Afternoon Rest

On top of every other crazy thing this year, I have started having migraines. I was troubled with headaches a lot when I was younger but, other than the odd headache, they haven't been an issue in recent years. 

Enter 2020.

Seems like a good reason to take a break in the middle of the day, so the dogs and I are developing an early afternoon routine of sitting down after lunch to rest with a book (well, one of us has a book; the others just sleep.😀). 

Maybe the headaches are a blessing in disguise after all.

What's Getting Me Through

I spent the morning busy in my woman cave. I'm combing through old blog posts to put together a little project for my granddaughter of things I wrote about her over the past twelve years. It was a pleasant trip down memory lane remembering those days—and a little melancholy at the same time. Children grow so fast.

Later, I worked on a schedule and project plan (shades of my corporate days—I love a well-documented plan!) for a couple of women's writing competitions I'm coordinating next year. There are tons of details to sort out and I always feel better when I have everything documented.

It was another beautiful sunny day, so after lunch, Gerry suggested we take the dogs for a walk. He didn't have to work hard to convince me, especially since there was a promise of coffee along the way.

The path we walked wasn't busy, but there were two instances when I picked up the pocket dog either because other dogs weren't restrained or they were allowed to get a little too close for comfort. It's bad enough when this happens with eight-pound Maya, but with a tiny three-pound dog? No way is this a good idea. (This is one of the reasons we have never taken our dogs to an off-leash dog park.)

At one point I looked up at the blue sky and thought to myself: "This is what's getting me through these days." 

Sunshine. Blue sky. Moderate temperature. These are such gifts in December. I know there's weather coming (Canadian winter weather), but to be able to go outside in relative comfort now seems a bonus. A bonus I sorely need this year.

But I realized, as I looked up and snapped this photo with my phone, that even if winter had already settled in and it was too cold to go outside, there would be other comforts helping me through these dark days not to mention a Comforter.

I can't control what comes (though I'd sorely like to sometimes) and the wisest course is to learn to bend with whatever comes and trust that I'm not walking alone through it. It's hard sometimes; I imagine it's that way for all of us. Realizations like this one help me see through the figurative fog of these days and lift some of the weight that, at times, seems more than I can carry.

(I posted my Friday's Fave Five list over on my other blog this morning.)

Another Beautiful Day

It turns out to be a beautiful, beautiful day so we take the dogs for a walk in the afternoon after lunch. We're heading toward December with a stellar forecast. Could we be destined for a green Christmas? It's too soon to tell but I wouldn't mind if we were.

It seems that once we hit January we can exhale as we edge ever closer toward spring. Sure, January is often the worst month for snow and cold but there's still something about turning the calendar page that makes it seem like we'll make it through winter after all. 

But I'm getting ahead of myself . . . and this year is like none other in my lifetime. Best to stay in the present moment as much as possible. 😉

 

Another Slow Day

We're under new restrictions this week so Gerry and I are spending most of our time at home but making a point to get out for a short while every afternoon to give me a break from Murphy and to give Murphy an opportunity to get comfortable staying home by himself (with Maya, but they're not together when we're not home). It's become a nice break in the middle of the day.

Today, we had to drop off a little dog coat I had bought for Murphy that turned out to be too big (surprise, surprise). I offered it for sale on Marketplace and another small dog owner bought it. I didn't mind delivering it as we were coming into town anyway.

Gerry took advantage of the nice day to take our car through the car wash. He prefers a DIY wash so, while I stayed warm and snapped photos like a lady of leisure, he washed the car. After we got home, he drove our second car down the hill and washed it too. What a guy! 

I mentioned the jacket for Murphy that was too small. I'm thinking of trying my hand at knitting a little sweater for him. We'll see. Finding something small enough to fit him is a challenge so it might be the best route. There were so many more options when we lived in WA and I still have a couple of things that would fit him from when we had, Chelsea, but they're mostly pink and I just can't do that to him. 

This morning I was thinking about a photo I took in 2007, the first year we had Chelsea. I still have the little outfit she wore but Murphy says he's definitely not interested in putting it on. We're discussing it. 😁 

He's also made it perfectly clear he's absolutely NOT going to dress up in a matching outfit with Maya (like the girls did a number of years ago). I'll grant him that one.

Oh, dear. I just realized I might be becoming one of those dog people. You know what? I'm okay with it. Especially now when we could all use a little diversion from you know what.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving for those of you in the US so I'm sending warm greetings from our home to yours. While your day may be different than expected I trust it will be special nonetheless. 🦃