I took this photo as my husband was learning to do a flip turn in the pool. He has been swimming for exercise since a back injury has been preventing him from running. Our daughter, who was visiting from Denver for a few days, has been a life long swimmer and was teaching her dad this new 'trick'.
March 31, 2009
March 30, 2009
Day 89 - Cold geese
After our spring snowstorm yesterday, the weather started warming up today. My daughters and I took a brisk, long walk and saw these geese resting in the snow. Further along, we saw these crocus flowers nestling in the snow, too. I'm sure they'll be happier when we get back to true spring weather.
March 29, 2009
Day 88 - Spring snowstorm
This is what we woke up to this morning. I grabbed the camera & took the photo out the bathroom window. I hope this is our last spring snowstorm for this year!
March 28, 2009
Day 87 - Cold rain
It was raining, cold, freezing rain when we left the fitness center this afternoon. Although it hasn't turned to snow yet, the weather folks are predicting 6 inches in our area overnight. It is supposed to be spring!
We spent Earth Hour with all the lights in the house off & candles lit in the fireplace.
We spent Earth Hour with all the lights in the house off & candles lit in the fireplace.
March 27, 2009
Day 86 - Eye Doctor
I had a small surgery at the eye doctor today. I was a bit nervous since he was making a couple tiny holes in my right iris using a laser. The procedure was necessary because it will prevent pressure from building up in my eye. It went fine and I won't be nearly as nervous in two weeks when he does the second eye.
March 26, 2009
Day 85 - Class ring
Today I was cleaning out one of the places in our house where things get stashed out of site & doesn't get cleaned out very often. I found this ring. It is my mom's high school class ring. She graduated from Rockford East High School in 1947. She gave me this ring before she died and I had stashed it away for safe keeping. When I found it today, I started thinking about how she must have saved to afford that ring back in 1947.
March 25, 2009
Day 84 - GPS
As much as I love using technology, I didn't much like my GPS today! I asked it to find a Walmart for me since my husband wanted me to do an errand. I wasn't near home, so I figured I would find a Walmart close to where I was. First The GPS lead me to a Sam's Club instead of a Walmart. Then it lead me to a Walmart that was torn down and being rebuilt. I guess tomorrow I will head to the Walmart close to my house!
March 24, 2009
Day 83 - Silent piano
Neither my husband nor I play the piano, so it sits silent now that we are empty nesters. When our girls were young, I loved listening to them practice or just sit down & play for fun. I wonder what to do with the silent piano now.
March 23, 2009
Day 82 - Child bride
Today was one of the rare days when I had nothing on the calendar & I had time to play with some photo websites. This photo was created using www.loonapix.com. The original photo is of my 29 year old daughter when she was about 7 and dressed as a bride for Halloween. Loonapix has lots of neat effects to try out.
March 22, 2009
Day 81 - Dogs
One of my goals in retirement is to get a dog. We haven't had one in many years and I would love to have a furry friend to love now that we are empty nesters. I definitely want a shelter dog and a dog that is already an adult. Scott & I went to a Pet Expo today at the Arlington Park Race Track. We wanted to get a feel for what shelters are in our area and what kinds of dogs are available for adoption. Here are a few of the dogs that were at the Expo that tugged at my heartstrings. Our next step will be visiting some of the shelters.
March 21, 2009
Day 80 - Bunny
This cement bunny is nestled into the garden next to our patio. I see it every morning out our kitchen window. My mom gave it to me many years ago & it always reminds me of her. I'm not sure what kind of plants those are, but they make a nice ground cover and always green up very quickly once the snow is gone.
March 20, 2009
Day 79 - Heart surgery
My father-in-law, Bob, is incredible! An angiogram earlier this week, showed he has serious heart problems. After discussions with his doctors, it was determined the best course of action was to try a pacemaker first. So, today he had the pacemaker surgically implanted. This photo was taken less than two hours after the surgery. I love his smile, his sense of humor, and his love for family. We know his great attitude will help him during his recovery.
***Update, he came home from the hospital & is doing well one day later!
***Update, he came home from the hospital & is doing well one day later!
March 19, 2009
Day 78 - Scott's Birthday
We had a very quiet early dinner (just the two of us) at Peggy Kinnane's in Arlington Heights. We'll celebrate again with family next weekend. By the way....he did share his dessert with me!
March 18, 2009
Day 77 - Robin
Now I can really believe that spring is here. I've seen my first spring robins this week during my walks. Our first official day of spring comes this weekend!
March 17, 2009
Day 76 - Shadows
Today was St. Patrick's Day & I subbed at Ivy Hill today. The weather was gorgeous, with the temperature hitting 70º this afternoon. Scott called from work to ask if I wanted to walk with him before dinner, so we headed over to the lake when he got home. These are our long shadows at about 6:00 p.m.
March 16, 2009
Day 75 - Swan
This beautiful swan was enjoying a swim as I walked around Lake Arlington today. It was one of the first days that all the ice was melted in the lake. Although still cool, it was a nice afternoon to walk since there was no wind. Compare the flags below to the flags when I
walked around the lake last month.
walked around the lake last month.
March 15, 2009
Day 74 - Dried Grass
We're definitely getting close to spring. I took a walk around our yard today to check out how our trees, bushes, & other plants survived the rough winter. It is just about time to cut back this native prairie grass so that it can have a fresh start.
March 14, 2009
Day 73 - Bikes
This is the cycling room at our fitness center. It is a popular workout and a really high energy area when there is a class going on. I haven't had the courage to take a spin class yet, although I have been riding the bikes on the fitness floor.
March 13, 2009
Day 72 - Mothers-to-be
These are the three mothers-to-be that were showered with love today. Katie teaches 2nd, Ali teaches 3rd, and Suzanne teaches 4th. It was so fun seeing their joy & excitement as they get ready for their babies!
March 12, 2009
Day 71 - Baby gifts
The school I retired from is having a baby shower tomorrow for three mothers-to-be. Today, I'm wrapping the gifts I'll bring. I struck it rich at Babies R Us, thanks to a great sale, the new moms get twice as much!
March 11, 2009
Day 70 - Bowling
It doesn't take any thinking or math skills to do the scoring in bowling now that it is all computerized. Scoring in bowling may be a lost art. How many of you remember scoring by hand at the bowling alley?
These are my fun bowling partners (they took the photo of themselves)! They also took a picture of me!
These are my fun bowling partners (they took the photo of themselves)! They also took a picture of me!
March 10, 2009
Day 69 - CFL Bulbs
We learned an expensive lesson about CFL bulbs today. They do NOT work in fixtures that are on timers or dimmers. We had put these three CFL bulbs in our outside lights that turn on & off automatically via a timer. Two of the 3 fixtures stopped working. When the electrician came out, it cost us $100 for us to learn that you can't use CFLs with timers. We were TRYING to save money on energy.
March 9, 2009
Day 68 - Spring?
What a difference a day makes! As I was leaving to do errands today, I noticed these sprouts in our garden. These daffodils are an early sign that spring is on its way!
March 8, 2009
Day 67 - Rain!
Today was a very rainy Sunday. We got about 2.5 inches of rain, which is way more than the already saturated ground could take. This photo was taken from inside our house. You see the wet patio at the bottom of the photo and at the top you see a river of water that isn't normally part of our yard.
March 7, 2009
Day 66 - 29th Birthday
Tonight we celebrated my oldest daughter's 29th birthday. My husband & I took Cheryl & her husband and my husband's parents out to dinner. We had a great dinner and lots of laughs!
Happy Birthday Cheryl!!
Happy Birthday Cheryl!!
March 6, 2009
Day 65 - Fun
I was subbing in a music classroom today and had lots of fun! I brought my camera with me, but forgot to take a photo. So, tonight I had fun playing with a new website, Fun Photo Box. The photo I imported is me swimming with the dolphins last November. Fun Photo Box has lots of great effects to play with!
March 5, 2009
Day 64 - Sunset
Sunsets are not easy to capture in the suburban midwest. This one caught my eye this afternoon when I stopped to take a walk late this afternoon. It was about 5:30 p.m., which means our days are getting longer as we approach spring.
March 4, 2009
Day 63 - Book Club
This is the book we discussed at my book club tonight. The story is about a girl's life in Germany from 1915 to 1951. We had a very good discussion. It is not a book I would have chosen to read on my own, but belonging to a book club has encouraged me to branch out in my reading.
March 3, 2009
Day 62 - Lockers
While I was away from our fitness center on one of my recent trips, they painted motivational sayings on the walls of the locker room. I like this one, it reminds me to set goals and to be deliberate in my actions.
March 2, 2009
Day 61 - USPS
I included the Post Office in my errands today. I had the important task of mailing a friend's cell phone to her after she inadvertently left it at the hotel where we were attending a tech conference. I wish I could have delivered it in person!
March 1, 2009
Day 60 - Thank you
We lent our box turtle, Rainman, to a teacher at my daughter's school so that they could have a first hand experience with an animal they were studying. Rainman enjoyed his visit, and I love the thank you note signed by all the preschoolers!
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