Another busy week, almost on my way

I normally don't cover the previous weekend but for this post I'm making an exception. 

What a day Saturday turned out to be! When I arrived at the community center at 9:15 a.m. one of the board members asked if I would work in the store that day, rather than in the gym. I readily agreed, as I knew it would be a busy day in both locations. Two women were assigned to the cash desk in the store, and I roamed, picking up clothes that were dropped on the floor, collecting empty hangers, and helping customers with their questions.

The gymnasium where the winter/autumn sale was being held was incredibly busy, and in turn the store was too. Folks would walk down to the store after visiting the sale and buy more stuff. Keep in mind that very few items in either location were priced at more than $5. I won't give a precise number but if all of the items were $5 each, we sold over a thousand items. In actuality it was a lot more items than that as children's mitts were 2/$1, winter coats were $3/children, $5/adults,  children's clothing is $1-2/children and adult clothing is $2-3 in the store. Another volunteer arrived at the store shortly before noon, and I moved into the sorting room to sort...hangers!

As a result, I didn't get the annuals pulled on Saturday when the temperature reached 20C/68F. Instead the job was done on Sunday afternoon. It was a bit cooler (13C/55F) but in the sun it felt quite warm. All the containers and garden tools are now tucked away for the winter. It looks barren out there now. 

With everything done outdoors, I'm ticking off my list indoors. The Christmas gifts were wrapped and tucked away in the closet, or in my bag to be dropped off at my son's this weekend. I finished a snowman for my daughter - realizing that I didn't have any yarn for the nose, D used her cricut to create a cone out of foam. I think it turned out pretty cute!

I also updated my list for the items I'll be taking to Yuma, revised my itinerary slightly. It adds about a half hour of driving time, but the cost of a hotel for the night is less than I'd pay for accomodations on the other route. I've double checked my Airmiles (now Blue Rewards - I believe this is a Canadian thing) and can book at least one of the hotels on their website using points, thus only paying for taxes and fees.  

I put in another nearly 5 hours at the thrift store on Tuesday. More donations had come in through the week including Saturday, and the volunteers were piling them in every storage area they could find. We were able to sort clothing donations but only until we filled the available racks in the sorting room. Several racks from the winter/autumn sale were brought in to the hallway and store. I spent some time sorting and then went into the store to help the lone cashier. It was busy again, as families had received child benefit that day and were filling up their baskets. There was also a woman who shopped for a group of South African individuals expected to arrive in the community in the next few weeks. It was wonderful to see so many items head out the door as there is still so much more to be sorted and put out in the store. That includes about 15 or 20 bins of winter clothing still in the bins from the weekend! 

Neither D nor I had anything booked for Wednesday. While she worked on tidying counterd and then went for a nap, I started on the Christmas baking. She had asked me to make my shortbread. It's the easiest recipe but she insists that I make it better than she can.  One half cup of butter, 1/2 to 2/3's cup of berry sugar (I prefer the lesser amount), and two cups of flour. Cream the sugar and butter together until smooth, and add flour a half cup at a time. I usually turn the dough out on the counter to add the last 1/2 cup of flour and knead the dough. Divide the dough in half and refridgerate for about 30 minutes or so (or leave it overnight). I shape the dough in small balls, press with a fork and bake on ungreased baking sheets for about 10-13 minutes at 350F, turning the pan half-way through. If you prefer you can pat the dough into a round cake pan and bake, though I've no idea how long it would take as I've never done it. For fun, I sometimes add sprinkles to the cookies.

In between batches, I got working on Eli's sweater. I'd started it last fall, put it away for the winter, and then couldn't find the pattern this spring. It's been lanquishing in a bag since then, but I recently dug through my patterns and found it. After blocking, it was time to sew up the raglan, the sleeve and side seams, and finally knit up the neck and button bands. 

I took it with me to Knit and Natter on Thursday afternoon, managing to get the seams completed and started on the neck band. I also a hat for Willie Wonka to go with the scarf I made last week. The librarian told me they'd received a gift from another patron of a red jacket so he'll be all decked out for the winter. :)

With rain in the forecast for the weekend, and possibly Friday afternoon, I spent some time in the morning cleaning up the car interior and loading most of the items I'm taking with me, either to the city or to Yuma. I'm hoping this year is the last of the multi-container loads. I'd like to pare down to a bag of clothing, personal toiletries, bedding, and a few food items. I bring home all of my unmentionables as elastic gets destroyed by the heat (no personal experience, this is what I've been told), and the bedding will go back and forth as I bring it home to wash. This year I'm taking down a Breville convection oven, a Costway washer/spin dryer, and several containers of craft, household, and food items.

In the afternoon I worked on Eli's sweater. The knitting is complete, but the buttons I have are too small. D will look for others and sew the buttons herself. That should be interesting as I don't think she has ever picked up a needle and thread. There is a first time for everything. 

The winds picked up overnight and parts of the province experienced heavy snow. We missed that, thankfully, and only got a bit of rain. I'm off to the city this morning and will spend a few days there. I've been watching the weather in Montana, thanks Jim for the heads up), and will wait until I'm certain the storm they are getting has passed and I get few things done. I originally planned for this upcoming Friday, but am hopeful I'll be on the road no later than Wednesday morning. Wish me luck! 

P.S. The photo on Wednesday was Eli, first time riding a horse. He has been working with the horses, especially the pony Rocket (since passed away) in the arena and lately has been learning to bridle the bigger horses. His therapist asked if he wanted to try riding, and he enthusiastically agreed. I suspect it won't be last ride. :)

 

Winding down

Another full week is nearly in the books. If it seems like I am fixated on time recently, you are correct. The days before I leave for my winter home are passing quickly. I've got a to-do list that is growing shorter by the day, but seems to get added t as well. 

This week, I finished the ornaments for my niece and nephew, completed a short scarf to wear under a jacket, and started on crocheted Christmas ornaments. I also managed to find gifts for D and Eli (from Santa), for my brother and SIL, and ordered an Ancestry DNA test for D - this will be her gift from Eli. She agreed this was something she really wanted. The gifts I've ordered should arrive sometime early next week, so I'll get them wrapped and tucked away in the closet. 

Every year I buy Co-op gift cards for my niece and nephew for Christmas through Eli's school fundraiser. It ia held in late November so this year, D will purchase them for me and arrange to mail the gifts to my brother's family. I've made certain that everything I've made or purchased will be light weight and easy to mail. 

I've been through my food box, most of which I brought back from Arizona in the spring. These were items that would not have done well in the extreme heat; spices, oil, etc. Checking through the list of banned items, I discovered the chicken boullion cubes cannot cross the border as they contain chicken fat. Ooops! While it is unlikely this would result in anything more than a confiscation, should the officer even check the box, I'll be leaving them behind. I am taking a box of tea bags, a few packets of yeast, and a bag of flour with me. These didn't appear on the list of items that are banned.

Outdoors, I pulled two more containers of annuals as they were looking rather rundown. The Gerbera daisies and petunias are still looking great - I'll wait until a really hard frost or...heaven forbid, snow. There is some possibility of that horrid word in areas of the province this weekend. We may see some rain on Friday, but unless something changes I think the flowers will last another week or two.

Iin the meantime, my daughter has installed Halloween in the front yard. She had a bit of an accident one afternoon when she was mowing the front lawn. The large pumpkin is gone. I was hoping to get a nightime shot for you, but I keep forgetting.

I worked at the thrift store on Tuesday for nearly 5 hours. Oh my, did I hurt after that stint. I was on my feet for most of the time, and though we have fatigue mats in the sorting room, I also spent a fair amount of time moving racks and reorganizing clothing on the store racks and shelves. Again, the sorting room was full of donations, there were mounds out in the back hallway and at least two more loads came in from the bins during the time we were there.

It was also our "Halloween sale" where everything collected for the holiday since last year was put out in the hallway leading to the store. There were two racks, one of adult costumes, and one for children, along with anything decorative you can imagine on the tables. Adult costumes were $5, children costumes $3, and the decorations were $2. We didn't get rid of everything but it was well picked over when I left just before 3 p.m. 

D and Eli dropped by as one of the donations was a guitar, and he is interested in learning to play. For $5, it was a steal. She also brought home several pieces of clothing for herself, Eli, and for friends. Average price was 48 cents per piece. Then the thrift store posted a basket sale on Thursday for just $10 a basket...she went back again, with even more clothing. This time the average cost was 38 cents per piece. I'll deliver the items for S and her children when I go into the city. D will mail other items before Christmas to her friend K. (I don't need any more clothing, though I suspect I'll go thrifting in Yuma this winter).

Knit and Natter on Thursday was quiet, with just G and I there. I'll see her again next week, as that will be the last afternoon session. J, the librarian joined us briefly while she cleaned cushions from the couch in the children's area. They both said that the afternoon sessions get busier in the fall as people finish their gardening or lake trips, and have time to attend. This is in contrast to the group I attended in the city. Many were snowbirds, and with colder weather there were only two of us there for most of the last winter I attended. I'll likely drop by the library the week I'm in the city before I leave just to check in.

It's a long weekend here, with no school for Eli on Friday or next Monday. We'll have our Thanksgiving dinner on Sunday, with roast pork loin - it is the other white meat (did you ever see that advert?) We season it with sage and poultry seasoning and there will be mashed potatoes, gravy, dressing, mixed veg, and fresh buns. In other words, too much food!

To my Canadian readers, enjoy your Thanksgiving weekend, however you choose to celebrate (or not). 

Have a great week ahead everyone!