Waking up with Clemson, Beautiful Day, Bill Returns for a Hug, Special Birthday

I had a nice conversation with a friend from London last night and then went up to bed later than usual. My morning nap yesterday kept me on full tilt and I wasn’t tired until 10:30. My back did need some easing though so propped up my pillows and read my book for 30 minutes. Clemson and I had a good sleep. It was nice and warm in the Suite and with a window cracked the frogs lulled us to dreamland.

My garden is really filling in

Today, Thursday, May 24^th we woke at 7 and began making my tea when Bill texted to see if we were up. We chatted on the phone about his day and when I could expect him home. Sounds like he had a good sleep too at his sister’s although his may have been a bit rum-induced. They probably needed that. Good for them, celebrating a wonderful man and a long couple of days.

Not much of a breeze this morning
Freshly cut lawn

I had my tea and read the many comments of condolences by you, my wonderful readers. Thank you for your heart-warming words, it means a lot and Bill sees them also. I caught up on our friends’ blogs before getting dressed and heading out to finish the grass cutting on the hill by the corral. I usually visit Mom on Fridays but with Bill not coming home until this afternoon, I plan to get cleaned up after my chore and go this morning before her lunch.

Where you see stones in the forefront of the picture
That is what I'm about to change
The grass down the hill is what I cut this morning to get my blood pumping

What a way to get the juices pumping! Pushing my electric mower up and down the hill is a sure-fire way. But it didn’t take long and by 9, I was finished and the mower moved over by the shed. I can put it away once Bill is home and moves the Cub Cadet out of the way. I know I’d received at least a couple more bites yesterday but I didn’t notice them around me this morning. I know they are soon going to be history.

Your pond picture for the day

I moved inside to cool down with a rest. It is 64F/18C outside and another beautiful blue-sky day. They are calling for 28C again today. The blossoms on our small cherry trees are out and you can’t walk by without hearing the bees buzzing in glory. These are just ornamental cherry trees but the birds love them when they arrive and devour them within two days.

The bottom blossoms have blown off this tall tree

Sitting having my second tea, the last two days runs through my head. Bill will be exhausted when he gets home but it will be a good tired, knowing he did what he should have and spent valuable time with Marilynne and his sisters. I’m sure he’ll want to check out the generator parts that arrived yesterday but hopefully he’ll take it easy and have a nap. Nice that he doesn’t have to go to work for a few days. Thanks Nicole!

I had my breakfast for one today

I had my bath in the sink rather than a shower today, not for any reason other than a bath was enough. I cleaned the bathroom and swept the floors on the main level and the stairs. I ‘prettied’ up for Mom and drove into Durham at 10:45. When I arrived at her room, she was stretched out on her bed in slumber. It didn’t take much for her to realize I was in the room and gave me her winning smile.

We weren't outside 5 minutes and she had to take her sweater off
That is always nice to see

We didn’t sit long and I mentioned going outside to get some fresh air. We couldn’t find her sunglasses but I loaned her mine and we went out to sit on the bench. It is a real wakeup call taking Mom outside. She is seeing things with new eyes, or so it seems, and comments on the blue sky, the green bushes and the yellow dandelions.

Mom loved the crabapple tree but didn't like the name for something so pretty :)

She couldn't get over how blue the sky was and whispered the word 'clouds' so
as not to jinx it

It was all about colour today and seeing these things with Mom helps me appreciate the little things. It was a great visit and leaving her at her lunch table, she waved me out of the building, as usual.

Selfie

And 'Let's do another one'
Were you smiling, Mom asked?

Before leaving town, I drove to the I.D.A. and picked up more Benadryl capsules and cream. We’re still not done with the discomfort of the bites. Back home, I changed into work clothes and went outside to move some stones to the top of the driveway. It is the spot that got washed out last August in a rain storm. The stones will help it to remain intact, we hope. I’d gathered the stones a couple of weeks ago but hadn’t moved them.

this is the small pile of stones I moved and then dug up

Of course, it didn’t stop there. I got the shovel and started digging up the rocks and stones in the area. This spot drives me crazy because it would look so much nicer if it was grass. It is hard to cut the grass and weeds that grow there so I have a plan. 

Some of the rocks I've dug up

I worked away at that job for a good couple of hours and when Bill drove up around 2:15 he said something to the effect of “you sure like hard work, don’t you?” I think what I like is the result and improvement I see at the end. We exchanged hugs and a few tears.

As you can see, three piles of rocks and a wheelbarrow half full of stones is where I stopped for the day

As I figured, Bill opened the box of parts for his generator and put things in place. He can’t test it today because we are all out of gas, but tomorrow for sure. Hopefully, for the low price of $50 we got our new generator fixed. I listened while Bill caught me up on the events of yesterday and this morning. Everything is all set for the visitation and memorial on Monday, so hopefully he can relax now.

Clemson decided to join me to get the mail today

I get a kick out of how he stops when he sees I stop
He doesn't want to walk any further than he has to

While he dozed in his chair with Clemson, I dug more rocks up. We need more water but Bill has had a couple of tough days and didn’t feel like going tonight. We still have over 30 gallons so there is no rush. At 5 I plugged us in and put the lasagna I’d made on Monday in the oven. It isn’t necessarily a meal for a hot day but we need to eat it and tonight was the perfect time. Neither of us had it in us to barbecue.

Sleek back little hummer visits the feeder today

So, it was delicious but I was so hungry that I forgot to take a picture. Breakfast was a very long time ago and I’d worked up an appetite. We cleaned up the dishes and I sat at my laptop while Bill responded to messages on Facebook, texts and Messenger. The outpouring of love and condolences is amazing and still coming in. At 8 o’clock, Bill poured us each a rum and coke. This drink is for you, Dad! Cheers!

Look at his long beak

Beautiful sky after sunset tonight

I hope everyone has enjoyed their day. We have had a good day and are reunited again. Today I also want to wish Yvonne, Bill’s oldest daughter, a very happy ‘SPECIAL’ birthday! Live it up, beautiful lady, you deserve it!

Happy Birthday, Yvonne!
I borrowed this from her husband, Dennis', Facebook post

Thank you for stopping by today. Your comments mean a lot to us.