Recently our family grew by 4 paws. Annie, an English Springer Spaniel puppy joined our household. She has taught me just how beautiful the frost is on the ground as the sun is rising, to appreciate the joy in running through 4 inches of freshly fallen snow and to listen, really listen when birds are chirping nearby. She is acutely away of noises, that frankly, I would not really even hear. This has brought a greater appreciation of all of the birds in our area, even during the winter.

Birds play a substantial part in keeping our ecosystem healthy. They pollinate plants, disperse seeds, control pests, act as an early warning system for the spread of disease, distribute nutrients, protect wetlands and much more. So much more that they are considered crucial for people and the planet to thrive. Preserving bird diversity helps everyone.

For years, and years, and even more years, Panera Bread has teased us with a location supposedly opening in the famed restaurant row on Route 47 in Huntley. The paint on the sign announcing this new location is rapidly fading, but our hopes have not. We just could not wait any longer, the suspense was killing us. If Panera Bread will not come to us, the Dining Duo will go to Panera Bread, and that’s just what we did. We jumped into the Mini-Mobile and headed out to the Panera Bread in Algonquin.

I am writing to you about a senior in my life who has recently lost her sense of purpose. Annie is a beloved member of our community, but she has been feeling lost and unmotivated lately. She’s expressed to me that she doesn’t feel like she has a reason to get up in the morning anymore and that she doesn’t know what to do with her time. Annie has always been an active person, but lately, she seems more withdrawn. She told me in confidence that she feels extremely lonely and isolated.