Chit Chat

 Lovely weekend weather, cool and a mix of sun and cloud.  Perfect weather for cleaning the gutters before the rainy weather arrives. Surrounded as we are on two sides with tall evergreens  the gutters quickly get filled with pine needles.  Nice to have sons willing to help out.

 Dropping in at the Dollar Store  gave me a chance to check out 2027 calendars.  I chose 2 and both full sized calendars came with smaller versions. I'm certainly ready for the new year.  Soon I'll transfer all the birthdays and anniversaries to the one that will hang in the kitchen where I can keep up-to-date with the important dates. 

 As we usually do on Sunday afternoons we played Dominoes. Normally we would choose the Mexican train version  but Youngest found rules on the internet for Chickenfoot so we learned that one. It was a fun variation and I think we'll play that one at least for the foreseeable future.  

 I've had some questions about the dried flowers/leaves from my flower press and I don't really know yet exactly what I'll make.  GD Kate is interested in doing some arrangements and I might just pass mine along to her.  

Today is GS Callum's 28th birthday.  He's DD Sheila's one and only.  He lives in Vancouver and we don't see him all that often but when he does come out he makes time to visit us. 

That's about all for today.   I know many of you are having trouble with Blogger these days. 
My blog list is not up-dating so hopefully I won't miss anyone's latest posts.  Hopefully all will get sorted out. I notice that many are reading blogs on Feedly. I must investigate that option.

 

 

This and That

 

 

 

 Beautifully cool morning. Grocery shopping is done and my day lies ahead of me. What will I choose to do?  Because of the ongoing problem with my back/hip I won't be able to do a lot of bending but I'm sure there are other outside activities I can manage.  Yesterday I baked and we're set for the next few days. So far the Impossible Pumpkin pie and the cream cheese filled chocolate muffins have been declared delicious by family.  Earlier in the week I made corn bread and forgot the baking soda. It happens. 

 

One of my birthday gifts was this flower press which I have filled with various greenery and flowers

That's it for today.  Thanks for visiting.

 

 

 

 

The Weekend and a Book

 

 

 It's Labour Day and a holiday for many.  Yesterday we had fun playing Dominoes as usual. Even more than usual because DD Sheila doesn't manage to join us very often and when she does there seems to be even  more laughing and joking. GD Kate had us in stitches as she described how a bee had managed to get in behind her top at work and she frantically tried to  get it out much to the embarrassment of a nearby male coworker. 

On Saturday Youngest Son came to finish the job of cleaning up the rose bushes.  Tomorrow DH will take that last load away and on the way back pick up a load of bark mulch to put down around the "stumps" of the roses.  Hopefully come Spring they will regrow.

 

What I'm reading these days....I found this book at the thrift store and so far I'm enjoying it. 

  After World War II, real estate tycoon Cyril Conroy buys a lavish Philadelphia estate known as the Dutch House. He intends it as a surprise for his wife, but the display of wealth drives her to abandon the family. 
Cyril marries a new woman named Andrea. When Cyril dies, Andrea banishes his children—Danny and his older sister Maeve—from the estate, cutting them off from their fortune.
The Journey: Narrated by Danny, the story spans five decades. Left with only each other, the siblings rely on their deep bond to navigate life, education, and careers while repeatedly returning to the memory of what they lost

.

I think an afternoon nap would be a great idea. I'll just check to see if the washer and dryer are done.
I hope your week is off to a good beginning.

Thanks for coming by.

 

 

Date Squares and Hangers

 

 

It's Thursday and that means it's my day to do the grocery shopping.  We went to do that first thing before the stores got crowded. It's a cool Fallish sort of day, perfect for getting things done.  I'm not very full of zip after yet another night of not sleeping well. I'll see how it goes.

The gingerbread cake is gone. I thought it was very good but DH was less enthusiastic so I won't make it again.  I bought a large bag of dates while shopping and I think that a Date Square will be in order.   I'll make it in 2  pans and add dried cranberries and apricots to "mine".  I recently bought some dried apricots that are rather dry and hard so that will be a way to use them up. When the cakes are done and cooled I'll cut them up and freeze them being careful to mark which are which because once they're done it's hard to tell.

 

from the internet

 
Have you seen any yarn-covered wire hangers at your local thrift store?  Or maybe you already have some.  I had a friend who was making them for a while and I ended up with some. I soon found that they were perfect for hanging up slippery tops. Now I actually look for pretty ones when I go thrifting. Even light weight cardigans stay on the hanger better when I use one of these.

That's it for today.  Thanks for coming by.

 

 

 

September

 

 

 We celebrated the first day of September by going to the plant shop where I restrained myself and bought just a few plants. I chose some pretty purple/rust  Mums...2 for me and 2 to share. I also chose a Bunny Ears Cactus which I couldn't resist. It joins my other cacti on the sunny South window.

We had not been to that shop for a while and noticed  that they have expanded to include quite a large area with fruit & vegetables.  We were able to buy Honey Crisp apples for .99 a lb and lovely pears at the same price. DH is already hinting at Apple Crisp .

I did bake a mini Gingerbread cake just right for two!   If you're interested look up the site called One Dish Kitchen, a site that has recipes for one or two.  Sometimes an 8X8 or 9X13 is too much. 
I just took it out of the oven!! It smells wonderful!

 It's a lovely day and I must go out and do a little puttering. Thanks for taking the time to visit.

 

 

not me this time

 

 

Saturday Trivia

 A busy Saturday morning here with Youngest Son arriving early to help his Dad cut down the overgrown hedge of roses.  There's every chance they'll regrow next Spring. Those rugosa roses are so close to the wild ones that it's hard to kill them even if you wanted to.  After the truck was filled with branches  they took them away, came back and partly filled it again but left it until next week. Both of them were quite tired by that time.

 While YS was out there someone came by and gave him a bag of plums for us. He had no idea which neighbour they were and we don't know who has a plum tree so we don't know who to thank.  I am very fond of plum jam.

 Did you get to see the full moon earlier this week?  It was one of those nights when I couldn't sleep and was out on the porch at 2 A.M. so I got a clear view of the Sturgeon Moon.

Our weather has changed and it feels a lot like Fall. We had a random shower just as the guys started to cut down the roses but fortunately it didn't last long.  Our highs this week are 25  23  20  20  20.  That seems wonderful to me.  

 That's it for today.  Have a lovely Sunday. 

 

Thanks for coming by

 

This and That

 

 This was our supper last night. It's something we both like a lot. It was the perfect way to use some apples that were no longer very firm). 

pictures from the internet

After more days of 30C weather we are enjoying some cooler days. What a relief.  Now we need a good rain. We did have showers on the weekend but that was not nearly enough to satisfy the dry ground.

Thank you for the birthday wishes.  I must explain the last picture on my last post. I didn't know that the commercial with that quote was only aired in Canada and the US.  It was advertising a medical alert bracelet and featured an elderly woman who falls and dramatically shouts the iconic line to a dispatcher. You can watch the whole ad on Google if you have any wish to do so.

 Birthday Bouquet

more birthday flowers

  

From one packet of Cosmos seeds I have several different blooms: single and double ones in a few different shades of pink.

 

 The internet tells me that Cosmos grow best in hot, dry, sunny spots and actually produce fewer flowers if they get too much water or too rich soil. Our soil is sandy and doesn't hold water so I was watering them often. I think the ones that grow next year from dropped seeds should be more able to do well in our dry summer. I may have accustomed these to regular watering and now they droop if the soil is completely dry.

 

That's it for today. Actually I've been working on this post on and off for hours. I keep getting distracted by things that need doing before I forget.  I saw this and thought it described me today.