Wednesday 1 August 2018

July in a nutshell

Greetings! July started with our national holiday and celebration of Canada's 151st birthday on July 1. I continued the fun-filled month with a family vacation and meeting with our friends in Quebec City. We had a terrific time and hot summer weather, a record-breaking heat wave, the entire week. Upon returning home, I enjoyed a socially active month, at an easy going pace, and with plenty of time spent outdoors.

Without further ado, here's my July in a nutshell:

FITNESS - I give myself a pat on the back for completing all my planned fitness activities in July. I did a combo of different activities every day to keep it fresh for me such as walking, meditation, workouts in the gym with weights, yoga, running 5K, and gentle stretches. The hotel where we stayed in Quebec City has a gym with views of the city and the surrounding mountain range. They also offer cold face towels and cold spring water which were well received during the heat wave. Quebec City is hilly so that added a new, short-term challenge that I enjoyed as well. The vibrant colours in the summer from clear blue skies, to green trees, and flowers everywhere, make it easy to be active and outdoorsy.


ENTERTAINMENT - Two or three seems to be the magic number for each of the four entertainment types that I enjoyed in July:
  • 2 visits to the outdoor farmers' markets
  • 2 outdoor music performances by Jordan John and Sol de Cuba
  • 3 outdoor summer festivals (Festival d'Été de Quebec in Quebec City, Barbados on the Water festival, and Brave festival in Toronto)
  • 2 movies (a comedy I Feel Pretty starring Amy Schumer and a thriller Beirut starring Jon Hamm and Rosamund Pike)

Berries at farmers' market

ARTS - It's summer time where I live so the local parks, gardens, and the lake are lovely and lively natural art scenes. I enjoyed sitting in the shade and watching nature. For example, I watched two butterflies and several bees going from flower to flower at a park while listening to the sound of water from a nearby fountain, and feeling the light summer breeze on a sunny day.

I also enjoyed an abundance of high quality 'human-made' art in July. I captured my highlights and photos in the following posts:

King \ ST art installation

SOCIAL - Sharing meals was a theme in July for me. We ate out with friends in Quebec City. I had a lunch date with one of my friends at a new-to-me sushi restaurant in Toronto.

Blogging-wise, I wrote seven posts on my blog in July and replied to all comments. I also enjoyed reading several other blogs and shared my comments.

Sushi  and maki rolls at Gonoe Sushi

TRAVEL- I had a terrific time in Quebec City and wrote about my trip here. I already booked my trip to Paris, France in August. Since I've been to Paris before, I'm thinking to add a side trip from Paris to somewhere that is new to me. A new adventure awaits!

Porte Saint-Louis, Quebec City

Overall, July was an excellent month for me. I look forward to enjoying the rest of the summer, making more progress to my summer fun list and savouring my time in France in August.

How was July for you? What good things happened? I'd love to hear your comments.


26 comments:

  1. You had a fabulous July. I'm a farmers market nut & buy each Saturday all year round - the beauty of living in the sub-tropics, I guess. It's the middle of winter and berry season for us - the summer is too humid for them.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Farmers' market year round is fabulous, Jo. Here we have from late May to early October.

      Delete
  2. Another great month for you Natalie and also with plenty of balance - fitness, travel, social and entertainment. Perfect! Wishing you a fabulous August!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Sue. August is off to a good start so far :) Wishing you a fabulous August, too.

      Delete
  3. What a fabulous month you've had. I love how you make sure to get a balance of all aspects of what makes life healthy and joyful! :-) #TeamLovinLife

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you, Min, for your kind words. I do my best to stay healthy and enjoy life.

      Delete
  4. It sounds like you had a lovely month! I love that it sounds balanced as well and I envy that about your motivation and commitment to travel, outings, exercise etc...

    I tend to be a bit 'all or nothing'. Work's been a nightmare so I've not really wanted to do anything in my off-time though I have done some babysitting and caught up with friends etc, so really can't complain! #teamlovinlife

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. When work is a nightmare, it's hard. I'm glad you caught up with friends, etc. I'm motivated to do more of what makes me happy. Thanks, Deborah, for stopping by.

      Delete
  5. I love France, especially Paris and so Quebec has always appealed to me. I also love farmers markets. Sounds like you've had a great month! xx

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thanks, Maria, for your visit and comment. Paris and France in general have so much to offer, one can always return again and again.

      Delete
  6. Quebec City would be wonderful in Summer. I visited here in 2004 in Spring, but there was still a lot of snow around. My July was full of lots of social outings, like a Hen's Party, a 60th birthday dinner and live music concert. #LovinLifeTeam

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Sounds like you had a fun-filled July, Kathy. Thank you for stopping by and happy August!

      Delete
  7. Quebec City sounds lovely! Will be interested to see where you go in addition to Paris.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm thinking of Strasbourg. Will see once I arrive in Paris. Thanks, Gail, for stopping by.

      Delete
  8. You have such a great month and then planning Paris---how fun!! I think that sometimes the planning is almost as much fun as the doing!!
    XOXO
    Jodie
    www.jtouchofstyle.com

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's the anticipation of something wonderful is going to happen :) Thank you, Jodie, for stopping by.

      Delete
  9. What a wonderful place is Quebec City. Beautiful. #TeamLovinLife

    ReplyDelete
  10. We visited Quebec City several years ago and loved it. We felt as if we were in a European city... without the jetlag! July sounds like it was a lovely month for you, Jude. Happy August!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Exactly, Janis. Quebec City is so Europe and so close for me without leaving Canada. Sounds like you had a terrific July, too. Happy August!

      Delete
  11. Hi, Natalie - I am incredibly impressed that you managed to pack so much into July...and blog regularly as well! Your time management, and abilities to prioritize, are exceptional. I'm interested to hear where you finally to go as a side trip to Paris. Bruges? Mont St. Michel? Or somewhere further afield? Please keep us posted.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Oh, thank you, Donna, for your kind words. I love Bruges and Mont St Michel but one of my criteria is to go somewhere new to me so we shall see.

      Delete
  12. When I read your posts, I am reminded that I need to wrangle my PC to go explore our newest farmer's market. Wish I could persuade him to eat sushi, too, while I am at it. Enjoy it so but rarely have it as he prefers meat and potatoes. BOR-ING!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. It's fun to go to the farmers' market. I hope you get to do it soon with your PC. You made me laugh with your last sentence. We can go have sushi when we meet IRL one day. Thank you for stopping by.

      Delete
  13. Replies
    1. July was great, Leanne. Thank you for stopping by and commenting. I greatly appreciate it.

      Delete