Canada – Seclusion 101 with AnneMarie

Daily Food Diary – Day 326 of 365

November 23, 2025November 23, 2025 by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 326 of my Daily Food Diary. 🙉 It is Sunday and our weather is amazing. It is a few degrees above freezing, sunny, warm, and DRY!

We went for our morning walk a while ago. The streets were relatively quiet. We crossed paths with one dog that Molly would have liked to interact with, but they both just wanted to play so it was not a big deal.

On our walk, I coughed three times. That was not three coughing fits – just a couple of coughs each time to clear my throat. I am sure that is a three year record. 🤩

Last night Dan made Baked French Onion Soup for supper. He used lots of onions, unsalted Campbell’s beef broth, toasted sourdough bun, and shredded cheese (marble for mine/mozzarella, provolone, & parmesan for his). It was our second amazing supper in a row.

After supper we watched a movie (after the Toronto/Montreal hockey game). We seldom watch movies. I usually choose the movies we watch and my choices are questionable at best. ‘Catnado’ hit a new low for me – and that took some doing! Last night we watched one that Dan was interested in seeing. It was definitely a step up. 👍

The rest of our day today should be quiet. Dan is going to pick up granddaughter Maddy in a bit. He will probably let her drive home, as he usually does. She completed her Driver’s Training course with a very respectable 93% – now she just has to keep practicing until the end of March, when she will be old enough to go ace her Driver’s Test.

**Maddy – Her first drive ever.** (With her Mom as co-pilot in my Taurus)

Daily Food Diary – Day 326

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2)

(3) crumpets (240)

(2) tsp butter (69)

(1) tbsp jam (50)

Snacks:

(48) Oz water

(1) snickerdoodle (90)

(1) Matt’s climate caesar (168)

Supper:

(1 1/2) servings baked French onion soup (552)

Total consumed calories: 1171

Total used calories: 337

(35) min aerobics (200)

(30) min walking (137)

Total net calories: 834

Net calories goal: 1208 – 834 = 374 under 👍

That is it for today. take care and have a great day! 🤗💓

Daily Food Diary – Day 268 of 365

September 26, 2025September 26, 2025 by annemariedemyen, posted in 2025, Health and Fitness

Today is Day 268 of my Daily Food Diary! 💗

This year is going by so fast. I can’t believe October is almost here. 😮 I am not sure what I will be doing as a focus for October, but I am thinking something along the lines of seasonal food trends. With fall comes soups, stews, Thanksgiving, Halloween… I could work with that.

**I did some more baking for Jen & family** **yesterday. I have a blueberry cheesecake in the fridge, a chocolate and amaretto one to make today, and a roaster of smoked beans that I promised Maddy & Prim tomorrow.**

It has been almost three months since I started taking collagen supplements. Yesterday, I realized another shift that has occurred over the past few days… I have virtually no urge for between meal or evening snacks.

I haven’t been snacking that much since I started my Food Diary, but I have still felt really hungry and weak at times ( A lot of times 😁). That just ‘ran out of steam’ feeling. I don’t get that anymore. My stamina is improving with my strength. ☺️

Last night, after cooking all afternoon, cleaning up, making supper, cleaning up AGAIN, I went into the spare room at nine thirty and did 30 minutes on the treadmill. It is getting marginally easier every time, but still I was proud of myself that I got it done last night. 🤩

Fall is here with a vengeance today. It is cold and windy. We are shaking things up a bit this morning. Dan is gone for a haircut and a bit of shopping while I do my blog and my aerobics. We will walk Molly once it (hopefully) warms up a bit.

Daily Food Diary – Day 268

Breakfast:

(1) c coffee (2)

(1) 2 egg and ham breakfast wrap (495)

Snacks:

(1/2) c no added salt chicken broth (5)

(48) oz water

Supper:

(4) oz baked pork chop w/mushroom sauce (220)

(1) c white rice (242)

(2) tbsp soya sauce (30)

(1) c broccoli (56)

(1) tsp butter (68)

(1) side salad (187)

(1) PC blueberry cheesecake (190)

Total consumed calories: 1454

Total used calories: 731

(30) min walking (53)

(30) min aerobics (176)

(4) hrs food prep/cooking/clean up (444)

(30) min treadmill (59)

Total net calories: 723

Net calories goal: 1229 – 723 = 507 under 👍

That’s it for today. Take care and have a great day! ☺️💖

Sprinter in Saskatchewan

April 19, 2023February 9, 2025 by annemariedemyen, posted in 2023

This past weekend, I put on a sweatshirt and went out to sweep our back deck. I couldn’t believe that spring had finally sprung and our snow was gone. This morning winter sprang back. 🤦

The howling wind woke Molly up at five o’clock. She went to the living room window to check out the commotion and was beyond excited that winter had returned. Naturally, she had to go outside to check it out, so I was up at five to let her out, let her in, and towel dry her off, before returning to bed for a couple of hours. Lucky for me, Dan got up with her at six when she decided it was breakfast time.

***You can’t see it in a still shot, but the neighbour’s Spruce trees are dancing like mad in this wind.***

***Hopefully the grass will be green when this snow melts – maybe? 🌞***

***I think she just goes in and out because she loves to be towel dried.***

We are actually lucky that we are not getting the worst of it. Southeast of us, the highways are closed and conditions are much worse. And… The snow should be gone as fast as it came.

Take care out there and have a great day! 💞🌞❄️

Genie’s Travels Through Ontario

August 20, 2022August 20, 2022 by annemariedemyen, posted in August 2022

It is another beautiful summer day here in Saskatchewan. Molly and I went for our morning walk and it was pretty decent. We didn’t go far but Molly (and I) got in some prime socializing so it was definitely a win. We met a young man with a two year old pup, an older man, and two women we see regularly on our route. Molly played nicely with the pup for a few minutes and she was very good with all of the people. She didn’t jump up on anyone 🌟 she was very polite and affectionate when people petted her 🌟 AND she sat quietly beside me while I would chat with them🌟.

Our granddaughter Genie, who has been working Guest Services with North American Midway this summer, drove from Saskatoon to Toronto this week. She alternated driving with her friend Chelsea and they were joined by a couple of other young girls who work with them. They are now at the CNE exhibition which opened yesterday.

Being the sweetheart that she is, Genie has been sending me some photos to share. These ones are all from their drive through Ontario.

***Google translated as “report driving with affable faculties made on 911”***. I think I lost something in the translation – It should probably mean “Call 911 to report drunk driving”. 🙄

***Flying saucer over roadside lake. 😂***

**Watch for snowmobiles crossing – and charming horse drawn buggies!**

They were fortunate enough to have a good trip, miss any bad weather, and experience a whole lot of gorgeous scenery. Genie sent me a short video that she shot as well but for some reason I cannot save it to my phone in order to share it. It showed some beautiful sights, and from the soundtrack, it would be safe to say the girls were having a good time singing along with the radio and enjoying the views. All in all a pretty amazing experience for Genie and her co-workers!

The girls came by way of Regina to take the TransCanada. 2900 km (1800miles) from Monday afternoon to Wednesday evening. I would love to make the trip one day but I am pretty sure one overnight stop would not do it for me.

Genie is in Toronto until moving on to the exhibition in London, Ontario beginning September 9th, then flying home on the 20th. I am sure I will have more photos to share before she is done her wandering ways.

That is it for today. Take care and have a great day! 💞🤗

Six Months old!

August 16, 2022August 16, 2022 by annemariedemyen, posted in August 2022

Molly is six months old today! We celebrated this morning with our usual walk around the neighbourhood. She did great on the sidewalks and back alley – not so good going through Patricia Park. I have no idea why she can’t deal with parks but we made 3.5k so I guess that was okay.

I had a chat with Genie before we went for our walk. She is on her drive to Toronto. So far so good! She drove from Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to Winnipeg, Manitoba and her friend Chelsea drove through the night to Thunder Bay, Ontario. They were stopping for breakfast before Genie got back behind the wheel. Tonight they are staying at a hotel along the way before heading on to Toronto tomorrow. 😊

She sent me a few photos to share.

**‘It’so pretty out here.”** ***Genie***

I hope the rest of their drive goes as well as it has so far. They are driving around Lake Superior today and lake Huron tomorrow so the scenery can only get better. But… that is one long drive. I am so glad Chelsea is there to help with the driving and that she is familiar with the route.

That is it for today! Take care and have a great day! 💞🌞

February 5th – Ontario

February 5, 2022February 5, 2022 by annemariedemyen, posted in Updates - February 2022

While going through my archives looking for today’s post to update, I came across this one highlighting our trip to Ontario some years ago. Every photo in this post still holds the happiest of memories for me. 😊

Along with the beautiful Ontario scenery and sites, I will always carry the fondest memories of the people that we met during our visit. From the time we stepped off of the airplane at the Pearson International Airport, to our visit to Construction Specialties Inc., to our time spent at restaurants, hotels, shops, and tourist attractions, the people of Ontario were exceptionally friendly, considerate and helpful. They made our visit truly special.💞

https://seclusion101withannemarie.com/2019/12/06/ontario/

I have only one update for this post – Dan’s sister has moved back to Ontario and I cannot wait until we can go to visit her and this beautiful province! 😊

That is it for today. Take care and have a great day!💞

December 5th – Snowing❄️

December 5, 2021December 5, 2021 by annemariedemyen, posted in Uncategorized

‘The weather outside is frightful’ so what better way to celebrate the season than by sharing a few photos of our authenticcally Christmassy landscape.

**Out to feed our furry and feathered friends**

***Different trees and bushes sporting their winter look***

**Temps are celcius so yes it is as cold as it looks!**

With a few more inches of snow to come and winds picking up, this will be an excellent day to curl up in front of the fireplace with a cup of tea or a glass of wine, a good book, and a warm dog. Celebrating the season the Canadian way. 🌨️☃️🌨️

That is it for today, folks. Take care and have a beautiful Sunday! 💞

November 25th – Neighbours

November 25, 2021November 25, 2021 by annemariedemyen, posted in Wisdom - November 2021

Today our friends and family in the USA are celebrating their Thanksgiving. I decided this would be a good day to pay our respects by sharing some ‘words of wisdom’ on neighbours.

“Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbours, and let every new year find you a better man.” – Benjamin Franklin

“Being a good neighbour is an art which makes life richer.” – Gladys Taber

“Day after day, ordinary people become heroes through extraordinary and selfless actions to help their neighbours.” – Sylvia Mathews Burwell

“We make our friends; we make our enemies; but God makes our next-door neighbour.” – Gilbert (G.K) Chesterton

“If every man would help his neighbour, no man would be without help.” – Bruce Lee

“A good neighbour is a priceless treasure.” – Chinese Proverb

“Someone who loves his neighbour allows him to be as he is, how he was, and as he will be.” – Michel Quoist

“Geography has made us neighbours. History has made us friends. Economics has made us partners, and necessity has made us allies. Those whom God has so joined together, let no man put asunder.” – John F. Kennedy

Happy Thanksgiving to our neighbours to the south.

Take care! Have a great day making new memories with family and friends and cherishing the memories you carry from years gone by. 💞

November 22 – Faith

November 22, 2021November 22, 2021 by annemariedemyen, posted in Wisdom - November 2021

Faith is one of the most powerful gifts we can possess and yet one that we seem to struggle with our entire lives. Personally, I tend to access this power when things are either great in my life or when they are terrible. When things are great, it is relatively easy to have faith. When things are terrible, it takes more effort to have faith but having attained that mindset, the results can be nothing short of miraculous. I have seen the miraculous. Today, I share some ‘words of wisdom’ on faith. I hope they can inspire us all, regardless of our current circumstances.

“Your faith can move mountains and your doubts can create them.” – Unknown

“Faith, it’s all about believing. You don’t know how it will happen. But you know it will.” – Unknown

“Faith is taking the first step even when you don’t see the whole staircase.” – Martin Luther King Jr.

“Let your faith be bigger than your fears.” – Hebrews 13.6

“Sometimes your only available transportation is a leap of faith.” – Margaret Shephard

True faith is not a leap into the dark; It’s a leap into the light.” – Eric Metaxas

“Faith is seeing light with your heart when all your eyes see is darkness.” – Unknown

“That’s the thing about faith. It works.” – Lauren Oliver

That’s it for today, folks! Take care and have a great day.💞

November 18th – Politics

November 18, 2021November 18, 2021 by annemariedemyen, posted in Wisdom - November 2021

My challenge for November is to find ‘words of wisdom’ that I find particularly insightful on a variety of subjects. Some subjects are obviously more challenging than others. That being said, these are the words from the wise and the erudite that I have chosen to share on the subject of politics.

*** Erudite – “having or showing great knowledge or learning” (new word for the day)

“Politicians are the same all over. They promise to build a bridge even where there is no river.”
– Nikita Khrusshchev

“Politics is the art of looking for trouble, diagnosing it incorrectly, and applying the wrong remedies.”
– Groucho Marx

“Instead of giving politicians the keys to the city, it might be better to change the locks.”
– Doug Larson

“One of the penalties of refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.”
– Plato

“I don’t think we should go to the moon. I think maybe we should send some politicians up there.”
– Ron Paul

“We believe that to err is human. To blame it on someone else is politics.”
– Hubert H. Humphrey

“Voting is like choosing your favourite mosquito out of a swarm.”
– Unknown (but it was probably a Canadian)

“The problem with political jokes is that they get elected.
– Henry Cate VII

That’s it for today folks! There is plenty to say about politics these days so there was no shortage of material to choose from – unfortunately a lot of it just isn’t fit to print in a family friendly blog. 🤷‍♀️

Family news update – Logan and Mom have scored a couple of more days in hospital due to a couple of minor complications, so Dom will be coming for some Grandma and Grandpa D. time tonight. Fortunately our new stove arrived yesterday so Dom and I will be making pizza for supper. 🍕

Take care and have a great day! 💞