26 Wednesday Aug 2026
Posted in Uncategorized, life, moments, retirement
Tags
blessed, family, big girl pants, happy, widow, grandson, books, moments, imagined, bookcase, perfect fit
so I’ve been thinking about where to put the 100 books, lol…
my housemate had a bookshelf stored elsewhere and we arranged to have it delivered…
it fit in the spot I’d imagined perfectly 😊…
took a while to empty the boxes and bag, but I was so happy when it was done…
and, in the end, the 100 books fit exactly…
22 Wednesday Jul 2026
Posted in garden, life, moments, nature, retirement, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, blessed, butterflies, caterpillars, garden, hamper, happy, interested, moments, monarchs, nature, widow
a number of monarchs (or the same one numerous times) have visited the garden and stopped to snack at the ageratum…
unfortunately, none appeared interested in the milkweed…
I’ve been checking it for the last week, but have not seen any eggs…
yesterday, when I was inspecting the plants which had a number of holes in them, I spotted two tiny caterpillars;-)… only got one in focus, lol…
today, they have already grown a lot…
so excited to see them;-)…
wondering if I need to put the hamper net, which is currently covering the strawberries, over this plant, so the birds don’t get them 🤔…
10 Friday Jul 2026
Posted in garden, health, life, moments, nature, retirement, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, blessed, cushions, deck, decorative, garden, groupings, happy, moments, move, nature, pond, widow
even though I am alone in the garden, it makes me happy to put out all of the outdoor chair cushions as well as the decorative ones…
recently, I walked around the space and took photos of the various seating options…
there are lots of places to sit and many are little groupings…
during the day I tend to move from area to area depending on the weather…
this last one is probably the most used in the late afternoon and evening as it is in the shade by then…
I also spend a great deal of the morning by the pond as it is shady in that location in the earlier part of the day and a great spot to watch the fish😊…
01 Wednesday Jul 2026
Posted in garden, life, moments, nature, retirement, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, blessed, blossoms, coneflower, driveway, garden, happy, nature, period, widow
it always amazes me how much better plants do in the place they like…
a perfect example is the coneflower…
previously we had tried one in the bed by the pond and it died off…
last year we planted one along the driveway, beside the chimney… it had two flowers, which made me very happy…
this year I counted at least a dozen blossoms… looking forward to seeing them as they open…
the blossoms are different sizes, so they should open over a period of time;-)…
clearly they like the strong sun in that spot and are very happy 😁
10 Wednesday Jun 2026
Posted in garden, life, moments, nature, retirement, Uncategorized, weather
and the first poppy has popped…
yesterday I went out to have my breakfast in the garden and spotted the bright orange all the way across the garden… with its reflection in the pond…
woohoo, what a great start to the day
looking forward to more;-)…
08 Monday Jun 2026
Posted in business, garden, health, life, moments, retirement, technology, Uncategorized, weather
Tags
air conditioner, big girl pants, blessed, family, fixed, garden, happy, moments, old, repaired, splits, Technology, virginia creeper, weather, widow
great anticipation and excitement on Saturday…
we’ve been looking into air conditioner splits, as well as a new air conditioner for a while now…
the current air conditioner hasn’t worked for at least three years, and maybe even five… I can’t remember…
when I had someone in to look at it, they said it was leaking freon and couldn’t be repaired… it has sometimes been very hot upstairs but I managed with a tower fan…
last year I’d been quoted around $5,000 to replace it and that just seemed too much, particularly as the cold air never really made it upstairs, lol…
we had an HVAC person in the other day and the splits just weren’t going to work here… before moving forward with a new air conditioner, they suggested trying to get the old one working… they came back on Saturday to see if they could get the old one going…
they were here for a couple of hours and got it working😁😆😄…
the problem was the virginia creeper which had wound its way around the motor… I guess the other company was just wanting me to purchase a new air conditioner…
it is recording 13 something and the optimum is 20, so that sounds quite wonderful to me…
my housemate is going to be exceedingly happy…
04 Thursday Jun 2026
Posted in garden, health, life, moments, nature, retirement, Uncategorized, weather
Tags
big girl pants, blessed, blooms, garden, happy, inukshuk, lilac, moments, nature, produced, purple, widow
last year we moved the little lilac bush from the garden to the front yard…
it just didn’t seem happy in the spot we had it and for the last couple of years it hadn’t produced any flowers at all…
the hope was that it would like the extra sun it would get out front…
not too long after it arrived in its new spot we built an inukshuk beside it with a collection of limestone pieces that we had…
this spring it didn’t look as though it had survived and then, all of a sudden, it sprang up…
and, just this morning, I spotted at least four little bunches of buds… can’t wait for them to open…
so exciting;-)…
23 Saturday May 2026
Posted in business, food, health, life, moments, retirement, Uncategorized
Tags
big girl pants, blessed, breakfast, friend, greenery, happy, items, moments, Park Cafe, update, widow
walked to and from the Park for lunch on Thursday…
happy to see the new design and menu items and so pleased to meet up with a wonderful friend and spend some quality time together;-)…
the place looks great, with more greenery and comfortable chairs that move much easier… the space seems more open… didn’t even realize that the kitchen was no longer visible…
the menu looked much classier than the previous version and my falafel plate was excellent, as always…
my friend had the eggs Benedict which was also tasty…
the fried potatoes with onions was not a favourite…
we watched adult geese wander the paths with their numerous babies as we enjoyed our meal…
I took this photo as I was crossing the bridge;-)…
lovely…
20 Monday Apr 2026
Posted in business, family, food, life, moments, retirement, Uncategorized
Tags
beef tartare, big girl pants, birthday eve dinner, blessed, brioche, delicious, dinner, family, food, Gather Craft Kitchen and Bar, happy, moments, new menu, The Leaf, widow
had dinner at Gather Craft Kitchen and Bar on Friday after my volunteer shift to celebrate my birthday eve…
the new menu looks great and we enjoyed everything we had…
we shared the brioche with butter and honey… the bread was warm and the butter soft… delicious… the look on my grandson’s face reminded me of the cartoon dog Snuffles, that rose into the air after eating something tasty…
then we had the potato paillassons, which were also delicious… yum…
I had the beef tartare… really enjoyed it with the bread…
my grandson had the grilled octopus, with paella rice, saffron aioli, and chervil, and noted how nicely it was cooked…
every bite was delightful… and I am looking forward to the next visit to try some of the other items…
19 Sunday Apr 2026
Posted in family, food, health, life, moments, retirement, Uncategorized
Tags
75, barbecue, big girl pants, birthday, blessed, family, flowers, Glowy, happy, moments, steak and lobster, treats, widow
yesterday I turned 75… amazing, lol…
there were phone calls, texts, cards, singing, plants, and hugs…
I was treated to lunch out and enjoyed our last PTE play of the season…
when I arrived home after the play, the groceries had been purchased, put away, and supper was underway…
we had steak and lobster, with potatoes, mushrooms, and onions in foil… all done on Glowy…
my birthday present from my family…
I am blessed…
herbiggirlpants 