Two to Love

 I am so blessed to have two beautiful granddaughters to love; there is about a 10 year age difference so they definitely will not get the same gifts on a regular basis.  However, for Valentine's day...                              what can I say? :-)

 

Winter Wonderland

 Stepping outside of work today, sure it was chilly, but it sure is beautiful! 

Warmth

 

Warm fuzzy goodness at the end of the day in -100, this feels absolutely amazing!

(Ok, so it's -20, with the windchill it feels like -100 lol)

My granddaughter bought me these for Christmas, how thoughtful!

Comfort

 On cool days a warm bowl of soup seems to bring a wee bit of comfort.  I made a pot of cream of cauliflower soup and it's delicious! 

An Honor

 Today I was asked for an Eagle Feather; I explained an Eagle Feather is earned, it is not something which is randomly given.  I was then asked if I would print a photo of an Eagle Feather and I agreed to do this.  Tonight I came home and took out the Eagle Feather which was gifted to me when I earned my Master's Degree, this is a high honor and I respect the feather and its teachings.  When this individual has earned an Eagle Feather, they too will be gifted with one, until then I will give this photo so they have a visual of something to work toward.  

Paige

 Two of my biggest challenges throughout this pandemic is not seeing my granddaughters on a regular basis, hardly at all with the way we are on restrictions.  Thankfully there is face time and the phone so we can at least keep in touch this way.  

Paige turned one on December 15, 2020, she is now 13 months old and as precious as precious can be.  She has been walking for at least a month now, saying simple words, once she said "Grammy" on the phone but try to get her to say it again, not a chance, not yet anyway.   

Such a busy girl, always on the go.  What's so wonderful is she has a beautiful disposition, she is such a happy girl and full of stories for me whenever we chat on the phone. 

Our beautiful blue-eyed precious Paige, I hope to spend more time with her real soon! 

No Need For Reminders

 I went out shopping tonight, darn near felt like a holiday getting out of my apartment and not being at work!  The store was quiet, I find the best time to get out shopping is late in the day on a Friday, it's much quieter in the stores than shopping on a Saturday I've learned over the years.  Long story short, I spotted this cushion, no need for reminders... that's all I do, stay home, less the work thing and I'm so grateful I am able to work through this pandemic. 

 I am looking forward to being able to get out and visit, take in a dinner, a movie, get my hair and nails done... like I used to in the good old days! 

How are you coping through this pandemic?  I hope you are finding ways to bring joy into your life.  This living alone with my dog, well we kinda sorta talk to each other every now again, but we're getting through this with most of our sanity intact. 

Avon Calling

 Less than two weeks since I've started blogging again and oops, I've already missed a few days.  I will do my best to post when I am able to and my work doesn't keep me up till all hours of the night, like it did last night. 

Anyway, tonight I thought I'd post something I haven't used in a very long time, probably in the neighborhood of 25+ years and I'm surprised this company is still going strong.  I haven't used Avon products in so long I forget what their product is like.  What I like is it is delivered to the door, something which is a good idea during this pandemic... here is to hoping I like it! 

Pandemic

Never in a million years would I have thought I'd experience life during a pandemic... well here it is and sadly it's not looking like it is going anywhere any time soon.  Thankfully the vaccination is slowly trickling into Canada, fingers crossed it will be available soon.  

Today I was tested once again, this is getting to almost be the new norm.  Working in the pubic sector I'd much rather err on the side of caution, endure a few seconds of discomfort, and know I am not carrying the Covid-19 virus.  A positive is we have a pharmacist on-site who can do our testing, no long line ups thankfully. 

Here's a look at the statistics:

Alberta

Total cases - 110k

No data on recovered

Sadly deaths are at 1,241. 

Overall stats for Canada:

Total cases - 652k

Recovered - 552k

Deaths - 16,833

Worldwide

Total Cases - 89.5M

Recovered - 49.7M

Deaths - 1.92M

This is the sad reality; however, I am optimistic and hope this will end in the near future. 

Until then it's pretty much work and home, the odd bit of shopping and I'm missing spending time with family and friends.  Glad to still have my dog, she's been such a good friend and ensures I leave the apartment at minimum 3x a day which feels great just to get a bit of fresh air. 

Stay safe out there. 

15 Years

 15 years, so this is what it feels like to be in recovery for this long.  I'm not sure how time has passed so quickly. I recall early recovery vividly, probably because I was so naive and didn't know anything about anything, not that I know that much more today, however today I am teachable. Life is so much clearer, I love what I have chosen to do in my recovery and wouldn't change much even if I could.   

I have immense gratitude and have tons of people to thank for the unconditional love and support along the way.  First and foremost I will be forever grateful to my family who have seen me through thick and thin.  Without family support I don't know if I'd have made it this far, my family means the world to me.  The friends I've made along the way have made the world of difference as well.  My philosophies have changed immensely, as have my priorities and today I am blessed to be doing what I love and loving what I do.  I have so much more I could say, however, time to call it a day as I have learned I have to go in to work for a bit tomorrow... yup, good thing I love what I do! :-) 

Comfort Food

Sometimes I just need to make a pot of comfort, tonight was one of those sometimes. 

 

Paige

 I haven't shared a photo of my second granddaughter here yet, she turned one on December 15 and she is such a sweet, special child.  She is now walking, forming simple words she and sure has a charming personality,  I love her to bits!  This photo was taken mid December, she's grown a bit since then, not too much though.

 

Seeking Knowledge

I love to learn, however after university I've not read as much as I did while I was in my studies.  It's time to get back to reading and increasing my knowledge base, my brain is saying "feed me," so that I shall.  I ordered these books and am going to do my best to read these by summer. 

Lighting

 I've become fascinated with lighting and love to use lights to create a new look for a space that can use something different.  Today at work while I was speaking with a client in their room I looked up, what once was a skylight has changed drastically; with the new roof which was installed in the fall, the skylights were replaced with something which would hold in the heat better in the winter, the skylights were old and had become quite drafty.  This new style of light goes up approximately 4-5 feet, and it still has the feel of the skylight but enhanced.  Quite the look I must say, if time permitted I could have drifted away, up the tunnel and into the light.  

A Beautiful Gift

                       My granddaughter, who is now 10, sure knows me and the kind of things I like.  She bought me this wall hanging for Christmas and what a great reminder! 

Elyssa, you're such a gem, thank you for this wonderful gift! 

Here I Go Again - P365

My niece asked if I'd like to do another Project 365, my initial reaction was no way, it's too big of a commitment.  Then I said yes before the no could escape my quick to respond fingers via text message.  After all, I work too much, I have not been playing enough, and need to get back to what I love to do- photography.  I won't be shooting with my Canon most days, but when I can make the time to get out and explore the world I'll be taking my camera with, two days late but nonetheless here is my first two days of what life is like in my world during this pandemic.  

         

                                                         January 1, 2021

                                                          Time to Get the Tree Down

For the first time in forever I put up a real tree this year, the smell was amazing throughout the holiday season, however, the mess helps me to remember why the artificial tree was going up each year.  I did not have any company throughout the holiday season due to this pandemic and wasn't even going to put a tree up this year, but my kind-hearted son showed up at my door with a real tree... bless his heart, now to get him over to take this tree away! 

                                                                    

                                                                        January 2, 2021

                                                                       Fresh Baked Buns

I didn't cook a turkey dinner over the holidays as I normally do however I did buy a small bird which I cooked on New Year's Day.  I felt like having turkey bun and no buns on hand, too lazy to go to the store, so I made fresh buns (which in hindsight makes absolutely no sense, it's far more work to bake buns then to jump into my vehicle and drive to the grocery store)!  The turkey bun was absolutely delicious, now what to do with all this leftover turkey! 

Wishing everyone a year filled with love, laughter and good health!