I did something
fabulous on Saturday morning.
I decided to
not use social media for the whole weekend.
I used my phone for that purpose
only –receiving phone calls and using the camera function. I wrote
about it here on Instagram and felt joy in that
others had commented, telling me that they too have phone or screen free days. It
was such a great thing to do, as one friend posted, we lose so much present
time and focus, being attached to our phones. Both my Husband and I made the
decision to switch off social media for the weekend, as we felt it wasn’t our
phone functions that we spent all of our time on, it was social media. So true
we were! I kept looking at my phone and wanting to pick it up, but then would
realise there is nothing to check/see/do – but be in the present moment and put
my phone down.
Read on to
see how we went with our social media disconnection experiment…
It was
amazing how many times I went to reach for my phone – sitting in the car
waiting in traffic, in the TV ads, when waiting for the kettle to boil, whilst
brushing my teeth (eeek I know, addicted!) and even when I was in the company
of family or friends. I was embarrassed, I couldn't believe how many times I would reach for it! Especially the teeth brushing part, please tell me you have
done this too?
Instead of reaching
for my phone I was present in the moment.
Present in
conversation.
Present in
my surrounds.
Present in
my thoughts.
Present in
my connections with others.
I loved it.
Instead, I
spent the day connecting with my Husband, having deep and meaningful
conversations, enjoying the environment around us and admiring life whilst
being present! It was bliss!
We decided
to go for a drive on Saturday, a bit of a foodie trail if you like.
We started
the day at Kirra on the beach with a beautiful vegan breakfast, then took the
windy drive through nearby Currumbin Valley, the cane fields of Murwillumbah to
reach our destination of lunch at Mavis’ Kitchen at the base of Mt Warning.
Have you been there before? It is a gorgeous old queenslander home, with great
big wrap around verandahs that is now used as a restaurant and function venue. They
grow a lot of their produce themselves, source it locally and lovingly serve
what is seasonal. So the menu is always changing with what is in season and
fresh. It is divine!
We enjoyed
the most beautiful slow cooked Greek lamb and tzatziki salad, chicken and root
vegetables from the garden and of course indulgent chocolate cake. I couldn’t
say no! I did intend to take a picture of my lunch to share with you the
delight of it, but I was too hungry and when halfway through, realised I had
missed the photo opportunity! Oops.
You can’t
leave without a walk through the grounds, to see the lake and cute geese and
marvel at the surrounding mountains. We were lucky to catch seeing a wedding reception
setup – a tepee by the lake, hay bales to rest on and of course fire pits to
warm by. It was so cute!
Back in the
car again, we looped in the Ford Kuga along the skinny one way bridges, coming
across a whole creek bed of stone towers someone creative had started. We
joined in, adding some stones and creating one of our own. It was such a sight
and the camera just didn’t capture how amazing it truly was – all these tiny
stones stacked on one another, even with a light breeze blowing!
I had taken a basket along with me for the drive, to fill with fruit and veges from the roadside stops. I love nothing more than supporting local farmers and buying fresh from the farm. The roadside farm I stopped at had been farming that area since the late 1800’s, pretty impressive. I stocked up on fresh citrus, pineapples, greens and sweet potatoes. I am so addicted to sweet potato at the moment, whether it be mashed, roasted, baked as chips…I can’t get enough!
It was such an enjoyable day, being disconnected from social media and so connected in the present moment and day. I couldn’t stop talking about the beautiful surrounding as we drove along the country roads. The sky was so blue and the clouds so fluffy and there was the lightest breeze which was nice as the Tweed Valley always gets hot (remember my post last weekend when I was there and it was 34 degrees?!)
Driving along the country roads was isolated at times and it was reassuring to know that the SYNC™ technology of the Ford Kuga MKll is there for you when you need it most. If you’re in an accident that deploys the airbags or activates the fuel pump shut off, Emergency Assistance uses your paired and in range mobile phone, to dial emergency services and provides them with your precise GPS coordinates. An amazing feature and some serious forward thinking from Ford.
There was a moment when I thought we might have needed it, we came around a corner and a car in front of us had just ran over what looked like a 2+ meter brown snake. I of course screamed, fearing that the snake would flick up from the car in front and by some freak aim, land on our cars roof and fall in through the full length panoramic sun roof (have you seen the size of it, its huge?!). Hubby of course was all cool, calm and collected and safely dodged the snake, saving us from impacting the snake and keeping us on the road. It was a little scary!
Funnily enough, when passing through a road alongside some cane fields we spotted another snake. This one very much intact and slithering quickly off the side of the road and into the long grass. It was just the day for it I guess.
It is always one step ahead of you with its driving capabilities and technology, leaving me to enjoy the most wonderful drive in the country and connect with my snake swerving, very talented driver of a Husband. So thank you Ford!
It was so nice to be in the moment, living and appreciating the present. I love getting back to nature and the day was truly fun (snakes and all!)! Disconnecting from social media is going to be a reoccurring thing in our household each weekend from now.
We loved it!
Do you have days where you have ‘timeout’ and disconnect from social media? Is it something you would try?
Do you enjoy drives in the country too? Do you have a foodie trail that you do on the weekends?
Nothing beats the feeling of fresh air and seeing the endless rolling hills does it?
Here is a little clip of how my day was spent.
Before I hand back the keys to Ford and give my lovely zippy Kuga MKll back, I must show you the handsfree active part assist that steers you into a parallel park. The first time I used it I was mindblown and I know you will be too. Keep an eye out on my Instagram, I'll be posting a clip of it there.
This post is part of the #FordThinking Kidspot Voices of 2015 Challenge. I have been very lucky to have the opportunity to drive and adventure in the brand spanking new Ford Kuga MKll for six weeks. I am loving it! You can read about my day trip where I visited The Farm at Byron Bay and my long weekend. Thanks Ford!
Linking up with Essentially Jess and #teamIBOT today
Linking up with Essentially Jess and #teamIBOT today
How beautiful is that homestead. OMG I would love to move to the country. I think it's good for the soul to disconnect from time to time.
ReplyDeleteGlad someone else appreciates an old restored Qld'er as much as me Mandy :) I so agree, we all need that time away to just think clearly and not be distracted. Hope you are having a wonderful day :)
DeleteSounds like a gorgeous day Ashlea, except for the snake part of course, yuck! I love the idea of the Kuga being able to shut down the fuel pump etc and contact emergency services, how reassuring!
ReplyDeleteI think I am still having nightmares about the snake - eeek! Yes the Kuga is amazing, so many gadgets and smart technology. It is so reassuring to drive x
DeleteI love taking time off from social media, and it's definitely easier when you are out exploring! It looks like you had a wonderful day. x
ReplyDeleteIt is such a distraction - especially when you have beautiful sights to see. I will most definitely be doing it more often! :)
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