A Trip to the Market

Posted on March 2, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…. not just any market….the St. Lawrence Market

I woke up this morning with a sore throat and a very raspy voice. I lay in bed for a spell and read while my husband and the dog went for a walk. When I finally emerged from the bedroom it was going on 10:00. I took a Tylenol, made myself a cup of coffee and K whipped up some eggs for us.

After we cleared up the dishes I started to feel better and in a low whisper (my voice wasn’t back to normal) I asked my husband if he still wanted to make a trip to the St. Lawrence Market. He was game and seeing that it was going on noon the market would probably be less busy.

Well if it was less busy it must have been horrible earlier in the day. The place was swarming with people. We walked around to take in the sights and compare some prices but we soon realized that we were hungry. I guess our morning eggs didn’t stay with us for very long and we knew that shopping when you’re hungry is not a good idea.

It was so crowded that we were feeling somewhat claustrophobic and finding a place to sit down to eat was next to impossible. We left the market and walked up Front Street and found a restaurant where we could sit and have a leisurely lunch. It was also easier to make healthy choices. We both ordered salads with a protein and tea. After our meal we shared a cookie. We were both shocked when we saw how big the cookie was. I’m glad we shared it but I really thought it was going to be half the size. I guess I could have eaten half of my half but that old European custom of cleaning your plate won out.

When we went back to the market we bought a capon to roast for Sunday dinner and lots of fresh green vegetables. One big change we’ve made in our eating habits is to include a lot more leafy green vegetables that are high in anti-oxidants. Some of the vegetables we bought included kale, dandelion leaves, romaine and arugula.

Even though it started off bitterly cold this morning you know spring can’t be too far off when tulips appear in the markets. I bought 3 bunches. Nothing lifts my spirits faster than fresh cut flowers.

When we got home I went out again to purchase the things we couldn’t get at the market. For dinner we had a kale salad and oven roasted chicken breast. No dessert.

I arranged the flowers into 3 separate bouquets and placed them around the house. The buds are still pretty tight but in the next day or so they should open up nicely.

As the day comes to an end my throat is still sore and raspy. I think I’ll make myself a hot tea with honey and lemon and read some more of my book. Hopefully I’ll feel somewhat better tomorrow. No plans as of yet but if the weather is nice I’d like to get out for a walk again. I’m missing my walks.

Cheers!

Snow, Slush, Rain and More Snow

Posted on March 1, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…..didn’t reach 20 cm of snow on Wednesday but made up for it today

With all the hype of more snow or lots of rain I had a feeling it might be the latter. Sure enough on Wednesday morning there was very little snow but it had been raining and sleeting all night long and the end result was slush. Yuck!!!

I was on yard duty Wednesday morning and the kids were jumping in the puddles and sliding through the slush. By the afternoon we had to keep them indoors because too many of them had wet feet and damp clothing. The parking lot at the end of the day filled with water in the low lying areas and some of the staff had to wade through calf deep water to get into their cars.

Last night it started to snow again and this morning we woke up to a winter wonderland. The snow was heavy and clung to tree branches and hydro lines. It was pretty and made for great packing snow. Today the kids had a great time building snow forts and getting very wet again. Our poor caretaker was mopping floors all day. The ground is so wet that the mud is starting to seep through the snow. The temperature, however, is suppose to go down overnight and all the puddles and slush will freeze over. It should be an interesting drive tomorrow morning but I fear that those of us who like to walk will face more challenges. Here’s hoping that my husband doesn’t fall again.

Cheers!

Enough Already!

Posted on February 24, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…. three falls on patches of ice in one week is too much

I know I wished for snow this winter but I’m ready for Spring. Really ready! The snow has been beautiful and when it’s fresh, deep and crisp and you don’t have to drive anywhere it is lovely to look at and even fun to walk through.

The problem with the snow this year is the pattern of weather we’ve been experiencing. Shortly after the snow we’ve had warm weather and the snow all but completely melts away and then we get more snow. Not a bad scenario but after the last BIG storm not all the snow melted and we were left with slushy patches and puddles that froze a few days later.

This made walking very difficult for humans. Frances is small enough that she basically walks on the crust without breaking through and of course she wants to continue with her daily walks. She doesn’t realize how treacherous the walks have become.

I recently reported how my husband fell on one of his walks with the dog and hurt his back. It was just starting to feel better when he fell again….not once but twice on the same walk this morning.

On Groundhog Day, Wiarton Willie predicted that we would have an early Spring. Boy did he get it wrong! We definitely haven’t seen the end of Winter, in fact we’re suppose to get another snow storm on Tuesday. Wiarton Willie

Wish us luck. I guess I’ll be taking over the dog walking duty for awhile. I don’t mind but I like it better when both of us go out, especially when it gets dark. March 21st can’t come soon enough!

Cheers!

More Snowy Pictures

Posted on February 9, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…. I couldn’t believe how much yesterday’s storm took out of me

When I was curled up on the couch last night I tried to catch up on some of my reading but I just couldn’t keep my eyes open. After awhile I put the book down and decided to work on yesterday’s post. All went well, until I tried to read some of the blogs that I follow. I woke up a couple of times with my laptop literally resting on my lap so I finally gave into my fatigue and went to bed.

This morning my husband almost went for the morning walk without me because I was so sound asleep. When I did wake up I slowly made my way downstairs and discovered that both K and Frances were ready to leave. They kindly agreed to wait for me (well my husband did… the dog on the other hand had no choice) while I got dressed and had my morning coffee.

I’m glad I made the effort to join them. It was a beautiful morning. The snow was so deep at the rugby pitch that I don’t need to head to the gym today. It was quite a workout just walking through the new snow to get to the other side. You really had to lift your knees. Snowshoes would have come in handy today.

January 2013 Photo a Day – Electric

Posted on January 26, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…… this could be a simple photo of your toaster {but get creative} or something else electric

Our life depends on electricity. We use it to run our appliances, heat and light our homes, cook our food and run our computers and electronic games and devices. Without it we couldn’t write our blogs and post our photos. Funny thing is that in the summer I live without electricity for weeks at a time at my cottage and don’t miss it. Electricity is something we take for granted until we experience a blackout and are forced to adapt.

The challenge is to take interesting photos that highlight the word electric.

In the first picture, you see a bright light coming from a person’s yard where their children were out playing in the freshly fallen snow. The second picture is a light standard next to a local skating rink. I tried to capture the large fluffy snow flakes that were falling in front of the light and this is what I got.

For more photos for the January 2013 Photos a Day check out http://www.nolagirlatheart.wordpress.com

January 2013 Photo a Day – What You Do

Posted on January 23, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…. do you go to school? Train elephants at the circus? Write at home? Play mum to your kids? Act as CEO to a big business? Paint in your spare time? Dance when no one is looking? Take a photo of what you do {something that makes you ‘you’} and share

In my professional life I teach library and art in a junior school.

In my personal life I love to read, paint, walk, shop, craft, can and take photographs.

Taking photographs while walking with my husband and dog

For more photographs of what other people do check out http://www.nolagirlatheart.wordpress.com

January 2013 Photo a Day – Surprise

Posted on January 12, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…. I don’t know who was more surprised, me or the ducks?

The biggest surprise today had to be the weather. We hit a record high for January 12th. It was a great day for a walk. Everybody and their dogs were enjoying this beautiful, warm, sunny day. Even this family of ducks took advantage of the warmth and were out for a little stroll along the path.

Unfortunately this lovely picture didn’t last long when Frances realized that there were ducks walking ahead of her and when the ducks caught wind of Frances in the rear. The flock quickly took flight and landed in the lake, far away from any canine company.

For more surprise pictures go to http://www.nolagirlatheart.wordpress.com

Following Michael Moore

Posted on January 12, 2013 by Mama Cormier

….. walking every night

In an earlier post I promised I would bring you an update on my weight loss journey. Here it is.

I won’t lie and say I was perfect over the holidays. I wasn’t. Far from it but I did manage to maintain my weight loss for most of the month. I say most because my baby sister came for a visit the weekend before I had to go back to work and there was wine and eating out involved. I made pretty healthy choices but I probably ate more than I should have and even though we did a lot of walking, it’s not the same as a good workout at the gym or brisk walk/run through the neighbourhood.

Also that old nemesis, STRESS, has come back to haunt me. As teachers, we didn’t get very good news in the new year and our labour dispute continues. Therefore going back to work brings with it uncertainty and potential conflict.

Consequently when I got on the scale Monday morning I was up 4 1/2 pounds. Now I know that some of that was water and sure enough I was down 2 pounds the next morning.

So I’m back on my low GI eating program but the biggest change I made this week was going out every night for a long walk with my husband. Usually when I get home from work it is already dark and I don’t like walking by myself. K told me about Michael Moore’s walking challenge and how he’s been doing it now for over 42 weeks. I’ve started following him on Facebook and I’m sharing his article on why he walks. I don’t always agree with everything he says but he clearly states what some of the benefits of walking have done for him. He doesn’t share his weight loss in this article because he says that it’s not about that but in a later post he reveals that he’s lost 60 pounds.

Michael Moore on Walking

Last Sunday I promised on this blog that I would make it to the gym on Monday. There were a few hiccups that day and things didn’t go as I had planned. After completing an unexpected task I started on my way home. It was late and it would have been so easy to not to go to the gym. I was about to pass it when I told myself that ‘no, I had to go’. I went in and did 30 minutes on the treadmill.

On Tuesday, Thursday and Friday, K and I went for 45 minute brisk walks. On Wednesday I did a 75 minute yoga class and then went to book club. Today K had an appointment out of town so he got up early and walked without me or the dog. Frances is so tired from yesterday’s two walks that she’s still sleeping. It’s time to get her and me out into the fresh air. After that I’m planning on going back to the gym and do some weight training.

By the way, when I got on the scale this morning it showed that I had lost all the weight I had gained plus and an extra 1/2 pound.

The weight loss journey continues. Stayed tuned for future updates.

Cheers!

January 2013 Photo a Day – Street

Posted on January 7, 2013 by Mama Cormier

….. views of my street, neighbourhood and city during different seasons

It was my first day back to work since the holidays and by the time I got home it was already dark. Consequently I wasn’t able to take new photos for today’s theme. Luckily I have a pretty large file of photos. Some of them were taken from my bedroom window at different times of the year and others from the front door and one from the car window.

Spring

The street below looking through the blossoms of the crab apple tree.

Summer

The CN Tower while driving along the Gardner Expressway.

Pedestrian bridge at the mouth of the Humber River

Autumn

View of the street below through the autumn leaves.

The gravel road we take on our daily walks.

Winter

The view from our front door after our first big snowfall this winter.

Walking the dog. On our way home.

To see more amazing photos following this challenge go to Jeanne’s blog….a nola girl at heart.

To Do List for January 6, 2013

Posted on January 6, 2013 by Mama Cormier

….. if I write it down maybe it’ll happen

To Do What I Actually Did

1. Go for a 30 minute walk with the dog – Walked for 45 minutes 2. Continue to clean and de-clutter my room – Cleaned out my sewing box 3. Go to Ikea and buy new book cases – Bought the cases plus new bench 4. Go the the gym – DIDN’T GET THERE TODAY 5. Read my book for book club – Read 55 pages 6. Take down the Christmas tree – Took down the tree

Tree sans ornaments

7. Call my aunt and thank her for the plant – called at 7:00 8. Clean the kitchen – ongoing 9. Put away the ornaments – still on the coffee table 10. Clear off old bookcase to make way for the new – Done

Empty bookcase

11. Decide on lesson for tomorrow’s class – decided on one point perspective 12. Check my emails and reply to comments – Done 13. Finish this post – Finished at 8:00, just in time to

watch the Biggest Loser, new season – I’m addicted!

Not bad for one day. I need to try to work on my room every day for 30 minutes and when I get home tomorrow I should tackle the ornaments right away. Back to the gym tomorrow…. don’t go home first …. go straight to the gym from work! IT WILL HAPPEN!

CHEERS!