Finishes and endings

My mostly Easter, a little bit of spring display on top of the China cabinet. It's the only real space I have for display here in this house.

Well, our men's team did not win the World Championship, but did bring home a bronze. They played Scotland in the semi-final and, as had happened earlier in the week, lost the game. It certainly was their worst game of the week. On Sunday, they were up against China in the bronze medal game and it was a blow-out for Canada. I tend not to pay much attention when the score gets lop-sided, so I can't tell you what the final score was. 

Scotland took on Switzerland in the final, and came out on top winning the World's for the second time in three years. What made this more interesting was a "Battle of the Sexes" charity skins game they were in the following day. Team Mouat (Scotland) played Team Homan (Canada). The Canadian women won the World's, so it was also two World champions facing off. There were some great shots on both sides, however Homan was only able to win one of the skins, Mouat and crew won the other seven. I didn't watch the presentation but I presume that the companies providing the prize money/charity donations likely evened it up. 

D and I tackled housework on Monday, and the main floor and upstairs were vacuumed and tidied up. I won't tell you what the basement looked (looks) like, as Eli had a friend over to play on Saturday. Let's just say it is a bit of a disaster down there. I have a puzzle set out on a table in the basement but will avoid the area until D and Eli spend some time tidying.

On Tuesday I made a run into the nearby community to visit the Service Canada office. My passport will expire in December, and while I have no immediate plans to travel outside of Canada, I wanted to ensure it was renewed. Unlike the office in the city, where one drops off the paperwork, in this small office a representative takes care of everything on line, scans the documents and prepares the package while you're there. The photos have to be processed elsewhere, and the return time is longer; about 4-5 weeks versus 10-15 days, but the process seemed more personable.

The woman assisting me, was asking about travel plans and I mentioned our trip to Nova Scotia this June. She originally grew up in New Brunswick and we chatted about the places I visited when I was there with friends in 2016. Of course, I had to ask how she and her family ended up here. Not unexpectedly it was her husband's work (mining), and they live in a small community nearby.

After dropping off several bags of donations at the local thrift store, I did a walk through the store. I found some divided plates for Eli, some silicone molds for D, and a travel tea mug (with strainer) for myself. A quick stop at the grocery store for a few items and I was home by 11 a.m. It was a productive morning.

Out of curiosity, I did a search for the tea mug on the internet. I just about fell over, when I discovered it is currently selling for $140 on the Canadian Amazon site. I paid just under $3 for it. 

Some sad news, I called my son that evening and he told me he'd had to surrender Shadow. Apparently Sage had taken a dislike to the puppy. I'm not certain if she got aggressive, but clearly the relationship wasn't good. He was quite disappointed, and has decided to wait a year or two before considering getting a second dog. I've encouraged him to get the two of them (he and Sage) enrolled in obedience classes. Sage has shown signs of aggressiveness towards other dogs on walks, so it's best to deal with those issues while she is still fairly young, about 16 months or so.

Wednesday's photo was taken on Monday evening. The snow is melting as the temperatures are starting to rise, and with rain in the forecast it should disappear more quickly. I saw my first junco that morning too, followed by two robins on Thursday...spring is definitely here! Here's how the backyard looked on Friday afternoon:

The front yard is nearly clear as it faces south. I suspect most of the snow you see here will be gone by early next week.

The next to last* curling event of the season was held this week in Toronto, a Grand Slam of Curling event. The broadcast on Sportsnet was scheduled to start on Thursday afternoon, though I discovered a single draw that was aired the day before. It finished just in time for the Blue Jays game; great timing!

Meanwhile I've done more knitting, another pair of mittens was finished, another toque completed (this one for Eli), and I've cast another toque on the needles. My goal is to finish six pairs of mittens, and three toques before I return to my stitching. My poor hands and wrists are starting to feel a bit painful from the repetitive motions. Definitely time for a break.

D has been busy re-organizing things in her bedroom and basement, and I've been able to empty three boxes of photo albums that have been stored away since at least the summer of 2023 (when I listed my old house). Friday was also the one year anniversary of our move into this house. It's been a great place for all three of us. There are some things we'd like to do it including replacing the exterior doors, replacing a portion of the fence, and addressing the "rock" garden area. Of the three, I anticipate the fence will be the last on the list. The old fence is still standing, though requires some support. Since our next door neighbours rarely mow or weed their back yard, it is tall enough to keep it out of our view. D did report them to the city last summer when the weeds were higher than the 6 foot fence. Can you tell they are renters and not owners? 

On to the weekend, you'll find me watching more curling, more baseball, continuing to knit, and weather permitting, spending some time outdoors. I'd like to tackle the shed and move some snow from the bigger piles so it will melt sooner.

Have a great week ahead everyone!I

*There is a new two day event, the curling all-stars planned for April 15 and 16 in Nashville. It is associated with the Grand Slam brand. I have no idea the what the format will be and don't believe it will be televised. I'll look for a live stream.

A surprise addition, finishes, and a birthday

My son called me on Saturday evening, while I was in Bismarck. That may not sound unusual but he doesn't often call, so I knew something was up. It took a bit of conversation before he told me that since I'd been away (three days) he'd adopted a dog! He has been talking about it since he bought the house last year, and I had hoped he'd wait until the fence was re-built in the back yard this spring. When I arrived at the house on Sunday, and went upstairs, I met my "granddog" Sage.

She is a mixed breed (unknown), about a year old and was found as a stray. I would tell you, based on her behaviour, she was obviously living in a house at some point. Though she did have a couple of wetting accidents the first two days, it was more a result of us not recognizing the signs - she goes to the front door and sits. She has no problems holding it overnight and according to C, she prefers deeper snow to do her business on their walks.

Sage rarely barks, loves to play, and thinks she is a lap dog. At about 55 pounds, I'd tell you she's a bit big for that. Thus far, she has not met Saku (the cat), who is currently enjoying the peace and quiet of the basement. Saku seems only mildly interested when Sage is noisily playing upstairs. I sent a text to my son at work on Tuesday telling him I think he got himself an elephant! Once Sage is crate trained, Saku will be given the run of the house once more. C figures that will take a few weeks. I'm not entirely sure how Saku will react to the dog, but I suspect he'll avoid Sage as much as possible. I should mention, Sage was tested at the humane society and showed little to no aggression towards other dogs and cats.

Before I forget, the photo on Wednesday was the result of the trip to Bismarck. I dropped the stuff at the bottom of the stairs when I arrived home on Sunday. Tuesday, I re-packed the shopping into other bags and one box, leaving the suitcase and backpack in Regina. I'll be using those for my next trip in about 4 weeks.

I got away from the city just after 8 a.m. on Wednesday. It was a cold day (-18C/0F) with high winds around (50 kph/35 mph), and there was drifting snow. When the sun rose, there were sundogs too. 

Thankfully my drive is only about 90 minutes, so I was home by 9:30. D helped me unload the car, and unpack everything before she left for a meeting at the school. I was happy to stay indoors where it was warm and comfortable.

It warmed up slightly overnight so I headed out to do a bit of grocery shopping while D took Eli to school. He's only going half days this week as he's been having trouble regulating his emotions. The school district's psychologist spent time observing him earlier in the week, and with D's input, the school has come up with a plan to keep him safe in school and learning. She really does have a wonderful team and they acknowledge that Eli is very bright but struggles with the social aspects of the classroom.

Thursday was my daughter's 42nd 43rd birthday. She wanted only one thing - to go for dinner at a recently re-opened restaurant in town. We went early, about 4:30 p.m. as Eli had a planned activity in the evening at a local church. The restaurant serves Filipino and Canadian food; D and I shared a bowl of Bihon Guisado (vermicelli noodles, veg) with chicken and a plate of mixed spring rolls (veg and pork). The portions were large so we took half of the food home for another meal. Everything was so delicious! We'll definitely be back.

While on my trip I had crocheted a scarf, leaving the Christmas ornaments to be finished when I arrived home. It was nice to spend my afternoons watching curling and crocheting. I finished the two gnomes and moved onto the baubles for my brother and his wife. Another blogger had shared photos of her handmade ornaments a couple of weeks ago and this was just the idea I needed. I've got another pair of mitts on the needles, to match the scarf. I couldn't find a pattern of crocheted mitts that I liked, so these will be knitted.

Today, I'm planning to do a bit of Christmas baking, more knitting, and will watch the Canadian Seniors' Curling Championships. Our provincial men's team is into the playoffs; the provincial women's team missed the cut. D and Eli are planning to go skating at the old rink today. 

Sunday, it appears we have another snow storm heading our way with a possibility of 10-15 cms. (4-6 inches) of snow. That will be a stay indoors kind of day, except when we are out to clear the sidewalks and the parking spaces beside the garage. I'm actually quite happy to have a quiet ending to the week.

P.S. Saku and Sage met for the first time on Friday evening. Saku hissed and Sage was clearly afraid of the cat - C said it was funny to watch. He'll continue to keep them separated for the time being.

Have a great week ahead everyone!