A not so busy week

A word about Wednesday's photo; the potatoes are from two plants. I still have six more to dig up! We really don't have anywhere to store them for long, as they need a cool, dry place. The basement tends to be too humid and the pantry too warm. So I plan to dig a hill or two over the next few weeks...at least until there is a threat of frost. I grew up eating potatoes every day, and could do so again. We picked up a machine to cut French fries and will bag and freeze a fair amount as well. 

Garden update: The tomatoes were coming faster than I could eat them, so I picked several and took them to one of the thrist store volunteers. Her tomatoes did nothing this year. D also took some, along with a cucumber to the librarian. She was thrilled to get them, as she's only grown cherry tomatoes this year and exclaimed how excited to eat a tomato sandwich. 

Speaking of the tomatoes, a second volunteer has popped up in the perennial bed. The first one has flowers now, and maybe, just maybe we'll see a wee bit of fruit from it.

The long range forecast doesn't indicate any potential for frost until well into September. My corn cobs are growing and I'm hopeful we'll get a feed from those yet. 

This photo is simply to illustrate how much the oxalis has escaped the perennial bed and is filling in the rock area in front of the gazebo. Too, the lamium is also setting up outside the rock borders. I dug up a piece of lamium and put it in the new perennial bed. Oh, and my lilac bush is slightly confused and blooming!

I did shifts at the thrift store on Monday and Tuesday. Monday was our last "August" cleaning day, but we came into an pile in the sorting room and a full bin to boot. There wasn't a whole lot of cleaning completed that day as several of us spent the time sorting. When we left, there were just a few bags left...something for the Tuesday crew to manage. I got a call that afternoon from M, the team leader for Tuesday's volunteers asking if I could come in for a few hours. I agreed, and when I arrived just shortly before 1 p.m., the store was busy (we're open 11-4 on Tuesdays and Thursday's), and a few volunteers were busy in the sorting room as well.

Why, you might wonder, since we'd left so little the day prior? Well, the donation bin was full on arrival that morning, and more donations kept coming in during the day. My first task was to take the large cart to the bin area and bring another round in - several boxes and a number of bags. Again, I spent the three hours I was there assisting with the sorting. As busy as we were, the store continued to do so as well, so we didn't run out hangers or racks. At 3:55 p.m. an announcement was made in-store that we were closing in 5 minutes...didn't slow some shoppers down. The store has late hours on Thursday, until 8 p.m. so I told every one I came across they were welcome to come back. It took until nearly 4:15 to clear the store!

I got a call as I was leaving from SaskEnergy (our natural gas provider). I'd been in touch with them the week prior because we hadn't received a utility bill from them for mid-August...very unusual. While I was told to expect the worker last Friday, he didn't arrive until this week. Apparently there was issue with a battery in the equipment, though I don't quite understand how that would impact the issuance of a bill, as they just estimate our useage. In any event, the part was replaced and I should see the next bill by the 15th of the month. To avoid a big surprise, I paid the same amount we'd paid the month previous.

Wednesday was Eli's first day of Grade 4. This is his last year at the junior school. How can that be? His mom took photos of him and I stole from her. He's certainly growing! It won't be long before he's as tall as I am. 5'2" and shrinking. :)

Thursday morning, the plumber arrived to install the new range hood. The old one was likely put in 20 years ago, and the fan didn't work well. He wasn't able to hook up the electrical based on a conversation with his employer (though he assured us he could have). The electrician arrived a few hours later to finish the job and to install a Google Nest thermostat. They left shortly before I headed over to the library for Knit and Natter. G was there and as we haven't seen each other for awhile, it was a good opportunity to catch up. One of the librarians visited with us for awhile...lots of garden talk!

When I returned home, we went to the thrift store to do a bit of shopping. I had talked to one of the other volunteers earlier in the week, and she had suggested I might be needed for the late afternoon shift. She wasn't there but I checked with one of the board members but she said they figured they had enough volunteers. We spent $30 on two baskets and went home with at least three dozen pieces. Many were for Eli, I had four but will be returning two, my daughter found a number for herself and for her friends children. My two purchases were a pair of jeans and a light jacket. D has a couple of pieces I may just steal or at least borrow from time to time - one is sleeveless t-shirt and the other is a black dress.

The roof guys were back on Friday to finish the shingling next door. It was odd because the previous tenant who hasn't been seen for nearly a week arrived shortly before they did. He brought in the recycling bin (put out on Monday) and was seen carrying a small bag into the house. No one seems to living in the house any more and we've seen no potential buyers though we could have missed someone coming in and out. In any event it appears the roof is finished.

I'm not certain if it will help sell the house or not. There have been at least three other houses of similar size listed here in town. One of them is listed at $5K below LND's asking price and the other two are between $30-40K lower.  I won't be surprised if we don't end up with more tenants.

Meanwhile D and I tackled a few things in the kitchen. I had purchased a pork loin and cut it into a roast, a few pork chops, and cubes for stew. While she sealed these into freezer bags, I cut up the rest of the potatoes into fries and hash brown cubes. The machine we'd bought to cut the fries was actually broken - D had found it at a garage sale so no significant loss. After blanching the potatoes, I set them out to dry on cookie sheets, and she sealed them into bags. The hash browns were for breakfast bowls that evening.

The rest of the day was quiet, as D hadn't slept well the night before. Eli was home mid-day so he played and I watched some television and worked on my cross stitching. 

Today will be another quiet day, no real plans on the horizon. I like those kind of days.

Have a great week ahead everyone!

Good days, good deals, and plans for the future

I'm starting this post on Friday, which might suggest I've had a busy week. That wouldn't be completely accurate though it has its moments.

I did my first shift on Monday morning at the thrift store, from 10-12. The store wasn't opened and this time is meant to give the volunteers time to clean and organize the store, as well as sort incoming donations. I'll be part of this shift for the month of May. (Not entirely sure what happens in June, but I'll find out later). 

We eventually ran out of hangers, and with one of the Facebook group administrators in attendance it was decided that we needed to have a sale. Most clothing items in the store sell for $2 or $3, with the option of getting a bag - filled as much as one can and be able to tie it closed for just $15. For this week, that price was changed to two bags for $20. One purchases the bags on entry and then browses and shops as long as they like.

D and I went to the store on both Tuesday and Thursday. Primarily she picked up items for her friend who is expecting her third child in August. I don't know what the count was on Thursday, but I do know that she got close to 60 items, mostly baby and small toddler sizes, plus a few items for S's older girls. We also found some t-shirts and shorts for Eli, and a couple of hoodies. I did get a few items too, but I won't be keeping the pants (too small) and a pair of capris (too big). We don't have the space for dressing rooms so it can be hit and miss.

On Monday, though, I did find a piggy bank for my daughter. She's been wanting one for awhile as she's been keeping spare change in a jar. Most piggy bank's at thrift stores tend to be missing their plugs...this one was complete.

Wednesday, we had a contractor out to discuss replacing the wooden fence. It was in bad shape when we moved in two years ago, and my brother helped us brace it as it was badly leaning. It's gotten worse, especially since the new tenants moved in last fall. The grandparents are great, their son and grandchildren not so much. When the elders are home, the kids are supervised and well-behaved. When left with their father, not so much. As you can see, several boards on the fence have been broken and the length of the fence is leaning even more so.

D has spoken to the owner, and he has tentatively agreed to pay his share for the fence. However, we cannot find a company willing to replace it with another wooden fence. I'm hesitant to put up a vinyl fence because I fear the damage those children might do. Plus the parking area in the back is gravel and I'm concerned about stones thrown when D is snowblowing. The contractor suggested that these vinyl fences are better than they were in the past, and can handle the impact - he suggested we might see scuffing. The benefit, of course, is no need to repaint or stain every few years and the posts used are steel. If any of my readers have experience with this type of fencing, I'd really appreciate hearing your opinions.

Something else I managed to finish this week was the poncho I started when I was in Yuma. It primarily used stash yarn from the previous owner of my unit (I did say I hit the motherlode when I found those containers of yarn), and about four skeins of yarn I picked up on sale at the Walmart. All in all, it likely cost me $20Cdn to make, plus lots of time. Unlike most ponchos it has a front opening, and I could crochet or braid a belt for it, but it works without one. It's quite heavy and warm and I suspect both my daughter and I will get use of it, especially in the cooler weather of spring and fall.

Back to the thrift store, I did another shift on Thursday evening as the store was open extended hours. There wasn't a lot to sort, so most of my time was spent going through the racks, removing empty hangers, moving mis-hung items to the appropriate and bringing out more items from the sorting room as needed. The earlier shift was apparently very busy, however we were pretty quiet. Remember how I said on Monday we were out of hangers - here are the hangers that were back in the sorting on Thursday evening! The sale certainly cleared out a LOT of items.

The weather hasn't been great this week, but I did get out on Wednesday to do a bit of cleaning up in the back yard, mostly of the day lilies. In the flower bed, I'm seeing the poppies start to show some growth, and in the garden the chives are doing really well - we can start using them any time. Indoors, I had to repot the tomatoes, as they starting to get root bound in the smaller pots. My cucumbers are both up, and once they have their third leaves, I'll repot them into something bigger as well. I am going to try to grow them in containers, using a trellis for support. It's the first time I've ever grown cucumbers so we'll see how it goes.

This weekend I'm hoping to spend more yard outdoors, and start the process of building two raised garden beds. I purchased the kits last fall on sale, and I need to put down cardboard to kill/limit the growth of the grass. But I also need to buy dirt to fill them, so I'm thinking I'll make a trip to NTO. There is more clean-up to be done as well, and I've bought chicken wire to attach to the fence as I'd like to have more sweet peas this summer. This is core memory from my childhood as my mom grew them every year. They separated the yard from the garden (perhaps to hide the weeds - not likely, her gardens were always well kept). I can still recall the scent of the flowers! I did have a obelisk for them last year and they did well, but I'd like to give them more space.

It will be a few more weeks before I can start planting outdoors, but that doesn't mean I'm not planning. I want to plant corn, carrots, peas, along with tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers, and herbs. I haven't any luck with the peppers sprouting so I'll have to pick up a couple of plants at a garden center. The new garden beds will provide more space, though I'll still do some container gardening as well. 

I may have convinced my daughter that we should put in some raspberry bushes as well. Eli asked about growing apples, and I may try to find room for a Morden apple, which originated in Manitoba, Canada, and will be hardy to our climate. So many plans! Let's see if my ambitions outlast my energy levels. :)

Have a great week ahead everyone!

P.S. I've just realized I haven't been reading, and therefore commenting on blogs this week. Oops, I guess I was busier than I realized. I'm off to catch up now. 

Spring cleaning and fun at the pool

This week was much busier than the last...which has it's good and less than good points. But before I start in on a recitation of this week's happenings, I would be remiss if I didn't mention Sunday's special event. I posted a photo on Wednesday, of Eli with his mom and his godmother M, taken after the confirmation service. He did very well during the very lengthy proceedings. We did not stay for lunch, though, as we were all ready to get home to relax and visit. After our lunch, D and M left to do a bit of bonding (shopping), as it has been some time since the two have been able to spend time without children in tow. M's children range in age from about 12-19, and the two met when they both worked at a call center in the city.

I did my first volunteer shift at the thrift store on Tuesday. I arrived late, not realizing that I should have been there about 11 a.m., rather than noon. I met several ladies including our team lead G. They were having coffee when I arrived so we sat and chatted for a bit. G gave me a tour of the various back rooms, and I got a sense of just how much stuff that gets donated. We could use a thrift store that is 2 or 3 times it is now (and that's after they moved into this larger space this winter/spring).

It also seems that many people have recently decided to go their closets and purge! I can't tell you how many bags we emptied but when I left at 4 p.m. there were 5 racks of clothing filled, along with shelves of shoes, two or three carts of kitchen ware, and mounds of books, DVDs, etc. AND that was the better stuff as we filled three or four large bags of garbage, and sent off a few more to be donated to the NTO's (next town over) Value Village.

Wednesday was quiet, and a needed rest day. Late in the afternoon, D received a package for a new piece of furniture for the kitchen. If you recall, I purchased a storage cabinet for the office/craft room a couple of weeks ago, and D decided we needed more storage in the kitchen. That late in the day was not the time to start putting it together.

Thursday morning, we got busy and had most of the cabinet put together by lunch time. Eli went back to school after lunch; we picked him up at 2 p.m. and went to NTO to do a bit of shopping and for his swimming lesson at 4:30 p.m. at the indoor pool. D receives Autism funding for Eli (and will until he is 12 years old), so she arranged for private swimming lessons. He had a blast with his teacher, while D and I sat and relaxed. 

There was rain and snow in the forecast, and when we'd left town the highway was wet. After a quick stop for a bite to eat, we headed home with snow falling quite heavily. The roads were slushy and wet most of the way home, and though it was around the freezing mark, the conditions weren't as bad as I thought it might be. In fact, by the time we were about 10 minutes from home, the highway was almost dry, and there was only about a centimeter of snow on the ground.

On Friday, D and I finished the cabinet, and began emptying and cleaning three cupboards, and reorganizing. We moved the pots and pans to the new cabinet. These were originally stored in a cabinet near the stove that ought to have had a lazy Susan but instead was simply an large open cabinet with a small shelf at the back. It meant we bent over and sometimes knelt to get the right piece. The cabinet solved that issue. 

The old cabinet now stores a couple of small appliances that we rarely use, as well as the baking pans (in those standing trays), bowls, and measuring cups. The cabinet that previously held to the Ninja creamy, blender, and handheld mixer now holds all of Eli's lunch kits and water bottles (and he has a lot!). Finally the cabinet that stored the bowls and measuring cups, now has the crockpot and bread machine, and still has room to be our snack cabinet. Moving these appliances from the pantry provides more space, though I've no intention in filling up the shelves! We have enough items in there to keep us well fed for some time.

Despite the snow and cooler weather, spring has arrived. There are a multitude of robins, Canada geese, and most recently a pair of flickers. The latter were on the big tree out back one morning. D and I stood at the window and watched. What fun! I did notice a pair of juncos one day but we don't feed the birds, so they didn't stick around. The robins, though, are quite happy to hang out in the yard. Spencer, is quite fascinated by them and watches out the window, chittering at them. Great cat television too.

I'm late posting today because I got caught up in Ancestry yesterday. It's a cool and cloudy day, with snow flurries, but the snow is melting as quickly as it falls. I'm off to catch up on blog reading, and have no plans for the rest of the day. :)

Have a great week ahead everyone!