Merry Christmas

Hi!  It's been a while, but like many others, I have been spending my time preparing for the Christmas Holiday. This is the first year I've been retired, and I planned to make the better part of my presents, so I have been knitting, painting, and cooking my way through my gift list!  I bought very few gifts this year, and I hope that the recipients will be happy.
I bought some plaques this summer, and painted them for presents, here they are:

The first, of course is a portrait of our dog, Tom for my son, Paul. The others are from pictures I have taken of the local scenery. Other than the regular toques and such, I knitted some kittens for my two granddaughters:

Christmas is almost under way now, I just have a little more baking to do and we are ready here!

Have a wonderful and blessed Christmas
Phoebe

Grandpa's Horses

When my sister and I were young, for a couple of weeks in the summer, we used to visit relatives in rural Ontario. We found it a pleasant diversion from city life; but in retrospective, I now realize it was invaluable for an educated and well-rounded personality. There is no better teacher than life experience.

I was thrilled to see this picture of my granddaughter and two of her cousins looking at her maternal grandfather's horses. I know they have other relatives who live in rural areas, and when I think of this, I remember those wonderful fun-filled days of my youth visiting the farms of relatives. Even when we were asked to do little chores, since the jobs were not a part of our everyday life, we didn't look at them as work.

I think every 'city kid' should have the opportunity to visit a farm at least once while growing up. There is not only the education of seeing where our meat and grains actually come from, and learning how to relate and take care of farm animals, but there is the more subtle knowledge that not everyone lives in the city, where the stores are 'down the street', or only a five minute drive away. They learn butter is churned, bread can be made in your own kitchen, and fruit and vegetables can be preserved for the winter. I learned not to be afraid to ask questions, to open my mind to new ideas and a different way of doing things.  I also learned about patience, planning ahead, and working toward a goal.

Wow!  All this from this delightful picture of three little girls, watching Grandpa's horses! 

Have a great day!

Phoebe

What To Do On A Rainy Day!

Oh my!      What to do after the person in the house has pushed me out the back door, to have me 'do my business' in the rain!  My feet, face, and coat get all wet, (which I don't like), and I can't roll in the grass! At least, after a full towelling I can roll around on the furniture when I come in!       It's not as much fun as when I help Phoebe with the gardening, I can chew on the extra branches, and run around with them until they are finished, I can help dig in the extra dirt which is all mine, and pea in the lavender and the groundcover, and the trees, I can run in the lilys, iris, hostas, and the 'hens and chickens'. She doesn't let me go near the 'vegetables' or the mint or other herbs,  I like to bark at the neighbourhood cats, squirrels, birds and I 'talk' with the other dogs who live nearby.  We compare our homes, and problems with the local cats.

Sometimes, when she really feels adventurous, we go for walks in the neighbourhood, the local pet store, or the park. The lady in the pet store thinks I am wonderful, which I know I am, I like it when she gives me extra treats to keep me busy while Phoebe talks to her.   When it's raining for several days, it's hard to find things to do in the house, I seem to forget that I found things to do in the winter, and my toys don't seem to be as much fun as being outside in the summer.   Maybe if I run around like a 'freaky pup' we will both get some excercise!

Thanks for the help today Tom!

Have a great day,

Phoebe

Spring and Summer In The Park!

I took these pictures several years ago at Ojbway Park in West Windsor. It is one of my favorite places to be in Windsor, just to wander the trails; it makes me feel closer to God, to be among His creations. Even in the Winter, when the trails are snowy, and the trees are bare, I feel close to Him.

If you look close behind the deer in this picture, you will see two more hiding! I don't often see deer in the park, they seem to hide deep early in the morning. Over the years, I have seen chipmunks, rabbits, frogs, turtles, and of course lots of squirrels and several types of birds.

Windsor and Essex county has natural savanna forests; this year we are enjoying lots of rain, and the streams are full (of course many farmers are complaining because of too much rain, and their farms were late in seeding). I guess you can't make everyone happy all the time!

I enjoy this picture of the geese on the log, to me it is such a peaceful picture of the little family. It is always such a thrill to see wildlife in the park, I usually go to see the plants, and just enjoy the quiet and serene ambiance, I take pictures, and pray, and just enjoy the peace. Paul likes to join me when he can, He enjoys the quiet and the peaceful surroundings too.

At the beginning of the park the trails are concrete but as you go further in the park, they are chip wood, made from the clearing of dead wood in the forest area. I hope you are enjoying this walk in the woods of Windsor too.

Have a great day,

Phoebe

Doubting Thomas

Doubting Thomas is the official name of our dog, Tom. He was one year old when we got him from the local Humane Society. He and his sister had been used as subjects at the local college for teaching veterinary assistant students. In essence, he had not been mistreated or anything, and he was beautifully groomed; but he really had no experience as a house dog. I had to house-break him, and teach him 'house manners', like; 'don't eat the furniture', 'don't destroy the bed pillows', and 'leave my granddaughter's stuffed toys alone'!

Over the past two years, he has calmed down considerably, except for the separation anxiety. I had to buy a dog cage, I call it 'The Den' to keep him and the house safe when we go out. Now he is a very loving member of our family, and we can't imagine life without him. He still has a tendency to snitch food when we aren't looking, but we are getting better about leaving food out!

Last Tuesday, I took him to the vet for his shots. He is a puggle, (pug/beagle mix) and must have a good memory for smells or something, because as soon as we walked into the office, his  curly tail (from the pug in him) sunk down flat, and his countenance dropped as well. The tail stayed to the ground all the while we waited, and he greeted another dog. He was cooperative and quiet, just not himself.  While we were in the examining room, the vet did everything she could to win him over, not even treats worked, and believe me, Tom does not usually turn down food! After I paid the bill, and we were half-way out the door - BOOM - the tail curled up again! Tom was his usual happy-go-lucky self!

He was rewarded with a trip to the local pet store, where he could sniff and smell all he wanted, and you would never know he had such a harrowing experience as a trip to the vet! Now my girlfriend, Maggie says her dog loves the vet, and I have never had a dog who was so uncomfortable as this one with the vet, so I think it must have something to do with his past. All is well now, and I really hope he stays healthy!

Have a great day,

Phoebe

Spring Has Sprung!

Well, what do you know? After a frustrating night, watching the political debate, and feeling depressed about our 'leadership', I went to sleep last night with a headache looming. Several times while they skirted around the questions put to them from our citizens, and interjecting their own agendas; I wanted to yell to the TV: "Please.... answer the question that was put to you!!!!"

This morning, with a more clear mind, I went outside in the front, and there they were! My daffodils! In bloom! There is hope for this country yet! In the midst of all the strife and natural disasters in this world today, God is here, and He is alive, and well and performing miracles here in front of me! God is in charge of this world, not really the people who think they are. God is in charge of all the outcomes, in every detail of our lives. When we trust Him, each of us will overcome in His time, and within His Plan.

For the last few months, against my plans for each retirement day, I have been keeping an eye on the news. The strife in the Mid East, and later the earthquakes in New Zealand and Japan, followed by the Nuclear disaster. It just seems it has been one thing after the other, and even running into each other.

In the midst of these troubled times, the Canadian Parliment decided to hold an election! Our minority government was defeated by the opposing parties. Now if you ask our Prime Minister, they were defeated on the budget, but in actuality, the other parties voted non confidence because of the Speaker of the House's decision that the Conservative Party was in contempt of Parliment. (There were three incidents that precipitated this decision). That the Prime Minister has chosen to ignore this detail, is beyond me; well, not really beyond me; it doesn't look good if you put yourself in the position of defending illegalities. Back to last night's debate, there was lively discussion, but no new insights into the four parties involved, or the four leaders of each party. After hearing the four choices last night, I am thinking about the one who was NOT included, maybe the Green Party should get a chance? We do have a representative in my riding.

I think my day today should be spent in my garden, it's warm enough, and needs my help. More importantly, I think I just might have some positive influence in that direction today, and I will feel like I have accomplished something at the end of the day! Unlike my influence on the government. When the vegetables are planted, in the next month or so, I will try my hand at Snow Peas again, although my one particular 'Garden Helper', will NOT be able to reach the seeds! The few Snow Peas I got last summer were great!

As far as scrappbooking goes, I have not started, although I have been drawing.

Have a Great Day!

Phoebe

Frustration!!!!!

I've been off line for 1 month!  It was harder that I thought it would be. My computer crashed, and I decided to save for the new one, it took not quite as long as I thought; but I didn't realize how much I have been depending on the convenience.

I check out the news, and the local paper, research the purchases I plan to make, as well as general research, connect with my friends and family, especially the ones out of town (by e-mail and Skype), I have a prayer chain which e-mails prayer request lists to each member. Of course there's the basic uses of the computer, writing letters for snail mail, downloading pictures, fixing them and then printing. When you have grandchildren, the pictures, especially the ones sent to me by e-mail, are very important!

Being newly retired, I really have not done much with my list of  "things to do after retirement". Well, now my house is clean, and if I make any more cookies, I think I will explode, (Paul likes the cookie problem). I have changed the living room around, (both Paul and the dog do NOT LIKE change) and organized my house. I haven't started with the scrapbooking yet, (I need the picture program and the printer for that). I've been drawing, but I haven't been able to consentrate on too much yet.

Oh, yesterday was the day!  It came!  I was so anxious to get set up again! Today I started going through all my e-mail which piled up! I'm glad I was able to get messages to some people about my computer woes, as it was there were several hundred to go through! I'm about half done with the e-mails.

My biggest frustration? Microsoft. I bought the new 'key card for the 2010 Office Home & Student, and they didn't like my e-ail address and when I tried again, they were busy!

So, I will try again later, and in the meantime, you can hear my cries!

Glad to be back, and to check out all the posts,

Have a great day,

Phoebe

Winter in the Sun Parlor!

Now that I have retired from my position as Personal Support Worker, I am taking winter in a much more philosophical light! I have discovered that I really don't HAVE to go out in the snow unless I feel like it! Actually, when I confessed to Maggie the other day that I had done absolutely nothing all day except make meals, she gave me permission by saying:"So what!  You're retired!" 

-- Okay! Now I can relax!

On Saturday I FELT LIKE going to the river to take pictures by the mill!

The bush in the second picture is located by the mill itself, and the last picture is farther down the street to the west.  You can't really see the water in the cove, since the ice and snow have it covered!  Some Canada Geese usually take up residence there, but it seems they have left for the forseeable future! If that old tree and the cove look familiar, I used them in my painting of the geese two years ago!

There's a beauty of fresh-fallen snow, it's like God has covered the mud and rubble of life, and promised a new start. I love to see the snow, before the cars and slush of traffic mess it up.

After I finish some renovations and repairs on my home, I will start my projects for retirement. I plan to organize all my family pictures, and scrap book them, but more importantly, these pictures I took on Saturday will help inspire me for more painting, which will start within the next month.

Have a great day, and stay warm and safe this winter!

Phoebe