Just a quick note to let everyone know I am fine. I haven't posted in a couple of days because we've been busy. On Thursday hubby worked in the bathroom upstairs. It's been slow going as he is so busy, but soon we will be priming and painting. Then we can get the plumber in and get the bathroom finished.

I was off my feet for a couple of weeks with leg pain, but now I'm on the Celebr*ex I'm doing much better. I'm sleeping well and I have a lot more energy. There's nothing like pain to suck the life out of a person. The last three days I've worked in the yard. Weeds were taking over the flowerbeds because I hadn't been able to get out there. I pulled the weeds in the side garden and mulched as I went. I'm almost finished. I've been doing other yard work and also cleaning up the side porch. I have some of my garden ornaments out and planted some blanket flowers. They look pretty. I really need to buy more plants, but with the renovations I may just leave it for this year. There's only so much time. I do miss having a garden full of beautiful blooms though.

Today our neighbor's son came and gave hubby a hand upstairs. That was nice. He is coming back tomorrow and hopefully we will get a lot more done. Things are beginning to come together. I don't think either hubby or I realized how big a job it is to redecorate the apartment. I used to do it all in a couple of weeks and the place would be ready to rent. Not any more. We're seriously thinking of putting the house on the market and looking for a single family dwelling. Time will tell.

That is about all that's going on here. Nothing too exciting. I hope you all have a great weekend and that the weather is nice. Enjoy! ~Blessings, Mary~

Thankful Thursday

Today is Thankful Thursday. It is a day when we list the things we are thankful for. If you would like to participate, be sure to stop by Sting My Heart and pay Iris a visit. You can find all the information there.

It's always nice to take time to reflect on the blessings that we have received each week. We are so lucky in Canada and are truly blessed on a daily basis. Here are some of the things I'm thankful for in the last week.

1. For grandsons that still enjoy being with Grandma when they are 13 and 10. For our safety during the drug takedown and lessons learned from the mistakes of others.

2. For catching fish and swimming fun.

3. The memories that were made in the last week having fun together with the boys

4. My husband whose tests came back negative. He got the results this week.

5. Clean drinking water, air conditioning and food on the table.

6. Good neighbors that will lend a hand when needed.

7. Modern medical research and technology. We are so lucky to have every hospital and doctor visit paid for my the Ontario Health Insurance Plan.

8. That Aunt May is still getting around. She is undergoing both chemo and radiation. She is still doing daily tasks and able to get out once in a while, even though the doctors gave her only about 2 months to live. That two months is pretty much passed. Please pray for her.

9. For owning my own home even though it is under renovation at this time. It's nice to be able to have a flower garden, plant a few vegetables and enjoy the yard and neighborhood.

10. For a Grandmother who taught me to love God and be an honest and responsible person. She taught me many life lessons and I am not teaching them to my grandsons.

No matter how small your blessings, be sure to give thanks for each of them. No matter what you are going through, there is always someone who is having a more difficult time. Many are chosing whether to pay their rent or eat. Many are unemployed. Many are homeless. Give thanks for all things, both great and small. ~Blessings, Mary~

Swimming Fun

Last week when I took the boys to the farm, the owner told them that if they came this Tuesday at about 5pm, she would let them go swimming in the pool. The boys have been looking forward to it ever since and so yesterday we headed out to the farm.

It took them only seconds to get into the pool. These boys enjoy the water. Though neither are really strong swimmers, they both can swim

Brandon is trying to help Jordan sit in a tube. Unfortunately it wasn't fully blown up and I didn't think they would be successful.
However, where there's a will, there's a way and Brandon was kind of holding the tube and pushing Jordan across the pool.
They had fun trying to make that half blown up tube hold Jordan. There was a lot of laughter and Jordan yelling, "I'm going to fall in."
Brandon takes a break from pushing Jordan and uses a noodle to have a little fun of his own. He loves the water and would swim everyday if he could.
The boys both had a great time and before we knew it our time at the farm was over. They did enjoy some time out in the water and the sunshine. A nice breeze was blowing and there was no humidity, so it was a great day to be in the great outdoors.

In other news, Susie at Susie's Space presented me with the cute award below. Thank you, Susie. I love it!

I would like to pass this award on to everyone who has commented on my posts this month. I enjoy each and every comment. I've been blessed with so many blogging friends and am thankful for each of you. ~Blessings, Mary~

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A Bit of Excitement

The boys came over at about 1 pm to stay for the afternoon, as both of their parents were working. Brandon had a headache and was very quiet. I had planned on an outing but he really didn't feel up to it. Jordan wanted to go out and do something, so I asked them if they would like to go out to M*Don*alds for a cold drink, just to get out of the house for a while. They agreed. It was such a nice day I just hated to see us all stuck inside.

We pulled into the parking lot and there were cars parked every which way. Some of them had the doors left open. It looked like the drivers had just pulled in and abandoned their cars. I wondered what the heck was going on when Brandon said, "Look, the police have a guy pinned to the ground."

Now I just happened to have my camera with me. When we were going out the door I put it in my jeans pocket. And lo and behold, it worked. Here is a photo of what we saw. The police have one of the perpetrators on the ground and he was putting up quite a struggle. Just the other side of that man there are drugs and a handgun.

As we got out of the car we saw that they had another man and a woman, both cuffed. The woman was crying and saying she was innocent.
The police weren't buying her story and kept her cuffed. Then a police car pulled up and a female officer got out. She frisked the woman and even checked inside her shoes.

We went and picked up our drinks and came back outside to watch. We stayed for about a half hour and just as we were pulling out, more cruisers were pulling in. Some of the police had already gone to a motel across the street to check that out.

The boys were quite impressed with seeing this in real life. They wanted to know if the woman was really innocent. I told them probably not, but even if she had no idea about the drugs and gun that she was guilty by association. This lead to a discussion about choosing friends carefully. I hope seeing this in real life let the boys know that they have to account for their actions and also for their friend's actions. A good lesson for both of them

Today was a beautiful day here with a cool breeze and no humidity. It was a beautiful day to get outdoors. Enjoy your Tuesday. ~Blessings, Mary~

Fun Monday

I thought I would participate in Fun Monday this week. The hostess is Dungaree's Ablaze and if you'd like to participate, just follow the link.

This week the subject is birthdays, so I want to tell you about a very special person and the birthday party we had for her.

Meet my mother. She turned 80 years old in September 2007 and my siblings and I put on a birthday party for her. We invited all of her friends and neighbors. Lots of people showed up and she enjoyed visiting with everyone.

Let me tell you a bit about Mom. She was born and raised on a farm. Yes, born. She was born at home, not in a hospital. She is the eldest of six children and while she was still very young, she helped take care of those children and also worked in the barn and fields.

In 1945, she married my Dad who had just been released from the Army. They eventually had three children of which I am the middle child. She stayed at home and brought us kids up while Dad worked until he was hurt in a work accident. Because he would never work again, my mother went to work at Woolco. She was now the breadwinner and she did a great job of it too.

We are very blessed to still have Mom with us. She has had lots of birthdays but her 80th was the most special. She has 3 kids, 7 grandchildren and 12 great-grandchildren. She will soon have another, as my niece is scheduled for a C-section on August 1st. Mom helps each member of her family celebrate their birthday each year, either by sending a card or by enjoying a meal with them. I can't begin to count the number of birthdays my mother has taken part in. When I stop and think about it, that's awesome.

Next week the host for Fun Monday will be Irish Coffee House. Have a great week. ~Blessings, Mary~

Saturday Fishing Fun

The boys' parents both had to work on Saturday. I went and picked them up just after 10am and picked up their fishing poles. Since I didn't have my fishing license, we then headed to the bait & tackle shop where I picked up a Conservation License. Then we headed to the fishing hole on a small lake not far from here.

We were there quite a while and I didn't get much fishing done. Instead I was busy putting worms on the hooks of two boys who were all excited about catching something. There were lots of bites and some fish got to dine on some nice juicy worms, but the boys had no luck. Then, Brandon got a bite and had a fish on his line. He said, "Grandma, it is heavy and feels like a whale."

Brandon reeled it in and to my amazement it was a 12 inch smallmouth bass very similar to the one above. We usually catch rock bass, catfish and sunfish at this spot, but have never caught a smallmouth bass there before. The fish was nice and clean and a good size for Brandon.

Jordan didn't have any luck until we were on our last couple of worms. Then he got something on his line. It was a 4 inch rock bass. He was delighted just to catch anything.

It was hot and by the time we had fed the fish a dozen worms, we were ready to come home. We had a fun time and made a few more memories.

If you have a chance, take a child fishing this summer. It is an enjoyable sport and it's a great way to bond with kids. ~Blessings, Mary~