07 Thursday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
been thinking about poppies…
over the last forty years we’ve always had poppies in the garden… some years there would be fifteen or twenty … other years, maybe three…
the spring following George’s death there were over fifty…
it was amazing and so beautiful… seemed like he was here with me…
this year there are plants, but not a single bloom…
06 Wednesday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
so happy this morning as I was able to top up the pond easily…
over the winter the connection at the wall had broken so that only one hose could be hooked up instead of the two I need…
this meant that every time the pond needed water I had to drag out the hose to fill it and then drag it back to put it away… which usually ended up with my hands black from the hose and smelling like rubber…
looked for quite a while to find a replacement and eventually found one last week… on Sunday my grandson was over and hooked it up for me…
excited when I arrived home tonight and found the fish out and about in the pond…
happy they are finally more comfortable and connecting to the space…
05 Tuesday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
beautiful, big girl pants, bouquets, flowers, fuchsia, garden, happy, moments, pictures, stopped, widow
was able to take pictures of flowers today which always brightens my day…
when I first stepped out of the house this morning the fuchsia was so stunning that it stopped me in my tracks… had to take a some photos…
there are a number of small bouquets in the office and I was able to wander around and get a few shots…
and then I spotted the blooms getting ready to open on one of the African violets in my office…
flowers make me happy and I was pleased to be able to spend a few moments enjoying the ones I came across…
04 Monday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, guilt, imposter, inadequate, mother, syndrome, Valerie Young, widow
have had numerous conversations recently about the imposter syndrome…
had breakfast with a dear friend and we talked about how our small group has been a lifesaver for each of us and the place where we’ve been able to discuss our feelings of inadequacy…
shortly after, I was speaking with another person who had just had a preemie… their partner was spending most of each day at the hospital, but feeling guilty that she wasn’t spending enough time with their older child… the conversation turned to mother guilt… that feeling that you aren’t spending enough time, doing enough things, etc, etc, etc, for one or more of your children…
not long after that I was watching The Social and a gold medal athlete was talking about the need to believe you can do whatever it is, and not get stuck in the Ican’t do it place…
have just started to read The Secret Thoughts of Successful Women by Valerie Young… barely into it and it is ringing so true… looking forward to getting to the end;-)…
do you suffer from this syndrome too?
03 Sunday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
ban, beloved, big girl pants, bush, flowers, garden, hanging baskets, Japanese Maple, lilac, neighbour, plants, shopping, widow
so excited to take photos of the lilacs in the garden…
they are beautiful and I plan to cut some for the office tomorrow morning…
I did have a little giggle when I looked across the street and saw the lilac bush filled with blooms…
when we removed the lilacs from the backyard, many years ago, our neighbour planted one small piece and this is what it has grown into… we used to laugh when one of her boys would take a golf club to it occasionally when he was having a bad day, lol…
had lunch out with my daughter and eldest grandson and we picked up a few items for the garden…
most excited with the Japanese Maple bowl I discovered… will put it out in the garden once the weather stays more on the warm side…
ended up with three hanging baskets, some lobelia, a fancy eggplant, and a little white hydrangea… also found a water lily and a few other water plants…
apparently the province has banned water hyacinth which is crazy… although it is a noxious weed in the south, it dies here in the cold… I haven’t even been able to get it to stay alive in the aquarium over the winter… very disappointing as the water hyacinth multiply and cover the top of the pond providing protection from the light/algae and a safe place for baby fish to grow…
while we were shopping, saw these cute little three year old parrots that were riding on their owner’s shoulder as she wandered around the garden centre…
02 Saturday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
having a hard day… been ages since I’ve had one this bad…
a few things have happened over the last week which have made me wish my beloved was here with me… he was always my biggest supporter…
never know when the grief will overwhelm you, sigh…
spotted these yesterday… he loved alliums…
01 Friday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
Tags
beloved, big girl pants, bill, call, customer, expensive, helpful, iPhone, loyal, phone, reward, ridiculous, widow
this afternoon I spent half an hour talking with a few people at the phone company…
we have been customers for forty-eight years and use all of the services that they provide…
the last bill was ridiculous, especially for one person…
when I was travelling in April I had added unlimited calling to my cell phone so I wanted to have that taken off…
while I was talking with Ella she found things we could change that would bring my bill down by around $30 per month…
then she put me on the line with Melanie to see if they could do anything to reward me for being a loyal customer…
she found a few items and my bill will be reduced by over $75 for the next six months…
seems to me they might consider a permanent reduction, but for now I have marked my calendar and will call them again in six months… rather frustrating that I have to be on top of this all the time…
I must say the two women I spoke with were very helpful…
31 Thursday May 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
band, big girl pants, concert, grandparents, grandson, growth, memories, moments, widow
tonight I attended my eldest grandson’s final band concert…
when I think back to his first few performances it is amazing how far he has come…
what a treat to be able to participate in these memory-making moments…
watching these kids grow and hone their skills in music, sports and life has been such a gift…
grandparenting is one of the best jobs ever…
30 Wednesday May 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
bag, big girl pants, electricity, GFI, pond, rain, storm, widow
late yesterday afternoon it poured in St. James… apparently not necessarily in other parts of the city…
it was coming down so hard when I arrived home that I put a large IKEA bag that I found in the garage, over my head…
I took a video of the downpour but it wouldn’t upload…
the pond filled to overflowing and then the pumps stopped… there was so much rain that it tripped the GFI… once the weather improved I went out and pulled the plug out, reset the button and plugged the cord back in… happily the pump started and the waterfall began running… and I wasn’t electrocuted… I texted my son-in-law to say I was still alive and he laughed… hmmmmm…
same thing when I got home tonight… poured like crazy for an hour or so in the late afternoon… we need the rain, but I would like it to rain during the night…
was going to wait till the morning to get it turned back on, but just ran out and got it going again..
29 Tuesday May 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
went and got my hair purpled last night…
last time I had it done was before Christmas… a few folks have mentioned that it was fading, lol…
the street my stylist lives on was blocked with numerous dump trucks, piles of pipes and gravel, but I was able to make it to her house… her hair was purple this time;-)…
once she had finished with the colour she did a cut… she’s always happy when my hair is a bit longer as it makes the colouring process easier…
I could sit for hours while someone plays with my hair, lol…
herbiggirlpants 