Before I retired, I was determined not to waste the best years of my life by sitting in front of a television, letting my life slip away… I have been retired for three months now.
During my first few weeks of my retirement, I cleaned and polished every nook and cranny of our house. Then I started to cook and bake, which of course messed up the house, so I had to clean and polish all the more. 🤷
Neat and tidy 😉
I could see this becoming a losing battle, so I backed off on the cooking and started to focus on my dog. I was walking her, bathing her and grooming her. And there was dog hair and wet dog smell everywhere! Which meant more house cleaning and polishing. 🙄
My dog, Kat
Finally spring arrived and I was able to get out in the yard – with my dog! I tidied up the yard, planted plants, and painted flower beds. Kat was at my side, in the house, back out, back in. There was now pine needles, sand, leaves and muddy pawprints throughout the house. I cleaned up the house. Polish – not so much😒
Our garden area 🌿
With spring planting behind us, I am looking at doing a couple of small renovation projects and getting back into a few hobbies I once enjoyed. I have a sneaking suspicion that renovations and hobbies are going to circle right back to more housecleaning. 😟
Maybe I should just rethink my original retirement plan, curl up on the couch with my dog and check out some daytime television. 😉
We are finally getting a good soaking rain today. Our garden needs it and our house was more than ready for some attention. The dust bunnies were starting to compete for shelf space with the elephants.
From our trip to Edmonton last summerChristmas gift from son Mark, Erin & DomI just thought this little elephant family was too cute to pass up💖My pink crystal elephant from Dan Christmas gift from son Dan & familyMy Winnipeg ElephantEllie the Elephant – to mark the anticipated arrival of Maddy
Hope everyone is having a great Sunday – Rain or Shine!
It has been a relatively uneventful day today. I was up at six a.m. compliments of Kat – our little dog has to eat.
Kat
After coffee and checking out the news (such as it was), I got ready to go shopping with Dan. Our first stop was Superstore. I ran in to the smoke shop to get Dan cigarettes. (I haven’t smoked since 2010 – I should never smoke again but I am keeping my options open). The clerk was none other than Grandpa’s Genie. I ‘accidentally’ left the cigarettes on the counter so Dan would have to run in to see her. 🤣
Genie (& Kat) – such a Grandpa’s girl🐞
We travelled on to Walmart to pick up a few items. There was a big sale on TP. We should now be good through to the next pandemic.
We came home. I changed into shorts and a light top to give Bob the Boulder a bath with the pressure washer. It was supposed to be 31 above (celcius) – it was not.
Bob the Boulder
I froze my butt off and took all the shrapnel I could handle before going in to change – again! I put on a black sweater and pants (the closest I have to a ski-doo suit) poured myself a glass of wine and headed back to the frigid outdoors.☃️
Sunshine!
There wasn’t a cloud to be seen. It was hot as hell! I powered through the wine and headed back in to change into something cooler while Dan made us icy cold Caesars. 😊
Fortunately we picked up hotdogs and buns for supper. After wine and a Caesar, I am not up to cooking anything too challenging. 😉
Dan and I had a productive day yesterday so today it is all rest and relaxation. Dan left to go golfing at 6 am so it is just Kat and I. We are going for a walk and then spending the day hanging out in the yard. It is supposed to be a sunny 31 degrees above (celsius) so should be a perfect day for doing next to nothing.
Yesterday we got our new boulder, Bob. Bob is not terribly huge but he got as far as the corner of the front lawn and he is not moving. He will however get a shower the next time I water out front. The pool is up and almost full.We found the ladybug planter I bought Dan a couple of years ago, cleaned it up and set it out.We went to Uncle Wiener’s Discount Store (that is a real place 🙄) and bought privacy screen to install along the inside of our front chain link fence. It was not fun to install, with about a dozen cedars growing up to the fence, but we got it done. It does a pretty good job of providing privacy. From the street side, you really cannot see into the yard. ☺️
I also got a bit more yard clean-up done and washed down the patio set (again) so we are pretty much ready to spend some time enjoying our yard.
Dan is on days off so he has made it his mission today to set up our above ground pool.
Since we became grandparents sixteen years ago, our yard has evolved to accomodate ‘the kids’. The major summer staple has become the Grandpa pool.
We started off with a wading pool for Genie and Rory. Even with a little spot for the kiddies to splash, we had plenty of room on our large patio for the barbecue and patio set.The first Grandpa ‘monster pool’. It was only an 8′ inflatable but to our still tiny tots, it was massive.When we switched things up to a ten foot pool, we had to move it to the other side of the yard.A couple of years ago, Grandpa decided to replace the ten foot pool with a fourteen foot one. Since there wasn’t enough room in the side yard to accomodate it, it moved back to the patio. …. Which meant moving our dining area to the side yard.But when you get a beautiful day in May and Grandpa hasn’t set up your pool yet, you just make do with Kat’s pool. 😂
I do not discuss politics often. In this day and age, it seems as if it is not so much a discussion as a drag down/knock out fight. However, today I will make an exception.
In Canada, there are three main parties – the Conservatives on the right, the NDP (New Democrat Party) on the Left and the Liberals in the middle. Although Canada is far from being as politically intense as our southern neighbours, there are Canadians who are to the extreme right of the Conservatives and the extreme left of the NDP. These two demographics seem to be growing – or at least growing increasingly vocal.
I am not a card carrying member of any party but, since I prefer compromise to battle, I tend to favour the Liberals – who happen to be currently in power.
I voted Liberal in the past two elections because I am comfortable supporting them and their leader. I like Justin Trudeau for three reasons. (1) He consistently displays affection, kindness, respect and appreciation for his parents. (2) He consistently displays affection, kindness, respect and appreciation for his wife. (3) He consistently displays affection, kindness respect and appreciation for his children.
I do not have a major issue with the left or far left. I just do not believe that all of their ideals, although important and well meaning, are practical as a be all and end solution for maintaining a strong country. In Canada, the left – even the extreme far left, tend to fight for their beliefs with protests and the like – mainly peaceful demonstrations. They take issue with the Liberal government and Justin Trudeau for not doing enough to support their causes and I can respect that.
I have a harder time finding respect for the right, specifically the far right. They tend to flat out oppose anything the Liberal Government does. They flat out oppose anything Justin Trudeau does. Justin Trudeau and the Liberals can be doing exactly what the majority of countries and their leaders are doing and it is all wrong – and all Trudeau’s fault. (He caused the pandemic, caused the many repercussions of the pandemic, caused the fall in oil prices, caused the increasing frequency and devastation of natural disasters around the globe, caused the ramping up of racial tensions, etc. … 🙄). Those on the far right seldom show any respect in their opposition and quite frequently spread questionable ‘facts’, use righteous indignation, or use questionable humor in their quest to destroy the credibility of Justin Trudeau and the Liberals. This is politics as it is today and politicians know what they are getting into when they run for public office. I generally roll my eyes 👀 at such nonsense and move on.
Then there are those, from the far right, who attack and taunt anyone who supports Justin Trudeau and the Liberals. These people are not just small pockets of strangers. Some of these people are relatives and friends. To these people I am a libtard and a snowflake, unworthy of using my vote as I see fit, and too lazy to take care of myself and my family (hence my support for social programs, justice and the like). Theseare people who know that I am worthy of respect. These are people who know that I not only have the right to my vote, but who deserves that right. These are people who know that I have worked all of my adult life to provide for myself and my family, who has helped others in need and who has paid my share of taxes regardless of who was in government. None of this matters, to those on the far right (specifically people on the far right who know me) because I chose to vote for the Liberals and Justin Trudeau. 🙄
I do not fight often but I will fight for my right to vote as I see fit. AND I will fight for every other Canadian’s right to vote for whoever they see fit. (Even those who know me but choose to mock, attack and insult me for how I vote.) 🇨🇦
Some days you can feel a major sense of accomplishment by investing a seemingly small amount of time and effort. Other days, like today, that sense of accomplishment is just not there.
Lately we have made a few adjustments in our life. One of the adjustments we have made was to give up Kat’s groomer (since they were closed for Covid-19 reasons) and invest in a set of pet clippers.
Grooming tools
Dan has been grooming Kat but since he is on his fifth shift in a row tonight and Kat was looking pretty straggly, I decided to step up to the challenge.
Straggly Kat
I got out everything I would need, including all of our grooming equipment, a fold up metal table, a vinyl tablecloth and of course – Kat.
For two hours, I wrestled with Kat while she did her best to avoid clippers, combs and the like. She fell off the table three times – fortunately onto my lap each time.
By the time I ‘finished’, there was a goodly amount of fur to show for my efforts.
Kat hairGroomed Kat – sort of 🙄
At least I got her ears trimmed! Maybe we will both feel like continuing the battle after a walk. 🌞
Monday is here and the sun has finally returned. Other years, I would be at work glancing out the front windows of the office, to see the sun across the street. The office faced straight north so the sun was never on our side of the street. Now I am retired and the sun is mine to enjoy every day that it shines.
Yay Sunshine!
I was just out watering the plants. Being out in our yard is so relaxing. I love nature. I love all forms of life – except for a few people. For the most part, I ignore people I do not care for but I do struggle with those who are arrogant or cruel.
I prefer to focus on the people and other life forms that I love.
I am not sure if rocks are considered a form of life but I love them. We have several rocks around our yard and Dan is supposed to be getting a BIG one from one of his friends shortly.We have our first tomato! It is a beefsteak, so hopefully it grows a bit before it ripens or it will be Kat’s first tomato of the year.A couple of these blossom have finally opened all the way. They have the strangest texture. They feel like tissue paper.I bought this Hosta for Dan years ago. We have probably moved it four times but it has finally found its happy place. It is huge and getting bigger every year.Dan is refinishing a couple of our frogs. He still has to paint the horns gold. I don’t know when I became a hoarder but I hate sending anything to the landfill – even rusty old frogs. 🙄
Have a good week, all! Hopefully I will have pictures of peppers and cucumbers to share soon.
Happy Father’s Day to all those Dads out there. I hope your day is special.
A lot of men, like my husband Dan, are ready to marry in their mid-thirties.Dan was even ready for a family (fortunately for me – because I had one).A couple of years later Dan was ready for his dog Casey, followed a few more years later by our first grandchild, Genevieve. Genie and Grandpa shared a special bond from the day he was in the delivery room to welcome her into the world. Over the first few years, Genie spent so much time on Grandpa’s shoulder that a few years ago he got his one and only tattoo – a ladybug on his left shoulder. He got it for Genie to remind her that in good times and bad, happy or sad, his shoulder would always be there for her.
Genie has been followed by eight more grandchildren – all of whom Dan welcomed with open arms and a loving heart.
Rory (with Genie & Kat)GabbyBrook Maddy & PrimCousins Dominic and LucasLast but not least – Cason
Having a family is great, except for the times when it is hard, and we have had our share of both with our family. Dan is there, in good times and bad. I cannot imagine doing this without him. He makes the good times better and he makes the bad times tolerable. I love you Dear. Happy Father’s Day!
I can’t let Father’s Day go by without honourable mention to a few more fathers today.
Mark with Erin and DominicSon Dan with LucasSon-in-law Charlie with MaddyAnd my Dad (with Danny, Mark, Jennifer & Mom)
Today is the first day of summer 2020! With our less than hospitable winters, I live for spring and summer. The shining sun, the singing birds, the warm summer breeze… Life is good! Actually as much as life is always good, we have barely seen the sun for days, the birds are too cold to sing and that breeze is 50 to 70 km gusts of northern gale force winds. What’s a Canadian girl to do?
Turning up the fireplace helps – obviously not real but it does have a good electric heater.Enjoy a hot cup of tea – I love my tea diffuser from Dan & Amanda. And my cup from Kori 💖Have a hearty breakfast. Yes we have real dishes – no I do not use them🤦Do some baking. These were pretty good but I am leaning toward’s chocolate chip today.If all else fails, put on your fur coat, wrap yourself in a pillow and call it a day.
Seclusion 101 with AnneMarie 