Category Archives: family

aquarium…

01 Saturday Feb 2020

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had the best time watching the videos we took when we were in Maui…

gave the card, from the GoPro we rented, to my daughter when we came home and just got my copy when I was in Ottawa…

spent quite some time trying to get photos from the videos and eventually found the option to save a single frame as a picture;-)… that was entertaining…

the smile on my face says it all… snorkelling was such fun and being in the giant aquarium with the fish and turtles was amazing;-)…

such a lovely reminder of the wonderful time we had in and under the water…

also, there were photos that my daughter took of me on the stand-up paddle board…

need to spend a bit more time working on balance…

such wonderful memories;-)…

composting…

23 Thursday Jan 2020

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I’ve been trying to be a little more caring of the planet…

while in Ottawa I was reminded of their recycling programs…

garbage is only put out every second week and cardboard and other recyclables are collected on the other… composting happens every week…

my daughter has been green for many years and she is an example for me to follow…

she has been composting and using cloth (not paper) towels for years… hers snap together and roll up like regular paper towels…

I am going to stop using paper towels… I’ve watched a few programs recommending ways to accomplish this… going to give it a try…

I’ve gathered some face clothes and dish towels that weren’t being used much… I have the clean ones on top of the microwave, ones I am still using on the counter, and a bin for the ones ready to be laundered…

already I can see that I am reusing them more even before putting them into the bin…

saje…

19 Sunday Jan 2020

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actually went outside for the first time in at least a week…

walked to the “A” and met my grandson for breakfast… had a lovely meal and conversation…

from there we headed out to do some errands… bought some rollers at Saje… been trying to get there since I got back from Ottawa… picked up Sleep Well, Peppermint Halo and Pain Relief… I used the first two while I was away and will give the third one a try for some of the pain I’ve been experiencing in my knee…

was able to replace a Google Hub to get the correct colour… it was one of my Christmas gifts… but I did see a Lenovo Smart Display 10″ with Google Assistant… going to look into that a bit more in case it would do more of what I want than the Hub…

Indi finally had a bath and a few groceries were purchased, including a cute new plate…

I have been enjoying using different plates to eat from and I think this one will be a great addition…

home, put away the groceries and my grandson took the car… the plan was that he would come back tomorrow for dinner…

then it was afternoon nap time, lol…

signing…

18 Saturday Jan 2020

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recently I spent an hour with my finance guy signing what felt like a million papers… felt sorry for all the trees we destroyed…

complicated business to start collecting locked in RSP money… of course I didn’t remember to take a pic of the very large pile of papers that were taken away, lol…

these are just a few of the ones that were left for me…

good thing he understands this stuff and can explain it so well…

I will be thanking my beloved every day as the reason I am able to retire is due to his pension which came directly to me on his death…

sauté…

14 Tuesday Jan 2020

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a few days ago, after doing a lot of research, including a conversation with my Ottawa kids, I went out and picked up a wifi Instant Pot…

I decided to cook a whole frozen chicken… it didn’t go quite as well as hoped, but eventually the chicken was cooked… I boiled some potatoes to go along with it as they had gotten a bit soft and were growing eyes while I was away, lol…

yesterday the wifi connected rather easily… now I can turn it on, off, or give it directions from my phone, lol…

my grandson and I plan to have dinner together on Monday evenings as he will be using my car on Tuesdays for the next while… we’ve decided to try Instant Pot recipes every week…

last night we made chicken thighs with baby potatoes… next time I’d use a bit less liquid, but it was tasty and moist… and we had fun using the sauté option on the Pot;-)…

today I picked up a recipe book as it didn’t come with one… eventually we should be able to find recipes online but this Instant Pot Bible is going to be helpful as we learn more…

looking forward to some fun dinners…

insta…

12 Sunday Jan 2020

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I’ve seen lots of ads for the Instant Pot, but felt that I didn’t need another appliance in the kitchen…

and now that I’m retired I have all day to prepare food…

but… my daughter showed me hers and told me all the things it can do which made me think about it more seriously…

apparently, it could replace my egg cooker (which is currently not working), be a rice cooker (which I’ve wanted), act as a crockpot (which I have, in purple), act as a steamer, sauté things, keep things warm, and even be a sterilizer…

we made salmon (from frozen) and smashed potatoes with spinach in about half an hour… and it was delicious…

we also made white and wild rice with chicken thighs (again from frozen) in about 45 minutes from start of prep to eating…

and mushroom soup, and risotto…

think I just might have to buy one now that I am home…

reflecting…

11 Saturday Jan 2020

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had a lovely time while I was still at my daughter’s sorting and taking photos of my Christmas gifts…

I absolutely love my soft purple blanket, and was happy to examine all of the other wonderful treats I received…

a few purple items, lol – socks, facecloths, gloves, tins, toothbrush, reusable sponge, phone holder… and quite a variety of chocolate – pistachio, Lindt, turtles, raspberry (my favourite), chocolate covered sponge… a tea and chocolate pairing that was flavoured with orchids, reusable bags, a Chihuly 2020 calendar, colouring books and pencils, a magazine on gratitude, a hand printed towel… plus a few more I can’t even remember…

yikes, so many gifts… I certainly am blessed…

the sun was shining into the room as I was gathering them for the photo… it was very meditative and I was able to reflect on each gift and the person who gave it to me… and the fun we had as we opened and shared our delight over each parcel…

a wonderful way to extend the joy of Christmas morning…

now that I’m home, I’ve found a spot for each one…

as I use each item I will be sure to spend a moment to remember the giver with gratitude in my heart…

hosts…

10 Friday Jan 2020

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recently I flew home from Ottawa… I spent the majority of the trip with my eyes glued to the window… it was like the entire sky was filled with a sunset for the entire flight… what a gift…

I had the most wonderful visit with my daughter and son-in-law… also had a fun time meeting and getting to know his mom…

it was quite a different Christmas for me… flew out on Christmas Day and celebrated New Year’s there as well… his mom was with us for a week and then I spent another six days with the kids…

had so much fun… the kids are wonderful hosts* and offer up all kinds of interesting things to do… I stayed in their AirBnB room which was very cozy…

while I was there we ate great home cooked meals, fed birds out of our hands, went to see butterflies, had afternoon tea, went to the Market and restaurants, spent a day at the spa, had a photo shoot, and two chocolate tastings…

and enjoyed great conversations…

now I am home and able to begin retirement living…

*AirBnB Cozy Blue Room Ottawa

spa…

09 Thursday Jan 2020

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for my last full day in Ottawa, we went to Nordik Spa in Chelsea… it is the parent of Thermea, where I was, just days ago…

but it is so much bigger… there are whole sections for quiet activities, as well as silent ones… every time I go they have added something new… this time it was Quonset hut saunas… the light reflecting on the ceiling was gorgeous…

we started in one of the warm glass beds and moved to warm pools, saunas, hot pools, had scrubs, and sat around fires in huts…

we drank tons of water and had a delicious lunch… we chatted with strangers, just ourselves, and we spent time in silence…

they don’t allow photos on site so these are a few I took: leaving home as the snow fell, the view as we stood in line to get our bracelets, and a picture my daughter took as we were leaving…

it was a wonderful relaxing and rejuvenating day, and a great way to end my visit…

we drove home in the dark, after watching the moon rise from various pools, and had a simple supper before all three of us watched a movie…

we didn’t want to go to bed because she had to work the next day and I would be packing and flying home;-(…