Saturday Chit Chat

 

 
As we usually do on Saturday mornings we drove to Willband  Creek and walked the path in dense fog. We were lucky enough to spot the American Bittern that others have posted about but so far had eluded us. Now it was quite close to the bridge, near the small dam that the beavers built.  I think it's such an unusual bird. Here's a picture I didn't take but in case you are not familiar with this bird.

After we came back home Eldest Daughter and Youngest Son came to power wash the house. It's nice to get that done. They stayed for lunch and now that they've left DH is having a rest. He said watching them work tired him out... *smile*.   Seeing as the sun is shining I'll leave the housework and go putter outside. I think I'll wipe out and put all the tea cups away until next Spring.
What are you doing on this last day of the month?

Thanks for visiting, 

Oh yes. I did see the Harvest Moon last night.

Betsy: I made sure that the ferns are hardy in our zone ( which is 7) so they should be fine left outside.
I may put them under cover though because of our very wet and often windy winters.

 

 

 

Super Moon and Baking

 

 

 The final supermoon of 2023 will shine in the sky tonight as September comes to a close. September's full moon, also known as the harvest moon, will be the last of four consecutive supermoons.

 It's been a rainy day and I doubt we'll see the moon tonight, maybe tomorrow, if we're lucky.

In the kitchen this week I've been busy. I made a pear and apple cake......

....as well as baked Mozzarella sticks. They tasted great but looked less than spectacular. That is a problem I often have with my baking.  Tastes good but looks nothing like the lovely photo. I served them on toasted baguette slices with pickles on the side.

This is what the recipe showed.

Today I baked cheese buns which I'll serve with the Split Pea soup that is simmering away .

That was my day.  Thanks for visiting,  GM

 

 

Trip to the Plant Shop

 

 

Yesterday Eldest Daughter and Granddaughter Kate picked me up and off we went to the plant shop.
I was looking for 3 ferns to place around the fountain on our front stoop. There weren't  many ferns to choose from but luckily I found some I liked. Autumn Ferns turn orange in Autumn ( no surprise there) and apparently the new growth in spring will also be orange/reddish colour. 

 

The special this week was any pumpkin free with purchase of $50 ( and they had hundreds of all shapes and sizes). I chose the biggest one I could find.

 We had a successful shopping trip and a lot of fun too.  

Thanks for visiting,

Fog

 

 

 

someone else took this picture but it is where we walked.

 It was so foggy when we walked at Willband Park. At times we could hardly see the water.  I remembered to look at the time  to see how long it took us to walk all around and turns out it was a hour and ten minutes. Today we didn't stop to talk to anyone ( I think the fog kept folks away).

There's definitely a feeling of Autumn in the air. After our dry summer yesterday we had quite a heavy downpour. At times the wind threw the rain at the windows ( which I had neglected to close). It was a good day to bake. I made Apple Crisp and later homemade pizza for our supper.

I hope your weekend is going well.  Thanks for visiting ❤

Last Days of Summer Sunshine

 

 

Happy First day of official Fall.  My calendar tells me that the 23rd is the day but the internet seems to say today.  Either way, it's here. Yesterday and today are perfect examples of late summer weather. Sunshine and temperatures in the low 20's.  My children were here for an hour and a half this morning. I can't believe how much cleaning up they got done. Four garbage cans of cut down Japanese Anemones and overgrown Perennial Sweet Peas. How I appreciate the help I get.

I took a few pictures of the lake this morning. The water level is lower than it's ever been.  The forecast is for rain so that will help fill it again.

 

 Thanks for coming by,  GM

Cleaning up

I've been cleaning up and getting rid of things I no longer want or need. Years ago I made a number of these boxes. I think at the time they were referred to as 'printer's boxes'. My DH built them and I had fun decorating them. Some, like the second one, was specifically for Valentine's Day and others like the last one, for Autumn.  He made some two-sided ones but most were singles.  Now they are at the thrift store and I hope someone will want them.

 

 Sorting and deciding what to donate and what to keep is an ongoing job.

Have a great Thursday

Cold Hands and Toad-in-the-Hole

 First of all I want to thank all of you for your prayers and good wishes for my return to health after a week of the dreaded covid.  Both Dear Husband and I are back to our old selves ( pun intended).
We had a refreshing shower overnight and this morning the temperature was 14C...  57F when we left on our walk.
I always seem to have icy cold fingers and after years of heating little bags of rice in the microwave ( to put in my pockets) I finally bought a set of two rechargeable hand warmers from Amazon. I used them this morning and they work wonderfully!!  I'm sure I'll use them a lot since in winter my fingers feel ice cold even at my computer.

 

 Do you visit the blog The Low Carb Diabetic?  I'm not diabetic but I find great recipes on that blog. Today I see that Jan has posted a recipe for Root Vegetable Toad-in-a-Hole. I intend to make it and I even have a Butternut Squash in the house but....here's my problem. The squash I bought is tasteless. I looked for an answer on-line and from what I can find out is that my squash isn't ripe? I had no idea that they need time to 'ripen'. Now that I've used half of it will the other half get riper standing on the counter?

 

image from Jan's blog

 Whatever your day holds I hope it's a good one.  GM

Covid and Pie

 

 We had a pleasant walk this morning...a slow one because I don't have my energy back yet. My Dear Husband somehow managed to pick up Covid and of course I caught it from him.  It wasn't awful but still no fun at all.Of course we were stuck at home and no one wanted to be anywhere near us. But we're fine now and enjoying the beautiful sunny days that just keep on coming!

I haven't been doing much in the kitchen except for a Crustless Pumpkin pie that I made 2 days ago
( it's long gone).   This coming week I'll have to get busy.

I hope you have a great weekend.

Granny M

"New" Truck

 Last month Middle Son was on his way home from work when he was hit by a car that failed to stop at a stop sign. The truck was too badly damaged to be fixed so he's been on the look-out for a different one. This week he found it. It's another Dodge Ram just 3 years newer than the white one.

 

It's a quiet weekend.  Neither DH nor I are feeling well so we're just taking it easy.

Thanks for visiting,  GM

A Trip to Buy Plants

I get an e mail at the beginning of each week  letting me know about any specials that the plant shop is offering. This week's sale was on mixed planters and we took a drive to buy a couple to add some pretty colour to the porch.  
But which to choose when there were so many and no two exactly alike?

 I settled on these 3,  each had a couple of plants included that looked like the kind that would make it through the winter.That's always a bonus.

 ..... as well as 4 little paper pots each with a cheery Pansy.   Can you see the pumpkins on the pots?

Our cool weather continues and I'd like to say I've been hard to work but the truth is I've been doing  just the necessary chores and then reading.

Thanks for coming by,   GM

Labour Day

 

 It was a quiet Labour Day, cloudy and cool temperatures.  For myself it was an ordinary Monday with Monday laundry.  Youngest son did come to help his Dad with cleaning up after the window project. Then he stayed for lunch.

September Charm Japanese Anemones are blooming.

The kittens are one year old today and no longer kittens. All 5 are very happy in their new homes.

 Miss Kitty also seems very content. When we go away she often sits and waits for us in front of the house.

 That's about all I have to write about today.  Have a happy Tuesday.

GRANNY M

 

Last of the Hot Days and a Window Project

 

 

I believe today was the last of summer's hot days. Tomorrow clouds will move in and bring more moderate temperatures.  Some areas of Canada have already had a taste of what is to come. I saw this on the weather channel:

The first flakes of the season fell across parts of Eastern Canada on Thursday, ending the month of August and the final day of meteorological summer with a dusting of frozen paradise accumulating on roads winding across higher elevations.

*   *   *   *    *    *   *   *   *   *   *    *    *    *    *     *     *     *     *     *      *     *    *     *     *      *     *     *    
We had two windows in the sunroom that needed changing before winter and today was the day to get that done. DH with the help of 2 sons managed to get it done before lunch which I thought was quick.
There was a minor mishap when DH slashed his finger with an X-acto knife and required several band-aids. The reason the windows needed changing was because the seal between the 2 layers of glass (double pane windows)  had broken and water streaks marred our view. 

pondering the next step

In order to feed my menfolk I got the breadmaker going before we went for our walk. We stopped off at the grocery store and still got home before the dough was ready for me to form into buns and set to rise. Meanwhile  I made a dozen Pear Crumble Muffins from a recipe that I've made 3 times in the past weeks. It's actually  a recipe for peach muffins and the first time I made it I had fresh peaches on hand. The next times I've used pears and that has been just as tasty.

Our walk was around Willband Creek.  Two pictures taken there recently by another walker.

I hope you're having a pleasant weekend. Thanks for coming by,  GM