Can you spot it?

This is a good one, did you spot it, I did!

Well my kids have April birthdays and son K is now 20, daughter L is now 23!  I remember hoping for the day they would turn 3 and 6 so that life would be a little easier, lol.

Wonderful Book

I love this book I am reading, Looptail by Bruce Poon Tip, founder of G Adventures tour company. It is a business book, autobiography and so much more. He speaks of passion and purpose in life and it is both interesting and inspiring.

In other news I took my mom to the cardiologist yesterday for her 6 month checkup. It was a good one and so the next one is scheduled for another 6 months in October. That seems so far away, I hope she will remain stable until then. The doctor remarked that her heart is more stable than her memory loss, true enough.

The ECG technologist had to knock on the door to find my mom sitting on the table all dressed. She didn't seem to know it was time to leave the room after she was dressed. Then an older man went into the room. His wife told me he was 84 and had trouble hearing even with his hearing aid now. It meant he was having trouble communicating with the technologist.

Anyway, my mom and I went for a nice lunch afterward.  The day was so nice and sunny we just wore sweaters.

Creative Tuesdays - Wet

I'm excited to bring you my piece for Creative Tuesdays' current theme called 'Wet'. It's on (6" x 6") quality green cardstock.  I was going to call this piece 'butterfly wings' then added rain in the background and it became my piece for 'Wet'.  It's done in watercolour pencil.

Earth Day Promo

We had some old friends over on the weekend, it was our first barbecue of the season. It was cold but sunny. How their kids have grown. Their twins will start university in the fall, their third child is in grade 9. But the empty nest is looming. Son K had fun playing tennis with their son. They brought a lovely chocolate mousse over for dessert that went perfectly with some strawberries I served.

It was Earth Day April 22. Starbucks was having an Earth Day promo, free coffee if you brought your own reusable mug. So I participated!  Awful to say, but I much prefer Panera Bread's coffee.  The light roast flavour I like is a blend of Costa Rican, Guatemalan, and Brazilian coffee.  They also filter the water very finely.  What's your favourite coffee if you drink coffee?

Sunday Sketches - Orchid on Pine Table

Welcome to Sunday Sketches! This piece is done on a (3" x 3") post-it note in watercolour pencil. I sketched an artificial orchid flower arrangement I have sitting on a pine table in my house.

Grandma knows best

I'm not a grandma but I thought this one was cute!

Here is what I found interesting in health news this past week:

Scientists are thinking of fighting pancreatic cancer with viruses. Current treatments don't work so this would be a good thing.

And they may have found a drug called DFMO to prevent and treat Alzheimers.

Paint Party Friday - Whale Sunset

Welcome to Paint Party Friday!

If you have 32 seconds to watch this Video from Advertising Standards Canada concerning truth in advertising, you might love it as much as I do!

My art today is called 'Whale Sunset' done on (6" x 6") textured purple cardstock in watercolour crayon.  Have a great weekend!

Colonoscopy

In some 'not so good' news, a cousin of mine texted one of my sisters to say he has colon cancer. He will have to have his entire colon removed. He is not even 50 years old. I felt I had to send him a note that I was thinking of him and praying for him. He thanked me. He is married with near adult children. It made another sister feel she should stop postponing her colonoscopy. If you are over fifty, have you done yours?

My own little pond

Welcome Spring!  I thought it was interesting how this goose was sitting in this puddle of rain water, like he was in a little pond.  He was in the middle of a parking lot.

Beautiful Rendition

I found this cute one on Blogeratti's blog:

This lovely song is worth playing a couple of times while you blog today!  It's just...oh my!


Josh Groban and Kelly Clarkson duet "All I ask of you".

Barrel-aged Maple Syrup

I thought this was cute:

I recently heard about barrel-aged maple syrup, although it's not a new product. 
It is maple syrup aged 5 to 8 months in charred barrels, it comes out with a smoke flavour, great on pancakes. It would be interesting to try this.

Sunday Sketches - Pretty in Pink

Welcome to Sunday Sketches!  This piece is called 'Pretty in Pink', done in watercolour pencil on a (3" x 3") pink post-it note.

VIP Theatre

Son K recently turned 20 years old. Daughter L planned for us all (including her boyfriend) to go to a VIP theatre to see 'Fast and Furious 7'. That would not be my first choice of movie but then it wasn't my birthday! It was a good movie for that action kind of genre.  L said she could tell where they had used Paul Walker's brothers in scenes, but I couldn't.  There are so many digital effects they can use these days.

The tickets for a movie in the VIP section of this theatre cost $20. The idea is that you arrive a bit early, and order food from a menu and it is brought to your seat for consumption.  It was fun to try this, but then again the popcorn and snacks were expensive although we didn't order main courses.  Husband M was able to order a beer.

VIP theatre

Paint Party Friday - flower

Welcome to Paint Party Friday. This is a just flower on a (3" x 3") pink post-it note in watercolour pencil and crayon.  Have a wonderful day!

On Food

I bought this new balsamic mayonnaise to try. It seems very healthy as mayonnaise goes.

This is a wonderful article in photos on how food connects us and shapes our identities. "Food hits on multiple fronts. It defines our community. Food signals changes in tradition, history, geography. You can find out a lot about a country or culture by eating its food."

Kit Kat Dark

Nestle has a new KitKat chocolate bar made from dark chocolate.  It's delicious!

This is an interesting article on now small changes in diet now can make a big difference later on.

It says " Eating more yoghurt, seafood, skinless chicken and nuts was most strongly associated with weight loss.

Consuming more dairy products such as full-fat cheese, whole milk and low-fat milk did not seem to influence participants' weight one way or another."

Creative Tuesdays - Happy

Creative Tuesdays' current theme is 'Happy'. Here is what always makes me happy, just looking at pretty flowers, it never fails to uplift me.  My piece is done on a green (3" x 3") post-it note in watercolour pencil.

How about you, what makes you happy without getting too deep about it?

Vintage Port

Here is an interesting 54 second video of how to open a vintage bottle of port using port tongs.

Apparently these ports can be decades old and the corks may disintegrate on opening, so this is they way they open it.

Were you born in a Vintage Port year?

It is the custom to give a bottle of vintage port from the year of the person’s birthday as a birthday/christening gift.

Here is a Vintage Port chart.

Sunday Sketches - Quick One

Just a quick one for Sunday Sketches today, done in watercolour pencil on a (3"x3") pink post-it note! Happy Sunday!

Dupilumab

I was in the doctor's office with my mom recently and read this magazine saying that they have developed this new breakthrough drug for eczema, the immune dry skin disorder. It is called dupilumab and is a weekly injection that targets the disorder directly. My kids used to take corticosteroids to ease the itching, which carried the risk of side effects. This new treatment apparently has none.  Have you ever suffered from eczema (itchy dry skin)?

Paint Party Friday - Peeking Over

Welcome to Paint Party Friday. This piece is called 'Peeking Over'. It's done on a (3" x 3") post-it note in watercolour pencil and crayon. I thought what could be cuter than a toddler with a ponytail (thanks to Gigi for the heads up, no pun intended, on ponytail vs. pigtails) peeking over the fence. She must be standing on something or someone may be holding her up!

Basic Cookie Dough

I came across this Becel basic cookie dough recipe and thought it was a good one to keep although I haven't tried it yet. So you can just make it your own by adding oatmeal, chocolate chips, dried fruit, whatever.

Dine in the dark

I noticed this interesting restaurant concept recently. It is called "Dine in the Dark", at the O.Noir Toronto restaurant.  Apparently it has been open in Toronto since 2009.  First you spend an hour or two in complete darkness then you eat fine food in the dark and are served by many blind waiters.  This is something unique for sure!

Interesting Encounter

This one might be a little negative, but I thought it was hilarious!

I was using a weight machine at the gym the other day. The man next to me let go of his weight machine with a bit of a bang and he apologized for the noise. He blamed it on middle age. I think I said something like 'tell me about it'. For some reason I asked him if he worked or whether he was retired. He said he and his partner sold their company decades ago and he was hired by that same company and still works there. It was a waste management business I think he said. We started talking about retirement and he asked me to guess his age. I would have guessed 54 but he said he was 64. He is in really good shape. He said he loved working and in fact his boss had told him it would be prudent to start thinking of a succession plan as he is invaluable to the company. So the problem is solved because he convinced his former business partner to come out of retirement and join the company. The partner is in his forties. I asked him if he had travelled the world and he said he had, along with his wife. He has one grandchild on the way. We exchanged first names and I went on my way having enjoyed the conversation. It's not everyday you meet a success story. I gathered that his net worth was around $10 million, no kidding! He works because that is where he finds his purpose in life.

Easter Bunny Cupcakes

Daughter L made these pretty Easter Bunny Cupcakes to take in to work last week. Aren't they cute?

Sunday Sketches, Pretty in Pink

Happy Easter Sunday!  

Welcome to Sunday Sketches! Thanks to Alexandra for always hosting. This piece is called 'Pretty in Pink', done in watercolour pencil on a (3"x3") pink post-it note, inspired by a photo I saw on Tumblr.

Breakfast

Husband M and son K will go out for the occasional full breakfast at Eggsmart, K sent me this photo the other day. I was out running my errands, and sometimes I would much prefer just a bowl of oatmeal.

Paint Party Friday - Tree Frog

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! I did a tree frog on a green sticky note (3" x 3") in watercolour pencil.  I think this is somewhat springlike!

Easter Loot Bags

Husband M's sister is having an extended family gathering on the weekend to celebrate Easter. There are 7 grandkids between this sister and her husband, so I got these small stuffed animals by Gund.  I combined them with treats to make loot bags for the kids. Then M's 85 year old mother asked him to get her some chocolates for the kids.  So I decided to just let her have these treat bags and get some other stuff for us to give away.  I enjoy doing these anyway.

April Fool's

Wow, it's April 1st!

It was Palm Sunday in the Catholic church last weekend.  I found a simple video for making a cross with a palm frond as they give them out on Palm Sundays.   And here is my proud effort!

If you celebrate Easter, the big weekend's coming up. I got these Easter treats for Son K, Daughter L and L's boyfriend. They are hollow milk chocolate bunnies by Cadbury. The perfect size I think, not overwhelming.  I've since added a few more chocolates so they have turned into loot bags!