walking lightly ranch | whitefish, montana!

I wanted to share with you Montana's best kept secret, The Walking Lightly Ranch in Whitefish, Montana!. I discovered was a wondrous, ethereal retreat located on 400 acres, almost "off-the-grid" in northwestern Montana by accident – thank you Google!

INCREDIBLE EXPERIENCE AND ONLY $16! KEEP READING! 

Sunday night I attended an incredible yoga class followed by a delectable "raw" vegan gourmet dinner. Every Sunday night, until the end of the month (this Sunday is the last one!), Walking Lightly Ranch hosts a "Community yoga class followed by a gourmet vegan dinner" all for ONLY $16. It sounded like a wonderful experience, but I was definitely skeptical. I've never eaten a "raw" meal before, and I truly didn't think I would enjoy it. Boy was I wrong! I had no idea "uncooked" food could be so delicious. I've definitely been ignorant and myopic in my thinking in terms of "raw". I was picturing a diet full of sushi and cold vegetables. Don't get me wrong, I LOVE sushi and love my veggies, but just not every day all day. I know, I'm a moron. I never said I was smart. 

If you're in the area and free this Sunday, I implore you to go! You will thank me, I promise! The atmosphere is tender and magical and the food is incredible. I can't imagine how divine their full retreats must be! 

PLEASE pass this along to any yoga instructors you know as well!. Interested yoga instructors are invited out for a "site visit" to potentially run their own weekend retreat, with accommodations and all gourmet meals provided by Walking Lightly! I can't believe how rewarding the experience must be for everyone!

Please go to their website to learn more about their philosophy, their retreats and their resident beaver! How to walk lightly

This is their yoga studio (and their picture). I took it off their website. I like the way it looks with the mats set up! :)

My heart is completely shattered and broken. RIP Madison :(

I woke up to the gentle tingle of a tired, happy, little puppy kissing my face. I think it was Lulu's way of saying "thank you" for making her feel better. I could hear her stomach rumble throughout the night and she let out the occasional burp (which was hilarious), but she is on the mends.

It's now 6:30am. I glanced over at my phone and saw a "missed call". It was my father. My dad is planning to visit me in Bozeman so we can do Yellowstone together, but it's so early. I assumed he just had question regarding his flight. He didn't.

Madison (pictured below) is my beloved lab, shepherd, wild, neurotic, clumsy dingo mutt. I found her flea infested, broken and beaten almost 15 years ago. Barely able to move, but hungry to be loved, Madison peaked out from under a car and locked eyes with me on a beautiful, crisp autumn morning. With her tail wagging and eyes full of hope, she crept toward me. That was it. I melted. She found a home. 

My father had called to tell me that doggie dementia had set in and her kidneys had shut down. She needed to be put down, today. He was calling to ask my "permission". I never wanted to accept this day would come and more so, I am completely devastated to be so far away. My heart is sore and broken that I can't be there with to hold her frail body when she goes. I knew this inevitable moment would come but deep down I was praying she would just "go" in her sleep. Somehow I thought that would be easier. I am thankful she has my father, but wish my little sister, Jessica, were there with her too. My dad and sister gave her a home on his 6 acres when I moved to NYC five years ago. We tried, but she HATED the city. My soul was fractured, but I knew she needed to live in the country. She would be loved and run free. Madison has been there for me through some of the most incredible and challenging times of my life. I have countless stories. If you have ever had a dog, you understand.  

I had to call Joyce at East Shore Animal Hospital and give my OK. Hearing Joyce's voice triggered a complete melt down. I could barely get the words out. Joyce was there the day I found Maddie. I walked in the animal hospital with a blonde, mangle-haired, helpless puppy in my arms on the morning of September 23, 1996. I handed her to Joyce and said please do whatever you need to fix her and give her back when she's better. Funny part of this story is that I "almost" didn't land an incredible job because I was on my way to my "second" interview when I found her (I missed it!). I called the owner of the company and said, "I'm so incredibly sorry but I can't make the interview. I just found a dog and she NEEDS me. I REALLY want the job, so can I PLEASE reschedule?" He let me reschedule and he hired me. Thanks, Kerry.

Madison will be cremated and my father will fly her ashes to me, so I can say goodbye. My head is sore and my eyes are swollen from sobbing. I didn't realize it would hurt this bad. 

Lulu is OK, thankfully and we dodged a BEAR!

Thanks for the kind Lulu thoughts!! Picture the worst "bug" you've ever had, then picture that happening to a 10.5 lb chihuahua, with huge brown, watery "baby seal" eyes. This broke me. I've had dogs my whole life and I have truly never witnessed anything so awful. She was VIOLENTLY ill. I was definitely worried it was something bad. Even this morning we took a very quick ride to do an important errand right before the vet, and she vomited like poltergeist all over my new "camping" friend's car! Sorry Lyle! We had to pull over to take care of other business too. TMI, I know. 

Our night was hell to say the least, but to make matters worse (and I SWEAR I'm not exaggerating), a BEAR showed up "bumping" my teardrop at 4:30 am and again at about 5:30. I've had sleepless nights before but this was OUTRAGEOUS! My little camper was actually rocking. I googled "sunrise" in Whitefish, then began counting down the minutes (7:21am). If I was ever gonna take xanax in my life, last night would have been the night to start! We had been going outside every half hour since 2am, and we were out there right before we heard him! I was told by the manager here that there has been a black bear lurking around. Thanks for telling me now!!! And of course when I stopped at a cafe in downtown Whitefish today for a cup of hot soup and the paper, I couldn't help but notice the headline... "5 Grizzlies caught in 7 days", and all relatively close by! Iy yiy yiy

I've taken all of the necessary precautions and I'm feeling safe right now (so mom, don't freak out). I also have a large bottle of wine in the camper to help with the anxiety :).  Lulu is doing well.  She's on 2 different antibiotics and no food until tomorrow night. She is not going to be a happy camper! He doesn't even want her drinking water! (I found that odd because I was worried about dehydration, but he said no). If she gets sick tonight, I'm throwing that dog's #ss in the car and we're hightailing it to a very well lit shopping plaza so she can do her business there!!

One very important thing I learned last night... my camper IS BEAR PROOF! :)

hi! just a quick update...

I've experienced some incredible yoga over the past couple of days here in Whitefish, but those posts will have to wait. My little baby Lulu is the sickest she's ever been. At the vet now!!! Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

kalispell, montana | 5k "a run through history"

As I rolled into Kalispell this morning, I couldn't help but notice the semi-organized group of runners stretching, chatting and lingering about. I decided to head over for a closer look. Low and behold, they were about to embark on Kalispell's 1st annual 5K run to benefit the Downtown Improvement Project. Only $20 and it doesn't even start til 11:30 -- I'm early! They let me register on the spot. I haven't worn my running sneakers in 2-1/2 months but I knew I had them somewhere! Nice thing about traveling with a camper – you have everything with you – sort of! Still amazing how I seem to still lose so much stuff, or as I like to call it, "temporarily misplace"! I was like Superman ducking into a phone booth to change, except my "phone booth" is a camper (about the size of phone booth). I did a quick houdini switch into my running gear and I was ready to go! Funny moment, especially for the people watching!

I didn't do very well (10:27/M), but it doesn't matter at all because it wasn't about my "time". I had a blast, and I got a great little tour of downtown Kalispell! Note to self, take off beaded anklet before running next time! ooowwww

The essence of pleasure is spontaneity! ~ Germaine Greer

Me, post race! VERY chilly!! Nearby Browning, MT already got 4" of snow yesterday morning! Nothing like a "brisk" run to wake your #ss up!!

Gotta love a race that's sponsored by a beer company! That's the way we roll in Montana!! haha

 

another great day in glacier!

SUPER FUN DAY whitewater rafting, but unfortunately I don't have any good actions shots to share! Really hard to paddle and take pictures (believe me I tried!) haha! 

Here's a shot of Lake McDonald I took yesterday on my way to Avalanche trail for some hiking. REALLY trying hard to improve my photography skills. I feel like I'm getting better, but I still have SO MUCH to learn! I like this one. :)

this is not healthy!

But it's gonna be good!! Heading out white water rafting in Glacier shortly! It's stormy, rainy and cold here so I figured I'd "insulate" with a very hearty, very bad for you breakfast! I couldn't decide between the poached eggs and hash browns or the blueberry pancake and bacon, so I ordered all of it!! Other than partaking in an "end of the season all-u-can-eat" pancake breakfast in a South Dakota campground, this is the first time I'm eating (breakfast) "out"! I figured I'd better make it count! I've been a very healthy, organic oatmeal eating hermit! I think the orange slice is a very nice, healthy touch. :) Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry

yoga on the bank of lake mcdonald | glacier national park

glacier national park | montana

Life's not the breaths you take, but the moments that take your breath away. ~anonymous

Here we are on the St. Mary side of Glacier. We entered through West Glacier. This is after 10 hours in the park and we still needed to drive back west! Amazing day, but a little tired!! 

Morning midst lifting off Lake McDonald

yo-da-le-he-hoooo

This is our friendly neighborhood yellow-bellied Glacier marmot. Let's name him Gus. 

glacier national park | we're going-to-the-sun !

That's us driving on the the "going-to-the-sun" highway in Glacier Nat'l Park! Can't belive I'm here!! :) :) :) Sent from my Verizon Wireless BlackBerry