Molly is coming along nicely following her surgery on Monday.
Our temperature ranged from -25 to -30 Celsius today so we took a pass on our walk. Yesterday, our favourite human Genie came by and we went for a major hike across the ball diamonds through snow 1 – 2 feet high in places. The snow was in hard packed drifts and there were plenty of footprints which made it challenging to get through at places. The trip back, via the pathway through Regent Park was considerably easier. All in all, a good outing.
Today, I figured Molly and I could use a break. I sorted through kitchen cupboards and did an inventory of baking supplies. Despite still being on painkillers and sedatives and wearing that gigantic collar, Molly has kept herself busy all day just being Molly.
And… just because this seems like a day when people could use a smile, here is a picture that granddaughter Maddy did yesterday. For a twelve year old with no professional training, I think her work is amazing – and it is just so darn Maddy. 😊
Keep warm, stay safe, and have a great rest of the day! 💞🌞
Time for another health and fitness update. I finally did it! Last night, I moved up to five pound dumbbells for my evening routine. I did cut back on reps and sets, but I also switched up two of my lifts to dumbbell rows and dumbbell squats. 😁
I missed my Molly walk on Sunday, but I did shovel some HEAVY snow. I did the back landing and steps at about 6 AM when I let Molly out. Dan did most of the sidewalks and front steps, but I did go out and help.
The snow was about 6 inches up the back door and packed solid.
I also missed my Molly walk yesterday because she was at the vets getting spayed and today because she is still fairly medicated.
Molly on painkillers and sedatives. 🥳
Molly is doing fairly well, so we should walk tomorrow. That collar is about two feet across so it’s just a bit awkward for her to move around the house. It is also rather awkward when she tries to herd me around the kitchen. 🙄
We had serious wind and a bit more snow last night, so I have some more shoveling that I can get out to work on. Molly is finally taking a nap so I am just waiting for her to wake up so she can come outside with me – at least for a while.
Other than that I made some cinnamon buns on Friday – kneading the dough was a bit of a workout. 😊 They weren’t my best effort but they were okay if you didn’t actually know they were supposed to be cinnamon buns.
And… There wasn’t any fitness involved, but we did go out on Saturday to help celebrate great granddaughter Alaska Rose’s first birthday.
Alaska did an amazing job of opening her presents – with a bit of help from Mom and a couple of aunties. She could use some work on her cake eating skills. 💞
That’s it for today. Molly is awake so time to bundle up and go move some snow.
I am running a couple of days behind here. Molly turned eight months old on Sunday. She can still be a handful but in some ways she is calming down a little.
Molly enjoying a peaceful nap after emptying three (large) flower pots on the sidewalk this morning.Molly changing up from flower pots to pails.She loves this one because she can carry it around by the handle. Dan hung it on the fence out of her reach because that’s just wrong. 🙄💩
Molly’s favourite human (Genie) came over yesterday. We went for a walk around the big block to Regent Park and spent some time in the dogpark. Genie took a few photos while we were there.
Stopped so fast she lost a leg! 😳Strutting her stuff…Having a rest with Bouey.Giving Genie some close uplove and attention. 💞She could be impersonating a bunny? 😂Ready to head back home.Back home and enjoying a fresh pail of water – before she dumped it. I love the water dropletsfrom her wet muzzle. 👍
This Friday, Dan and I are taking Molly to a dog wash station in a pet store close to us and in a couple of weeks she is booked to be spayed. Both should be an experience for her – and us.
That’s it for today! I should be back tomorrow for my fitness update. (Which I try to get done on Mondays, but what can I say? Our days are getting shorter so I am falling further behind. 😯)
Despite lower temperatures this morning and strong windgusts, Molly and I made our way around the neighbourhood on our daily walk.
Molly
I was somewhat concerned that following my recent health hiccup, our ever growing dog, and the strong winds, It might be a bit much for me today. Obviously, I am even stronger than I thought I was because the weather did not bother me a bit. When the windgusts hit me, which they did, they did not even have me struggling to breathe. I was good!
Molly, on the other hand, struggled. I have noticed her getting really edgy on our walks lately. She has seemed a little bothered by the crisp, dried leaves falling from the trees and hitting the ground – especially walking through the park where there is a constant snap, crackle, and pop of falling foliage.
Today with the strong winds, the leaves were not only falling, but drifting and piling up on the paths and sidewalks that we travelled. Molly tried dodging them, but since that didn’t work, she tried rolling in them and finally running her nose through them like a giant, white, hairy, truffle hog (or dog as the case may be). It might not have been a huge deal if I had not been on the other end of her leash, but since I was it was indeed a bit of an issue. I did more than my share of bumbling and stumbling as she tried to make her way through, over, and past the offending, ubiquitous leaves.
With no shortage of trees in our neighbourhood, Molly’s aversion to falling and fallen leaves may make for a long autumn.
Unfortunately, our only hope for an end to this season is the onslaught of the next – which will undoubtedly bring with it a barrage of falling and fallen snow. 🥺
We will get what we get when we get it! I just hope we find a way to bumble and stumble our way through it. Here is to hoping for an early spring!
That is it for today. Take care and have a great day! 💞🌞🌬️🍃🍃🍃🍃
Just when I thought I had the mystery of the quacky duck solved, it turned out to be a no go. I have no idea where Molly’s new duck came from, but if you are into duck tales, you should pay a visit to Karla on theclampettsblog (if you aren’t already a regular visitor). She tells great ones – not to mention tales of chickens, geese, turkeys and other little critters that tend to visit her and her husband’s off the grid acreage.
I did sort out our Visa issues. After two days of pulling my hair out, I landed a live one at our bank – my new hero at the reception counter. She was able to call Visa (with me standing there) and ascertain that someone had tried to book a flight to the Middle East using my card. The Visa people weren’t buying that one, so they blocked not only my card, but Dan’s as well. For whatever reason, they didn’t run that past us, so I was freaking out trying to find out who and why someone had control of our Visa account. Someone who obviously was not us! Anyway, we are all good now. I hope. 🙄
Meanwhile, I haven’t had a chance to mention that we had a fun family supper on Sunday night with granddaughters Genie and Brook – along with their other halves and Brooks little half (and her dog Kingsley, who I suspected of being the source of the mystery duck). Anyway, we had barbecued steak, shrimp, corn on the cob, Caesar salad, and fried mushrooms. For desert, I made an almost homemade apple pie. (I cheated and used store bought frozen crust. No one needs to know that Grandma hasn’t made an actual pie crust for decades.)
Genie and Alec – Genie is really happy to be home. ☺️Brook, Alaska, & Kale. They were pretty happy too! Especially Alaska Rose – I don’t think that baby is ever unhappy. 💗
That’s about it for today. I am almost back on track today. I have my meditation, walking, and dancing done. I just have to get busy around here doing some more yard cleanup and making a small pot of soup for supper, plus getting my weights done.
So, I am on day two of trying to reach the Visa fraud department and Molly came trucking in with a quacking duck. We have never gotten her, or any of our dogs, a quacking duck. Go figure, but it reminded me of the time my sister Lorraine sent me a 1-800 phone number with an option to hear a duck quack. I did. Option 7 was indeed a quacking duck. It was probably the only time EVER that a 1-800 number did not leave me fit to be tied.
Meanwhile, back to Visa. Apparently, their fraud department found one of our purchases questionable so they blocked our Visa cards. I am not sure if it was Dollarama or Walmart that put them over the edge but here we are! Sitting on hold. Yesterday, they offered a call back option. I tried that. Three hours later I received an automated call that put me through to an automated message manager, that hung up on me. I have even been to our bank – twice! They gave me a super duper ‘special’ 1-800 number to call. That’s working well for me.
I got my first credit card when I struck out on my own with my three teenagers. I didn’t particularly want a credit card, but I did want to rent a vehicle, a hotel room, or the occasional movie. A credit card was a necessity. I tried my bank and any other options available to procure a credit card. Because I had no credit history AND three teenagers, I was deemed financially irresponsible. Finally, my boss went to his bank and told them to give me a damn credit card or he was pulling all of his business and personal accounts. That did it. I got a credit card. A basic $500. Visa.
After I got my card, I would see other people whip out their Platinum credit cards and I would think – WOW! – they must be important to have a Platinum Credit Card.
Over the years, I seldom used my credit card. When I did, I paid it off right away. The Visa people loved me. Everytime I used my card they upped my credit limit. I went from Basic to Gold to PLATINUM. I whipped out my Platinum card last week, leaned over to Dan, and said “Do you think anybody thinks I am important?”
Anyway, with my Platinum card came points to collect for travel. When we decided to go to Costa Rica to visit Dan’s sister, we decided we should start using our credit cards to accumulate these points, so we started to use them for everything. We don’t buy that much but eventually we had the points to fly to Costa Rica – just as the pandemic shut down the airlines and Dan’s sister moved back to Canada. No need to travel to Costa Rica now. But, we are still in the habit of using our credit cards. Until now!
Now we cannot use our credit cards because they are blocked and I cannot get through to that one person on the planet who can actually fix this.
So, questions of the day… Is MasterCard just as bad? Has anyone ever had an issue with any credit card and come to a painless resolution?
That’s it for today. I obviously have to go back to the bank and get ugly. 👿
Summer is officially over! Autumn has arrived and, as usual, it has arrived with a hint of the upcoming winter in the air. Really, who needs that – especially in Saskatchewan, where winter brings ice, snow, frigid temperatures, short days, and long nights? 🥺
Chilly as it is, Molly and I did get outdoors this morning. Since she destroyed yet another harness yesterday, her training harness no less, we had to revert to one of her older ones. That made our outing a bit more challenging. I did play ball with her for a while before we headed out, just to wear her down a little bit.
Taking a break on the ball diamonds.
Our walk didn’t go great, but we got home in one piece so that counts as a win. Time to find Molly a new harness!
We are temporarily Jeepless this week. It went in to the shop for a new oxygen sensor, which is proving to be problematic. The latest news is that there are none to be had in Regina. I am not sure why the dealership wouldn’t keep a few on hand. It’s not like Jeep Cherokees are rare around here. Black Jeep Cherokees are so ubiquitous that it looks like a funeral procession every time we drive down a street, through a drive through, or across a parking lot.
The girls made it home yesterday morning. They had a fairly good trip. Genie slept through the train ride from London to Toronto. I guess it wasn’t as exciting as she had anticipated. Their hotel room was adequate. I don’t know if either of them were particularly pumped about the flight. They just wanted to be back home!
Landing in Regina 😊
Genie and her fiance Alec dropped by for a short visit and to drop off a few souvenirs that Genie picked up down east. They will be back for supper on Sunday, along with Brook, her boyfriend Kale, and her daughter (our great-granddaughter) Alaska. Genie just couldn’t wait that long to show off her newest tattoo…
An elephant for Grandma! 💓
Genie did send me a number of photos this morning but I will save them for another day. 🌞
I have a pot of chili on the stove that is ready to take the chill off the day. Time to whip up some garlic toast and supper is served.
That is about it for today. Between Molly and waiting for calls from the shop, my day is a bit backwards today. I got my walk and weights done but haven’t done my dancing, meditation, or had my beet juice yet. I know I have said it before but…. I can’t imagine how I ever had time to work before I retired! 😂
Molly is seven months old today! 🎂 This month has flown by so quickly and with little of the big dog drama that I was expecting. From much of what I have read, the day a Pyrenees turns six months old, they turn into a puppy owner’s nightmare. Molly has her moments but she is far from being a nightmare and is getting better by the day.
Molly – 7 Months Old
Molly is walking much better now and has a growing fanclub of regulars that we meet on our daily walks. There are a LOT of big dogs in this neighborhood, so it surprises me how many people make a fuss over her. Last week a paratransit bus pulled over to the curb so the driver could tell me what a beauty she was and this week a carload of young guys passing by slowed right down so they could serenade her. “Love your big dog, gotta get me a big dog, just like your dog!”. Molly was oblivious, but I found it hysterical.
Early JulyEarly September
Molly has loved her little wading pool this summer. It has made the hotter days much easier on her and it is still her go to spot, the moment we get home from a walk – even if Dan has just drained it to give it a good cleaning.
JulySeptember
She has found her voice and does occasionally use it to extremes – but not that often and not for terribly long. A few barks and she has made her point. She also has a few bizarre sounds in her vocabulary – she does a perfect gas lawn mower and yesterday, I think she was trying to howl, but she sounded just like a train whistle. 🙄
The biggest problem with Molly, other than her latest obsession with pulling the stuffing out of anything that she can pull the stuffing out of, is that she cannot grasp how big she is. She still thinks she can sit on our laps… or worse jump onto them.
My chair
Last weekend, Dan was off golfing for a few days. The first night he was gone, I was sitting in my little rocking chair in the livingroom when Molly came bounding in. She threw her front paws up on either side of my head as she went to jump onto my lap. The chair flipped over backwards. I wasn’t hurt, but I was momentarily trapped with my head against the wall, my arms on either side of me, flat on my back, with my feet up in the air. I was ready to panic, but as Molly strolled over to the couch to watch me deal with my predicament, I found the incentive to push the chair out from under myself and get upright. 🤨
She also likes to squeeze in between Dan on the couch and the coffee table (an area where she doesn’t actually fit), sit in front of the bathroom door, or lay in the middle of the kitchen when we are cooking. For me, to sit on the floor or crouch down to do anything isn’t much of an option, as she takes that as an invitation to lick my ears, wrap her front paws around my neck, or just climb all over me.
Taking on a puppy that grows by leaps and bounds is not for the faint of heart, but it is definitely a challenge worth taking on if one has the strength and patience for it. Ours wears a bit thin with Molly some days but I think the worst is behind us and amazingly she hasn’t caused any major or permanent damage – so far. The Cedars around our yard have taken a hit and we are down a couple of pillows, one blanket, and one stuffed elephant. I could have re-stuffed the elephant but half the head and one ear were not coming back. 😯
That’s it for today, one more month down and only seventeen more to go before Molly is officially an adult dog. We’ve got this!
It is Sunday morning and a beautiful day to be alive! Being a Sunday, it is a rest from my more strenuous activities, but Molly and I began the day with another good walk. We only had one encounter, with a biker passing through the neighbourhood, but he did stop for a chat and the opportunity to give Molly a good petting – without being jumped on! 👍 We made 2.5 km before Molly was ready to get back home, take a splash in her pool, have a Sunday snack, and an extended nap.
Ready to relax…
Being Sunday, it was time for another check-in by our Genie. She is settled back into her bunk and behind her Guest Services desk at the CNE (sporting a new haircut for the occasion). She is enjoying working with her three local co-workers, who all seem to be quite a bit her senior. I think she is ready for a bit of homey-ness parenting/grandparenting type company. Her first impressions of Toronto, the CNE, and her immediate surroundings? HUGE !
She hasn’t had time to take many photos yet but she did manage to pass on a few for me to share.
They made it!Driving through the cityHer ‘art’ attack for the day.
I am pretty sure these next three photos were taken for her brother Rory. This is one massive gaming room.
Fireworks over the midwayI’m not sure if she was sending proof that she IS eating or just that she really misses her kitchen and home cooking.
That is all I have for today. Take care and have a great day! 💞🌞
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.
Checking out a bit of litter…Just eating wood…
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.
Lumsden Valley just north of ReginaSunset at Brandon, ManitobaInto the night…And into Ontario this morning‘It’so pretty out here.”GenieI agree!And foggy 🙄
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! 💞🌞
Seclusion 101 with AnneMarie 