Custom trunk underway

Well, it appears I woke up for a couple of light coughing sessions around 2 and 4. However, oddly enough, I woke again at 5:55 very awake. Finally, after making all my mental to-do lists, I fell back asleep before waking up at 9. In the night, I heard a sound from Harley, and S asked if she wanted to come out. I thought it sounded like her foot on the kennel bottom, so I was surprised to find her locked in her kennel all night long. Neither of us remembers closing the door! Sorry, Har! I fed her and the cats, then made the coffees for us and got on to marketing my latest tutorials. 

These cute photos are from Nathan for a couple days ago, how sweet

Today he cut her hair again :)

It was another beautiful day ahead, with a high temperature of 4 degrees Celsius. S spent some time browsing through his devices to catch up on the news. Meanwhile, I headed out to work on the custom trunk, which he had helped me lift on the workbench. It’s quite heavy, and he had a Zoom meeting with a financial expert at 11 am.

I dedicated the next two hours to cleaning, preparing, and applying the first coat of paint to the trunk. I arrived back at work at 1 pm for a late lunch. S had prepared a delicious meal of chicken noodle soup and a tuna sandwich. I really appreciate his thoughtfulness!

I returned to work on the trunk while S took Harley for a walk in the pleasant weather. However, the weather forecast predicts a drastic drop in temperature on Friday, with a low of -20 degrees Celsius, compared to last night’s low of +3 degrees Celsius. It’s sad to think about the poor animals living outdoors in such volatile conditions. I had text with the client and suggested various options for the trunk, and she decided to go with painting the hardware. Thankfully, this choice saved me a lot of time, as cutting around the hardware had been a tedious task, and taping off the edges alone was incredibly time-consuming before I decided to quit. The second coat went much faster than the edges and touch-ups.

S attempted to fix Shaina’s jeep, which lacks heat. However, the part Nathan had gotten might not be the correct one. He searched YouTube and found another potential part, but unfortunately, it’s not available and requires a more extensive repair. Meanwhile, I cleaned the garage. I threw in a load of laundry, scrubbed the sink, washing machine, and table, and took the cat rug outside to use the shedding blade to rid it of hair enjoy the beautiful weather. I also threw in bones to make broth, swept the floor, and stacked a pile of boxes. S gave Har a quick brush outside and a well-deserved bath.

Time for a cold beer after all that work. I put a frozen pork roast in the instant pot for supper then updated paint info while S relaxed with his laptop in big brown. We paired supper with a salad and Annie's (fancy KD) for a most delicious supper. Time for me to write today's blog post while S watched hockey and perused his devices. Britt was out at 7 to pick up her vet kit and go check someone's horse, what a nice girl.

Our sick but oh so sweet little girl did not want to sleep but rather wanted a fancy hairdo.

S decided to skip the hockey so we went for a hot tub under a cloudy but warm skies. We then relaxed and watched yet another new movie. Tonight was on the first moon landing called - Fly Me To The Moon. It was good. We then started another new series called Shrinking with Harrison Ford watching episodes till after midnight. Then unable to sleep, we listened to a podcast of some guy who wants to live forever. He is 47 but parts of his body are aged at 18!! I think he also has a Netflix show with all this research and ways to improve longevity of life.

But are we really getting better?

So, it appears that I’ve developed a poor sleep pattern, related to this virus. I’ve been awake, coughing at 2, 4:30, and 5:55 AM. Harley woke up a bit later but just changed beds. I thought we were improving, but it seems like we might not be. My stomach issue has resolved, which is a significant for me. S feels his symptoms are gradually subsiding but still crappy. Renn started taking antibiotics yesterday because she’s been experiencing a low-grade fever recently. Nathan isn’t feeling much better, and Kaylin’s condition has worsened today. Overall, we all have a diverse mix of strains that I believe are circulating.

Sun dog Lexi

Renny went back to "school" where her mates were all sick and crabby ;(

Har had her breakfast, and I prepared our coffees while the prince relaxed in bed. After uploading yesterday’s blog, I engaged in some marketing before tidying up the house for a buyer coming and watering the plants. S moved into his big brown with his devices. I prepared my storefront area and also watered the basement plants. The customer arrived early at 11:15 and prepared her vehicle for loading. S and I carried the teal dresser up and loaded it into her van, while she loaded the small black table. Success, as every piece found a buyer, and this woman even took two!

S settled back into his chair, caught up on the news, and prepared a pot of Lipton chicken noodle soup for lunch. Before my bowl of soup, I diligently worked on updating all my sales sites and spreadsheets. After lunch, S went over to Matt’s place to install the door set. Meanwhile, I focused on accounting while he was away. Once he returned, I continued working on accounting for about an hour finally catching up.

After another extensive internet browsing session, S decided to clean out his truck to prepare for the bison cull on Friday. I went out to tidy up my workspace and get ready to tackle the custom trunk project that I’ve been procrastinating on. Once I returned inside, S brewed a cup of coffee and took Harley for a much-needed walk then fed her. Meanwhile, I prepared an order of stain products. I then started going through all my phone photos that I had backed up on my Mac desktop. Although it’s only a year old, the Mac is full and now feels sluggish after backing up both the phone and photos.

Supper was a fantastic taco salad. We absolutely love our taco meals. I wrote today’s blog on the island while S watched the Flames on the TV. We headed out to soak in the tub again during intermission. After my shower I returned to photo purging and S to the hockey game. Britt was out at 7:30 to feed her horses. After the Flames loss, we watched a great action show called Wolfs with Clooney and Pitt.

Things are looking up

Things are looking up even after a short wakeup to cough a bit at 2:30 and 4:30 again, I woke up with fairly good breathing. There’s still coughing and nose blowing, but much less. For S too. Harley wanted out again at 5:30, and it wasn’t until I was up and working on marketing that I found she had vomited by the window and in the vent. Fortunately, I had made our fancy coffees, and I felt better to clean everything up. This led to vacuuming out many of the vents, and S dumped the nearly full vacuum canister.

Time to get a new tutorial created. This one was for the tall grey lingerie dresser. Then, it had to be sent to all the sponsors and shared on various websites. S went out and rolled a bale of hay for the horses, as the temperature is currently -3 degrees Celsius, but it will be warmer tomorrow so easier to roll on hard ground.

This little dancer is to cute, videos from her Mom from couple days back

We loaded Harley and headed to town but first picked up the mail where we had our first Nespresso pod order arrive along with a pile of mail. In town I grabbed some groceries while the 2 waited, we rolled thru Tim's for a tea and Harley got a timbit much to her delight then S ran in to do returns at HH. He stopped next at Rona to buy the original door set he first got and will have to drill a hole in Matt's house door to install. I had it wrong and assumed it was the chicken palace originally. Next stop I ran in for a whisk broom to use o n the technique the custom trunk needs. Our next stop was to pick up Cooper as it has turned into a sunny lovely +2 day.

I ran in and grabbed a new library book I had ordered and our last stop was to pick out some pretty flowers gifted to us from Mom and Papa K. THANK YOU so much for the kind gesture to bring color to our dreary sick house that is on the mend we think.

Back at the ranch all was unloaded then we took the dogs for a lovely yet brisk walk to the gate and back saying hi to the horses on our way by as they ate fresh hay.

Be darned if I did not have time to get yesterday's blog complete so finished it while S relaxed in big brown. The dogs were fed as S started cooking the taco meat. He chopped up the veggies and we had a tasty supper. His Flames were playing on Prime tonight so he got his laptop going and hit big brown to watch while I was back to working on today's blog.

We went out for a hot tub soak under the first full moon of 2025 - the wolf moon during first intermission. I was back to the blog and S to his game both skipping a shower. B was out before 8 to do her chores then took Cooper home. After the Flames win we watched a few more Loot episodes before calling it a night.

B and I are Kaylin's models

So, it appears that the over-the-counter medications aren’t effective in relieving the symptoms throughout the night unless or maybe it's the combination with the antibiotics. Last night after taking them, I experienced similar issues, including coughing at 2:30 and 4:30, and Harley wanted to go out at 6:30. However, I didn’t have a headache at least. It’s also possible that the growth regulator lady had mentioned that they would arrive at 8:30, which led me to think about the early start. Naturally, I fell back asleep until about 8:30, when Jenkins started crying. I got up, fed the cats, dogs, and made coffees. At 9, the gal called, having gone north of town instead of south. I jumped in the shower and got ready for the day while waiting for them to arrive at 9:30 for pickup.

B finally arrived well after 10 p.m. Cooper finished his business and went in the house with Harley, then she jumped in. We left before 10:30 a.m., but the roads were terrible after the recent sleeting rain and snow. S turned onto the #1 at the 24 to find some dry pavement. We dropped Britt off at SugarMe at 11:15 a.m. and headed to the townhouse.

Renn and Nathan were watching TV and playing when we arrived. He went to take a shower and head to the mall to try on suits for the wedding. Meanwhile, S and I were entertained by our little miss as usual. She had some of her favorite alphagetti for lunch. After a bit more playtime, I read her some stories, sang songs, and she peacefully fell asleep at 12:45.

Renn was excited to show her new truck and sesame street toys she recently got from Shanice.

Before and after :)

quite the kid <3

Then it was my turn to get the eyebrow treatment. Britt brought the car back to Kaylin's to hang out, take Lexi on a walk then get Renn up from her almost hour and a half nap. 

marking out the eyebrow area to be filled

The amazing technician hard at work

Disregard the chapped red nose, I need Renn's nos balm "medicine" and the brows are a bit red after the shaping wax. Below K is working on the next client. The 5 girls worked straight thru the day with no breaks doing brows.

Sheldon came to pick me up after 2 p.m. Once we got back to the townhouse, we bundled up Renn and all walked to McDonald’s to get a late lunch. S ordered a 4-patty burger called the McDavid, which he didn’t really enjoy. B and I tried the grilled chicken avocado wrap, which was terrible with dried pickles and cucumbers on it. It was a total disaster for a meal, but thankfully, the fries were okay.

Renn kept us entertained with her antics once again. Nathan returned home around 3:30, having discovered that he intends to wear a classic black suit to the wedding. After a brief visit, we packed up and headed to Costco. Nathan had warned us that Sunday would be the worst day to visit, especially since the store was located in East Hills. However, we managed to get thru the ridiculous crowds of inconsiderate people and bought some items before returning for home after 5.

After we unpacked the Costco I tried feeding Harley but oddly she would not eat. B fed her horses and took her treasures a Cooper home. Having ate so late we decided to skip a big supper. I made us a big smoothie to drink while I did Spanish lessons and S perused the internet. We then watched Ghosted which was a fun action movie and started a new series called Loot. Wow some people live large!

Snow Squall

What a night! The wind howled all night long. Not taking my night medication proved to be a problem, as I experienced coughing spells at 2:30 and 4:30 AM. I also had a headache and Harley wanted to go out at 5 PM. At 5:30 PM, I took some cough syrup and eventually fell asleep until 9 AM. S was also hacking and coughing throughout the night too. After taking care of the pets, I made cappuccinos today and delivered one to the prince while I got to work on the blog.

Eventually, he made his way to Big Brown. It turned out that he hadn’t been reading the blogs since New Year’s Eve… what the heck! One has to refresh the page. He continued perusing this laptop until we finished off the soup and orange slices for a late lunch. I shellacked my nails for a fresh update. A snow squall blew in at 2:30 as we were finishing the Fatherhood movie. A cute show.

B was out to feed at 3:30 as we were starting another movie with a tea and rice cake snack. This one is called The Family Plan - another fun action show. She and Cooper were off in half hour. The snow was off and on for rest of the day.

Once the movie wrapped up we had the leftover tenderloin meal from last night plus a healthy salad. Trying to get healthy foods in when hungry. Saturday night hockey was on during supper and after while I updated blog. Huatulco Part 3 was finished and published and now I am once again caught up! Till the next adventure :)

S was going to go to the local hockey game with Craig but his cough changed his mind so he stayed home and watched hockey on TV and his Flames win in the comfort of big brown. I watched Carpool Karaoke Christmas then a couple Dubai Bling episodes from the new season then lights out for us.

Coffee table sells

Today was yet another day filled with a persistent cough and clogged sinuses. The change for me was making an iced coffee to kickstart the day, while S opted for a hot coffee with plain cream. After his porridge, S headed to town to drop off our lab tests, return, and purchase yet another door handle that turned out to be the wrong size as well. I dedicated my time to marketing and continued working on more trip blog photos. I also completed the art easel tutorial and shared it with others.

S returned at 11:30. We decided to tackle some cleaning tasks. While he cleaned the bathrooms, I vacuumed and washed the floors. Harley was taken for a walk to the gate on this dreary but plus 3 temperature that is causing all kind of melting. She then received another deer leg to keep her occupied and new bedding for her kennel. S finally cleaned the hot tub filters, which hadn’t been used much this past month. He also wanted to add some water, but unfortunately, the front hose was frozen.

one custom ruler complete and ready for pickup

Every piece of furniture has a buyer and the long solid wood French provincial coffee table finally found its family. The fellow arrived at 3:30 to pick it up as oddly there was spits of rain coming down. I got back to updating sales sites and tutorial work once the house was tidy. I split the Huatulco trip into 3 parts now after getting all the photos and videos uploaded from our waterfall excursion day.

Nathan had considered popping out to visit us this afternoon to give Kaylin some free time but Renn had a swimming lesson. Kaylin said she enjoyed 99% off it - still not a fan of being dunked but did not cry. And she prefers to not jump off the edge but rather scoot in off her bum <3

photos borrowed from Nate's blog

Nathan also got a new iPhone 16 and being the tech guy he is sent these fun Memojis he created of Sheldon and I

While I was finishing it up, S peeled potatoes and seasoned the whitetail inside tenderloin and got them cooking. I added some peas to our delicious supper. Dave was out at 5:30 to drop off Cooper, feed horses and taste a piece of this tender meat. He was then off after 6 to meet Brittany at the escape room place again where they are going to do 2 rooms just the 2 of them.

I finished posting the trip blog, more marketing while S perused his laptop then we headed to finish the horse movie after 7. Next up we watched another true story Nyad - a gal wanting to swim from Cuba to Florida. B stopped to pick up Cooper at 10:40 having been challenged in the escape rooms as we started yet another movie called Fatherhood. It too is based on true story and cute but we only watched half before calling it a night as the winds continued to rage. At n ight's end as I was blowing my nose for the millionth time I saw blood in the Kleenex. Turns out there was a few kleenexes with it on my nightstand so I had to staunch it before going to sleep. I have never used so many Kleenexes in my life as these last 3 weeks.

Doctor visit for S

It was another late start to the day waking after 9:30. I did the usual pet feeding and coffee delivery to the prince in bed who is coughing up even more loogies. He got dressed and head to his doctor appointment before 10:30. When I came home yesterday from mine I suggested he should have asked to be on a cancellation list, lo and behold when he called to do so they had one for today. I put in our first coffee pod order and did some marketing.

I borrowed this one from Nathan's blog :)

no pictures today so sharing a couple more from a year ago

The one growth ruler was given a second clear coat on the front before I wrote a Hometalk post for the black chairs. I started working on our vacation blog post. Surprisingly I had more photos that I thought so will break it into 2 posts. 

S was home from his doctors appointment at noon with a different antibiotic that was double the price of mine. I guess we will see which one works better. We had a bowl of soup then he hit the couch to rest while I was back at the blog. 

At two, he decided to install a new door handle at the chicken coop. Soon after, I received a call from my doctor requesting additional tests, so I rushed to town to pick them up. I stopped by B’s to pick up Cooper and headed back to the ranch, arriving at 3:30 PM. S was back soon after I got back, having not managed to get the correct-sized handle.

I finally finished Huatulco part 1 post and published it. Check it out via the link as it will go in the date order so won't show as new. S packaged up the handle and watched videos to repair the existing one. I wrapped up my computer work after 5, tidies up the dishes and kitchen and went to lay down in bed and watch some NYC real estate shows while S watched hockey in big brown. Leftover pork chop meal was perfect for supper with our TV shows. B was out after 8 to feed horses then took Cooper home half hour later. I finished the Selling the City season. I then started a feel good based on true story 50-1 about a Kentucky Derby winner but shut it off when S finished his hockey and crawled into bed to sleep.

Doctor visit for LA

Although I woke up at the usual 8:30, I fell back asleep, drifting and out until after 10. S slept even longer; I suppose we needed the rest. I fed the pets and made coffee to enjoy in bed while still in relaxation mode. I then had to prepare myself head town for a doctor's appointment. S stayed home with Harley to deal with the abundant loogies today.

no pictures taken today so sharing these from 1 year ago <3

This year she is playing outside at school

I dropped off returned parcels at the post office and Purolator before returning my library book, which I never got a chance to read. I was just arriving at the doctor's office for my 11:50 appointment a bit early when I received a call informing me that she was running behind schedule and to wait in the car. This gave me time to go through the photos on my phone that keep reappearing; this whole iCloud system is frustrating. I was finally called in for my appointment and had to wait longer but eventually, I was seen. My lungs were listened to, and I was sent off with prescriptions after 1.

The next stop was the X-ray lab the hospital, there was only a few' wait to get my sinus and lung X-rays. I was extremely thirsty, I stopped at Britt's and grabbed Coke my way to the lab. How fortunate was I to have only a two-minute wait when they said yesterday's wait was close to two hours. Sheldon had sent a photo of bloodwork needed for Calgary doctor, so got it done at the same time.

Britt text me to get Cooper's food. I needed that text earlier, but I went back to grab it and then got a rice bowl for our now very late lunch. My final stop was to pick my antibiotics prescription. She also prescribed a nasal spray, but I passed on as S has one at home. I was back the ranch before 2:30. B was trimming Roo's feet, and S was relaxing. His day consisted of chatting with bison buyers and Jarrod and resting in bed.

We ate our late lunch bowls, then I reclined on the couch to lie in the sun for a bit. Britt fed her horses and went off to Calgary for a facial, leaving Cooper here. I did some marketing, including confirming a sale for the white table to be picked up Friday. S took the dogs for walk to the gate and back in the sunny weather, which was PLUS 2 degrees Celsius.

I cooked a couple of the pork chops in mushroom sauce ; we recently got 1/2 a pig from Jarrod. They are enormous. Neither S nor I could finish our whole chop, especially since we have been eating light food lately, so it looks like we have dinner for tomorrow as well. They tasted good, though. We started a couple of movies but quit them because they were bad. Finally, we found one called "Inheritance," which was a thriller B stopped to pick up Cooper just before we started it. After that, we finished another movie, "Ransom," called it a night, both hacking and coughing our way to sleep.

Cough and cold continues on

It was another day in the sick house, with clogged throats, noses, and coughs. S believes he feels worse. The new cough syrup he purchased proved ineffective, and the pills no longer seem to be working. It’s astonishing how many people are sick, as if it’s become a new normal. And to think that all the years we’ve endured Covid have not brought about any significant changes. They’ve even stopped conducting testing altogether.

I prepared a Nespresso coffee for us while S chatted with someone at the Volkswagen dealership. It’s not encouraging, especially considering that B paid a good amount of money for a car that requires new rear brakes just a year after purchase and they knew there were faulty pads out there. I completed yesterday’s blog post and engaged in some marketing activities.

this dinner dance was from last night :0

Warm bowl of soup for lunch, and then I was back to dismantling the Christmas tree. S went to get the box and loaded it up to take back to the mez. Since it was now -2 degrees Celsius, S took Harley for a walk while I finished clearing my old phone and preparing to return. He then wrapped his new stick, and I started clear coating the ruler backs. S said that the walk had helped him clear his throat and feel better.

The tree was taken back to the mez, and an excited Harley got a deer leg. She chewed on it well into the dark, having a late supper. We finished the chicken with a salad for supper, and then S was watching hockey. After feeding Har, I flipped the rulers and clear-coated the tops and sides. The blog was caught up and it was time to go lay down. This cold is ridiculous. S joined me and we watched another based on true story this time about golf called The Long Game. Britt was out to feed mis movie and talk car briefly then home.