Family fun, neighbours, and harvesting

Good golly, Miss Molly! August is half over, and today is the anniversary of my maternal grand-mother's birthday. She was born in 1906 near a small community in southern Saskatchewan. Her parents and two older siblings had moved from Grey County in Ontario to Saskatchewan about 1905, when the youngest child was a year old. Her parents went on to have five more children, the youngest of which died at birth and her mother passed away less than a week later. Nan was sent to live with relatives, though I've not been able to determine which family she spent time with. Great-grandpa married soon after and had another six children with his second wife.

When I started writing this post, I hadn't thought I'd be sharing family history, but the date brought to mind my grandmother. She refused to be called Grandma, hence she was called Nan. She was a tall woman and quite strict. She kept a weighted paddle hanging on the wall, and we children knew it could be used if we didn't behave. On the other hand, she spent hours teaching and playing Canasta with us on Sunday afternoons. She and Grandpa always came to the farm for Sunday dinners.  Sadly, she died when I was only 13, so my memories are few.

Back to today, or at least this week, it passed by in a flash. Monday is merely a blip in my memory, though I do now recall we cleared out the storage area in the basement, and I went into the thrift store to clean for a couple of hours. 

Tuesday was a busy day. D and I drove into NTO, dropping Eli off at his morning program before heading to the stores to do a bit of browsing and shopping. Later we brought lunch to Eli, which he ate in the car before he went off with the afternoon program to play mini-golf at a nearby provincial park. It had rained in the morning, but cleared up nicely for them. 

Meanwhile D and I headed to a sit-down restaurant for lunch. We relaxed, read the news to each other (we're weird like that), I watched a bit of Blue Jays baseball, and enjoyed a leisurely meal. Before we picked up Eli, we stopped to pick up a head of garlic for planting in the garden. I'd found it advertised in FB, and the woman had harvested dozens of heads of garlic. I'll be planting it once I've removed the pea plants. I thought the peas were done but they are blooming again.

We picked up Eli and were home about 4 p.m. where we were met by three hungry and vocal cats. :p After unpacking our purchases, I fed the cats, washed dishes and we all collapsed for the remainder of the day.

The photo on Wednesday was taken at the pool on Saturday. We had such a great day; there was a parade, garage sales, lunch at a Chinese restaurant, and ended with time at the pool. The photo shows the portion of the pool that is considered the lazy river. There is nothing lazy about it - when one enters the space the water pulls you into the current and one has to be careful not to bump into others sharing the space. Eli does enjoy it very much, but first he had to go down the water slide a few times.

This is the waterslide. Since I've never been one and there were two slides, I decided I'd join Eli in the fun. Ha! It all was fine until I reached the spot where the slide dropped...I shouted OMG and fell onto my back which sent me shooting out into the water. First and last time I ever do that!

The parade was short but fun, with Eli the recipient of many pieces of candy tossed from the vehicles. There was a police car, a couple of firetrucks, several older vehicles, and a float carrying a few Ukranian dancers. Other dancers were dancing on the street alongside the float. 

Garage sales were meh to interesting. One of the best, though we didn't buy a lot, was a house where the current owners had been left with many of the previous owners possessions. There was jewellry, kitchen gadgets, china tchotskes, and everything CHRISTMAS! One went through the garage, into the back yard where the Christmas items were laid out on the grass and in the garden shed. I do know we bought some labels, and maybe a small wreath. Prices were reaonable. The husband mentioned he's tired of living with all of this stuff.

Back to the remainder of the week. Eli had his activities; library program and the last of his morning program on Thursday in NTO. D and I cleared out an area in the basement where Matt will be removing the wall next to the furnace and putting a new wall to create another storage space. This will allow D (or I) to access the area that tends to collect water when we get a heavy rain. Plus D will have room to store toys - she plans on using see-through tubs that Eli can access easily. One of our purchases this week was two 6 foot shelving units that fit bins.

I spent the late afternoon and evening with my cousin B and her husband G. They arrived at the Yorkton City camp grounds mid-afternoon, and were set up by the time I arrived. They are driving a Class A motorhome and towing a Jeep. They've got a large octagonal gazebo where they keep out the bugs and use their propane firepit. Inside the motorhome, they have a king sized bed! The latter was apparently a must have, along with proper cloth storage. Pretty nice, and if you've got to camp, that might work for me. :)

Friday was a quiet day - I worked on some Christmas ornaments for Eli's teachers and E.A.'s. I'll show you these when I actually finish a few. At the moment I'm crocheting all the pieces and will put them together later. I also did a very important job - Eli's kitten stuffie had sprung a small leak. As I told him, it now has a scar but it's all better now. 

Garden update: I've been harvesting lettuce and cucumbers every couple of days. The tomatoes are finally starting to ripen, and to my delight the corn is starting to show silk. I thinned out the carrots and pulled a few small ones and I ate them, yum! The red onions stems seem to be falling over, which I'm told are a sign they are done. I dug up a few on Friday - they look more like shallots than onions but we'll use them in salads anyway. The rain in the forecast for Friday didn't amount to much, just enough to give everything a decent watering.

Next door GL (good landlord) has been working hard to remove the garbage and other items from the garage. She told D there was a good year's worth of garbage that never made it to bin, and it was never wheeled to the street for pick-up. The homemade trailer they are using has been filled at least six to seven times, not only with garbage, but mattresses, bed frames, tables, chairs, and so forth. GL says she'll need to fumigate the garage now that area is cleared. The trailer has been moved closer to the house and I suspect we'll seem the trailer filled multiple times.

AND LND (landlord next door) has listed his property for sale! He did this a couple of years ago, but pulled it off the market in just a few days so I'm not holding my breath. He texted to mention he'd like to have the fence built on the other side but Matt has told him he hasn't the time this season. I didn't have the information of the other fellow so he'll have to find someone else on his own. So much for saying that a fence doesn't improve the resale value...or at least that's my thought. The realtors were by on Thursday and it wasn't long before someone showed up whipper snip the weeds in the dog run (some were 5 feet tall) and in the xeriscaped area on the side of the house. I'm not sure if he sprayed as well, but so far the perennial bed isn't showing any ill effects.

Today, I've no real plans for the day. I should get the spirea into the ground and perhaps do a little more weeding. There is a Rider game this evening, with an earlier game...so I might end up planted on the couch where I can continue crocheting. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

A cool but entertaining week

Who turned down the thermostat? From the highs of 32C/90F to a week where 19C/66F was the best we could do, I went through a bit of weather shock. I even put on socks in the morning (at 10C/50F I felt the need). BTW, if you haven't noticed, I'm rarely happy with the weather...it's a Saskatchewan thing. Eli had his second week of swimming lessons, but spent more time out of the pool than in. 

We did get out on Monday to do some yardwork. D took care of tree branches that were overhanging the front sidewalk and the garage out back, as well as cutting out a smaller elm tree that was growing among the roses. I'd got some of the branches of the elm tree last week but the trunk was too big around for my clippers. To assist I hauled branches to the brush pile - we'll have all of it hauled away in the next couple of weeks along with the bags of yard waste from my weeding efforts. D also cleaned gutters on the garage and on one side of the house. Our ladder is only 6 feet tall (picked up at a garage sale) and the house gutters are difficult to get to - we'll have to keep our eyes open for an 8 foot stepladder. She did a great job and we didn't have to pay someone to do the work!

As a result I didn't make it into the thrift store on Monday for the cleaning day. Next week for sure! With the cooler weather I've been spending more time indoors; I've caught up on my budget spreadsheets, updated a document of personal information, and spent a lot of time on Ancestry. I thought I was getting close to reviewing all of the hints available, but every time I'd re-open the program there would be more. I'm not liking the changes they've made though - they've made the review of hints more onerous and there are some hints that are so clearly incorrect...I'll bet money more AI is "helping" with the collection. 

Wednesday, the city showed up in the morning to (finally) clear the empty lots across the street.  We had contacted the commissionaire in the spring about the height of the grass and weeds, but nothing was done until now. It took a good 90 minutes for the fellow on the mower to knock it all down and run over it a couple more times to mulch it. Meanwhile another worker used the weedwhacker to edge the sidewalk, and removed some low branches on the trees. The after and before photos below will give you and idea of how tall the grass and weeds had gotten.  

Later I attended Knit and Natter in the evening. When I arrived the part-time librarian S and a 9 year old boy were waiting for me. They asked if I could teach them to crochet or knit. Oh my, I'm not much of a teacher but we all tried. N (the boy) couldn't get a handle on how to hold the crochet hook, but we got him started on a pair of knitting needles. I showed him a simple way of casting on which he managed well enough (just 10 stitches). He struggled with the first knit row, so I knit it for him demonstrating the technique. I was impressed as he was able to carry on for four or five rows. He did add a few extra stitches and dropped one or two, but for a first attempt he did great. S picked up the crochet hook and made a chain but gave up when she started the single crochet row. She watched a few videos on her phone while we chatted and I kept an eye on N's progress. 

Thursday evening the landlord next door (not the fence landlord) arrived to start the clean-up of the property. (I'll call her GL - short for good landlord). If you recall the tenant left in May and the landlord went through the proper channels to officially evict him by the end of June. GL told D she had then gone through the authorities to determine what could be done with the possessions he left behind. The provinicial authority has given her permission to get rid of things. She and D went into the house, and it was clear he had taken only items that were useful to him and left pretty much everything that were the children's including their beds, toys, and much of their clothing. There was also a nearly full pantry of food! Yet we never saw him bring more than a few bags of food into the house. It turns out that almost everything in the house was donated to the family. The deacon of the Catholic church was by as well, and has agreed to to pick up and storee some of the more useful items to pass on to other needy families in the community.

I suspect it will take GL a few weeks to clear out the trash and other items from the house. She has another tenant who will be moving in when the property is ready. We're told she, the new tenant, is quiet and respectful and very clean. D and I are both looking forward to meeting her.

On the other hand, the rental unit on the other side has been interesting for different reasons. The original renters, two elderly people, seem to be running some sort of a short term transistion home. Neither R or K actually live there, instead there have been two different family groups in the last six months or so. It started with the son, then his three children and is now a family of four, parents and two children. At the end of the school year, the first group of children left with someone we assume is their mother. The son disappeared shortly thereafter and now this new family has moved in. R shows up on a weekly basis with groceries. Not sure what is happening there but the LND has already said he doesn't care who lives there so long as the rent is paid on time.

Garden update: I've continued to water every evening, though this week it's much less frequent and less volume. Picking included peas, cucumbers and more lettuce. The latter is amazing me, I cut it one day and it seems to fill in the next. The corn is showing tassles but still no silk. Hopefully I'll see signs of ears soon. The potato plants are starting to die back, so I expect I'll be harvesting those by the end of the month. Tomatoes continue to fill out but have yet to start ripening.

I've written notes in my gardening journal about the successes and failures (thus far) so that I can plan better for next year. Radish and peppers will be grown in containers, with the goal of keeping both in more shaded areas. The cucumbers have nearly outgrown their trellis (as did the peas) so I'll be looking for better and taller supports. I've also made a list of annuals to purchase next year...and that includes gerbera daisies! 

Today we're off to a community an hour away. They are having a parade and a town wide garage sale. We know Eli will enjoy the parade, and D and I are hopeful we'll find some treasures. This is the community that has a swimming pool with a lazy river as well as waterslides. Hopefully we'll be able to make a stop there as well. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

Goodbye July

Another week (and a month) has flown by - where does the time go? It wasn't even a particularly busy week for me. When the weather wasn't steaming hot, I managed to get a bit of weeding done. The garden looks decent ...for the moment, and the front yard and new perennial bed were cleared too. Harvesting was limited to picking peas, a cucumber, and pulling the broccoli plants. I'm sad about the latter, but will try again next year.

I did my last Tuesday shift at the thrift store this week. There is no a/c in the old school building and even with the fans running, we were all sweating buckets in no time. Normally Saskatchewan is known for "dry" heat, but this year the humidity is very high and most of us are feeling it. It was 95% one morning, which explains why the baskets of pansies I have in the shade of the tree out front have not needed watering. 

The first few days were extremely hot (for us), with temperatures over 32C/89F and with the humidity felt like it was five or more degrees hotter. As a result, I spent time indoors in the heat of the day venturing out to water in the evenings, or weed in the early mornings. The dratted mosquitos are out in full force too, but I'm seeing more dragonflies. 

D and Eli went to NTO both Tuesday and Thursday mornings, and his afternoon activity on Tuesday was actually held here in town at the local arcade. Lots of fun! He had his library program on Wednesday and Thursday afternoon, and the latter coincided with the afternoon Knit and Natter. A woman who hadn't met joined me, she had attended in the winter months when I was away, but has returned after having a hip replacement earlier this year. 

On Friday morning, D and I tackled the garage. As it no longer holds a vehicle (door is too low for her SUV), it has become a dumping ground for some things that were once in my garden shed; camping supplies, Eli's outdoor toys, the lawn mower, and other tools, as well as the new freezer. I had purchased a couple of plastic shelving units on sale at Walmart a few weeks ago. They are a good 6 feet tall, and certainly helped to get things off the garage floor, and make space. We have another shelf to put up, since we plan to go through things in storage in the basement too, and will remove some containers to the garage. It's a good idea - not only to get rid of excess items, but I've bought more things that will end up in my garden shed over winter so there isn't room for what once was stored there.

Garden update: As you saw on Wednesday, the day lilies have begun to open. I had a memory pop up from two years ago on FB that indicated they first opened on the same date! I'll have to keep track for next year.

I cut back the peonies and the lilies in amongst those plants these lilies are starting to bloom.

In the original perennial bed, the clematis I recently planted is blooming. It barely has any leaves but the flowers are coming.

Clearly it is happy and I'm hoping it will over winter well. I'll be sure to cover the roots with leaves to provide some protection. It is hardy to our climate and should be fine.

Here is a chuckle for you. One of these things is not like the other! 

Last year we had tomatoes growing in containers near that bed. I suspect I may have tossed a small tomato iinto the bed, and I've just recently noticed it growing. It's unlikely it will fruit but I'll leave it.

Speaking of tomatoes, one of my plants in the raised bed is proving to be prolific. I counted 15 tomatoes on this one plant, with more flowers still blooming. The other two tomato plants have seven or eight. The cucumber is coming along too, and I've found four more wee cukes. And the corn is showing signs of tassles though no ears as yet. 

 

Out front the Gerbera daisy appears to love the heat and is proving to me, I can grow them successfully (though I likely have little to do with it).

Behind it is a container with geranium, curly glass, and another annual which name I can never recall. Those plants are doing well, but not as great as the Gerbera.

Finally, here is a photo of the front yard after I finished weeding and cutting back of the peonies and rose bushes. The latter seem to be waning though there were a few more recent blooms coming on. (I still need to do some painting but that needs to wait until the plants die back.)

Today we're planning to visit a few garage sales in the morning and I expect D and Eli will visit the pool. I'll hang out with the cats and work on my cross-stitch. The weeding in the back yard can wait. :)

Have a great week ahead everyone!