It was a nice Christmas

Well, here we are, the day after Christmas.  It's all behind us now until next year.  So much anticipation and preparation and poof, it's all over.  We had a nice Christmas.  It was our first in our new home in Beaconsfield and we enjoyed hosting my family. The food was delicious, if I say so myself, and everyone had a great time.  The only thing that we forgot to do is take photos....seriously. No one thought of it, I guess we were all too busy eating and talking away.

We started our day by opening our Christmas stockings.  It was the first time that we actually gave Cooper a stocking to open.  It didn't take him long to get the toys out.  It was so much fun to watch. After breakfast, I got a few things ready and we went for a walk with the Coop.  We ran into a few people and it was nice to wish everyone Merry Christmas on the streets.

Our weather hasn't been too bad but today is not good.  We currently have freezing rain and the roads are very icy.  Not a good Boxing Day for those who are out and about trying to find good bargains.

This coming week is shaping up to be quiet.  We are back at the gym tomorrow after a couple of days rest. Not much else is going on other than getting ready for New Year's, although ours will be low key but nice.

Once the Holidays are over, we will start thinking about our Barbados trip. Six more weeks.  We can't wait to go back, it's been a couple of years since we've been.  Today's weather makes me want to be on a beach really badly.

That's it for my blog this year.  I will write again in 2017. Until then, I wish you all a great week leading up to New Year's Day.  For those who live in an area with a freezing rain warning, please be safe. It's not looking good out there.

The stocking were hung with care....Cooper's
toys were there!

Cooper shaking his stocking.

A determined effort by Cooper to get it all out.

Russell and Cooper visit his parents... a nice
Christmas wreath in place.

The Blue Hour with Christmas lights .

Merry Christmas! Joyeux Noel!

Well, here we are, just seven more sleeps until Santa makes his arrival into our homes.  Still not sure how he gets to visit all those homes in one night....fascinating and magical!

All is good with us and we are getting ready for Christmas. My baking is all done, most of it stored away in the freezer, ready to be given away to family and friends.  Oh, not to worry Russell, I am keeping many of your favorites just for you.

This past week was busy for us.  Our shutters were finally installed, we had work done in the attic and a few other things got done.  The highlight of our week though was Cooper's graduation night. He did really well and we were so proud of him.  Russell was there to capture the moments. To my surprise, there was a judge that was observing the dogs.  In hindsight, it's a good thing that I didn't know about it ahead of time...knowing me, I would have probably gotten myself all worked up.  All this to say that the Coop and I got second place!  Wow, I was so tickled pink about this, so was Coop. We truly make a great team and this makes me want to continue training even more.   On that note, I have registered us for Level 2, starting March 1.  Really looking forward to it.

Our weather has been pretty wintery.  For sure, it will be a white Christmas but I hear that some parts of Ontario have more snow than we do.  We don't have that much but it's been cold.  The Montreal cold is different than the Huntsville cold, much more damp so it feels colder than it really is. We have been out for walks though, the Coop with his Muttluks and us with our Northern Ontario gear.  Oh, and Cooper has a new coat (thanks Tracey) that we will try out tomorrow.

Today, we had Russell's aunt over for lunch.  It was really nice to see her.  Auntie Lorraine is Russell's mother's sister.  The two of them reminisced about the past while looking at old photos of Russell's parents.  I'm glad she came over, she is a sweet lady and Cooper loves her to pieces!

That is my blog for today.   I take this opportunity to wish you all a Merry Christmas.  I truly hope that you all have a great day with your loved ones.  Russell and I know many people who have lost loved ones this year so our thoughts are with you during this holiday season.  I will not do a blog on Christmas Day as I will be busy carving the turkey....but I'll be back on Boxing Day!  Love to all from the three of us.

Santa, his reindeer and a poinsettia!

Cooper kissing auntie Lorraine...a 4 way selfie!

Anne putting Cooper through his paces...
poetry in motion.

Cooper has his attention fixed on Anne.

Nice sit Cooper, after an "about turn".

Cooper kissing mommy asking
did I do good?!

Anne telling Coop he did fantastic and smells great too! Love him to pieces!

Cooper graduated...the certificate
proves it!

...and a bag of treats for placing 2nd!

Starting to feel like Christmas

Hello everyone!  I'm a little late doing my blog today.  It's been a busy day in the kitchen and with company coming over.  I finally started my Christmas baking, made two different recipes, both tested by Russell.  He says they're pretty good.  I have some shortbread dough in the fridge for baking tomorrow and the mix for my date balls is ready as well.  All and all, a good start and the house smells delicious!  Tomorrow will be a full baking day.  I decided to take the day off from the gym and focus on making cookies instead.  Russell will be going to his normal Monday training session, he will burn a lot of calories and will be ready for the cookie tasting.

All is good with us.  It is truly feeling like Christmas is around the corner, although no snow to speak of...but that will change tonight and tomorrow.  A bit of snow on the way we're told.  This will be our first Christmas in our new home and we will be hosting my family for dinner.

Our Christmas decorations are all up and our house is looking festive. We have a few special ornaments on our tree for the Coop.  We debated about what to do outside then decided to put tiny little lights around our ornamental armillary sphere that we have in our front flower bed.  It is looking very nice and quite different.  We will take a photo this week.

That's it for my blog.  Short and sweet. Another busy week ahead for us.  Tuesday night is Cooper's Basic Obedience Level 1 graduation night.  It will be a fun night and Russell will take a few photos. I leave you with pics of the Cooper ornaments as well as a photo of the Coop in a toy basket that I got at HomeSense with his name on it (thanks to Wanda). Way cool! I wish you all a great week! The big day is in two weeks!

The tree wouldn't be decorated without a Cooper
ornament or two...maybe four!

Cooper in his fur ever home frame.

Bones and paw prints...perfection at this time of the year!

This sums it up quite nicely!

Cooper says, I am ready ready to get my
Christmas present basket filled!

A great getaway

Happy Sunday everyone! I hope your week was a good one and that your Christmas preparations are going well.  Three weeks today my friends!

Here we are, back in Quebec after a three day festive getaway in Ontario.  We had a great time.  Niagara-on-the-Lake was beautiful and enchanting in every way.  It is such a quaint little town at this time of year.  We walked along Main Street and went into every little shop.  The Christmas Store was of course packed with people looking for that special ornament and sure enough, we found two for the Coop.  We went to Russell's favorite store, Irish Design, and he found a great Winter coat, Irish of course, as well as a nice cap to keep his head warm during the next few months.

The candlelight stroll was very nice and it is estimated that about 5,000 people attended.  We didn't walk the whole length of the street as we had a dinner reservation but it was nice to be part of it.  We stayed at the Prince of Wales Hotel.  Our room was quite nice, with a fireplace.  The bed, although comfortable, was one of those high beds...we commented to ourselves that there is no way Cooper could have jumped on that bed.  He would have had to use the step ladder....I did.

Yesterday, we made our way back to Mississauga and went to the newly renovated Sherway Gardens. We were surprised to see how empty the mall was.  Not quite sure what's going on but very unusual for this time of year.  It's a nice mall but not my cup of tea. We then met up with Melanie for drinks, then had dinner with my good friend Eve.  We had a wonderful evening with lots of good conversations and good laughs.

While we were having a great time, Cooper was doing the same at Camp Talemaker.  Darlah captured many fun moments.  We were happy to see him this morning.

That's it for my blog.  It's a short one, just a recap of our week.  We're a little tired from the drive home....Russell drove, Coop slept on my lap the whole way.  He's an exhausted little dog.  Lots on my plate this week, have to really get ready for Christmas and start my baking...oh and do my homework with Cooper for his training.  Graduation is next week!  Have a great week!

Niagara on the Lake Town square and the pre-stroll
announcements and Christmas carols!

The Just Christmas store...feel free to find
the perfect ornament.

A Christmas scene tapestry...with wonderful
LED lights. 

Stair way to Heaven...nope, just the stairs to bed
at the Prince of Wales.

Cooper running flat out on the pool cover!

Cooper says...I swear I saw Nathan with a treat!

Collision course for Cooper and Stone...

Four weeks today!

Happy Sunday everyone! Hope you all had a great week.  Ours was good and it brought the first snow fall of the season.  It was all pretty when we woke up Monday morning and the texture of the snow was just perfect for the making of snowballs on Cooper's coat... yikes.  Coop really enjoys the snow and takes great pleasure in doing his "run-like-hell" around the back yard.  Russell and I just watch him, smile, and take great pleasure in removing those snowballs :-)  I am happy to say that the snow is all gone now, so back to grass and muck.

We're slowly getting ready for Christmas. I looked at the calendar just a few minutes ago and realized that Christmas is in four weeks today.  I haven't started my baking yet but my outdoor Winter pots are done and they look nice. Hopefully they will last well into March.  After I finish my blog, I will do the Christmas tree in the living room.  It is my tradition to always put up our tree the last Sunday of November, with some holiday music in the background to put me in the mood.  This year, we have two special ornaments for Cooper. I will have to take photos of them when they are hung up.  I'm sure he will love them to pieces!

Last night, we had my family over for dinner to celebrate my mom's birthday, which is tomorrow.  It's the first time in a very long time that Russell and I  actually get to celebrate her birthday in person so it is very special.   I thought I would include a few photos of her in my blog.  The group photo is somewhat blurred but a nice memory to have anyway.

This coming week will be a busy one for us.  We are off to Toronto for a little getaway on Thursday.  First stop will be at Camp Talemaker where Cooper will be spending three nights.  It will be nice to see Darlah and Nathan again and for the Coop to spend time with his Havanese buddies.  Russell and I will be spending the night in TO.  Friday, we're off to Niagara-on-the-Lake.  We will take part in the annual Candlelight Stroll through the historical town and stay the night. NOTL is such a beautiful place at this time of year.  We look forward to it. We will cap off our getaway by having dinner with my good friend Eve on Saturday night.  It will be nice to see her again.  Sunday, we pick up the Coop and drive back to Quebec.  So, a busy but fun and festive few days ahead.

That's about it for this week's blog.  Gotta go trim the tree!  Have a great week everyone et Bonne Fete Maman demain!

Happy Birthday Maman!

For the great cook she is....oven mitts.

Blowing out the candles on her birthday cake...

First snow of the season...Cooper loves it, us not so much.

We're ready...for Winter

Happy Sunday everyone!  Not a pretty day out there, raining cats and dogs with a little snow on the way tonight.  Oh well, it was bound to happen.  With just about 10 days left in this month, I think we're doing quite well, weather wise.

This past week was a good one, kind of busy but in a nice way.  The weather was simply beautiful and we took advantage of it.  We cleaned up our garage, put the patio umbrellas away and our shovels are ready to go.  I got our Winter gear out of the basement closet, boots and all ready to be worn if need be.  Even the Coop's Muttluk's booties are out.  We're not sure what Winter will look like in La Belle Province, compared to Huntsville.  I assume less snow and not as cold but who knows.  We are still in the habit of looking up the weather forecast in Huntsville.  It's been pretty good, just like here.

I went to my new gym three times last week.  I really enjoy it and the workout is totally different than what I'm used to.  It's a combination of cardio and weight training and the workout changes every day...that's a good thing, I tend to get bored easy with the same routine.

On Thursday, mom and I went out for lunch.  It was a nice outing for both of us and we truly enjoyed it.  My mom's birthday is coming up so it was a little early celebration.  On that note, Russell, Coop and I are hosting a birthday dinner for mom this coming Saturday.  It will be nice for the family to get together for such a special occasion.

Cooper and I continue to enjoy our Obedience Training.  We do our homework during the week and it's paying off.  I will admit that most of what we are learning is nothing new to us but it's good to reinforce the basic commands.  Graduation will be on December 10.  We will ask Russell to come and maybe take a photo or two.  I include a photo that I took of Cooper yesterday afternoon after class. He was totally whacked out!

That's it for this week's blog.  I leave you with beautiful photos that Russell took of the Super Moon last Monday.  He, and about 80 other people, gathered in Pointe-Claire by the waterfront so that they could capture the moon in its glory.  Have a great week everyone!

The sun about to dip below the horizon on Lac St. Louis,
the evening of the Super Moon.

...and now the sun has dipped below the horizon.

Super moon just emerging above the skyline
of Montreal.

A little higher and a distinct haze blankets,
Montreal. 

The moon clearly above Montreal...St Joseph Oratory can be
seen to the left and downtown lights in the center.

A tired dog is a good dog...so says the Coop post
training.

A beautiful November day!

Happy Sunday everyone!  Here we are at the start of another week, hopefully one that will not bring the same kind of turmoil that last week brought.  For those of you who like to play cards (we don't), I guess you can relate to the power of the trump card.  Needless to say that the US election results were a shocker for most people.

On  a better and more refreshing note, today is another beautiful day.  We couldn't ask for a better November.  More of the same on the way this week.  We spent a lot of time outdoors today, doing a last cleanup before Winter sets in.  I planted daffodil bulbs for the first time ever.  I look forward to seeing those little beauties in the Spring.

We had a nice and quiet week.  On Tuesday, we decided to go up North and retrace our steps to both my aunt Rita's chalet and Russell's grandfather Watkin's cottage.  We first went to Ste-Adele and sure enough found my aunt's place which she owned well before I was born.  She sold it a long time ago, before I met Russell.  I remembered there was a big rock by the water and it's still there.  It brought back a lot of wonderful childhood memories. Then, we drove to Lac des Iles, Ste-Marguerite,  and found Russell's grandpa's cottage.  It looked like Russell remembered it, more or less.  Wonderful childhood memories for Russell also.  It was a great day for a trip down memory lane.  On that note, last week marked five years since Coop came into our lives. The best years! I thought I would include this photo of the Coop and I at puppy training back then.

Yesterday, we had Russell's auntie Lorraine over for dinner with her daughter Valerie, who is visiting from Calgary. Val and Russell hadn't seen each other for over 40 years.  It was so nice for me to finally meet her and for Russell to be able to talk about the good old days.

So, we've been here a little over 4 months now and I'm on my third hairdresser.  I think this one is a keeper. I hope so. I am so darn picky! I'm also on my third gym.  I just joined Orange Theory in Pointe-Claire.  I wasn't challenged enough at Gold's Gym and Energie Cardio (another gym that I tried) is closing.  I think Orange is the way to go for me.  I've had two classes so far and it seems to be everything I'm looking for and more.  Let's hope so.

That's about it for this week's blog.  I leave you with a photo that Russell took of a Larch tree that we have in our backyard.  So beautiful to look at from our kitchen window.  We also took a few photos up North. I wish you all a great week!

Our larch finally decided to change needle color!

Anne's Aunt Rita's chalet in St Adele.

The famous big rock at Rita's chalet in St Adele.

Grandpa Watkin's cottage, he built it all himself at least
70 years ago!

Anne and Cooper at puppy class 5 years ago...
he is a keeper!

Fall back time!

Hello everyone!  I hope you are having a wonderful Sunday.  It is a long day somehow, with the time change and all.  I get that we gain an extra hour of sleep but does anyone actually sleep that extra hour?  I was wide awake at 6 this morning and finally got out of bed at 6:40.  It was nice though to have all that daylight.  I just love the sunshine that we get in our kitchen in the morning!

What a beautiful day we're having, and a few very nice days on the horizon.  It's been a great Fall.  I just hope that Winter is as nice.  The three of us just came back from a nice walk along the waterfront in the Lachine area.  Some trees still have lots of leaves on and they smell wonderful.  A beauty of a day for sure.

This past week was good.  Halloween night came and went with about 50 kids trick or treating.  Coop managed the evening quite well.  Towards the end, I was rather generous with the candies.... I didn't want any leftovers.  Later in the week, we had my aunt's funeral service which was lovely.  Yesterday, Cooper and I had our second training class.  We did our homework and were prepared.  Cooper was a good boy for the most part.  He gets antsy while we wait for the instructor to explain the exercise so my challenge is to teach him patience.....having said this, Cooper takes after his human mommy in the patience department.  Perhaps I'm the one who needs to learn patience :-)))

Not much else is going on with us.  Time is just flying by and like everyone else, we will soon get ready for Christmas.  Even better, in three months today, we are off to Barbados for our Winter getaway.  Can't wait!

This coming week will finally bring a close to the US election, or so it seems.  Who knows what will happen on Tuesday night.  It promises to be a very interesting night on TV.

I leave you with only two photos, one that Russell took of the Coop and I during our walk today and one that I took after Cooper's grooming last week.  He was under the kitchen table and gave me a look that I thought was priceless.  I call this photo "Those Eyes".

In closing, we are sending positive thoughts to Darlah & Nathan and their beautiful Havanese Adele. She is expecting a litter any day now but is having complications and has been at the vet since yesterday.  We are following Darlah's blog and hope that all ends well for Adele and her litter.

Have a great week everyone!

Anne and Cooper in the leaves at
Summerlea Park in Lachine.

Cooper says who you looking at with 'those eyes' of his.

Happy Halloween!

Happy Sunday to all and Happy Halloween tomorrow!  May it be a fun and safe day for all.  This will actually be Cooper's first Halloween where he will experience the sound of the door bell ringing and kids of all ages trick-or-treating.  In Huntsville, we had none of that.  First of all, we had no door bell, second, no kids would ever venture up our private road.  Way too spooky.  We expect a lot of activity based on what we've been told and everyone on our street has decorated their house.  We have enough candies and we have a pumpkin that Russell carved this afternoon.  This is the second pumpkin that we bought.  The first one was eaten by the squirrels.  No joke.  Pretty well every pumpkin on the street has been chewed by squirrels.  We will keep ours in the garage until tomorrow night.  As for the Coop,  we will keep a close eye on him.  We don't want him to get spooked by the kids and we also don't want him to escape through the front door. So, Russell will manage the door and I will manage the Coopster.

This past week was quiet.  I helped my parents take care of the funeral details for my aunt, which will be held this coming Wednesday.  The forecast is looking beautiful for that day.  I find everything is so much better when the sun shines.

I started Obedience training with Cooper yesterday morning.  It was a good class and very good for him to be in that environment.  From past experience, I knew that Cooper wouldn't want to stay still for too long while the instructor explained what to do so my challenge was to tell him to be patient and that he will get to perform soon....he did pretty well. I guess the high value treats helped a lot. We look forward to the next six weeks. Now, we have some homework to do this week.

It's hard to believe that November is just around the corner.  It certainly doesn't feel like it, the weather has been so nice.  Soon, it will be all about Christmas.

In this week's blog, I'm including some photos of Russell taken at the gym, which I think are pretty good.  He is doing really well with his trainer.  He has noticed a big improvement in the joint issues that he's been having and this is all because of his hard work and his trainer Melissa. Good for you Russell.  I'm proud of my hubby.

Have a great week everyone!

Happy Halloween...Cooper hopes everyone
gets lots of treats!

The pumpkin destroying bandit!

Russell and Melissa taking a small
photo-op break.

Back to work...single arm
chest presses on the stability ball
for extra ab work!

A blustery kind of day

Happy Sunday everyone!  We are finally getting some sun after three days of non stop rain but it is windy out there.  The leaves are virtually gone.  I'm glad we went looking for great colours last week, not much left to see now.  Can't complain about the rain though, we've had such a beautiful Summer and Fall.

This past week was good and fairly busy.  Sadly though, Friday morning brought the unexpected passing of my aunt Aline, my mom's older sister.  She was 91 years young.  She had a good long life and she has now rejoined her beloved husband Camille.  My aunt was just about to move to a retirement home where she would have gotten the help and care that she was so longing for. She was barely able to live by herself and each day became a struggle.  Her little heart finally gave out and she is now at peace.  Those are tough times for my mom as she lost her younger sister back in June and one of her best friends in July.  All I can say is that I'm glad that we now live closer to my parents.  It brings them, and me, comfort and that's a good thing.  My mom is grateful that her older sister passed away peacefully.  I am also grateful that I got to see her on August 25. I thought I would include a photo that I took of her that day. I will always have beautiful memories of her.  My brother came over for dinner Friday night and we had a toast to tante Aline.  She will be missed.

Well, it seems that our last connection to Ontario is now gone.  We finally changed the licence plate for Russell's car to a Quebec plate.  We have our health care cards and drivers license.  I guess that now makes us Quebecois?

A friend and former work colleague, Diane, came over for lunch on Wednesday.  It was really nice to see her again.  She brought Cooper a toy that he just loves.  And what is actually quite impressive, is that the toy is still intact!  Coop says thank you.

We now have a snow contract in place for our driveway and walkway.  We were waiting to see what the neighbours would do and it seems that pretty well everyone on our street and in the neighbourhood is using the same company. So we got a quote and and decided to go ahead with them. All that's left to do in preparation for Winter is to get me some snow tires.  In Quebec, snow tires are mandatory.  No choice in the matter.

That's it for my blog today.  It's a quiet Sunday.  Russell is watching football and Cooper is napping/waiting for dinner.  It was a slow week for photos so I include just a few.  Have a great week everyone!

The newly planted Japanese maple is fire red!

Cooper catching 40 winks during all the rain these past
few days.

Diane and Anne pause for a photo opportunity
while catching up.

Tante Aline, a graceful Lady to the end.