12 Thursday Jul 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
watered the garden this morning before leaving the house…
the plants are all quite happy and there are many flowers…
woke up with a headache which progressed throughout the morning and by lunchtime it was raging…
so bad, in fact, that I took pills and lay on the floor in our meeting room with lights out and blinds closed…
thankfully, eventually the headache dulled and I made it through the rest of the day…
quiet dinner and early to bed tonight…
10 Tuesday Jul 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, boost, computer, cyclamen, flower power, flowers, garden, moments, offset, orchids, pond, violets, widow
such a boost today… flowers everywhere I was…
quick peek at the pond and as I backed out of the driveway the sky cleared and the flowers in the front garden all smiled at me…
at the office, there were violets, two different orchids and cyclamen…
all that flower power certainly helped offset the occasional computer difficulty that I came across throughout the day…
09 Monday Jul 2018
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Tags
big girl pants, blessed, budding, datura, flowers, garden, hibiscus, moments, pictures, plants, purple, water, widow
had a lovely time in the garden this morning…
instead of walking on the treadmill I watered all the pots and planters one by one with a bucket… I find this very helpful because it ensures that each one gets the correct amount of water…
the daturas are looking stunning… seems like I couldn’t get enough pictures of them this morning… lots of buds and opening flowers…
the mandevilla continues to tease me by slowly getting closer to opening every day…
and the big excitement was the hibiscus beginning to open… took the open shot when I arrived home after work… it is so much happier in this space, just about four feet from where it was… amazing what finding just the right spot can do for the plant’s happiness;-)…
29 Friday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
blessed, ducklings, English Garden, family, flowers, garden, grandsons, groceries, mallard, nap, pond, tacos, vacation, WWTB day 1
week with the boys…
my daughter, son-in-law and oldest grandson have taken off on a two week trip to the East Coast to celebrate his graduation… so my younger grandsons are spending a week with me and then a week with an uncle and aunt…
this morning we drove to the Park, where we met a friend, for breakfast and a walk around the Gardens…
we checked out our stones when we arrived… just to be sure they were still there, lol…
we had a great time in the Gardens and spent ages at the tropical lily pond watching a momma mallard and her four babies…
we also found a few critters…
we went and picked up groceries for the week and when we got home spotted a goldfinch at the feeder… when I called them to come quick, not saying why, one said to the other I wonder what kind of bird it is, lol… they do know their grandma…
the x-box came to visit too, and got well used during the hottest part of the day, while I may have napped…
a trip to the Dollar Store, Safeway and then we returned home…
fun with the football we picked up, taco supper, and now some time in the garden…
we did FaceTime with mommy and watched daddy work on a campfire…
they are off to play some badminton… then, maybe a movie, or early to bed, lol…
at least one of us is tired…
26 Tuesday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, blessed, datura, flowers, garden, milk, moments, plants, pond, sound, watered, waterfall, widow
this morning I watered the baskets in the front flower bed by hand…
I could have used the hose but decided to use a jug and walk back and forth from the kitchen sink…
purpose was twofold… be sure each planter got enough water… and get some steps in…
then I watered a few plants on the deck, adding some leftover milk, which, according to the internet, provides additional nutrients and means I don’t have to toss out the sour milk…
once that was done, I spent about fifteen minutes in the garden enjoying the peace and soaking up the sound of the waterfall…
the datura looked lovely as I sat in the lounger… a special moment…
25 Monday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, event, flowers, guru, Safeway, shopping, transformation, widow
yesterday I picked up flowers from Safeway for an event this evening…
I gave them to the clerk to wrap without putting them in a plastic sleeve and assumed she would put them in one before wrapping them…
she didn’t so the package was soaking wet at the bottom and the stems were sticking out before I even got home…
I took them out and put them into a container of water so they would be in good shape for today…
this morning I put them in a plastic bag filled with water so they wouldn’t suffer on the way to work… tucked them into the seatbelt and away we went…
at the office, our resident flower guru cut and placed them in fresh water, and then arranged them beautifully…
they spent most of the day at the front of the office and then moved into the meeting space for the evening…
quite the transformation…
24 Sunday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, board, cutting board, dinner, English Garden, family, flowers, garden, grandson, overcast, rush, son-in-law, walk, widow
productive day… up early and out by eight for a walk to the Park…
it was overcast and cool… nice for walking… the English and Leo Mol Gardens were empty except for a few gardeners and me…
by the time I left there were runners, dog walkers and families flooding the space…
music was coming from the Lyric as I headed along the path and I wondered what was happening today… as I crossed the bridge and saw everyone with at least one dog, it came to me that it was PawsInMotion, lol…
once home, I finished my grocery list and went to Safeway to pick up a few things for tonight and the coming week…
my son-in-law and youngest grandson arrived for supper and a visit… everyone else in the family was busy…
after dinner my son-in-law cut down the piece he had found to make my new cutting board… the one I’ve been using had come out of their house when they moved in and remodeled their kitchen nearly three years ago… it was a bit narrow and short… my previous one, which George had made, had gone into the garbage as it was completely worn out…
this new one fits perfectly… it is quite dark so likely it is going to take a while for me to get used to it;-)…
but I am very happy because a new board has been on my what I would like list since at least two years ago Christmas, lol…
can’t rush a good thing…
22 Friday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
baskets, big girl pants, daisies, design, flowers, garden, grandson, moments, plants, purple, quality, shopping, weeding, widow
had the most wonderful day…
walked over to the “A” and met my oldest grandson for breakfast…
on the way I came across a bunny having a snack and a goose looking for its friends…
after breakfast we went to Superstore and picked up a bunch of baskets to put in the front flowerbed…
we weeded… a lot… I cut back all the daisies so we can actually walk on the path up to the bridge over the pond…
we saw a butterfly on one of the chairs, found some jewellery for him to take home, got all the pots filled, and then washed the windows in the living and dining room while a thunderstorm rolled over…
he worked so hard in the side garden…
not perfect yet, but we are on the way… we redesigned how it is going to look and have a plan for once he gets back from his grad trip…
we ran out to the Outlet Mall and Polo Park and had leftover Chinese food for lunch…
sure do enjoy spend quality time with this young man…
21 Thursday Jun 2018
Posted in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, cupcake, daisies, family, flowers, garden, goal, grandson, soccer, Spring, thirteen, widow
today the middle grandson turned thirteen…
it is also the first day of summer…
took pictures in a circle in the garden this morning…
the daisies looked amazing..
once they finish blooming I will cut them back because they are in the middle of the path, lol…
tonight’s game was great fun and the birthday boy scored two goals…
my son-in-law had to use a wrench to get the lock off the nets so they could get them into place on the field so the game could begin…
game ended with a win and cupcakes for his teammates…
pretty great way to spend the first day of Spring…
17 Sunday Jun 2018
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Tags
big girl pants, blessed, dad, family, Father's Day, flowers, garden, lessons, memories, moments, treat, welcome, widow
spent some time this morning thinking about my dad…
he really raised us as mother and father as my mom spent so much time in hospital during my early years…
he would have loved the garden and did get to sit on the main deck a few times… his dad was a master gardener, but I don’t remember dad doing much in the garden, but he loved seeing beautiful well tended flower beds…
he always welcomed others into our home and we often had people staying with us as they were going through difficult times…
he was a great cook… I can remember one night when he was draining the spaghetti over a sink full of dishwater and the strainer fell into the water… he picked it up, rinsed the spaghetti off and continued with the meal prep… we couldn’t afford to throw it out… it was served with his famous meatballs and homemade sauce… one of our guests went on and on about it being the best he’d ever had… Dad and I laughed about that for years…
he always had candy in his pockets… maybe that’s why I always have candy on my desk, and chocolate inside it, lol…
he loved athletics and we went to events whenever we could manage… he cheered for everyone and taught me that a good job deserved praise… it didn’t matter if it was your team or the other team…
he looked forward to parades and we sat on the curb at Portage and Strathcona for every single one that went by…
in his later years he would take me grocery shopping for my family and would treat us to a lovely roast or steak… took me a while to accept without protesting… I realized that he was no longer able to do physical things to help us due to his health, but he could treat us to groceries…
he taught me to be kind, treat everyone equally, work hard, and do my best…
thanks Dad…
herbiggirlpants 