Category Archives: Celebrations

Share Your World 2015 – Week 25

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….. thanks Cee for four more thought provoking questions

What did you or did not like about the first apartment you ever rented?

Our first apartment was a basement apartment in uptown Toronto. We were close to the subway and great shopping and restaurants. I didn’t like being in the basement. Our windows faced the parking lot and driveway so we had to contend with cars rolling past our windows.

What kind of art is your favorite? Why?

My favourite art includes abstract paintings, watercolour or acrylic and collage and mixed media art. I don’t like things that are hyper realistic. I’d rather take a beautiful photograph.

A Ray Cattell painting.

A Ray Cattell painting.

How many siblings do you have? What’s your birth order?

I’m the oldest of three girls. When my son was born he was the first male born on my father’s side of the family in 50 years.

The three Winkler sisters.

The three Winkler sisters.

Complete this sentence: I’m dreaming of a white …. (and no you can’t use Christmas as your answer)

This one stumped me for a few minutes. In fact, I went for a walk and really thought about this question. I’ve already owned a white car and my husband has one now. It wasn’t by choice for either of us but at the time they were our only options. I’ve really learned to appreciate white flowers and one of my favourite bouquets this year was all white. IMG_4682 IMG_4868 IMG_5073

I’m not very fussy about white weddings or white clothes. I don’t like white food, unless it’s vanilla ice-cream or whipped cream and white walls leave me cold. I do, however, like bright white trim.  Therefore, I’m dreaming of painting all the trim in the house white. I also love crisp white sheets and big soft white towels.

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 wonderful weekend with the family. We did a double Father’s Day celebration. On Saturday my husband and I hosted a BBQ at our place and our girls and their significant others and two of our best friends joined us. My husband did most of the cooking because it’s what he loves to do. I did all the running around and picked up things that we needed. We also went across the street for a bit to congratulate our neighbour on her retirement.

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Our daughter and son-in-law couldn’t keep the gender of their baby secret any longer and they shared the news with us. Unfortunately I promised to keep it a secret for a little bit longer and not share it with the world right now.

On Sunday, we drove to my Dad’s place in Oshawa and celebrated Father’s Day with him. My sister took the train in from Chatham and we all shared a meal at their new apartment. I brought a salad made from the lettuce in our garden and Dad picked up his special treat, KFC.

One other thing that I’m grateful for was a very enjoyable Tea that my friend L and I hosted for four students from school. It really was fun and the kids learned a lot about ‘tea etiquette’ and a little bit more about their teachers.

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This week I’m looking forward to the staff party and to the last day of school and the start of our summer break.

Winding Down but Still So Very Busy

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…..even though there are only 5 days left with students there is no slowing down

Yesterday we had our big annual outdoor extravaganza. Every class sang, danced and/or played musical instruments on an outdoor stage that the parent council rented for the day. We had a dress rehearsal in the afternoon and every class sat on the hill and watched the performances as they waited for their turn to go on stage.

In the evening the students stayed in classrooms and waited to be called to go on stage. It was very well organized and all 14 classes and two choirs completed their presentations in one hour and fifteen minutes. The weather this year cooperated. We couldn’t have asked for a better evening. The parents loved it and the students wished that it had gone on longer.

Today we started rehearsals for next week’s farewell assembly for the grade 5s. After school my friend L and I ran around to get the food organized for tomorrow’s tea with the students who bid on “High Tea with Mrs. C and Ms. C” at the silent auction a few weeks ago. I offered Tea with Mrs. C last year and it was so successful that my friend L wanted to go in on it with me. We decided to make it extra special and have the tea at L’s house where her very British mom could help us with the table setting. I just had these two photos sent to me. The table is ready for tea.

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On the weekend we’re celebrating Father’s Day at our house. The ‘kids’ (my children, not the students) are coming over on Saturday for a BBQ. My husband is anxious to try out his new charcoal and propane combination grill. We’re also invited to a retirement party on the same day but it is just across the road so hopefully we can find time to drop in for a bit. On Sunday I’m hoping we can find time to visit my Dad in Oshawa.

Next week there will be more rehearsals for the farewell, the assembly itself that I’m emceeing, the grade 5 fun day and the school’s play day. On Wednesday evening we’re having our staff party (yeah!) and then on the last day of school there’s one more assembly. Somewhere in between all that we have to clean our rooms, order supplies for next year and store our computers and electronics in a safe place for the summer.

When a Busy Weekend Keeps You From Walking

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…..3 days in a row of over 10 000 steps and then the weekend comes along

Usually the weekend is a great time for walking but this weekend proved otherwise. On Saturday I squeezed my newly pedicured feet into a brand new pair of high heels and wore them for the next eleven hours.

We left the house shortly after 12 noon and arrived at the church just in time for the wedding. The service wasn’t as long as we had expected and now we had 3 hours to kill before the reception. We thought about going home but opted instead to go to a restaurant close by and have a bite to eat. We ordered a couple of appetizers and sparkling water. Well that took less than an hour and we still had time to spare.

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We decided to find some stores to browse through but we were in the middle of box store city with lots of pavement and parking lots to walk over. Not very good for someone in 3″ heels. In hind sight it seems ridiculous but we drove from store to store. My husband hates  malls and box stores so we didn’t spend too much time ‘shopping’. We didn’t actually buy anything.

We didn’t have any coffee when we were in the restaurant earlier and we were now in need of a caffeine fix. Back in the car, we now drove around looking for a coffee shop. After a couple of missed turns we finally found a Star Bucks and sat down, again, for a cup of coffee.

We arrived at the reception hall exactly at 5:00 and there was no one else in the parking lot. We wondered if we had the right place but within minutes the families of the bride and groom showed up and slowly the guests stared arriving as well. I guess showing up on time is an old fashion custom. I couldn’t believe how late people walked through the door.

After the cocktail hour, dinner was served and for the next four and a half hours we were in our seats as the courses were  served with speeches and formalities in between.

I was hoping we’d get to do some dancing but by the time the last speech had been delivered it was already 10:30 and we realized that our poor dog had been alone since noon. We said our good-byes and headed home. By 11:00 o’clock we arrived at the house and the first thing I did was take off those high heels. My husband took the dog out for a quick pee. I was just too tired to go for a walk. I had only logged 3400 steps.

On Sunday I slept in and then read my book for a couple of hours. I had booked an appointment with the Apple store to sort through some issues I was having with my computer and my iPhone. My husband came with me so that we could leave right from the mall and drive to Hamilton to have dinner at our daughter’s house. That’s right, my husband was in a mall, two days in a row. What a sport!

Unfortunately today was a very rainy day and when we arrived in Hamilton our plans for walking to a new area to explore were altered. The rain had let up briefly but our daughter didn’t think it was a good idea to walk to our destination because the odds of a downpour were pretty high. She was right. We drove to a quaint shopping area on Locke Street, parked the car and walked up and down the street. We stopped for coffee and a bite to eat because dinner wasn’t going to be early as we had anticipated.

There are some great little stores, coffee shops and restaurants in this area of Hamilton. I’ll be sure to return on a future visit. When we returned to our daughter’s house I went out for another short walk over to James street but most stores on Sunday close between 4:00 and 5:00, if they’re open at all.

When I returned to the house G had put out a lovely spread of cheese, dips and crackers and shortly after they served us a scrumptious dinner of ribs and a watermelon salad. I suggested going for a walk before dessert was served but it was decided that we would play a board game first and then go for a walk. Well we never did get out for that walk and in total I only logged 4000 steps for the day.

13 000 More Steps to a Healthier Me

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….after work I treated myself and my good friend L to a manicure and pedicure

I’m going to a wedding tomorrow and I really needed to get my toes done. It was L’s birthday last month so I decide to treat her to a manicure and pedicure after work today. Of course it made no sense to sit and watch her being pampered so I had to treat myself as well. Besides I’ve been wearing sandals to work for a few weeks now and it was a little embarrassing when my kindergarten students pointed out that my nail polish on my toes was chipping.

After about an hour of soaking, filing and applying colour we headed over to Marshall’s to try on some clothes. I chose nine tops to try on and left with two. When I got home my husband had just pulled out one of his homemade pizzas from the oven. Yummy!

After supper Frances was eager to go for her evening walk. Even though I was tired I knew that once I got going I would really feel better for it and I do enjoy it. The rain had stopped and it looked like it would stay away for awhile. I brought along my iPhone to snap a few pictures. Before I left I checked my Jawbone Up to see how far I had walked up to this point. It registered at just over 6000 steps.

Tonight we headed towards Col. Samuel Smith Park. I’ve been letting Frances dictate how far we walk and the direction she wants to go. When we got to the park I thought for sure she’d want to turn back but no she proceeded to head towards the lake and the naturalized area of the park. I kept my eyes open for some interesting shots and I think I managed to catch a few good ones. Here are a few things we saw on our walk tonight.

When we finally got home I checked my Up bracelet and discovered that I had walked almost 13 000 steps. This is the third day in a row that I’ve walked over 10 000 steps. Last week I averaged over 11 000 steps a day. I’m hoping that this increase in movement and watching what I eat will help me lose the pounds that I put back on. Luckily I didn’t put it all back on but more than I should have. I need to learn to get right back on track as soon as the first five pounds return.

Fun at the Fun Fair and My Seven Minutes of Fame

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….every year the parent council at our school hosts a Fun Fair for the children and the community

The big difference this year was that I was asked to help promote the sale of wristbands by agreeing to be dunked in the dunk tank if sales reached a certain level before the actual Fun Fair. Well, apparently a record number of wristbands were sold so I was destined to ‘go down’.

This year a photographer from the local community paper showed up and wanted to photograph me and some of the other fun activities that were taking place that day. I wasn’t too concerned about appearing in the paper because from past experiences I know that many photos are never used and sometimes no photos are used to cover a story.

The Fun Fair took place on Saturday, May 30th and I was literally in the dunk tank for only seven minutes. IMG_4918 IMG_4923 IMG_4924When all was said and done I actually enjoyed the experience and didn’t think twice about the photographer who took photos of me. The ones on this page were taken by one of the parents on my iPhone.

On Thursday, as I was leaving the school, MP ran over to me to tell me that she just got a call telling her that my photo had appeared in the paper. I heard from two more people later that evening that they saw my picture. Unfortunately I don’t get that paper in my neighbourhood so I’m hoping the someone will send it to me.

As for the rest of the Fun Fair, everyone seemed to have a great time. The weather cooperated for most of the day. Towards the end the heavens did open but the fair was coming to a close anyway and people moved to the indoors where more activities were taking place. It looks like the fair was a huge success and even though it’s not meant to raise a lot of money, a lot of money was raised.

From Winter Straight Into Summer

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….after months of complaining about the cold we can now complain about the heat

We never get much in the way of Spring weather here in Southern Ontario. It is usually very short lived and then we’re straight into summer. This year April was unseasonably cold and May has started out with very warm…..no high, temperatures.

This Mother’s Day weekend, my husband and I and our daughter, A, and her partner, J, drove to Hamilton to celebrate Mother’s Day with our other daughter G and her husband BT. It was so hot that I brought a change of clothes in case what I was wearing was too warm.

After our lunch at a local restaurant (we stayed inside where it was air conditioned) we took a walk to Bayshore Park where we saw people fishing, wading in the lake, cycling and having picnics. The ice-cream trucks were out and people were applying sun screen to their arms and legs.

There were lots of birds in the park and the mating rituals and bird chatter were abundant. The geese and seagulls were hovering close to the picnickers, as they always do and the dog walkers were out in droves. Most of the trees were in full bloom here and some were already losing their blossoms. Tulips were also in full bloom but the daffodils were already finished for the season.

Today my husband cut the grass for the second time this year and is now starting to get the vegetable beds ready for planting. Normally this would be too early here but these unusually high temperatures are saying otherwise.

I hope everyone has had an enjoyable Mother’s Day weekend.

Cheers!

Five Photos, Five Stories Challenge – Day 1

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I was invited by Elizabeth from teandpaper to join the Five Photos, Five Stories Challenge “Post a photo each day for five consecutive days and attach a story to the photo. It can be fiction or non-fiction, a poem or a short paragraph and each day nominate another blogger for the challenge.” Elizabeth is a fellow Canadian who lives close by but never reveals exactly where.

I’ve decided to write a piece of prose based on some art that I’ve created this week. Hope you enjoy it.

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Spring Awakening 

The last of the snow has vanished

But the wind reminds us that

another flurry or two is still possible

The earth is brown and hard

but the birds chirp each morning

singing of warmer days to come

Small green shoots push hard

to break through the frozen crust

to savour the sun’s light

and longer days

The Easter season is upon us

Children dream of the Easter bunny

and egg hunts and parades

while the elders flock to church

to observe the holiest weekend

of the year

Cloudy days and rain will become the norm

for awhile

and trees and the Earth’s carpet

will begin to green

The animal world comes alive

and offspring will soon be abundant

The cycle continues,

one season moving on to the next.

(Property of Carol Cormier 2015)

 I’m nominating Boeta and his mom and dad from Our Rumbling Ocean to take up the challenge. They live in South Africa and post wonderful photos and stories about their corner of the world.

A Week of Highs and Lows

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….I haven’t posted in days

My lows include not posting for a number of days. I had over 500 emails that I hadn’t opened and I tried to read as many as possible. I deleted many of them without reading them so I apologize if I missed an important message or one of your better posts. If I made a comment or ‘liked’ your post you know that I read it. I actually do read your posts and I feel unusually guilty if I have to pass them over. I’m trying to read my emails daily but there are over a hundred in my inbox again.

It’s been a tough week with the kids at school. I’m sure that it’s partly due to the time change. Everyone was tired and a bit cranky and with March Break in front of them many found it difficult to focus. There was a lot of excitement and anticipation for this holiday.

I also haven’t done any art for myself. Every day this week I planned to spend some time on my art and it didn’t happen. I’m planning on fixing that during my time off.

Now that March Break is here, I’ve come down with a head cold. Wouldn’t you know it! I’m not sick all year and on the first day of the break I have a scratchy throat and runny nose. Oh well, I have 9 days to rest.

On the high side I managed to get more of the books in the library labelled and shelved and I finally put in an order for supplies and more books. I know that may not seem like a high for some of you but I always feel good when I can get something accomplished.

Last Sunday I took my family to see Ray Cattell’s art show at the Arts and Letters Club. I’ve know Ray for over 25 years. His daughter, L and I work together and have been best friends for all those years. Ray is now in his 90s and it was nice to see the range of work that he has produced from the 1960s to the present day.

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The temperatures have finally warmed up and the snow has started to melt. In fact so much of the snow has melted that I’ve finally been able to go outside without my winter boots on. A few crazy people have also been seen wearing shorts in Toronto. Plus 4 is hardly warm enough to go outside without a coat never mind wearing a t-shirt and shorts.

IMG_4133 I also went to a concert this week. It was part of the Music in the Afternoon concert series put on by the Women’s Musical Club of Toronto. The concert featured Jens Lindemann on trumpet. I had no idea what to expect but it ended up being one my most favourite concerts to date. I’ll write more about this in my next post.

I also spent time with my friend CL who I hadn’t seen since Christmas. We had lunch together and then headed downtown for the concert. Afterwards we stopped for coffee and continued to catch up on what we’ve been doing for the last three months. As with most of my friends she asked about my retirement and gave me some food for thought as to what I might want to do when I finally take that step.

On Wednesday a group of us from school decided to have a bit of a staff social and we went bowling and then out for dinner. Most of us are not very good bowlers but it was a lot of fun and we vowed that we would plan another outing after March Break.

Last night my daughter and her husband came over for an impromptu dinner of homemade pizza and salad. My husband and I are very spontaneous and we love it when things like this just come together.

To top off my highs for the week my husband bought me another fresh bouquet of flowers.

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