Tag Archives: garden

foot…

19 Tuesday Jun 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

before the soccer game on Sunday night we had our own tailgate party with ribs, carrots, potato and Caesar salad…

as I was filling my plate two of the travelling chairs that were leaning against the back of the vehicle fell onto my foot…

it hurt, but after a couple of minutes I went and ate my dinner… then the game started… I was happy to make it to a game that actually happened, lol…

about half way through my foot started to be uncomfortable… took off my shoe and realized that it had swelled up with a huge bump along the side…

iced it when I got home but it was sore…

spent yesterday at home with it raised up on a pillow…

this morning it felt and looked fine, so I headed in to work… by the afternoon it was a bit uncomfortable…

now that I’m home it is raised up again on a pillow..

going to be a great shade of purple tomorrow I think…

welcome…

17 Sunday Jun 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

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…

geraniums…

16 Saturday Jun 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , ,

still thinking about those poppies…

when we were walking around the English Garden yesterday these poppies popped out at me…

a few weeks ago, one of the baskets we picked up had geraniums in it amongst the purple and white flowers…

I wasn’t sure I wanted to buy it because I am not fond of the scent of geraniums… my daughter suggested I remove them, but I decided to leave them in the container… a few died, but some have survived…

I’m finding now that the pop of red reminds me of the poppies, which remind me of my beloved… it also reminds me of my mother-in-law who planted geraniums alongside her driveway and overwintered them in the basement each year…

each time I walk by the window I see them from a distance and think of my beloved…

bushes…

10 Sunday Jun 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

spent the day in the garden… was up early with a quiet hot tub as the sun rose…

did quite a bit of weeding in amongst watering, reading and resting… took a number of photos along the way… always nice at the end of the day to remember what it looked like at the beginning;-)…

planted some butterfly bushes although they don’t really look very lively and potted up the last of the plants I’d bought recently… I was very happy when I came across the bushes because they are difficult to find as they are annuals here, not perennials, which is what the packaging always says…

had all three meals in the garden with a short nap in the house…

enjoyed the time out there, even the weeding…

poppy…

07 Thursday Jun 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , ,

been thinking about poppies…

over the last forty years we’ve always had poppies in the garden… some years there would be fifteen or twenty … other years, maybe three…

the spring following George’s death there were over fifty…

it was amazing and so beautiful… seemed like he was here with me…

this year there are plants, but not a single bloom…

stopped…

05 Tuesday Jun 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , ,

was able to take pictures of flowers today which always brightens my day…

when I first stepped out of the house this morning the fuchsia was so stunning that it stopped me in my tracks… had to take a some photos…

there are a number of small bouquets in the office and I was able to wander around and get a few shots…

and then I spotted the blooms getting ready to open on one of the African violets in my office…

flowers make me happy and I was pleased to be able to spend a few moments enjoying the ones I came across…

bush…

03 Sunday Jun 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , , ,

so excited to take photos of the lilacs in the garden…

they are beautiful and I plan to cut some for the office tomorrow morning…

I did have a little giggle when I looked across the street and saw the lilac bush filled with blooms…

when we removed the lilacs from the backyard, many years ago, our neighbour planted one small piece and this is what it has grown into… we used to laugh when one of her boys would take a golf club to it occasionally when he was having a bad day, lol…

had lunch out with my daughter and eldest grandson and we picked up a few items for the garden…

most excited with the Japanese Maple bowl I discovered… will put it out in the garden once the weather stays more on the warm side…

ended up with three hanging baskets, some lobelia, a fancy eggplant, and a little white hydrangea… also found a water lily and a few other water plants…

apparently the province has banned water hyacinth which is crazy… although it is a noxious weed in the south, it dies here in the cold… I haven’t even been able to get it to stay alive in the aquarium over the winter… very disappointing as the water hyacinth multiply and cover the top of the pond providing protection from the light/algae and a safe place for baby fish to grow…

while we were shopping, saw these cute little three year old parrots that were riding on their owner’s shoulder as she wandered around the garden centre…

Barbie…

27 Sunday May 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

much more relaxed day today…

started the day with a hot tub in the mist… while I was sitting there, looked over to see I had left cushions on one of the chairs, lol… luckily that chair was under one of the cedars…

happy to find a white mandevilla along with a couple of pretty baskets when I was out shopping…

picked up a few groceries, came home and had a short nap… spent the remainder of the day in the shade reading…

because it was so lovely out, I chose a steak for dinner… and I brought Barbie out of the garage to make it… usually I don’t bother unless the kids are over and they do the barbecuing, but did a great job of the meat and the asparagus… even cooked the mushrooms out there… forgot to take a picture of them on Barbie, lol…

delicious dinner…

arranged…

26 Saturday May 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , , , , ,

well, what a busy day… woke up at 4:20 am and went out for a very early morning hot tub… the sky was already getting lighter so I could barely see the last of the stars…

when I woke at 7:25 I went out and set up the cushions on the chairs and loungers, had a smoothie and tea… beautiful morning… arranged for my middle grandson to come and help me in the garden and then spoke with my Ottawa daughter, who was in Kingston…

the kids arrived and we went to the “A” for breakfast… then my grandson and I walked around Bruce Park to catch a few Pokémon and headed home…

we worked in the garden for the rest of the day with sitting and water breaks as well as a quick trip to pick up subs for lunch… we drove, even though it is only a few blocks away, because we were both hot and tired, lol…

often when we are together we share stories about Grandpa… today we remembered how he could be a bit scary when he lost his temper, how he liked to keep busy in the garden, would pull weeds and toss them on the ground and have to go back to pick them up and put them in the yard waste bags… that is the preferred method for my grandson as well, lol… we also talked about how long we have lived in this house and some of the fun times we’ve had… we shared things that make us nervous and traits that we both have…

we spotted a chipping sparrow having a bath and earlier I had seen a small frog hopping in and out of the pond…

the garden is taking shape… we cleaned out one flower bed, filled fourteen planters, mowed the front and back, brought out the hibiscus and put everything we had used away… whew…

by the end we were both hot and exhausted but had a blast together;-)…

he was picked up by my son-in-law who fixed one of the pumps while he was here… once they left I sat and read for a while…

going to have a hot tub soon and maybe head to bed early…

hope…

23 Wednesday May 2018

Posted by in family, food, health, life, loss, nature, Photography, technology, Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , , , , ,

been spending a bit of time each morning reading before heading off to work…

this morning, instead of reading I was in the garden, topping up the pond… clearly it has been hot and the water has been evaporating…

it was lovely to spend the early morning outdoors listening to birdsong and running water…

of course, the hope is that I won’t have to do this too often, lol…