The Hike....

So we are at night 3 of 4 of our Anniversary trip.  It has given me so much time to reflect.  DH keeps on asking if I'm having fun because I keep on having these bits of time where I get quite & I get inside my head. I start thinking about where I am not.  I had such grand plans for our 10 year anniversary.  I had fantasized about what I would look like and where I would be w/ out finances & my job.

Anyways, the first & last time we were here at Cannon Beach was for our honeymoon and being the good Christian kids were are we kept everything in our pants until our wedding night. SO we didn't see much of the sites while we were here we were in our room quite a bit. ;-) So I did some research & decided we would go on a small hike to see some "breathtaking views of the coastline"  So we get to the Clatsop loop trail. Then read the description to see it says that this hike is a 3 mile steep incline w/ an elevation gain of 800 feet. O_O  I wanted to see these views so I said lets go but I am going to need to take my time, DH was totally supportive and on board. So we start up the gravel road. And it keeps going up and up and UP!!  I mean really?!?!  It is hard to tell but her is the pic of me looking up the steep incline.

So you can see a man on the trail & he is like way up there and this may look level but it isn't it is super steep.  I was huffing & puffing the whole way.  I found that every time I looked at how steep the hill was, I would panic. I would have to stop & reset, psych myself up and start again.  This happened quite a few times and then I found that if I just focused on my feet & the steps I was taking I would calm down & be able to concentrate on my breathing and just what I was doing not be overwhelmed by what I still had to do.  Then I realized no matter how much of a big picture thinker I am, meaning I can visualize my end result for example; being at my goal weight.  When I look at it and see what I have to do to get there. I get over whelmed and stop/quit.  But if I just focus on the immediate step I am taking I will get there and it'll be easier.  So I need to think of goals even smaller than I am used to, like not just daily but maybe even by noon & by bed time.  This will not be easy for me but I really know that this is the way I need to proceed. I thanked God for giving me this simple yet effective visual.  We completed the whole loop.  I made it, DH said he was so proud of me and I told him I felt kind of stupid cause of how long it took and I hard it was for me. (I am so sore I am having problems sleeping) He said so what you still did more than everyone sitting on the beach.  Here are some of those views and sights we got to see during this possibly life changing hike.