Last Half 2022 – August

Good Morning ALL! How are you this morning? We are doing great. Alvin is laying in front of the fan in the hallway as I type this post. We were up for the first time this morning at 5:45, that was fantastic. I suppose we should have stayed up as it was close to the time that during the week I need to be up so that we can do everything we need to do before I start work but alas after I fed Mr. Alvin, took him outside, we laid down on the sofa again. Next thing I woke up and it as 8:00 a.m., I quickly ran upstairs and got changed, filled his water bottle, slipped his harness on, grabbed the leash, poop bags, my sunglass clips, my flip flops and the keys and we were on our way. It was so nice outside a bit of coolness filled the air. The sky is slightly overcast as I type these words and there is a bit of a breeze. I think that today the temperature is to be a bit cooler. So grateful for that. We walked to our friend Pauline’s house, looked at the flowers from the public sidewalk as I could see people coming with dogs. Turning around we headed home. Of course, there was a poop stop before carrying on. We were almost to the poop bag station at the entrance to the park when the lady and her pup caught up to us. She called out that they were waiting for us. Her dog was large but seemed so sweet. Mary and PopTart. Those were their names. We chatted from a bit of a distance as Mary said that PopTart was afraid of smaller dogs. Alvin was busy sniffing and not paying too much attention to her although he did look at her from a distance and was wagging his tail. PopTart was so well behaved. I am always amazed at how many new people I meet. Are there that many moving into this area? She was nice and her pup was nice. We also mentioned about walking early in the morning or later in the evening (if not dark, no mosquitoes) if cools down as too hot for the pups during the day.

Just as I was typing this post, I realized that I had a voicemail message and it was from Pauline, she had called after we left the house to see if we wanted to meet and go for a walk. I texted her back and she suggested maybe this evening. I hope that the temperature allows for us to walk.

I would like to bake a banana loaf however it will depend on the temperatures. Have to check the weather station.

My brother and his husband made it safely to Regina last night to our sister’s house. She has air conditioning so they would have had a good sleep last night.

I can smell the freshly brewed coffee so it is time to end this post. Looks like more clouds are rolling in. Perhaps we will get some rain. I watered my flowers last night as they can barely go more than one day without being watered. We are also getting closer to the end of their season. I will need to bring in my geraniums and canna lily in likely a couple of weeks so will need to repot the geraniums. Guess I will need to look at getting some more flower pots and dirt.

I hope that you have an awesome Sunday. I have to bring up the clothes that are drying in the basement. Perhaps this afternoon, I will go through some of my crafting items as I promised them to a person that picked up a item that I was selling. No point in having things laying around the house that you will not use.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and coffee.

Always, Carol & Alvin

PS: always be open to possibilities!

Last Half 2022

Good Morning All! How are you this morning? Third day in a row we have been up extra early. Tuesday we were up early to go for a walk before the heat set in, yesterday I went to the office and today we are going to walk as it will be another warm one here in Edmonton.

The sky is extra pretty this morning. There are wisps of dark clouds hovering below the lighter blue sky. The sun is up and slightly covered by the cloud cast. I can hear a dog barking behind us somewhere, that dog is always outside and always barking. I feel for the poor guy or girl. In the background there is the hum of vehicles on the Anthony Henday highway that circles the City of Edmonton.

When I compare work at home to work at the office there is no difference. Perhaps I have become too comfortable getting up a bit later or earlier to go for walks, having a view of my backyard, being here for Alvin, not having the noise of the office. Working from home is so much easier and way less expensive. With the ever increasing costs and no increase to our pay – having to go to the office more often means changing what I buy for food and not buying anything extra. Someone thinks it is a good idea for people to return to the office but really is it? Most offices have staff in open workspaces with perhaps lower dividers to separate them. Noise carries. When you are on the phone it is hard to just speak in a whisper as not to disturb those around you. The commute time is horrible. Then less time at home. We were finally having a great work – life balance. Back to people being sick all of the time. Meetings for the sake of having meetings. It is always easy to say “go back” when you have a door on your office to close when needed. I am sure it will all work out but in the meantime, there are millions of people worldwide that are suffering from the anxiety of returning to work at the office. I know that millions of people have no choice. But if we can help some of those millions to be less stressed, why wouldn’t we?

Well time to go as I want to take Mr. Alvin for a walk. The cool air wafting in through the open office window is divine. I need to clear the above chatter from my mind.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities and COFFEE. Definitely coffee this morning.

Always, Carol & Alvin

PS: only 26 days till 65! I was carrying the decorator pillows from the spare bed back to ours and I usually look to see where Alvin is located, this time I was preoccupied and tripped. Luckily I didn’t put my full weight on his paws or anything but I did come very close to hitting the corner of the hallway wall. That would not have been pretty. Oh, my life with Alvin

2021

Good Morning ALL! How are you doing this Monday morning? Looks like a very hot week ahead of us here in Edmonton. Beautiful bright sunny sky with a cool wind. We are heading out for our first walk of the day due to the higher temperatures of this afternoon and should be able to get a second one in at my lunch break. Sunday morning I shot some photos of the sky from the early morning (yup first ones taken at 5:00 a.m.) and the sky was glorious. I wanted to share them with you but as I wanted to honour my friend Martin, I decided not to post the photos, not to wish all the DADS out there a Happy Father’s Day or to acknowledge the first official day of summer. So I am doing all of that today.

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The changes in the sky all took place in just over an hour’s time. The sky was incredible. I wished that I was a great photographer. I was in awe of the early morning sky.

Mother Nature in all her glory.

Yesterday was a good first day of summer and Father’s Day was mixed for a lot of people.

Wishing you an awesome Monday.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, understanding and gratitude.

Always, Carol & Alvin

It is a NEW YEAR.

Well it is Sunday already, how did that happen?

Alvin is barking at the doorway to the office so I guess he needs to go downstairs so I will return.

Okay we are back.

While I was down there I decided to quickly put on the coffee.

We are up a bit later than usual.

As usual though we were up at 4:40 a.m.

The boy had his glucosamine  chew and his breakfast.

A bit later we were on the sofa and then up at 6:45 and then I decided we would lay down on our bed.

Cannot remember the last time.

So we were not up until 8:30 a.m.

The sky is overcast and it is a tad on the cool side but definitely not COLD.

My neighbour said hello from inside her house as I went outside with Mr. Alvin.

While I was outside I decided to put the cushions from the patio set back into the garage.

Even though they can get wet and they will dry out – I just think it keeps the integrity of the material lasting longer.

 

Well we have had a great weekend thus far.

My friend Pauline with the great garden brought me an early birthday present.

A pot filled with a variety of flowers including my beloved pansies.

Oh, how I love them, so.

She always gave me another plant.

I do not remember the name and I have transplanted it.

Our deck is filling up with flowers.

I am most grateful.

We had a nice little visit.

I did as you likely would have guessed taken a mitful of photos but again technical difficulties.

I must go through my photos on the phone and delete the multiples and check things out.

I know my computer is getting older and I have so many photos.

Hopefully it will hang in for a few more years.

 

Yesterday Humphrey and Teddy visited.

Their visits overlapping.

Friends also dropped off some groceries from Costco and we had a quick chat out front.

During their time here I did laundry and made a potato salad.

For the first time in my 62+ years I made mayonnaise from scratch.

It actually turned out not too bad.

Did not look the same as the video photo but then I subbed a few things.

When we walked Teddy back home I mentioned to his Mom about the mayonnaise and she gave me some helpful hints for the next time.

I will say it was very easy.

I am going to make up a list of all the things that I have not cooked/baked in my life and go for it.

To be honest I cook and bake simple things.

Not the fancy seven layer cakes or the fancy puddings and such.

I don’t know a lot of different techniques but I am going to learn some.

Never too late.

I have been cooking/baking since the age of 6 so perhaps it is time.

Step up my game so to speak.

Cannot hurt.

Except for perhaps the midsection and that I am working on …..

 

So we had a great day.

We had a short visit when we dropped Teddy home.

There was way more sunshine yesterday than forecasted.

Today I am not so sure although there just seemed to be a splash of sunlight coming through the clouds.

 

Wishing you an awesome Sunday.

I need some coffee.

Time for coffee and toast and some fresh berries.

I want to check out some episodes of “Escape to the Country” ….. I love it.

Only older shows but still interesting.

I love the English countryside.

Occasionally someone moves to the Scotland or Wales.

 

Living with much kindness and respect for life.

I/We, shall remain,

As Always, Carol & Alvin

 

It is a NEW YEAR.

Good Saturday morning all.

After hitting plus 28 degrees celsius for the first time this year we are to have a slightly cooler day at 25 degrees.

There is a breeze today so that helps keep it more manageable.

Yesterday was a great day.

My daughter did the shopping for both households at COSTCO.

She surprised me with some beautiful potted flowers.

We had supper together and we had some of the strawberry-rhubarb crisp that I had made Thursday night.

It turned out pretty good.

We also did some gardening as she is starting to really be interested in growing plants/flowers.

I am happy about that as there is nothing more calming and fun than gardening.

One of my most favourite things is to garden but to sit back later and just enjoy the colour, their scents and their simple beauty.

Alvin is doing really well after his teeth cleaning.

I would say 100% back to normal.

 

Today is the birthday of our friend Pauline, I am going to just use her name and not just her initial.

Using one’s initial seems so impersonal.

After all it is not like I am giving her last name and address.

Happy Birthday to our friend.

She is a grower of the most beautiful flowers and plants.

Green thumb for sure.

 

The rest of this blog is going to be all photos as I finally was able to download those photos.

 

Beautiful flowers from my daughter.

Alvin’s tooth – that most forgetful tooth fairy did not bring him any loot !

Photos of the storm brewing last night. The ones with the dark border were near the roofline of our house.

Alvin and I enjoying the sunshine before his dental appointment on Thursday.

While out on the deck with Alvin before his appointment, I was going for some flower shots when I noticed two bugs “doing the wild thing.”

They were sitting on the railing but when I moved they started to fly.

What a sight.  I tried valiantly to snap a photo but it is not a crisp shot.

Very cool all the same.  Oh, I love nature.

Teddy, Kobi spent Wednesday with us.  Those pups love to move about making it impossible to grab any great closeups.

The baby Kobi is getting so big and remains full of puppy energy.  I love the photo of her and then the second one

where all of the ups are standing up looking out of the window.

Humphrey spent a few hours in the evening with us.

Truly was a friends day for Alvin and me, too.

My back raised flower/shrub garden.

I love it so much.

Whoops what about the front ……

I did manage to snap a couple or three of the friends.

Oh, I did snap some of my front garden.

Very nice and green.

Forgot the impatiens on the front porch.

 

Well I better get this day going.

I was going to take Mr. Alvin for a walk since we missed ours yesterday.

Before it gets too warm.

Coffee and laundry can wait.

It is 8:44 a.m. already and we were up much earlier than usual.

 

Wishing you a grand day.

I hope that you have a garden to putz in and to enjoy.

Continuing to live our lives with kindness and respect.

I/We, shall remain,

As Always, Carol & Mr. Alvin

It is a NEW YEAR.

Good Thursday Morning!

Another beautiful bright sunshiny day.

I am becoming more infatuated with clouds.

Noticing them more and more.

On our way home from our walk after work the clouds were so beautiful.

There was a shelf of them hanging down and above only blue sky.

I am not sure what the technical term is but they just sat there.

Just like a floating shelf.

Almost like they could hold an object or hide an object.

Beautiful and perfect.

This morning they are wispy and appear to be touching the blueness of the sky.

Clouds ….. mmmm

 

We had a great day with the pups.

Kobi did amazing.

She pretty much stayed upstairs with me and Alvin while I was working.

Teddy laid downstairs on Alvin’s bed in the living room.

She is so full of energy.

Kobi did her best to be close to Alvin.

He was not thrilled when she nudged him to play.

Sounded like a grumpy old man.

Reminded me of someone I know.

Not really grumpy but does not like to let on that he is not.

I did snap some photos and will post them another time.

Later on in the early evening – Humphrey from next door, joined us.

Truly was a day filled with friends.

 

This is an odd morning for our household.

Mr. Alvin has his annual teeth cleaning.

No food after 10:00 p.m.

No water after Midnight.

So I made sure to give him a little biscuit at 9:00 p.m.

I tried valiantly to coax him to drink some water at bedtime but to no avail.

He has been good this morning.

When we first got up and went downstairs, I asked him if he wanted to go outside and no.

He stopped by the pantry where his food is kept.

I explained that “this morning you go to see Jenn and Dr. K to get your teeth cleaned”

I only wished that he understood.

But when I said “still night time” and laid down on the sofa, he jumped up and laid down right beside me.

I tried to lay down as long as possible so that it would be easier for him.

We “slept” until almost 7:30 p.m.

Now I have things to do.

Part of which is this post and then a shower before we leave for his appointment.

His appointment is at 9:30 a.m. which is when they open.

Dr. K will arrive between 10:00-10:15 and then between 10:30-11:00 they will give him the anesthetic which takes about 20-30 minutes to take.

Then comes the teeth cleaning.

Jenn said he would be ready to come home about 2:30 p.m.

Knowing Mr. Alvin it will be much earlier.

But time will tell.

I will pick him up whenever he is ready to come home.

He also needs more food, his glucosamine chews, perhaps some wet food as a treat, shampoo and conditioner, toothpaste and a new toothbrush.

It is a big day.

 

Well time to go and hit the shower.

I hope that you have a wonderful Thursday.

 

Living with kindness and respect for all.

I/We shall remain,

As Always, Carol & Alvin

 

It is a NEW YEAR.

Good Thursday Morning ALL.

What a gloriously beautiful morning it is here in Edmonton.

There is a slight breeze this morning not gale force like yesterday.

For the next 14 days according to the weather channel it will be mid to late teens temperature wise.

Not really what I thought June was going to be like but as long as we have a nice mix of sunshine and rain drops, I am a happy camper.

Big news we went for our full walk last night with no “foot/toe” issues for me.

Yay, next week we will return to our walking at lunch and after work.

 

I just have to share these photos that I snapped from our back deck last night just before 9:00 p.m.

The sky was so gorgeous and the CLOUDS.

I love clouds.

In fact, I could lay down on the deck (have done so) and just watch the clouds floating around above me.

Some of these photos look the same but there are sutle differences between them.

That one cloud was amazing.

Then I noticed the neighbours a few doors down … they planted these trees many moons ago and look how tall they have grown.

I could not help but to take a photo of my Alvin and my flowers in the backyard.

Please do not notice the long weedy grass in the backyard.

It is awaiting for some TLC.

I am going to mow it now after breakfast and before I begin my late work shift (11 am – 7 pm).

Twice per month we man/woman the after hours phones for our company.

Tomorrow night I am going to don some shoes with covered toes (hopefully that goes well) and use my BRAND NEW grass trimmer and fix up the backyard.

Tonight my daughter is stopping by.

I have something for her and she has some new old clothes for me.

I love hand me downs.

A friend gave her a bag of clothes to go through.

Isn’t life great.

 

 

Well Mr. Alvin is patiently, okay very impatiently waiting for me to leave upstairs, perhaps he has to pee, which is likely.

I hope that you enjoy the clouds wherever you are on this Thursday.

Always take up to look up (make sure that you are safe when doing so).

 

Happy Thursday.

 

Living my life with kindness and respect.

I/We shall remain,

As Always, Carol & Alvin

 

It is a NEW YEAR.

Good Morning and welcome to Wednesday affectionately known as “Hump Day.”

The sun is shining, the sky is that beautiful perfect blue with just the odd wisp of white clouds.

 

Another work day here in just a little bit.

Oh, how I love this commute.

If I went from this computer to my work one it would be not even three steps, closer to 2.5.

How is that for a commute?

I know that I am very blessed to be able to work from home.

Even though there are days, well I should say moments that I could “scream” with my job, I am grateful for it.

I am quite certain that anyone with a job has those days.

I love being here for Alvin.

He follows me around the house from room to room.

I love that I have at a minimum 1.15 hours extra each day to enjoy with Alvin.

That is the difference when working from home.

If I was catching the bus it would 2.5 hours.

So this is a huge time to have at home.

Enjoy this time.

I know that I am.

I have more time to putz in my yard and thankfully it is now spring and soon summer.

I can go for two walks each day with Mr. Alvin.

Just more time to enjoy.

I am loving it.

 

This coming Sunday, I invited the girls over for coffee on the deck (instead of inside the garage).

10:00 a.m.

Hoping the weather would cooperate.

Please no wind and not like the gale force winds at our last coffee get together in the garage.

I was chatting with another friend and she said to enjoy this coming weekend (as I work and she thinks I work too hard) and what would I be doing with my daughter for Mother’s Day.

Whaaaat? I said.

Mother’s Day.

No.

“Yes”, she said.

I ran over to the calendar on the fridge and low and behold “Coffee with Girls @ 10:00 a.m.” and right underneath in fine print “Mother’s Day.”

Yikes.

I cannot believe that all three of us missed that it was Mother’s Day.

Isn’t that a typical Mother thing to do, forget your special Day.

Although everyday should be Mother’s Day.

As I said to my friend just that “Everyday is Mother’s Day for me.”

So after we hung up, I quickly texted the girls.

One of the two just realized the date as her husband mentioned something.

Coffee will be on the deck on Saturday at 10:00 a.m.

YAY.

 

Well my friends it is time to grab that cup of coffee and sign onto the computer and get to work.

I never in my wildest dreams thought that I would or could do my job from home.

95%, I can and the remainder we could likely find a way.

 

I wish you a sunny beautiful Wednesday.

Remember to breathe.

Life is always throwing us a curveball or two along the way.

This is just one of those.

So we do the best that we can.

We will get through this.

Hopefully when we do go back to work – we will fit all of our clothes.

I have not tried “button pants” as of late.

Perhaps they will be a thing of the past.

Not sure if that would be a good thing or not.

Okay, yes I am going.

Just so much to say.

Always, happens at the last.

 

Happy Wednesday.

With much kindness and so much respect for you.

I/We remain,

Always, Carol & Alvin

 

It is a NEW YEAR.

Good Morning and YAY today is Saturday.

It is bright outside but only due to the recent snowfall.

Sky is overcast but the sun is trying to punch through the clouds.

Alvin and his best friend Teddy are laying together side by side on the blue blanket.

What a joyous sight.

Once the photos stop downloading I will snap a couple of photos for my next post.

If there is time before they move.

Last night after work and we were done with Alvin eating etc., we went for a nice walk.

Once home I called Aunt J and she brought Master Teddy right over.

The boys were so excited to see each other.

Me, too.

Seems like forever since they have been here to visit.

Aunt J did not stay but to have a quick visit by the door.

I could tell in her eyes that she was exhausted.

It has been a horrible last couple of weeks for her with puppy KOBI and that terrible parasite.

I know that Teddy missed her last night but soon was okay just to settle in with his best friend.

 

Not long after Teddy arrived last night and moments before I was going to eat my supper, there was a knock at the door.

I opened the door to see one of the little boys from a couple of doors down the street.

He handed me a Valentines Card, a heart shaped red lollipop and two boxes of smarties.

One of the boxes of smarties had only red and pink smarties inside.

What a nice treat for after supper.

He is the most kind and generous of little boys.

He is quiet, sweet and so helpful.

He is the one that always wants to help.

He is polite and compassionate and has manners.

Can you imagine a little boy of “7” bringing a Valentine and treats to your door?

I am not 7 either.

He would not have been prompted by his parents either.

His parents did a great job with him.

 

The pups last night at bedtime.

Teddy was playing a game with the blanket.

This morning he was playing under the blanket (hide and seek) but the camera was downloading / uploading photos to the computer so I was unable to take photos.

Alvin was watching him.

Then he joined them.

Love these little guys.

I had a great evening.

 

My day was mixed.

I had planned to go for lunch with one of my clients.

We did but long story short it was not great ….. the coffee shop we went to had closed (how I had forgot, I will never know).

She with her walker.

Normally was not even a five minute walk but with her walker and recent injury, it took about 20 minutes or so.

My poor friend, I don’t know what I was thinking.

We ended up going to the 7-11 which had a little counter set up.

It was okay but not what I had imagined.

I felt terrible.

Not sure what I was thinking.

The Starbucks would have been closer even though we had to cross more streets and I guess there were a couple of small restaurants close to it.

Next time, I will have my poop in a group.

Also she slept in and did not hear when I phoned her at 10:00 a.m.

She missed the DATS bus when it arrived and caught a taxi which cost her a small fortune.

I called DATS (Disabled Adult Transit System, I think) from the 7-11 but they said would be a two hour wait but at first refused to pick her up.

I kept at them but finally the woman said two hours.

Way too long in the downtown 7-11 which had lots of people coming and going.

I could not leave her there by herself for two hours and I could not wait.

So I called a taxi.

I offered to pay but she said she could pay for it.

Unfortunately it was a costly lunch for her.

I paid for lunch although she wanted to ….

I had a little gift for her and remembered to give it to her when she was in the taxi.

Thankfully the taxi came within ten minutes of calling them.

I was thirty minutes late for work but my boss was forgiving.

It was nice to see my client but not what I imagined that it would be.

She in her grace said not to worry.

She was just happy to have a visit with me.

How lucky, how blessed am I.

Between this client, the little boy from a few doors down and the pups.

I am feeling so special.

 

Well time to get going.

Breakfast is late for me.

Pups ate earlier.

Alvin ate really early just before 5 a.m. and Teddy ate about thirty minutes ago.

I just would like a cup of coffee.

That will happen once I get the first load of laundry into the washer.

I am going to work on the photo project.

Going through my photos and deleting the duplicates etc.

Also I am going through my photo boxes and doing the same.

More the out of focus photos.

For some reason I have a problem throwing them away or deleting them.

So we will have a busy day.

In between we shall go for a walk.

Hopefully the sun will shine.

 

Wishing you an awesome Saturday.

With Kindness and Respect.

Always, Carol, Alvin and Teddy.

Living … One day at a time

Good Morning,

We had a 20 degree dip in temperatures last night.

The daytime temperature was about 16-17 degrees celsius and then minus temperatures overnight.

We had rain that over the course of the evening.

I noticed at one point some of the dreaded white stuff was infiltrating the rain.

The rain won out and other than a few crisp bits of white on the deck that is all for this moment.

Thankfully.

It is one thing watching it come down over the course of the day but to wake up to SNOW – well that is just too sad.

 

We walked as soon as we were able to after work.

During the first few moments of our walk we could feel the dampness on our skin/fur and see the wet on the sidewalk.

Although there were deep dark clouds the rain held off until after we arrived back home.

I even managed to pull my remaining flowers mainly SNAPDRAGONS.

I snipped the flowers and placed them in vases/jars.

There are so many colours …. yellow, coral and pinks.

Into the garage went the remaining four flower pots.

I have three others sitting on the deck and they will have to go into the garage perhaps tonight.

They are heavy and I have to drag them …..

Such pretty flowers, I just had to bring them into the house.

There were lots of dried blooms with seeds …. have them, too.

On this Tuesday, I wish you all good health, love and joy.

I hope that you are as blessed as we.

Alvin is resting on his trusty blue blanket beside me.

Life is good.

Even did some texting with my beautiful sister already this morning.

 

With kindness and respect we will live great lives.

 

Always, Carol & Alvin