Mike and I had mutually decided last year that the Grand Canyon would be a perfect vacation for us this year.  Neither one of us had ever been before and it was high on our list of “places to see before you die”.

Days 3 and 4 of the Southwest Spendors trip with Disney granted us our dream of finally seeing this breathtaking creation.  Photos do not do it justice. The awe of the size, colors, depth, landscape, sounds and heat are too much to capture with any kind of camera. But I tried —

Look closely – that little blue speck in the center is Mike!  I refused to climb out there.

Went out at 5:30am to take this shot.

Another morning shot.

We had a choice of activities in the afternoon – I chose mule riding which was fun except the guy you see riding in front of me kept whipping his mule for no reason. I was so angry with him for doing that.

A little deceiving – this wasn’t “my” mule ride. I happened to be walking along the Bright Angel trail on the South Rim when I heard “clumpity clump” behind me. Lo and behold a wrangler was leading this pack of mules down into the Canyon.

My mule’s name was “Algebra”.  She was the best mule in the bunch.  I was surprised at how big mules are.  These guys were as big as horses.  Even though it was 105-degrees out this day, we were required to completely cover up from head-to-toe including wearing wide-brimmed hats.

While I was muling – Mike opted for the faster paced helicopter tour of the canyon. He had a blast!  It was a 45-minute flight and he got to sit in the front seat!

This was the view from our hotel, the Thunderbird Hotel, located in the Grand Canyon National Park.  Although it was more like a Motel 6 accommodation, the stellar view makes it worth the missing in-room luxuries.

Our tour included a stop at the Desert View Watch Tower built in the 1930’s to provide the widest possible view of the Canyon.  Mike is looking out from the top floor of the tower – which is about 5-stories tall.  I have no exterior shots because there were two huge construction cranes flanking it doing maintenance work.

A final photo before heading up to Utah for our next adventure.

After four hours and fifteen minutes of flying, the pilot came on the loud speaker and said “Ladies and gentlemen, we’re in our final descent into the Orlando area with an approximate landing time in just about 20 minutes. We ask that you turn off your electronic devices and stow away your personal belongings.”
A sigh of relief. Just about home. Gladly it had been a very nice, mellow flight.
We departed Los Angeles at 7:55am PT and it was now around 3:15pm ET.
About 30 seconds after the pilot announces our descent it happens:  BOOM BOOM BOOM BOOM. And my stomach falls out below me.
What the heck???
Up and down – BOOM BOOM.
I’m clutching both hands on whatever I can grasp and close my eyes. I’m silently praying “Dear God, please let us land safely. Dear God, Please let us land safely.” Over and Over.
I peek out to see the couple across the aisle holding on to each other.
I look over at my boss who’s calm as a cucumber looking out the window.
I close my eyes again. Pray. Pray. Pray.
I look over at my seat mate, an elderly gentlemen who is reading his book as if nothing is going on.
I’m thinking to myself. “What’s wrong with this man? Doesn’t he know our lives are in danger?”
I’m clutching the seat as hard as I can.
After what seems like an eternity it smooths out again.
The flight attendant comes on the intercom to tell us the pilot says the worst is behind us, but we all need to remain seated until we land.
Twenty seconds goes by then we hit it again. BOOM BOOM BOOM
This time it only lasts about 30 seconds.
Then it gets calm again.
I’m in an aisle seat so I don’t have a great view of what is going on but I can finally see signs of home.
Feeling calmer I grab my camera.

I see downtown Orlando.  I see Lake Eola.  I sense relief. I think – all is well with the world again.

From this point on it was smooth sailing. Or rather, smooth flying.

We landed, as they say, “Without incident”.

I’m happy to be home.  And thankful to God.

My travel life has definitely picked up in the past few weeks which has delayed me from my blogging duties.

After my annual physical earlier this month and meeting with the dietitian I’ve made a commitment to eating healthier.  And this comes after I thought I already WAS eating healthy.  With the exception of my monthly indulgence in calamari with Mike, I rarely ever eat anything fried. I seldom ever touch pizza or any kind of pasta. I eat brown rice, not white rice (rare exception of the sushi encounter).  Whole wheat bread never white bread.

The new changes in my routine will be to eat more organic in my food selections and to cut back on red meats and pork, use natural sweeteners over artificial ones, eliminate caffeine, and start eating more fruits and vegetables – organic, of course and to eat more foods rich in antioxidants.

The first step I took may seem trivial but was a major ordeal for me – giving up my morning Diet Dr. Pepper.  I did this not only because of the dietitian, but because my dentist also advised the same thing.  The dentist believes that the soda was ruining my gums.  So, it’s been 21 days since my last Diet Dr. Pepper.  I know I’ll have one again soon, but I won’t be going back to a daily routine of 2-3 day. I think God will forgive me if I have one a month.

Eating organic is definitely more expensive and harder to stick to but I’m going to give it my all.

Any of you live the organic life?  How has it impacted you?

Downward dog.  Plank. Sun Salutation. Warrior. Child’s pose.

Breathe out the toxins. Breathe from the abdomen.

I’m learning folks – I’m learning.

I started taking yoga classes for the first time on a regular basis last month.  I’m 5 weeks into it attending 2 classes a week and attempting my own work out at home on occasion.

I went into it thinking I wanted to focus on flexibility which would lead to a leaner look.  I quickly learned I am so not flexible and it has nothing to do with the body-type.  I see a person with what appears as a “not-so-great” physique being able to twist, turn, flex and hold poses I can’t even fathom!  The instructors are great though. They remind us  in every class that we’re all made differently and not everyone will ever be able to do the same poses with great flexibility. That does make me feel somewhat better.

The biggest lesson I’ve learned so far is how important the breathing is.  It is by far the number one element to learn.  I find myself focusing on breathing through the nose and from the gut all day long. The instructors tell us this will help us in all areas of our lives – in mentally focusing, in ridding our bodies of toxins, in better digestion and so much more.

At today’s class we learned the phrase “loka samasta sukhino bhavantu”.  It was a little odd to chant this – as I am not a chanter. But I did it.  You can Google the phrase and see what it means.

Namaste.

It’s a fine line…

Between being arrogant to being confident.

Between being too personal to being social in a business world.

Between being polite and non-intrusive to appear uncaring.

What are your fine lines?

So, after gaining a few pounds back I determined I needed to get things under control.  I have a room in my house that is totally under-used.  I call it my piano room. It also served as Mikita’s playpen when she was a puppy. I’ve turned this extra room into my new home gym. This is what I’ve been spending the past few weeks working on:

It has a treadmill, ab crunch machine, 5# 10# and 20# weights.  A bench to do flies and chest press.  A step machine.  A TV and stereo.  And of course, my piano should I just get the urge to sit down and belt out a tune or two.

I worked hard, too, to make it appealing to me to go in there.  I’ve decorated it with a black and white theme. I got the beautiful rug from Overstock.com at a great price with $2.50 shipping.  It’s one of the thick rugs, not the cheap kind you see at discount stores. I found the gorgeous curtains at an outlet store near the Florida Mall. And the photos on the wall above the bench are pictures of the ocean in Cozumel, taken during our 7-night cruise on the Disney Magic last December.

How’s it going so far?  It has only been fully put together for about a month but I’ve been faithful.  I miss the variety of equipment found at a normal gym, but this is serving a good purpose.  It’s really all about commitment.  The mirror is my motivator.

I don’t know what this flower is but I remember it growing along the fence at the daycare center my mom took my brother and me. It was located at the hospital where she worked as an emergency room nurse.  The smell of the flower is distinct. The small buds blossom into a variety of colors. And they attract bees. I remember the daycare play yard located right next to the hospital and alongside a railroad track. The yard was made of mulch and smelled like sawdust.  There were several huge tires we played in plus a sandbox with very gritty sand and a swing set.  I was around 4 – 6 years old.  Isn’t it funny how this flood of memories comes back  just by seeing a flower?

The rest of the photos are some other flowers we found today on our walk:

A wall of azaleas in full bloom.

I think these are pansies.

This bed lines an entire block – it really is beautiful in person.

And I proudly display the one LONE flower in my yard.

]]> http://leanneslife.com/2010/03/28/flower-power/feed/ 6 http://leanneslife.com/2010/03/22/dc-in-march/ http://leanneslife.com/2010/03/22/dc-in-march/#comments Mon, 22 Mar 2010 23:16:30 +0000 Leanne http://leanneslife.com/?p=993 I just got back from visiting Mike in DC this weekend.  The weather couldn’t have been more spectacular.  We headed to DuPont Circle on Saturday and walked around the White House that night.

Sunday was the perfect day to be outside so we made the most of it by heading over to the National Mall to check out the happenings.  And happenings are what we found!  At the Mall was a huge march and rally for Immigration Reform.

There were thousands of people waving flags, holding up posters, chanting and speaking their minds. It was all well organized.

It was very interesting to watch “live” since my only experiences with anything like this has been via the television news channels. I’ve never seen a protest march in person.  Orlando is not exactly the most outspoken city.

We wandered from the National Mall over to the Capitol to see what was going on there with the Health Care Reform.  At first it looked like a very sad showing of people.  We saw just a handful of protesters with signs.  Then  we heard a loud roar coming from the other side of the building. As we made our way up the hill and around the trees we found the big anti-health care reform protesters doing their thing.

It was very cool to be there on that historic day, whether you believe in the bill or not. And we didn’t see any of the mean protesters that made the news – no spitters at this location.

Lastly, I couldn’t help but snap this photo at the Capitol and consider it for an entry into Glamour magazine’s “Do or Don’t” section or send it to “What Not To Wear”.  Low-rise jeans and low-sitting chairs are not a good mix.

Have a great week everyone!

Ice droplets formed on my trees and bushes Sunday morning. I woke up at 2:00am remembering I forgot to turn off the sprinkler system which runs every Sunday morning at 4:00am. 

I am actually very “ok” with this palm tree biting the dust.  I’ve wanted to get rid of it for years because it grows faster than weeds and takes over the yard.  Maybe, hopefully, the freeze got to most of it and I can finally yank it out of the ground.