….this week’s theme is mirror
This summer our son married his beautiful Iranian partner and love of his life. In their Persian wedding a mirror played a prominent role. The mirror (of fate) and the two candelabras (representing the bride and groom and brightness in their future) are symbols of light and fire and are very important in Persian culture.
…..thanks to Cee for hosting Share Your World
List 2 things you have to be happy about?
There are many things to be happy about, good health, being mortgage free, being married for 41 years, having a great job, etc. but two things do stand out for me. The first is that all my children are in happy, loving relationships and the second is the joy that our granddaughter brings us.
If you could take a photograph, paint a picture or write a story of any place in the world, what and where would it be?
There are many places that I would love to paint, photograph and write about but the one place that I seem to blog about a lot is the cottage. Our little residence in paradise has brought us much pleasure and fond memories and I look forward to my stay there every summer.
Should children be seen and not heard?
Children should definitely be heard but there is a difference between being delightfully vocal and miserably disruptive. We were always very lucky with our own children. We could take them out to dinner and they knew how to behave in public. Too often parents ignore bad behaviour and often condone it and have no regard for the people around them who have come to a place to relax or enjoy a quiet meal.
List at least five of your favorite first names.
Girls names I like:
Winnie, Katherine (Kate, Katie), Abigail, Lydia, Willow, Josephine, Christina, Alessia
Boys names I like:
Michael, Brendan, Mark, Paul, Peter, William, Jack, Christopher
Names that can be either male or female:
Gaelan, Andrea, Josie, Avery, Morgan
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 for a small but wonderful birthday party that my children and husband hosted for me. It was just the immediate family but the food was amazing and the gifts that they showered me with were very thoughtful and generous. More and more, time spent with family is becoming increasingly important to me as I get older.
I’m also grateful for four days spent with my daughter and daughter-in-law at the cottage. We swam, sun bathed, read, played board games and cooked up some great meals. We also attended the Pow Wow and stopped at the Cookstown Antique Market on the way home.
This week I’m looking forward to getting my nails done with my good friend L and hopefully having my hair cut and coloured before I start back to school next week.
….I’ve finally returned from my trip of a lifetime to Italy
We stepped through our front door on Tuesday evening after being on an airplane for 9 hours, at the baggage carousel for at least an hour and then two hours in a car. We ended up driving to Hamilton first to drop off our daughter and Winnie. We stayed for a bit and had a much needed cup of coffee and a bite to eat. Then we packed up our dog, Frances and headed back to Toronto. By the time we got to bed we had been up for about 21 hours.
Luckily for me I managed to sleep through the night but my husband was up at 4:00 and Winnie was definitely on European time, getting up at 2:00 and 4:00 and then again at 7:00. Not only did she wake up but she stayed awake for an hour or two each time.
When I checked my emails I had over 1000. Needless to say that checking and replying to each one is next to impossible. I apologize in advance to my followers whose emails I had to delete. Even deleting emails takes time and I’m now down to 300. I’m hoping to read most of them.
I’ve managed to upload about half of my photos to my laptop. I’ve asked my family members to send me more shots, especially with ones of me in them. At the family wedding I didn’t have one photo of me in either of my cameras. Luckily my brother-in-law and nephew took lots and they promised to send me some.
So for the next couple of weeks I’ll definitely share some of my adventures and certainly many of my photos from Italy. For now I leave you with a small sampling of my 17 days in Venice, Florence, Bologna, Lucca, Assisi and Rome. Enjoy!
…thanks to Ronovan Writes for this week’s prompts Cheers and birth
Ode to a Wedding
Cheers to this twosome
at the birth of a new life
together forever
Love from your Mom
…..check out Cee’s Share Your World and join the fun
How many languages do you you speak?
Basically I speak two languages, English and German. German was my first language and I understand it very well but I am very hesitant to use it. Growing up I had to go to German school on Saturdays and I hated it. Whenever my parents or their friends spoke to me in German I would answer in English. When I turned 18 I sang in a German choir and did so for 27 years.
What are some words that just make you smile?
The first word that makes me smile is my granddaughter’s name – Winnie. I can’t help but smile when I think of her or hear someone utter her name. Come to think of it all the names of my loved ones make me smile. Other words that make me smile are love, art, summer vacation, cottage, puppy and party.
If you were the original architect of one existing building, which building would you select?
This is tough because there are lots of buildings that I would be proud to put my name on, even ones that have been somewhat controversial. I love old and new but I think the one that stands out for me at the moment is the AGO. It is a combination of old and new. Several years ago it underwent a renovation and I simply love the lines and all the wood on the inside. The architect is Frank Gehry.
Would you rather have telepathy or telekinesis? (Telepathy is the communication using your brain waves, telekinesis is channeling the energy onto physical objects to cause substantial, observable physical changes.)
I think I’d rather have telepathy. It would be neat to be able to send messages without opening my mouth.
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 for being able to check off more items from my to do list. As you know June is extremely busy for me at school. Every time I’m able to cross off another item it takes a huge weight off my shoulders.
Things that are done:
2 retirement parties- collected money and bought gift for one
Jump Rope for Heart – money collected and prizes distributed
Report cards written, proofread and printed
Timetables for next year organized
Father’s Day gift bought and BBQ with the family
Year end school concert
Rehearsals for grade five farewell
book club for June
finished paintings with the students for the stage
son’s wedding via the internet
city finals for girls’ soccer
taking 78 students to Jays’ baseball game to sing the national anthems
This week I’m looking forward to the grade 5 farewell assembly, play day, cleaning up my office in the library, the staff party and making final arrangements for our trip to Italy. Most of all I’m looking forward to getting on that plane next Saturday. Phew! I’m tired just thinking about it.
….today’s theme is being in two places at the same time, Here and There
Today our son and his fiancé were married at the registrar’s office in London, England. Thanks to What’s App we kept in touch all day with messages and photographs.
While everyone in London was toasting the young couple with champagne and spirits, here at home we raised our cups of tea and coffee to celebrate this special day. It was still morning here and most of us were at work.
Four weeks from now we will be travelling to Italy to participate in part two of this wedding when all the families gather in Assisi to celebrate this union. Can’t wait.
…..thanks Cee for hosting Share Your World
What was one of your first moneymaking jobs (other than babysitting or newspaper delivery)?
It seems to me that I’ve answered this question before so I will keep my answer short. When I was 14 I worked in my parent’s milk store. I did this till I was 16. That job ended after the night I was robbed. My parents gave up the business soon after.
What is your favorite month of the year?
I think my favourite month is October. It is still warm but the nights are getting cooler, the leaves are changing colour and the markets are bursting with the harvest.
What three things in nature do you find most beautiful?
I love being near water, trees in the fall and the first big snowfall.
List at least five of your favorite spices? (excluding salt and pepper)
• cinnamon
• cloves
• nutmeg
• curry
• cumin
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 for time spent with Winnie and her mom. On the weekend the two of them came to the house and stayed overnight while Dad drove to Sudbury on a business trip. They had also come over the weekend before but ended up going home Saturday night and coming back on Sunday. We’re trying to get Winnie used to sleeping away from home so that the the trip to Italy won’t be so traumatic. I thought she did really well but our daughter was a bit tired because she was up more often while she was here.
It looks like the plans for the wedding overseas are going well. The dress, wedding bands and the suit and tie are purchased. The registry office in London is arranged and the pub for close friends has been booked. In Italy the rooms at the villa have been assigned, reservations for dinner in the town of Assisi the night before the wedding have been made and the meal for the actual wedding sounds yummy. Three and a half weeks before we fly to Venice.
….yesterday was my 4th anniversary with WordPress
If I didn’t check my notifications side bar today I would have missed it.
4 Year Anniversary Achievement
Happy Anniversary with WordPress.com!
You registered on WordPress.com 4 years ago.
Thanks for flying with us. Keep up the good blogging.
It’s hard to believe that four years ago I started this blog to help me lose weight and get healthy. Four years later I’m still trying to lose weight but I’m healthier than I was then. I’m thankful that I didn’t gain back all the weight that I had lost (32 pounds) but it was getting painfully close when I finally started back on my weight loss journey. So far it’s been easier because my husband is doing it with me. I’m down 10 pounds and my husband is down 11.
My blog quickly morphed into a eclectic mix of photography, art, memories, recipes, teaching moments and my life experiences with my friends and family. I’ve met more than 1000 people who now follow me. I’m sure some have fallen by the wayside but many have stuck with me and comment regularly. For that I am truly grateful.
In the last four years you’ve seen me and my family change, grow and experience the ups and downs of life. I ran my first 5k, lost 32 pounds, turned the big 60, stood by my husband as he battled one illness after another requiring 4 separate surgeries and then I shared my son’s accident with you just last December when he needed surgery. I also shared with you my aunt’s prolonged stay in the hospital before she passed and how my 89 year old father fell, not once but twice, but lived to talk about it. I’ve spent way too much time in the hospital.
Not all hospital visits were for sick people. Last October I became a grandmother for the first time. That was the best hospital visit ever. 
When I started this blog only my youngest daughter was married. Since then our oldest daughter got married a couple of months ago and our son is getting married this summer. Needless to say it’s been and continues to be a busy year.
I’m still teaching. I thought this blog might help me prepare for retirement but I loved my work and my colleagues too much to even consider it. Now, I can say for certain that retirement is just around the corner and I look forward to my last year of teaching starting next September.
I’ve really enjoyed sharing my students’ art work on this blog and they love knowing that people really like what they’ve done and that they make comments about their work. I can always tell when my viewing numbers are really high that my students have found their way to my site.
One of the things that I’ve grown passionate about is photography since I’ve started this blog. I participate in a number of photography challenges and I take my camera everywhere I go. I’ve enjoyed sharing photos of our cottage and the beautiful parks in our neighbourhood and photos I’ve taken on our vacations.
Before I close I’d like to thank all of you who follow me and all those who pop by once in awhile for giving me a purpose to write. Knowing that people read my words and look at my photography gives me incentive to continue with this blog. Here’s to the next four years!
Cheers!
…..sorry to be so late this week for Cee’s Share Your World
Wanting something to quench your thirst, what would you drink?
The best thing to quench my thirst is plain old water but if the weather is cold I might take that water and brew up a cup of tea.
What made you feel good this past week?
I made a drawing and painting this week that made me feel very good.
When you’re alone at home, do you wear shoes, socks, slippers, or go barefoot?
In the winter I like to wear socks and in the summer I go barefoot.
Would you rather live where it is always hot or always cold?
I don’t think I’d like to live in an area that is always cold but I do enjoy brisk cool days. On the other hand I’d enjoy hot weather occasionally but I would find it boring after awhile. I like the changing seasons and the variable weather that goes with it here in the northern hemisphere.
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 for a short work week this week and that everyone at school arrived safely during the ice storm. Last week I was able to do a fair bit of drawing and some painting and I am grateful for that.
This week I’m looking forward to spending Easter weekend with my family. I’m cooking a big meal later today so I’d better get to bed so that I can get up early enough to put the turkey in the oven.
Cheers! Happy Easter everyone!
….despite coolish temperatures Spring has officially arrived
I mentioned in an earlier post that there were signs of spring here in Toronto if you take the time to look. On my walk today I purposely photographed as many signs of spring as I could. Enjoy!
Mama Cormier 