Tag Archives: family

snuggles…

25 Sunday Jun 2017

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well this was fun…

two tiny babies turned up at the birthday party today…

I patiently waited my turn and then held this little bundle of snuggles for about an hour;-)… can still put any baby to sleep… it’s a gift… thanks to my son-in-law for taking these pictures as I was busy…

always fun when everyone gathers and it’s time to open presents…

it is different these days… at this age all they want, and get, is money… apparently he is wanting a game system… amazed that there is one they don’t have…

the gift from Aunty and Grandma was money for the big brother to drive all the boys to Baked Expectations for dessert… chocolate cake for breakfast is one of Aunty’s specialties;-)… can’t believe they are so grown up…

he is looking forward to a Paintball party, so really loved his paintball cake…

dad…

11 Sunday Jun 2017

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been thinking of my dad a lot lately…

he died nearly thirty years ago… he lived with emphysema from the time I was a teenager…

he did as much as he could, but spent the weekends recovering from the week and trying to build up the energy to make it through the next week…

when I turned sixteen, he and I bought a new car together and I began driving him to and from work every day… which also meant that I got to drive to school each day;-)…

he loved sports and we often attended athletic events at the arena and watched whatever sport might be on tv… 

he was the person who taught me to appreciate each person or team’s efforts and applaud everyone’s performance, whether they were the one you were rooting for or not…

to this day I do the same…

he started me on my love of office supplies… when I was young I would occasionally spend a weekend morning with him at work and organize his desk, lol… 

he spent a good portion of his working life helping people figure out what type of work they would be best at, and he was very good at it…

when my beloved and I were first married, he would go grocery shopping with me and add a roast or some other treat to my bag… at first I felt bad that he did this, until I realized it was something he could still do for us… by that time he couldn’t manage physical things like home repairs any longer… buying us a treat was his way of supporting us…

he was a very special man… my girls were not yet teenagers when he died, much like my grandsons who were so young when my beloved left us… maybe this is why I try to keep memories of George alive so that the boys remember him…

a very rare professionally taken picture of mom and dad…

walk…

01 Thursday Jun 2017

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yesterday had lunch in the Millennium Park next door to the office… a lovely time in the sun enjoying conversation and food with some great individuals… as I was walking back, with my hands full and the sun shining into my face, took this shot of Emptyful… 

came out pretty good considering I couldn’t see what I was doing, lol…

my new iPhone 7 makes pictures move in an odd fashion… reminds me of the photographs in the Harry Potter series… 

after work, met up with my daughter and oldest grandson and we had supper out before attending his final band concert of the year… on our way back to the car we took this selfie in front of Emptyful as we went by…

wonderful to have opportunities to be outside on such a beautiful day…

and today spent a few minutes enjoying the poppies blooming in the garden before heading to the office…

walked to the Fairmont and back this morning… great treat to be out again while we are enjoying such beautiful days…

looking forward to spending time in the garden planting tomorrow…

fish…

14 Sunday May 2017

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been a full, but good Mother’s Day…

up fairly early, had breakfast and headed over to the Park to check out the daffodils and tulips…

there were lots of tulips blooming and I’m glad I went today because by next weekend they may be finished…

had a few minutes on our bench while I chatted with my Ottawa girl…

early morning is the best time to wander through the Gardens on the weekend because it is still quiet…

home and then out to pick up groceries and flowers – tulips, then back for lunch and a nap…

sat out in the garden until the kids came… they mowed and whipper snipped and moved the fish from their condo to their summer residence…

always an exciting process..

excellent dinner cooked on Barbie the BBQ, lol…

then some online retail therapy with my Winnipeg daughter… ordered a purple metal bracelet for my Fitbit…

planning a hot tub a bit later, but now spending a few minutes by the pond before heading in…

blink…

10 Wednesday May 2017

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things can change in the blink of an eye…

recently a number of women in my circles have been dealing with very difficult situations… loss of parents, illness of partners and children, employment concerns…

often there is little to do besides sending positive energy and love over the airwaves… spending time holding them in thought and prayer feels like a good use of time…

good to remember to smell the roses, or in this case, tulips…

breakfast…

23 Sunday Apr 2017

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lovely walk to the “A” and back this morning…

my grandson was with me on the way there… we caught a few Pokémon and saw the mallard couple in the creek… it was a bit chilly because of the wind, but the sun was shining…

I had been up and made tea for the daddy who arrived after his overnight shift at work… he had a nap for an hour or so before we went for breakfast… on Sunday the “A” doesn’t open until 8… he and I have learned this the hard way…

he and the youngest drove over… was so hungry I forgot to take a picture of my meal, lol…

after breakfast they headed to their house and I walked back home…

warmer with the wind at my back… had to stop and take a few pictures of the buds starting on the big tree, maybe some kind of willow, just before I reached the house…

had a short nap and read in the sunshine in the living room for the remainder of the day… 

my daughter and the younger boys came for dinner and a visit and I went back to reading when they left…

listening to the ducks flying over on their way back to the creek… love the sound of ducks and geese as they travel…

bunnies…

16 Sunday Apr 2017

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this afternoon I watched a bunny run across the neighbour’s yard… it looked tired, lol…

when the kids arrived my son-in-law fixed the floppy siding – which makes so much noise when it comes loose… which happens every now and then… and the garage door which had shifted and wouldn’t stay closed… for the last week I’ve had a stool up against it on the inside of the garage and had to come and go from the front of the house using the rolling door… been a bit of a pain… but, now it is fixed… yay…

the youngest brought me a picture he’d made for grandparents’ day at his school… he shared that he had traced the flower pot which was used as a template by the rest of his classmates;-)…

had picked up chocolate bunnies, gift cards for some of their favourite places, and fancy cookies… 

and the Easter bunny had dropped off some mini eggs in the living and dining rooms…

had a lovely dinner… everyone lent a hand to get the last minute jobs done… my daughter is the meat/poultry carver… my oldest grandson now does the potato mashing, the two younger ones carry things out to the table… after dinner my son-in-law leads the clean-up brigade… by the time they leave the kitchen looks great and there is nothing left for me to do…

here’s how the table looked tonight…

and here’s how it looked last year…

always try to have lots of flowers, and bunnies…

my beloved has been gone five years but this is the sixth Easter without him… and for whatever reason I was missing him especially today…

spent some time thinking of the fun we had over the years as we celebrated Easter together and with the kids…

moments…

camaraderie…

15 Saturday Apr 2017

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been thinking of my dad a lot over the last few days…

he was ill my entire life and his last four years were really a gift… 

he died on Good Friday nearly thirty years ago… I don’t remember the date but it was in March that year… I had been called to the hospital and realized he really was dying… I left for a short while to pull myself together and after talking with a friend went back and sat with him as he moved from this world to the next… a privilege to share those moments with him…

always amazes me how something brings back the sadness and grief, even after all this time…

he was a special man and taught me so much about being a kind and gentle person and always seeing the good in people…

I remember the times he would sit on the deck and enjoy visiting with family and friends…

today I put the screen into the upstairs hall window, which looks out on that deck… over the winter I take it out so that I can take better pictures, lol…

feels like it is Spring now that the screen is in and the window is open… had the screen door open and enjoyed the gorgeous weather while I was cooking and doing prep work for tomorrow’s Easter dinner…

dad always had candy in his pocket… you could almost hear the wrappers rubbing against one another when he walked, lol…

and as I prepared the space and table I was missing my beloved… he was so good at helping me get ready for special meals… he would have picked up the flowers and anything else needed and looked after a good portion of the cleaning as I worked in the kitchen…

I miss that camaraderie… 

I have been, and continue to be, blessed with the men in my life…

weekend…

09 Sunday Apr 2017

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I should be completely worn out because it’s been such a busy weekend… but I’m not…

up and out for an early morning hot tub and took a picture of the garden before I came in…

it needs the spring cleanup…

was picked up and met the rest of the family for dimsum… this is one of our traditions when my sister-in-law comes to town… and we all love it… well most of the time… sometimes the younger ones don’t want to have anything, but another time they eat everything in sight… 

that black blob on the bottom right is the youngest not participating, lol… but he did eat…

my oldest grandson came home with me and did some cleanup in the garden, although it was rather cold… he raked and swept and moved furniture and took dead plants to the composting barrels… then we sat down at his suggestion, and made a list of projects for the garden this summer…

we didn’t get everything we wanted done today, but it looks much more ready to be in…

I am so blessed to have this young man help me with the garden maintenance… and of course my son-in-law does lots of the work with the ponds;-)…

looking forward to warm days and hours spent by the pond…

play…

08 Saturday Apr 2017

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another fun, full day…

quiet relaxing morning and then off for lunch with my play-buddy before we headed to the last one of the season…

lunch was at Clementine’s in the Exchange District… had a very tasty Braised Bacon Benedict (Maple Sabayon, Dill, Poached Eggs, Cheddar Biscuit) and we shared a Braman’s Greens, Sweet Cayenne Walnuts, Smoked Dates, Apples, Mimolette Cheese, House Dressing salad…

the biscuit brought a light feel to the dish and the maple sabayon was delicious… the salad was like dessert to end the meal… yummy…

then we moved on to PTE for our final play of the season… it was very funny… while we were there we signed up for next year;-)…

I am always impressed with the sets and how they convey so much more than is actually there…

got home and my sister-in-law and nephew picked me up and we went to his place for supper… got to meet the team… fifteen sled dogs… these are just a few of  them…

and here is Aiko, the leader…

we had a wonderful dinner of BBQ steak, baby potatoes and onions, mushrooms asparagus, and a caprese salad… what a treat to just sit back and enjoy as others did the work…

left just as the sky burst into this…