The Next Chapter

Good Morning! The sun is rising and it is Saturday. I am so happy that it is the weekend and that we survived another week. I think that for most of us that is a huge deal. I am grateful for the weekend and that I am able to be at home, in my safe and happy place. Surrounded by the warmth of souls that have come and gone and by memories. Oh, the memories do truly help keep you warm at night and give you the energy to get going in the morning. Happy Saturday.

Last night our friends Iris and pups Teddy and Kobi came for a visit. At first the pups just ran up the steps and into the house with every bit of energy in them and back and forth once inside from back door to front door. Then they stopped and started to sniff about and we both knew they were wondering where their old friend Alvin had gone. Teddy and Alvin have been best friends for many years. They used to have sleepovers and Teddy was here for special occasions and just for visits with no reason other than to see his buddy. Iris could not even mention Alvin’s name before they got into the car because he would get so excited. Iris is energy sensitive and reminded me that she could feel Alvin all around and where else would he be but in his house with me. She always makes me feel good and she gave me wonderful comforting words of encouragement and support and love. They are family to us. In between the tears we even managed to have some laughter. Where are the tears without laughter. Both are so important to us all. I love watching Teddy and Kobi as they ran about. They went outside at one point shortly after arriving and were sniffing around as I am sure they could smell their friend. Kobi loves to watch the neighbourhood out of our front window and she stood on her hind legs and took in our world. Teddy played with a toy of Alvin’s. Joy returned to my house for a few minutes. I am so grateful that they were in the city and stopped by. Iris and the pups had walked over as she did not have her car in the city only her husband’s truck. I decided that it would be nice to walk them home. So we chatted and walked. I ended up staying at their house chatting until almost 10:00 p.m. and then quickly walked home. Home safe and sound. Our neighbourhood is good but you never know. Even coyotes could be out. We looked at pictures from their farm. They have two new cats and I saw videos of the pups and the new cats. The new cats were used to dogs so it was cute to see them interacting. I thoroughly enjoyed our time together. I cannot wait until the next time. Thank you Iris, Teddy and Kobi for the visit. We missed you guys.

Today is laundry day and some cleaning. Then back to moving photos from the old computer to the hard drive. Too bad there was not a more efficient, more faster way of doing this but alas there appears not to be. Just a footnote to everyone out there – make sure that you store your photos and edit them. Through out the bad shots, the duplicates etc. Always.

Amanda is stopping by in the early afternoon after a dental appointment and before she goes to spend some time with her bestie. Both my “kids” were/are so blessed to have good people in their lives. Alvin had a village, he had our neighbourhood. Iris reminded me that it was Alvin who brought us all together. It truly was. He was the best guy ever and my longest male relationship. I am forever grateful for the relationships that he helped me make and keep for well over a decade. Oh, how I miss him. I am excited to see my girl. Always good to see her. She is the best.

Have an awesome Saturday. Take some time to be with family and friends and for yourself. Remember better to live in the moment today than to get hung up on the future or the days ahead. For there is only today as we are not promised tomorrow. Enjoy this day!

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

Always, Carol & Alvin (my forever Angel).

Last Half 2022 – December

I thought this morning that we would go back in time, to this day which happened to also be a Friday, December 23 but it is the year 2011.

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Good Friday Morning …… Happy December 23rd, 2011.

Well this is it ….. only one more day till Christmas Eve, and then the big day.

I want to wish to each and everyone the most glorious Christmas.

May your days be filled with perfect health, great joy, much love and laughter, wealth and abundance.

This is my last blog until after Christmas.

My wish is that Santa brings you that special item but most of all I wish that your Christmas is filled with overflowing and abundant  “LOVE.”

That is the most important thing of all ….. to love yourself, to give love and be loved….

Merry Christmas my friends.

Special Hello:  to you ALL …. Merry Christmas….

Always, Carol and Alvin, too…….

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My thoughts and wishes are the same as these, many years ago, that your Christmas is filled with love.

Another brisk morning but it is warming up.

Countdown to Christmas: ONE sleep till Christmas EVE and Alvin comes home with Aspen, Milo, Amanda and Steven. I am over the moon excited. We will once again all be under the same roof.

I will be posting tomorrow on Christmas EVE.

So grateful for second day working from home this week. We are finished work at noon and that is great. I have laundry to do, Mincemeat tarts to bake, bit of cleaning to do and then it will be Christmas.

YAY.

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

Always, Carol & Alvin

Last Half 2022 – October

Good Morning ALL! We went to bed last night as my daughter stopped by after work and after her trip to COSTCO for a few things including some items for us. I bought a new vacuum. A Shark something or other. I cannot wait to give it a try – most especially on the stairs. It is cordless and has handheld for the stairs. Very exciting. We had a great supper. My daughter loves roasted root vegetables so they were a hit. YAY. Amanda had also picked up a pair of blue jeans from COSTCO for herself and decided to try them on here and found out they were too big for her and so she said “you try them on.” My first thought was they would be too small but guess what they fit. I have noticed that my regular pants are fitting a bit loosely lately, so I can now fit a size 12. Perhaps that sounds large to some people and that is okay but for me that is great. Always better when you are a bit older to lose some weight instead of adding to the number. So now I have two new pair of blue jeans which is great. I have not bought new jeans in a long time. They are high waisted and I LOVE THEM, they are skinny cut which I find laughable but they are very flattering, I must say. Who knew, I am feeling like a “semi sexy woman of a certain age.” LOL. Life is good. Between new jeans and a new vacuum, I feel like a million dollars. My order also included a box of poop bags (which should keep someone going for awhile), light bulbs (because you cannot see in the dark), some grocery items which included some red seedless grapes which are so yummy. I could have eaten the whole container last night and then decided not a great idea at 9:45 p.m. (I had just finished cleaning up and putting things away and did not realize how late it was). I am so grateful to have one of the BEST daughters on the planet. She also gave me a black skort (which happened to be the same one that I bought this summer except this one fits perfect) and a black skirt. The black skirt fit but was very short and I thought, we thought, not likely too appropriate. If I bent over – it would not be pretty, lol. So a great evening. YAY.

Today is bright, sunny and windy. I was looking out of the bedroom window and saw that the eavestroughs are full of leaves. OMG, perhaps I could get someone to climb up on the ladder and clean them out. Will have to see if that is a possibility or not. Yesterday late morning and into the afternoon, I spent almost 2.5 hours helping my friend Signe trim her tree. I supplied the tree trimmer and ladder (although we did not use it in the end). We managed to cut down most of the black rot from her tree. She is going to call the City and see if they can help her with the last branch which is several inches thick and not something we could do. I helped her with the cutting up and bagging of the branches so that she can dispose of. It was fun helping a friend and manual labour yet!

I am wanting a cup of coffee at this moment. Nothing like the first cup of coffee on a Saturday morning. I have changed the bedding and collected the laundry to be washed. Before heading downstairs I want to water my plants which are in the office and spare room. All doing well. Signe helped me move the plants from the main floor to the basement. I had a Canna Lily in a big ceramic pot and a Citronella in a small ceramic pot. They have to be winterized. Cut back a bit. But I want to check out exactly what to do with my “plant friend Pauline”. Also I will clean all of the blinds on the main floor and do the upstairs tomorrow. Oh and vacuuming with my new machine. So exciting.

Well I hope that you are doing great. Have a wonderful day. Hopefully the temperature is warm today. There was no frost last night.

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

Always, Carol & Alvin

PS: there is nothing like sharing a meal with your wonderful daughter, walking with your pup, receiving an unexpected new pair of jeans in a small size that fit and buying a new vacuum. Happy Saturday to me.

I almost forgot that I wanted to share something with you, the Health Properties of PUMPKIN. Some of you may have bought a pumpkin for Halloween to carve. Did you know that the flesh of a pumpkin can: help keep your joints limber, good for your eyes with the Vitamin A, Immunity booster Vitamin C, has Potassium, good for weight loss, skin saving antioxidants and helps with pooping (or at least it does with dogs). Eat some pumpkin. You can add to a stew or a sauce, make muffins or a loaf or just roast with potatoes, carrots and onions. So many great benefits.

The New YEAR 2022

Good Morning ALL! How are you this morning? I, we are well. It is light outside and in fact the sun was shining brightly when I looked out of the living room window but now that I am upstairs in the office facing south, there is a blue veil covering most of the sky. The remainder of the night sky perhaps. The morning sky always amazes me with all the different aspects. Tomorrow is supposed to be +12 degrees celsius. Cannot wait. For some people that would be “flip flop” weather. Not me but definitely light sweater weather.

This morning in less than 2 hours my friends are coming for coffee. Remember how I said that we decided to get together every weekend from now on, so we are. YAY. I am excited to chat about the week since we last were together. It is great having friends that are younger as they have both have young teenagers and I hear stories of technology, friends, school, and so much more. They give me their perspective on the world and life. Different sometimes from my friends that are around my age for example. Having friends of all ages is a wonderful thing. I absolutely love it. Brings me joy and gives me a more round perspective on life and the world. Isn’t that what most people need is a broader view?

I wonder if all of my neighbours are up for the day? Do you sometimes think when you got up a bit later than you would have liked what others are doing? I do, does it matter in the grand scheme of things, not really. So I stress about it now? I only wonder.

Yesterday we had a nice long walk at my lunch break and it was nice. After work we walked only to the park and then home as I needed to prepare for my daughter’s arrival. I had all of the prep work done and was cooking supper when she arrived. The apple crisp (her favorite) in the oven and the vegetables prepared for stir fry and I had the chicken prepared as well. The water was on for the rice. I turned off the burners when I received a text that she was at the back waiting for me to open the garage door. Alvin and I went out and opened the big door and happily waited for her to park. Back in the house, burners on and started cooking. Stir frys are a quick meal so it did not take long before we were eating one of her favourite meals. We had the best visit and enjoyed supper and then apple crisp. I can tell you I had one happy happy daughter. Then before you knew it time to say goodbye until our next visit which will be next week. The following week they leave for VEGAS and the pups Aspen and Milo will be staying with us. I am on vacation during the time they are gone and cannot wait. So happy to be having a nice break surrounded by the pups.

Well it looks like the clock is slowly inching its’ way toward the arrival of my girlfriends so I best be getting this show on the road. Certainly will be enjoying my first cup of coffee this morning.

Today will be laundry and the usual but I need to figure out what to do in the backyard as the snow on the deck is basically non-existent. Too hard to take Alvin out the front every time he has to pee or poo and the backyard area is frozen ice/bit of snow on one end which would be okay but the area by the stairs and on the other side pointing to the north is one slime bucket, I do not know how else to explain it. The grass is bare in spots but so mucky and I certainly do not want him down there as it would be hard to clean both the area he used and to clean him. OH no!! So I have to figure out something. Perhaps with tomorrow be 12 degrees that area will dry up. I sure hope so. Anyway!!

I hope that you have a great Saturday!

Did anyone get pranked for April Fools? Not me. I do remember being pranked and pranking others in my youth.

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

Always, Carol & Alvin

2021

Good Morning ALL! How are you on this smoky cloudy morning? My thoughts are going to the people and all the animals living in the areas affected by the wildfires/fires. I cannot imagine. Here in Edmonton it is smoky and yesterday I had to close the windows as the smell of smoke was begin to affect my breathing. I am praying for rain for BC with no wind or lightning.

Does it not always seem to happen that when things all go wrong it is all at once.

My venting ….. as Alvin is barking downstairs and I decided to write this post on my computer upstairs just for a change to feel somewhat normal. Although our lives are not normal at the moment.

So yesterday I had been wearing two very delicate gold bracelets and noticed one was missing. I searched high and low but it is gone. Somewhere in the house or outside. I have a feeling it fell off outside and went down in between the cracks on the deck.

I ran to the mailbox to pick up the mail which I have not done in a long time. There was a package for me. I was so excited. When I opened the package, I found the earrings that I had ordered from Fifth Avenue that had been on backorder. I gingerly unwrapped them to find that the posts were bent on the ends and the backs were on so tight that I barely got one off. Definitely cannot wear them. Damaged before even the opportunity to wear them. Makes me so sad and a little mad.

Going back to the a/c servicing that was supposed to be on Wednesday that we had patiently waited for and then did not show up. When I called the company yesterday morning, I found out that the person I spoke with when they were late showing up – had cancelled the appointment and scheduled it for Saturday when they come to check out the hot water tank. The hot water tank was positioned in a way that blocks off access to the sump pump.

Alvin barking and whining downstairs.

It is not often if at all that I spend my whole post with negative thoughts. I apologize but I just had to get them out. Just seems that everything is going to hell in a handbasket.

Then Alvin has surgery next Friday.

Too much and I am feeling a bit frazzled.

Please forgive this venting as I am well aware in a better state of mind that I am very blessed. I live in a great house/home, I have a yard, I am employed, I am in good health, I have incredible family and friends and so much more. But sometimes life gets the better of us and I am afraid I am at that point. Deep breaths, I know.

I have a headache from the smoke and from someone’s barking. I know he just has anxiety from me not being in his sight but …… oh, I wish.

Okay, I have to go now.

I will be back tomorrow and I will be in a better frame of mind, I promise.

Trying to life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, understanding, love and gratitude.

Always, Carol & Alvin

2021

Good Morning ALL! How are you this Saturday. Well I just had a shower in cold water and not be design. So I need to make this short and head to the basement and see what is going on. I googled and there could be a gas leak to the hot water heater or any number of reasons why there is no hot water. We have been busy trying to keep cool the past week and succeeded thus far.

I will keep you posted.

Need to keep safe here …… not quite sure who to call or what to do but I am sure that I will figure it out.

Have a great day and be safe, cool and in good health.

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

ALWAYS, Carol & Alvin

2021

Good Morning ALL! How are you doing this GREAT Saturday morning? Alvin and I are well. Going to head out for a walk after I write this post. Now I am wishing when we were up earlier that I had actually got my butt up off the sofa but sometimes you just want to snuggle under a warm blanket especially when you know that you do not have to be at work just a few steps away, lol. Anyway, no matter, a decision was made actually several times as we were up and down since about 4:35 a.m. That is the state of our household. A hot mess, most mornings. We manage to get through it and each day. The sun is shining and has been since earlier. There is a breeze but thankfully not gale force winds. So grateful for that. Getting bad when the wind blows over your flowers pots on the deck, okay only one but it was not light. I love looking at the sky. There are clouds which appear to be forming on the southern horizon and actually are taking the shape of mountains, how cool is that? Absolutely beautiful. I believe that the forecast is for 22 degrees celsius today with cloudy periods. So perhaps now would be a good time to go for a walk. The laundry and house cleaning can wait. Yesterday we walked twice which was great. We spotted the families of geese in the park snacking on grass by the trees close to the water. The goslings are no longer little fluff balls but are beginning to get their feathers. I am quite sure that I heard or read somewhere that young geese / goslings are not able to fly until they get their “flight feathers.” No wonder the adults stay close by.

There are 997 lovely souls that are now following this blog. WOW, I cannot believe it. The number has grown so much in the past year and I am grateful to each and every one of you for taking the time out of your busy lives to read my posts. It brings me immense joy. I wish you great joy, much love and laughter and abundance. Thank you.

Well tomorrow is Father’s Day and the official First Day of Summer in the Northern Hemisphere. Two huge events.

I am going to sign off for now. Get out there and get one or two with nature and get some exercise. Getting older has done nothing for my waistline, lol.

Have a wonderful Saturday. Enjoy the day.

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

Always, With much thanks and gratitude, Carol & Alvin

2021

Good Morning ALL! I hope that this finds you well and enjoying this Saturday, June 5, 2021. Alvin and I are up and at it. He has already had breakfast, I am washed up (still in pjs for the moment), bed made, laundry gathered and writing this post. I am hoping to get out shortly and get a walk in before it rains. Rain in the forecast for today. This seems like a great opportunity to work on my photos on the computer and on my phone. I was attempting to download my recent photos from my phone to the computer but alas it downloaded older photos which are already on my computer. Not quite sure about what is going on but I am going to delete and clean up both my phone and computer. Figure out what is already on my computer and delete them permanently from my phone. Why oh why is it so difficult to delete photos from your phone or anywhere really. Most times we have a billion of the same shot. Even the ones that are out of focus are sometimes hard to depart with. Do I have a problem? Or is this what some of you are experiencing as well? Can you let me know? I know that I have a problem, somewhat. Even back in the days of film and printing them (which by the way we don’t do much anymore, or is it just me?), I had a hard time throwing out the shots that were totally black. Anyway, I am working on this issue and luckily with technology those days are gone. We can take multiple shots in the moment and usually have at least one that is good for our collections. My collections. OH my goodness. I have over 39,000 on the computer which is down as I have been slowly going through them. I also pay a company to backup my photos so why do I keep them all? Not sure. I have almost 3,000, I believe on my phone. Which is another story. Most of those photos are on my computer which is backed up by yes, that company. I also paid extra for room on the cloud. Something about not being able to see although the company that backs them up, I can access and see them. I have to figure things out as clearly there is a pattern here, lol. Perhaps if I was more comfortable with technology and could trust in it, I would be able to let go. I have that song from FROZEN in my ….. Let it Go, Let it Go …… I say that often in my life. Oh well. My issues for the moment. Shortly I will be dressed and we will be walking out the door. I am looking forward to spending the day looking at photos. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday. Also doing laundry ….

I hope that you are doing well. Time to get this show on the road. We want to walk before the rain hits.

Have a splendid Saturday. Trying to use some new words as typically we use the same adjective and adverbs over and over and over again.

Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love and gratitude each and every day.

Happy Saturday.

Always, Love Carol & Alvin

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  Photo by Engin Akyurt on Pexels.com

Now that is a view on a rainy day……

2021

Good Morning ALL! How are you doing on this Tuesday the first day of June 2021? Alvin and I are well. I was going to get up earlier and go for a walk but I cannot seem to get my butt going at 6:00 a.m. (likely due to my multiple times up to go to the bathroom last night due to drinking lots of water yesterday). I guess it will take a few days for my body to adjust but I am trying to get back on track and to drink enough water to be properly hydrated. I am looking at the clock and we have time to go for a walk before I start work. So this is going to be a throwback Thursday …….. what was going on this day a year or two ago? I always like to check so this is the perfect day to do so. Sky is overcast at the moment.

June 1st, 2020

Good Morning All,

A bright beautiful sunny breezy Monday morning here in Edmonton.

What a great weekend we had despite my tumble down the stairs on Friday morning.

My daughter dropped by on Saturday to help her Momma give her little brother Alvin a haircut.

I still cannot believe we cut 1/3 of the time off the time it normally takes me.

Teamwork.

I was slowed down a bit on Saturday and even early on Sunday but now I can walk okay.

I will say that the bruising is still ugly but that likely takes a few days to fade away.

We hosted a great birthday party for our friend “G” yesterday morning.

Most of the party was held out on our deck in the bright warm sunshine.

We ate the birthday cake in the house as it was hot and I feared that the cream on the strawberry shortcake would melt.

A great time was had by all.

G’s Mom came as well as she was visiting.

The four of us ladies and Alvin had a great time.

The rest of the day was beautiful until it was not.

Well into the afternoon the sky clouded over.

By late afternoon/early evening it was very windy and raining.

I put away all of the cushions away.

I even put the umbrella in the garage as it was forecasting 100 km wind gusts

I took these photos from my bedroom window last night during the wind.

The flowers are so pretty and the first two photos how can you tell it was kind of breezy.

Well time to get to work.

Running late ….. one would think with no commute that a person would be early.

Well I am not late for work as I start at 8:00 a.m. but I like to be starting before that time.

There is lots of things to do as one signs into the computer.

I hope that you have an awesome Monday.

With kindness and respect,

I/We shall remain,

As Always, Carol & Alvin

We hope that you have a great day. Going to go and get in a quick walk before work.

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

Always, Love Carol & Alvin

2021

Good Morning ALL! How are you this Saturday. We are happy that today is Saturday and the weekend. We had a good sleep last night and in less than two hours we are going to have company for coffee/tea on the deck. I am so excited to spend precious wonderful time with two of my dear friends. Today is supposed to be 18+ celsius so hopefully by the time they arrive the temperature is warm enough to sit on the deck. It should be as it was a few weeks back on a sunny winter/early spring day we say outside on the deck in the morning sipping on our coffee and even had to take off our coats. The sun is not shining but appears to be slightly overcast. There was no mention of rain in the forecast. The sun will be shining by 10:00 a.m. – yes it will. Positive thinking. Thoughts become things.

Yesterday as you know my daughter was picking me up to take me to the office for the day. While it was great to see the handful of folks that were working on the floor – in the area where I was stationed; I truly missed the comfort of my home. My beautiful plants that line my workspace. I missed Mr. Alvin. I missed our walk at lunchtime. Our workspaces are small with barely enough room to turn around so having my space at home is wonderful. I am grateful that I am able to work remotely from home and am wishing with my whole heart that I am able to continue this. Alvin was more than excited to see me and although our neighbour had come over and spent time with him, took him out for a pee and gave him some treats – he still had to spend time alone. He is 12 years old now, a senior. Well I am so relieved that I had someone able to come in and look after him for a bit. I do have the absolute best neighbours. My daughter brought me home with a quick stop at the grocery store. Thankfully we were home by 4:30 p.m. First thing I did was to let Mr. Alvin outside after his quick hello and mad dash to the back door. We had a visit with my daughter before she left for home. As I had already fed the boy after my daughter left for home, we got ready to head out for a walk. OH my gosh, it was so lovely. The sun was shining down on our neighborhood so gloriously. I had changed into some capri type sweats, tank top and light sweater pushing up the sleeves and some light shoes with no socks, harness on Alvin (after spending a few moments trying to catch up to him as he ran back and forth under the table before he finally ran to the back door, where I was able to put on the harness) and then we were on our way. Yes, I had some poop bags in my pocket, along with the house keys and I put on my sunglass clips. We decided to walk around the ponds by our house. Life is beginning to stir around the ponds. I noticed a few days ago that two geese are strutting around the grassy area by the ponds (park area). Likely Mr. and Mrs. and perhaps they have already laid their eggs. I cannot wait for the goslings to be born. Soon there will be buds and leaves on the trees. The grass is beginning to turn green in spots. We walked by our friend Pauline’s house but she was not outside. I love our visits in her backyard or over the fence when we are out for walks. We continued on our way until we were coming up on Alvin’s BF’s house; at the neighbours they were having some roof work done (fixing and replacing shingles) and there was a huge truck parked partway in the street and covering the sidewalk so we had to cross the street before Teddy’s house. Alvin kept pulling like mad as if to say “why are we going away from his house.” When it was safe to cross, he pulled with such great force, he almost pulled me over. He pulled like mad to go to Teddy’s house so we went and as it was late, I thought we would catch them in the middle of supper. I was fully prepared and when Teddy’s Mom answered the door, the first words out of my mouth were “I am sorry, Alvin just had to come in.” We both giggled as Iris said “I had just called you to see if you guys were up for a walk.” I then said Alvin must have extra good intuition. So we went for a walk. Three pups and two humans. Alvin and I made up for missing our lunchtime walk. It was nice to catch up with her. Once back home, I made my supper and by this time it was after 6:00 p.m. so needless to say it was late when I had supper. But by just after 9:00 p.m., I was ready for bed. Pooped, one may say! What a busy day.

Well the time is passing and the girls will be here in just over one hour and I need to hit the shower. I found after being in the office and surrounded by paper (as I was doing a massive mail out), I just felt grungy. Fresh hair will feel good.

The other night when I was cleaning out one of my pantries, I found a box of bulbs that Teddy’s Mom gave me in the winter time or maybe it was last fall. Anyway they should have been planted by now so will plant them and hopefully they will grow and bloom, even if it is late.

Wishing you a great Saturday.

Remembering to live with kindness, respect, compassion and patience. It is easy to “fall off the truck” so to speak as we are human but what makes us better is that we get right back up and do better. When you have a moment like I do, like we all do. Own it, say it and just get back to living with kindness, respect, compassion and patience.

Always, Love Carol & Alvin

Future flowers – once plant bulbs

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