Share Your World – Week 34

Posted on August 25, 2015 by Mama Cormier

…..more great questions from Cee

Was school easy or difficult for you? How so?

School was always pretty easy, especially in elementary school. I did well in school right up to grade 10 and then I was more interested in the social aspect of school. I always managed to miss the honour roll by 1% in the last three years of school. I excelled in math but after grade 10 I started to struggle and in my last year I had an English teacher whose mantra was to make his students sweat and make life as difficult as possible. The grade average in English was 50% and I sat right on the 50% line. I almost had a nervous breakdown that year.

What is your favorite animal?

My favourite animals have to be dogs. I love most of them. In the wild I’m fascinated with Panda bears and the red panda.

If you had to have your vision corrected would you rather: glasses or contacts?

I need glasses for distance and for a long time I wore contact lenses. When I had difficulty reading things close up with my contact lenses I switched to glasses and took them off when I wanted to read a book. It’s only been in the last year that I’ve also needed reading glasses.

List: Name at least five television shows (past or present) you enjoyed?

Survivor, Amazing Race, Friends, CSI (all of them), Grace and Frankie (on Netflix)Grace and Frankie

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful that my husband is recovering nicely from his surgery and that he has continued to can tomatoes. I’m also grateful that my daughter and daughter-in-law finally came up to the cottage last weekend. We had a wonderful time. Every time J comes to the cottage she becomes more and more comfortable with our rustic lifestyle. She announced that next year she wants to come up for a week. Yay!

This week I’m looking forward to getting my own car back (it’s been in the body shop) and celebrating my birthday with the family. My husband is planning a BBQ for Saturday.

Share Your World 2015 – Week 33

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Mama Cormier

……thanks Cee for four more great questions

What are some words that just make you smile?

Ice-cream, babies, wine, family and friends are some of the words that will bring a smile to my face.

You’re given $500,000 dollars tax free (any currency), what do you spend it on?

I would pay off the rest of my credit cards and then take some of that money to renovate my house and cottage. I’d also put some money aside for travelling. That would still leave me with a nice sizeable chunk and I couldn’t enjoy any of that money knowing that my children also have debts so I would probably give each of them $50 000. and put the rest away for our retirement.

What subject would you like to study in depth, if given the time to do so?

I’d love to study visual art in depth. I’ve contemplated going back to university after I retire, just for the fun of it.

Would your rather be stuck in a small plane with bad turbulence for 2 hours or be a passenger in a car racing the Daytona 500?

I’d rather do neither but if I have to make a choice I think I’ll put up with two hours of turbulence. But wait! You did say ‘in a small plane’. Hmmm? Maybe being a passenger at the Daytona 500 would suit me better. I don’t know! I’m a terrible passenger in a car that is travelling at high speeds.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful that my husbands surgery is over and that the prognosis looks good. Will know for sure in a couple of weeks. I’m also grateful that our youngest daughter was able to spend some time at the cottage last week.

I’m looking forward to spending the weekend at the cottage with my older daughter and her partner. It will be the first time that they’ve made it up to the cottage this summer. I’m also looking forward to spending some time with our friends D & D, who I haven’t seen much of this summer. Hopefully the weather will be good so that I can get in some swimming and of course lots of walking. Maybe I’ll even start running again.

A Minor Setback, a Trip to Dundas and More Steps

Posted on August 21, 2015 by Mama Cormier

….a trip to the doctor, relief, enjoying the rest of the day

This morning my husband woke up with terrible pain in his foot. A quick trip to the clinic confirmed that he was suffering from gout probably brought on from the morphine he had been given after his surgery. Luckily the problem was quickly fixed with another medication.

We had planned, earlier in the week, to visit our daughter in Hamilton. K could feel the pills were starting to work so we took a chance and made the trip. It was raining when we left but by the time we drove into our daughter’s driveway the sun had come out. G suggested that we take a short drive to Dundas where we could walk along the quaint main street and take in some of the unique stores and enjoy a coffee in one of the popular cafes.

Dundas is a formerly independent town and now a constituent community in the city of Hamilton. It is home to about 27 000 people and is nicknamed the Valley Town because it is located at the bottom of the Niagara Escarpment on the western edge of Lake Ontario.

We spent a couple of hours walking around the area and enjoyed a light lunch on a wonderful outdoor patio. Here are some photos of our day trip.

We headed back to Toronto during rush hour but traffic moved fairly well. After a simple dinner of sausage and a couple of salads that we purchased at the local butcher shop in Dundas I took Frances for a much needed walk. It was another beautiful evening and we walked through the Humber College grounds. Total steps for the day: 10 500.

Friends, Lunch, New Studio Space and More Walking

Posted on August 19, 2015 by Mama Cormier

…..sometimes it just good to get out of the house

My good friend from high school, LB, and I had made plans to get together for lunch today. As much fun as it is getting all our high school buddies together, sometimes it’s just easier to plan with just one other person. We had a great time over our Japanese bento boxes, catching up on work, our kids and spouses and the trials and tribulations of our mutual friends and acquaintances.

After lunch I jumped on the Spadina streetcar and headed south to Queen St. West where I transferred to the westbound streetcar and got off at Trinity Bellwoods Park. My other good friend, AB has a new studio space in the area and I agreed to come down to see it and help her organize some of her stuff. She has a lot of stuff and we barely put a dent in it but it’s a start and she’s actually feeling very good about the progress.

It was pretty hot and humid today so we quickly lost our energy and around 5:00 we decided to call it a day. AB drove me back to the subway station so that I could pick up my car and head home. I made a quick stop at the grocery store to pick up a few things for dinner but by the time I got home my husband had already prepared a meal for himself. When I called earlier I told him that I was still pretty full from lunch so he assumed that I didn’t want any dinner. Anyway the good news is that my husband must be feeling somewhat better if he’s cooking for himself. I was happy with just having an ice-cream bar.

One of the things that K isn’t ready for yet is taking the dog for long walks. After dinner I changed into more comfortable clothes and Frances and I headed out the door. I guess the last two days have been pretty exhausting for the dog so she was pulling to go back home after only a very short walk. I knew that I had to try to get in close to 3000 steps to reach my goal today so this ‘short walk’ wasn’t doing it for me.

I’ve discovered on past walks that if I change the route slightly the dog doesn’t resist. I don’t know if she doesn’t know where she is in relation to our house or if she also just wants a change of scenery. In the end we managed to put in an extra 4500 steps and I clocked in at 11 500 steps. Yay! That makes five days in a row that I have surpassed my daily walking goals. I’m sure that my Jawbone Up will be suggesting that I up my goal to 12 000 steps a day.

Week One – Averaged Over 10,000 Steps a Day

Posted on August 17, 2015 by Mama Cormier

….I’ve owned my Jawbone Up for almost a year

On August 29, 2014 I uploaded my new Jawbone Up to my iPhone and set a walking goal of 10 000 steps a day and 8 hours of sleep a night. I’ve struggled when trying to reach either of these goals throughout the year. I have reached both of them but never consistently and for some reason when I have a good walking day I don’t have a good sleep and visa versa.

Last week when I started writing about my walking goals I started to achieve them. For five days I walked 10 000 steps or more and I averaged 10 500 steps a day. This is the best week I’ve had since getting my tracking device.

My husband came home from the hospital today. I got a phone call at 7:30 this morning from K asking me to pick him up because he was being released. I quickly got dressed and drove to the hospital only to find K still in his bed. He wasn’t even dressed. He was still waiting for the paperwork to be done so that he could be released.

I walked to the other end of the hospital to get myself a coffee and something to eat. When I returned K had decided to get dressed but we still had to wait for final instructions before we could go home.

By the time we left the hospital and picked up K’s pain medications from the drug store it was almost noon and the day had really started to heat up. The dog and I hadn’t been out for our walk but I knew that we wouldn’t get very far in this heat so I waited till this evening to go for our ‘long’ walk.

I’m glad I waited. I had managed to get in almost 5000 steps just watering the garden, doing laundry and going shopping. I knew that to reach 10 000 steps I would have to do the entire length of the park and back again. It was starting to get dark and I notice a sign warning about the coyotes that are in the park so I decided to stay on the walkways that were more frequently used by the public. It was nice changing up the route and seeing different parts of the park. When we finally got home I had added over 6000 more steps for a daily total of 11 100 steps.

Here are a few of the sights we saw on tonight’s walk.

The Hardest Day Yet

Posted on August 15, 2015 by Mama Cormier

…..one would think that the worst was over

I’m not sure why today was so emotional. My husband’s surgery was successful and he appears to be on the mend.

The morning started with text messages from the hospital from my husband. When was I coming? How was the dog? Breakfast was awful. I need a good cup of tea, etc. etc.

There were several emails asking about the outcome of the surgery that I felt I needed to answer right away so that people wouldn’t worry. Frances needed her morning walk and frankly so did I. It was a beautiful morning and I could tell it was going to be a warm day. I wasn’t going to take the dog the full distance today but I thought that I should go as far as the beach so that she could have a bit of a swim and cool off. Of course she loved it and she found a couple of spots to roll in.

After making sure that the pets had food and water for the day I grabbed the paper and K’s recharged iPod and headed out the door. I stopped at the local farmers’ market which was on the way to the hospital and I foolishly neglected to buy some parking time in the lot I parked in. I picked up a few things that I thought K might enjoy and when I got back to the car I found a ticket under the wiper blade. Rats! and I was only gone for about 15 minutes.

When I got to the hospital, K had already eaten his breakfast and lunch and he really wasn’t interested in the goodies that I brought him. I took them home again. Even though it’s only his second day in the hospital I know that not being able to get out of bed is becoming increasingly uncomfortable for my husband and it made him a little bit irritable. At least the oxygen tubes were gone. The one thing that he did appreciate was the big cup of tea that I brought in for him.

I left the hospital shortly after I arrived so that K could get some rest and I needed to do some laundry at home. I talked to a couple of friends who gave me moral support and my daughter sent me a reminder about a race she wanted me to participate in with her. I decided to register and take advantage of the early bird special. I haven’t run very much in the last year so I thought that having another fitness goal might be just the thing I need to get me out of this slump.

My daughter also asked me if I wanted to join her and J for dinner after visiting with her Papa so I accepted. I made another trip to the hospital. K was in a better mood. A friend of his had come by for a visit and when A and J arrived they brought J’s father along. What a nice surprise. My husband was truly touched.

The girls and I left for dinner and we promised to save some pizza for my husband. We walked from the hospital to the restaurant and had a very enjoyable meal. I did save half my pizza for K but when we returned to the hospital it was already pretty late and he asked my to take the pizza home and save it for him there. He will enjoy it when he comes home on Monday. It’s in the freezer as I write this so that I won’t be tempted to eat it.

The day certainly ended on a brighter note than it began on and I managed to walk 12 000 steps. Hopefully tomorrow will be easier. My daughter and I have already planned to visit my husband together, just before noon and then spend some time together in the afternoon. We’re hoping to get in a little bit of driving practice before she takes her test this Tuesday and maybe do a little bit of gardening.

Wishing you all a lovely Sunday. Cheers!

A Day of Waiting and Just Over 8000 Steps

Posted on August 15, 2015 by Mama Cormier

…..a day in the hospital makes walking difficult

On Friday my husband went to the hospital to have his surgery on his lung. It was raining in the morning so we didn’t get out with the dog for a walk, not even a short one. When we did get to the hospital around 10:00 the waiting began. First in the reception area, then in the area I like to call the ‘holding area’ and finally in the Family Waiting Room.

After blood work, standard tests, visits from the surgeon, the anesthesiologist and finally the OR nurse, K got up from his comfy chair and walked to the operating room. Before he left our youngest daughter came to keep me company and then my friend AB showed up. The doctor said that the procedure would take about 1 1/2 hours so we decided to go to the cafeteria for a bite to eat.

We returned in what we thought was plenty of time only to discover that the doctor had come to see us while we were out. We had to wait until he finished another surgery on someone else before we could find out if K was okay.

At around 3:00 the good doctor saw us and the news was good. K had done well during the surgery, no complications and the growths appear to be non-cancerous. Yay! We have to now ‘wait’ for the results of the biopsy to be sure but the doctor said he was cautiously optimistic.

When K was admitted to his room, our oldest daughter arrived and we all had a short visit with the patient. He looked remarkably good. He was alert, had good colour and was very talkative. After a short visit we all left so that he could get some rest and I drove everyone home.

My youngest daughter stayed with me and we went back to the house to take Frances for a walk. We didn’t walk as far as we would normally but I did manage by the end of the day to get in just over 8 000 steps.

I’d like to thank everyone for their kind thoughts, good wishes and prayers. My husband is already back to his old self and has been texting me to bring him a good cup of tea this morning.

Cheers!

Over 14 000 Steps Yesterday and Already Over My Goal Today

Posted on August 13, 2015 by Mama Cormier

….the last two days have been good walking days

Yesterday I posted that walking 10 000 steps takes effort. By the end of the day I clocked in at 14 826. Most of those steps came from our morning walk where we covered about 5 miles or 8km.

This morning we did the walk again but went a little farther. By the time we got home I had walked 11 000 steps. Later this afternoon we’re visiting friends to see their new home and I’m hoping we’ll go for a walk to check out their new neighbourhood.

My fear is that tomorrow may not be a good walking day. It’s the day my husband goes to the hospital for his surgery but we’re hoping to get out early in the morning and get in some walking for the dog’s sake.

Here are a few more photos of things we saw on our walk today.

Walking 10 000 Steps Takes Effort

Posted on August 12, 2015 by Mama Cormier

….but it’s very doable

When I’m at school I normally walk anywhere from 4000 to 6000 steps during the day, just walking from room to room, walking around the yard during recess and walking around the library putting away books. It’s those last few steps to reach my goal of 10 000 steps that takes effort.

Yesterday I found myself doing a lot of errands, using the car. There was a lot of waiting involved and by the end of the day I had barely clocked 4000 steps. In the evening I took a walk around the block with the dog and then I drove to the mall to do a bit of shopping. I parked farther away from the store than I needed to and I tried to walk around the mall after my shopping was done but I had left it too late and the mall was closing. In the end I only walked 5380 steps.

This morning, as soon as I woke up, I put on my running shoes and went for a long walk with my husband and Frances. It was a beautiful morning, even though the sky to the west of us looked pretty ominous. We walked to our favourite park and instead of going back the same way we came we took a slight detour to add some extra distance. When we got home I was surprised to see that we had already reached my goal of 10 000 steps and it was only 10:30. Ideally, now I should be able to add another 4000 to 5000 throughout the day as long as I don’t spend too much time on the computer or with my renewed hobby of knitting.

Here are a few images of what we saw on our walk this morning.

Share Your World 2015 – Week 32

Posted on August 10, 2015 by Mama Cormier

…..didn’t I just do this

Are you a collector of anything?

About twenty years ago I started to collect teddy bears. I wanted vintage bears or bears with a vintage feel but family and friends bought me all types of bears. It soon got out of hand and I didn’t have the space for more bears. I’ve asked people not to buy me bears anymore and I’ve even given some away.

What is your biggest fear or phobia? (no photos please)

I have two phobias. The first one is standing at great heights. I think the actual fear is the fear of falling. I could never jump from a plane or go bungee jumping. I don’t know where the second fear comes from. I’m terrified of bears. I’ve never had an encounter with bears. My aunt, who recently passed away, did buy me a book many years ago on bear attacks.

Do you prefer reading coffee table books (picture), biographies, fiction, non-fiction, educational?

I like looking through table top books but I love reading fiction.

Complete this sentence: If I Must Be Reincarnated, In the Next Life I Want to Be…

I can’t imagine being any kind of animal so I think I would like to come back as another person and probably as a woman again.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful to my oldest daughter and her partner for putting on a wonderful shower for our younger daughter, G and her husband. I came back early from the cottage to help with the preparations but the girls did most of the work. I made the lemonade and brought over the china cups and saucers for the coffee and cake and I purchased some nice disposable dishes and cutlery from Costco that we can actually reuse. I’m also grateful that my father and his wife made the trip from Oshawa along with my sister from Chatham. It was a bit of a family reunion and when I dropped my Dad off at the train station he told me that he had a wonderful time and felt like the ‘king of the world’.

The shower was a bit different from a normal baby shower in that we had a ‘taco bar’ that we had catered. We played a few games and people painted onesies with special messages for the new baby. There were about 19 people in attendance and almost the same number of people sent regrets because they were away on holidays. This is the one downside of having a shower of any kind in the summer.