11 Tuesday Jul 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
took a drive outside the city for lunch today…
landed at the Summit Cafe in Stony Mountain…
cute little place with a penny covered floor…
we were the first to arrive and they had set up a table for 12… gave us a bit of extra time with the menu…
I chose the Spicy Shrimp Grilled Cheese…
oh my, it was delicious… had half of it and brought the remainder home for dinner tomorrow…
got a great shot of the group…
wonderful day with some really special people…
10 Monday Jul 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, feet, garden, memories, obsessed, pictures, pond, runners, shoes, waiting, widow
a few weeks ago I was stopped at a light on my way to work and someone crossed in front of me with the most amazing green runners… it was too late to get out my phone to take a picture… a few days later I was waiting by Polo Park and a ton of people were rushing to make the light and many of them had cool shoes… again, no time to take any photos…
since then I’ve been obsessed with shoes…
wherever I’ve been walking, if I see some interesting shoes l stop and take a picture, after asking if it is okay…
people seem to feel special and always say yes…
here’s what I’ve come up with so far…
when my oldest was a pre-teen, she went through a stage where she always wore two different coloured runners… lasted for a few years and still now, if I spot someone with two different shoes on it reminds me of those days…
on my Facebook page I often put up pictures of my feet as I am relaxing by the pond… it has become a bit of a ritual to do foot pictures in various places now… getting pedicures, waiting for appointments, on vacation…
this one from March is of my son-in-law and I in Mazatlan as we were waiting for a strike on the fishing lines, which never did happen…
took this one yesterday as I was drinking tea and waiting for my hair to dry…
09 Sunday Jul 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
Tags
beloved, big girl pants, camping, clematis, family, flowers, George, grandsons, memories, moments, Palomino, pop-up, purple, trailer, widow
we’ve been searching for a trailer for camping for the last while… looked at a few options but they weren’t just what we were wanting…
on Friday I went with my son-in-law and the younger grandsons to look at a pop-up trailer just outside the city…
we found the place rather easily, lol…
there was the most beautiful clematis in the driveway, and I had to take some pictures…
we had a look at the trailer which was set up in the garage…
although it is bigger, it reminded me of the trailer that we had for many years and the great camping trips we enjoyed with it…
we decided to buy it… it was a bit of a process, but between my credit union and the one in the town, we managed to get the funds so we wouldn’t have to make another trip to pick up the trailer…
when we got back to the house where it was, I was chatting with the woman who was selling it, as her dad and my son-in-law were taking it down…
she was talking about how her dad was such a support for her and I said something about my husband being the same for my daughters… then I mentioned he had died five years ago… she looked at me oddly and said George… at which point we realized that she had worked with my beloved… she had thought I looked familiar but was confused when my son-in-law had the same name, lol…
makes the trailer even more special…
the final giggle for me was the brand name on it… anyone who knows my son-in-law will see the connection…
he worked at the Palomino Club for years… we didn’t even notice this until we got it home…
looking forward to family fun and memories with this new addition….
clearly this was meant to be… serendipity…
08 Saturday Jul 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, credit card, garden, grandsons, Kenora, Lac du Bonnet, memories, moments, one-on-one, purple, Red Lobster, widow
yesterday I had the great opportunity to spend one-on-one time with each of my grandsons… doesn’t happen that often, and rarely on the same day… great moments to savour…
first was with the youngest at the Fishing Hole where we talked all about a recent fishing trip and how he and daddy had caught a catfish… we also checked out the lures, looking for a nice purple one, lol…
after he and his parents had headed off to Lac du Bonnet for the weekend, spent time with the middle one as the two of us waited for him to be picked up to go to Kenora with a friend… we talked about bike riding, bunnies and watering the garden… we also discussed all the things he’s planning to do at his friend’s cottage… soon he’ll be able to come over on the bus for visits and to help me in the garden…
supper out with the oldest as he drove me home… he stayed in town as he is working over the weekend… we talked about rowing and car accidents and people who are difficult to deal with…
hard to believe that he is so grown up now… we had dinner at Red Lobster and enjoyed the treat…
I was a bit nervous because I only had cash on me to pay for the meal so wanted to be sure we didn’t spend more than we had, lol…
I will be glad when I get the replacement credit card…
ended the day in the garden and took this shot as the solar lights were starting to twinkle on, one by one…
05 Wednesday Jul 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
about three weeks ago my credit card was compromised… someone tried to use it for a few things in the States…
the credit card company called and left a message… I called them back, using the number on the back of the card, instead of the one on the message in case it was a scam…
sadly it had been compromised so they cancelled the card and couriered a new one to me within a few days as this is the only card I have…
lucky for me I only have one monthly withdrawal so was able to call them with the necessary information once the new card arrived…
just last week, I went to pay the credit card bill and realized I hadn’t added the new card… wasn’t sure about one of the questions when I tried to add it to the payees so called the credit union and they were able to add it while we were on the phone… excellent…
so today, I get what I think is a similar phone call at the office, but didn’t hear the whole conversation so when I got home I checked for messages… and there it was another call from the Security department…
this is the situation my card is in now… compromised again…
the good news is that they are able to catch these activities quickly and be in touch…
the bad news is that I have to wait again for a new card… although now I am on top of all the things I have to do, lol…
practice makes perfect;-)…
I’m worried that I am doing something wrong at my end, but the agent assured me that wasn’t the case…
I am going to Ottawa in a few months and don’t want to have to go through this before, or during, my trip…
arghhhhhhhh…
01 Saturday Jul 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
Tags
beauty, big girl pants, calendar, Chihuly, garden, Jacques Cartier Park, memories, Mosai, tree, water, widow
had planned to spend the day in the garden, but woke up to rain coming down…
left the patio door screen open overnight so it was rather chilly when I got downstairs…
eventually the rain stopped and the sun came out… but then it clouded over again… sun peaked out now and again for the remainder of the day…
although I never left the house I put on red and white to commemorate Canada Day… started with long pants but then moved to shorts when I thought I’d go outside, only to discover it was chilly out again… never did get outside…
was very happy to see the new picture when I flipped the page on my Chihuly calendar…
reminded me of our visit to the Atlanta Botanical Gardens last June… took these pictures of a similar tree which was stunning, during the day and at night…
thinking about where we might go next to see more Chihuly…
looking forward to a week in Ottawa towards the end of the summer… we will be going to Mosai Canada to see a version of the Goddess which we saw in Atlanta…
have seen a few teaser pics on Instagram of how she will look… here’s one…
can hardly wait to see all of the installations at the Jacques Cartier Park… gardens and water, two of my favourite things;-)…
27 Tuesday Jun 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
Tags
Assiniboine Park, big girl pants, blessed, English Garden, flowers, garden, hostas, Leo Mol Sculpture Garden, moments, pond, space, The Park Cafe, walk, widow
in an effort to keep up my exercise program I try to walk to the Park at least once on the weekend…
Sunday I got up and walked over fairly early…
the sun was shining down through the trees on the path… nice, considering the rain and dull skies we’ve been dealing with…
I decided to stop at The Park Cafe for breakfast… they have a delicious Black Bean Benedict where the beans are used as the muffin… nice treat… and I enjoyed eating by myself… yay for those big girl pants, lol…
the Boy with the Boot looked very nice in a circle of red and white, all ready for Canada Day…
the water lilies in the Arbour Pond have started to bloom, unlike the tropical ones in the main pond which are struggling with the chilly weather…
the peonies are doing beautifully by “our” bench… but I didn’t sit because this piece of equipment was buzzing loudly…
this bed of hostas is so beautiful… and the water drops just added to my delight in the view…
every time I walk through the Gardens I see something else growing or changing or for the first time…
so blessed for the good health and opportunity to enjoy this great space…
26 Friday May 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, Bino, chives, flowers, lilacs, Mexican, moments, purpleness, scent, SkipTheDishes, sunshine, Tomy Roma's, treats, widow, yoga
the day was filled with purple treats…
early this morning as I was walking to the clinic for some bloodwork I came across numerous lilacs in various stages of opening…
these ones were on the way there…
and these ones were on the way back… so pretty and the scent was divine…
was wonderful to be walking outside in the sunshine and warm weather…
at noon did yoga, in my purple outfit, on my purple mat, lol…
at the end of the day when I arrived home I took this picture of the purple flowering chives that are lining the driveway…
for supper I ordered beef bones through SkipTheDishes… lovely end to the week… Tony Roma’s is the only restaurant that calls after you’ve ordered to see if your meal was satisfactory… a great touch…
my daughter FaceTimed me to show me the parcel that arrived… inside was my newest Fitbit Charge 2 metal band… a purple one…
the final treat of my day was some of my loose teamate tea and a little bit of chocolate… love the purple Bino bottle with the extra hot water in it…
and it looks nice on my Mexican blanket/ tablecloth…
good day filled with purple moments…
20 Saturday May 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
started my day with tea in my newest mug… it’s the one my grandson brought me from Chicago…
feels nice in my hand and keeps the tea warm…
out for lunch with my daughter…
had spicy mussels with flash fried Brussels sprouts… yummy…
went window shopping for plants for the garden… did pick up a couple of butterfly bushes… they are white and will smell like vanilla… not exactly the type I was wanting but these are supposed to be perennials… we will see… also got two water hyacinth… will keep them in the house till it is just a bit warmer…
have decided that I am going to focus on white, purple and blue for the colours in the garden…
thanks to both of my girls I found some purple pots… been looking for a while and haven’t seen any… on the phone this morning with my Ottawa daughter she mentioned that she’d seen some at Loblaws… my Winnipeg daughter took me to Superstore this afternoon while we were out and about and I found a bunch…
very happy because my pots have been cracking and breaking for the last year or so…
now to fill them up… as soon as the weather makes up its mind that it really is Spring, lol…
08 Monday May 2017
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, travel, Uncategorized
great evening with my BS buddies…
tonight they helped me finish up a project for an event tomorrow… four sets of hands make any piece of work get completed much quicker…
never know what topics we will cover in our time together… tonight we touched on pianos, rubber coated driveways, housing, people skills, travel, teaching, busy schedules, sleep patterns, and chairs…
can’t even imagine where I’d be without these amazing women…
flowers make me happy too;-)…
herbiggirlpants 