Good Morning. So glad today is Friday. The sky is blue and the sun is shining. We had some well needed rain yesterday so the grass and trees all had a nice boost. I hope that the areas affected by wildfires were blessed to have this moisture as well. I hope.
Yesterday was a good day. I walked with Eddie and Jeanette after supper. So different without Bruno but he is no longer in pain or suffering even though he was a master of not displaying the appearances that something was wrong otherwise than the physical changes. What a dear guy he was. Handsome and regal and well behaved. He would even say “thank you” for the treats in his way. I shall miss him always. We had a good walk bumping into friends along the way including our friends Jaime & Sadie. They were walking with two other sets of friends. So many pups so lovely. Eddie enjoyed playing fetch with the ball. He even “laid down.” Something he did not do very much before that moment. During our walk Jeanette had to take a long distance conference call between her Father’s Doctor and her brothers. When I say long distance it truly was: Venezuela, U.S. and Canada. How is that for distance? During this time we walked and I looked after Eddie. We played fetch and enjoyed our time together. We were playing fetch by my friend Pauline’s house and I noticed that her windows were open so I texted her in the off chance she was home and not busy. Her husband Al noticed me and waved and a few minutes later Pauline was outside and we were in the backyard. It felt so strange being back there without Mr. Alvin. Eddie walked around and smelled everything and looked around which reminded me of Alvin. Pauline and I quickly caught up with all of our news. They are going on a small fishing trip in June to B.C., how lovely. Our friend Lucy turns 65 in a few days and is leaving for a three month visit to family and friends in China at the end of June. Pauline turns 70 in June as well. Lots going on. We are planning a little party for her and I volunteered to bring the cake and I was thinking to myself that we can celebrate Pauline’s 70th with Lucy’s 65. We will invite another neighbour and friend of theirs (and mine).
Photo time once again. I seem to have a lot of photos to share and that is nice. My dry eye is bothering me once again, the burning and then I am obviously allergic to something as my nose is running. Will have to get my eyedrops, they help right away. I have included some photos of Pauline’s yard and my plants from Costco. Yesterday morning before work I went to the garage and brought them all inside to sit upon the kitchen table hoping they would get some sunshine but we did not have much of that yesterday but today is another story. I will plant them tonight or tomorrow morning before Gillian’s birthday party. A busy weekend ahead. I still need to wrap the birthday gift and write up a card for Gillian. Where did the week go? LOL. I gave a few plants to Jeanette as I know how much she loves them and now she has something to plant right away and enjoy. Just in case they are not able to get to a nursery.
Flowers to plantEddieEddie & JeanetteEddieVisiting with PaulineEddie checking for lightFlowersBeautiful yardMy Flowers From Pauline
Well time to hustle downstairs and put on the coffee. My eye is better now without the relief of eyedrops, yay. I hope that your Friday is awesome. Whatever happens today I feel good things are in the air. Our office group won $10.00 from Wednesday’s lottery draw so just adding a few more zero’s and we will be there. We are excited. Retirement is closer than we think.
Feeling so very blessed and fortunate this Friday morning. To be surrounded by such loving friends and neighbours is so wonderful.
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
Thank you Bruno for being my friend ……… I hope that you are out for a stroll with my Alvin!
Good Morning! Another beautiful May morning. Hard to believe that there are only two more days left in the month of May. Where does the time go? Feels like sometimes that it is evaporates. There is a coolness wafting into the office this morning. Yes, I opened the window to bring in some cool air. When I go downstairs I will open the windows at each end of the house. One being in the kitchen and the other in the living room. This will bring in some cool air. Gone are the days that I would open them early in the morning so that the main floor would be cool for Mr. Alvin. On the hot days, we would get out for an early morning walk. When Covid struck the planet, we would go in the mornings before work, if it was not too hot at my lunch break we would walk then and then should the temperatures be too hot after work, we would just stay cool by the fans. Sometimes we even went into the basement as it is always a few degrees cooler there. Yesterday morning after I got up and finished my small to do list, I grabbed my mug of coffee and “Alvin” and we sat out under the umbrella. He was in the shade but the umbrella did not quite cover me. There was still a nice cool breeze so I did not mind. We just enjoyed the sunshine with memories flooding my mind. He so loved his walks. His favourite spot on the deck was to lay just under the kitchen window and second was on the love seat next to me. I remember him as a pup and in the more early days how he would lay outside on the nice days soaking up the sunshine. Seems like a lifetime ago. I guess it really was but he will always be here.
Yesterday afternoon just after 4:00 p.m., the wind got up. I quickly brought in all of the houseplants and moved the other plants to the cover of the house or by the fence. I had taken the cushions from the table set and put them into the garage but left the cushions on the love seat and chairs on them. Earlier in the afternoon, my friend Gillian joined me on the deck for a cup of coffee, some sunshine, some laughter and good conversation. She is such a good friend. I am so grateful for her friendship. I was in the house and texting between three friends in two provinces when I noticed that one of the cushions had blown off one of the chairs. First time that has happened. I went out and put them away. All of my small items were moved just in case. If a gust moved the cushion then a little ornament from the table or deck could easily blow away. Not worried about anything get ruined but more of something being air borne and hitting someone or breaking a window. Anyway, after some heavy winds and a bit of rain a couple of hours later, I was out walking with Jeanette, Bruno and Eddie. Bruno, I am not sure how he is doing it, where does the energy come from, but he does a walk. Not a short one either. We take plenty of water and it almost all gets drank mainly by Bruno. We take three pet bottles of water and 500 ml (a lot of water). I will share a few photos of the boys from last night. The grass was “soft” after the rain.
EddieBrunoBruno
The time is getting late here and I have a few things to do before leaving the house for the day. Tonight I vote in our provincial election. That will be after work. I hope that you are doing well and have a wonderful Monday.
Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, patience, compassion, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities, coffee and forgiveness.
Good Morning. What a gorgeous morning it is! I have been over to feed, change water, clean letterbox and just visit Humphrey & Bogart, I have moved plants outside, done some cleaning, gathered and started laundry, and now writing this post. I think that the following photos put into words my life at the present time, filled with friends whether two or four or three-legged and the beauty of nature and FLOWERS. So this post will be photos today. I appreciate all the lives in my life. I hope that you are having a great day. The air is a tad cool which is lovely against the slightly hazy sky. I do not smell smoke but alas it is out there somewhere. I pray that all lives are saved from the fires.
Jax, a 17 year old LabJaxJax & BrunoEddie & Bruno & JeanetteOh, BrunoBruno & EddieThe BoysBrunoSon & FatherEddie & BrunoBrunoEddie, Sadie & her DadBogartHumphreyBogartThose EyesChecking things outBrothers just watching lifeSome Houseplants outsideGetting some fresh airHouseplants outside
What can I say! My life is full. I have wonderful family, many amazing friends, so many pups and cats, a beautiful space to call my own and the sun is shining. Coffee has brewed awaiting me to go and have a cup of that delectable gold. I am so happy. Alvin is with me always, he follows me wherever I go inside the house or out. My forever Angel and friend.
Have a wonderful Saturday everyone. I am walking with Jeanette and the boys later. Checking in on the boys every so many hours. Doing some housework and laundry. I need to wash those dusty blinds on the main floor so that will get done this weekend. I am just enjoying life. No major housework to do so might as well just be outside as much as I can. Might be hot this afternoon.
I have two friend birthdays coming up. Gillian’s on May 31st and Pauline’s on June 13th. So much to celebrate. June and July and August are filled with birthdays.
Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities, coffee and forgiveness.
Good Morning! Well the sun is shining brightly and there remains smoke in the air. I opened the window and then closed it as the smell of smoke was too much. I certainly do not want the inside of the house to smell like smoke. My heart goes out to all those families affected by the wildfires. I heard that our Prime Minister is visiting Alberta. Likely there are a lot of mixed feelings about his visit. But you know what that is his job to see the people of Canada in good times and in bad. When he visits he can well better make decisions that affect the people who need assistance and help.
There is some wind this morning but no where near the wind of this time yesterday. So that is a good thing.
Last night after supper I walked with my friends. Bruno is having a hard time. His Momma comes home late this evening. His Dad says another trip to the Hospital. Poor boy. I hope that he will be okay. One of his legs seems to be swollen. I am not sure how Eddie will do without Bruno should something happen to him. It was smoky last night but there was enough of a breeze that it was okay. Still not my favourite time to be walking with or without pups.
This morning we are going to the last two of our sites to check things and pick up trash. I am not looking forward to be outside for hours in the smoke but I guess there are others like the firefighters that are out outside in this day in and day out. So I will not complain.
Well I kept hitting the snooze button on my phone this morning so I have to head downstairs so that I can have breakfast and coffee before I leave for work. Luckily my ride is coming a few minutes later than our normal time.
Have a wonderful day. Keep safe.
Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities, coffee and forgiveness.
Good Morning! There is a cool breeze wafting in through the open windows. When the alarm went off I got up and opened the office window and went downstairs and opened the living room and kitchen windows. The house is filling up with the coolness of the morning air. Today is supposed to be +29 but I think it may surpass that number. The sky is a brilliant blue and the sun is up and shining upon everything it reaches. I am grateful that I can work from home most of this week. YAY.
Yesterday morning I was up in good time but not as earlier as Saturday. I had a real lazy Mother’s Day Sunday. There was even a nap in the afternoon and that is likely the reason that I could not fall to sleep last night. It was a long night. After supper I walked with Alejandro, Eddie & Bruno. Bruno seems a bit better than he was a few days ago. His Mom comes home on Wednesday night, late. Both the pups will be happy to see their Momma.
I tried my air fryer out last night making french fries. Lesson learned better to do one potato at a time. They did crisp up or at least most of them did but some did not. It was easy to do. Will have to try something else. I will have to make some of that yummy rice pudding with my handy dandy Tupperware pressure cooker. I have two small appliances that I can use in this heat. Not a good time to be turning on the oven.
This will be short as I did not set up my workspace last night and am feeling that I need some COFFEE this morning. I also need to take some of my plants outside. Will try and find a place that will not be in the burning sun. Likely will end up moving them about throughout the course of the day. My deck faces south and there is no cover from the heat of the day. My daughter is going to bring me an umbrella which will help with some shade.
I hope that you keep cool on this Monday. Be safe.
Wishing and praying that moisture extinguishes the wildfires. Keep the animals and humans all safe.
Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities, coffee and forgiveness.
Good Morning. There is such refreshing cool air pouring in through the office window as I key these words on my computer. The sun is shining brightly and the sky is the perfection of blue. There is a breeze which is helping to bring in the cool air. I opened all of the windows earlier. I woke up a bit later than I usually do during the week. There is a dog barking in the distance. Hopefully its’ owners have not left him/her outside. Now that the temperatures are getting warmer and very hot on some days, it is so important to carry water with you when you are walking with your dog(s). They are wearing a fur coat and you have on shorts, a teeshirt and flip flops. Think about it. Also skin is not fur. They need to be hydrated. Also please do not take them when it is hot. Not only is the temperature hard on them but the pavement and sidewalks can burn the bottom of their paws, their pads. I have seen this close up on a poor doggie that we found wondering on our back lane. Please people be responsible. The night before last when I was walking with my friends Alejandro, Eddie & Bruno (they are those handsome yellow labs), we saw this man on a skateboard of sorts, more current and I do not know what it is called. Shorter than the old ones and he had a baby strapped on the front of his baby, a cell phone in one hand and holding the leash for a medium-large dog in the other. I almost lost my breath. How irresponsible. What is wrong with people. Every day we see people out riding bicycles with a poor dog on a leash trying to keep up. Sometimes I have seen this person on a bike with two dogs. You have no control and should not be riding a bike and walking your dogs. Get off the damn bike and do a walk/run with your pet if they like to run a bit. Dogs do not love to run full out with you on your bike. THEY DO NOT! Can you imagine being on a leash trying to keep up with someone on a bike. Also they do not have water with them.
Last night Alejandro had two pet water bottles with him and I took Alvin’s bottle with me. Well it was funny as Eddie saw the reflection from the bottle and starting trying to paw at the light. Finally I figured that my pocked on my pants (cargo pants) would hold the water bottle so that he would not be trying to get at the reflection. Smart guy that Eddie. Poor Bruno. He is doing better than last night but still having a hard time. He has/had cancer. He is on prednisone to stop and hopefully kill the cancerous tumour. Last night his poop was starting to firm up. No where near what regular poop should be but definitely better than the previous night. He has put on weight from the steroid for sure. You know that a pup is in pain or not himself when their tail hangs low. Another reason is when they are hot and thirsty. We walked for one and half hours last night. I love being with Eddie and Bruno and their humans of course. The boys make me happy and I remember when I used to be walking Alvin and would see them.
Today is going to be a busy day so I have to get my poop in a group and get going. I want to go and wash the deck (have to hook up the garden hose first), do some cleaning and have a shower before noon. I am expecting a grocery delivery sometime between noon and 2:00 p.m. (hopefully closer to noon). The kids are dropping off Aspen and Milo and heading over to Costco. One of their friends is dropping off their dog Breeze here as they are watching him/her for a few days. We are ordering in supper for Mother’s Day. Lots going on.
Be safe, make good choices and remember to laugh.
I found out that the $60 million lotto jackpot was won by someone in Alberta. A man from Red Deer. So there is definitely hope for our group or me to win. I know there is a lot of money coming my way.
Happy Mother’s Day early to all you Moms out there. Oh, I better put together a little something for my daughter, she is a Mom. All Moms count. Whether to children, to pups or cats or fish. Oh, I am on pet sitting duties this weekend as well for Humphrey & Bogart. Time is flying by, I have to go.
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)
P.S. I am able to work from home this next week for Monday through Thursday as our office is undergoing the finishing touches on some earlier renovations. We will be going onto two sites for Wednesday morning but otherwise I am at home. So grateful.
Good Morning! Yay, we made it to Friday. The sun is shining against a bright blue sky and there does not appear to be a breeze. I sure hope that the areas affected by the wildfires had some rain, some desperately needed moisture. I think of the people affected but most of all the animals, the wildlife, the birds and the bees. My heart hurts for them. Some unable to escape the smoke and fire. Most of these fires were started by someone, a human not an animal. Makes me mad and sad. What is wrong with people? Animals have lost their lives and some people have lost everything. You are all in my thoughts and I hope that “humans” are able to get these fires under control/stopped with no more loss of life.
Last night I walked with Alejandro and the pups Eddie and Bruno. Bruno is the eldest and will be 10 soon and Eddie is 7, I believe. Bruno was not doing well. His Dad was going to take him to the Guardian Hospital (24 hour Emergency) last night after our walk. He has diarrhea and is taking prednisone as had cancer. I think instead of chemo. Not sure of exact details. When Jeanette was telling me, part of my brain shut down as I thought of Alvin. Anyway, poor Bruno is clearly not doing well so his Dad was going to take him to the hospital. Fingers crossed that he will be okay. Poor guy.
The renovations are starting next week so for at least Monday and Tuesday we are working from home, some of the office staff. The ones that are at the office most of the day and I am one of them. YAY, I am so excited to be home again. I don’t mind the office but no distractions will be great. Hopefully I can get caught up or at least make a substantial dent in mail etc.
Well this is short as for some reason I felt the need to hit the snooze button twice. Yes, twice. Not sure why as I went to bed and turned out lights just after 9:30.
Wishing you a wonderful day.
Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities, coffee and forgiveness.
Good Morning! I was up in good time just before 7:30. Changed bedding, gathered laundry and then got ready to go for a walk. According to my phone when I checked the temperature it said “10+” so I pulled on a light sweatshirt and my jean shorts and running/walking shoes and was on my way. I will say that one of the best inventions is the little socks that barely cover your foot and that have that non-slip material on the heel. No more having your feet so hot. No more going barefoot and getting blisters and no more wearing shorter socks that fall down. So win/win. I actually bought a few more pairs yesterday at Shoppers Drug Mart when I was taking a stroll on my lunch break. I had to pick up the office winning lotto tickets. I have not checked them but I am feeling good about them. One draw was last night and one is for tonight. Will check later.
The wind is quite strong and there are wind warnings out for later on. My heart goes out to the areas of Alberta and close to Edmonton that have wildfires burning. Most of these fires are caused from careless humans. When will we learn. The loss of wildlife can not be calculated. Insects, birds, small animals and even the large ones. Being spring the babies are at risk. Parents will not leave their babies. Can you imagine? Breaks my heart. If you happen to be a person who smokes, please extinguish your butt into a container that has water in it not on the ground. One spark when it is dry and you have people evacuated from their homes. What about all the domestic farm animals? People have to leave and cannot get all of their animals out? We have to be better. My children are close but not close enough to be evacuated. I have relatives in one of the areas that was recently evacuated. If you ever have to be evacuated from your home for any reason – please take your pets. When people were evacuated from the wildfires in Fort McMurray eight years ago, many of them left their pets behind. They are as important as family. Be prepared. Every life is important. Some of the pets were rescued by different organizations but many died because they were left behind. Another good reason not to leave your cat roaming the neighbourhood. I sure hope that these winds die down soon as this will not help the situation. I pray they calm down, the winds.
I made a detour from my story about the morning walk. It was a brisk walk and was a solid 35 minutes. I feel great. Nature was in her glory. The leaves are starting to come out looking shiny & new. My tree is a bit slow and is just budding. The sunshine glistened off of the water in the park close to my house. So beautiful. The ducks were swimming about and every once in a second one would tip over into the water to grab some food. I love watching them. When Alvin was a puppy he loved just sitting with me on the water’s edge watching the ducks and geese in the water. I remember taking him for walks by the big park/pond and he would stop to look at the water and birds. So I would just sit down on a patch of grass (this was before all of the foliage lined the pond) and he would sit on my lap and watch them swimming back and forth. No barking just intently watching them. We would do this for long periods of time and on many of our walks over the years but mostly when he was young. There were people out riding bikes, walking with and without their beloved pups. I spoke to a couple of people in passing. I saw for the first time a long-haired German Shepherd. Absolutely gorgeous. Glad he was having a walk while it is cooler out. Another gal had a little pup who is 8 and they just found out she has diabetes. My heart goes out to them. I wished the pup a long healthy life. I saw Robins. A male and a female. So great to be outside in nature. A good way to start the day, to start the weekend. Last night after work I went for a walk as well.
Time to head downstairs with my laundry baskets and start that laundry. I can smell the aroma of the freshly perked coffee as I put it on before I came upstairs to write this post.
I hope that you are safe and are having a wonderful day. Remember to go outside and take a walk in nature. Hopefully you have a green space close to your house. Take Care. Thanks for reading my posts. Very appreciated.
Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities, coffee and forgiveness.
Good Morning! Looks like today and following days are cooling off a bit. So we shall have a reprieve from these 30+ days. I think of Mr. Alvin when it is hot and the many ways, I worked to keep him cool. A cool wet towel laid over him, the fans going full blast, opening the windows early in the morning before work and then closing the blinds to keep in the cool air. I cannot believe that it is going to be three months in a couple of weeks since he passed on. Sure miss the little guy and my life certainly is no where near the same without him. He was a good companion and the best little buddy one could ever ask for ever …..
I guess this is May 5th and CINCO DE MAYO.
I am so grateful that today is Friday. One day closer to retirement for some of us. Not rushing my life away or anything.
So yesterday I took the bus to my dental appointment. I really had no idea what was in store for me as I have never had crowns before and the prep work is a bit on the painful side. Well not really painful but lots of pressure as they prepped the two teeth for the crowns. Which is a whole deal, I am finding out. I will be getting two crowns on May 18th, 2023. YAY, me. I am so grateful that I have a good dentist. He really care and is gentle. All of his staff are very nice. There was only one that I had not worked with to this point. Yesterday I had Cheryl. She was wonderful. Explained every step and was so gentle and thoughtful. She helped the process in a huge way. The block that they place on the opposite side of your mouth from the “rubber dam/tent” was so big and my mouth is very small and it was causing me to gag. She realized and said we have a smaller one and got it right away. The assistant from Tuesday, did not pick up on that but she was clearly in training. I am also glad that I have good dental coverage and have a Health Spending Account so all the fees have been covered thus far. I will be paying for one crown come the 18th. On that appointment I will be having two front fillings replaced and two extraction all on the top. This should be fun. Better on the top though. Should heal more easily.
The sun is shining so brightly. I have a long list of things to do come this weekend. Time to get the deck washed, reorganize the garage and work on finishing washing the walls. The upstairs walls. Then will be the main floor. At least the blinds on the main floor were done recently.
The night before last the bargaining committee for my son-in-law’s employer settled. They did not come yesterday. I am grateful that they did not have to travel in the heat. Even with A/C in cars, not much fun for pups.
Well time to fly here. Have a wonderful Friday.
Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities, coffee and forgiveness.
Good Morning. A beautiful Thursday, May 4th, 2023. May the 4th be with you! There is my STAR WARS reference. Another hot day for most of Alberta. So hot and dry. I am praying for rain, just rain no fanfare from Mother Nature, like lightning. Just enough rain to extinguish the wildfires and to give the desperately dry ground some moisture. Fingers crossed.
Today is my third dental appointment. I will go to work and then catch the bus to the appointment and then back to the office when I am finished. Hopefully all goes well today. Should be easy peasy as they are just making the mould/the form/the impression whatever it is called for the crowns.
I have been so enjoying having the grand pups here when I arrive home from work. They are coming today and I believe tomorrow as well. Earlier I went downstairs to open the windows and turn on the fan so that the main floor is as cool as I can make it. I will be closing the blinds as well. They will only be alone for about 4.5 hours so not too bad. They will be okay. I am so happy that I am able to help them out.
The sun is shining now. A few minutes ago it must have been behind a cloud. The sky looks so pretty. I was looking at it through my bedroom window just before I got up and the colours were picture perfect. Mother Nature sure can put on a show. Utter perfection.
I hope that the wildfires can be contained/extinguished and the loss of all life is minimal. I wished that it would be none but how can a fire not take away life of some kind. Insects, birds, small animals and domestic animals.
I just received a text from my daughter, the strike is over. They settled. My son-in-law will not have to walk the picket line. So happy for him and for his coworkers. I won’t be seeing my pups today. I am happy that they are home and won’t have to travel back and forth, especially in this heat.
Well it is almost time to head back downstairs and put on the coffee and have a bite to eat. Great news to start the day with and I am over the moon for them.
Happy Thursday. Have a wonderful day everyone!
Continuing to live this life with kindness, respect, compassion, patience, love, laughter, understanding, gratitude, focus, possibilities, coffee and forgiveness.
My New Life @ 51 