Friday Favourites

 

Happy Friday! Team Canada is playing in Toronto for the World Cup today, soccer fever is alive and well here in the city. We are hosting some family that will be going to the game this afternoon.  Just like when Taylor Swift was here, we are adjacent to the fun that our guests will be having! 

We had lots of fun ourselves this week. Q played baseball on Monday night, they won their game handily. 

Team huddle afterwards.

Go Knights!

It was my birthday on Tuesday and I got my Starbucks birthday drink. I like the Java Chip Frappuccino as my treat. 

I decided I did not want a whole cake for my birthday so instead I went to Freebird Market and picked up four individual slices. Q took the Lemon Strawberry, E had Black Forest, Dave had the Chocolate Peanut Butter torte, and I had the Pina Colada one. Which is sort of exactly what I thought each person would pick. 

I had some time after work to read my book and have a glass of wine and some olives. 

Then we went out for dinner at Nodo in the Junction. This is an Italian place and it is always good, you can’t miss with anything on the menu. 

However their pizza oven was broken that night, so we all got pasta, which is what I was going to get anyway. I chose one from the specials list - lemon and basil with fried zucchini.

Another baseball game for Q on Wednesday night, which they also won by a narrow margin because of Q’s play at the plate for the last out. 

And for that he got the special Knights necklace.

Dave saw this coyote on his way home from golf. 

Last night was the school’s Party in the Playground. Q had a great time running around with his friends.  The firefighters came and sprayed everyone with their hose. Fun was had by all. 

I looked back to another Party in the Playground (2018) when the firetruck was there. Q was pretty tired at this point in the night.

And for good measure, little E as well!.

Back to current day.  Q got to take a turn at the hose.

Then some inflatable fun. 

Linking up with Andrea and Erika.

Let's Look - What I’m Making More Time For

 

A day late for this link up but here I am! Linking up with Shay.

This month’s topic is what I’m making more time for:

Golf - I try to get out at least once a week and it’s pretty easy to squeeze in 9 holes in the evenings or weekend afternoons. Bonus if I can take E with me while Dave and Q are at a baseball practice.

Taking a lunch break - I am mostly working from home now and it’s easy to just stay at my desk, but I try to make sure I sit down to watch a bit of a show or read my book or do an errand.

Working Out - I’ve been pretty good at getting up early to workout but there have been a few mornings lately when I really did not want to get up but was happy that I made time for it. 

Checking with E’s schoolwork - This is to varying degrees of success since he went to his math exam without a working calculator (but he was able to use the one on the computer and said it was fine), but I’m also trying to make sure he has done all of his year-end projects. They have lots of time to work at them in class, which is great, but always good to check in on the progress. 

The rest of my free time is taken up with baseball - watching Q and the Blue Jays. 

Weekend Recap

 I had the opportunity to bike downtown on Friday to meet a friend for lunch and then I popped into the office to do a bit of work. I love our city but I especially love it as the weather starts to get nice and everyone is happy to be outside. 

We ate at Local Public Eatery and it was delicious. 

That night Q had a baseball practice. I stopped in to watch a bit and enjoyed more of the flavour of Toronto, a group of people were playing volleyball, had the music going, and a bunch of people were just hanging out. 

He had a baseball game on Saturday morning and we were there bright and early. It was supposed to rain all day so it was a nice surprise that the sun stayed out all day. It was very windy though. 

Walking into High Park.

I got to read my book and drink my coffee while the team was warming up.

I decided to go to Costco when I got home, which wasn’t as bad as I thought. Then we all played golf that afternoon. We wanted to try to get 18 holes in so we got carts.

We even saw a snake!!

On Sunday Q had a baseball practice, I went to church and E did some studying for his math exam. Dave took the boys golfing again, just for 9 holes this time, and when they got back we used our pizza oven again. Dave had tried a new dough recipe, which he thinks worked better this time. 

I made a pesto, bacon, and tomato pizza. It was very good!

It’s my birthday today! We will go out for dinner tonight. 

Sharing Our Lives - Frequent Emojis

 

Linking up with the Share Our Lives crew for this month's topic - most used emojis. Yes, I am a woman in her 40s and I like an emoji.

The ones that are currently in my most frequently used category are here:

I love a good thumbs up or thumbs down, and a heart in a matching colour for whatever the situation come in handy. 

Linking up with  Adrienne, Dara, Jen, and Joanne.  

Friday Favourites

 Happy Friday! I'm a little slow getting this post out as I was out last night at the golf club.

On Tuesday I posted about our trip to Whistler. I forgot to include this photo from our last night.

We also received this lovely gift, showing some Squamish FN imagery. 

E and I golfed on Tuesday night and then ate dinner on the patio.

Our lovely weather is here!

Linking up with Andrea and Erika.

Things I've Been Enjoying

Like what does this title even mean? But it’s just that “things”, not books or shows, random things that I have taken note of that I’m glad I purchased (or received as a gift), and most aren't even new.

Electric Kettle - We used to boil water in a kettle on the stove and then somehow I figured out that electric kettles are the way to go. I know it’s the same motions - put water in kettle, turn something on (electric switch or stover burner), water gets hot, you pour it out - but for some reason the electric kettle way just seems so much better.

Dyson Cordless Vacuum - We have had the regular one for years but then my mom (I think) suggested the cordless one and it is so nice to whip it around for a quick vacuum without needing to deal with the plug and cord. We got an extra wall charger so we have one on the second floor and one in the basement to make charging even easier, but the charge lasts a long time anyway. 

Electric Blanket - There are those days in the winter when it’s hard to get warm and an electric blanket does the trick. We keep our house pretty comfortable for temperature but do make it cooler for sleeping. That said, I like to get into a warm bed so on those extra cold nights, I will “pre-heat” my side of my bed with the blanket before turning it off for the night. 

Fancy Sunscreen - I have always bought my sunscreen at the drug store, and more recently Costco, but even those are getting expensive. For Mother’s Day I got a bottle of the Bask brand from The Good Neighbour store. It has such a nice scent and is smooth to put on. I prefer a lotion to a spray. 

Gratitude Journal Prompts

 16. Write about one sound you are grateful for.

Rain on the roof because it means I have a safe place to be in a storm. When we renovated our house to add another bedroom, I was adamant that I wanted to keep our sloped roof over the back living room. I love lying on the couch when it is raining. And Q’s room has a flat roof with no attic above it, so that’s another great place to hear the rain.

17. Write about three things in nature that you are grateful for.

Birds - Yes, I’m a woman over 40, we love birds. Haha. But seriously, birdsong is a wonderful sound, and seeing them flit around the backyard, or soar, if you’re in different spots to see hawks or gulls. 

Flowering Trees - Part of what makes me grateful for these is that they aren’t around for a long time, so you know you need to appreciate them when you see them. Bonus points for when they are accompanied by delicious scents, like lilacs. 

Ocean - The ocean looks different everyday, it’s amazing. The colours can range from dull greys to bright blues and no matter what, it is beautiful. 

18. Write about a place that makes you happy.

Currently I can say two - the golf course and the baseball field. Those are the places I go right now that aren’t work or home. It is a privilege to watch Q play baseball and for all of us to golf together.