Mom - this post is for you....

It's truly hard to capture the feeling and emotion in a blog or a photo, but I had to share this video with my mom.

Do We Have to Leave?

I have called the Villa Los Padres home for the last few days but now it's time to say goodbye and I'm really sad to go.  I know Lucy Grace is sad too. Neither of us is ready to leave.

We started the day with a morning stretch class @ 7:30am and then took a long walk into "downtown Ojai."  It is really nice to be up and about when the world is still such a quiet and peaceful place.   Plus the heat is not yet bearing down on us so we could walk and enjoy the cool morning air.

I must say the Traveling Hillbilly truly did shut down but is not ready to reboot!!!  Just one more day, please!  Don't make us go!    But we leave with a renewed sense of self and a commitment to wake up early and enjoy some "me" time before we go off and running into the day ahead.    Not sure we'll get to see deer while sipping coffee on the patio, but one can dream.

You Don't Realize How Fast You're Moving Until You Stop and Slow Down

In the yoga class, we focus on our chakras.   It wasn't exactly the class I was expecting but was quite an experience for me.   I never thought I'd be told to "do my kegels" in a class of mixed company.  Plus it reminded me how truly inflexible I am and how bad my old creaky knees are getting.    Our instructor told us to close our eyes and we might see colors.   When we were working on our 4th Chakra (heart), she said we might see green colors.  I saw black, wonder what that means?

It was an interesting experience to say the least, but one thing I did learn, is you don't realize how fast you're moving until you stop and slow down!

Why Doesn't Every Day Start This Way?

Lucy Grace and I wake up and head out for our morning walk.  We are barely out the door when we come across some deer grazing on the golf course.  We stop to admire them for a bit before we continue on.  We just turn the corner and run into a bunny rabbit!  Surprisingly, Miss Lucy Grace pays it no mind.   On our walk, we run into several other dogs and each time, they stop to greet one another, tails wagging and but sniffing abounds.  I think Lucy Grace's (and mine too) was a big old beast named, Mulligan.  I'm not sure what breed Mulligan really was, but he looked like a mix of chocolate lab and a great dane.

After our walk, I take a yoga class and wonder, why doesn't every day start this way?

The Traveling Hillbilly Recharges in Ojai

As you all can see from the lack of blog postings, the Traveling Hillbilly hasn't been traveling much lately, well at least not for fun.   As we all know, all work and no travel makes for a grumpy hillbilly!  So it was time to plan some "shut down and reboot" trips.  The first one, a quick get away to Ojai, California, The Ojai Valley Inn & Spa to be exact.  It's just a couple of hours from LA, it's absolutely beautiful and best of all, it's pet friendly so the hound could come along.  The original plan was a quick Sun-Tue trip but after getting such a great rate at the resort, I decided last minute to add an extra night on and headed up on Saturday afternoon.

After two hours in the car, Miss Lucy Grace and I were ready to stretch our legs.   From the moment we pulled up in front of the resort to check in, we were welcomed with friendly greetings!   Everyone was just so pleasant and welcoming.  I have not been to the resort in a long time and it quickly made me think, "Why have I waited so long to come back?"

We get to the room and there waiting in the corner, is a dog bed, 2 bowls (one with treats, one with a bottled water).   Lucy Grace is instantly in love and I realize she's never going to want to leave!

After we get unpacked and settled in, we decide to sit on the patio outside our room and admire the view.

As I sit with my glass of wine and enjoy the cool breeze, I wonder (as I often do when I'm on vacation), "Why don't I do this more often?"  Why do I let myself get so caught up in the day to day, that I don't stop and enjoy this amazingly beautiful planet?!   We are lucky to live surrounded by such beauty and often don't appreciate it.  We should.  I pick up my book, begin reading and just enjoy a truly peaceful moment.