Water has a way of finding us wherever we are in the world. Sometimes it is as simple as a cold glass of water when we wake up, that first satisfying sip of sparkling water with supper, or a warm shower that washes away the dust, sweat and worries of the day. Other times, it is standing beside a waterfall, listening to a brook babble over the rocks, watching rain dance against a window or sitting quietly as ocean waves roll onto the shore. Water isn’t just something we need to survive; it is something we experience with our whole being.

🌬️ Mindful Find: A Little Breeze Goes a Long Way

A little breeze, wherever you go.

Ever find yourself on a plane wishing someone would turn up the air conditioning? Or sitting somewhere warm, waiting for just a little breeze to make things more comfortable? This week’s Mindful Find is a mini fan that attaches right to your phone!

These little gadgets are small, lightweight, and easy to tuck into your travel bag or purse. Plug one into your phone’s charging port (or connect it, depending on the model), and you have a personal breeze whenever you need one. They’re perfect for stuffy airplane cabins, hot travel days, waiting in line, or simply cooling off when the temperature gets the better of you.

What if we believed that the world could be a little better because of the choices we make each day? That’s the heart of meliorism, the belief that while the world may not be perfect, our actions have the power to make it better. It’s a lovely reminder that we don’t have to solve every problem, change every mind, or have all the answers to make a difference. Sometimes, it’s as simple as offering a kind word to someone having a difficult day, lending a hand without being asked, choosing patience when frustration would be easier, or leaving a place just a little better than we found it.

October 19: Stretch Before You Soar

There is more to preparing for a flight than checking in, packing a suitcase and making sure we haven’t forgotten our passports. Sometimes, the best preparation happens before we even leave home. For us, a hot yoga class can be a wonderful way to shift into travel mode, giving us time to stretch, breathe and reconnect with ourselves before settling into hours of airport queues and cramped airplane seats.

There’s something special about the moment a place you love begins to feel even more like home. Receiving our Mexican residency is about so much more than paperwork, appointments, and official stamps. It’s a feeling of being welcomed, a sense of belonging, and another step toward embracing the life we’ve come to love in Puerto Vallarta. When you spend half your year somewhere, build friendships, discover favourite places, and become part of a community, it starts to feel like more than a destination. It becomes part of your story.

There is something special about returning to a place that has become part of your story. For us, Puerto Vallarta is so much more than a destination on a map or a place to escape the Canadian winter. It is a place where familiar faces bring instant smiles, favourite restaurants welcome us back, and the rhythm of everyday life feels wonderfully familiar. We may arrive with suitcases in hand, but before long, it feels as though we never left.

This is Part 3 of our Canadian travel health insurance series. In Part 2 — Choosing Travel Medical Insurance, we compared policy features. Now we need to talk about the single most common reason travel insurance claims get denied: pre-existing conditions.

If you take medication for blood pressure, have had a heart stent, are being monitored for diabetes, or have seen a doctor about anything in the months before your trip, this post is for you. Getting this wrong can mean your entire policy is void.

There’s something special about the people we meet while travelling. Sometimes a flight is simply a flight, filled with a few pleasantries, a smile, and perhaps a polite nod before everyone settles into their own little world. Other times, something unexpected happens. You meet someone, exchange a few words, and before you know it, you’re completely immersed in conversation, sharing stories, experiences, dreams, and perspectives as though you’ve known each other for years. You glance at the clock and wonder, Where did the time go? On a long flight, when you’re lucky enough to meet someone who fills your bucket, lifts your spirits, and leaves you feeling inspired, it’s a gift.

One of the greatest gifts of travelling and spending time in a place we love is discovering that, somewhere along the way, friends begin to feel like family. It’s not always the big gestures that make the biggest difference; often, it’s the people who show up before you even have to ask. The ones who offer to pick you up at the airport, help you get settled back in, take care of things while you’re away, and somehow manage to welcome you home with gifts, surprises, and so much love that you can’t help but feel incredibly lucky.

Today, we celebrate one of our greatest gifts in life, our son! On your birthday, we hope you know just how incredibly proud we are of you, not only for what you do, but for the person you have become.

Watching you build a life in Korea, teaching, taking risks, stepping outside your comfort zone, and opening yourself up to new people and experiences fills our hearts with pride. It takes courage to follow a path that leads you far from home, and you continue to show us that some of life’s greatest adventures begin when we are willing to take that leap.

There is more to preparing for a flight than checking in, packing a suitcase and making sure we haven’t forgotten our passports. Sometimes, the best preparation happens before we even leave home. For us, a hot yoga class can be a wonderful way to shift into travel mode, giving us time to stretch, breathe and reconnect with ourselves before settling into hours of airport queues and cramped airplane seats.

The gentle movements of yoga help us work on flexibility, mobility and body awareness, while the focus on breathing gives us a chance to quiet the mental chatter that often accompanies travel days. Instead of rushing through a thousand last-minute details, we can take an hour to slow down, release some tension and remind ourselves that the journey is part of the adventure, too.

🧳 This Week’s Mindful Find: Thule Luggage

Pack smart, travel far.

There is something exciting about a suitcase waiting to be packed. It represents possibilities, new destinations, reunions with friends, long awaited adventures and the freedom to discover what lies beyond our everyday routines. If you travel as much as we do, you quickly learn that the right luggage can make a difference between a smooth journey and one that leaves you wrestling with zippers in the middle of an airport!

There’s a certain excitement that starts long before the plane takes off.

The bags come out. The summer clothes make their way to the front of the closet. You start counting down the days.

Then there’s that wonderful feeling:

We’re going back to Puerto Vallarta!

Not just going on vacation.

Going home to a place that has become part of us.

There are friends waiting to be hugged, familiar faces around town, favourite places to visit and, inevitably, someone who will say, “Oh, you have to try this new place!”

October 12: Thanksgiving: The Gift of Being Together

Thanksgiving has a beautiful way of reminding us that some of life’s greatest blessings cannot be wrapped, bought, or placed on a wish list. They gather around our tables, fill our kitchens with laughter, and turn an ordinary afternoon into a memory we will carry long after the dishes are done.

There is something special about having family together. The conversations that wander from one topic to another, the stories we have heard a hundred times but still love to tell, the teasing, the belly laughs, and the simple comfort of being in one another’s company. Sometimes it is the smallest moments that mean the most: an extra glass of wine, helping prepare the meal, sneaking a taste before supper, or lingering at the table because nobody is quite ready to leave.

We often think of travel as the destination, but sometimes the journey gives us unexpected opportunities to explore places we never planned to visit. On our recent trip home to Puerto Vallarta, we had a layover in Vancouver, and rather than treating it as simply another stop between where we had been and where we were going, we decided to make the most of the time we had.

What does one do with a few hours in a new city? Perhaps it means stepping outside the airport, finding a little café, wandering along the waterfront, exploring a neighbourhood, enjoying a local meal, or simply sitting with a coffee and watching the world go by. You might discover a beautiful view, stumble upon something unexpected, or collect a small memory from a place that wasn’t even on your itinerary. Of course, it also means keeping an eye on the clock so that your little adventure doesn’t become a missed flight story!