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A trip can be the perfect way to hit pause

Taking a breather and a short vacation allowed us to hit pause on our busy life
2018-05-25 Mom of the House beach
Penny and Georgia (my daughters), playing at Mary Lake in Muskoka during our trip.

This week my family and I took a short two-night vacation to Muskoka in the middle of the week.

We pulled our oldest from school and on Victoria Day, when most people were returning from their long weekend vacation, we were driving North to enjoy some much needed family time and rest.

The trip wasn’t perfect, because they never are.

The fridge broke in our cabin and all of our food spoiled, it rained a lot on our second day, the kids were upset that some of our plans were cancelled, and the black flies swarmed us, but it was exactly the kind of break we needed.

Our kids enjoyed unscheduled days playing basketball, dancing in the rain, and riding their bikes. We walked around Downtown Huntsville and visited cute shops, and had a cozy dinner on a dock overlooking the water at Boston Pizza.

We ate our meals with the camp staff because of our broken fridge, and it worked out perfectly because I didn’t have to cook. We read a lot because of the rain, and the quiet and rest was rejuvenating. In the evening we watched movies and spent time as a family with minimal disruptions.

We needed to take a breather from day-to-day life, and our midweek Muskoka vacation slowed down our pace of life and brought us all together. It left us feeling like we could tackle anything as soon as we returned.

On our way home we decided to stick to “Muskoka time”, and took six hours to get home.

We stopped at Tudhope Park in Orillia. The park is on Lake Couchiching, and has a new playground that the kids loved that overlooks the lake. Afterwards our oldest (who has newly removed her training wheels), rode her bike along a trail that winds through the lake and trees. We walked behind her enjoying the smell of fresh unspoiled air and the sounds of the birds.

We had lunch at Mariposa Market in Downtown Orillia, and tasted the most delicious meal in the old-fashioned cafe.

By the time we returned home we felt rested, and our hearts full of memories from our short trip, that we could hardly wait to return to our happy place.

The last few days I’ve noticed that the unhurried pace has returned home with us. We are spending late nights bike riding, reading more, and sitting together enjoying our time as a family.

Taking a breather and a short vacation allowed us to hit pause on our busy life, and reminded us that we don’t need to live in constant motion once we returned home.


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Brianna Bell

About the Author: Brianna Bell

Brianna Bell is a Guelph-based writer who focuses on events, small businesses, and community stories. In addition to GuelphToday, she has written for The Guelph Mercury and The Globe & Mail.
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