A productive Sunday

I had a productive Sunday. I tend to cook in the morning. I made a batch of French toast to enjoy throughout the week. The bread has no sugar, which is great.

I also made mini turkey quiches. I'm still using up my leftover turkey, and added spinach and cheese to the egg mixture. They turned out better than I had expected.

My dad needed me to help book a doctor's appointment for him. Everything is done online and he isn't there. He's booked for a phone appointment later on today.

I also finished filing tax returns for my parents. He gave me all tax receipts on Easter Monday and wondered why I hadn't done them on Thursday. I have to work. I do my best tax work on the weekend when I'm not pressured. It was odd. Our tax deadline is always at the end of April, so I didn't understand why he felt like rushing things.

Sadly, the weekend is over. Here's to a new workweek!

Snow, errands, and recipes

It's snowing. I was hoping to run an errand later on today, but I think that I'll just stay at home and try on Sunday instead.

This business has curbside pickup from Wednesday through Friday, and Sunday. I am typically running errands on Saturday. So, I have either Friday or Sunday to drop by the store and pick up a couple of orders.

It used to be open on Saturdays. However, with this second pandemic lockdown, it has revised its hours. 

At least I get to stay home all warm and cozy. I am currently going through a new cookbook, dreaming about which recipe to try first.

Vacation is nearly over

My two-week vacation is nearly over. Originally, I had three weeks of vacation planned. I wish that I had kept it on the one hand. I do feel that it is best to keep it at two weeks. I may not want to work again if I do three weeks!

I train a new intern on Monday. My manager originally thought that he'd get involved in training. Frankly, I see that being a disaster, as he doesn't have the skills to answer specific questions related to our authoring tool. So, I decided to cut my vacation short and take this remaining week of vacation after my two weeks of training delivery are over.

I earned an extra week of vacation last year thanks to hitting my ten-year work anniversary. It's unfortunate that I can't travel due to the pandemic. However, it has been nice taking time off from work and doing whatever I feel like doing, even if it's just lounging at home.

I spent my first few days doing nothing but relaxing. I then moved to cooking, baking, organizing, and driving around. It has been great. I have enjoyed unwinding.

Manicure, shaved legs, exercise, and benefits

During this pandemic, there are some things that I have let go doing. It's not horrible, but they are worth noting.

I still give myself a manicure every Sunday. These days, I use clear shellac. It's a throwback to what I used to do before meeting my ex, who liked when I put colour on my nails. I have been working from home for over two months now. I have used coloured polish on my nails twice.

Last night, I shaved my legs for the first time in over two months. Luckily, I don't have a ton of leg hair. It wasn't like I was mowing the lawn.

I haven't gained weight since staying at home. I thank getting out to fetch groceries and essentials twice a week, along with exercising at home.

I do sleep more. I cook more. I do improvements around the house. I have also saved a ton of money because I'm not shopping as much.

It's an interesting time.

Sleep, work, and time

I didn't sleep well last night. I woke up a few times during the night, so I felt tired by the time that I needed to get up.

I've received about 67% of content delivered to me at work. They are essentially three large chunks of information. I got the first one done yesterday. I suspect that the other two chunks will be larger, but it's hard to gauge.

My workplace is closed till June 1 know. I have a feeling that this deadline will be extended for a while.

There are some positives to staying at home. I don't spend as much. I also enjoy cooking meals and having more time to myself.

Here's hoping that I sleep better tonight.

Happy Easter!

To those who celebrate Easter, may it be joyous and peaceful.

On Saturday, I probably purchased the most expensive turkey in my life. I had to get one that was already stuffed. Slim pickings this year. That's okay. I look forward to leftovers.

Cooking is healing and comforting. I'll need it.

Staying at home all weekend and getting free food to cook

I have been at home all weekend. The snow has ended at long last. All is well.

I got free food from Goodfood for a week on Sunday. All fresh ingredients to cook various meals are included. I look forward to cooking and trying out these recipes.

I should go to bed. I have enjoyed sleeping in all weekend. Sadly, I won't be able to sleep in until this upcoming weekend.

Friday lunch with good people at work

On Friday, a colleague, who is also my friend, wanted to cook for my intern and me. I was so thrilled that she wanted to feed us lunch.

She made chicken curry, which was delicious. My intern brought in rice, which was fluffy and perfect. I brought in gourmet cookies to complete our meal.

I like that all three of us came together to make our lunch work. My intern brought plates and cutlery. Good thinking!

Lunch was wonderful with good company.

Vacation thoughts

I am hoping to see my guy on Friday. I will be heading over to our favourite shopping place where he lives. He may have a conference call that morning. I just told him to call me when he's free, as I will be spending most of the day there.

It's nice having nearly two weeks off from work. Sadly, vacation passes quickly. Still, I'm savouring every day that I am away from work.

I've accomplished most of what I had wanted to do during this break. I managed to have a relaxing time to unwind and sleep in. I cooked a ton. I got to go out and visit new places.

So far, it's been great. I wish that my vacation lasted all year!

Turnips and learning

I had a good Saturday. I slept in and got nearly eight hours of sleep.

I went out to run some errands. I am the odd one who enjoys grocery shopping on a Saturday.

I drove a few towns over to a discount grocery store that specializes in frozen items. I like the frozen, cubed turnips. There is no need to spend time peeling them. They are also uniform in size and cook evenly.

At the checkout counter, I took everything out of my basket. The cashier asked whether the turnips take long to cook. I said not really. I put them in soups and pan-fry them. She liked my answer.

I am a foodie at heart. Perhaps I look like I know what I'm doing. Not really. I learned that I enjoy eating turnips about half a year ago! I am still learning and it's a journey.

The cashier was great at packing all my groceries into my single reusable bag. I was impressed. I need to learn how to bag like she does!

Hotel, gifts,and lots of kisses

On Thursday, I drove to my guy's town. The drive wasn't bad, as I had bypassed most of the ugly rush-hour traffic. I also have a hunch that other folks have taken this week off, like I have.

I checked in at the hotel room at 16:30. I then went to grab a pizza and more, and came back to the hotel.

My guy called me. He was commuting and said that he'd drop by at 20:00. I was thrilled.

I wore a cold-shoulder top, which he has seen me in once before. I had my skirt ready. I had asked him to call me when he was close by. He completely forgot. Instead, I was wearing shorts when he got to the hotel. They still worked.

After he knocked on my door, I let him in and we hugged tightly. I always feel good in his arms.

He took off his winter gear (it has been -22°C during the day, with a windchill that makes it feel more like -30°C) and we moved over to the loveseat.

He was sweet to have brought a couple of gifts for me. The first was a small, cuddly owl plush. I love it! The other was a pressure cooker cookbook. I didn't have a chance to leaf through it. My guy was too busy kissing me all over.

It's amazing how much he misses me. I've missed him, too.

G is for groceries

The hotel that I am staying at in Montreal is comfortable. I love the kitchenette. I tend to get groceries and cook. Of course, there is a downside to staying in the room to cook -- I end up sacrificing some sightseeing time.

Anyway, the hotel is nice to serve both hot and cold breakfast items. I had the scrambled eggs, but they were bland. The sausage patties were fine. The small pancakes were cute, but tasted more like cake. I also had pineapple chunks and lemon tea, which were both fabulous.

Tomorrow, I may just get some fruit and tea, and come back to my room to make myself some breakfast. I have decided to check out a bit later. My guy flies in later that evening, so I don't want too strenuous of a day.

When it comes to food, I like a lot of flavour. I went to IGA, a local grocery store here that used to be in Ontario. I got local Quebecois favourites, such as tourtiere and baked beans. I also got pecan tarts for dessert. They were all delicious.

I will always be a foodie at heart. My guy knows that all too well. He is used to my taking photos of everything I eat. My habit is rubbing off on him. He does that, too!

D is for driving

I am taking an extended Easter weekend off. On Good Friday, I drove from Toronto to Montreal.

It has been roughly six years since I was last in Montreal and drove to the city. Things are different:

• Traffic congestion is horrible, especially around Ajax and Whitby
• There are more provincial rest stops
• I passed by at least three outlet malls along my drive

I drive a Prius. I can drive to and from Montreal on a single tank of gas when I am not driving at the speed of light. I took my time getting to Montreal and made it well under six hours.

The hotel that I am staying at is by the airport. It is comfortable and has a kitchenette. I have already cooked myself dinner. I knew that I wouldn't want to drive myself over to a restaurant, so I decided to bring some groceries along. Even if I didn't feel like cooking, there is a restaurant in the hotel, and an incredible selection of restaurants by the movie theatre a block away. I will do some sightseeing tomorrow and Sunday.

My guy flies in on Sunday, so we'll have a few days together. He had a list of items for me to bring. I was a good girl and brought all of them:

• A short skirt
• Purple nail polish
• A black bra
• A leather paddle
• Restraints
• A dong
• Strawberry oral gel

It'll be a fun trip!