Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

 

Preparing for Winter

Regarding Wednesday's photo: I always knew one could trap a cat in a box, I hadn't realized it would work on a kid too. :)

Monday started off cool, so after Eli was dropped at school, D and I started in on the end of fall yard-work. The last of the tomatoes were picked. Reminder to self - we only need 2 containers, not the 5! we planted this year. After my initial worries that we weren't going to see any fruit, the plants went crazy. I'd estimate we had at least ten pounds of cherry tomatoes, probably more. I had put away the majority of decor items, but D found a few I had missed. I also cleared out all of the containers. We had quit watering and everything was dying back. D mowed the yard, mulching the leaves, cut back the regular lilies, and did some weeding. We loaded my wooden chair and table, the bird bath, the solar lights, and a couple of the folding chairs into the shed. By the time D went to pick up Eli, I was ready for a break.\

The rest of the afternoon was spent in my bedroom starting the process of packing. For what you ask? You'll need to read a little further before I share. 

Tuesday started cool, but heated up quickly. I decided that the rest of the yardwork could wait and suggested to D that we head to the NTO (next town over) for a bit of retail therapy. We dropped off some donations at the thrift store and then went in to use my senior's discount. D did exceptionally well. She found a pair of Kombi gloves for Eli, regularly sold at Sportchek for $40-50. She picked up this pair, another pair of mitts, three pieces of clothing for Eli, a large bag of crayons*, and two bags of assorted toys for a total of $50 including the tax. I found a few items to and spent about $20. 

From there we headed over to Walmart for some groceries, and I also found the batting for the quilt flimsy. Now I just need to find the material for the backing. I have a tub of material that I purchased when Fabricland in the east end of Regina closed many years ago (I was still working!), and I'm almost certain there will be something I can use in there.

It reached a high of 30C/86F, so yardwork was out of the question in the afternoon. D and Eli did additional school work, while I relaxed and did a bit of knitting.

I didn't want to get out of bed Wednesday morning, dreading what was coming in the afternoon. D drove me into NTO to the dentist mid-afternoon. It wasn't a pleasant experience though it could have been worse. For some unknown reason the freezing wasn't taking, and after numerous needles my gums were pincushions. I finally decided not to tell them that I could still feel the area around the tooth and after much digging and pulling the tooth was finally out.

With a couple of extra strength Advil I was able to sleep a restless sleep, up several times during the night. My best sleep came between 4 and 6:30 a.m. By this point the pain was lessened to the gums and my jaw. The dentist gripped it with one hand while using the other to extract the tooth. I would describe the pain as feeling like someone had punched me in the face several times. 

D and I got back to the yardwork on Thursday morning. She finished the mowing, while I cleared up the stalks from the lilies and asparagus that I will use to cover the strawberries and asparagus in the garden bed. I also went out to the front and cut or pulled the stalks of lilies - the peonies I will leave until the spring. Outdoor toys were sorted, with a number of items ending up in a garbage bags and the bins were stacked against the shed. In the garage we removed a lower shelf and packed camping gear in the shed. We did not empty the rain barrels as we're expecting rain this weekend. The rain barrels keep the water from ending up in the basement. These will be taken care of next week.

While D and Eli went to an event in the evening, I headed to the library to Knit and Natter. There were three of us, plus the librarian. I've finished the back, left and front sides, so I started the sleeves for Eli's sweater while I was there. I'm knitting both on the same needles - that way there shouldn't be an extra row added in when I'm counting increases and decreases. At least I hope so!

I slept better that night but at one point woke in extreme pain. I was dreaming that I was waiting for the pain med to kick in, waking to realize that I hadn't yet taken said med. For pain control, I'm alternating Tylenol and Advil, and have added salt water rinses several times a day to the routine. There seemed to be a bit of swelling in the night but an ice cube wrapped in a face cloth helped with that. My next appointment (filling) is Tuesday so I'm hoping by then this side of my mouth will be healed up.

Friday was a quiet day, we had rain so no outdoor work. In the morning, D and I partially put together a new climbing apparatus for Eli, and after school she took him to the local arcade for some fun. I've been watching curling (Pointsbet Invitational), catching up on blog reading and knitting. Today will look much the same for me. I'm hoping to finish Eli's sweater before I head out on the 14th so I've got my work cut out for me. 

About the packing, initially I'm off to Regina for a couple of weeks to help my son with his yard prep for winter, have plans to visit with several friends, and maybe (not likely) paint my bedroom. Then I'm off to Yuma, Arizona for most of the winter. As regular readers will know I spent a couple of months there last winter and enjoyed myself immensely. What you won't know is I arranged with one of the Co-op members to purchase an RV this fall. The unit is permanently parked on a site, has water, electricity and internet connections. I do need to learn to use the propane stove and furnace, but I'll have lots of help with that. There is also an outdoor living area with a gazebo. The two thing it is lacking are a regular toilet and a shed for laundry. I'll be having a proper toilet installed this fall/winter, but the laundry shed will need to wait. There is a laundromat nearby and one of the regular visitors has offered to do my laundry in exchange for rides. We'll see, I'm happy to give her rides on occasion, but doing a couple of loads at the laundromat doesn't bother me.

I'll be flying home in early December to spend time with C, D and Eli, and then fly back in early January. The plan is to be back in Canada by the end of March, weather depending. I've been working on a plan for driving and will go over it with my friends, K and J, who have made the drive many times when I'm in Regina. 

I'm looking forward to missing most of the winter weather and meeting friends who were so welcoming last year. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

Fun and games

We did something I've never done before last Sunday - we visited a corn maze! About a half hour from town, on an acreage, a family has created an incredible wedding venue. Almost directly across the road is this old stone church. The property has a large parking lot and several buildings including a hall for a reception and dance floor, a commercial kitchen and a gift shop, as well as an outdoor tent that can be used for receptions or dances. Out behind these buildings is a small cabin, which I assume is for the newly married couple as well as a fire pit with a good number of chairs.

In the fall, when the wedding season has slowed down, they open up a corn field they planted earlier in the year, and bring in a bouncy castle and small petting zoo, set up a corn kernel pit (like a ball pit but with corn kernels), and offer snacks and drinks at their canteen. The price of entrance was $10 per person, and except for the pony rides and the canteen everything else was included. 

There are two exits to the maze depending on whether one takes the "short" cut or the longer version. Eli took the lead and as it turned out he choose the latter path. I think we were in the maze just under a half hour. The walk back to main area was another ten minutes or so! We all enjoyed it, it was a first for all of us. We ran into several people D and Eli knew, and he enjoyed petting the rabbits and feeding the goats, as well as climbing and sliding on the combine bouncy castle. 

Monday saw me heading to the next town over to the dentist. I had a couple of teeth giving me some grief and it was time to have them checked out. Yes, it has been some time since I went to the dentist. I have a very unhealthy fear of dentists stemming to incidents that have happened from the time I was a young child into adulthood. The last one, at a time when I could ill afford to see the dentist (single mom, two kids, low paying job), the dentist completed an extraction and then took the time to lecture me about dental health and my responsibilities. When he left the room, I was in tears and a dental tech came in and held me as I sobbed. Suffice to say I did not go back to the dentist for many years. In fact, I usually have to be in some pain before I make an appointment. 

I've had two appointments now, the first a check-up where x-rays were taken and the dentist looked at all of my teeth. No pain relief after that first appointment. However I was able to get an appointment on Wednesday where two of my teeth were filled. I'm due to return next week and the week following for an extraction and another filling. This dentist has recommended more work, but I'm about at my tolerance limit.

Back at home, I got work done in the yard in preparation for winter. I put a generic version of Roundup on the weeds that have grown up in the area where the old evergreen stood. I don't plan to plant in that space until the fence is replaced next year so any residue should be gone by then. After a couple of days I dug up the majority of the weeds. I'm sure there are others hiding in the soil and it will need clearing again in the spring but for now it is good enough.

In the garden bed I dug out about 1/2 of the strawberries. While we've been getting a handful of berries every few days in the last few weeks, we couldn't get to the plants nearest the fence and thistle and other weeds were filling in spaces. I've kept the plants at the front of the bed and plan to make a narrow path down the middle to allow access to both sides. It will give me an opportunity to grow other vegetables that I simply don't have room for now.

Speaking of plants, the photos of the various mushrooms were all from our yard. Most are simply the Inky Caps variety which truly do spread black "ink" when left to their own devices. My patio has a large black splotch left behind. The colourful mushroom, Google tells me, is a ringless honey mushroom. This one tends to grow on wood fences or trees. It's definitely quite pretty.

Knit and Natter saw four of us joining the librarians for a productive time and a good visit. I've started a sweater for Eli, and worked on the back piece. Since then I've started the left front and hope to have it and the right front done this weekend. That's a fair amount of knitting (for me), but there is curling to watch! I've cancelled my Sportsnet app as the recent price increase was more than I was willing to pay. I learned about a new channel on the Roku Channel, the Rock Channel that is specifically dedicated to curling. The last television I bought is a Roku TV, and these channels are free...at least for now anyway. I'm a happy girl! 

This weekend I'll fit in yardwork around the curling draw. It is time to finish clearing out the containers, disconnect the garden hose, empty the rain barrels, and put away the solar lights. I'll be heading into the city in mid-October for a couple of weeks, and I don't want to leave all of the work to my daughter. 

The local thrift store is having a sale at the school gymnasium to clear out their storage area so we'll head out for that. I met the manager of the store a couple of weeks ago, and they're hoping to move into another area of school (currently they are in a classroom area) this year. They definitely need more space. I also learned they need volunteers during the summer, so I think I'll look into that in the spring. Not only to be helpful, but for a bit more selfish purpose of meeting more people.

Have a great week ahead everyone!

P.S. An update on my brother and his running: To celebrate the fall equinox he ran 80 kilometers/50 miles over 24 hours. He set up a loop of 5 kilometers and ran it 16 times. Not for me but good on him.

 

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

Foul weather, good food, fun, and big news!

We got rain! We got too much rain! Saturday afternoon, evening and overnight into Sunday, we had 60 millimeters of rain. That's just lightly less than 2 1/2 inches of rain in less than 24 hours. Then on Sunday night into Monday morning, we had another 10 millimeters of rain, about about 4/10ths of an inch of rain. D and I were kept busy emptying the overflow from the rain barrels on Saturday until I belatedly came up with the idea of opening the taps on both barrels. They each have a small hose on them, so we tucked those into extra pieces of downspout and laid the pipe so that the water flowed towards the lilies and the lawn. It meant the water barrels are no longer full, but old Mother Nature has done a good job of watering. So much so, that several of my tomatoes split before I could pick them!

Speaking of tomatoes we used the first batch, along with a green pepper, onion, garlic and Italian seasoning to make homemade tomato sauce. I did add the last tablespoon or so of tomato paste at the end to thicken the sauce slightly. The recipe made enough sauce for 3-4 meals. We used a portion on Sunday night to make baked pasta (fusilli) for dinner. I don't consider myself much of a cook, but it was sooo good.

After school on Monday was equine therapy for Eli. As it was very wet, his therapist had him assist in building a step for Rocky, the Shetland pony to step over. That meant he got to use a drill! He came home very excited to tell me about it. They also made a trek out to see the pigs, who are no longer piglets but should be ready to be bacon in the spring. Eli doesn't know this and I, for one, am not telling him. 

Tuesday we did a bit of meal prep. While D made a batch of her pizza dough (including parmesan and dried parsley), I boiled up a pot of potatoes for pierogi filling - these were mashed up with ricotta and old cheddar cheese, and onions cooked in butter until soft. The filling was put away in the fridge for a few days*. Meanwhile D cooked vegetable stir fry for Eli. It's a food he can always be counted on to eat. It will keep for a few days and he'll eat for lunch or dinner. I wanted to use up some of the latest batch of tomatoes but wanted something fresh. Salsa it was with tomatoes, corn, yellow pepper, red onion, lime, coriander, and chili flakes. It went well with chips for a pre-bedtime snack. But first, dinner that evening, used a portion of the pizza dough, with leftover air-fried chicken, yellow pepper, and red onion, and mozza-cheddar cheese using bacon ranch dressing as the pizza sauce. Very yummy!

Wednesday morning, I used the remainder of the second picking of tomatoes to make up a pot of tomato soup. It was good, but I think I put too much garlic in it. In the afternoon, I headed over to the library for Knit and Natter. There were only four of us (two were the librarians) but we had a good visit, and I learned how to use a pom-pom maker properly. The woman who brought the supplies even gave me one of the pom-pom makers as she has no use for them. Very kind of her!

On Thursday morning, D and I followed the school bus to the next town over (NTO) as Eli was to participate in a cross country run. Like the track and field days when I was a kid, it wasn't a pleasant day with gray skies threatening rain, but by the time we left NTO the sun was peeking through. Eli ran in the first race, but before that happened the children (and adults who ran with them) did a walk through of the course and a warm-up. His E.A. ran with him, and the pair managed to come in middle of the pack. I'd guess there were about 40 kids running. The fastest three came in way quicker than I would have expected, some of these kids can clearly run!

Before we left NTO, we stopped at Staples so D could purchase a new cellphone. Her old one was "glitching" as Eli would say. At home she was able to transfer data to the new phone but could not get the cellular to connect. She called the mobility provider in the morning, and they advised she would have to visit the store. So off we went to NTO after picking up Eli at lunch time. After she finished at the store, we headed over to one of Eli's favorite parks. As it turned out this was a great idea as the sim card began sending error messages. So back to the store we went where they gave her a new sim. Rather than head home immediately we decided to make a stop at the thrift store...just in case. It was a productive trip as Eli got a couple of Minecraft toys (don't ask me), D found some craft items, and I walked out with a lovely zippered cardigan. 

And the big news? We've known for a couple of years that Eli could read a bit, but lacked confidence. With D's support and direction this summer, the lessons have truly clicked. Not only is he reading in English, but also in French. On Friday as we were driving home from NTO, he was reading aloud to us from the back seat. We're so proud of him and his mom is thrilled that she is raising a reader. 

Have a great week ahead everyone! 

*We finally got around to making the pierogi on Friday evening. I think we made about four dozen and had lots of filling left over. Two bags of pierogis and the container of filling went to the freezer, while my daughter made a plateful for her dinner.  Lazy pierogi casserole will likely be on the menu soon.

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

Keeping on, keeping on

 Another week that has passed far too quickly. As you'll have seen in Wednesday's photos, the tomatoes and peppers are ready for picking. Though the peppers were a wee bit small, the darned bugs are getting to them. The strawberries, that ought to have been producing earlier in the summer, have finally taken off. We're still not getting a lot of berries, but I'm picking 5 or 6 a day. My grandson and I both love strawberries, though he thinks he prefers store bought (because of their size, not taste). We've been sneaking the home grown ones lately and he hasn't noticed. I get to eat the small ones!

The purple gladiola got so heavy it fell over in the garden. I cut it, a few asparagus ferns, and a couple of sweet peas stems and made an arrangement. Later I added the second glad to the mix. It doesn't quite match the fall decor I've put out, but I like it anyway. Note, I don't dare put the vase where the cats can get to it easily...anything with water in it is fair game around here.

Since the weather is cooling off, we decided to put away the tent gazebo. D and I took care of that on Tuesday, and I dug up two of the poppies in the raised garden bed. I can't get to the other as it has grown up between two large, and very heavy rocks. There are lilies I want to remove as well, but they too are growing in a pile of rocks. If possible, I'll get to these after everything dies back this fall, if not it will wait until spring. I'll likely have to move the rocks to get at the roots. 

Wednesday, D and I went to the next town over, as she had a dental appointment. We stopped at the Dollar store ahead of her appointment, and I did some grocery shopping before I picked her up. We made a run to the thrift store, where she found the perfect metal bucket for the firepit ashes, and I found a quilt top (a flimsy, I think it's called). It is a combination of several pieces of fabric, some with a Canada motif, the rest is Christmas. I've never done any quilting though I spent a lot of time under my mother's quilting frame. It was set up in the living room and the only way for us to watch television was to lie on the floor beneath it!  

I'll likely watch some videos and ask questions of a couple of women in the city who I know quilt regularly. Jackie, I may have to pick your brain too! First of all, I know I'll need to get batting and a backing for it. I'd love to hand quilt it, but I'm well aware how much work that would be, so it's more likely I'll tie it instead. But, it's a future project as I have other things to work on. 

Wednesday afternoon was the first meeting at the library for the Knit and Natter (or Stitch and Chat). I had mentioned it to the librarian a month or so ago, and she agreed to host it. There were seven of us, including the two librarians with more interest expressed. A number of people were looking for an evening event, so she decided we'd hold it every second Wednesday afternoon and every second Thursday evening. My concern is that participants may get confused about what week it might be. I'll drop in at the library another day and ask if it would alright if I drop in on Wednesday afternoons just in case others show up. In a small town keeping the library open is reliant on the number of visitors and activities. The librarian keeps track of everyone who comes in, and is always looking for ways to brings more people to the library.

Beyond that, it was a quiet week. There was regular housework completed, I did a bit of weeding, more watering, and pruning out in the yard. The weather channel keeps promising us rain but we've had not a drop. It looks like we'll get a good rain today, up to 40 mm/1.6 inches throughout the day and overnight. We'll see.

It will be a good day to enjoy more baseball, football, and curling. There are a couple of curling events happening this weekend with live streams available on You-tube. While there is no commentary (at least thus far), I can keep an eye on the stream while I'm knitting. Yep, I plan to be very lazy today!

To end, I'll share this photo my brother sent me of the ridge line trail he runs each day. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

Our weather rollercoaster

I've started writing this post on Thursday wondering where the heck the week went? It wasn't a particularly busy one, at least for me. D and Eli - different story.

The heat left us on Tuesday and the temperatures dropped like a stone. 28C/82F on Monday afternoon, but it barely made 17C/63F on Tuesday! We had near frosty temperatures overnight both Tuesday and Wednesday. I did not cover my veg containers and everything came through unscathed. There was frost in other areas of the province and the photos of fall harvest filled the Saskatchewan Gardeners group on FB. 

I had decided I'd do some harvesting of my own on Thursday but the weather had other ideas. We had nearly an inch of rain overnight, and the temperature was a mere 10C/50F in the afternoon. Add in 60km/37mph winds and it was mostly an indoor day. We did run to the grocery stores to pick up a few sale items before picking up Eli at the store.

As you saw on Wednesday, the tomatoes are coming on and I nearly filled the container. So far, I've had Caprese salad, sliced tomato on sandwiches, a omelet with tomato, green onion and cheese, as well as grabbing a few for snacks. My daughter is planning to make tomato sauce or salsa. The green peppers are looking good though small. The weather is supposed to improve over the weekend, with no frost in the forecast, so I'll hold off picking for a bit yet. We did pull the potato plant on the weekend and got about 4-5 pounds from the single grow bag.

Exciting news (to me at least), is the gladiolas beginning to open. Everything seems to be late this year. I seem to remember the flowers being in bloom in mid to late July in my mother's garden. I didn't plant the corms until June so that likely explains the late flowering. But the peonies were late this year, as were the hollyhocks, and of course the tomatoes. I'll need to dig up the corms before the first heavy frost, as they won't survive our winter.

Speaking of frost we had another night of near freezing on Friday evening, and another expected for tonight. (We'll be covering the tomatoes and peppers!) Then the weather is supposed to warm up to more seasonal temps, days around 22-23C/71-73F, and overnight between 8-14C/46-57F. It will be perfect weather for starting our clean-up of the yard. Summer, I hardly knew you. 

Eli has had a good first week. He has only attended school in the morning, with his mom spending time working with him in the afternoon. Unlike last year, he is spending some time in the classroom with his peers, and joins them for physical education. I'm happy that he isn't being isolated; if you recall his previous teacher wasn't willing (or perhaps prepared) to have him in the classroom, after a single episode when he acted up in class. His current teacher seems to be much more accommodating and is welcoming him to attend for as long as he can tolerate. What a change!

D has met with the team, including the school counsellor, principal, school board personnel, and one other person whose title I don't remember. The support that Eli receives (and by extension D) is amazing. The team will continue to meet bi-weekly to discuss progress and adjust the schedule as needed throughout the year. That's one of the benefits of living in a small community.

It will be another quiet weekend, baseball and football to watch, knitting (dishcloths), a bit of housework, and I suspect, more tomatoes picked. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

P. S. A gratuitous photo of Saku, as I only took a couple of photos this month week. Don't I wish I could relax that well!

P.S.S. I've noticed that the number of views of my blog have continued to climb. Last week's post had over 900 views in the span of a week, and even my wordless Wednesday had nearly 400 views in less than 24 hours. I have no idea what is happening or why. Has anyone else noticed a similar trend?

P.S.S.S. An update on the kids next door. D said something to the father one evening about the kids attending school. Since then, I've seen him driving off about 9 a.m. with one or two of the kids. The oldest child one day and two younger ones another day. I should note, my bedroom window looks out onto their backyard, and I'm usually reading blogs or checking e-mails in my room at that time. Really, I'm not that big of snoop!

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday (late!)

 

Fall is in the air, but summer is hanging on

This past week has been about getting ready for the fall season. In the garden, the sweet peas are setting their seed pods, the tomatoes are starting to ripen on the vine, and the grackles were back, presumably on their way south. The leaves on the big tree out back are turning colour and starting to fall too. It's likely due to the lack of moisture; with the exception of a few heavy rainfalls we've had a very dry summer. We also a very cool night on the weekend, with the temperature dropping to 2C/36F.  Yep, fall is in the air! 

And of course, that means it is time for school to be back in session. Eli heads back to class this upcoming Tuesday for Grade 3!!! As I've mentioned D has been working with him all summer on his language and mathematics skills. He's looking forward to seeing his friends, his mother and I are looking forward to some time with him out of the house. :) On Wednesday afternoon, they went to the school to drop of his backpack and school supplies, and to meet his teacher.

While New Year's Day is officially the start of the year, I've always been more inclined to think of September as the beginning of the year. Obviously when my kids were in school that was a definitive new start, but even as they were beyond the school years, there was a similar delineation in the work world. People were back from their summer vacations; if we were hiring that year, new employees were coming on board with orientation and training to prepare for and present. It was also the time when our teams would be shuffled with changes to our reporting structure. 

On the note of new things, we're getting at least* one set of new neighbours. To the east of us were a young couple who recently had a baby (late July/early August). They were renting the house next door for the past two years. We've called the town office a couple of times since we've lived here, as they let the weeds in the back yard go, resulting in weeds six feet tall in places. The owner of the property must have given them notice after this year's by-law infraction, as their lease was not renewed. He advertised it on the local FB classified site. D reached out to him, to let him know we would like to replace the fence between us next spring. He was thrilled to hear this as he had been unable to convince the previous owner to take care of it previously. Best of all, he has agreed to share the cost.

The owner lives in Winnipeg, several hours away but arranged to be in town on Sunday. He held an open house in the morning and had several showings and applications for the rental. Both D and I were able to talk to him and he was disgusted with the state of the back yard. He told me he's planning to have his Dad come in to clear the weeds and spray. We'll keep Eli and Stanley (the cat) indoors, but I'll also cover the plants closest to the fence to (hopefully) keep the overspray from harming my plants.

D also asked about removing some low hanging branches on the large tree out front. He agreed, and lent her his pole saw/pruner. She cut branches and I helped drag them into a pile in the yard. She plans to let them dry over winter, and will cut them up for fire wood next spring. 

Meanwhile I tackled the stumps of the cedars in the back yard. Two of the stumps were relatively small and I was able to use a hand saw to cut up and clear those. The larger of the stumps had me .... stumped, but I later found a You-tube video that gave me a potential option. It's been too hot to be outdoors for long so I'll give it a go in a week or so.

I'll be glad to see the end of August, it's been a very spendy month! This past weekend our water heater started leaking and by Monday there was clear evidence of the seam expanding due to pressure in the tank. D called the plumbers and they came just before lunchtime, set up the equipment to drain the water heater, returned after lunch and in a short half hour they had a new hot heater installed. The old one was installed in 2017 and they advised that is typical for the lifespan of a hot water heater in our town. I know nothing lasts forever, but that seems too darn short to me.

We had some warmer weather this week too, with temps of 25-30C/77-86F so Tuesday we made a trip to a nearby lake. The local pool has closed for the season, as their employees are primarily students. Sadly when we arrived there, we learned that the water wasn't safe for wading or swimming due to bacteria in the water. This is the sign we found, and Eli's reaction to it. 

The heat wave we're in is expected to last through until Monday. We've been spending some time outdoors early in the morning and/or evening as the mid-day sun is far too hot. My Dad used to say, "Only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the mid-day sun". I had to look it up, and apparently, it was initially cited as a quote from Rudyard Kipling (although there is no evidence). I frankly doubt my Dad read Kipling, so I've no idea where he would have heard it. Perhaps from his father, who was well educated.

As a result of the heat, the rest of the week has been pretty quiet. I've watered the containers a couple of times a day, watered the garden every second day, and done some deadheading. Indoors there has been the usual housework, a bit of cooking, and a whole lot of television watching. I finished watching the series "Bosch", and was disappointed when it came to an end. I've moved on to "Ballard", which has cameo appearances by Harry Bosch, but doesn't seem quite as good as the original series. These are both detective/cop series set in Los Angeles. 

This weekend is Labour Day here in Canada, which is a holiday for most workers. The highways will be busy, with people heading to the lake and others heading to city for the big football game. Our Riders will play the Winnipeg Bombers on Sunday evening. Although the Riders have played well this year, the Bombers are their biggest rival and always play tough. No matter who loses, they'll have another chance next weekend as the teams square off in Winnipeg. Go Riders!

Finally, a note about the Wordless Wednesday photo - I've unpublished the post as it had over 500 views by Thursday morning. I don't know how this happens, but suspect the shape of the Shaggy Mane mushroom somehow attracted a bit of unwanted attention. While we do have the odd mushroom pop up in the lawn, this was the first time I've seen one, and I've learned it is edible if picked in the early stages as it quickly liquefies after 24 hours. I haven't checked on it but didn't see it when I went outdoors on Thursday.

Have a wonderful weekend and a good week ahead everyone.

*We are really hoping our neighbours to the west also move. It's a weird situation, where the mother may have abandoned the family last winter. Her partner, father of two of the four children is currently (sort of) caring for them. I say sort of as they haven't been to school, aren't permitted to play outdoors, and while he disappears for hours at a time, his dog is trained to keep the kids inside. We know the latter because he has told my daughter this fact. We do worry about the kids, but between D and a few other people in town, Social Services have been called a number of times, but they say the kids are dressed and fed...apparently that is the minimum standard. The water has been turned off several times, most recently this week, but he must have come up with the payment as the city workers were back later the same day. He disappeared with the kids for about 10 days earlier this summer and I had my fingers crossed they'd left for good, but he later told D they'd been to visit family and attend a funeral. Lately, there have been delivery of food packages almost daily, delivered by an older gentleman. We're assuming he has asked for assistance at a local church and/or foodbank. Another neighbour has gotten annoyed with the mess of the yard, and has paid for someone to mow the front lawn every few weeks. I'm not sure what he does all day, though see him outside with the dog a few times a day from my bedroom window; he sits on the back step and smokes and talks on the phone. If/when they move he certainly won't be missed.

Friday Funny

 

Good time in the city, back to the yardwork at home

I had a good trip to the city, a lovely visit with my son, his roommate B, grand-dog Sage, and three of B's five kitties. (The other two would have nothing to do with me). One of the cats, Kota, decided he was my cat. At one point, he even jumped out of B's lap to come running to me as I came through the door. He also liked to spend time with me in my room though could be coaxed out by shaking a bag of treats. That also brought three others to the door. :) Yes, Kota is a black and white cat who looks a bit like Saku.

B and I went shopping on Monday morning to Costco as I needed some dry goods for home, and we picked up meat for their freezer. They should be set for a couple of months. We made a stop at Pet Valu for B to pick up cat litter, and then Home Depot, where I picked up C's Christmas gift. I'd promised to purchase a snow blower last year for him, but couldn't get him to tell me which one he would like. So this year, I said to heck with it and bought a Toro. It has good/decent reviews and as it was the last one available at the store the price was right. I'm sure they were clearing it out for the new models. The Farmers Almanac is forecasting a cold and snowy winter ahead. 

B suggested we go for lunch at Boston Pizza, which was right beside Home Depot. We had a really nice chat, while I've known her for a number of years, I haven't really sat down and talked with her. 

When we arrived back at the house, C was out on the deck and he helped unload the vehicle. Then I was off to the hairdresser to get my hair cut. What a relief! It's been getting shaggy and I am not talented enough to cut my own. (Looking at you, Patsy). My final stop was Walmart where I purchased C's birthday gift. B had shared that he really wanted a wok. While I will be back in the city in October, I figured he could use it now. 

In fact, within an hour of arriving back at the house, he had the wok seasoned, meat marinating in the fridge and the rice cooking in the rice cooker. He watches a lot of cooking shows, one of which has two chefs that have worked in Michelin star restaurants. These guys are fun to watch, because they can put together an amazing meal together in short order with pretty much anything. He has learned, and I had no idea, that after cooking the rice is spread out on a cookie sheet and allowed to dry. I've always just put the pot in the fridge and left it over night....and I used Minute Rice, not long grain. :) 

I didn't get to enjoy the meal, as I left mid-morning Tuesday to return home. The day was hot, by 11 a.m. it was 27C/80F and I didn't want to drive in the heat of the day. It reached a high of 32C/90F but with the humidity felt even hotter. D and Eli came out to help me unload the vehicle and other than watering plants I stayed indoors until the tree guy arrived. We had the evergreen removed, as well as the two cedars against the house, and several branches removed that were hanging over the power line. D has been concerned about those, as she has experienced an ice storm here a few years ago. In less than an hour the guys had done their work, cleaned up the majority of the debris (there are dry needles from the cedars left for me), and had everything loaded in the trailer for removal to the dump. They even took the seven bags of garden waste that I've gathered up over the summer.

This is area in front of the tent gazebo. The path leads to the front yard. It gets a fair amount of sun in the afternoon but the only thing growing there (besides the old evergreen) is weeds. D is planning to put up poles to hold a line. It can be used as a clothes line but also can be used to hold various apparatus for Eli to play on. That's a next year project.

The two cedars, the tall one and a globe cedar were too close to the house. Debris from the taller one was collecting in the gutters as well. 

Wednesday was hot, though slightly cooler than Tuesday as we got some rain. I spent the first part of the day outside cleaning up debris from the cedars. That's the second bag up against the foundation. I want to move out those rocks and will allow the day lilies to fill in much of the area. 

D ran some errands in the morning and she and Eli went to the library in the afternoon. Before they left for the library, they followed me to the car dealership where I left my SUV for the installation of a front and rear dashcam. They were back from the library a half hour or so, and the dealership called to say the car was ready to go. I was able to sync my phone to the camera but have no clue how it works. I guess I'll have to read the manual. :p

Thursday was a quiet day, and Friday was much busier. We went into the next door town where I picked up a small laptop as a back-up for my current machine. We also made a stop at the book store, where D picked up four more books of a series for Eli using one of my old gift cards. She's been reading the first two books to him, and he's gotten in to the series. There are dragon masters!

At lunchtime we headed to the library for their free BBQ, where Eli and I shared a hotdog. 

There was a presentation on fire safety inside the library, and outside, children were allowed to climb into the truck, and push the buttons for the sirens. He enjoyed that, a lot!

Next up we went next door to City Hall for the "Escape Room". D had booked it for the three of us. We had a rocky start, as we didn't clue on the clues in the audio recording we listened to upon entering the room. However, the staff gave us a hint and we started working our way through. It took a couple more helpful hints before we "made our escape". In fact, we weren't locked in and could have left at any time. While we had 30 minutes, we finished in just over 20 minutes. I think Eli enjoyed it, and though I have no idea how D figured out some of the clues, it was a nice way to spend time with my family.

We had quite high winds on Friday as well, and our poor tomato plants were blown over several times. One of the containers landed on a container of peppers. I had to stake the peppers and tie them up before D and I moved the tomatoes to another spot in the yard. Even then, we found the containers blown over more than once. I'm not certain how much damage was done to the branches, time will tell.

Today, with the cooler weather we're planning to put a pork loin in to the slow cooker for pulled pork. D will bake buns, and we're also going to cook up sausage rounds to make breakfast sandwiches for the freezer. If, and I do mean if, we are feeling especially productive, we may make perogies. Or at least I'll cook the potatoes so we can make them later this weekend or early next week. 

One last note: today would have been my Dad's 115th birthday. He always wanted to reach 100, but left us a few weeks after his 98th birthday. He'll be in my heart and mind today, as always.

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Friday Funny

 

What happened?

Is it just me, or has this summer been flying by for everyone? How can it be mid-August already with just a couple of weeks to go before school is back in session?  I know we've been busy, but really?  D has worked all summer with Eli on his school work including French and English language, reading, and math. They've started in on learning about money, too.  He isn't particularly happy doing school work, but is rewarded with an hour of You-tube videos. He'll even do extra work for more time. :) She's hoping that he will have none of the "summer slump" that other students may experience.

I got most of the creeping juniper cut back, but will be digging roots for some time yet. The weeding also continues, and I've started cutting back some of the perennials. The poppy heads were brown so I've cut those off as I don't want them to be seeding in the raised flower bed. The strawberries are on the list to dig up as I'd like to make room in the bed for more vegetables, and will move the gladiolas. The latter will get more sun there; while they've grown quite tall there is no indication of flowering. 

The photo on Wednesday was of a few of the very many lilies we have out front. They line the exterior of the peony bushes. Next year, I am going to try pruning the peonies back early, to allow the lilies more space. This year the peonies blooms were pretty sparse, with a lot of seed pods setting instead. The lilies, though, have been putting on a real show. Bob was close when he called them leopard lilies, they are actually tiger lilies. The ones that grow in the wild are our province's official flower; the flower petals grow upward rather than . These are domesticated and the petals grow downward. 

We had our two trips into the next town over for Eli's day camp. D and I had a very successful trip to the thrift store for clothing. She got two or three dresses, a pair of leggings, two t-shirts and a pretty knit top, while I got two dresses and a knit top. Between the two of us, we spent less than $100. 

After day camp on Tuesday, we dropped D's car off at the dealership (again). They had early replaced some spark plugs, but not all, and one of the ignition coils. The car had continued to misfire when idling, so it needed to go back into the shop. This time, they replaced the remaining spark plugs and an ignition coil. It was ready for pick-up later the same day and she took it for a drive. She's driven a couple more times and all seems to be good. 

Eli had the local library program as well on Wednesday, and on Friday the group went to the spray pad. The park is just a short block and a half walk from our house and the weather was cool, but Eli had a great time playing with some other children. D hadn't gotten around to eating that morning/noon so it was thrilled to find that the Jamaican group had set up a food tent in the park, and enjoyed a meal of jerk chicken, rice, and veg. (I don't skip meals, she does.)

Early Thursday morning, about 1:30 a.m. we had a storm blow threw bringing thunder, lightning and pouring rain. In just about 45 minutes we had an 2.5 cm./1 inch of rain in the gauge. It came down hard and fast, and at one point even a bit of hail. Thankfully, no real damage was done. There were just a few branches from the trees out front on the sidewalk.

That put a kibosh on doing any more gardening/yardwork for me for a couple of days. The ground was saturated! While I did get out, ahead of the rain, and cleaned up the raised bed, I still have weeding to do in the areas that are primarily rock. It's not the most comfortable area to weed. I can't kneel as my right knee won't take it even with a pad, so I sit on my bum on a child's boogie board. I'm not quite to the point my mom was in her last few years, where she would lay on her belly in the garden and pull weeds. On occasion, her method put a scare into the neighbours as they drove by. :)

Out in the garden, the peas are up. I don't know that we'll actually get a crop of them before the first frost but I tried. Our containers of tomatoes are going strong, though a couple of lower branches were slightly damaged in the storm, and are looking a bit yellow.  The green peppers are starting to show some promise, though I don't think we'll get anything the size of store bought peppers. The lower one in this photo is about the size of a fast ball (smaller than a soft ball, bigger than a golf ball).

On another note, the cats have reached to level of tolerance to be in the same room together. Saku still doesn't like it if one of the others jumps up on my/his bed. But Stanley came for a cuddle on Friday, and while Saku looked a wee bit annoyed, he was fine as long as Stanley wasn't too close. We started feeding them together out in the kitchen, supervised of course, just to get them accustomed to being in the same proximity. Then we started leaving the bedroom door open to allow Saku to wander, again supervised. One morning I put the cat TV (on You-tube) on my television, walked out of the room, and came back to find all three watching. Saku was on the bed, Stanley was on the cat tower, and Spencer was sitting on the floor. Okay, then...so I left the bedroom door open overnight and found no fur or blood shed in the morning. By Thursday we felt it was safe enough to leave them on their own while we were away. And again, there was no indication of any kind of kerfuffle. I thought it would take longer for this level of tolerance but I certainly am not complaining. 

Just in time for me to make a quick trip to the city. I'm heading out on Sunday and will return on Tuesday. D has a friend with her two young daughters coming to visit. Three children under ten, and two young women who like to talk, a lot, is more than I can tolerate. In any event, I need a break. Living with one's adult child can be a bit much sometimes. We both have our own way of doing things and expectations and lately these seem to be at odds. A couple of days away should give us both a chance to reflect and re-set.

Today, I'm planning to get a bit more weeding done and I may move some rocks to another area of the yard. There is baseball and football to watch (Go Riders!), and another toque/beanie to finish off. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!

P.S. Maxine's best before explanation reminded me of my mom. When she passed away, we were clearing the fridge of items we knew dad would never eat. The oldest item was a bottle of salad dressing dated 1989. Mom passed away in 2003...

Friday Funny

 

Wordless Wednesday

 

Another week bites the dust/mud

I'm not sure where this week went, I think because Monday was a holiday in the province, so I probably thought it was Sunday, though in reality everyday is Friday since I retired. (Confused yet, I know I was!)

Eli had his day camp on Tuesday and Thursday. Library program was Wednesday and a real live pirate came to visit! I wasn't there, but that's what I was told, and when an eight year old tells you there was a real live pirate, he must be right. Also, he and D went to the community center on Friday for a special event put on by the library and the Science Center (located in Regina). The center sent two individuals to do a short science camp. Eli was in his element - he's a math and science kid!

Earlier in the week, he and I stopped in at the pet store. This little girl tabby, named Tila (pronounced Tee-la) was evacuated from Northern Saskatchewan due to the forest fires. She is 5 months old, spayed, vaccinated and ready for a forever home. Eli likes to visit the kittens/cats at the pet store and he would happily bring them all home. However, that is not happening, but we'll continue to hope Tila finds her "furever" home soon.

As you can probably tell from Wednesday's photo, the cats are starting to tolerate one another. Saku does not appreciate the other two getting in his space on the bed, and there was one incident of him lashing out at Stanley when he (Stanley) jumped up and woke him (Saku). No blood was shed. Both Spencer and Stanley have used Saku's litter box, and in turn, he has used their box in the porch. Saku has been in the basement a time or two, but I don't believe he's used either of the boxes down there. In any event, we are able to allow the three to be out and about in the house without a lot of supervision when we are there. However, we're not quite ready to leave them on their own when we're out of the house. I sincerely doubt we'll ever find the three of them snuggled in a kitty pile on a bed, but tolerance within certain limits is appreciated.

This is a fairly frequent occurrence when Eli, Stanley, and Saku join me in the evening. (My comforter was in the wash, so D lent me one - it was too warm for me)

Breaking news! We got a bit of rain on Monday evening and overnight. One rain barrel was about two thirds full, the other about half full. Another gift to be appreciated as I was able to water the tomatoes from the rain barrel. Speaking of rain, I'm including a video my brother sent me. He's got a wacky sense of humour!

He has since made the necessary repairs and figures the railing will withhold his weight, next time. :)

Speaking of a wacky sense of humour, Eli hollered at me one evening and told me the toilet was smoking. I assumed he'd done some sort of experiment and went to check to see what was happening. This is what I found. What a kid!

Besides the driving, I've got more work done in the yard. I've been watching You-Tube videos in the evening, various ones, and some of my favorites are garden clean-ups. It's like watching Hoarders, as it either spurs to do more outdoor work, or makes me feel like our yard isn't that terrible. :) I was watching one from Britain and noticed the worker using a grabber rake and happened to mention it to D. I wasn't able to find it locally or even on Amazon, though there were leaf grabber scoops/claws, but I wanted this tool. She found it on Temu, ordered it, and it was here in just a week or ten days. I've told her it is my Christmas gift. I used it to clear up piles of pine cones and needles on the far side of the house. I would grab a rake full, dump it in a bin and when that was full, pour it into a yard waste bag. It cleaned things up so nicely, far better than I could have by hand, and far less strain on my back. 

I've been envying Patsy's tent gazebo for some time, and I had earned Amazon gift cards by doing surveys. I decided I'd use these to purchase my own. The instructions for set up were pretty minimal and there were a few (more than a few) blue words said by D and me as we set it up. But eventually we got it right and it's simply marvelous. I take my tea out in the morning and after Stanley has had his time on the lawn, we settle into the tent. Both D and Eli have also spent time with me there. When the heat is on, it provides shade, and with a breeze coming through, I'm in my own little piece of heaven.

I take my breaks from yard-work in it too. I've managed to cut back most of the creeping juniper. I fill up a tub, then cut up the pieces and bag it. Between the juniper and the pine cones and other debris, I'm up to five bags of yard waste. I suspect there will be a couple more bags yet to come.

Friday afternoon, the storm finally reached us, and we had nearly 5 centimeters/2 inches in less than two hours. We had water in the basement again, and after clearing out the soft items, Eli's couch, mats, a mattress, and bedding, D used the shop vac to start cleaning up the excess water. My bad, as I didn't think we needed to clean the gutters this spring, though apparently we did. It also came down hard and fast and I don't think, even if clean, the eavestroughs would have kept up. In any event, that job has been added to the "find someone to do the job" list. Just to highlight how much rain we received, the town posted on FB asking everyone to stay off the streets so crews could clear the drains! 

I did reach out to the tree trimmer guy this week as well, and he'll be by on Monday to give us a quote for removing an evergreen, a tall cedar and cut back branches that over hang the power lines. There is always something that needs doing around here!

More rain is in the forecast for the rest of the weekend too, so I'll have to do stuff inside rather than out. Good thing there is baseball and football to watch! I've finished one toque/beanie, have another on the needles, and I'd like to either do a bit of sewing or perhaps crocheting. No worries, I'll keep myself amused. 

Have a great week ahead everyone!