grandparents…

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fun day…

went to the Renovation Show with my daughter… we are OK, or so said the stamp on our hands, lol… didn’t get to see Brian Baeumler, but wandered around and picked up some very helpful information…

  
had quite a good time… picked up a couple of things…

  

a gelcool pillow which makes me very happy as it will make my head feel cooler so I don’t have to do my regular flip of the pillow in the middle of the night… 

also this beautifully designed toilet cleaner brush, which looks like a piece of art, or an arrow, as my grandson suggested…

and a new Tupperware measuring cup to replace the one I’ve been using to make popcorn, which is kind of ruined, lol… exciting because they have just reintroduced it…
found a new natural system for the hot tub… will use enzymes instead of the current chemicals I put in, and way less will need to be added… 

finally picked up a paring knife which fits my hand perfectly… been looking for one that is comfortable in my palm forever…

picked up the last few items for our taco supper, came home and finished it up… 

had quite the start this morning as I was chopping tomatoes… looked over and saw this…

 
nearly jumped out of my skin because I thought it was a spider… just the stem from one of the tomatoes, lol…

supper was gobbled up… I am so happy when everyone enjoys our meal and time together… two and three helpings were had, and the littlest one even ate the meat happily… in fact he had two plates of taco salad before he ate his usual taco… 

such fun to see them begin to try, and enjoy, new things…

as I enjoy my Sunday afternoons and evenings with my grandkids I realize how lucky I am to be in close proximity to them… many grandparents I know only get to see their kids now and again, and I am able to see them grow every week…

grandparenting is one of the best jobs I’ve ever had… life is good

season…

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got home a few minutes after five last night and took this picture of the front street to show the light

  
was quite excited to realize that it was light out… we are now on the side of the season where it is brighter every day… yay… 

always feel more positive when there is more light and sunshine… I take vitamin D and usually use a SAD light, but haven’t taken the time to turn in on in the morning for the last few weeks…

took this shot focussed tighter on the trees across the creek…

  
not really sure what happened, but it came out more like a painting than a photograph…

today I have done very little… changed the bed and then planted my behind on it for the majority of the day… feels wonderful to be doing nothing, lol…

happy to be able to take the time to recuperate from the crazy hectic weeks I’ve been experiencing…

recently I have been thinking about what good shape I am in these days compared to just a few years ago… I can lift things and walk without any problems… and I have no discomfort of any kind… 

I am blessed…

inspiration…

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today I was up very early to attend an all day event with 750 others… mostly women…

from the beautifully presented breakfast for staff…

  
to the inspiring presentations by the eclectic group of women speakers…

  
to the cool headshot lounge where hundreds of pictures were taken…

  
it was an inspirational day…

great opportunity to reconnect with so many people who I haven’t seen in a while…

I particularly resonated with the comment suck it up buttercup and put on your big girl panties, lol…

the focus of the event was to believe in yourself and your abilities… and encouragement to move forward…

seems like a reminder for my life as I continue along this path of widowhood…

every forward step is a good one…

beauty…

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this morning my beautiful colleague and I spent some time laughing about our day…

  
we’ve been working on an all consuming project but can still laugh and have fun… she is a joy to work with…

she loves flowers and has the most amazing ability to arrange them…

I picked some up last week and yesterday she completely transformed them into another lovely arrangement…

  
I can hardly wait until tomorrow when we will be in a place with very beautiful flowers…

 

I think she is going to enjoy the beauty, lol… should be fun…

routine…

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part of my morning routine includes fifteen to twenty minutes on the treadmill every work day…

  
the weekends are a bit more laid back, lol…

watch a morning show while I walk and sometimes check out my social media programs…

very occasionally I will walk in the evening but I find my energy level is highest in the morning so that is the best time for me…

I also try to walk a few items a week on the treadmill at the office…

am supposed to use weights on a regular basis but I’ve kind of fallen off the wagon… 

my goal is to do some weight training three times a week, even if just for a few minutes…

I firmly believe that the exercise really helps keep me well…

choice…

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after all that grocery shopping on Sunday I’ve had lots of choice as I prepare for each day’s meals

during the week I usually make a smoothie for breakfast… it is easy and quick and I can spend a few minutes checking my phone before the day gets crazy… 

  
today it was spinach, black currants, banana, Greek yogurt and almond milk… doesn’t look great but was very tasty…

for lunch I had half of a smoked goldeye with the zucchini and basil soup I made last night, along with radishes, peppers and celery…

  
healthy and delicious…

for supper I thawed some shrimp and added asparagus and mashed cauliflower… 

  
as I was crushing the garlic, the press broke… had to toss it and will need to get a new one… luckily was able to pick the bits of metal out of the shrimp…

  
finished the meal off with two small Guylian chocolates…

feel happy when I’ve eaten three good meals in the day…

pain…

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took a picture of my Japanese maple this morning… wanted a baseline for the next few months as the leaves start to produce again… poor little thing struggles every fall when it comes into the house…

  
lots of conversation tonight about some of the things I learned after George’s death… the discussion brought back some of the pain from those early days… 

we talked about the importance of sharing our thoughts about our final wishes with our family and friends – if and when to pull the plug – what we would hope for in a funeral/memorial/ gathering – where needed information is located… made me think that I should review the when mom dies file that I’ve prepared for the girls… when the time comes it should be as easy as possible for them…

  

on our way home caught this great shot of the sky… excellent to have things to remind me of my wonderful life…

utensils…

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this morning I woke early, but went back to bed for a bit… when I got up I made breakfast and used my cute little steamer again… getting the hang of it more each time I use it…

  
I have committed to eating vegetables at each meal and all I had left this morning were brussel sprouts… so, I had brussel sprouts with poached eggs and IKEA rösti…. very tasty…

ran out and picked up groceries, so now I have lots of vegetables…  also went for a wander in Bed, Bath and Beyond… took quite a while, but was lots of fun…

picked up a rotating container for kitchen utensils… about the fourth one I’ve purchased in the last year or so, but I believe that this might be the last one I have to buy… think it is going to work perfectly

  
to fit everyone’s schedule we had a late lunch instead of supper, so when the kids left, it was still light…

 
sun was just going down as they headed out… still really cold out, but we’ve really been enjoying some beautiful temperatures…

beloved…

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this morning I spent a bit of time in the kitchen… while I was cleaning the stove I was thinking of my beloved

he had the strongest hands and arms… anything that needed serious scrubbing ended up as his job… that stove would have been spotless had he cleaned it, lol… he could also wring things out so there was no water at all left in them…

 
for breakfast I cooked some spinach in my new cute purple steamer… second time using it and it worked much better than the first time… cleaned up nicely as well… also used some of the frozen spinach for my lunch smoothie… came out great, so I can use frozen next time I run out of fresh, lol…

sun was shining all day, although it was -34 with the wind chill… got a nice shot of a couple of garage roofs which have squirrel paths all over them… not sure I’ve seen tracks on the neighbour’s garage before… 

  
while I was doing laundry I also went through all of the tops in my closet… filled a box with things that are too big… a friend is going to pick them up for a swap event they are having…

  
always happy when I’ve been able to do a bit of decluttering… George would have been proud…