My Inspiration

**Written in 2007**
MY INSPIRATION
The person who is my biggest inspiration would be my little girl, even though she is not quite 2 years old she is a big influence on me.
I had always dreamed on becoming a mother at some point in my life, but never in a million years did I think that at the age of 24 I would become one. On July 2 2006, I gave birth to the most important person in my life. That night at 8:46 p.m. my life changed forever. She was a beautiful 8 lbs 7 oz and 19 inches long. She had the most perfect fingers and toes, the chubbiest little cheeks and the bluest eyes I had ever seen and well she looked just like I did when I was a baby, so needless to say she was gorgeous. She was perfect in every way.


When she was only about 5 weeks old I had to return to work. At that time I was working all night shifts because she was too small to go to a daycare. My mother at the time was a student at CompuCollege and after she was done of classes she would come take Kailyn so that I could get some sleep before I had to go back to work for the night. After about a year of working 12 hour night shifts and weekends I realized that I had missed out on a lot of Kailyn's firsts. Mommy was really tired and even though I loved my daughter with all of my heart I felt as though both of us were missing out on all the fun we should have had. I knew that I had to do something positive with my life for her. I am determined to give her the best possible life. One that is full of laughter and encouragement. I decided to do a complete career change and went from a dispatcher to an infant teacher at Little Wonders Child Care Centre. I spent over 8 hours a day playing with all the infants at the daycare laughing, playing, dancing and singing. These were the things that I wanted to be doing with my daughter. Don’t get me wrong I still did this with her but not as much as I had wanted to, after supper, bath, and house work there was little time for play. Seeing those innocent big blue eyes light up when we did play was my inspiration to become somebody. I wanted a career, a house, and a better pay check. She was my inspiration to return to school and become somebody.


When school and life get tough and hard to deal with, seeing her seems to make everything fade away. Her tiny arms wrapped around my neck and her sweet little kisses let me know that I am making the right decision. I know that she looks up to me and I am her inspiration right now, but what she doesn’t know, is that she is mine. She pushes me to succeed in everything that I do in life. When I feel like I can’t, just looking at her lets me know that I can.

Her fearlessness pushes me to try new things and if I fall I just get back up.

Joey's Deep Sea Fishing (30 Before 30 extension)

My Deep Sea Fishing Adventure

As you may recall, I had a 30 before 30 bucket list on the go.  Some items didn't get completed before I ran out of time, but I am going to complete my list!!

Fishing was an item, and I figure go big or go home.  I went Deep Sea Fishing!  Yes, on a boat......I don't like boats........

It was beyond a fantastic day.  Hot Hot Hot day!! The sun was just shining and no clouds, the water was just like a mirror, so calm. 

I took my dad with me, he LOVES boats and was excited when I extended the invite.  He was just like a little kid.  I am sure he was itching to ask the captain of the "Reel Upgrade" if he could drive.  He was grinning ear to ear and loving it.

We sailed out, and found a spot to drop in the old fishing line.  It was a rush.  As soon as we dropped the line in there were bites.  It was awesome!!  That's when the competition started!! I had a 4 - 0 lead....But just like the Leafs and Boston....I blew it.  Dad quickly caught up and passed me with a 4 - 6 in his favor......the rest was a blur, we were reeling in mackerel left right and center.   I caught up, but just as I did he would pull in some more!  

 

The last few seconds of the game we ended at 11 - 13 for dad.  Grrr.....No way I would ever live this one down.  Just as the Captain said "Reel it in, we are going to change locations", I managed to pull in 2 more fish making it a tie game. 

 

We sailed out a little further to try to catch some cod.  Right off the bat, dad caught 3......hahahaha However, they needed to be a min of 20 cm in length or we had to throw them back.  Tehehehe All 3 were under the 20 cm mark.  I giggled a little as I felt a tug on my line.  Laughing as I was reeling it in.....My cod was just at the 20 cm minimum and was a keeper!  His other 3 didn't count! They had to make it into the boat!!  

It was a slow day for cod fish!  I was the only one who caught one worth keeping.  There were a few "Ugly Fish" caught, and they were creepy looking.

It was an amazing day, the crew and staff were beyond!!!  Very knowledgeable and gave some great information about fishing, and the island as we sailed out.   They were more then helpful!  I didn't even have to bait my hook!  They even fillet the fish and cleaned them, bagged them for us to take home at no extra charge.  The owner Joey was right there when we got back in, and gave me some tips on how to cook the mackerel and explained in detail how to cook it and how to tell when it is finished.  I took his advice and grilled my fillets with some steak seasoning, and it was so yummy!!

If you are ever in the Rustico area, you need to check it out!! Joey's Deep Sea Fishing, they will go above and beyond to make sure you have the best experience.  And once you get back, you can sit out on the deck and enjoy one of the most delicious fish and chips!  I will be back for more, that is for sure!!!

I think this was probably one of the best and most memorable items on my 30 before 30 that I have done!
 http://www.joeysfishing.com