Should or Want

It has been almost a month since our last update to this blog and there is no real reason why this has happened.

Since our last post many things have happened and none of them earth shattering just the normal goings on of a Canadian family.

We continue to give back some of our time in volunteer activities within our community, driving, at our local library and most recently for the Salvation Army.

We have spent time with our children and grandchildren who are all well and we have visited with extended family.

Since our last post we have been consciously posing the following question to each activity we engage in.

Do we want to (fill in the blank)?

or

Do we think we should do (fill in the blank)?

What we found is that too many activities that are taking up our time fell into the we thought we should and were not activities that in the moment we really wanted too.

Over the past month we have wanted to spend time together as a couple watching Netflix, we are enjoying Suits, at the moment.

We enjoy going for walks either outside when the weather is nice, on our home treadmill or at the local indoor track when we would prefer to stay inside.

Paul has enjoyed planting his 2020 garlic crop and cleaning up outside the house.

I completed two junk journals, and two knitting projects are in the works.

Amazingly today I got into the Christmas Spirit something that has not happened for the past three years.

We continue to participate in a weekly yoga class and Paul works out daily.

I had a great time taking an acrylic art course from Kathie Smith a local artist and what fun Rylee and I had completing her Halloween Costume ‘Circus Baby’.

We took a tour of the local Alpaca processing plant.

Getting our snow tires on was a should that turned into a glad we did as snow has come to Ontario and looks like it will stay.

At church we participated in a potluck and enjoyed a cooking class.  Emma B taught us to make her Whoppie Pies.

There has also been moments of sadness as friends have discovered they have cancer and others have passed away.

There is a release in life when you consider if an activity is a ‘should or a want’.  It does not mean that you ignore the should’s no for us it has meant we do not feel guilty about adding in more wants on weeks with too many should’s.

Like movies, ice cream and yes sleeping in.

Thank you for taking the time to visit with us today.

Grandma Snyder

©2013-2019 twosnydergirls

Life is an adventure

The beautiful colours that carpet the forest floor.

That is lived one moment at a time and you maybe asking yourself what does this have to do with anything.  Great question and the answer is reflected in the lack of blog posts over the past number of days.  

One of our favourite activities is walking Toaster at sunset.

In the moments between the last post and today we have done many things.  We explored Victoria BC, spent wonderful evenings with our son and daughter-in-love, flew home, visited with our children, had a plumber come in and fix a leaking pipe, enjoyed the company of our youngest granddaughter three nights in a row, went walking with our oldest son here at home, delivered a gift from our son in Victoria to his sister here in Ontario and took personal time for pedicures and I had a manicure. 

Everywhere we look there are signs of fall 

And when I thought about writing a blog post or catching up on my 5 Minutes Of My Day the activity did not bring me joy so I turned to something that did.

Father and son engaged an evening game together

I think for the next few month while we spend time at home the blog will be posted when the activity of sitting at a computer brings me joy, until I organize my retired life and find that sweet spot where sharing through pictures does bring me joy.

Paul and I enjoyed the cultural variety of foods and we tasted many this Trip.

Fall is my favourite time of the year to walk , nature has clothed herself in abundant colours and she dances with the wind.

Found enough fabric to make the dress that Rylee needs.  Rylee learned how to carefully ripe out seams so that the fabric can be used,  A $4 find at Salvation Armyu

Thank you for dropping in to read this post and we hope you enjoy the images I have explained the pictures in the captions below.

Grandma Snyder

2013-2019twosnydergirls 

Some vacations are all about public walkways

Even on days when clouds threaten rain there are beautiful places to walk Victoria and we are walking them. 

From sidewalks crowded by flowers and hedges to pathways beside the ocean. 

The first thing you learn when walking around Victoria is that you are either walking up or down hill level ground only occurs at the waters edge. 

Mild weather means flowers abound 

and everywhere you can forage for apples and wild berries. 

On Saturday we took Toaster for a walk around Fort Macaulay.

We ended our day with the most delicious harvest meal ham, scalloped potatoes, roasted veg, apple crisp and homemade ice cream with new friends and family.

Thank you for spending this time with us. 

Grandma Snyder 

©️Twosnydergirls 2013-2019

What you do on a rainy day

Wet, cold and rainy a wonderful day to write letters, finishing up some crafting swaps, make an instant pot full of vegetable soup, work on some knitting and do dishes, lots of dishes.

I woke at 3:45 am this morning and could not get back to sleep so instead of waking up Paul I got out of bed and came into the livingroom to read in my pink rocking chair. 

I had forgotten how much I enjoy being up in the early hours alone in the darkness with no deadlines or pressures.

I am reading The Triumph of Narrative by Robert Fulford and this morning I was reminded of the power of story telling and the risk that it presents as with each telling we change small bites of the story.  Family histories are like this each of us experiences the story differently and changes the narrative ever so slightly to make sense of it.

By 5:00 am I was having trouble staying awake so slipped back into bed without waking Paul and slept to 8:30 am. 

We were going to walk for breakfast and run errands, until is started to rain so our plans changed to hot oatmeal, a day at home and refrigerator soup.

Refrigerator soup is a fall and winter favourite.  The soup base chickpeas, rice and all the vegetables that are in the refrigerator, so good.

Between making the rice and re-hydrating the chickpeas I worked in my craft room finishing the last of the 4 season swaps and putting together my pen pal mail for Lucas and Clara.

After lupper (lunch/supper) we eat between 2 and 3 pm I started to sew together a sweater I am knitting only to realize I made the back to short so I am now taking the stitches out so that I can correct my mistake.

Our day was rounded out with late afternoon yoga, completing October’s zen doodles and an hour of down time before bed.

Thank you for coming along today we hope you enjoy the images

Grandma Snyder

©2013-2019 twosnydergirls

Life a great adventure

Oh, my it has been along time since I sat down and shared the adventures that make up our life with you.

Adventure is more than likely too ambitious a descriptor for the moments that have made up our lives over the past month - it has been 35 days since I last posted.

Since that time, we have travel back from the West safely and lived each day to the fullest.

Sometimes just being present in each moment is adventure enough, finding joy in the normal coming and goings of life can be the best adventure.

There is great joy in coming home, walking through gardens beautiful with new blooms to explore and weeds to uproot.

Greeting family and neighbours who have painstakingly cared for your home while you were away.  We are blessed with good neighbours and adult children who live close enough to visit our home daily, bringing in the mail, walking through and around our home.

One of our first task was to catch up with extended family and this resulted in day trips to Guelph and Owen Sound where we retold our western adventures.

With cooler weather we passed a very delightful day in September walking in the bush behind Paul’s brother home.  

When you take your time being mindful of the flora below and above a stroll in the bush is an adventure as you encounter, leaves turning colour, the last of the late summer berries and a diversity of the fungus growing in the rich damp soil.

Our grandchildren quickly ensured that we re-established our weekly routines with them and how we missed their unique and quirky personalities.  

Grandchildren make life an adventure in staying young and informed as they ensure you stay in touch with what is in vogue.

In the craft room I completed my donations for the Children’s fundraising auction, the Junk Journal Canada seasonal swaps, packages for our great nieces and nephews pen pal and I set about reorganizing the room.

I started to attend monthly acrylic painting days.  On Tuesday I attend one event then on Thursday of the same week the second event.  Same teacher, same projects different town.  This affords me a second attempt at the same project!

I enjoyed covering week one with black paint
and trying again.

Paul received an award for 10 years of volunteer service for our local Children’s Aid Society as a volunteer driver.  This is an activity that brings him great joy and for which I am very proud of him. 

We attended a 70^th birthday party and remembered how much we enjoy playing Hand and Foot.

And attending a funeral where I became aware that it is in death we come face to face with the meaning of life.  

It was the everyday things that we are remembered for.   Mabel’s children and grandchildren spoke of  her smile, the idioms that were uniquely hers, her welcoming nature, her baking and  so many other things.  

I was left wondering how I will be remembered, the meaning that I am creating for myself and the world around me. 

Now there is the adventure!

At a church potluck this month someone made the comment that when you are retired you are busier than ever and I  was caught off guard by the statement.  We are very busy and never seem to have enough time to get everything we want done however are we busier than before retirement?   

I would have to say no.   I am less organized with my time, taking long coffee breaks when I want, sleeping in, talking to neighbours and this takes up time that before retirement I would not indulge in.

I am not complaining as having time to do what I want without having to book it in the calendar is the upside of retirement.  We are not busier, now we are more engaged in our lives and this brings with it great joy. 

Thank you for taking your time to read this post.

Grandma Snyder

©️2013-2019 twosnydergirls