Monday Morning

It belted down rain until early morning.  From our wonderful vantage point (our bed) Himself and I watched the dark front move slowly over us, blue sky and puffy clouds coming in behind.

I started my daily yoga practice and was treated with this:

We sat together as it disappeared.

What a super start to our day.

AKA: The Dump

It's so difficult to be PC these days.  Himself loaded up the back of the car with old concrete from a current project (reducing the size of the garden 'water feature' - very much a work in progress) as well as other odds and ends that the bin men won't take.  And off we went to the dump ... oops, sorry, I mean the:

It's wonderfully organized and everything has its place: white goods, construction rubble & scraps, oil/gas, garden cuttings, electrical section, metal - the lot.  All the recycling bins are there as well, and donation bins for clothes, shoes, and books. You have to be quick to pick though ... there is a shop right there and the boys are quick off the mark to get anything of value! Thank goodness the shop was closed today as Himself loves a wee prowl through and rarely comes out empty handed.

Krakow

Before going south to the family reunion for the w/e, I spent a couple of days in Krakow with cousin Teresa and her fabulous brother and family.  The weather was warm and perfect for sightseeing.  I was very spoilt with delicious food, and wonderful walking tours of the old city with her brother or her sister - they are each passionate about the history and are keen to share.

I have put together some photos and this time added music! I apologize in advance as not only was this my first time downloading music from iTunes, the selection of traditional Polish music was limited! The second music clip is a traditional Polish melody performed by Jimmy Shand Junior and his Scottish Dance Band! (of course).

183 Cousins

WOW! What an incredible w/e I spent in Poland with my family. Yes, this is what it's all about.  I will sort through my thoughts and photos over the next few days.  In the meantime (find Waldo):

Wonderful People in My Life

I met a wonderful group of people today.

Before I explain, I would like to publicly tell my nephew, Alex, how proud I am of him.  Earlier this summer he trained and practiced and put himself way outside his comfort zone to compete - and complete! -  the 2011 Norfolk SuperHero Challenge.  He and his competition partner ran 1 mile, kayaked 4 miles, cycled 38 miles, and ran 7 miles under the most awful/challenging/dreadful weather conditions. He raised £6,500 for his sister-in-law, Sarah, who has Motor Neurone disease.

AND

Currently my friend Dorothy is spending a month in Rawanda.  She did a whole lot of fundraising and is now there. Please look at her blog PREFER: http://dcampbellinrwanda.blogspot.com/.   She is giving of herself and I am in awe.  And YES, I will join you next time Dorothy!  I love this shot of her: 

AND

Today ...

A friend of a friend of Himself's came by for coffee with his friends - on bicycles! Hurricane Katia was just leaving although they rode through her yesterday - don't ask how - it was awful out there. They have 3 more days to go and then they will have ridden from Land's End to John O'Groat's - 1000 or so miles ... They are raising money for a hospital in Malawi where two of the group live and work: www.lahob.org.uk.  The website has great photos of the hospital and includes some interesting facts: riders combined age is 200 years, combined 3 of them have spent 60 man years working in Malawi. They are very special people, and it was great to meet you.  Safe Journeys!

A few days up north

Himself and I had a lovely visit with cousins up north - just over three hours in the car.  We took our time on the drive up.  At one point we saw seals resting on the rocks near Dingwall:

Near Nigg, we saw several huge oil rigs waiting for service (or whatever it is they do up there):

We played a little golf on The Struie Course at Dornoch - in the wind, lashing rain and did I mention the wind?  The best part of that day was the parsnip and haggis soup in the clubhouse.  Here is the starter on The Championship Course (note how well the flags are flying):

One day another cousin came over with her nephew and his wife and we joined them on a drive up the road to Croick Church. We like to go up and pay our respects. This sweet wee church has a dramatic history associated with the Clearances, and many Ross's are buried there: http://www.croickchurch.com/

We were quite taken with the free range Rhode Island Red chickens wandering about:

When on the croft it is important to securely tie up the boots (unless one is wearing wellies):

A personal highlight of our visit was watching George out with his dogs herding the sheep.  It's magic. On the morning of the Dingwall Sales I filmed a bit of him, with his mum, and three of the dogs getting the sheep ready for the truck (don't worry, they are sold to go onto greener pastures mostly down south):

George went down right away to be at the market and check that the lambs were taken safely off the truck.  We followed on a bit later.  It was a huge sale - over 13,000 lambs were sold - and Heatherlea successfully sold 315.  The auction was very exciting.  Himself reminded me to sit on my hands as we had no room in the car.  This clip shows the Heatherlea lambs at auction.  I still can't tell who is doing the buying - each buyer has a secret sign that the auctioneer knows to look for:

Cousins, family - that's what it's all about - and we had a great time together.

I'm off to Poland next week to visit with more cousins ...

NBH Ist Prize Large Gardens

Not all of you have seen NBH photos. So, I have put together a second iMovie ... still no music! That will be my next challenge: download music.

GOT ME THINKING

Trying to Achieve a 'Balanced Life' Always Makes Me Feel Off Balance. How About an Integrated Life?

By Maria Shriver

I've been thinking lately about the idea of living a balanced life. Everybody I talk to seems to be struggling in their lives with this mythical thing called balance. It always just seems out of reach, particularly for women. Truthfully, I believe the whole concept sets us all up for failure.

Based on a friend's suggestion, I'm going to forget about balance and try to lead what I'm referring to as an integrated life.

I hosted a barbecue recently where I had my kids and their friends, family friends, personal friends and professional friends all mingling together. It was wonderful having all those different ages, experiences and relationships melded together. It felt real. It felt right.

Like many of you, I get in the habit of putting aspects of my life (family, personal, professional) into compartments and then trying to attend to all of them equally, at different times. That kind of balance is impossible, so I thought: why not bring my whole wide world together more often? I'd prefer look at my life as a whole, not as segregated parts that I need to juggle or balance on some life seesaw. I think the pursuit of integration could bring us much more joy than the pursuit of balance.

What do you think about the idea of living an integrated life as opposed to a balanced life?

I'd love to hear your thoughts below. Join the conversation.

- Maria

http://www.mariashriver.com/blog