today, as I sat in the living room looking out the window I spent a few happy moments remembering the wonderful neighbours we have had over the years…
our next door neighbours became our very good friends… when the girls were first born they would take them home so that we could eat our supper without interruption… the girls would go over to their house to see if “Uncle Buzz could come out to play?” and he did… we fed them on Wednesday nights and they babysat while we went bowling… at one point Ellen produced a cookbook for each of them with all of the recipes she made that we all loved…
the neighbour across the street made Barbie clothes and we shared many meals and coffee on the deck…
the neighbour a few houses down the lane would come and help my beloved with whatever project he was working on and they had such fun together…
the neighbour across the back lane shared their pool…
these days we aren’t quite as close to the neighbours, as all of those have gone, but they are all kind and caring in their own way…
made me think of today’s contemplating card;-)…
maybe, if the world ever returns to some semblance of normal, I will have them all over for a meal and time together;-)…
this morning my contemplating card was about gratitude…
a short time later I was putting on this lovely pashmina which hangs on the back of one of the chairs in the living room… it was a gift from a dear friend and is pink and purple…
I added a magnetic pin that I received at one of the SHEday events to hold it closed…
reminded me of how grateful I am to have many great and caring friends, and that I have participated in some amazing activities…
another thing I am grateful for is that when we remember something particular, usually we focus on the fun/good parts, not necessarily the things that weren’t as much fun, lol…
I’ve been contemplating the thought that nature makes music, if you take time to listen…
reminded me of early mornings when I hear the birds outside… in the spring, summer and fall, I listen to the water flowing into the pond and the great variety of singing going on as the birds welcome the new day…
the geese, the rain, the wind… the quiet after the snow falls…
for many years, since my trip to Seattle in 2013, I have had a Chihuly calendar… either my daughter or I have purchased them for Christmas gifts to one another…
this year that didn’t happen, so we were discussing how we missed it the other day…
she suggested that I make one using Vistaprint… I had gone online and found them on the Chihuly Garden and Glass website, but the shipping charge was more than double the cost of the calendar…
so I did… I used the photos from our visit in 2016… it took about an hour to prepare and order…
that was on Monday… on Thursday it arrived;-)… it is beautiful, the photos came out clear and crisp and it is just slightly smaller than the Chihuly ones…
I am very happy…
I had fallen in love with a photo of the garden goddess many years ago that was taken in Montreal… on one of my visits to see the kids in Ottawa, we planned a visit to see it… unfortunately the picture was old and the structure was not in the garden…
in 2015, my daughter sent me information about a goddess structure in Atlanta, and that there was a Chihuly installation happening as well in 2016… I was very excited and so away we went…
it was a special time… I am going to enjoy this calendar…
three different present deliveries to me today… and one last night…
only spoke with each person for a second… it was chilly out there, but such a joy to have a socially distanced word with each of them… and these days that is an exceptional treat…