First BBQ and Way to go Canada!!

February 28, 2010 – Day 59

Our weather has been incredibly warm and spring like for the past week or two. There’s nothing quite like a bar-b-que to celebrate the arrival of spring (I’m hopeful) so Ken and I decided to have our first BBQ of the season tonight.

Ken had just finished watching the Canadian men’s hockey team win the Olympic gold medal game before he barbequed the burgers. I think he was feeling proud and patriotic because he ran upstairs to get a Canadian flag to hold for this picture.

Chicken Dinner

February 27, 2010 – Day 58

For supper tonight, I cooked chicken number two (of five) that I bought from the Hutterites earlier this month. Ken and I both love the new rice/pine nut/raisin stuffing recipe I tried for the first time the last time I roasted a chicken so I made it again.

Ballerinas

February 26, 2010 – Day 57

When I was ten years old I wanted to be a ballerina or a figure skater when I grew up. I didn’t become either :-) – but there’s something about ballet and figure skating that still strike a cord with my soul. So I absolutely fell in love with this artistic rendering of ballerinas the moment I saw it while out shopping today. I wish I could say that I bought it, but I was only looking for a few new, easy-to-dust things to replace all the stuff I’m getting rid of in my decluttering process (buying stuff to replace stuff!) and I simply don’t have a place in my home where this painting would fit in so I left it in the store.

Basement Renos Update

February 25, 2010 – Day 56

Ken has to buy light fixtures to finish up the lights in the basement but he painted the basement floor today. The paint was still wet when I took this picture so I had to take it from the bottom step and I wasn’t able to get much of the room in the view.

We plan to use the basement in part for storage, in part as a space to do our hobbies – and especially for extra sleeping space when my out-of-town children and grandchildren come to visit. For now we plan to buy a couple large area carpets but no extra furniture (we have air mattresses); however, it’ll be interesting to see how the space evolves over time. If I continue to declutter and get rid of enough of my “stuff”, perhaps this space could one day be a TV room and/or a play area as well as extra sleeping space.

Basement Renos Update

February 24, 2010 – Day 55

Ken has been working away steadily on the basement. He put as many of the ceiling tiles in as he could today (he had the framing for the ceiling done before today). The spaces that are not enclosed yet are where he has to do some work with lighting and vents. I am very excited to see the work coming along so well!

Saying my Goodbyes

February 23, 2010 – Day 54

My sister Darlene bought me this ornament for Christmas many, many years ago. I was probably in my early to mid twenties when she bought it and at first I didn’t particularly care for it. Eventually however, this woman and her dog grew on me – and ultimately became one of my favourite things. I cared for the woman so much that even when she fell and broke her arm right off, I couldn’t bear to part with her. I’m pretty sure it was Ken who did the repairs (the best he could, considering the severity of the break) and the woman and her dog stuck with me for many more years.

But now that I’m doing some serious decluttering of my house, I would like to lay the woman and her dog to rest. They’ve been with me for so long that my heart is torn but it is exactly this sentimental attachment to things that keeps me hanging on to too much for too long - and unless my sister wants the ornament back, I’m going to sever my heart strings and let it go. And now I have this picture to help me remember the woman and her dog forever.

8 Days Old

February 22, 2010 – Day 53

I walked over and had a wonderful visit with my coworker/friend Apryl this afternoon – and had the privilege of meeting her new baby! Little Helayna was born on Valentine’s Day. She is so cute, so tiny, so soft and so precious.

Apryl doesn’t live far from me so I walked over for my exercise today – 19 minutes one way but on my way home I detoured to Save On and it probably took about 10 minutes longer. The walk was refreshing and it was so pretty outside with the hoarfrost on the trees.