Lazy Days of Summer

Hello my friends, I am happy to say we are now enjoying a warm and sunny summer in Alberta. Our days have been warm and sunny.....our evenings filled with thunder/lightening and lots of rain. Everything is growing so quickly, my blossoms smell so nice and my hanging baskets have really grown in just a week and a half. Yesterday my friend and I went for a walk throughout my neighbourhood and just enjoyed every one's front lawns and flowers.

On the weekend we went for a drive to Rocky Mountain House. It was lovely as I love driving on Alberta's old country roads. The fields were filled with colorful crops and it was a bit strange to see horses and cows out to pasture standing next to an oil well. We didn't have a picnic but ate at a lovely restaurant. As I was enjoying the old country barn scenes I realized I should of brought my camera with me...

Fallon is arriving tomorrow and I am all ready for her...I.think. I have booked our appointments and have checked out the entertainment happening right now at West Edmonton Mall. I was able to make an appointment for her hair cut, mine will wait until next Wednesday. We will have our Spa Day together though......will be fun. My nephew and his wife are going through a divorce right now.....it is very sad really and I don't know why but the children always find a way to blame themselves. All we can do is love them through the chaos. I will miss Fallon but it is the right thing for her to spend the summer with her grandparents and cousins. She will have fun!

Tomorrow morning I am meeting a patient of Dr. John's for coffee. He called me a few hours ago, I pray I will have the right words to encourage her through her journey ahead as she has just been diagnosed with Stage IV Breast Cancer......honestly if I could have only one wish in this world it would be a cure for this horrid disease.

It is beginning to storm again, I hear the thunder and see the lightening and oh my here comes the rain.

Have a great week everyone, sending you all many, many hugs......:-)

Hey Guys ...... The Fridge is Fixed

Hello My Friends

I am happy to update you on my fridge and my deck decision. The fridge is fixed. I asked the repair man when he arrived today if he was charging me for one or two house calls, when he said one I said come in and I am happy you are here. It only cost me $220.00 to repair the fridge and that was the cost of the fan plus the $88. house call. I am telling you people we all have to go to trade school and be an expert....we would all be rich!!!!

I have finished my deck and it looks beautiful.....I only put out my furniture and planted more flowers. I have decided I will repair the wood in the Fall. I also am going to have my main floor (in my house) painted in the Fall.......Fall is going to be busy around here but it will look oh so nice. I am so blessed that I have a choice in the Fall to either repair the deck or replace it in the Spring.... Life is good.

Today, I also had young people take away an old couch, chair and TV in my basement, they are taking it to the landfill. I will put my wicker furniture down there for the winter next year. I vacuumed and dusted downstairs this afternoon and I am surprised at all the room I have now. I love how clean it looks now that I have vacuumed and dusted, not to mention vacuumed all the spider webs away and washed down the walls.

Fallon is coming over to spend time with me before she goes home to NB July 6th (for 5 days beginning July 1st.) I have booked pedicures for us both on July 2ond. We are also going to have our eyebrows waxed the same day. She is so sweet, we talked an hour on the phone today and all we did was laugh. She really is a hoot! I am taking Fallon shopping to pick out an outfit to wear on her flight home, plus a few things she may need. Gosh I love this kid, I only want her to enjoy her summer vacation.

I wanted to tell you all last night that her sister, Olivia, has Ausburger's (sp)disease. Fallon is so good to her little sister. I wanted Olivia to know that Aunt Bernie has put her picture on her blog, (Fallon is going to show her) but I also wanted to protect her. Honestly Olivia is the most beautiful child you could meet. She is kind, gentle and loving. Only God knows how much I love her. She does very well so far, but life is hard and I am not sure that people will love her as I do. I want to protect her from all harm, I love her unconditionally and she knows this. Her little face lights up for me as it does for Fallon and I melt whenever she smiles at me. I am so blessed to have her for my great niece. Her brother Dylan is my godchild. Just wait til I tell you about him, he is so active and so much fun. I have never met a child that is so busy, if you can climb it he climbs it, (and if you can't he still climbs it) you would so love him if you knew him. I know I do and I laugh so hard as he performs for me.

I love my days with Fallon as she is so funny, we have a bond that cannot be broken. We are going shopping just to make sure she has what she needs to go to NB. We are also going to dinner, a movie and to be very honest every place she wants to go. I only want her to have fun, enjoy her visit home and come back to Alberta happy and healthy. Fallon has been a major part of my life since she has been born, in reality her father and I have been the only constant in her life since she has been born. I will miss her while she is gone, but I will be so happy to welcome her home. I know my sister (her grandmother) will do everything she can to see that Fallon has fun and enjoys her visit. Fallon doesn't realize (it is a surprise) that her Uncle Terry has bought her tickets to see Taylor Swift on PEI. I know she loves Taylor, I only wish I could see her face when she realizes she is going to see her in concert. She will absolutely love it......maybe I should go home with her as I would love to see Taylor as well as Prince Edward Island again. It is so beautiful there, if you get a chance to visit please do, you will love it. The play Anne of Green Gables runs regularly throughout the summer there, I saw it many years ago, another must see in the Maritimes.

I am asking you all to pray for my young friend Shauna, she has been accepted by a Nashville hospital to participate in a trial drug for cancer, she does not know if she has been given the drug or a placebo. I am so praying she receives the drug and will be healed. I have never known a family like Shauna's. Her family loves her so much, her husband supports her unconditionally and her parents and siblings pray continually for her to be healed as I do. She has 2 young children my friends, 3 and 1, they need their mom as her husband needs his wife and her family needs their daughter and sister. I only know this family through my blog, but I have grown to love and respect them so much. I know you all will join me in praying for her.

Okay I have to say it, wasn't that tennis match sensational, call me crazy but I set my alarm for 4:30 am so I would not miss a hit, slam, or miss. Way to go Isner and for the record Hubut (sp) from France played very well. I have to admit I was cheering for the USA player John Isner and he won.... way to go John!
... are you ready for this.... 70 - 68 in the fifth set. It was unbelievable. God Bless America, I was so happy when he finally finished the set, I am not sure how he will play his next match but he could never top what he did today. The set took 3 days too complete and broke way too many records than I could list here. I am not sure he could match the intensity to win another match at Wimbledon.....and if he doesn't it's okay, he has done his best and something tells me his legacy will be this match. (sorry John I know you won't like this) I also love seeing the Queen at the Murray match, it has been over 30 years since she has been to Wimbledon....I mean this is on my bucket list and she has her own box.....do you think she may invite me to use her seat when she can't make it....no, I didn't think so. Did I tell you I am a royalist, I love the Royal Family, God Save The Queen.....I so want to see a final at Wimblendon.

I am so looking forward to the weekend, I have plans to go for a drive and have a picnic with a friend, and yes Diana he is a special friend. I love doing drives and picnics, I may be widowed but I am not dead......you will never know what else I love......LOL

Have a great weekend everyone.......God Bless.......and many, many hugs.......:-)

Love My Girls

My Great Niece - Olivia

Hello my friends,

This is my great niece Olivia, a couple of post ago I showed you a picture of her sister Fallon. Fallon is eight years older than Olivia but they have a special bond between them. I love watching them together, Fallon is so kind and gentle with her and her little face lights up whenever she sees her big sister. Sisters share a special relationship I think, I know I do with both of mine.

Just an update on my deck....if I want to have a patio poured the estimate was $6000 and that didn't include taking down the old deck and hauling it to the landfill......now they can put in a "sister joist" on this deck and replace a few of the 2 x 4's and paint it for approximately $1800. but they can't do this until the Fall. It is wonderful knowing that everyone has so much work that I have to book 4 months in advance....and to know it has only taken them a week to get back to me with the quotes....did I mention I called twice before I got them.

My friend Terry surprised me with a visit on Sunday and went home Monday. She drove her husband's new truck and I wish I could remember the name of it to tell you. It was beautiful and her backseat was bigger than my car. It was huge and did everything, even talked to her. Her dashboard has a huge touch screen, it is a GPS, and also she can press a button and say home and it automatically calls home. It does so many things that it is impossible to list them all but it is a real luxury. Now I wouldn't want a truck but I was very comfortable sitting in it and Terry can drive it and park it on a dime. I have to laugh at how she can do this.

A couple of nights ago I heard a horrible noise from the kitchen, when I checked it out it was coming from the fridge. First thing yesterday morning I checked the fridge and it wasn't cold at all. The freezer seemed okay but the refrigerator wasn't working for sure. I called 5 different Appliance Repair places and the earliest someone could come and fix it was today. The freezer is keeping things cold but ice cubes and food have melted and so did a lot of other things which I had to throw out, anyway he arrived today after 4 pm, looked at the fridge and told me he would be back tomorrow with the part he needed. Now I had given him the make, model and serial number of my fridge when I called him.......you would think he would of known enough to bring a fan with him but no he didn't. I am wondering at $88 a house call if I will be charged for 2 house calls. Oh I love my life, nothing ever goes wrong in it.......LOL

Our weather has been absolutely beautiful. We have had the odd thunder/lightening storm but they have only lasted a few minutes. Everything is so green. I have put up my hanging baskets, planted a few flowers, still want to plant more and put out my deck furniture. It is really nice out there, I only hope no one puts their leg through a board......can you say lawsuit......LOL

I have been enjoying Wimbledon Tennis as well as the sunshine. I know I have complained about things being broken but the truth be known - it has been a wonderful week and I am enjoying the hot sunny days. Next week will only get better, at least the milk, eggs and butter will be cold and I will have ice!

God Bless.......and many, many hugs......:-)

Fun with Madison and Terry

Hello my friends, summer has finally arrived in Alberta. It has been absolutely beautiful the past couple of days.........I love the sun!



Terry came in on Wednesday as she had a doctor's appointment. We had a great day as after her appointment we went shopping, also her daughter and son in law brought a new house so she took me there to see it, it is lovely. They are moving in the end of the month and I am so excited for them. We then went to Costco, The Bay and Zellars. I had to pick up a toaster and electric kettle so the best prices were at Zellars. We also went to Ikea, oh I loved it and picked up some gadgets I didn't need but wanted. I love that store but we only go every couple of years or so.




That night after Tess and I went out for supper we were carrying my parcels in from the car and Terry missed a step up on my walk and fell down. It frightened me but she laughed so hard that I hand to laugh as well. She didn't hurt herself, it was the way she landed that was funny. I am just thankful that she didn't break any bones or any of my parcels......LOL




This is Madi and I. Madi took it and I have to laugh. I wouldn't normally let anyone see the wrinkles so up close but Madi is going to read my blog and I told her I would include our pictures.



A few months ago Madi shaved her head to raise money for cancer research, she raised almost $1000. She is so sweet but even more than that she is kind and cares about others. I bought my condo from Madi's grandparents, Pat and Dave. They have become such good friends over the years and their family has become my family. I took Madi out for lunch yesterday and we stopped into her grandparents work so she could say hello. They had sold their old business and bought a new one. It is really nice, it is a garage/car wash/corner store type of place.




Madi and I went to the movie, Karate Kid. It was a great movie, we both loved Jayden Smith......he really is a great little actor. I liked this movie even better than Shrek, The final Chapter. I think I have seen every kids movie this Spring, between nieces, great nieces and friends children I am really blessed to enjoy the company of young people, they keep me young at heart and always make me laugh.

I have been unable to find anyone who can repair my deck before the Fall. Most contractors are now doing major projects.....apparently the floor joist of the deck need to be replaced and it has been recommended that the deck come out and a new patio be poured. I am considering having this done but will have it done in the Spring not the Fall. I am just praying the deck will get me through this summer. Tomorrow is flower day, I am going to the nursery to pick up my hanging baskets, plants and flowers. I am really looking forward to this day and have been for several weeks now.......woo hoo!

Okay am off to have my bubble bath and a good night's sleep. I have enjoyed having Terry and Madison's company so much but am looking forward to getting back to my routine.

God Bless ............ and many, many hugs......:-)

A Busy Week

Hello my friends, I have been able to keep up with most of your post and comments but unfortunately haven't made time to post. That is okay as I much prefer to read your post anyway.

I have had family and friends visiting the past couple of weekends and hoping to enjoy my friends granddaughter this weekend. I also have the opportunity to go to Calgary this weekend so I will see what happens. It is either feast or famine with me, I am on the go constantly or at a complete stop. I am happy to say I am feeling well and my immune system has been acting normal. What a difference life is when we have our health........so much more energy, I love it!

Last night I was out to dinner with my friend Kathy, we do this every year as our birthdays are only a couple of days apart. She looks wonderful, and this year she became a grandmother for the first time. I have been so disappointed that the Provincial Health Care System has stopped our Living with Chronic Pain and Terminal Illness course......I so enjoyed my time with these people. Anyway Kathy was telling me there may be another course I can volunteer at and she will check it out. The only problem is, it is to be held at the Cross Cancer Hospital and it is a 45 minute drive for me, I don't mind during the good weather months but do not like driving the highway in the winter. I also don't like to make a commitment and not be able to keep it....we will see.

I spoke to my cousin Bobby this morning.......you know my cousin I told you about a few months back. He has terminal cancer. I wish I could say I found him well but I didn't. I hardly recognized his voice, he recognized mine and we were able to talk for 20 minutes. I love his attitude, he knows what is happening and he has accepted it. He is on morphine and another pain tablet each day and does not feel any pain. He has no energy and lacks appetite. They don't know why his voice is so bad, perhaps it is because he has so much fluid around his lungs. Bob and I are the same age and as cousins grew up together. It is sad but I feel better about his illness after speaking with him. He is so strong and has prepared himself for what lies ahead of him as much as he can, he is close too his children and siblings and his wife is a real trooper. I don't know why some people have to have it so much harder than others, I'm not sure there is even a reason but I do know he is only going through what we all will eventually, perhaps not cancer but it will be something. I only pray I have his grace.

Terry and I had a wonderful time together. We accomplished everything on my list, talked through open bedroom doors until after midnight and she even made me a large pot of soup before she went home. Love my best friend! She is coming in again to stay over night June 8th. It is with her and her husband I have the chance to go to Calgary with this weekend.

I have the wood sitting on my deck, all I need now is for "someone" to show up and replace and paint the boards. I'll paint it myself if he repairs it for me. I want to be able to set my deck up, I love having my coffee out there each morning. I won't be planting anything until after the Full Moon which is soon.

Hoping you are all well, God Bless......and many, many hugs.