Tag Archives: celebrate

experience…

07 Wednesday Feb 2018

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yesterday we were treated to a wonderful hot breakfast by the managers…

we gobbled up the meal and had a great time reviewing the event that we’d spent so much time and effort on…

it was a great opportunity to take a few moments and celebrate the excellent work done and consider ways to improve…

leading a round of happy birthday reminded me of a special time when I was part of a chorus that made a CD in Banff and what a once-in-a-lifetime experience that was…

final treat was a necklace – well I got a pin – made specially for us;-)…

wonderful way to start the day…

Alt…

17 Friday Nov 2017

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had a wonderful lunch today at the Alt Hotel… was there to celebrate Women’s Entrepreneurship Day and hear the stories of four women who are changing the world, or at least their small corner of it…

started with a nice fresh salad…

the space is very simple, but comfortable… and the rooms we were in were bright and modern…

the main course was mushroom stuffed chicken breast with roasted vegetables and a delicious sauce…

when it arrived I was thinking it was kind of small… but then I tasted it… yummy, and filling…

for dessert we had creme brûlée….

one of my all time favourites… and so good… had to kind of gulp it down so that I could take some video of the speakers, lol…

the food comes from the Merchant Kitchen which is right next door to the hotel…

all of the staff were pleasant and eager to make our experience the best it could be…

thinking about what else we might do there…

savouring…

20 Tuesday Jun 2017

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it is a beautiful evening… the sun is shining and there isn’t a cloud in the sky…

the squirrels have been eating at the feeder… not sure if the birds are getting any seeds…

the sound of the waterfall is soothing and relaxing…

I am savouring every moment… 

over the last few days I’ve been struggling with some stomach issues and tonight am finally feeling better… being under the weather brings to mind all of the serious illnesses that I’ve dealt with through the years…

a reminder to celebrate the good times… 

neighbour…

20 Sunday Nov 2016

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since we’ve lived in our house, there have been four owners of the house next door…

when we moved in, the young couple were newly adoptive parents and then had another little one inside of eight months, so moved to a larger house close by…  we became friends and she cut my hair for years after they left…

then came our dear friend Ellen and her husband… they lived in the house for about 25 years and became family… looking after the girls, giving us breaks at mealtimes, babysitting on a regular basis when we went bowling, sharing meals, being a sounding board… we built a gate in the fence between our yards, lol… really missed her when they moved to a seniors complex… she died not long after that in 2009 and we spent a wonderful afternoon in the garden with friends celebrating her life…

then an older single woman moved in for about a year, followed by two young men… cousins who were both pilots… last year one got married and they recently had a baby… we didn’t connect that much with any of them…they moved out on Saturday…. 

the house is empty as it waits for the next owners to arrive…

wonder who will move in… hope we connect…

celebrate…

29 Thursday Sep 2016

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this morning I took gerbers to the office to celebrate my seven year anniversary…

I’d picked them up last night and stood them up in a reusable grocery bag… even put the seat belt on to keep them from falling over…

I had spent some time last week making cards with some of my photographs and writing a note for every person…

had a few issues with the technology of getting the note and the picture in the right place, lol… but eventually they were all prepared…

it is always a treat to do something that makes others happy… one colleague commented how she loved when I had special events happening in my life because the rest of the team always get to celebrate as well… another suggested I was confused, as on your special day you are supposed to get the treats, not give them, lol… she’s new to the office;-)…

had a bit of a laugh when I realized that I hadn’t taken a picture of the flowers and vases in the kitchen before everyone started to come and choose theirs… usually I am on top of getting pictures, but the early birds were so excited that I got distracted… don’t have a single picture of the set up or even of any of the flowers in everyone’s space…

then just after lunch I found this at my desk…

in it was this beautiful rose and a lovely note from my colleague, who also happens to be my supervisor…

what a lovely treat…

it is wonderful to be appreciated… whether it is your special event, or someone else’s…

birthday…

19 Tuesday Apr 2016

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yesterday I turned 65… 

was very special to be in New York with my girls…

went for a walk after midnight… because we were in NYC and you can… wandered by the 9/11 memorial and found the Charging Bull… went to bed around two… 

we headed down to the cold-pressed juice bar in the hotel once we woke up and before starting out on our last day in the Big Apple… was able to have an all vegetable juice which was a great way to start the day… I’d been eyeing the bar since we’d arrived… later came across a creperie and had a portobello, Gruyere, thyme and truffle oil one for the second part of my breakfast… yum… at lunch had freshly made motzarella, prosciutto, radishes, a fried asparagus with cheese pizza and half of a pear Bellini… snacked on a piece of coconut chocolate cake… and our final meal of the day was steak with mashed potatoes, and a tasty salad topped off with pecan pie…  

 

was pleased with the options and able to eat small portions of each so felt treated and good at the same time, lol…here is a collection of our fun day…

  
our feet, hand and bags as we were cramming our stuff into as little space as possible, ready to go through customs with all of our goodies… including treasures from Carlo’s Bakery… a wall covered in purple purses in Brookfield Place… dinner at Prime in La Guardia… cheers at Eataly… and more cheer with our dinner…

received this great phone case from the 100,000 step girls… we’d seen this as we were riding the Big Bus Hop-on Hop-off… they searched everywhere to find one with the subway map on it but when they weren’t successful they found this one…

  
had texts and phone calls from my boys… also received this handmade card…

  
all in all a pretty wonderful way to celebrate;-)…

traditions…

03 Thursday Dec 2015

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drinking a cup of tea and thinking about our family traditions over the years… I like to celebrate everything I can, lol… holidays, birthdays, special events in our lives… usually with a family dinner…

  
one tradition has been around birthdays… on your birthday you get to choose what to have for dinner, and the family gathers to celebrate… on the day and always with gifts of course… 

used to involve making the favourite food – roast chicken, mashed potatoes and stuffing; homemade macaroni and cheese; all the way to steak and lobster…  but over the years we have also brought in favourites, or even gone out for dinner… 

  
tomorrow marks the fourth birthday celebration for George since he died…

the tradition for his birthday now involves burgers from a local joint topped off with milkshakes and apple pie… all of which were his favourite foods… the kids who aren’t here join us by skype or FaceTime and we share memories over dinner…

you’d think after nearly four years that it would be easier, but I have felt myself moving into a sad place over the last few days… I make sure to focus on the good times as much as I can, but I still miss him so much and have moments of deep sadness… I embrace them as well as the good ones…

tonight both of my girls have checked in to see what our plan is and to let me know, in their own way, that they know it is hard for me… and I know it is hard for them…

  

gratitude…

17 Friday Apr 2015

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a pre-birthday treat this morning when the African Violet had flowers opening…

  

headed downtown early as I had a dental appointment to have my teeth cleaned… beautiful walk… and no cavities… 

brought in nuts, chocolate and fruit for the office to celebrate my birthday… find it such fun to treat my colleagues…

  

others brought in cookies as well…

treated to lunch out and when we got back was surprised with a rendition of Happy Birthday, a cute purple chrysanthemum plant in a bag for presentation, along with chips and a card signed by everyone…

  

when I got home the sun blasted into the living room and shone right on my collection of flowers and cards…

  

spoke with both of my girls, planned some of tomorrow’s celebrations and talked about our week…

I am filled with gratitude for another year where I have been surrounded with great colleagues, friends and family…

the depths…

02 Wednesday Apr 2014

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tonight I stopped and picked up some fish and chips, which I have been craving for weeks… didn’t even put away my things when I got home… it was delicious…

have been really down for a while and it wasn’t until tonight when a friend called that I realized what the problem was…

another friend is turning 65 on Friday and tonight their family were having a come-and-go to celebrate…

when the invitation arrived I faced the fact that George would have been 65 last December… it didn’t mean much at the time, but this celebration kind of kicked me in the gut… don’t get me wrong, I’m glad our friend is having a great special birthday, but I’ve been stuck in my own pain…

we were invited to add a note to an online card and include a picture of our family… didn’t know what to do about that either… should the picture be of my family now or what my family used to be… In the end I sent a picture of our group… that seemed to take care of the request, but I am still trying to figure out who my family is…

20140402-211358.jpg things seem so mixed up right now… April second and the garden is filled with snow… I remember the year George died and how we were out working in the garden raking the grass in the middle of March, just a few weeks after…

apparently, you never know what will bring on the pain… as another friend said, likely I will have days like this for the rest of my life… hopefully they will come less often as time goes by…

birthday one…

18 Tuesday Mar 2014

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so, thirty four years ago today, our youngest daughter was born…

we made it to the hospital around nine in the morning and she was born just before noon…

George had just arrived at work when I called to tell him to come home… my parents were already on the way over…

George picked me up and we were headed to the hospital when he asked if we had time to stop for cigarettes…

by that time the contractions were between two and five minutes apart so I was feeling we really needed to get to the hospital…

we got there and it wasn’t too long until she was born…

the next day my tubes were tied and her sister came to see her… she wasn’t quite two and I remember she arrived in a cute dress and her black patent shoes… she was happy to meet her sister, but I was rather nervous of those shoes considering I had just had surgery…

we came home the following day… to this house that I still live in…

have enjoyed telling this story for many years, although it wasn’t so funny at the time, lol…

here she is on Sunday when we celebrated her birthday with barbecued steak and lobster and banana cream pie, which turned out to be frozen…

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through the window you can see the snow storm…

it always amazes me how quickly the time flies by… one minute they are minutes old and the next they are in their thirties with a family of their own…