Me On Monday - October 12th

Me, I'm giving a Monday morning wave to Sian along with several other of the Monday wavers.  Meet & Greet with the others through Sian's site;  http://fromhighinthesky.blogspot.ca/


This is Canadian Thanksgiving Monday. A (bank) Holiday

So to the recap of last week & weekend / laid low with a nasty migraine; better now / some time was spent craft planning / time with a friend sitting in her new sunroom & thankfully there was some sunshine along with some treats. I am cat sitting for her over the Thanksgiving weekend  / work at the clinic was again more hours than normal / pulling out the coats, gloves & scarfs, checking that all buttons, zips work & are intact / finished up library books to return before due dates; no penalties for this reader / started new book, Sophie's World, a book about philosophy & religion / wonderful long phone chat with best friend far away / refusing to buy any chocolate bars & keep in the house ; resistance is futile or at least on my part / after watching Great British Bake Off wanting to make pastry (did not) / reminding myself about the no treats ban; going through yet again sugar withdrawal /changing up the walking route just a bit / enjoyed new to us TV; Raised By Wolves / also enjoying new series, Home Fires / happy news that a far flung friend is recovering from some surgery /shuffling through leaves / stocking up on disinfectant wipes for the clinic - cold/flu season has begun-patients if you are sick, stay home / another very early morning eye specialist appointment for Mr Man - staying positive / still not able to visit with my friend who fell off her horse; she is not doing well & her family have brought her Mom over from England to be with her; bones knitting back, it is the head injury giving concern / making corn casserole & broccoli salad as my offerings for a family Sunday dinner (only 1 sister, 1 brother plus us; rest of the local family traveling in Europe)

Ralph The Scarecrow in my garden

Thank you to Monday & all the rest of your friends, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday & Sunday - I am Thankful to be able to greet & be with each one.

Summer of Doing Manifesto - Recap

I thought I would take today to recap my our Summer of Doing.  Back on June 5th I posted our Summer of Doing Manifesto list of all the things we wanted to do, places to see and adventures to be had. I declared it to be our Summer of Doing.   Without declaring a list, a manifesto, Mr Man and I often end up on weekends or vacation days going back and forth, "what do you want to do or I don't know what do you want to do?"  Because of tough work schedules we are often left to exhausted to think of anything, so pre-season making of the list really helped us.  I know it may sound odd but it worked for us.  I will do again.

I think we did pretty good with the list.  Some things that didn't happen were beyond our control, such as wanting to visit the art gallery.  The re-opening was delayed several times and while we couldn't visit inside the gallery, we did walk around the gardens were there were several art installations.  The visit to an ostrich farm didn't happen because on the day we had scheduled to go, it was just too hot to be outside and then it fell off our radar.  I did spend some time reading up online about ostriches. The ploughing match happened on a work day so we could not attend.  The visiting of waterfalls, which use to be such a passion for us, was something we just couldn't find the energy to do. (I have 2 scrap albums devoted to waterfall adventures.)  One of the things with waterfalls in our area is that those that are fairly easy to access, we have done, those left, require higher hiking skills that either of us have developed.  Visiting a friend's cottage, well our schedules never matched.  The highland games, no idea why that one didn't get participated in.  Maybe next year.

With Rinda's Summer Photo Scavenger Hunt we got all the items both on the main list and substitute list.  It was our third year of participating and the first time we scored all. In the Summer of Doing, Mr Man's favourite was the Puslinch Lake Boat Tour with Belwood Lake a very close second. We both enjoyed being tourists in our own region.  But I think the very best for me was when Mr Man thanked me for putting our Summer of Doing together.  Oh and the celebrating with gusto and cake - that isn't going on any list again - we embraced that one too much - DIET!

2015 The Summer Of Doing Manifesto

1. Explore Wellington County (separate plan list)
2. Tea on the patio every morning possible (weather permitting)
3. Celebrate birthdays, anniversaries with gusto & cake
4. A picnic
5. Re-vist a favourite waterfall
6. Re-read the entire Harry Potter series
7. Participate in Rinda's Summer Photo Scavenger Hunt
8. Eat on a restaurant's patio or outdoor space at least once
9. Celebrate Canada Day 
10. Find 2 new restaurants to eat at 
11. Attend an outdoor concert or festival
12. Visit a friend's cottage
13. Attend a horse show 
14. Read at least 6 new books
15. Discover a new to us waterfall 

The Explore Wellington County List

• Puslinch Lake Boat Tour
• Belwood Lake Conservation Park
• Ostrich Farm Tour
• Guelph Civic Museum
• Wellington County Museum
• Walk in The Arboretum
• Strawberry Picking
• McDonald's Art Gallery (when it re-opens in August)
• Wellington County Ploughing Match
• Fergus Scottish Highland Games

One Photo Twenty Words

I am linking in with Abi at http://creatingpaperdreams.blogspot.co.uk/

Photo by George

She's my friend.  He's my riding coach.  He walks daughter to a new start.  He coaches riders to be better.

Thankful Thursday - October 8th

From The Internet

This week's Thankfuls include but not exclusive to:

Oct 2; Thankful that my boss made a special trip to the clinic to ensure I had my paycheque as he ran out of cheques earlier in the week on regular payday. We are paid bi-monthly (twice a month)  Money; I think that quote about it being evil is often a miss quote; money is not the root of all evil, it is the LOVE of money that spurs evil.  I must admit money & having it can be of great benefit in life, hence why I play the lottery.

Oct 3; Thankful that Mr Man is quite capable in home reno, maintenance & fixing just about anything.  Sometimes he even enjoys it.  "There's no place like home" - you were right Dorothy. I feel very blessed being able to have our own home, with garden, structurally sound building & a refuge to come home to.

Oct 4; Thankful it was so quiet in the neighborhood & the sun came out so I took the opportunity for a walk outside. We live in a very safe neighbourhood & I like that I don't have to give it a second thought to walk about outside. It is a mostly a well maintained area & pretty.  Most people will say hello after eyeing you closely. "Every man is surrounded by a neighbourhood of voluntary spies." Jane Austen.  As a women feeling safe is very important to me & it concerns me that many aren't allowed that right or need.

Oct 5; Thankful for some time to scrapbook, use my Silhouette cutter for some December Daily titles.  "She who works with her hands and her head and her heart is an artist.”  Francis of Assis.  I feel fortunate for some (slight) ability to craft.  I am fortunate to be able to afford to spoil myself with pretty papers, stickers & some of the latest technology gadget tools.

Oct 6; Thankful for a telephone plan that allowed me a two hour conversation with my best friend in Calgary Alberta.  It was wonderful to have a free thought, free flowing conversation with someone that gets me & I get her.  We talk about remember when...  you know what ...   I'm going to ....  She has an amazing laugh, & it is sometimes through this laughter shared that I feel for certain everything will be fine. This friendship is a gift.  

Oct 7; Thankful that medication for an awful weather related migraine  worked & that the day's schedule allowed quiet, dark & stillness time to recover.  "A great wind is blowing, and that gives you either imagination or a headache." Catherine the Great. It reminds me what a gift good health & well being is; how quickly it can all change & if there is a change, how simple it is for me to get medical attention, medical intervention if needed. Living in a province with a blanket medical plan for all is SUCH a privilege.

Oct 8; Thankful for time with a friend to visit & meet my fur girls (she is also a cat lover), time to sit & properly catch up. Often our time together is workday lunch moments of 40 minutes.  She is a teaching assistant at a local high school & finishes at 3:30pm but today is required to return at 6:30pm for a staff meeting, so rather than make a long drive home, she will come to visit me, a 15 minute drive away.  I will make us tomato basil soup & grilled cheese for dinner.  Simple pleasures. "The only way to have a friend is to be one." Ralph Waldo Emerson

From The Internet

Pairs - I'll Scratch Your Back

Linking in with Helena's Pairs http://helenascreativemaven.blogspot.ca/




































This week my Pairs are the most adorable little donkeys living at the Canadian Donkey Sanctuary in Guelph.  There is a herd of all sizes, colours & temperaments, the only commonality is that they are all rescues.  There are a few Mules (A Mare For A Mother) & last year one of the rescued donkeys was pregnant so they had a foal.  The donkeys are allowed to roan freely about the enclosure with the people guests.  They rotate the donkeys out of these enclosures every couple of hours, that way no one is getting overly stressed.  There is a large pasture with barn access for the donkeys off public relations duties. The sanctuary is run by volunteers & to raise money for care of the donkeys, they host two major fund raisers every year.  You can also sponsor a donkey with a monthly donation.  Some of the donkeys liked to be groomed so there is a basket filled with brushes & if the mood takes you and the donkey agrees, you can brush away.  It is a very clean facility, very knowledgeable volunteer staff.  We had several enjoyable hours with the donkeys.  To learn more:  http://www.thedonkeysanctuary.ca/

Me On Monday - October 5th

As I take my mittens off, I am giving Sian a wave at http://fromhighinthesky.blogspot.ca/

Meridith Keeping Watch

A big change in the weather, especially in the over night temperatures /  I am never ready for the change of seasons / Busy week at the clinic, I was doing a lot of extra hours as one person took vacation and another was just starting / Two books on the go; Rising Strong (Dr Brene Brown) and Big Magic (Elizabeth Gilbert) - ummm lots of ideas now rumbling around / Many more doctor specialist eye appointments for Mr Man.  Looking like a second  eye surgery might be the answer /  Seeking out comfort foods / In the final stretch of all those federal government election adds / New TV season in full swing - not enjoying most returns and found nothing new to interest me / The slow garden clear up has begun & finding evidence of a raccoon - dirty creatures!!! /  Learning new billing methods at work - my brain hurts / Enjoying the comfort of two adorable fur girls, such love / Helping to dig out the horse blankets; are all the straps there?; these horses have a bigger wardrobe than me / A few days on the treadmill rather than walks outside but still keeping to a minimum of 10,000 steps a day /All the basement reno, clean up, tidy through complete - yeah! / Monday begins another chapter; one that I hope is filled with lots of commas for pause to savour.

Thankful Thursday - The First

 

From the Internet

Today begins my adventure into Thirty One Days of Thankful.  I picked October as this is when Canadian Thanksgiving is.  This year it is Monday October 12th.  I would be very happy for you to join in with me.   I thought that doing a Thankful post everyday was a bit too much so I will post my Thankfuls on each Thursday of the month of October.

October 1st - Thankful for all the connections that I have made and am making through blogging.  I am Thankful for comments, suggestions and thoughts shared with me.  I am Thankful for so many talented bloggers sharing fully their stories, ideas, travels and examples of how to be better at scrapping, living and ways of thinking of things and situations differently.  When we know better, we do better. (Paraphrasing from Maya Angelou).

 What are you Thankful  for today?

From the Internet