Smokey Alberta

Hello my friends, isn't this a beautiful rose......as you know my friend Jackie passed away in March. This rose was grown by her youngest daughter Shanna. She also has a garden where she planted so many good herbs and vegetables. Her fresh dill was delicious with my salmon last night and I even added her fresh parsley to my cucumber salad. I am so proud of her and how she is putting her grief into a creative outlook. I know her mom would be so pleased to see her daughter working with and enjoying nature as she does.

No it is not foggy or raining. Our province has been covered in smoke from fires burning out of control in British Columbia. The wind has been blowing North East and we are really feeling it here in Alberta. There are strong medical warnings being put out to advise people who are ill, have COPD or suffer from heart disease to stay inside. I had to go out yesterday and today and believe me it is bad out there. My eyes are burning and I have had a dull headache now for two days. My heart aches for those who are suffering from a serious disease. The cloud of smoke, ash and harmful particles is suppose to be gone by Sunday and I am praying it does. This picture was taken yesterday as I was driving into the city. This was mid morning and by the afternoon the whole atmosphere was so eerie, just a dull glow with a pungent smell. Not nice at all.

My niece Fallon is home from New Brunswick, and it is good to have her back. Her dad has to go on a few three day conferences required by his work so I will be staying with her when he is gone. The first one is next week,  one in September and another one in October. I am afraid they came back to a lot of changes and I am hoping I can make her feel a bit more settled when we are together. Divorce is horrible for a child and even though she is 13 to me she is still a child. We always have fun together, there are so many things that we both enjoy and I plan on doing as much with her as I can. I only wish parents would realize how much pain is involved for everyone not just themselves. I am a firm believer one cannot build their happiness on someone else's unhappiness. Life just doesn't work that way, and no I do not believe that life is always greener on the other side of the fence........too bad so many have to learn the hard way.

My young friend Shauna is back in hospital. She is waiting for a surgeon to remove more cancer from her spine. She is having a lot of pain especially down her left leg. Please remember her and her family in your prayers.

My dear friend  Cindy of Me My Four Chins and I made me a new header for my blog. I really like it, she is so kind to have done this for me. If you get a chance please stop in and visit her. You will find your visit so enjoyable. She is so creative, has a great sense of humor and always finds the best in everything and everyone

Have a great weekend everybody, and enjoy these last few weeks of summer. It is hard to believe that Fall is just around the corner.....summer went by too fast this year.

God Bless and sending you all many, many hugs.......:-)

New Computer

August 14, 2010

Hello my friends, well I wasn't having enough trouble with Blogger so I decided to purchase a new laptop. Oh yeah.....why not? I might as well learn it all at once. I just didn't stop at my laptop, I also purchased a printer/scanner/copier and a Sirius radio for my living room and my car. Honestly for 3 days I have had boxes all over my living room as I read and re-read manuals. I am not a techie at all.....don't know why I even attempt to do what I do. It only took me 2 hours to find a spot for the antenna.....errrrrrrrrr

I had one given to me by my friend and when she mentioned her son was looking for one now I automatically said take this to him and I will get myself one, well she didn't want too but I insisted. I hardly watch TV now instead I am listening to talk radio, it is so much fun. Where do they get these guys, it is like "what is your favorite day of the week, the guy says Friday and he automatically says, your saying you don't like Sunday's, the guy tries to explain and he says you just said Friday was your favourite day." I want to be a talk show host, they have so much fun interpreting words.......so look out for "On Air with Bernie" okay.

I downloaded my pictures from my camera into Picasa as I always do, but Picasa is on my other laptop. I have to figure out how to keep my album all together. Think I will download them to a CD then upload them on this computer. Half the time I don't know what I'm doing and just back into it when everything turns out right. Thanks Di, your instructions are really good. I think I am going to like this new editor once I figure all the buttons out. The sample showed a stats button on dashboard but it didn't show up when I actually arrived here. Oh well it is wait and see time anyway.....gosh only knows where this post will actually show up. I just  checked preview and it is a blank page. Honestly I have to get a life, all I have been doing is playing on machines for 3 days.

My friend Terry was in for a couple of days and had her procedure done, I am happy to say she did excellent and everything is fine.....phew! Her and I did all the shopping on Monday.

I was able to show you a picture of my hanging basket taken today, I wanted to show the first day I hung it so you all could see the difference but that picture is in another program in another computer. Gosh this is fun.

Dr. John says I have to walk 10,000 steps a day, well I got a pedometer and honestly on my best and busiest days I am under 2000 steps. Trust me between all these new machines I have walked all over the place plus I went for a 45 minute walk yesterday. Still can't get close to what he wants me do. I thought it would be easy but I also thought I took more steps obviously. Am going to try and crank it up next week.

Sorry I didn't respond to all your comments, (I so love them) but half the time I wasn't sure where I was or what computer I was on......at times I even made myself laugh trying to undo what I did.  I think I have everything under control now or hope so anyway. Life, especially blogging, is going to be fun again....yes it is I am sure.

I do hope you all have a great week, sending you all ......... many, many hugs.

Thank You

Thank you for letting me know about the commenting problem. I have moved my sister and my picture so you can read the verification word. You guys are great to take the time to e-mail me. I hope you will let me know if this works, I may have to remove my pictures or I am wondering if I went to a 2 column template if it would give me more room.........Anyone know?

Love you all.......many, many hugs

Catching Up

Hello my Friends,

I do hope you all have had a good week. Most of us have been basking in sunshine and high humidity....only to be cooled off with rain soaked evenings. I have to admit I love the sun and our fabulous summers. My only complaint is they are far too short........

Many of you have been and are back from vacation....I hope it was all that you expected and more. My own summer has been quite quiet this year. I have chosen to stay close to home  and see the sights in my own neighbourhood so to speak. After visiting Fort Edmonton and attending Heritage Days (another real treat for tourist) that is held every summer over 3 days - featuring many cultures. There were over 80 huge tents this year. Each tent represents a different country and the people are dressed in the appropriate clothing, the food was delicious and unique to each culture.  The entertainment was wonderful, and really can only be appreciated by attending this event.  Edmonton does offer something for everyone, it is a huge city and I enjoy all the things only a big city can offer, but I so look forward to arriving home. Morinville is small, very quiet with only one set of street lights. Oh yes my kind of town.

 My friend, Helen and I have also just returned from spending two days in Jasper. I love the mountains, two days was only long enough to make me realize how much I miss spending more time there. We have made plans to return in November for a retreat that is being held there. It is put on by Native Canadians. I so hope she doesn't change her mind as I am looking forward to it already.  November is not a good month to travel through the mountains in Alberta, so I won't go on my own. Now later this month I may drive myself to Banff to meet up with friends from Calgary.  Will share this with you all when my plans are confirmed.

I wish I could show you some of my recent pictures, especially my hanging baskets. They must weigh nearly 50 pounds. I wanted to sit on the door step and dead head them but they are far too heavy for me to lift. I stood on a stool and cleaned them up, they are lovely. Unfortunately I cannot say the same about many of my other flowers or plants. Oh some are not too bad, some are even quite nice but some have root rot. I think the hanging baskets did so well because they drain automatically.  Every year I learn a little bit more about gardening, next year I will see that my pots have more rocks and a far better drainage system.  Also,  I think I will cover them with plastic bags when expecting rain. One of my blogging friends suggested I do this.  I am still enjoying their scents and colors and I love all the insects and creatures they attract. I have had more birds visit me this year than ever before, my favorite are the humming birds just outside my garden door. It seems they feed every time I sit down for a coffee.....I love it.

My friend Terry is arriving Monday for a couple of days. She is to have a procedure as an outpatient Tuesday morning. It is not serious but I always worry a bit when my family or friends need to go through testing or procedures. She is driving in Monday morning and we are going to Costco during the afternoon, I have already started my "list" of things to do. Great friend aren't I,  but in my defence it was her idea. She is also going to try and help me upload pictures again to my blog. I am so close to achieving this, fresh eyes just may do the trick.

It is so good to have most of you back, it seemed so many were away in July. Wishing you all a great week.

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

I'm Hot

Hello my friends, hope you all had a wonderful week.

Our weather has been very hot.....yeah that is the only way I can mention my name in the same sentence when using the word hot....lol We have had beautiful sunny days and horrendous thunder/lightening storms during the evenings and throughout the nights. Their were times my whole house lit up and the noise deafening as the storm was right over my house. My plants and flowers have a touch of root rot. I drain the pots each morning and the water pours out, the soil is saturated, not sure how much longer I can keep them looking nice let alone alive. I have to say I have been enjoying these lovely days, even the nightly electrical storms and basically have had a great week which I enjoyed tremendously.

My friend, Pat invited me to join her and her granddaughter Maddie for High Tea at Fort Edmonton. Fort Edmonton is a town within a city and will take you back to the early 1900's. All the buildings and businesses come from that era. Fort Edmonton includes homes, drugstores, hardware stores, bakers, seamstress, doctors offices, churches, post office, jail, blacksmith and shoe makers etc. All shops are the original buildings that have been restored and moved there from downtown Edmonton. Each building have refurbished furniture, stoves, pictures and carpets. It is like time has stood still. A train runs throughout the town dropping people off at their requested stops, also horses are tied outside of saloons and barber shops. The sidewalks are made of wood and the streets are dusty. There are horses pulling carriages and all the workers are dressed in clothing of that era. It is fun seeing the young ladies baking bread in old ovens using the same recipes our ancestors used. There were ladies making cheese, soaps and candles. Blacksmith's putting new shoes on horses and even the original land office had an employee there explaining how people purchased and registered their parcels of land. He was considered to have a well paid job being employed by the government. He made $1200. each year.

We began our day having High Tea at the Selkird Hotel, another original building from 1901. Our tea was served on fine porcelain dishes again from the same time period. The table cloths, napkins and even our servers dressed in the fashions of that time. To start we were each given a choice of tea, which was served in huge individual teapots. We had freshly baked scones with our choice of strawberry butter, raspberry jam or clotted cream. These scones would melt in your mouth. Then came the tiny sandwiches, again we had many choices of cucumber, egg salad, salmon, chicken salad and finally desserts. There were brownies, cakes, cookies, tarts and pies. We were told all food was prepared in the huge old fashion kitchens, and was prepared daily so that everything was fresh. One needs reservations and to my amazement the dining area was full, not an empty table available. The people there were from all over the world and it was such a pleasure not only being with dear friends but meeting families from so many different places. I absolutely loved it.

After tea we began walking about the town and visited many of the homes and businesses of that time. We didn't have time to see everything. Apparently the hotel prepares picnic baskets if you ask so that you can spend the whole day visiting each and every home, church and business of that time. You then could sit in the shade of a wonderful old oak tree by the river which runs through the town and munch on all the goodies in your picnic basket for lunch. It would take at least a full day to see all the sites, read all the plaques and listen to each period dressed host/hostess explaining the history of where you were. The men wore bowlers or top hats depending where they worked, their shirts and collars were sparkling white and heavily starched. The women wore bonets, large aprons and long dresses or skirts. Even their hairdo's suited the time, for example the Gibson look for women and hair parted in the middle for men. It was not uncommon to see the men in the stables, blacksmiths or carpentars wearing denim and cowboy hats. In fact Fort Edmonton has been used to shoot several movies.

Needless to say being a history buff I was like a sponge soaking in all the stories and history of a time long ago. I am still convinced I was a chamber maid in England in a former life.....lol

I took many pictures but am unable to upload them to my post. I would of loved sharing with you what I was fortunate enough to experience but alas I am still fumbling around with blogger who has yet to co-operate fully with me. I will say I am understanding all the new additions a bit better and feel it won't be long before I will make my way around this new set up as I did the tried and true blogger I knew so well. I hope my next week's post will include pictures.

I also enjoyed a BBQ with my neighbours, saw the movie It's Complicated and had lunch and went shopping with an old friend one afternoon. All in all a good week.

Wishing you all a great week and may August be your best month ever. (Did I say August....oh my where has the time gone) Sending you all big hugs and much love............God Bless......:-)

Problems With Blogger.......Anyone?

Hello my friends,

What a time I am having with all the changes in Blogger.........errrrrrrrrrrr! I am so frustrated. Perhaps because I don't know what is going on..........with anything. Uploading pictures, changing wallpaper, adding a links......I am about ready to ......well you know.

How about you? Any problems?  I always thought a young person would work this out in a minute but I'm not so sure. I have e-mailed blogger friends and they have tried to help me but I think I am computer challenged when it comes to these changes, did I mention I don't like change......my young neighbour tried to help but God Love him he was no better than I was.

I have decided I am just going to do what I can as best I can and move on. I have been working on these changes for a couple of weeks now, I would try different things, get frustrated with it and shut it down for a couple of days before coming back to it with a fresh outlook.....guess what! It didn't do me a bit of good. Sooooooo, what you see is what you get well for now anyway. I know I will keep trying. Any information on uploading photos to a post or copy and pasting a new wallpaper from another site, well it would be appreciated. It is not necessary though as my world is going to move forward anyway, but guess who is looking for a computer course to take this Fall......Yup, that would be me.

The one thing that has bothered me very much is that Reader is not showing me when everyone has posted. I happen to think "I haven't heard from so and so" and I go and check on them and they had posted. So forgive me if I have missed commenting on your post, I am sure that all these kinks will be worked out soon. (Be it Bloggers fault......my fault.....not so sure when I can be up to par)

We have lost another blogger friend this week, Barry, from An Explorers View of Life. Barry was an exceptional writer with a keen wit and a great outlook. I loved visiting him and wish to send my condolences to his wife Linda and his daughters. Rest In Peace my dear friend, you will be missed.

It is really hot here today, so I am off to see if I can mess up more things on my blog because this heat is not bothering me at all......LOL

Stay well my friends, sending you all many, many hugs.........:-)

I Am Elinore Dashwood

Take the Quiz here!

Whoever would of guessed.......

Thank You - Old Who Me

Bernie, yes we share the same name, has honored me with "A Blog of Substance Award". I so appreciate it but I know my blog is limited with substance. I am not a creative person nor do I write great stories or poems and no I don't take very good pictures either.

I am honest with myself and know my limitations but I also know my strengths. I was so pleased that Bernie recognized what I try to do and that is encourage those who need a kind word especially those who are sick, worried or troubled. I am a people person and more than anything I care about people and their families. I also know many of my blogging friends are very encouraging to others as well, that is why I love all of you so much.

I find it easier to smile than to frown and I love to give a hand up to those in need. I have been blessed with much love and kindness in my life, I only try to pay it forward.

I think all of my followers deserve a blog of substance award, you share your special gifts with all of us and I thank you for it. I offer all of you this award for I am unable to just pick a few. Please take it and place it on your blogs.

Thank you dear lady for seeing and understanding my heart, you are one in a million.
Bernie is 86 years old and her blog is so much fun and filled with life lessons and experiences. It is a wonderful read and I encourage you all to visit her and say hello, you will be better for it.

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

Busy Bernie - But Happy

Hello my friends, I hope you are all enjoying your summer. We have been having heavy rain and many thunder and lightening storms the past few days and between storms we have glorious sunshine. It is hard to explain, but I don't mind the rain or the hot sun.

Since blogger has changed their templates I have been trying to find a wallpaper I like. You all know how much I like pink and I have found one I really like but am still working on making it fit to the new templates. I was spoiled as I really like the wallpaper I had thanks to Cindy of Who, What, Where and When.....but I have no choice but to change it so change it I will. She tried to help me again this evening but we were forced from the phone when another thunder/lightening storm began.

A few weeks ago Holly, from Banner Haus News did posts of the alphabet. Her letters were so pretty that I saved them to my computer so I have put my initial up and will leave it this way for a while. I knew I would use these beautiful letters sometime. My eyes and "brain" are burning trying to figure all this out. I was spoiled as I really liked my blog the way it was thanks to Cindy, I have found another pink wallpaper I really like though and.....eventually I will have it the way I want it.....I hope! Thanks to Wanda I was able to remove the tag, honestly Wanda I just kept removing gadgets until the tag disappeared.......I am so blessed with friends who don't mind helping a slow learning blogger.

I have been busy since Fallon left. I hear from her every day either by text or e-mail. She is having a wonderful time. She says Taylor Swift rocks......I am so happy for her but I miss her and am looking forward to her coming home. She is growing up so fast. I had my hair cut and streaked, lunch with friends, doctor's appointment, test, and visits from good friends. I think that is my favorite thing about summer, people stop in more often than through the winter months. I love sharing a cup of coffee with friends, I smile each time the door bell rings as I wonder who may be on the other side of the door. The surprise is nice but oh the company is better as we sit on the deck catching up on each others news. (My nephew offered to fix my deck next summer).... ..yay!

My friend Avinash and I had lunch at Red Lobster on Thursday. She is an old friend from GE days. She looks absolutely wonderful, I realized how much I missed her great smile as we laughed through lunch.

My meeting with Dr. John's patient went well, in fact she stopped in this afternoon with a page full of questions she had written down. Somehow today she seemed stronger, more in control and even better she seemed eager to begin treatment and fight this horrible disease. I was so pleased with her attitude, although I know from experience it is so easy to be up one day and down the next. Keeping a balance is a real challenge. Somehow I think she will do very well with the hand she has been dealt. She has good doctors and the love and support of family and friends.

Tomorrow I am babysitting a friends 10 month old baby. I am so looking forward to having her, she is beautiful and nothing brings me calm and happiness faster than a baby. They are unconditional love and it is impossible not to smile and enjoy the moment while holding a baby. I plan on taking her for a walk to the park if it is nice outside, if it rains then we'll just play with my tupperwear on a blanket on the carpet in the livingroom. I do keep a bag of toys for the little ones when they visit so I have lots of toys and stuffed animals for her to play with.

Have a great week my friends..........God Bless and many, many hugs :-)

Finally..........I'm Baaaaaaaaaaack!

Hello my friends, It has been 7 days since the modem went on my computers, it was last Wednesday night. July 1st is our National Holiday so trying to get someone here before today was impossible. The modem has now been replaced by a new up to date modern version and the Internet is working wonderful on both computers......only one problem now, the phone lines are showing "in use" and I have no dial tone. The repair man is arriving tomorrow afternoon to repair the phone lines. I have been using my cell phone tonight. My life is so exciting, it seems to be one thing after another and when it gets this bad I just have to laugh. When I opened my e-mail late this afternoon I had over 200 waiting for me, some were junk mail but many needed answers. I have been trying to catch up on e-mails and post comments since the repair, but it has been several hours and I am still not finished. I think I will start fresh tomorrow.

As you know Fallon has been with me these past several days. I wanted to help her get ready for her trip down home. She left this morning at 6 and text me off and on all day beginning at the airport, then her stopover in Ottawa and finally when she landed in Halifax. In fact I just received another one from her just now.

We had a great time, we had our spa day, visited a farmers market, shopped all day Saturday, out to dinner twice and also went and seen the movie Grown Ups.....go and see it people, it was so funny. Fallon said I laughed the hardest in the theatre and she laughed at me laughing. I know she will be home the end of August but I still was very lonesome when she left......she is just so little to travel so far on her own. I know she will be welcomed and loved when she gets there, she needs that right now ......got to learn to let go, she has a wonderful father who will protect her and love her unconditionally.

Today I received a wonderful necklace from Holly at Banner Haus News. Holly had drawn names from her comment boxes and I was the name chosen. It is adorable, thank you Holly so very much. With Fallon leaving this morning and the Internet and phones giving me a problem, it was a real pick me up to receive such a lovely gift from a lovely blog friend.

Our weather has been lovely, but we did have a lot of rain yesterday. Today began damp but turned sunny and warm this afternoon. It is suppose to be nice all week, actually they are saying it is going to be very "hot". Good, we in Alberta need the heat......we should store it for our winters.

I am sorry for being away so long, but this time "not my fault." I hope you are all doing well and I missed hearing from all of you. Will be around to each of you as you publish your next post.

Sending you all much love and many, many hugs.....:-)

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.

Thank You All For the Wonderful Birthday Wishes

Hello my friends, just a quick note tonight to say thank you all for your Birthday Wishes. It filled my heart with joy to read all of your kind words.

I had a wonderful day and I am still enjoying my friend, Terry's company. I will do a post on my birthday soon and tell you all about my wonderful day. Love you all and again I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

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

Weekend with Fallon

I am really pleased to introduce you to my great niece Fallon. She is very special to me and I love her very much. The past several years Fallon and I have shared laughter, lots of love and many good times together including this past weekend.

I picked her up Saturday morning and we went shopping........gotta love shopping with a 13 year old. She tried on many hats and decided on two, one she has on in these pictures. She also got earrings and a couple of tops and a pair of leggings. We went to Chapters and bought books for both of us, she had just about completed hers before going home tonight.




On our way home from shopping we stopped for groceries and filled the cupboard and fridge with tons of junk food, ice tea and chocolate milk.......all her favorites. We always do this when she comes over, then we read, watch TV, play games or whatever we feel like, everything but housework. She gets to sleep in and do whatever she wants, she is such a good kid and always appreciates whatever I do for her and I so enjoy spending time with and taking care of her. She is easy to please and wonderful company.

Saturday and Sunday were cold and wet here but today was sunny and warm. Fallon's dad called us from Nevada Saturday night to say hello and informed us how hot it was there, we didn't mind, we were glad for him and we like being together. We talked late into the night and laughed at each other's jokes because we were so tired.

Last night we went to see the movie Shrek, The Final Chapter. It was a long weekend here so the theatres were filled and many movies were sold out so we were happy to see Shrek. We had to sit down front and we had a lot of laughs over that. Waaaaaay to close but at least we were able to get in.

We went out for supper tonight before I drove her back home and as I prepare for bed tonight the house is quiet and I miss her. I have already received two e-mails from her so I think she misses me as well. I am so blessed to know unconditional love of a beautiful niece, life doesn't get any better my friends.

Wishing you all a wonderful week, God Bless and many, many hugs:-)

Sunshine, Family and Good Times

Hello my friends, I can only hope you are all enjoying the beautiful sunshine as I have been. The past few days have been unbelievably hot and I have loved every moment of it. Tonight I have all the ceiling fans going and hopefully Ron will stop over and install the air conditioner this weekend.

I am thinking it is getting close to hanging baskets time. I also want to pick up some herbs, tomato plants and of course my pansies. So looking forward to my lavender again this year. We still have the chance of getting frost so usually my neighbours wait until the second week of June before planting anything. The trees and the grass are such a pretty green right now. I imagine the cherry blossoms and lilac trees will bloom withing the next week or so, especially if our weather continues as it has been.

I have been waiting for the handy man to come over and replace a couple of boards on my deck and it needs to be painted as well. I would of liked this done before I put my deck furniture outside and before I placed my pots around but if he is not here by the weekend I am going to arrange the deck and when he shows up I will just move everything for him. Our summers are so short I want to enjoy each lovely day we have.

Below are pictures of my niece Cindy, her husband Vance and their two daughters Carly and Hannah. They are a beautiful family, gosh the girls are so good but what I noticed most was the kindness they showed each other. Cindy is my brother's youngest daughter.

These pictures were taken at Galaxieland in West Edmonton Mall. We spent a few hours at the Mall on Saturday. We did some shopping, had dinner, went to the fair and the girls went swimming at the Water Park.

I am serious when I say if you can't find what you want at WEM, then they don't make it. The Mall is huge and would take several days to see it all. Honestly it was wall to wall people......hard to understand how everyone is complaining about having no money yet everyone was shopping on Saturday.....they all seemed happy. It was a good day.












I have my great niece staying with me this weekend, she is 13 and absolutely cracks me up. We are going to a movie and have some shopping to do as well. Fallon is coming over on Saturday and I will drive her home on Monday as it is a long weekend here in Canada. I am so looking forward to having her stay a couple of days with me.

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

Tis the Season to Grill

Hello my friends,

I hope you all have had a wonderful week, even more I am wishing you all a marvelous weekend.

I am so excited as my niece and her family are visiting this weekend. She is so sweet and very special to me. Many years ago (she is going to like this word many) my brother was in Montreal with his work when his wife went into labour. I had been sleeping over at their home for the very reason that she may go into labour. I was in my teens and trust me will never forget this experience. In fact it was because of this that at 7 months of my first pregnancy that I decided I didn't want to be pregnant anymore, (my husband assured me I would be fine and that our baby was going to come whenever he felt like it, so.out.of.my.control.) I was frightened as I remember how my SIL reacted to labour pains. Now you have to remember this was before the time of spinals or unnecessary C-sections, you just did what you had to do. It was just my SIL and me at the hospital when my beautiful niece was born, and even as I encouraged my SIL through my own fear I have to admit I have loved this beautiful new born girl unconditionally ever since.

This would be my SIL third and last child (I so understood why.) Actually my niece is much like me in many ways but is very much more like her mother. I love them both. They are just 2 of the special women in my life. She has grown into a wonderful wife, mother and teacher. Her husband is a chartered accountant and they live about 2 1/2 hours south of where I do. A very happy couple with 2 beautiful daughters and a home you could see anytime in Beautiful Homes and Gardens. Okay so I am just a bit proud of her as well......LOL

Today I visited my favorite blogs, I love reading how all my friends are doing. Recently I have noticed changes in my being able to read their post. Now last week I had my yearly eye check up and my eyes have deteriorated a bit but I have been having a really tough time reading some of the post. If it is white or light printing over a white or light background I find it so very hard to see each word clearly, if it is a dark background with dark letters.....well it is just about impossible for me to see the words. The verifications words can be a real challenge. So if I write a comment which has absolutely nothing to do with your post then you know I read your post and made up words which I thought you were thinking.

Our weather has been absolutely beautiful.....we have been in the +20's all week and it is suppose to be even warmer this weekend. I have BBQ'd almost every night this week for supper, often I slice a potato, onion, carrot and a hamburger patty, place this in tin foil with a pat of butter then put on the grill for 35 minutes, no fuss, no mess and it taste so good. I usually do 2 or 3 packets at a time, I either have this again the following day or I freeze each packet and pop them in the microwave when I feel like another main meal. I also grilled several turkey sausages this week which are good for breakfast (sausage and scrambled eggs) or I have one for lunch (in a hot dog bun with a zesty mustard). So easy and very tasty. I never waste the heat of the grill, I always cook something on it as it is cooling down, even the marshmallows and chocolate placed between graham crackers that Rebecca told me about last year. Oh these are good but I can only have these as a treat once in a while. I'm sorry I forget the name of these......smors or something like that. (I think this is an American treat) Anyway they are a wonderful treat and my neighbours and I enjoyed them around their propane fire pit one night. I am thinking of getting myself one of the propane fire pits, they are safe and so easy to light. I would place it in the middle of my deck and enjoy the fire on cool evenings. Many of my friends and neighbours have these this year.

Just an update on the credit card fiasco, I have accepted what has happened, am praying for my family member and enjoying the fact that no one has my credit card information. Thank you all for your kind words of support.

Have a great weekend everyone, I am so looking forward to mine.

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

She's An Eagle When She Flies

Hello My friends, whenever I hear Dolly Parton singing her song "She's An Eagle When She Flies" I think of my mom. In fact this song describes my mom to a "T" in my mind.

I woke up this morning to birds chirping outside my window and sun shining yet I woke up with a down, uneasy feeling. I had slept well and it was 8:30 so it was time to get up but I turned over and snuggled under my duvet and the dream came back to me.

You see I had a dream of my mother. Many times mom is in my dreams but this time was different, this dream she was upset with me. I could see her so clearly as she shook her finger at me and I recognized that look on her face as well, I had seen it many times as a child. She was talking to me but I couldn't hear her words, I could only see her expressions......instead of getting up I fell back to sleep. Mom came to me again in a dream, and this time I heard her very clearly and after she finished talking she hugged me as she said good bye, I didn't want her to leave and the tears were welling up in my eyes as she turned into a very intense green forest, then I woke up.

I was still trying to understand what she meant but she had made it very clear I was to start standing up for myself, she said I was too soft and let people take advantage of me and only I could stop this from happening. I wish I could say she was right but I honestly don't think so. I try not to be rude but I do speak up. I find it easier to speak up for other people than myself though, but I have always been this way. You know the "always cheering for the underdog type" and my mom knew this. I do think I figured out why I had this vivid dream though:

Just before going to sleep last night I received an e-mail confirming an order placed on the Internet with my credit card, I hadn't ordered anything and when I tried contacting the company I was unable to get through. I think having this on my mind before falling asleep caused me to dream. This morning I checked to make sure the Credit Card used had been cancelled as I requested a couple of months ago. I assumed it had been as they had sent me a replacement card, and yes it had been cancelled. I'm still trying to understand how an order can be confirmed on a cancelled credit card but they assured me no charges were made or even tried to be made on it. I pay my card off each month so I checked the computer a couple of times today to see if any charges have been made on my new card and no there have been none. I was wrong to give my credit card information out to anyone even if it were a family member....she was so right I have to learn to say no, as it has been nothing but problems since I did it.

Too all of you please don't make the mistake I did. I trust every one and I trusted this one member of my family and I was taken advantage of......there is no excuse for this and I am not making any. I was really dumb and I have learned a valuable lesson but I also lost trust in someone I loved very much. I thought I was helping, perhaps I did for a while.

I truly believe no one can base their happiness on someone else being unhappy, when they intentionally do this their own lives are mixed up, they are hurting emotionally and as a result until they make things right and resolve the issue then they will not know happiness.....so tonight I am praying that everyone I know and love will always do the right thing as I want only happiness for everyone.

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