London for Bill, Williamsford for Patsy, Home for Gibbs

The Ridge

On Wednesday, June 26^th it was a surprise to see sunshine when we first woke up around 6:30. I stayed in bed until 7 but Bill was up getting washed and dressed. He had an appointment with our family doctor in the big city at 1 and so planned a few other stops in around London while he was there. 😊 His blood sugar numbers were up a bit and the doc wanted to chat about it.

good morning!
Gibbs and I took a walk this morning.

Because Bill is already diabetic, kind of right on the border line and because the number didn’t jump by much, there was no real concern and no need for any medications. Yay! That’s what we were worried he might do and Bill was prepared with his ‘we’re going to change a few things in my diet first’ speech. It wasn’t even necessary. This is a fairly new doctor to us; we’ve only seen him a couple of times each – but he is growing on us.

We've all probably seen the performance
this bird puts on.
She/he thought we were just too close to her nest
so did everything in her power to take us in another
direction. So brave!
All the while calling 'kildeer, kildeer!'

So, I had the morning to myself with Gibbs and on first thought, ‘my’ grass area needs cutting. It had rained overnight (again) and things were still too wet for my little mower, so Gibbs and I went for a walk almost to the corner instead. Then I sat in the Bunky at the puzzle for a while, working on the sky area. Still not a lot of progress BUT 3 more border pieces were located! They are really skinny and odd shapes so that’s my excuse. Only 2 more to find. I think. 😊

Well, this is supposed to be a picture
of our pond along the lane.
It's through there somewhere but the sun is pretty.

At 10:30, I fried up a couple of pieces of egg plant in butter for an early lunch/late breakfast kind of deal and left Gibbs in charge at 11. 

I don't even need to bread it or add parmesan,
it is so good just like this.

I drove to Williamsford to clean the bed and breakfast for Robin. She will be flying home tonight from Nfld and has had guests every night since she left on Monday morning. It was 1:30 when I closed the door behind me.

Driving along North Line towards
the highway

It's a pretty drive, on a dry day.
In or after the heavy rain, it wouldn't be fun.

I dropped the heavy bath towels at her place, putting them in the dryer there. They don’t dry well with 3 full sets of sheets, as I found out when I arrived. Jessica had kind of overloaded them when she left yesterday. Some guests don’t use any bath towels, others use 4 or 5 or 6, the latter being odd because there are only 4 guests – usually.

Looks like unwelcome guests.
It was empty though so I removed it.

The day had clouded over but was still very warm and humid by the time I returned home. I hopped in the shower immediately, it was very hot and sweaty, I’m hoping they’ll put a/c in that house. 😊 For the remainder of the day, we stayed indoors. Bill had messaged after his appointment that all was well and he was coming home with a good report. I could have canceled and gone with him but he didn't 'need' me and he deserves a free day to toot around without me sometimes too.♥ 

The entrance improves with the Tiger Lilies
in bloom

At 3, the sky opened up and we had a very heavy downpour for about 10- 12 minutes. It got windy, the rain was driving across the Ridge enough to make things white outside and the thunder was rumbling all around us. It didn’t get too windy, to the point of me being frightened, but I was still glad when it stopped! Bill was home at 5 and by then I’d finished my J.P. book. Oh my, it was so good!

These are at 2:30

For supper, we had pancakes and little sausage. My pancakes were keto and once more, they were delicious! The syrup was a treat and we discussed how it’s a good thing we only have them once a month. 😊 

The beginning of the rain

Our pails get filled really fast!

At 3:00, you couldn't see anything for a few minutes.

After cleanup, a lot of dishes to hand wash and then Bill went upstairs to watch a movie. Methinks he’ll be asleep in no time. He is getting a break from work, which we are both looking at as a blessing right now. Things to do at home and time spent together.

A tasty supper.

This was a good day and another bit of cash in my account. The weather continues to be ‘funny’ (no other word for it!) with a couple of cool days & nights again. LOL and around the corner a new month.

Chippy is trying to hid in the long grass.
Good night!

Thank you for popping in.

The Weekend Ends on a High Note

The Ridge

On Sunday, July 9^th Bill was up first. Gibbs slept in until 6:35 which was nice. Bill stayed up and Gibbs and I slept for another half hour. I felt like having a bowl of Life cereal this morning, so that’s what I did, while Bill had his. He was all ready to go before 8 as Black Beauty was still hooked up to the cargo trailer.

A morning walk for a change

Gibbs and I sat while I finished my tea and then I slipped on a light jacket and we went for our morning walk. I haven’t made too much of a commitment for walks lately and I’m sure Gibbs is fully aware of my absence of energy. 😊 We walked to the corner before we turned around for home. I let him off the leash to come up the lane and he walked slowly within 2 feet of me.

At least I know how to disassemble
and reassemble a dv player now. LOL

We have a new collar for Gibbs, one that only makes a sound and vibrates and only when we use the remote to do so. It isn’t a bark collar, it is a correction collar for when he strays to the far field, over the fence or wherever he is out of sight and does not respond to our call. It arrived Friday and he is the best little guy since we started using it. We only put it on him occasionally but are very impressed. He does not get a shock or a static buzz. 

the drive to Gayles

So, today, one of my goals was to tidy the Bunky and I did that for about an hour. I wanted to test the old dvd player out there and when the tray wouldn’t open, I took it apart to see what the problem was. Then, 8 tiny screws later, out and then in, I was no better off. The player is toast but at least now I know. No point in it taking up space.

Gibbs was such a

good boy

It looked like it might rain but by the time Bill returned from flying, we had nothing. It was a mild enough day but not a lot of sun today at all. Bill and Gibbs dozed upstairs while I made rice pudding for supper. We were invited, along with my 2 other sisters and hubbies, to Gayle and John’s so Donna and I contributed with the dessert portion. 😊

It was a wonderful meal.

L to R
John, Gerry, Bill, Cathy, Gayle
Donna, Bill

L to R
Donna, Patsy, Bill, John, Gerry,
Bill, Cathy

Gibbs was invited and with his collar on him, he behaved so good. We had a lovely visit and a delicious meal of roast, potatoes, turnip, carrots and corn. Yum! A true Sunday night meal. ♥ It was mainly a get together but they also wanted to share the information that they’d sold their house. Well, we all knew (sort of) but now seeing the sign, it was official. Congratulations!

As we ate, Gibbs slept under the table
I'm sure the calming effect is from the collar

We left around 8 and when we got home, Gibbs ate his supper too. It was a good day and a nice way to end it with family.

Top picture - SOLD property
Bottom picture - the drive home
Good night

Thank you for your visit!

A Long Hospital Wait, Decent News Though

The Ridge

On Monday, June 26^th I had a mental block when I woke up. I saw the clock and saw Gibbs and Bill get up to go out at 6:30. When they crawled back into bed, we all went back to sleep. Next time I woke up, it was 7:20 and Bill said “don’t you have to clean this morning?” Oh darn! Usually, it is on my mind immediately, once I wake up but today of all days, I slept in.

I haven't seen the cows much since we've come home
They are just moving out to the bigger pasture here

I left them in bed and got myself ready. While the tea was brewing, I fed Gibbs and he gobbled it up in no time. He still has his days when he’s picky but for the most part, he eats quickly twice a day. 😊 It had rained a lot through the night again so when I remembered that I was supposed to stop to water Robin’s plants today, it was obvious I wouldn’t need to.

Good morning, Bessie, Buttercup, Daisy, Junior, Jersey!
For you, Loree. ♥

I had the Mat clean in no time but didn’t wash the floors today. They weren’t bad at all and I was on a schedule so scooted home. I noticed the maple sapling had fallen over again so stopped at Robin’s home. Of course, the rain started again as I left the laundromat so I got wet again. This time, I moved the tree over in front of the garage on solid footing, their cement driveway. Live and learn but I’ll need to keep an eye that it continues to get rain in that spot.

Bill was just getting out of the shower when I arrived so I had more time than I thought. I just changed my clothes and we left Gibbs in charge around 9:30. It was only a 45-minute drive to the Owen Sound hospital for his appointment, but we are always more comfortable being early rather than pushing the limits. 😊 We waited for 2 hours in the wait room and then when he was called, we waited another 55 minutes in Room 3 waiting for the surgeon.

Playing the waiting game.
We did learn from the X-rays/Ultrasound
when Dr. Costas told us Bill tore 3 ligaments 😖

He seems nice enough but I wasn’t overly impressed with Dr. Costa. He is a busy man, no doubt, but I didn’t feel he was into the ‘meeting’. Bill liked him, I think, so we got the verdict. His verdict. Do physio for about 6 weeks (1 or 2 x /week, whatever Bill wants) and take an anti-inflammatory as often as needed. That will keep the swelling down.

We do enjoy the Uncle Burgers
and we didn't have to cook them.

The good news was that he didn’t recommend surgery. Partly because of Bill’s age and partly because it’s only a 50/50 chance of improvement after the fact. Well, that’s good enough for us so 10 minutes (if that) later, we paid the parking fee and left. By now, it was 1:30, his appointment was 10:50, and I was starving! My yogourt this morning had worn off long ago. We stopped at our favourite fast food joint and had Uncle Burger combos at A & W. Then we were full. LOL

It poured as we left the shopping mall
but only for aobut 5 minutes

Bill dropped me at Value Village while he went to Canadian Tire and Princess Auto. VV doesn’t impress me much anymore – at least not for their clothes. The prices are nuts so it’s a good thing I really wasn’t looking for anything in particular. 😊 We needed to replace our tall lamp that sits in between our recliners, the other one I bought a few years ago doesn’t stand well. The joints are stripped so I’ll move it to the Bunky to help with lighting for puzzling.

Our new to us lamp - $15

I did find 2 tops for under $5 each and a green denim skirt for $6. That’s it. Gibbs was very happy to see us and in the long run, we are happy to have a result – of some kind. Bill called one of the two recommended therapists in Hanover and was told he can’t get in until July 20^th. Bummer, we’ll try the second one tomorrow and hope for a sooner date. So, some ‘up’ news and some ‘down’ news and we’ll just see where it goes from here. We all had a little snooze around 4, exhausted from doing nothing!

The blackbirds/crows/grackles (whatever they are)
were having a heyday.
The suet is all gone, in a day. LOL
Chippy is in there somewhere.

He is on the far right in thihs picture

Neither of us were hungry for supper, so back home after Gibbs and I walked to the corner, Bill went to the Hangar. He’ll make a sandwich when he’s ready and I’ll do the same. The wet warm day turned into a dry warm evening, with the sun drying things up before bed time. We reached a high of 22C/71F today but it felt a few degrees warmer than that with the humidity. Such is Ontario, Canada. 😊

Even though it is overcast,
the greenery is brilliant.

I hope y’all had a good day. By the way, I finished the last 2 episodes of The Marvellous Mrs. Maisel last night. Now, I'm sad it's over. I loved it!

It turned into a lovely day!
Good night!

Thank you for the visit.

Breathing Easier, Last Goodbye

Quail Ridge RV Park

On Good Friday, Apr. 7^th we were all up by 6:30. I’m turning into my hubby, almost, once I’m awake, I’m ready to get up. We had our cereal and morning brew before I took Gibbs for his walk. Gibbs had a fearful encounter with a cat tree. It was a lovely morning and I didn’t need the extra layer. I slipped it off as soon as I stepped outside. 10C under sunny skies is a great way to start a morning. We hoped for good news today. 😊

Good Friday morning!

I took advantage of the heat outside and sat with my book. It is an even better story than the last one for keeping the pages flipping. It was called The Chef by James Patterson, in case you’re interested. It felt like I was watching one of those movies. You know, where you scream at the tv “no! don’t go in there!” Bill had his shower and then around 10:30 we got a text from Jose at Ford “your truck is ready for pick up” and the total owing.

What is that thing, Mom?

It has a smell, I'm not sure what it is

Did it just move?
What a goof, he wouldn't go any closer.

We walked over to get a lift into town from Deb, wasting no more time. We wanted Black Beauty back where she belongs. I’ll just say that neither of us were impressed with the service advisor’s attitude when we paid our bill but we just got out and went to say goodbye to Danny, the salesman, who’s insistence on our behalf got things in motion. Otherwise, we believe the truck would still be in the lot.

I knew I'd get a picture of this sign

We drove home after filling her up with the good stuff, 😉, and will get ready for an early departure in the morning. For those curious, we only approved the drain, tank drop, flush and replacement of a cracked fuel line and because of not following Ford’s protocol and recommendations, they would not warranty it. Things happen for a reason and soon after we got home, a couple pulled in beside us with a triple axle Momentum. You can read Bill's better version here. 

Yup, it's diesel and clearly marked
at a different station

Jason and Jennifer are quite a bit younger than us and introduced themselves right away. Jason listened to our story and then said he was a 30-year diesel mechanic and he assured us that we will be fine. 😊 That is worth more than what we got from the service department. They can be followed here on Instagram or Facebook under No Sticks NoBricks. Anyway, we’re happy and things are moving forward. We finished our books, Bill is two J.A. Jance books ahead of me now, and then had lunch. I mixed up the egg salad for sandwiches and will make them tonight.

While we chatted with the neighbours at the back
of their toyhauler, Gibbs kept peeking under at
their 7 year old lab (?)

We joined Tom and Deb for Happy Hour at 3:30 and Bill and I had an alcoholic drink to celebrate today’s good fortune. We hugged goodbye, for the last time this season. ♥ We’re happy to be moving forward. For supper, Rosy, air fried sausages, I boiled the last of our potatoes on the stove and cooked 2 corn on the cob in the microwave. It was all very good and we were done by 6:30.

Sitting at Tom and Deb's
this was the view

Walking back from the clubhouse
this was the view
We're on the other side of the Momentum
They are from Alaska

After clean up, Bill walked the garbage up and I returned a book to the library. We’ve finished quite a few over the winter. 😉 Tonight, we’ll continue to read since we didn’t put our ‘crippled’ satellite dish out. Truthfully, we didn’t expect to be here all week and each day was questionable.

Delicious!
I have leftover potatoes to fry up for a few nights. 

We reached a high of 77F/25C and that is the best we’ve had it in a long time. We won’t need heat on tonight with it dropping only to 45F/7C. It should be a good night for sleeping, with windows closed. 

This is what the next few days look like in this area and not much different for our first day of travel. 

Donna sent these pictures of our
summer site on the Ridge

It looks wonderful with no snow!
Waiting for our arrival, hope it stays that way!

The day turned out well for us and after the conversation with our new neighbours, Jason and Jennifer, we are confident for our journey homeward. I hope you’ve had a good day too.

Happy Easter
This was a good Good Friday!
Good night!

Thank you for the visit.