Mid April Check In

 Well, it's finally springtime, and it is finally a bit warmer.  We have had a couple of warmer days when I didn't need to wear my winter jacket and winter boots . I do admit, though, I do tend to wear my winter boots sometimes. Not because it's cold, but because I don't have any rain boots right now, and my winter boots work great at keeping my feet from getting soaked when I take Castiel for his walks.   

Speaking of walks, I took Castiel for a nice, longer walk yesterday morning.  We checked to see if the walking/biking/ATV/snowmobile trail was clear of ice, and it was decent enough that we could actually walk on, so we walked in there a bit. We didn't do the 45 minutes we used to do, but we did 25 minutes, and I walked him along our street too, so he actually got a decent morning walk.  Did he sleep right away after?  Nope.  He is a  Border Collie/ Australian Shepherd, so of course, that did not really tire him out. It didn't help that he was stressed yesterday morning because dump trucks were going out on the street behind us, but he did eventually nap for a few hours around noon, so while he slept, I did a ton of reading. 

This morning we went on the trail again and walked 25 minutes in there again.  I was thinking of taking him out there again later for his after-dinner walk, but we will see.  It started raining right when we finished our walk this morning, and forecasters are saying rain all day today, so I might have to just do a 10-minute faster-paced walk instead. I guess I will decide when the time comes for our walk later.

Other than walks with Castiel, I haven't really been doing too much. The month started with mostly watching YouTube, playing video games and spending time with James.  I didn't do much reading, but I did get tons of reading done yesterday while Castiel was napping.  I read for 3 hours yesterday afternoon, and I am hoping to read for a minimum of 2 hours today, but that will depend on Castiel napping and also on my concentration.

How is your April going so far?  Anything fun happening? How's the weather?  

Jem and the Holograms (Deluxe) Vinyl Record

*This blog post contains an Amazon link that will earn me a small commission if you use it.*

 When I was a child in the 80’s, I was obsessed with Jem and the Holograms.  I had a few of the dolls, and I would watch the cartoon. 

Last year, when I heard there was going to be a vinyl record being made, I was excited, and I really wanted a record.

My birthday was in March, and my wonderful husband got me Jem and the Holograms (Deluxe) vinyl record to add to my small collection.

The record sleeve has the titles of the songs with song/music credits.

The next two photos are of a double-sided poster that came with the record.  I love the art, and I just might put it up on the wall in my office/library.

I listened to the record twice so far, and I do enjoy it, but I just wish there were more songs.  Side A has 9 reimagined songs, and Side B is reimagined instrumental music. I found the quality of the recording and the sound pretty good.  I think it is a great addition to my small record collection. I will definitely be listening to it again.     

I know he probably won't be reading my blog post but I want to say thank you, hubby, for getting it for me.

  

Mediterranean Orzo Salad

I've made this recipe at least 3 times so far this year, and I know I will be making it again. It is easy to make.   It serves 6.

• 1 1/2 cups orzo
• ▢1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• ▢2 green onions, trimmed and chopped (use both white and green parts)
• 
  
• ▢1 English cucumber
• ▢1 packed cup chopped parsley
• ▢1/2 packed cup chopped fresh dill
• ▢1/4 cup sliced olives
• 1 small green pepper
• ▢crumbled feta cheese (optional)

The Dressing: 

• ▢1 lemon, zested and juiced
• ▢1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
• ▢1 garlic clove, minced
• ▢1 teaspoon dried oregano
• ▢Kosher salt
• ▢Black pepper
• 
  

• Cook the orzo pasta to al dente according to package instructions. Drain and cool.
• Meanwhile, make the dressing. In a small bowl, combine the lemon juice, zest, olive oil, garlic, oregano and a pinch of salt and pepper. Whisk to combine.
• Mix the salad. In a large mixing bowl, toss together the tomato, green onion, bell pepper, cucumber, parsley, dill and olives. Stir in the cooked orzo.
• Dress. Pour the dressing over the salad and toss until well combined and the orzo is well coated with the dressing. Cover and refrigerate for 20 minutes or so.
•  Just before serving, top with crumbled feta cheese.

• ▢Feta cheese (optional), for garnish

March 2026

 As I am writing this, it is March 31st, and I can't believe this month is finally over.  It's been a bit of a rough month, so I am happy it is almost over.

Weather-wise, it wasn't really the greatest either.  It has been a cold March with snow as well.  We did get a couple of days when the weather was more spring-like, and I took advantage of the warmer/nicer weather by taking Castiel for more walks.

This month I only watched NCIS , Masked Singer and High Potential.  I haven't really watched anything else other than hockey because I played video games.  I played Silent Hill 2 on PS5 quite a bit. I have also been playing Disney Dreamlight Valley and Diablo 4.  On Steam Deck, I have been playing Wylde Flowers.  Last week, I got Hello Kitty Island Adventure on Steam Deck. I haven't played it much yet (just an hour), so I can't really say if it's a good one or not. 

Mobile game-wise, I still play the same games I mentioned in a post a few months ago.  I also play bingo games on iPad. 

 Anyway, I think this will be all for now.  I do have a few post ideas for next month, and I will have a new favourite recipe going up on the blog next month as well so hopefully I will actually be posting more in here. I would love to do some reviews here and there this year, but I just don't know what yet. 

January 2026

This post contains an affiliate link. I do make a small commission for all purchases using my links.

Me and Castiel.  I say selfie, and he puts his head on my shoulder, waiting for me to take our photo.  I think he was just being a little silly this time.

Well, it is finally the end of January, and I am so glad it's over. This month has been a cold and snowy one.  We are lucky to have a small battery-operated snow blower, but when the plow passes, our little snow blower struggles to do its job.  At least when there has been a huge mess from the plow, our next-door neighbour comes and cleans up the mess with his bigger snow blower.    

In January, I did a lot of reading.  I read 15 books!!!  If you are a reader and on Goodreads, you can follow me Chantale Canadian Book Addict..  I post what I read, and I do quick reviews on there.  

I have been rewatching Charmed (the original show) on Paramount Plus. I have finally watched Fear Street Part Three:1666 on Netflix.  When I was a teenager, I loved the Fear Street books, so of course I wanted to watch the movie. I had watched the first two when they came on Netflix back in 2021, but I hadn't watched the third one, so I decided it was time to watch it. Next month, I will watch Fear Street: Prom Queen.   I also watched Trading Up with Mandy Rennehan. This was an HGTV show here in Canada back in 2022.  Something most people don't know about me is that I LOVE HGTV.

Food I've been obsessed with. I do like chicken wraps, but I don't usually make them at home.  One day this month, I decided to buy what I needed to make chicken wraps, and I ate that for 3 freaking dinners in a row!!!  Nothing fancy. It was just chicken, tomatoes, lettuce, cucumber, onion, sliced black olives in a regular tortilla, but what made it soooo yummy was the Heinz Pickle Mayonnaise Style Sauce. So good.

I have been playing some video games.  I have lots of games I can play, and of course, I've been mostly playing Disney Dreamlight Valley on PS5 and Wylde Flowers on Steam Deck.  I did buy Silent Hill f in December, but I haven't really played it much. I will try to play it more in February.    Speaking of video games...  Do you play video games? If so, what have you been playing lately and on which console? 

I know I was going to post on here more often, but I haven't been getting anything to review, and I really didn't know what I could write about.  

 

2025

 Well, 2025 is almost over, and I am ready to say goodbye to this year and I am sure most of you are too.

This year as many ups and downs.  Even though in May it was 2 years since we lost our sweet Azrael I still have been missing him a lot. The grief hasn't been as bad this year, but there are still days when I have been missing him a lot. 

I have really been on an emotional roller coaster this year.  Perimenaupause is not for the faint of heart. 

Had so many things going on with life, which I will not get into on my blog.  So many people I know get diagnosed with cancer as well.

There has been so much stuff going on in the world that has been stressing people out. 

I think we are all ready for this year to be over, and we all hope 2026 will be way better.  Maybe we could all wake up on New Year's Day to find that all the bad and stressful stuff that happened this year is just a bad dream. I know I wish it were just a bad dream. 

Do you make New Year's resolutions?  I don't bother.  

Sick Of Winter

 

December is almost over, and let me tell you, it has not been a fun month.

Winter has come with a vengeance.  We got lots of snow all through the month, and it has been colder than usual as well.    We did get 2 days of above 5C and rain mixed into that warmer weather, so some of the snow melted, but then  BAM!! More snow.  And then more snow and more snow.  We do have a battery-powered snow blower, but it isn't very powerful, especially when there is a lot of snow, so I try to use the snow blower only when I really need it, like to clean up the mess that the city plow leaves at the end of the driveway.  

Yesterday we had freezing rain.  It was supposed to be really bad here in our little city, but luckily enough, it wasn't that bad. Sure, we had a sheet of ice on everything, but it wasn't really bad. I mean, I was able to go walk on the driveway without slipping this morning. I still put some salt down in the driveway just in case.

 Right now it is cloudy, and the sun is trying to come out, but we are supposed to get heavy winds and heavy snow later on today.  I have lots of blankets on hand, some food that doesn't need to be cooked, bottled water, my devices are charging up, and I have a couple of flashlights in case the electricity goes out. Oh, and of course, Castiel (our dog) has enough food for a while as well.