Appreciating the beauty and opportunity

Since we moved over 3 years ago, I find myself occasionally missing the Lake Superior views I used to have for my runs. However, I've gained something pretty great too - an incredible network of paved pathways, connecting parks with neighborhoods with more parks and other neighborhoods. There's my favorite of all - a 4900 acre park reserve with miles and miles of trails both paved and unpaved. A nature center. A plethora of activities to do like skiing, snow tubing, disc golf, geocaching...An epic playground. A filtered swimming beach. Dozens of picnic sites and meeting spaces. It's a fantastic Park and definitely speaks to our outdoorsy, fitness loving culture. 

No...we don't have Lake Superior anymore. But we do have 7 small lakes right in the middle of our city Iimits. When we rented for the first year here, we were across the street from one. My regular running route went right between 2 lakes. Now that we bought a home here, we live across the street from yet another lake. 

I love living in a city filled with nice wide sidewalks and a constant stream of runners almost anywhere you go. I feel so lucky to live here!  Before we moved, I felt like I had to drive 10 minutes to get to a location I was comfortable running in. At least in my neighborhood, there was a lack of nice sidewalks. Other areas that would otherwise be spectacular running routes had a glaring lack of shoulders couples by being curvy and hilly - not so safe for a runner.  And sometimes I felt weird due to a lack of other runners. Now, I can just run out my door. There are nice sidewalks most places and if not, there are at least decent shoulders along the side. And - I'm almost guaranteed to see other runners (and walkers, and bikers) out and about. 

Everyone is different, with different preferences and priorities. I am blessed to have discovered what is right for me throughout these last few years, both before and after we moved. It's been a crazy transition...moving, my health-focused changes. But it's like a puzzle, and suddenly all the pieces just...fit. 

I am confident I would do whatever needed to force the pieces together regardless of where I live....my health and future depend on it. But it's nice to have found a perfect fit so that I'm less likely to fall back into old habits. 

I leave you with some pretty scenery! You'd never guess it's "the cities". 

What do you love about where YOU live?!