A Strange Visitor

    I opened my door to pick up the newspaper this morning and came face to face with a rather sorry looking raccoon! It was right there on the doormat and made a move to come indoors before I slammed the door! It hung around for a while then slunk off but I think it may have been sick as it wasn't acting normally. Usually raccoons are nocturnal and, although I have seen them around, mostly at night, they don't normally come close to the house. I hope it has gone on to other pastures. This is a tricky time of year to have them around as the females are looking for a warm spot to have their babies and can be quite destructive.

   Fitness class this morning followed by coffee and socializing. Then back home to change and pack a lunch before returning for my shift in the kitchen at the Senior's centre. It was very quiet this afternoon as most of the classes are done until April and the Drop-in Card players were rather sparse today. I was very lucky as I had walked over with just a few sprinkles of rain then watched in horror as the skies opened with a very heavy downpour which showed little sign of letting up. Fortunately, when I left for home the clouds had passed over and we even had some sun around 4:00 p.m. The temperature got up to 10C.

   I managed quite well to stay away from the carbs until supper - just a banana with peanut butter and yogurt for breakfast, a cookie with my morning coffee and soup for lunch. However, there were some crackers late in the afternoon and pasta for dinner, quite a big bowl, but I did have a big salad too. So, mostly good choices.

   Just one more chore before I call it a night - look over the dances for tomorrow's demo at the retirement home. I hate to mess up a set and I see Cheryl and I are first couple in several of the dances so I will have to be sure I know them at least!

   

Fashion Show

     Cool and rainy but, unlike 2014 at this time of year, no snow! It was an easy start to the day as I had declined to play tennis and was going to the retired teachers' lunch which this month included a fashion show. I had a good start on the low carbs - just fruit and yogurt for breakfast, had no morning snack but it all fell apart once lunch was served!

    The lunch was at a gorgeous facility, Cedarbrae Golf Club. First they brought warm bread to the table to accompany a silky, delicious squash soup. I had two pieces of bread with lashings of butter. Next was broccoli quiche and salad greens, so I guess I have to count the pastry crust. Dessert was petit fours (I had four!) and coffee. To top it off, my supper tonight was scrambled eggs and a croissant. Naughty me! I will try to do better tomorrow.

    The fashion show, put on by Peppertree Fashions from Markham, was lots of fun and the outfits were gorgeous. However, they were all very expensive but I liked the skinny jeans that seem to be popular this year. I bought a beautiful turquoise necklace and immediately put it on as it greatly enhanced my outfit. I know I have lots of things with which to wear it and it was 30% off. We all got another 30% off coupon so I may try to find some nice pants for Spring. Luckily my bank account is looking pretty healthy at the moment!

   

A Busy Weekend

   Gorgeous day yesterday - up in the high teens and I sat out in the sun for quite some time between bouts of garden tidy up. Lucy was here for the weekend and we had a couple of long walks. She is becoming much better behaved while on the leash.

   The monthly dance at Crescent School last night and I danced every dance but came home with aching feet. It took me forever to fall asleep despite a soak in the tub with Epsom Salts. Lucy kept me company as I tossed and turned. The clocks went forward overnight but I woke up before 9:00 a.m. Steve and Alison came for Lucy around 2:00 p.m. and I headed back to bed and slept until 4:00 p.m. so feel back to normal.

    Not as mild today and overcast with a chilly wind so no time in the garden. I used some chunks of stem ginger lurking in the fridge to make a gingerbread cake which is very tasty albeit a bit crumbly. I sliced it for the freezer but nibbled all the broken bits! Just a bowl of soup for lunch. Leftover stew and cabbage for dinner and still some left for tomorrow, that's three meals for the price of a half pound of beef. Apart from the gingercake today was a low carb day. Good for me!

It Feels Like Spring

   Out without a jacket for  a few hours this afternoon. I also saw some robins (a sure sign of approaching Spring) and, unbelievably, a woodpecker looking for bugs in my Mountain Ash tree! It was sunny until late afternoon when the temperature started to drop. I walked down to the corner store for a battery for the gas fire remote, and it was getting quite chilly. I had a tour of the garden before the sun went down and there are now lots of shoots appearing.

   Tennis this morning with Hendrina, Swan and Lillian and we had two good sets but ran out of time to finish the third set. I went straight from there to progressive bridge with the RTO group - six tables of very welcoming players and free coffee and cookies!  There were quite a few people there who also play at the senior's centre I attend so it was helpful to have a few familiar faces. I was once again, probably, the weakest player but no one complained and I managed to make a few contracts.

   Nothing exciting for dinner - just some leftover macaroni to which I added onion, a mushroom, some cheese sauce and some peas and, on top, panko breadcrumbs and grated parmesan - very tasty. However, I had some camembert on crackers with grapes before dinner - my special treat!