Thought for the day …..

Good Morning and Welcome to Saturday the 23rd day of July, 2016.

What a whirlwind of activities over the past few days.

Company arriving …. company leaving…… sad for that.

Pancake breakfast at work …… rest of the day off …… errands ran.

Attended Open House for one of my colleagues and neighbours for Steeped Tea ….. mowed grass afterward ….. too  hot to walk.

Garage sale today ….. Tea Tasting tomorrow.

The past few days seem like a blur and then it will be Sunday evening and I will be preparing once again for the work week.

Do you have times like these?

So much to enjoy and the time just zips by.

I so, we so enjoyed the visit of our friend from back home.

We had such a great time.

We found out that we have much more in common that we even knew.

Funny how that works.

I am grateful for that time as is Alvin.

He really took a shine to her.

It is true that he really likes the girls but he has some relationships that are different and it is apparent.

Not the same as mine or his sisters.

I love it.

Life is full of things that are crystal clear and full of things that are mysterious and unknown.

Well just in the last minutes here before my neighbour and her daughter arrive for the garage sale.

She just called and they will be here in the next bit as they were up a bit on the late side.

Went for a late walk and such.

Anyhoo …. time to get this show / ship on the road / on the sea and go.

I think I will take Alvin with me to put up the sign and then he will have a walk.

Things will be fine …..

As there will be two adults …. if something has to be done last minute one of us can always be in the garage to await potential customers.

Wish us luck …. we just would love to sell everything …… then we are done and things.

Good things as usual.   No junk.

 

Have an awesome Saturday.

Back tomorrow.

Special Hello to: my sister, yes I am very lucky for sure.

Always, Carol and Alvin

Thought for the day …..

Good Morning and Welcome to Friday the 22nd day of July, 2016.

It is sightly cool but super refreshing with a low hanging cloud bank to the south and sun coming up bright and boldly to the east.

There are birds chirping and cars humming down the highway …. for some reason this morning the sound is magnified.

We were up extra early as my friend left this morning for home.

The house seems empty without our company.

Oh, yesterday she whipped up a batch of vegetable soup before she went to visit her brother for the day.

How many people in between things just whip up a batch of soup?

I am so blessed.

One of my neighbours is away so she asked me to take all of the fresh produce home and use up.

So my friend knew I was concerned about some items spoiling before I could use it all.

So she made me a big pot of soup.

The house smelled incredible when I got home from work yesterday.

I shall miss her and both Alvin and myself will treasure this visit always.

I love having company.

Sister, do you hear me!!!

 

Today the latest in the Star Trek series of movies is coming out.

I would love to go and see it but the theatre will be crazy busy so I will wait and hopefully I can see it at the theatre before it leaves.

That movie is always great to see on the BIG screen.

 

Tonight one of my neighbours is having an Open House for her Steeped Tea business.

She signed up under me so to speak.

So I want to support her and will go over for her Open House.

 

We have a pancake breakfast at work today and I will be leaving to attend it shortly.

Once the breakfast is over we can go to the parade for our city’s exhibition/fair or just go home.

I am electing to go home as I have a list a million yards long to get started with …..

 

There be tea tasting and garage sale and laundry in my future.

Mostly all fun.

 

Well time to get this show on the road.

I am so grateful that I was able to host my friend’s visit to Edmonton.

 

Happy Friday everyone.

Special Hello to: all those people visiting family and friends, thank you.

Thought for the day ……

Good Morning and Welcome to Thursday the 21st day of July, 2016.

What a glorious past couple of days and I am sad that my friend will be going home tomorrow.

We have one more evening and early morning together.

Alvin has grown quite attached, and even Mr. Elton was happy to have a new friend.

You know him he sometimes takes a while to warm up to people.

Last night when I arrived home from work in the rain I opened the door to find my friend standing in the kitchen starting to make buns.

She had arrived to the house a few minutes before that and was making the preparations for the buns.

So lucky me now has fresh cinnamon buns, cheese buns and regular buns.

How grateful, and happy for those treats am I.

It was another fast paced evening between the kids coming for Elton, watching over my “Cinder” (neighbour’s pet), making supper, we walked, the buns, of course, visiting, clean-up and visiting.

The minutes just zipped by.

It was another 11:30 night but I am so happy to have had this opportunity.

She is such a great person and friend.

Alvin is so smitten with her ….. he lays beside her in the protection pose.

So cute.

He is wondering this morning as she is still in bed as there is no reason for her to be up and out at this crazy early time.

The air is so humid.

So humid in fact that by the time I leave the house my eyebrows have come off.

Okay shall I explain.

Everyone knows as you get older you hair lightens and finally turns white or grey.

Well mine have lightened a LOT.

So I have befriended an eyebrow pencil.

I have been using them for years just to add a bit more depth and colour.

Well now I really need that good old pencil.

So I had better check them out as I fear they have melted in this humidity.

Well almost time to pack my lunch into my back pack and head out to work.

Almost the end.

This weekend marks the beginning of K-Days (big city fair).

We are having a pancake breakfast at work tomorrow morning so that will be nice.

Short day as we close so that everyone can take in the parade.

Busy weekend ahead with Open House for Steeped Tea at my neighbours, garage sale in my garage for a friend, my Tea Tasting on Sunday.

Time to go here.

I hope that you have an amazing Thursday.

Special Hello to: all those people visiting friends and family – we thank you.

Always, Carol and Alvin

 

 

Thought for the day ….

Good Morning and Welcome to Friday the 16th day of October, 2015.

YAY, it is another beautiful morning here in Edmonton.

I am really certain that Mr. Alvin thinks it is time to turn the clocks back.

I guess I will be ready for that as he has been waking me up at 3:00 a.m. the past few mornings.

What can you do?

I mean we do not get up then I do manage to get him to lay back down for a little bit …..

What a guy.

So excited for this weekend.

Tomorrow is my Open House for Steeped Tea and looks like there will be lots of people attending followed by dinner and a movie with my pals from BBW.

So excited.

So much in one day ….

Mr. Alvin is going to his sister’s for a sleepover so he will miss all of the company but better he be with his sister.

He would be so excited ……

I am so grateful to have this life …. to be living and breathing and breathing and living my life.

So on this Friday be grateful …..

Somedays we lose it ….. I mean we might yell and scream ….. a good release of stress.

Then we just get back to living our lives.

We are so blessed.

Happy Friday.

Special Hello to: my sister who I am going to SKYPE with on Sunday ….. so excited … what a weekend.

Always, Carol and Alvin

Thought for the day …..

Good Morning and Welcome to Thursday the 1st day of October, 2015.

We are now well into the throes of fall …. or autumn as I sometimes like to call it.

The leaves are a multitude of amazing hues of yellows, oranges and reds.

They warm my heart.

In between all of the colours of fall peer some of the flowers that have managed to stay in perfect form despite some of the cool night temperatures.

My front flower bed is still growing strong.

Last night on our walk we had three visits with friends along our walk.

It was fantastic….. we talked of my friend’s flowers and then my upcoming open house for Steeped Tea.

At another friend’s we discussed “hand me downs” …… growing up with them…..we girls loved them, her husband did not.

Laughed at silly Alvin with a Dad and his three little ones.  My how he loves the kids.

It was one of the best nights ever.

The weather was perfect …. company was awesome ….. feeling so great.

Well here we go again almost time to leave for work.

My how that time always creeps up on me …..

Oh well …..

Time does go by one second at a time ….

I hope that you are out and about enjoying all of the sights and smells of fall.

Stop and crunch the leaves that have fallen onto the ground.

That is one of my most favourite things to do.

I also like to throw them up into the air ….. I always do this after I have raked them from the front lawn.

So much fun.

Be three again ….. why not!

Happy Thursday to you all.

Enjoy…

Special Hello to: my sister …. by the way ….. they have one gorgeous house …. I finally figure it out …..

Always, Carol and Alvin

Thought for the day…..to end the year….

Good Morning and Welcome to Wednesday the 31st Day of December, 2014.

The last day of this year.

I have been away from writing since my blog on Christmas Morning.

I just did not have words to write …..

Perhaps it was a good way to end the year.

Giving myself some time to reflect on the year and the holiday.

Yesterday when I was updating my excel spreadsheet with the purchases that I had made over the last couple of weeks; I came across a notebook with only a few pages written upon.

Crazy but they were from the first three days of January, 2014.

Usually in addition to writing this blog I write in a gratitude journal everyday.

This past week I have not written in that journal either …. perhaps that is why I feel like I am just wandering about and not doing much.

This is the entry from my gratitude journal and I would like to share it with all of you:

“DAY 1565, Friday January 3rd, 2014 – 5:05 a.m.

Looks like rain turned to snow overnight.

Still mild out.

Back to work as feeling better.

Using one of my new notebooks from Manda.

Hard to believe Christmas over and already Day 3 of the New Year.

I’m reading Dr. Wayne Dyer’s book – “Change Your Thoughts, Change Your Life.”

One important thing: watch judgments – as without opposites we would not be – can’t have short without tall, high – low etc.

I want to be only kind and positive.

I want to serve humanity and help animals.

Alvin is on my lap.  I love to cuddle with him.

Today is a great day.

We are safe, warm, happy, kind, grateful and alive.

I am a money magnet.

Money comes to me easily and effortlessly.

Thank you for this great life, and this wonderful day.

Signed with a “THANK YOU” and a “HEART.”

 

I guess this sums up my thoughts and feelings of late.

Sometimes we just run into a roadblock that keeps us from doing what we love.

I am happy to report that I am back.

It doesn’t matter if one person or five hundred people read my blog.

It only matters that I love to write it.

This New Year I want to add more to my blog ….. I did start way back when but got caught up with work ….

Photos are nice.

I need to share some of this past year.

 

Dear Stella Jewellery Open House in October.

Another Dragonfly adorns my front wreath this summer.

Creating a bracelet for the Bride. Wedding #2 and in Las Vegas.

Necklaces for the Bride

Diaper Cake for Co-worker at the Office.

Beautiful Sky near my Home

Fruit Pizza for my 57th Birthday

My brother’s neighbour’s baby calf …. so cute.

Flowers at my brother’s acreage.

Young kitten at my brother’s.

YAY, they installed a fountain in one of the small lakes near my house.

Front porch for fall.

Jewellery out for our October Open House – Dear Stella Jewellery

Well it is time to go and take down the Christmas Tree.

I usually keep it up for New Year’s Eve but then I was thinking about time over the next few days … figured better to take it down now.

Then I can get the house back to norm.

The sign says it all ….. Halloween Day at the Office

House decorated for Christmas 2014

Several dozen iced sugar cookies ….. yummy

Treats made by my friend “S” for Christmas…

Above my fireplace

Rudolph and Santa’s Elf above the fireplace.

Me by the tree on Christmas Eve …. opening gifts. Sure looked tired ……

Mr. Alvin with one of his Christmas gifts ….

My favourite thing to take photos of ….. the Christmas tree

Special ornament from my BF back in Regina ….. he looks so dignified standing at attention.

Sweet treats at office Halloween Lunch

Nutcracker Collection

The little Angels were made by my Mom and my daughter over twenty years ago.

Our big snowfall of 2014 – early in December.

Gifts under the tree.

Oh, how I love taking photos of the tree.

Ignore the wrinkly hand …. was eyeglass shopping. Bring on the hand cream.

More gifts.

Friends brought me coffee from their trip to HAWAII

This sweet treat arrived in the mail and I so enjoyed them ….. My friend send me a second batch and I still have some to have later.

Back yard.

“ME ALVIN” looking out of our temporary bedroom window …. a new place for him to look.

Okay time to go ….. I just could not help myself sharing more photos.

Have a great New Year’s EVE.

If you drink do not drive.

If you drive do not drink.

If you drink stay at home.

If you are out ….. pack a toothbrush and spend the night.

Happy New Year.

I wish only good things for everyone.

Me and Alvin wish you all good health, great joy, much love and laughter and abundance.

HAPPY NEW  YEAR.

We will be snuggling on the sofa and watching movies tonight.

Perhaps having some Bailey’s and coffee as I bought some for Christmas and have not cracked the bottle yet.

Okay I am signing off for now.

Special Hello to: every living being on the planet …. our hope is that you are all safe and warm.

Always, Carol and Alvin

 

 

Thought for the day…..

Good Morning and Welcome to Sunday the 26th day of October, 2014.

The sky is partially in cloud cover but I do see Mr. Sun starting to come out.

We had a great day yesterday with our Open House.

Some of my co-workers and neighbours dropped by.

We sold some jewellery and had some refreshments and had some great conversation.

Doesn’t get better than that for a Saturday.

I love the simple pleasures in life ….. good food …… good company and great conversation.

A good laugh makes my day.

So just putting on the finishing touches before leaving for the store.

Sundays are always fun …… lots of people out shopping.

I love meeting new people.

So on this Sunday I hope that life finds you in great company eating delicious food and sharing a laugh or two.

Happy Sunday.

Special Hello to: all the ladies who came over yesterday for our Dear Stella Open House.

Always, Carol and Alvin

Thought for the day……

Good Afternoon and Welcome to Saturday the 25th day of October, 2014.

WOW, I am so excited as we are in the final hour countdown until “Our Dear Stella Jewellery” Open House.

Friends, Family, Neighbours, and Co-Workers of ours will be coming to our house in just less than one hour.

We are ready ….. house cleaned check …… beverages ready check …… goodies check ….. and MOST IMPORTANT

of all we have a table set up full of our jewellery …..

My daughter is so creative and did such a great job of setting up …. will post photos later.

Well this will be short as I must go and put the finishing touches on things and perhaps relax for a few moments.

I hope that you are having an amazing day….

Thank you as always for ready my blog.

You rock ……

DREAMS DO COME TRUE.

Special Hello to: YOU ……

Always, Carol and Alvin

Open House for our Dear Stella Jewelry ……

On Saturday, November 20th, 2010, Amanda and I held our first “Open House” for our Dear Stella Jewelry business.  We were both so excited.  The morning was crisp but the sky was clear so we were off to a great start to the day.  I had baked like a mad woman.  Picked up special coffee, some teas and juice for the liquid refreshments.    Alvin was going to stay with Steven for the day.  So all that was left was to set up all of our prized creations.  I must say I was both excited and nervous.  We hoped that our open house would be a huge success.  Invitations and notices had gone out to our friends and family that lived in Edmonton and area.

Setting up for the Open House

 

Cookies, anyone?

 

Unbaked Chocolate Macaroons, everyone's fav

 

Fruit Cocktail Cake

 

Chocolate Chip & More Cookies....

 

Now some photos of our jewelry……

Starting to set up the table with all of our bracelets......

 

Our Dear Stella Jewelry

 

Shades of purple.....

 

Shades of Fall

 

Black and Silver ...... Ready for a Night on the Town

 

Green & Purple - very pretty

 

So as you can see I love to bake and I also love to make jewelry.  We have now included necklaces and hair pins in our line.  In the near future, we plan to make earrings as well.  We have made a couple of bracelet and necklace sets and will continue to do so.   I would say that our first “Open House” was a huge success.  We had friends new and old join us,  made some sales, as well as contacts for future.

Please go to Facebook and check out our Dear Stella Jewelry page.  Please enter “Dear Stella Jewelry” as someone has the Dear Stella name on Facebook.

Thank You

Always, Carol