I know I’ve commented on similar points like this before but please feel free to celebrate with me – I’m 80% of the way to my goal of 365 blogs in 365 days!
WooHoo!

I wonder if I will continue on once I reach the year mark…guess time will tell. 

The gentleman who has agreed to rent or sell his vehicle to us took us to his insurance agent to confirm how it would work from a rental or ownership perspective.  He explained that while she did not speak English she came recommended and we would work our way through it using his limited knowledge of the language.  

We went first thing this morning as he explained his understanding that Fridays the agent worked in the mornings and took the afternoons off. The gate was open to the property and the gate to the house on but the inside door open.  However, no-one was in the office.  He called a friend of the agent who then called the agent and confirmed back to us that she would be there between 1:30 and 1:45.  Then a women in the house attached to the office advised us the agent would be back at 1:30.  

We left and came back at 1:45.  This time there was no one in the house or the office, the gate and the inside door to the house were closed shut and the main gate to the property was closed and locked.  We waited but no one came.  Gregory commented she was late.  We explained that sometimes it is not a matter of being late – only that they may not be coming.  

When we drove by the alternate insurance agent in town, he was not only in but he spoke English.  A man who made us feel welcome and took time to explained our options and provided us with a written quote.  He advised us there are two options with the insurance: 1) no minimum amount for the deductible but the rates are higher or 2) a 300,000 colones deductible (about US$600) per occurrence.  He suggested that since most incidents which required insurance were over the 300,000 colones – we should consider this option.  

The office included 3 chairs for visitors and 2 desks.  Behind his desk were 4 large framed pictures of young women.  I asked him if these were his daughters. He replied  yes. He then went on to explain he had no room to hang pictures of his 7 sons.  11 children and as it turns out 21 grandchildren!  He commented that since this Sunday was Father’s Day, his children were starting to arrive today and would be coming over for the entire week.  Wonderful!    

Again, we have experienced a situation where one aspect which does not turn out quite like we anticipate leads us to what is appears a more viable option. I truly love how The Universe takes care of us. Today’s message from TUT: 

Just as an aside…we spent time between the morning trek to the agent and the afternoon appointment having lunch at a lovely little space with great food – Casa Delagua.   We saw interesting foliage, loads of humming birds – many stopping to sit, bugs not seen before and this amazing flower (yet to be identified).  I am love our adventure thus far.  

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What a phenomenal day today – filled with great food all the way through.  We started out with a 64th birthday breakfast for Walter.  He reminded us that today is also Paul McCartney’s birthday and he wrote the song “When I’m Sixty-Four” which includes “Will you still need me, will you still feed me, when I’m sixty-four?” – Apparently I will LOL

I then had the opportunity to join a slew of expats who do fund raising for the area – Ladies of the Lake (or LOL). It was a pot-luck and oh my…what a spread!  I had the opportunity to bring back a few desserts to share with my two men. 

For dinner I cooked again (still feeding you Walter!) which included the most amazing dark chocolate cake (from the pot-luck leftovers) which we included with a candle.  All in all a fun filled food day in honour of my husband Walter! 

The question remains – Will Walter still feed ME when I’m 64!  We’ve got a few years to find out.  

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After reading Sandra’s comment from yesterday about allowing myself to enjoy some R&R – especially after everything we’ve been through in the last 6 weeks – we did!  Gracias Sandra!

Today we prepared a lamb recipe in the slow cooker – mostly from fixings left with the house (truly grateful for all the left behind food). We were then taken around the main town by a local expat who we have connected with since the welcome/goodbye party the day after we arrived. She was an absolute doll, showing us a few more of those ropes we need to swing by while here.  We even got Walter and Gregory connected with local SIM cards for their phones (from Kolbi).  Again, very grateful to the homeowner’s who left us their local phone for Gregory’s use!  Gracias for all my blessings!

Now…back to the R&R.  For the last 36 hours it has been mostly rain and clouds so when we got back and there was sun shining through, I went out and sat for 30 minutes…just soaking up those Costa Rican rays.  It felt good in my soul to just stop, close my eyes and allow the light to recharge me.

I’ve seen some views but I’m still loving this one.  While eventually it may be built up a bit more (once others build on the lots surrounding this one), right now it feels like we have so much space – and what we get to enjoy….a constantly changing landscape of views out every window of the house.  Today , the clouds rolled in and out and then at one point the layers were like a painting.  I drank it in with deepest gratitude.

Yesterday I spotted the horses on the grassy knoll below us. Walter has been fascinated and has taken a few pictures of the one white horse. I noticed today that the picture I took included 3 white horses and 1 brown.  I will take this as a positive sign for the plans we have to increase our family by adopting a local girl some time in the near future.  Feel free to read about my vision of our daughter.

We closed the evening together, the 3 of us in a group huddle standing out on the patio looking up at the stars. Gregory had never seen stars so brilliant before. Venus and Jupiter were as bright as street lights, the big dipper beautifully framed by light clouds.  We look forward to more stargazing during our time here.

Where do YOU want to be 1-2 years from now? 

If you too wish to explore what it takes to reach your dream…whatever that may be…then share your details below.  I will make sure you are one of the first people to hear about the next Master Key Experience offering in September 2015.  Imagine…sitting wherever it is you want to be?  

Living your dream is TOTALLY up to you! I’d love to show you how!

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A good friend of mine and fellow Master Key Experience graduate/guide/digital diva asked me a tough question today.  What we were doing here…Does it feel like a vacation or life?  I said neither. So…what does it feel like? I’m really not sure.  I promised to ponder and get back to her. 

Vacations for me have typically felt rushed while I’m doing my best to get in as much relax as possible.  It’s rush to the airport, yeah! we are on our way, then drag yourself to the hotel / resort and rush down to the water / pool to make sure you get in as much time as you can on your first day, to rush to breakfast, lunch, dinner on someone else’s schedule, to make sure you see all that you planned to see, to drag yourself back to the airport, to pass out on the plane from all the fun and sun, to drive home and throw everything into the laundry room, sometimes even starting a load or two, to get unpacked and relax the next day so you can go back to work.

While fun, and good memories created, pictures to remember it by safely stored on my hard drive, vacations are typically short lived and have that specific expiry date.  THIS does not feel like a vacation.

Life…prior to the last six months…typically included work, rest, fun, responsibilities, cooking, cleaning, eating, teaching, guiding, walking the dog, playing (etc.) – all with a specific end point in my mind.  The last 6 months of “life” has been one project after another, all with one final goal in mind.  Costa Rica!   But…now we are here!    

Other than having our son, I don’t believe I’ve ever accomplished such a significant life altering objective before. This has been an 8 year vision and now we’re here!   It appears I’m now in unchartered territory. THIS is my new life! 

I cannot imagine life will look anything like what it used to.  We are also in a place where vacation type activities are plentiful and available on our back door (without additional flight time) and so….I’m choosing to call this my Vaca-Life.   It’s all about living what you desire now while having the most fun you can packed into every day (including rest and relax by the pool!)

Now…all I need is a new big, scary, audacious goal! 

If you too wish to explore what it takes to reach your dream…whatever that may be…then share your details below.  I will make sure you are one of the first people to hear about the next Master Key Experience offering in September 2015.  Imagine…sitting wherever it is you want to be?  

Living your dream is TOTALLY up to you! I’d love to show you how!

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After 5 months of doing my best – juggling work, the Master Key involvement, selling our house, working through the death of both my mother and mother-in-law, moving to another country, all while raising a 9 year old and attempting to maintain our sanity – it feels like I am getting just about to get back into the groove.  

Between yesterday’s Master Key webinar and today’s Digital Connections webinar it feels like I am about to embark on the next stage – and I am excited beyond anything I can express right now!  

Rewriting my DMPs – since we are already living one of the major points from my DMP of the last 2 years – is something I am just wrapping up.  A DMP is an amazing tool and part of the ‘how’ within the Master Key Experience – a description of your Definite Major Purpose. Walter and I had both written down that we were “living in Costa Rica on or before June 25, 2015” (the date being our son’s 10th birthday). Now, we are here!  

I admit this 8 year dream of living in Costa Rica was originally slotted for 5 years.  As time moved on the date kept moving out. Part of me felt disheartened…as if it was a dream which may never come true…or I blamed myself for not being motivated enough – thinking maybe I was not worthy of fulfilling this desire. 

I’ve realized this past 5 days that our son…about to turn 10…is at an age where he can handle all that we are going through.   When you realize all things DO happen when they are to happen…and we are living in the perfect space for what we need when we need it – then moving here earlier was never in the plan.  We are here at the right time in the right space with the right attitude.  

I am becoming more aware the tools from the Master Key Experience are allowing me to attract what I need in order to maximize my experience here, and my interaction with others is at its optimum due to everything we learned about our thoughts, our intent, and our perspective.  

Timing is truly everything. Gracias to the hearts and minds who put this course together for us.  

If you too wish to explore what it takes to reach your dream…whatever that may be…then share your details below.  I will make sure you are one of the first people to hear about the next Master Key Experience offering in September 2015.  Space is limited – more than last year but still limited.  Imagine…sitting wherever it is you want to be?  

Living your dream is TOTALLY up to you! I’d love to show you how!

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We received a call from my father-in-law this morning at 5am.  He had forgotten we are now 2 hours difference.   He is an absolutely sweetie and Walter was able to answer all his questions about what we are eating, doing and what everything looks like.  I adore my father-in-law! 

While I was down in the office, Walter had a front row seat to the soaring eagles and managed to capture a few pics.  These 2 come out to play a few times a day in front of us – sometimes coming as close as 10′ from the roof line.  A joy to behold.

The day was mostly sunny – rain on the other side of the lake – until later in the day when we were picked up to go for pizza at Visas del Lago. Gracias to Bev Sheatz (owner) who invited and cooked for us.  There was a bit of rain and then mist on the way home.

The expat group of people we have met so far are mostly of a similar ilk in that they found something peaceful – something which called to them – in the Costa Rican offering.   

We are blessed to be here and to everyone who has welcomed us, included us, helped us, fed us and are truly making our transition a journey beyond what we could have ever imagined. Gracias to you all! 

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Woke up at the reasonable hour of 5:30 this morning. The view was already in full swing showing us all 3 volcanos: In front of us are Miravalles & Tenorio, then to our right is Arenal. Details courtesy of Wiki.  

The Miravalles Volcano reaches an elevation of 6,653 feet (2,023 m) and is the highest mountain in the Guanacaste Mountains.

Miravalles is the site of the largest developed geothermal field in Costa Rica.  

Tenorio Volcano consists of four volcanic peaks and two craters. One of the craters is sometimes referred to as the Montezuma Volcano. Tenorio attains a maximum height of 6,287 feet (1,913 m). The Rio Celeste (Light Blue River) is turned literally blue due to the emanation of sulfur from the volcano and precipitation of calcium carbonate. 

The Arenal volcano measures at least 1,633 metres (5,358 ft). Geologically, Arenal is considered a young volcano and the age is estimated to be less than 7,500 years.  The volcano was dormant for hundreds of years and exhibited a single crater at its summit, with minor fumaroles activity, covered by dense vegetation. In 1968 it erupted unexpectedly, destroying the small town of Tabacón.

We relaxed on the patio, did laundry, hung it on the line (Jan….I have a laundry line!), remade the beds with our bamboo cotton blend sheets, had an owner of a piece of land up the road from us stop by (Emerson), one of our landlord’s friends stopped by to pick something up, Walter found passion fruit on one of the trees (left), we saw our first toucan (actually 2) fly by (picture above is of my 2 men using their binoculars to bird watch from the balcony), spotted a slew of parrots, enjoyed watching the rain storm roll in across the lake and up to us and had dinner by candle light after the power went out (luckily after everything was already cooked). 

I asked Gregory what is favourite thing about Costa Rica was so far.  He replied “Free food. Bananas, mangos and other stuff growing on trees. People in Costa Rica won’t go hungry.”

All in all, a fun filled day of settling in.  Looking forward to connecting with more folks here and getting a better understanding of the lay of the land.  Already had an invite to a party going on next Saturday! Woo Hoo! 

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My day started at 4am local time listening to all the morning sounds and watching the sun brighten the sky slowly. One of the things I’ve noticed between today and yesterday is that it appears you hear specific sounds from different critters at certain times of day (including the odd car sound but no highway hum like we had back home).   It’s almost as if the rain forest keeps a schedule.  I will continue to observe and make note whether this continues.  Stay tune! 

Most of the sounds were quite foreign but on the whole soothing – we are in a rain forest, right? There was one sound however which hit a nerve.  Not sure what critter it was but it was a high pitched squeal which went on for quite some time.  I readjusted – coaching myself to embrace the creatures sharing their voices with us.  I remind myself to “accept things I cannot change” – allow! 

Our landlords departed from the house today.  The past few days I witnessed what appeared to be a similar level of angst with time ticking away and a myriad of things left to be done – seemingly insurmountable.  They were even putting things into boxes as they were getting in the car to go to the airport location – similar I believe to us returning bins of stuff we could not pack back to our storage locker.  

During a lull in their crazy run around of packing in the house today, I had a conversation with one of the owners.  Mixed in with advice and guidance were comments about things she found frustrating, things which may have not been totally to her liking.   

I sit here and remind myself that each person will look at a situation in front of them through their personal experiences and their “blue print” of social and cultural memes.  So what they may have found frustrating, we may find totally acceptable, what they found challenging, we may find exciting. What happens next (based upon being frustrated/acceptable or challenged/excited) will depend upon how each of us chooses to label it – what feelings we choose to associate it to. 

While we have been here for 48 hours, tomorrow will be the first day we are here on our own in the house we’ve rented.  Our landlords have been with us most of yesterday and most of today. I then remind myself that yesterday we met a room filled with a slew of other expats – most of whom seem to be happy and well adjusted.  Spending 2 days with someone in their home while they pack may not be considered an optimum situation for either of us. 

I choose to readjust this evening. I remind myself it is better to be an optimist and right a portion of the time rather than a pessimist and right all the time.   I choose optimism. 

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Started the day with Gregory crawling into our bed, after seeing what our view looked like live, saying “This is AWESOME!”  What a way to start our day! What a way for a child to start his a day! We are so very grateful to be here – living our dream. 

The morning was spent unpacking and putting away whatever we brought in our 10 pieces of luggage. I reviewed the excel spreadsheet of “Things to Bring” and found we brought with us about 60% of what I thought we needed to.  Still can’t understand how we ended up with so much luggage but we have “stuff” and most of it has found a space to reside while we are here. 

After the luggage, we got our 2 voip phones connected, my Costa Rican cell phone installed with a local SIM card, Walter called his dad, I called my brother Brian, I replied to a work email that I was on holidays and would not be looking at the report they requested until after the 19th, we played with 1 of the 2 cats in residence, visited a lawyer about opening a bank account, grocery shopped and then ended the entire day with a party of over 30 people who came to say goodby to our landlords (who are going home to England and then moving to France) with many connecting with us as a warm welcome. What a fun filled day! 

Please allow me to share a video of our “awesome” view.  Much to digest and loads to do. Turns out I am now on “Tico Time” (the local version of “Island Time”).  Hope you had a day filled with an abundance of blessings.   We are most grateful for…well…everything!

PS: A special thanks goes out to Pravir and his family for supplying us with the Canadian flag since we left ours for the couple who purchased our house. 

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Walter has been reminding me for the last few days to embrace “Island Time” as I’ve been a bit impatient with whatever has been going on. 

Today started at 3am (after only 1.5 hours sleep) packing, weighing, removing, re-packing, re-weighing – we even had to purchase another large piece of luggage at 7am in order to ensure all the pieces were within the allowable weights.  Had removed 4 bins to storage this morning and we still ended up with10 pieces (including carry-on, but excluding our personal items – so add in 2 more briefcases and a back pack) as well as Walter’s piano.  What did we bring?

I was grooving – and chilled. We were all ready to go, with the luggage loaded on the trolleys when my brother arrived 15 minutes early.  We arrived at the airport with loads of time to spare.  We even got to the check in counter quickly.  What amazed me was my reaction when they informed us the cost for the additional bags far exceeded what we understood from our review of the policies online. Previously I would have huffed and puffed, complaining while paying (because what other choice do I have)?  Today, I just looked at Walter and said “We here. It is what it is.” and paid with a smile.

One of the best parts of the trip so far was running into Donald in Houston.  Getting off the plane in one terminal and not knowing which terminal you need to be in and what gate – and you only having a ½ hour….normally I freak – even Gregory commented “Remember when you were worried we would not make our flight and we did with loads of time to spare?”  (The flight was delayed).  Today I got off the plane and initially reacted with a bit of angst and then told myself – “We are on time.”.  I then asked a passing employee if they could assist us.  Donald took us over the screen, confirmed which gate and terminal, took my luggage and walked us all the way to and onto the train.  GREAT customer service!

Sitting here on the plane, just over an hour to Liberia, under 3 hours to where we will reside for the next year…I believe I may need to pinch myself.  Our dream is a reality.

Thank you to all those who texted us this morning with your kind words, celebratory cheers and best wishes.  We are most grateful for your support.

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An amazing last day here.  We started out by going to the bank to confirm whether they had a safety deposit box for our valuables we could not leave in a storage locker.  We had already checked with our other bank and they had none.  Going in the 11th hour must have been all part of the plan.  This bank also said they had none available. Turns out they get one which comes available maybe a few times a year. They offered to call around and find out if any of the other branches had any availability.

We signed up for a new account which allows us to have a small size for free.  But then in reviewing the sizes in the vault – we definitely needed a medium.  This is what we decided would be.  Our contact asked us to give her a few hours.

An hour later a call came in.   Turns out someone walked into our branch and closed out a medium sized safety deposit box.  It was now on hold for us.

Now…the amazement of the Master Key world does not stop there.  I was thinking this morning we both still needed our updated drivers licenses which we had changed online weeks ago. AND we needed to receive the Costa Rican SIM card which the landlord had sent us a few weeks ago. Our friend who is getting our mail had called this morning to let us know nothing as yet. Then just as the day was wrapping up we received a call – all three pieces of mail had arrived today!

I am grateful for my entire day! My entire existence!  I feel blessed beyond measure!  Gracias!

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We visited Walter’s dad for a couple of hours today, had lunch, played pool, chatted, looked at photos and Walter gave him a hair trim as well as a full nail trim.  He seems to be worrying about us as Bunia used to – and it’s taking its toll on him. He is not moving as confidently and some of the stroke symptoms have returned.  He commented that he may not be here when we return in September.  I cannot imagine not having him in our life but at 92, we must embrace whatever he chooses.  We would love to have him with us in Costa Rica. Time will tell. We’ve set it up with the management of the assisted living space to have him access the main desk computer for a weekly “zoom” call so we can see each other.   There were numerous hugs goodbye and an “oye” over our “Hasta luego!”

We dropped off the Mustang to our friends whose son purchased it from us.  As they drove away in the vehicle I said goodbye but was not sad.  I remembered all the good times I had in that vehicle – driving through a significant snow fall earlier this year on a weekend getaway by myself; driving it around while 7-8 months pregnant, blond hair, tanned and this big round belly; having Greg raise his hands in the air like a (you guessed it) roller coaster; Walter driving with the top down in January, with the windows up, the heat cracked…all because it hit 10 degrees Celsius.   A sweet goodbye.

We visited my aunt in Niagara Falls, NY.  When the US customs officer asked us what we were doing and we said going to visit our aunt, he asked how often we do this to which Walter answered “Not as often as she thinks we should.” to which the office smiled and waved us through with a chuckle.  She too is looking not as well as the last time I saw her. Her hands and face are shaking and her posture is stooped and tired. She asked us numerous questions about us going away – questions she asked the last few times we spoke.  We answered with the same enthusiasm we had originally and hope she rallies for when we see her again in September. 

Today I felt the ebb and flow of life both in the materialistic aspect and the human aspect.  A reason, a season or a lifetime – but all things so have closure.  Today we embraced a number of goodbyes with a few ‘see you soons’ we will envision. 

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Even though we have divested ourselves of what may be 90% of everything we own, we still have so much!  Right now we are in a hotel and we had pulled everything we thought we wanted to bring with us and have it in our room…with not much room to do much of anything. With only 3 days left, I worked through it all – and tried to make some semblance of organization.

After pulling all the clothes I have with us to bring – for the 3 of us – the entire king size bed was covered.  Walter popped his head into the room and managed to remove about 1/3 of his stuff.  I took about ¼ of Gregory’s and then about 1/3 of mine.

THEN I added all the “stuff” we think we need.  Electronics; Paint; Brushes; Canvases; Shoes; Umbrellas; Medicine; First Aid;  the list went on and on. I think the other stuff takes up more than our clothes. So far we have 3 big pieces of luggage filled and 1 small. And we still have a bin and a ½ of stuff left to sort. 

I truly look forward to being at our destination and not sorting anymore.  What we have will be what we have.  If I missed something I will just have to wait 3 months for it…or recognize that I do not really need it.

Throughout this entire escapade of luggage packing, Walter was detailing the Mustang convertible.  We drop it off in Niagara Falls tomorrow.  A friend in the US is coming up to get it.  We have had the vehicle for about 11 years now – it’s been a fun car to drive, especially in the summer.  I release it to its new owner with many blessings for years of enjoyment. 

Topping the evening off we went to a little Italian restaurant we recently tried.  The staff inquired what we were celebrating.  I love watching their expressions when we tell them where we are off to.  This evening they went the extra mile to give us our dessert with warm wishes.  How very kind and thoughtful.

Today I saw a # pattern for the 3rd time and made note (per Doreen Virtue): 1’s and 7’s, such as 117 or 771 – This is confirmation that you are doing great. You are on the right path, so keep going! This is a sign that you have chosen your thoughts well and that you should focus more steadily on your objectives. Be sure to add appropriate emotions to your thoughts; for instance, feeling grateful for the gifts you have in life. Gratitude will speed the process of your manifestations.

We are truly blessed to be on this journey – Our dream is coming to fruition.  I cannot imagine being anywhere else right now other than on this road with my two men.  Our life is filled with possibilities. AND a special thank you – to YOU – for all your encouragement along the way. 

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After the roller coaster of yesterday, we started the day with a surprise birthday party for Gregory.  As he won’t be here for his actual birthday Walter and I decided to surprise him on the last weekend of our time here.  3 of his best buds were invited over to share the pool, the slide and a birthday lunch.  What we observed were 3 boys from different backgrounds all brought together by our son.

The first is a boy from Argentina who Gregory met while walking the dog. We remember him coming home after his walk one school day to state “I made a new friend.” to which we asked his name. “I don’t know – but he likes dogs and plays minecraft.”

The second boy is has Guyanese heritage and was met 2 summers ago at soccer camp.  These two stay up playing electronics to the wee hours of the night and then get up a few hours later to start all over again.

The last boy is from Trinidad and has Indian heritage.  They have been inseparable at school since his arrival in November a year and 1/2 ago.  All the teachers know these two are two peas in a pod.  Other than feeding them, you can leave these 2 together for an entire day without hearing a peep.

I love how Gregory chooses his friends: 1) play Pokemon; 2) play Minecraft and 3) like dogs.  Not necessarily in that order.  We’re not sure if they will remain friends for years to come but they at least have a very good foundation.  I look forward to seeing his new friends once he acclimates to our new location.

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As promised, we took Gregory to Canada’s Wonderland today. He had not been there yet as we were waiting for him to be tall enough to go on all the rides (or at least that’s what I told myself). I’ve not been on a real roller coaster since I went on The Big One in Blackpool England over 15 years ago. Walter hasn’t been on a roller coaster in over 20.  Greg has not been on a roller coaster since he was about 5 and those were kiddie roller coasters at the Fall Fair – nothing like what this park has to offer.

To summarize today….”What were we thinking?!”

We arrived at the park just after it opened, all ready to hit the rides.  The first ride had to be “the one”. We figured it was “go big or go home”.  We chose the Leviathan.

Leviathan is a steel roller coaster in the Medieval Faire section of the park at Canada’s Wonderland in Vaughan, Ontario, Canada. It is the first roller coaster made by Swiss manufacturer Bolliger & Mabillard to exceed a height of 306 feet (93 m), putting it in a class of roller coasters commonly referred to as giga.  At 5,486 feet (1,672 m) long, 306 feet (93 m) tall, and with a top speed of 92 miles per hour (148km/h), Leviathan is the tallest and fastest roller coaster in Canada.  As of 2011, Leviathan was ranked as the seventh-tallest, and the eighth-fastest roller coaster in the world, and the third-tallest traditional lift-style coaster in the world.

Having rode this relocation roller coaster for the last few months, I’m confident that I can say I prefer my feet on the ground – no matter what life has to offer.   Feel free to check out someone’s front seat video of the ride we took today and let me know which one you would prefer…

On the drive home, Gregory commented “I was so scared, I could not complain or scream!” The picture they took of us in the tunnel after the first drop (of over 80 degrees) says it all. 

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Officially finished work today for my time off till we are settled.  It went well and got all the reports out but then had a challenge with my accounting.  The good news is for a small fee – they take my question on chat and deal with it till it’s resolved.  Great news. 

Gregory’s last day at school here was today.  His teacher gave him a wonderful journal to write in.  And his class made and each signed a card letting him know they were going to miss him. His teacher said there were a few kids with tears for his departure.  Last years’ teacher even wrote a note saying she looks forward to seeing pictures and gave him her email address.  

The only part we are not “done” with is….our packing.  Our hotel room is quite an interesting site with luggage in corners, piles of must have stuff surrounding us, clean clothes, clothes to wash, 3 sets of electronics – all with a king bed and a pull out couch.  The good news is we’ve gone through the storage locker and have brought here what we think we need – and there is still room left at the locker for anything we pack up and store from here still. We are in good shape. 

Tomorrow is going to be a fun day.  Every adventure should commence with a bang – and ours will at Canada’s Wonderland.  Wish me luck on all those roller coasters!! 

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I realized this evening that what “they” say is true.  It really does not matter what others think.  I was able to embrace this philosophy this evening and be myself. It felt good.  

We had a group of people join us for an evening at The Mandarin – a local Chinese Buffet. It wa a “send off meal together”.  Half were my family and the other 1/2 friends.  It was wonderful to have such positivity surrounding me.  Please understand that I don’t tend to feel a lot of positivity whenever I’m with most of my family members.  Other than my practice-wedding and my wedding party to Walter, I’ve not mixed family and friends until this evening.  

This evening was nice.  It was nice to not worry about how anyone perceived me…I was just me. When one person said something, with what I heard as a slight twist in their tone, I chose to just take it at face value and not put my own twist on it – reading too much into it.  I also chose to recognize that it really does not matter what they say, it is what I feel which matters, it is what I know to be true within me that matters. Then, when I received a compliment from another, I was grateful that who and what I strive to be is materializing and others see it.  It’s not that what they said mattered – it’s that it just matches up with what I know as my truth.  

It all gets back to the lesson one of the presenters in The Master Key shared.  When her young son approached his teacher and shared that one of the other kids had called him a “poopoo face” (or some such name) the teacher asked him whether he was one? Was he a poopoo face? To which he answered no. So she asked him whether it mattered what the other young man had called him.  

This young boy was taught a valuable lesson.  This lesson, of not putting stock in what someone else says.  If you are in agreement with them though, I can’t imagine why we can’t embrace the feeling of recognition one receives.  I feel Walter, Gregory and I are living an inspired journey – we are doing what many people dream about.  And we want to help others to do the same. Share and inspire. Anyone saying anything else about what we are doing…well, it’s not true – so why put any stock in it?   It’s not my truth, so let it go.  

I feel like I’m on the verge of a personal internal shift.  I allow it to do as it wishes….I’m just here for the ride! 

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I truly wrote this last night – all while Walter and Gregory were sleeping in the hotel room. This evening was the first time I only noticed it did not post, nor did it save as a draft, .  I should have checked the internet connection but I did not.  I’ll do my best to remember the gist.

I realized that I truly am looking forward to embracing “Island Time”.  I spend so much time in the I-need-it-yesterday, must-have-it-now, got-to-go mentality, I may need to go into major shut down in order to make that pendulum swing enough the other way for me to come to rest in the middle – the space where I can calmly deal with what life delivers…without having mini-melt downs.

I look forward to the coming to rest in the middle.

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Hi Mom,

This is your daughter, Carolynn. I can still hear your voice mail message saying “This is your mother” – as if I would not recognize your voice! It always gave me a loud smile. 

It’s been a while but I know you’ve had me in your thoughts.  Just wanted to know you’ve been in mine.  It’s the middle of the night and I can’t sleep. I thought I’d reach out.

It’s been a whirlwind regarding real estate and the house and I know you were looking after us throughout the sale of our house.   I missed being able to share this with you in person.  I have no idea how you helped all those buyers and sellers over the years and remained calm. Maybe you didn’t – and I was just too oblivious to notice (being young and maybe a bit of a self-centred kid).   Have you seen Dad?  Say hi please.   He took care of the weather for us again – especially on the 2 garage sale dates and the days of moving out.   It’s nice to have both of you supporting us.

So…we’re finally on our way to Costa Rica next week. All these years you kept asking me “Are you still planning to move?” Yes.  I realize you had reservations about us going. I remember you worrying about me doing this with Walter being so much older than  I am. Rest assured, sometimes I need to keep up with him!  I’m sure looking over us now you realize he is the best person for me to be spending my life with.

You’d get such a kick out of Greg. Seeing him in the pool at the hotel reminds me of when we used to visit your timeshare property when he was a baby.  You were an amazing swimmer – so comfortable in the water – thank you for giving me the love of water, I’ve passed it on.   Maybe he’ll take up water sports once we are in Costa Rica – it’s his #1 request for how to spend his birthday.

Not sure if you’ve connected with Walter’s mom but when you do, please give her a big hug and let her know “We love her ‘more'”. She needs to look over Dido for us.  I’m sure she does but let her know he may need an extra nudge now and again.  Even though he is pragmatic he no longer has her to do the worrying – so now he’s taken up that baton. It’s funny how he’s got a bit of the “oy” philosophy on top of his pragmatic stance. 

I’ve done as you requested and connected with my siblings.  Most of it was to support you through all you went through in the last 6 months but I’ve maintained a bit of it since then.  I’m still working on it – allowing it to evolve as it feels it needs to.  You certainly raised a group of independent, strong, self-thinking, opinionated (yep!) group of kids.  We don’t get stepped on easily which I thank you for.  I know you always wanted us to be all that we were meant to be. Agreeing on the path to get there was where we may not always agree. 

I want to thank you for all the lessons you taught me. Thank you for instilling in me the love of customer service, the ability to speak my mind, my love of art – even though it really did not mesh with the rest of the kids abilities – you recognized each of our talents and encouraged us to embrace them. Thank you for being my support even though you aren’t physically on the same plane anymore.  

Love you!  Carolynn

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The phrase we have on our business cards is “aspired to inspire to aspire…” Today…we did that.

We made a list of our favourite restaurants and are using this last week, while we are in the hotel, to work our way through our list.  Tonight was Jack Astors.  It was where Walter and I went on our first date.   When we celebrate as a family – this is where we go.  We had an absolute blast this evening.

We’ve been there a number of times over the past year and have met a few of the staff.  We sat in the restaurant portion this evening so did not have the same staff serving us – but we asked our waiter to let the bartender know that there was a family of homeless people who wanted to say hello.  She came over and laughed because she could not place who we were till she saw us. She sat down and visited.  This spurred our waiter to sit down and chat which then resulted in one of the hostesses to stop by and visit.  We had a bit of a traffic jam at our table. FUN! 

They enjoyed our story . They were entranced by our vision and the journey we are on. They were amazed at where we are going. They also have dreams they want fulfilled…and our discussion inspired them to do something about it. They signed up to receive information about the Master Key Experience.  They are visualizing where they want to be…now realizing there is a “how” to get there available to them. 

If you have not seen it, we highly recommend watching Tomorrowland!  It touches a bit on the philosophies we embrace – “thoughts become things” (as Mike Dooley toots!)

THIS is how we are going to change the world – one positive emotional experience and thought at a time.

Do you have an open mind?  Do you wish to hear more about this environment which shows you how to create your vision? If so, add your name and email below? 

If you change how you look at things – the things you look at change! – Wayne Dyer

Do you realize how your life unfolds is TOTALLY up to you?

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