Lastly, I ALWAYS make sure to have my essential oils diffusing-THANK YOU LAVENDAR!

So, my Miracle Morning is not perfect. It changes based on if I’m working or not. But in general is remains the same…and I love it! I’m so happy that my husband encouraged me to read Hal Elrod’s book, and has also set a great role model for me [He has been doing his own Miracle Morning for about 3 years now!] If you haven’t yet read the book I would highly encourage you too, and start implementing your own form of Miracle Morning too!

What Has Filled My Bookshelf This Year!

One of my 2018 goals was to read more! I was shooting for reading 12 books, or at least 1 a month. Coming from someone who use to HATE reading I felt this was defining going to be a challenge. To my surprise, I BEAT THIS NUMBER…. 

THIRTEEN BOOKS!

That’s right, thirteen! Ahh, I am so happy and proud of myself. Growing up I always felt like my spare time should be spent playing, or doing something active-which left no time for reading. Then high school and college came around, and textbook readings+ assigned books made for absolutely not time to read for pleasure.

January 2018, Challenge accepted…

So what exactly do I like to read? Well, I like REAL books, and ones that I can relate too. Books like Harry Potter, and Twilight are tough for me- I have a hard time staying engaged. I prefer: non-fiction, science-y books that challenge me, self help books that I can apply to real life, and occasionally fictional books…but they still have to seem real! 

Non-Fiction Books

Body Love by: Kelly Leveque 

This book is exactly what the title says! It’s a personal account from Kelly Leveque, a Holistic Nutritionist and Holistic Life Coach, based out of Los Angelos, CA. She talks about the social norms associated with being “perfect,” the different ‘Fad diets’ that society is convinced will changes their lives, and most importantly how to LOVE yourself! This book was a great, and an inspirational read! A little bonus is she includes a bunch of recipes that would fit in her “Fab Five” lifestyle diet. 

The Wellness Project by: Pheobe Lapine 

Pheobe Lapine, this book was great! Similar to the one above, this was a personal account for her “Journey to Wellness.” It was very relatable on so many levels: diet challenges, social media, post graduation life changes, and so much more. In this book, Pheobe recreates what her “Year to Wellness” journey was like; all the hardships and learning experiences she experienced. 

The Immune System Recovery Plan by: Susan Blum, MD., M.P.H

AHH, I really loved this book! Being a Nurse, I tend to lean toward really science-y books. I love learning about ways to not only improve my life, but also the life of those around me. This day-in-age, a lot of people are suffering from auto-immune diseases like: Celiacs, Lymes Disease, Fibromyalgia, etc. This book discussed lifestyle modifications, diet changes and holistic remedies to help cure or manage the diseases! 

Own The Day Own Your Life by: Aubrey Marcus 

Kwin read this book first, and couldn’t stop raving about how motivating and inspirational it was, so I figured I would give it a try too. I’M SO GLAD THAT I DID! This may have been one of my favorites this year! In this book, Aubrey Marcus discussed work, sleep, sex, diet and just about everything that we do in our daily lives, and how it can impact your life. He discussed the importance of balancing everything, and that everyone is different. It will make you laugh, mad and cry at times. I really recommend reading this one! 

The Life Changing Magic of Not Giving a F*** by: Sarah Knight 

This was a spur of the moment purchase at the Airport in Australia during one of our layovers last year. It’s RAW, and has absolutely no filter! Sarah Knight tells you how it is, and the importance of “cleaning out your closet”and getting rid of the things that aren’t important in life. She stresses that our population is full of people-pleasing, materialistic people, who don’t know how to say NO. I enjoyed this book, as it kicked off my year in a great way! It helped me to realize that I DONT have to say yes to everything, and that I DONT need to put other peoples happiness before my own. 

The 5 Love Languages by: Gary Chapman 

Someone gave Kwin and I this book as a wedding gift. Before this, I’d never heard a thing about the “different” love languages. Well, I really liked this book! It has challenged my way of thinking about not only Kwin and I’s relationship, but the relationship that I have with all the other people in my life. Gary Chapman does a great job of explaining the 5 different types of “Love,” and how to interact with each of them. If you’re interested in knowing what your love language is, you can take a quick online test here! 

The Spark In The Machine by: Dr.Daniel Keown M.B., Ch.B., Lic. Ac

Throughout this year, I’ve been looking at the Holistic side of medicine and all the different platforms. One of high interest is the art of Acupuncture. This book is very science oriented, but does a great job of describing WHAT acupuncture is, and HOW practitioners go about their practice.  I learned a lot about the human body, especially how everything is connected in some way or another. 

Girl Wash Your Face by: Rachael Hollis 

Written by one of the POWERHOUSE women is todays society, Mrs. Rachael Hollis. This book is comical, and so relatable to everyday life on so many levels! Each chapter is titled with a “False Belief” that, us women, tend to tell ourselves, and how to change this feeling around. She really encourages the idea that WE’RE NOT PERFECT, and THATS OKAY! I honestly felt like every chapter I could relate to at some point in my life.  

Womancode by: Alisa Vitti 

Period Repair Manual by: Lara Briden, ND 

I read both Womancode and Period Repaid Manual as a way to learn more about the Women’s body- specifically periods, hormonal health, and repairing my body post birth control. After Kwin and I got married I decided to take myself off birth control, not to get pregnant immediately, but to get all the harsh “FAKE” chemicals out of my body. I’ve had some struggles with my hormones after stopping it, and have been really trying to heal my body as naturally as I can. These books were very eye-opening! They both stress the beauty of being a women, which is often surpassed with the negative connotations of being a women- cramps, mood swings, bloating, periods. If you are a women looking to get yourself off the pill, or looking to decrease your PMS, menopause or postpartum symptoms then I would highly suggest these two books! 

Fiction Books

A Spark Of Light by: Jodi Picoult 

Woah, Jodi really tackled such a controversial topic with this book! Abortion and the US government system. I really enjoyed this book, as it opened my eyes to a topic that I’m not very familiar with. It has encouraged me to do more research on my own, and to NOT judge anyone for their choices in life. The ending of this book…you just need to read it to really understand how twisted it leaves the reader.

Small Great Things by: Jodi Picoult 

A book about Nursing! Of course I loved it. Like the book above, Jodi Picoult brought about awareness to a controversial topic that we are faced with STILL! Racism and the US government system. Even though I am caucasian, I could defiantly relate to and understand the main character, in regards to the conflicting protocols in the medical field. Jodi Picoult has a way of drawing in her reader and making you feel like you were apart of the situation. 

Eat, Pray, Love by: Elizabeth Gilbert 

A spur of the moment grab at the local library (hence why it isn’t in the picture!) Honestly the only reason I chose this book, was because I knew there was a movie about it, and I wanted to read it before watching the movie (: It was a funny fictional book, that was a nice break from all my science-y based books I had already finished. I enjoyed it and the lightness of the read! 

If you have any suggestions, of books for me to tackle in the 2019 year I would love to hear them! Thank you for reading! 

ps. I linked all of the books on Amazon, if you’re invested in reading any of them! 

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

 

 

 

 

Sunny and 23 degrees..Winter is here!

Is anyone else as excited as I am for snow finally? 

As a child, I really did not like the winter months. I lived in the city, and there are only so many times you can go sledding down the same hill, build a snowman and have a snowball fight with your neighbors before it gets kinda old. Winter in the Detroit area is cold…and I mean cold…but is lacking one major part of winter, SNOW! Don’t get me wrong, they do get some snow…but nothing like Lake effect snow up here. Lastly, but being cold cold is almost painful to me ( I have the lovely disease Raynaud’s!)

With all that being said, now at the age of 23 I absolutely love winter! After moving to northern Michigan three years ago Kwin really exposed to the beauty and all the fun things you can do during this time of year.

Snowshoeing– Kwin and I absolutely love snowshoeing. Whether it be in the back woods behind out house, on a wine tour with friends, or just leisurely at a state park we love it.

      

Fat Tire Biking– This one Kwin got me into last winter. Due to my lack of confidence in biking, and extreme fear of losing control…biking in the winter is defiantly a challenge for me. However, I do really enjoy it! Being out in nature, riding through the snow-covered words is pretty amazing.

Cross Country Skiing– This my friends is a heck of a workout! Since running is pretty tough to do on the wintery, snow covered roads you should give this sport a try! It’s tough, and does take some practice (like Fat Tire Biking, I hate losing control of things) but is super fun.

Downhill Skiing– Growing up I can count on one hand the times I went skiing. I always wanted to learn, but never got the opportunity.  Like most the sports I listed above, I am defiantly still learning and gaining confidence with this sport too, but it’s fun and something to do with a group of friends on a winter day!

Sauna Ice Bath– The combination of heat from the sauna, and cold from the ice bath has some incredible health benefits! Improving circulation, healing injured/damaged tissue, and increasing hormone levels to fight against depression are only a few! There really isn’t a way to describe how amazing a sauna/ice bath session is on a cold winter day feels.

Let me just add, I would like to thank Kwin for have such patience with me regarding any winter sport!

As I mentioned about, I have the lovely disease Raynaud’s..which to those who don’t know is a circulation disease. Basically, whenever I am cold (yes, this can even be walking down the freezer section at Meijer) all the circulation to my hands and feet stop,leaving them white or purple in color! Not only this, but they HURT and feel like I’m being stabbed constantly. So as you all can imagine, I hate being cold and try to avoid it as much as possible! Knowing this and how much I love doing outside activities, Kwin found me some heated gloves- and let me tell you THEY’RE AN ABSOLUTE LIFESAVER!

Check them out HERE : Outdoor Research Stormtrack Heated Gloves!

Winter is just beginning, and I could not be anymore excited! Let all the fun activities begin.

I hope you all enjoyed this blog and as always, get outside and enjoy this beautiful world we live in!

Home Sweet Home, Fall Colors Style

This past weekend was nothing short of amazing! Full of weekend adventures with my partner in crime.

Like I said in my last blog, the fall colors in Northern Lower Michigan are usually “peak” a week after the UP. So, Kwin and I spent all weekend searching out the best colors near home: paddle boarding, biking, and hiking around.

We started the weekend with a morning paddle on some close to home inland lakes. Despite the windy conditions, we could not pass up the opportunity; Especially with this amazing 70 degree weather and the colors popping like they are!

 Man, I’m really enjoying this Indian Summer we’ve got going on.

We then made our way to an awesome hiking and biking trail. It is pretty swampy, but has some fun wooden planks weaving through the woods. The trail ends at a great overlook of Lake Skegemog.

Saturday ended with a relaxing hike ending along Lake Michigan. We enjoyed a nice picnic on the private beach that Kwin found. He is pretty good at staking out the off the beaten trails!

With the combination of rain and wind the next few days, Kwin and I fear that the fall colors may be coming to an end. So, this morning we decided to hop on our bikes again and cruise around the back roads/two-tracks by his parents house. We are so lucky to live where we do! Having the accessibility to find such secluded areas and being able to enjoy the great outdoors that we live in. This might have been my favorite part of the weekend! 

After a long, adventurous and fun weekend, it’s time to relax next to a hot fire along side our freshly carved pumpkins. Weekends like these are what we live for!

I hope everyone was able to get out and enjoy this amazing October weather and the Fall colors!

PS. Shoutout to our friends John and Kelly for having a fun pumpkin carving and chill cook-off today!