hasta luego and some kayaking

I'm finally getting around to updating my blog. We started out last weekend with a pretty good adventure. You can read about that somewhere else on my blog. I wanted to continue the recount of the weekend adventure here.

We first ended up hooking up with my sister and family. We played it low key and met at a park in Laguna. I only know it as Dinosaur or Prehistoric Park because it has dinosaur fossils and bones to play on.

Laura, Mike and Liz

Bailey and Liz, two peas in a pod

It was awesome catching up with them, they're always fun. And I was able to practice my Spanish on Mike. And we might have even planned the world's first Fowler Reunion for next year. I'll let you know next year.

The next morning, Liz and I woke up and decided that we were going to go kayaking. So we cruised down to the local kayak rental joint, picked up a two person rig, and started paddling down the boat lanes in Newport/Balboa Beach. It was a blast, and Liz pretty much paddled the whole way for me.

Liz revving up in her kayak

Me and my most beautiful wife

Again, me and my most beautiful wife

The homes down there really put me in a want-y mood. Hopefully, next weekend we get to test out the two new ocean fishing rods that I was given. I've always wanted to fish from the beach/reef and now we get to! Stay tuned.

Read More

the beginning of a labor day weekend

Since I've returned home from my backpacking trip last weekend, I've not wanted to do anything with anyone except that my wife, Liz, was there with me. So when the weekend started for Labor Day (long weekend!) I made sure she was there with me. We woke up Saturday morning and decided to go for a bike ride down the Santa Ana River Trail that leads directly to the PCH and Huntington/Newport Beaches. With Liz on her beach cruiser and myself on my Kona, we took off for a nice 1.5 hour leisurely bike ride through landscapes where we'd not been before.

Liz and her wonderfully girly bike

Liz beating me on the way home

Cute as a button

Oh no! Caution.

This cool bridge that we passed over

We took a small break at the far end of the trail on the beach for some photos, and noticed a large section of the beach on the Newport side of the river outlet where hordes of dogs were playing. I'm going to have to check this out later because we get tired of taking Simba and Bella so far up the beach to Dog Beach.

Practicing to be a wind mill

Staring intently at the other dogs, wishing ours were here

Once returning home, we did a few odds and ends, and ended up later that night going to the Irvine Spectrum for some shopping and vegan meals. You see, Liz is vegan right now. It's not a permanent thing, so I shouldn't say she's vegan. But she's practicing vegan-ism now to gain some vegan super powers for about a month. We just kind of strolled around, holding hands, and pretended it was Disneyland (we haven't renewed our annual passes yet).

Later that night, we hung out with our good friend Bruce and went hot tubbing, watched Firefly, and played the Trouble board game. It sounds pretty mundane when I write about it here, but it was a day I'll remember. As long as I get to be with Liz lately, that's all I care about. After all, she is the Most Beautiful Girl in the World!

Liz and our good friend, Bruce

Read More

some spiritual and physical inspiration

So lately I've needed some more inspiration in spirituality and fitness. It's kind of weird that they get mentioned in the same post. But at this point, what motivates me for one, motivates me for the other.

So quicker than I could reason out why, I picked up a heavy pen and marked down my two favorite scriptures on my gym shoes today. Picture below.

It may be tough to actually see what the writing says on the front most silver stripes, so allow me to tell you. The left one says 1 Corinthians 9:24-26 and the right one says Alma 48:17.

S'ok if you're no scripture mastery guru, because I'm quoting them below. Just understand that they motivate me to progress spiritually and physically, at the time.

1 Corinthians 9:24-26

²⁴ Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain.
²⁵ And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible.
²⁶ I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air.

Alma 48:17

¹⁷ Yea, verily, verily I say unto you, if all men had been, and were, and ever would be, like unto Moroni, behold, the very powers of hell would have been shaken forever; yea, the devil would never have power over the hearts of the children of men.

Read More