THE GOODS BLOG: Erika's Precious Little Life ~ October Edition

Welcome to fall! I'm actually pretty excited about "cozy season" and the idea of entering into a period of blankets and warm beverages sounds pretty great. It's been a really nice time recently of changing colours, getting back to routines, and slowing down just a little bit. I'm feeling quite content. September was a month for being outdoors while the weather was still beautiful. We spent the Labour Day and National Day for Truth and Reconciliation long weekends doing essentially just that. Catching up on life and house stuff, not running around too much, and enjoying what's around us in Edmonton.

We drove to Regina (it's close to an 8 hour drive) near the beginning of the month and spent three days there. The purpose of our visit was because of the GMS Queen City Marathon that was taking place. My brother has become a pretty serious runner and Tim is also a runner, so we thought that it could be a fun family thing if everyone was participating in the run. Even Archie did a race! In addition to this we got to enjoy some really nice family time hanging out with everyone.

First was Archie's Mini-Marathon 2k for 5-7 year olds. He was allowed to bring a parent to run with him and that was ME! I went into this with ZERO training or preparation and was like "this is a race for babies, how hard can it be?" The race started and Archie zoomed off way ahead of me and left me in his dust. I never saw him again. I did my best but definitely found that running a 2k was challenging for me. Archie crossed the finish line WAY before I did and I was so incredibly proud of him!! (Turns out that he didn't need a parent to run with him... Because he didn't end up having one.) Archie completed his race in 10:36 and came in 21st place out of 236 kids!

Next was Tim's Regina Hotel Association 10k and Jamie's GMS Auto Gallery Subaru 21.1k Run (half marathon) which both took place at the same time. They both did amazingly well and it was so much fun to cheer them on! Tim completed his race in 55:21 which was a personal best for him. Jamie completed his race in 1:34 and came in 32nd place overall out of 1,159 people! This might just be a thing that my family does now? Next year Tim plans to run the half marathon and Jamie is going to do the full marathon.

And it was extra great that I got to fit in some friend visits while I was in town as well. <3

Tim has clearly gotten bitten by the running bug because a few weeks later in Edmonton he did another race, the Brita Night Run 10k. He completed this one in 56:12. I'm so proud of how well he has been doing with all of his fitness goals!

There were also some great friend hang outs this month and I'm always so happy when I get to connect with you all. Rachelle and I celebrated TWENTY YEARS of friendship this month (HOW???!) and we were sure to meet up at the exact same Tim Hortons where we first met.

The early menopause journey continues! I spent the month attending various appointments with my doctor, gynecologist, and naturopath. I had more bloodwork done. The good news is that everyone seems to agree at this point that I am, in fact, in early menopause. You would be surprised at how long it took to just get to this point. Literal years of confusion and of doctors saying that I was "too young" and wasting time exploring other avenues instead. The gynecologist finally started me on estrogen (a topical gel called EstroGel) and I used it for most of the month. I couldn't believe the difference that it made! It felt like I was emerging from a dullness and that I was getting my spark and energy back! I hadn't realized how bad things had gotten because it happened so gradually, but once I was coming out of it I could tell a huge difference. I felt like I could engage in conversations and situations with sharpness and energy again! What an improvement! Since that went so well, the gynecologist has now switched me to an oral pill called Duavive which combines both estrogen and bazedoxifene. This is supposed to be the "full package" of the hormone therapy that I'm in need of. An unfortunate side effect of menopause is that it has caused my cholesterol to shoot up higher than ever before. Hopefully this will regulate now that I'm on hormone therapy. But my doctor has also prescribed me Rosuvastatin to get my cholesterol back down to an acceptable level. It had also been suggested to me that it's really important that I try to incorporate more strength training and cardio into my routine because maintaining good bone density and cardiovascular health is especially important in menopause. I already attend yoga classes three days a week and this has always felt like enough for me. But now I do feel like I need a bit more of a higher impact activity. I had NO IDEA how to do this so I stepped WAY out of my comfort zone and decided to try Orangetheory Fitness. I am not a gym person but I thought that it was worth a try... And I didn't hate it! I was completely surprised! Everyone there was so friendly, welcoming, supportive, and they really seemed to understand my goals and how to help me achieve them (without me having to give up my existing yoga practice, which is important to me). So now I do Orangetheory once a week! I'm working really hard to be my best, healthiest, most balanced self right now. And I think that I'm finally getting closer.

Life with Archie: Archie really enjoyed running in his 2k race (he's never done anything competitive like this before) and I think that he came out of it feeling really good and proud of himself. He wouldn't take his medal off for days and he wore it to school! I loved that trying something new and testing his perseverance was such a positive experience for him. He also loved being in Regina and spending time with his grandparents and uncle!

Archie is very happy to be back in school and settled into his new classroom. His class is the exact same 23 kids as last year, which is excellent. They're a great group and the class size seems reasonable.

Archie's programs have started up for the fall! This time he's doing: Bigger Beats Piano at Backbeat ~ This is the fourth and final instrument that Backbeat offers and Archie has tried them all. The idea is that after this he will pick his favourite instrument of the four to continue learning.

Beaver Scouts ~ Archie is now a 3rd year Beaver which means that it's his last year! He's gotta get the rest of the badges before time is up!!

Swim for Life Swimmer 1 ~ He's been in Swimmer 1 a few times now and I think that he's finally going to pass it this time!

Archie attended a birthday party for his friend Everett and had a blast!

And the rest of the month was full of miscellaneous activities; such as building a model of the Bluenose, feasting upon Ethiopian food, time outdoors in nature, and Open Cockpit Day at the aviation museum.

OK! And now it's October! This month has a bit more happening compared to last month. Firstly, I am VERY excited to be attending the Canada's 100 Best Dinner Series in Calgary! They've been doing these dinners around the country this year in celebration of the list's 10th anniversary. As soon as I heard that one of them was going to be taking place in Alberta I knew that I had to be there! The dinner is being held at River Café and the five course meal is going to be a collaboration between four notable chefs (from Calgary, Banff, Canmore, and Montreal). I'm driving down by myself and spending the night at The Westley Hotel. I cannot wait for this solo foodie vacay adventure just for me!!! My parents are coming to Edmonton for a visit for about a week and we'll be celebrating Thanksgiving with them. Tim always cooks up an incredible feast and I can't wait! Tim's 41st birthday is later this month! To celebrate, we are going to take advantage of my parents being around and he and I are going to spend a night in our favourite Edmonton hotel, the JW Marriott ICE District. We're also going to have dinner at Braven, a fine-dining steakhouse located inside the hotel. So that should all be wonderful! I received a JUROR SUMMONS and if you know me (as you all do) this is like winning the lottery to me! I am SO EXCITED that I get to go to Jury Selection and I hope so much that they pick me!!! I have a ticket to see the band Valley play - I really enjoy them. I also have tickets (with Nicole) to see a live version of The Rocky Horror Show - forever my favourite. The video game that Tim has been working on for over four years, Dragon Age: The Veilguard is being released!! This is very exciting and it seems like it might be really good! And then it's Halloween! Archie has a pretty great costume this year that suits his interests well. I love so much about everything that is happening this month and it all sounds like so much fun! Hooray for October!

THIS MONTH’S SHOUT-OUTS!: October 7th is Colen Quinn's 17th wedding anniversary!

Just a couple of children! I hope that you and Jeff have a chance to celebrate your day of romance! October 7th is Melanie Santiago's 6th wedding anniversary!

Just a couple of children! I hope that you and Ron have a chance to celebrate your day of romance! October 13th is Kristen Smith's 12th wedding anniversary!

Just a couple of children! I hope that you and Dallas have a chance to celebrate your day of romance! October 19th is Mary Cox's 11th wedding anniversary!

Just a couple of children! I hope that you and Jonny have a chance to celebrate your day of romance!

October 24th is Rachelle Helston’s 40th birthday!

YOU ARE TURNING 40 YEARS OLD!!!!!! I think we're supposed to be grown ups by now except we're definitely not. We have 20 years of the very best memories together. I love you endlessly and I can't think of anyone who deserves to be more treated and spoiled and celebrated than you do (and I'm sure that Sarah will). I only want the very best for you and for all of your dreams to come true. I can't wait to throw a girls night birthday party for you ASAP! <3