I got to see my first born and my granddaughter!!! YAY!!
During my youngest daughters spring break, she and I took a little mini vacation to North Carolina to visit my Nicolle and Mazzy! Kylie and I took the red eye and got to NC at about 8:00 in the morning. Yes, we were tired but omgosh, it was so worth it to see my favorite little family pull up to get us at the airport! I’m not gonna lie – I worried a bit that my granddaughter wouldn’t remember me, after all she was only 6 months old when she moved and close to 3 months had passed. BUT ….my worrying was for nothing as she was pulled out of her car seat by my son-in-law and leaned in toward me …..then buried her head into my shoulder and clenched her little fingers into each of my arms as she hugged me!!!! AHHH! It brought tears to my eyes and made me so happy!
While there, I had no intention of working out but I did bring some running shoes in case I did decide to head out. I’m such an early riser so as I woke before the sun came up and the rest of the house was asleep, I did decide to get out and catch the sun rise while getting a little jog in behind their house. The little ‘hiking’ area behind them is gorgeous and perfect for a run!
(I will touch on this for a second — “working out” and/or running used to be something that my day couldn’t start or end without. I felt guilty when I didn’t get a workout in. For many years, if I skipped a day, I pretty much beat myself up for not “burning calories” in some form or fashion. When I first started CrossFit, I went 6 days a week and still ran 5-6 days …..and always made sure to run on that day off from CrossFit. Without going on and on about my obsession of getting in some kind of work out in on a daily basis, I’ll stop there and tell you how refreshing it is to know and understand now, that I NEED a rest day. I make sure that I always have at least one day of non-exercise – if you will. When I first incorporated that ‘rest day’, it did take time to realize it was okay. On those “take a day off” days, I did have to do a little surfing the web to remind myself that taking a day off was beneficial to my health and fitness. I now look forward to those days! All this being said – realizing that I could a week off of working out without compromising my fitness level and/or not becoming fat (YES! I can admit it ….I had that mentality for years!), is so freeing. I did take my running shoes along because my daughter said there were great running/hiking trails right in her backyard but I honestly didn’t make it a priority to get out there. Thankfully, the house fam slept in much longer than I care to so I did get in some runs — and I say, ‘thankfully’ because the views on the trails were amazing! I will say that these “runs” were more like jog/walks as I kept stopping to take a pic or take a detour through another little trail just to peak at the views that trail offered. I sum this up with this ~ I love moving my body and the feeling I have after a WOD (workout of the day…and now do this 3-4 days/week) at CrossFit ….I love the sweat dripping from my face and the test I put my body through. I also love my morning runs (and no, I don’t run 5-6 days a week anymore….more like 3-4). It’s almost a meditation time for me and I really do enjoy it. And I now love my rest days!!! I think that moderation is key and I am thankful I learned this. I listen to my body and move accordingly. It’s quite amazing how the body responds. All the years of 7 days a week <double> workouts and trying to achieve the “perfect body” put stress on my body and my body didn’t respond to my requests. Now? The body responds amazingly when you work it, rest it and listen to it!!! 
My fun really was just about hanging with my girls! I didn’t care if we were out and about, a park, the grocery store or on the floor playing with Mazzy. I enjoyed every minute of it. Having our morning coffee in their enclosed patio was special and gorgeous too!
Just a few shots of fun with Mazzy ….and coffee on the patio.
What did I eat??? I had some amazing meals that my son-in-law cooked! He loves to cook so I was pretty spoiled with not only being served but with healthy foods too! His dad has a farm in NC and raised cows which were now our protein of choice. I had the chance to try things I had never tried before — tongue and heart!
I am pretty proud of myself for trying it AND that I loved it. Aside from his delicious meals, I definitely managed to “keep it paleo” while vacationing. There is always a way to make a healthy choice when dining out.
I’m a city girl – but I did appreciate the slow paced life, the gorgeous trees surrounding houses, streets and the fact that there wasn’t traffic! It’s definitely a different experience when looking out her front window and seeing nature vs. a house directly across the street. I also loved the quaint little coffee houses and family owned stores/restaurants. It really made it seem like a close knit community and that’s definitely a far cry from living in Los Angeles.
That being said, I’m a California girl and love where I live…..I just want to have my family all in one place! I am sure many families deal with separation and I am not alone but I honestly never dreamed I’d have one child and grandbaby across the country! With today’s technology, it’s been easy to stay in touch but it doesn’t take the place of grabbing a coffee, babysitting or a weekend BBQ. I am sure MANY of you can relate. I am looking forward to out next visit which will be in June as Nicolle and Mazzy will make their way to me, to celebrate Mazzy’s One Year Birthday!!!! YAY!!!
Well, I’m sure I babbled on long enough and honestly, I could keep going on about this visit! I just wanted to add a post about as to ‘What I’m Up To’ ….as this is it!
Mazzy pulling out her books for the hundredth time and thinking it was so funny – also her taking a picture with the Easter Bunny! She didn’t even cry!
Coffee time at a local place called Honeysuckle Tea House — this was outside their “hut”…..a play area for the kids and a gorgeous area to sit and enjoy nature with your tea, coffee or even kombucha!
Eating breakfast with my little PuhQ was always fun and messy! And there I am, just being silly ……and probably embarrassing my youngest daughter 
My favorite lil family, sitting by the fire at night ….. *sigh* …..Oh, how I miss them!
Okay, I’m a big baby! I cried during the entire read of your visit! Maybe I’m just a little exhausted and teared up extra easy today but your story pulled on my heart strings big time as I’m sure it did with the other mothers of kids and grandkids across the states. Sounds like a fabulous trip! Can’t wait to hear what you have up your sleeve!
You’re such a sweetie Jill! Thanks for always making me smile with your comments <3