It is a NEW YEAR.

Good Friday Morning Everyone!

How are you today?

Doing well, I hope.

Are you getting out for walks with your housemates?

With your puppy dog?

One thing that I noticed lately is how much my Alvin, stretches.

He stretches when he gets out of bed.

He stretches when he gets out of his chair.

He stretches when we come home after a walk.

He stretches after he goes to the bathroom.

He stretches.

Likely I could take a page from him and follow suit.

 

Well it is overcast here in Edmonton.

I was thinking to myself earlier this morning.

As the forecast yesterday was for rain today.

I was thinking “it would be nice if it rained until lunchtime and stopped.”

I just looked out of the window and it is raining.

Wow, if it stops at noon.

That will be crazy wonderful.

 

We have been enjoying two walks everyday.

I know it has been helping both of us sleeping and we are burning some calories.

Good for both of us.

 

What are your weekend plans?

You know that pond of water, well not really a pond but I called it that ….

The one that was covering part of the grass area in my backyard.

The other end for which remains covered with a slowly decreasing snowbank.

Anyway, I was out shovelling after supper & dishes ….

Moving the snow around on the deck and trying to remove some of that snowbank.

There was I would say about 4-6 inches of water in the early evening.

When Alvin went outside and it was beginning to get dark so after 9:00 p.m.

I thought it looked “dry” over there.

So I grabbed my ice pick tool and checked.

Sure enough no water, it had dried up.

Now it is a gooey messy snow mold, some missed poop (not much) and leaves.

But hopefully as the snowbank melts it will “dry up” quickly.

Double digit temperatures begin on Sunday.

I look forward to cutting my grass.

Likely a good raking before that though ……

I do plan to shovel the remainder of that snow across the grassy area.

That way it will not pool in one spot.

I guess it means that the ground is thawing.

 

Well my friends it is time to go and grab that cup of coffee.

Alvin needs some food and supplies.

Yesterday I call his Vet and they are on reduced hours and no longer open on Saturdays.

They do not want more than one human member of the household coming in and no pets unless they need to see the vet.

So Alvin will be staying home when I run over there on my lunch break.

That is okay.

There should still be some time to get a smaller walk in before returning to work.

If not, there is time after work.

 

I hope that you have an awesome Friday.

Guess I can put away my winters coats/jackets/boots/mitts and scarves.

Clean out the front closet.

Maybe even switch my summer clothes or start anyway.

I have a plan for the weekend.

Making the most of my time.

 

Have a great day.

Spread the kindness with respect.

Give your elderly neighbour a phone call day to check on her/him.

If you do not have their phone number, write up a sign.

Knock on their door and hold it up.

Check on them.

Check on someone.

Keep the social distancing but be a good neighbour.

 

With kindness and respect,

I/We remain,

As Always, Carol & Alvin

 

It is a NEW YEAR.

Good Tuesday morning,

Sky is overcast

No sign of a beautiful sunrise.

Unsure of what the temperature is this morning.

Alvin is resting on his little bed beside in between my home and work stations.

I propped up my laptop more than previously with hopes that I will be closer to being ergonomic.

I am also going to use a foot stool to prop up my legs.

I have been suffering with lower back pain as a result of not having a very proper set up.

There is a nice desk and chair but with the laptop sitting on the desk I am looking down up not at eye level.

So hopefully this will help.

By the end of four days at home, my back feels better.

I tried to ensure that I was sitting properly and getting exercise.

 

One of my friends dropped me by another Easter dinner this one has ham and scalloped potatoes (tonight’s supper).

We chatted ensuring that we were keeping the proper social distance.

She had found this exercise for lower back pain from sitting improperly at desk.

My friend also mentioned that she has been doing this for a few days and thought it was helping.

So you lay flat on your back on a yoga mat or on the carpet.

Place a rolled up towel in the small of your back (not a big towel).

Then raise your arms on the floor but above your head with your palms down so that your pink fingers could touch (if you can).

Then your legs out front on the floor stretching your big toes toward each foot.

Do this stretching for five minutes whenever possible.

Maybe at a coffee break if you are working from home.

 

Well I slept in this morning …… so time to run and grab the coffee before starting the work laptop.

I hope that you were able to get some rest whether you are working or not.

Take care.

Be safe.

 

Walking today ….. yes we are.

 

Be kind and respectful.

I/We remain,

As Always, Carol & Alvin

Living … One day at a time.

Welcome to Winter in Edmonton.

I used different filters on my phone to capture a slightly different look to WINTER.

Did it work?

I don’t know.

All I know is that SHOVELLING is now my reality once again.

Deck has now been shovelled however there remains the driveway and the front walk.

It is still snowing away so shovelling will be an all day thing for sure.

 

Alvin and I managed to have a lovely walk with Teddy and his Aunt J last night.

When we left home right after work it was misting but by the time we got back home it was full fledged raining.

So we were a bit wet.

But a nice walk all the same.

Likely the last one in the rain until spring.

Hopefully anyway.

If we have rain now it just means ICE for us all.

Whether driving or walking …. it will be icy.

 

Well time to get this show on the road.

Just taking a deep breathe and will remember to stretch before shovelling.

Earlier I was out in my pj’s shovelling as Alvin wanted to go out and he needed me.

No time to change so I threw on my coat and boots and away we went.

 

Stay safe and have a wonderful Saturday.

Teddy and Aunt J are coming for supper this evening and will arrive about mid afternoon.

So I had better get the laundry on as it is now almost 9:00 a.m.

Where did the time go?

Unfortunately for some unknown reason Alvin was up and down all night starting at 1:00 a.m.

Not sure why, maybe he sensed the snow.

Or maybe he just was having a bad night as we all do.

It was hard to get up until 8:00 a.m. – then I was up and out shovelling.

 

Happy Saturday.

 

Always, Carol & Alvin

Living … One day at a time.

Hello, good morning and welcome to Monday morning.

We managed to make it through another weekend with none of the white stuff.

Unfortunately many of my friends and family were not so fortunate.

I managed to get the deck mostly cleared of furniture …. just the bistro table and chairs.

That table is made of steel and river rock and is getting too heavy for me to move.

I sometimes know my limits.

Then three heavier planters and two light stacking chairs.

Da, da ….. glad to have that done.

 

Yesterday morning we received a phone call from our English Garden FRIEND asking if we would like to go for a walk with her and George, her grand pup.

I said of course so about 10:30 we were already out walking.

We were also joined by another neighbour and friend (she lives closer to George’s Gran).

Both of these friends chose to move to Canada.

One from England and the other from China.

Our Chinese friend taught me the importance of stretching and gave we girls some lessons along the way.

We even stopped by a park bench and did some exercises.

She used the the base of the park lights to stretch.

Unbelieve, she can stretch her leg almost straight up.

I am not quite certain her age but somewhere in her 50’s I would say.

She is so flexible – put us to shame.

I learned some exercises to help with a small lower back pain that I have gained along the way.

I too believe that it is all about KEEPING MOVING.

Stretch and move …..

She told us that “she doesn’t like to be still.”

That is the secret.

Very fit this friend.

We chatted along the way in between walking and stretching.

The dogs were likely thinking “what the heck is going on.”

It was a great walk.

 

Another friend, this being Teddy’s Mom is an ENERGY HEALER.”

We have started to go for groceries together on Sunday afternoons.

We thought it might be nice for the boys to spend that hour or so together.

We were just relaxing after I had been up trying to clean the eavestrough (got help), the yard, the garden and the GARAGE.

Rearranging the garage and going through everything.

Anyway I had given Alvin a few blueberries earlier and just before Teddy and his Mom arrived.

He started to heave and threw up a blueberry.

So not sure if he ate something that I missed seeing on our walk or if blueberries did not agree with him.

When she arrived …. he actually just sat and let her heal him.

He was back to his old self in no time at all.

 

It was a great day.

Well I see that it is past 6:30 and I should be downstairs already.

Have an awesome Monday.

 

NOTE:  we can learn something new everyday.

 

Always, Carol & Alvin

Thought for the day …..

Good Morning and Welcome to Thursday the 15th day of November, 2018.

Today is the birthday of a  very special nephew “J.”

Happy Birthday Buddy – Wishing you an awesome day.

 

Woke up to rain.

Pups got a bit damp on their first time outside for the day.

 

Here are the photos that I was unable to download yesterday morning.

That arrangement with the green and red just simply pops.

So beautiful.

The pups …. Teddy lounging on the foot stool, Alvin waiting for something and then Alvin stretching.

 

 

What a great way to start the day.

Love the photo of Teddy stretching.

Both pups stretch first thing after waking up.

Yesterday was a great day.

Our off-site staff meeting was awesome.

Thoroughly enjoyed the day.

Home a bit earlier than normal.

So able to take the pups for a full walk before it was dark.

Even saw our friends out for a walk and stopped for a moment to chat.

 

Life is pretty great.

If you live simply and simply live your life.

Life is pretty great.

I say again Life is pretty great.

Don’t complicate things.

Surround yourself with all as much positive energy as you are able.

Keep positive.

The glass half full view is much better than the opposite.

 

Special Hello to: my family and friends, their love and support keeps me living my life.

Always, Carol & Alvin

Thought for the day ….

Good Morning and Welcome to Thursday the 11th day of October, 2018.

Appears to have rained/snowed a bit overnight.

The deck tells the story.

The streets and sidewalks may be a bit slippery so everyone be careful.

If you happen to live elsewhere then no worries.

I hope that wherever you live that you are safe and comfortable.

 

Last night after work Alvin and I went for a nice walk.

I had planned to do a 20-30 minute workout (recorded some different yoga/pilates/stretching shows).

On our way home I happen to glance at the mailbox and remembered that my friend “V” was shipping a parcel to us today.

So we careful made our way across the street and voile we had this HUGE parcel in the parcel mailbox for which they place a key in my mailbox.

It was tricky carrying the box in one hand/arm and Alvin in the other.

He kept wanting to cross the street and I wanted to ensure it was safe.

Finally we got across the street and safely home.

Alvin always goes crazy when we receive a parcel from our friend.

He barked and barked and barked even with a time out (in the bathroom).

Finally got into the box and pulled out his parcel which had the cutest note.

Part of which told him to not to eat it all at once (not her words).

We are so lucky.

I took a short video of him opening his parcel.

He was still pulling away at the tissue paper once his treat bag was unwrapped.

What a character.

Needless to say he loved the treats (only had two).

He still had not had his supper at that time.

I received a deep dish apple pie, carrot cake, two kinds of homemade buns, pumpkin muffins with seeds and multiple little treats.

 

Afterward we called our friend to say thank you.

We are so lucky.

 

Quickly here as it is almost time to leave and I must share a funny story.

So after we got the treats put away and wrapping dealt with it was on to my exercises.

I pulled out my yoga mats, yoga bricks and yoga strap (just in case).

I ended up going with a stretching program as I know I need some of that.

Moved some of the furniture out of my way.

Alvin started to bark.

He moved to the sofa and picked up one of his chew treats.

Oh how I wished that I had a video of his reaction.

For the first 10 minutes he fussed and stewed and stewed and fussed while I was exercising.

Perhaps it was something about the yoga mat or the chair or that he was not included.

Tonight will try some yoga and see if the dog can do downward dog …. just kidding.

He will get used to it eventually.

It was so funny seeing his reaction and kind of hard to explain.

You almost had to be here.

I guess he did not know what to think.

 

Well have to go.

Time to grab my lunch, don the coat and stuff (decided on boots or just shoes)?

Have an awesome Thursday.

 

Special Hello to: my friend who spoils us rotten and we love it.

Always, Carol & Alvin