Happy Holidays!

May your Holiday Season be filled with family, friends and good health!

Merry Christmas from the Jones Family!

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Thoughts After Two Weeks

On Monday it will have been two weeks since we opened the doors of our sparkling new Innovative Fitness facility in Port Moody. It has been the busiest time of my life... There hasn't been much family time to speak of. That's why tonight's "Penguins vs. Capitals" game in front of our house was just what the doctor ordered. Penguins won by the way (as always.)

Some thoughts about the last two weeks:

- People: It has been a long time since I was meeting new people every day. I didn't miss it in my life because I didn't think about it... but it's one of my favourite things about the last two weeks.

Every few minutes somebody walks through the door - will this person end up being a great friend? Will they be beside me on a trip to Moab, Machu Picchu, the New York Marathon or the Himalayas this year? It's exciting - because I was that person walking through the door. When they sign on the dotted line I have a pretty good idea of what lies ahead for them.

The Port Moody IF community is growing fast, and already I find myself looking forward to seeing friends every day, watching them progress and celebrating the victories we all have along the way.

- Team: I love being on teams. I always have. It is so rewarding to be working HARD side by side with teammates - especially when the going gets tough. As one of the "team managers", I hoped we would all work well together, but you don't know for sure until the opening whistle blows and the team gets tested.

I remember being on my high school rugby team, preparing for games - the things people would say, the looks on their faces, and how much pride we all took in "doing our job" on the field. Before each home game we would play AC/DC's Hells Bells (loud) in the locker room to get pumped up. I loved it. This is as close as I have been in a long time - (we even play AC/DC from time to time!)

- Balance: <- A word I barely deserve to even type right now. An important goal for the coming weeks is to steadily begin re-activating all of the other parts of my life that have been on hold. It was important to put 100% into the business, but now it is critical to find a healthy, happy and sustainable balance. That should result in a little more blog posting in the coming weeks... no promises - but I hope so.

- Training: This week I started training again and it felt great (in that "I haven't trained for three weeks" way...) I have some exciting plans for the coming race season... but that's another post!

I hope you are having a great weekend!

Aia and her teammate Natalie...

Aia running after a loose ball...

Kris setting up Circuit Class this morning - Every Saturday at 9am by the way! Call us at 778-355-9800 for details.

One of our new signs... They came on Friday.

We did a Pinecone Toss competition for the Christmas event in our neighbourhood... There were probably 3000 people circulating through the streets - it was a blast!

Kids getting ready to toss pinecones.

Jen, Cathy and Sacha... They worked the crowds all night in close to freezing temperatures. Thanks ladies!

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A Different Kind of Coaching

I am a big believer in coaching.

I've invested time and time again - fitness, swimming, triathlon, cycling, skiing... If I took up darts next week? ...well, I'd probably hire a coach.

As important as my athletic pursuits are to me, they are really kind of inconsequential compared to my role as a parent. Yet, until very recently, it had never occurred to me to hire a parenting coach.

I have never really spent any time writing about the challenges of parenthood... but that's not because being a parent is a breeze. It's not. Our family of 5 is an ever-changing, ever-challenging, mixture of personalities - and sometimes that mix works better than other times.

As educated, intelligent parents it's easy to feel like you should be able to solve just about any parenting issue. In our case, Sacha and I have 7.5 years of parenting under our belts - that's just over one "dog year" for those of you without kids.

I'd like to say that harmony abounds and there is nothing but "cumbaya" around our house, but lately Sacha and I have been running up against a short (but complicated) list of parenting challenges. The self-conscious parent in me will add that these "challenges" are likely nothing abnormal (at least I hope), but they are intensely irritating and generally distracting from the enjoyment of life for all involved. The result is stress - not just for us adults, but for the kids - their little brains and little hearts. It's not cool and we needed help.

Tonight we met with a Parenting Coach.

The first, and probably most interesting thing about the meeting, was that both Sacha and I came away agreeing with 100% of what she said. WOW - let's just say we haven't been in agreement on how to handle these issues - ever. We could barely agree on how to describe them!

We came away with a better understanding of the issues, tools to help us navigate through them, and methods to support each other when challenges crop up. In short, we have a plan, we know how to execute it and we are a team again.

Pretty great coaching.

The other HUGE lesson learnt for me is that we didn't need to stumble through the parenting process without help.

• When I was 5 a baseball coach taught me to choke up on the bat - I hit the ball a lot better!
• When I was 14 a rugby coach taught me that TEAM was all that mattered - by ourselves we are nothing.
• When I was 21 a physiotherapist taught me that setting goals was an important part of achieving my dreams - she taught me to walk again too.
• When I was 30 a personal trainer taught me to challenge myself beyond my comfort zone - I found my passion in endurance sports.

• Tonight a parenting consultant taught me how to be a better coach and dad for my kids - which means that a bare minimum of 5 lives were improved in 90mins at the local coffee house.

If you were pulling your hair out earlier today, have a sticky issue or just want to raise your game to be the best parent you can be I highly recommend getting some coaching.

If you happen to live in or around Vancouver you need look no further than:

Karen Hoffman BA, CCFE, RPC

Canadian Certified Family Educator

Registered Professional Counsellor

kfhoffman@yahoo.ca

Her blog is here: http://atouchofparenting.blogspot.com/

Thanks Karen!

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Happy Halloween!!

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Photos - Some Favourites

Batchelor Bay - my favourite photo of one of my favourite places.

If you stop by here from time to time you know I like photography. Well, I just finished organizing about 6 months of photos on my computer (6,000+).... it was an epic project that I hope will convince me to organize them better each time I upload.

Anyway, I decided to reward myself by putting together a quick photo post with a few of my favourites.

Many of these have graced these pages already... but a few have not.

Click to ENLARGE...

Enjoy!

Will Routley and Nic Hamilton at the Yaletown Grand Prix. I took a bazillion shots there - this one was the best. This got published - once online (can't remember the site) and once in the 24Hours Newspaper.

Viggo and our big wooden pear.

One of my favourite photos I have ever taken... I love these bikes and the gritty wall, the shadow and the green crates... all behind Habit Coffee in Victoria. Missy even asked if she could have this for her wall which was quite an honour!

The smiles say it all - priceless!

Ha! Soon they won't let me do this sort of thing to with them... because it will be "uncool". Until then, they are my favourite 'models'.

Lighthouse Park on an amazing weather day - sunny AND black clouds = camera time!

First day of school. She was SO excited.

Sacha pushing the kids on the swings - summer evening in the city, out late.

Steph @ the Bay Challenge... I drove the boat and took photos, Steph and Susie put on a masterful display of swimming.

The Look... he's intense for a little guy.

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Hornby Island - Photo Post

Hornby was awesome.  

I took about a million photos ... so I'll let them do most of the talking.  

Family + Island + Beaches + Bikes = Great Holiday

Not much time to write or read these days as I am over-the-top busy - returning from holiday and getting ready to leave for Nationals (triathlon) in Kelowna this Sunday.

Enjoy the pictures...  CLICK TO ENLARGE for a closer look.

Cheers!  

I love a van/bike shot! Starbucks stop on the way out of town...

The van is awesome for family trips like this.

Don't worry we didn't drive like this.... Viggo 'drove' during ferry line-ups.

Dinner on the first night... Bert and I made Beer Chicken (one of about 3 or 4 things I know how to make!)

A pair of Beer Chickens ready to be BBQed.... they were tasty.

Aia on the 'Trail-Along' behind me... I got some great workouts pulling her everywhere behind me. We even got a bit crazy on the trails which was a blast....  Next year she'll be traveling under her own steam I'm sure.

Hornby Cycle Chic... Very fashionable Sacha and Mel on the way to the bakery or the winery - I can't remember.

Bert won a geodesic dome in a poker game.... we assembled it and had dinner inside once or twice. Who else can say they won a geodesic dome in a poker game?

One of my favourite shots from the trip. Remember being a kid and just throwing rocks at things all day??? Mattias and Finlay.

This is a color shot but seems black and white... I liked it.

Aia and Daisy. I left the shot tilted... thought it was kind of cool that way...

Dinner on the beach with friends.... it's pretty awesome to ride a bike to a dinner/bbq - I would like that kind of lifestyle at home.

Aia in full flight... she's getting faster these days! I would like to look that light on my feet in a photo!

Mattias and Finlay. Don't remember what this game is called but you draw a circle with a cross in the middle then the kids play tag running only on the lines. They get good and tired... it's awesome!

Sacha and her mom with Viggo. This beach was right outside our cabin - we got lucky with a waterfront location this year.

Aia - always perfectly turned out in white skirt with pink bow for a walk on the beach.

Mel with Daisy on her shoulders.

Mattias made some real breakthroughs in his riding on this trip - he was generally attacking the trails - accelerating out of the saddle and riding with a lot more confidence - it was super fun. No trail shots - it was hard enough to keep up!

Gary (father-in-law) and I (not pictured) on the road above Olsen's Farm (possibly the nicest real estate anywhere...). We circumnavigated the island a couple of times during the trip.

Photos of bikes work for me....  it's becoming an affliction.  I love them.  These two were behind Habit (a coffee shop in Victoria)...

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Be as Happy as....

...a kid with his first iPod...

Thanks Bapa and Mormor!!

P.S.  Mattias' Rockin' Playlist...  (Click to enlarge)

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Five Good Things

Things are coming around over here....

1.  My leg seems to be improving.  I don't want to jinx it but it looks and feels marginally better.  All that remains will be to see if it can handle any exertion.  I will be investigating that soon enough...  needs a few more days to be certain I'm not jumping in too soon.

2.  I have a race on the horizon!  It's not a full race (because that would be REALLY stupid just as my leg is healing) - it's a relay.  I will be swimming for a team in the Vancouver 1/2 Iron.  I haven't met my team yet but a friend is hooking me up with a cyclist and a runner.

This is a really good thing for me....  it was a bitter disappointment to have to bail on Road and Track Nationals (cycling) especially after bailing on Escape from Alcatraz to prepare for Road and Track Nationals.  I know that injuries are part of sports but that sequence of events really sucked.

Anyway, back to the race...  it'll be Sunday, and I am going out on a limb and predicting a fast swim out of myself.  I have been swimming more than ever (as I have been reporting ad nauseum here) so it ought to be fun.

3.  The Tour is about to get crazy!  The prologue in Monaco was super cool and today's stage looked boring on paper but ended setting a very interesting stage for tomorrow's Team Time Trial.  Those Astana boys really must be having a blast at team dinners and hanging out on the bus as they basically try to beat the crap out of each other.

(Al)Bert(o) saying "WTF Lance?"

Cancellara said he "took it easy" on the hill in the first half of the prologue (TT), so he'd have legs for the second half....  that seemed like a good plan, as he destroyed everyone else.  

4.  Swimming and "sort of" training has been awesome!  

We are having record turnouts to the B.B. swims since Canada Day.  So much so I got all excited and created a tab on the right hand column that leads to a page I put together with info for people coming out....  you can see that HERE.

Coming up with workouts that don't put any impact or exertion on my leg is a challenge...  but it is definitely one the coaches at IF are up to.  On Friday Justine and Dylan had the kayaks ready to go....  The sun was beating down and it was great to hit the water!

 

That's me.  Photo credit:  Justine before she capsized...

Justine - in the midst of capsizing...

Justine - demonstrating impeccable paddleboarding technique...

Dylan and Justine soaking up the rays...

5.  Last but not least....  The kids and Sacha are all enjoying the summer now that school is out.  Life is good when the sun shines!

Driving his big brother's car...  nice shoulder check....

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