365 Days of Gratitude - Day 138

My heart is full after an afternoon of snuggling with a few of my great nieces and nephews. The highlight was meeting wee little Smith for the first time - at a baby shower in his honour.

I brought my mom with me. What fun it was to watch her excitement with having little ones around.  When you reach the age of 88 and live in a retirement center having a lot of babies to cuddle isn't a common activity.

She leaned towards me at one point and said, 'they are all so beautiful I want to take them all home!' I agree mom, I agree.

Feeling grateful, 

Louise

My newest great nephew. He goes by the first name of Smith

An absolutely beautiful photo of my mom snuggling wee Smith

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 137

Things I am grateful for today.

These two! Being able to join in on their travels makes me one lucky girl. Being 3rd wheel rocks!

Deet. Riding in cedar groves is, well, buggy. Fun! But buggy.

Camping. Who the heck wants to be indoors when you can be outdoors.

GREAT weather. Feeling bad for back home. Sounds like they had quite the storm, but it was hot n sunny where we are.

Feeling grateful,

Louise

Linda and Marti on the rocky end of the never ending beach

Buggy cedar trails

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 136

ROAD TRIP !!!

No better way to finish a week than with a road trip. Super excited to be camping at Sandbanks, and riding new trails. Discovering new places and new trails is good for the soul.

Woo hooo. 

Feeling grateful, 

Louise

Packed up my wee Prius

Yes indeed!

Dinner's on the BBQ, camper's all set. Going to be a great weekend with my besties.

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 135

Late this afternoon one of my colleagues called with her funny story of the day. Trust me, working in customer service often includes funny stories of the day.

This one had me laughing so hard I nearly peed my pants. Thanks Alex - you ROCK! 

Feeling grateful,

Louise

Smart kid - using a diaper!

This is hilarious!

So true

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 134

Be still my heart.

Morning coffee in hand, I scrolled through the inspiring photos on Instagram. I follow a great deal of folks who post stunning nature photographs, as well as following a few family and friends.

When I reached this photo my heart swelled with pride. It was posted by my son's long-time girlfriend. 

How awesome that they figured out how to grow a vegetable garden on their tiny apartment balcony in the city of Toronto. Yay homegrown food!! I am so proud!!

Feeling grateful,

Louise

Their cute little garden

The cute couple

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 133

I take the same 10 minute path to work everyday. I've walked it no less that a few 1000 times. Sometimes I get wet from rain; sometimes my boots get stuck in the mud; sometimes I am lucky to see a little wildlife.

This morning I paused at the pond because this big bull frog caught my attention. As I squated by the water's edge I notice the moma frog. Well, I guessed it was moma as she was somewhat smaller. Actually, I have no idea if it was a moma, 'the' moma, or even what gender it was, but I pretended it was 'the moma' because...

....there were a few thousand tadpoles swimming around too. The two big frogs stared out at the water and I chuckled and thought - what a cute froggy family - even frogs like watching their kids. 

This actually happened. I am easily amused!

Feeling grateful,

Louise

You can see moma in the blurry section on the lower left.

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 132

I'm fairly new to practicing yoga. As in tonight will be my 5th class - ever. It just never really resonated deeply with me, which was totally fine as I have many ways of finding mind, body, spirit balance.

And then it did resonate. Not sure why, and quite honestly the 'why' doesn't really matter. What does matter is that something somewhere along the way shifted and now I have found yet another way of achieving balance in a way that feels right for me. Yippee.

See ya later...

Feeling grateful,

Louise

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 131

Things I'm grateful for today.

No humidity - so I could FINALLY paint the front door.

A day off on the same day there was no humidity - so I could FINALLY paint the front door.

Perfect day/night temperatures on the same day there was no humidity and I had the day off - so I could FINALLY paint the front door.

I'm so happy the baby blue is gone. No offence to baby blue lovers.

AND.... super grateful a local Sugarbush tree company offered FREE wood chips. I asked for a load to be dropped in our round-a-bout and everyone from our little courtyard took advantage and added them to their gardens. Paul and I love creating, shifting, morphing, and playing in our gardens so the chips were like a 5 hour hard labour gift from heaven.

Feeling good. Feeling grateful, 

Louise

P.s. Stained the front porch too.

Newest chipped garden area

Red door. YAY...no more baby blue!!!

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 130

Winding up, and winding down. The bookends of my day.

This morning I played with wee Linden. I marvelled at how happy and how smart he is. Nearly a year and already walking with and without his little push cart. Every week there are new things he can do. His excitement shows with everything he tries. The world is his oyster, his life is winding up.

This afternoon I sat and listened with awe and wonder as my mom and her choir performed a spring recital. She's in her 89th year and singing with The Evergreens brings her immense joy. Although she's still going strong for her age (drives herself to practices, etc), she recently shared with me that she's pondering giving choir up. No matter how much she loves it she feels her voice is starting to fail. It's hard to be in a performing choir knowing that at any moment her singing voice will give out. And it does. Almost everytime she sings.

She is winding down. 

I watch my mother and I think to myself...I hope I am as graceful and as accepting as her when I find myself in her shoes. When it can no longer do the things I love. 

She taught me to walk. She encouraged me through all my life phases. And now, me in my 50's and her nearing 90 she still shows me the way life should be lived. With grace, acceptance, love, and kindness, even to yourself when you lose a favoured skill.

Feeling inspired by and grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

Wee Linden proudly showing me his new skills

Mom, in what could be her final performance. Time will tell.

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 129

Sometimes you just click with another human being. It can be years between seeing each other, even years between having an actual conversation, but when you do, there's no denying you are connected at a deeper level than words can describe accurately. 

Today I caught up with one such soul. It's amazing to think about how little our human lives have crossed, and how little time we've actually spent together either in person or conversation, but the moment we hear each other's voice it's as though we've known each other longer than just this lifetime.

Feeling blessed and grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

Faye, leading a sunset yoga practice on beautiful Cape Breton Island. One day I will join her.

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 128

This morning I ran a work-related errand that had me driving country (rural) roads in Muskoka. Think Canadian Shield. Think rock. Think beautiful never- ending forest. Think quiet, winding, hilly, 2-lane paved back roads with a whole lot of wildlife traffic signs. 

I also passed a lady driving a lawn mower down the middle of the road. I hadn't seen a lawn in over 30 minutes, but that's another story.

Anyways, I did snap a few photos of the signs I saw. The turtles crossings are one of my favourite. It's a tough chore for those guys to get across a road, and believe you me, in nesting season a great many get squashed by cars. 

We'll soon be in that season, so please take extra care when you see this sign.

Still feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

Turtle crossing

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 127

If you spend 40 hours a week working, you need to enjoy what you do and who you do it with.

Oh my gosh did I laugh my silly head off a thousand times over in the last two days as this guy and I worked on projects together. We worked hard, we worked long hours, and as we made the long trek to the parking lot at the end of the day today we both reflected that it felt more like a 2-day vacation than 2 days of work. THAT'S how much we laughed and enjoyed ourselves while we toiled with our chores.

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude 

365 Days of a Gratitude - Day 126

I don't recall seeing such bizarre weather changes as I do these days. On the weekend we basked in mid to high 20 degree celcius temperatures, which with humidity felt more like the 30's. Below is a picture I snapped of my bestie Marti walking along the beach on Lake Erie. You can see the haze of a hot humid day.

Today, one day later, I was one layer short for staying warm as I worked outdoors all day. My long pants and hoodie weren't enough. Tonight there is a frost warning. Drastic weather changes are now a common topic in life and on social media.

So, where does all this lead in a 'gratitude post?' Here goes ...

I am grateful for all the scientists that persevered through ridicule and condemnation for speaking out about climate change back when their ideas were poo-poo'd by many. 

I am grateful for how Al Gore's Inconvenient Truth took the discussion of global warming out of the science journals and made them more mainstream. Like him/it or not, global warming became the hot topic for the regular folk, not just scientists. 

I am grateful for the petition signers that fight against big business bullies that attempt to hide their non-environment friendly practices. 

I am grateful for the peaceful activists (PEACEFUL activists) that work diligently in raising awareness of better ways of keeping this planet of ours green and healthy.

I'm grateful for those that vote against governments and government leaders that bulldoze their land, their scientists, and their people simply because they can. 

And I am grateful for all those who have been enlightened, have had their eyes opened, have changed their ways and/or beliefs in such a way that their new ways of living and working are better for our environment.

So yes, although I am not happy about the condition of our planet, I am grateful for many people and their actions to change the direction we are heading.

There. I said it. 

Feeling optimistic,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

Marti on the hot, hazy Lake Erie beach this past weekend 

The weather warnings for Manitoba and Saskatchewan the same weekend (included freezing rain, and a potential for 10-15cm of snow)

The overnight weather for me tonight

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 125

What an absolute joy it was to see a wee little fawn in the forest trails. Our presence startled her awake and she bolted quickly away. 

It's been a lot of years since I saw a fawn in the wild. Usually I just see adult or young deer. What a highlight of the weekend!

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 124

Oh the wonders of forest life. 

Grateful for EXCELLENT trails today - riding the ridge was a scenic highlight of the summer for sure.

...and then we came upon this tree. Still laughing. Incredible weather - feels more like the July long weekend.

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

And so boys and girls, this is how little trees are made.

Marti down the ridge

Paul loving the sweet flowing berms

Us being silly

I was telling the girls that a Rickard's white with a slice of orange is a cool summer beer. While I was walking the beach with Marti, my sweetie went and got some for us girls. What a nice guy eh.

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 123

What am I grateful for today? 

Camping with our besties.

Riding new trails.

Beautiful weather.

Lots of laughs.

Good food.

Campfires.

Spending 24/7 outdoors.

Feeling spoiled, feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

Riding a trail called Dizzy Lizzy

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 122

I look out at these tobacco drying huts as we drive in Southern Ontario on our way to Turkey Point and I can't help but reflect on a few things.

1. I remember the years these were still in operation. My college friends worked on tobacco farms in the summer months. How different life was then, and how different our attitude was towards cigarette smoking and it's affect on our health.

2. I am BEYOND THANKFUL that I never smoked. Tried it. Tried to be 'cool' a couple times. But never developed any desire to clog my lungs with the tar.

3.Still, even knowing that, I'm mesmerized by the sights and the history as we drive by.

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 121

Today was a wonderful day filled with messages, phone calls and well wishes. Birthday's are like that. 

One of the biggest surprises was hearing from our son Richard who is currently in northern BC. 

He's not often in civilization and I had just heard from him on Mother's Day so today was quite a surprise.

In the last few days he's seen 3 black bears, 1 stunning bull moose, and a huge grizzly bear. He's loving the exposure to Canada's wildlife. What a lucky guy!

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

Grizzly

Black bear

 moose

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 120

I'm in trillium heaven this week. The season for this stunning wild flower is so short that I soak up every last second.

The trillium is the provincial flower for Ontario and as such can't be picked, plucked, transplanted or moved. If you want to see them you've got to throw on your trail shoes and go find them. That makes the season even more enjoyable, at least for me.

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude 

Growing wild in my yard

I took this photo of my girlfriend Marti yesterday. No trilliums were harmed in the process :)

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 119

I'm grateful for hockey playoffs. Not because I watch (I generally don't), but it gives me oodles of time to do other things I enjoy.

First, let me explain a bit about the hockey-not-watching thing. Growing up I loved Hockey Night in Canada on Saturday nights. Our black and white tv (I'm THAT old) picked up one channel - CBC Winnipeg - and like all Canadian kids I sat and cheered on my favourite team.

When my boys showed an interest in the game I became the #1 cheerleader fan and never missed a chance to be in the arena watching.

Somewhere after those years were done my joy of watching the game fizzled out. Maybe it's because the NHL season never seems to end. Maybe it's because my favourite childhood team hasn't won the cup since I was 5, and in recent decades they rarely make the playoffs. Maybe it's because I'd rather be 'doing' something than 'watching' something. 

Whatever the reason, I'm quite content to fill my evenings with other activities when the games are on. And one of those things is puzzles (how boring do I sound now?!). For those out there that also love puzzles, try this app. It's amazing. 1000's of free puzzles and all kinds of options to make them more difficult.

Oh look...a game is on. I think I'll start another puzzle :)

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

One of my recent puzzles

This is the app

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 118

I love trail running in the serenity of a misty early morning forest. It holds an almost magical energy after a rainfall. It's as though every living entity is grateful for receiving the gift of life.

Flower heads are bowed in meditation. 

Birds sing their praises.

And the gentle breeze seems to whisper a sonnet of forest gratitude. 

Even an owl hooted as I ran under her in the trails this morning. I responded to her call, 'me too, sweet feathered friend. I too am grateful for the rain.'

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365DaysOFgratitude

Trilliums in full bloom (photos from this morning's run)

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 117

I woke up to a beautiful email in my inbox. Today marks the 12th anniversary of my brother's passing and his widow Mary (my awesome sister-in-law) sent a beautiful message with these 2 photos.

Mark was a great brother, son, husband, and dad. His deep love for all of us created an eternal bond that grows stronger and more loving with every passing year. Truthfully he never left, he merely changed the way he stayed.

Thinking about you today Mark. As always, much love!

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

Mark with his kids Kate and Adrian

Mark and the family dog Hobbs

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 116

It's been a mother/daughter kind of day. Mom slept over at our place last night and we've been enjoying outdoors in this stellar weather.

In a wee bit we head back to Aurora to meet the Ontario-based family for a Mother's Day dinner. Can't wait to see everyone.

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

Trilliums are in full bloom. Was wonderful to get mom up close and personal with them.

Strolling the waterfront this morning with my 2 favs.

365 Days of Gratitude - Day 115

Sending beautiful vibes to this birthday boy. He's 26 today and like all moms I remember the day he entered this world like it was yesterday.

I won't be able to talk to him as he's somewhere in northern BC planting trees but I am most certain the energy of my thoughts and love will travel through the ethers and reach him wherever he is.

Rich lives an adventurous life and I couldn't be prouder. He has no desire to be that 9-5, mortgage holding, 2week vacation kind of guy. Don't get me wrong, when he works, he works hard and loves what he does, but it doesn't rule his life. Although he's way too humble of a man to even think it, it's almost as if he figured out the answer to that big question while the rest of society is still stuck in the world of believing success is buying a house, having nice things, and working hard to enjoy a 3 week vacation.

Happy birthday Richard. We love you! We can't wait to hear about your latest adventure!

Feeling grateful,

Louise

#365daysOFgratitude

In full tree planting gear

Rich ski touring in the winter

Rock climbing. His passion.

Mountaineering. Another passion of his.

Next up after tree planting, Completing his SPRAT/IRATA high angle rope rescue certification.

My good looking mountain man