Swans

 

 

 

10C again this morning and raining.  We took our umbrellas and stayed reasonably dry. If we hadn't walked we would have missed seeing swans on the lake.  Did you know that a group of swans is sometimes called a bevy?  We only spotted 6 so I doubt it would be a bevy. A flying group of swans is often called a wedge of swans, referring to the wedge-like formation they form when flying.

 (photo off the internet)

 Swans have phenomenal stamina and can fly thousands of kilometres without stopping for a break.
Their wings are formidably strong and it has been claimed that the flap of their wings can break a man's arm. This is a myth but one thing is known for sure...they don't back off from a confrontation.

Pretty flowers for the table.

 Thanks for visiting,  GM

Looking forward to Spring

 Good Morning!  I hope you're ready for a new week.  I decided it was time to put away the Winter pretties and change the sideboard and old sewing machine to a more Spring look. 

BEFORE

 

AFTER

 

We had a great walk this morning. At 10C (50F) the air was wonderfully mild. There was quite a heavy fog over the lake but in the east the sky had streaks of pink and mauve that caused us to stop and admire
the beauty.

I hope your day is a good one.  Thanks for coming by, GM

Rain and Haworthias

 We walked in light rain this morning. Normally on a weekend we'd walk somewhere other than close to home ( Mill Lake) but our other choices were flooded and it looks like the rain will continue for the next 4 or 5 days so flooded areas have no chance of draining. Below is a picture someone took of a lone tree close to a path at Willband Creek.

 While we were walking a great number of Canada Geese took to the air and passed quite low over our heads. There must have been a hundred or more. It was an amazing experience. They circled around the lake then flew South, no doubt looking for some breakfast. They'll be back this evening I'm sure.

 

My task for today was to repot my Haworthias. The biggest one ( in the yellow cup) is the mother/grandmother of the rest. They seem to do very well in a east window in my sun room.

Having done that I need to vacuum then the rest of the day is mine to do as I please.  My latest library book began to bore me so I gave up on it. I'll see if the other one is any better.

Thanks for visiting!  GM
 

Rain, Tea, Scones, and Primroses

 It is another very wet morning.  Walking paths are under water and walking on the sidewalk means that cars will certainly splash you.  So I considered what I should do with an unexpected hour....The kitchen needed warming up and there was nothing tempting for tea time so I baked scones. While they baked I had my first cup of tea. I know the tea is hardly visible but it's Stash's Lemon Ginger and it doesn't get any darker. I add thin slices of real ginger to the tea pot to give the brew a bit more zip.
The teacup is Royal Albert Laurentian Snowdrops.

 No snowdrops here as yet but hopefully it won't be long before the rain washes away the last of the snow and the earth thaws.  When it stops raining I want to go out and see how the Hellebores are doing. Just thinking about Snowdrops and Hellebores makes my heart happy.
I found some lovely Primroses at the plant shop. I chose 2 Primula vulgaris  ( common primrose) and 2 Primula acaulis. The latter come in colours I've never seen before in a primrose. The one one the left is actually coral and the yellow one has frilly blossoms. I put all 4 in a large pot on the porch where I hope they'll be happy.

I hope your day is going well. Thanks for taking the time to visit.

Monday

 The things that find their way to Face Book Marketplace never fail to surprise me. I haven't seen the witness stand for sale any more so I suppose someone bought it?  The latest unique item is this made-to-order side table and cat bed. Never used. I can't help wondering if the cat that it was meant for took a dislike of it? It obviously went in at least once or there wouldn't be a picture. Oh yes, it was priced at $150.

Many of us have trouble either falling asleep or staying asleep. I saw this article and am almost tempted to try it even though it sounds quite unlikely.

All you need is a quarter of a teaspoon  of nutmeg mixed with a bit of honey. You either eat it off the spoon or mix it with a bit of water. I'm surprised that warm milk wasn't what they recommended mixing it with. I have a friend who will drink a glass of warm milk if she can't sleep. ( No nutmeg).

As you can see I have nothing to blog about today hence the bits of silly trivia.

Thanks for coning by,   GM
 

A Quiet Saturday

 

 
Don't I wish I had pansies and tulips blooming in my garden instead of snow!  The snow is melting slowly and hopefully it will be gone soon. Still, it will be a while until the ground thaws and the snowdrops bloom.

We went looking for a park that had paths that had been cleared. The only one we found was the nearby one ( Mill Lake) but the paths still had many areas with ice so we had to take it slowly and carefully.

In wintertime I find I browse various blogs that I don't normally visit. Once I can be outside puttering in my garden that won't be happening as much. Meanwhile, one of my discoveries is a lady called Diane Shiffer.  Some of you may already be familiar with her short but sweet "posts" on YouTube. If you are interested all you have to do is enter her name on YouTube and she'll pop up. 
Do you find yourself visiting different blogs when you have nothing to do?  I was going to say nothing 'better' to do but there's always some chore you could do. I once read that if you have a house and a garden there's always something to do.

Thanks for coming by today.  GM

A Snowy Day

 Snow was forecast and snow is what we're having. It's hard to say just how much has fallen but one thing is for sure...we're going to get a lot more before it quits coming down.

Knowing that the snow was coming DH quickly built another bird feeder.  We have several that exclude larger birds so the one he put up now is open for all sizes.

 Schools are cancelled throughout the province.  M went outside to shovel and also to clear the snow off Grandad's truck. Not that he has any intention of going anywhere.

 It's a good day to get out old copies of Victoria magazine and have a cup of tea. I'm using a Christmas
teacup for the last time this season although with all the snow it seems quite right to use it.

 

 I have some magazines that I picked up at the thrift store and also my latest library books. I won't lack reading material.

Thanks for coming by today,  GM

Still Cold

 It is still unusually cold here but ever so slowly the temperatures are rising. Snow is expected later in the week.  The cold resulted in Willband Creek freezing over and the younger generation took full advantage of the ice.

 No laundry is being done on this chilly Monday because that room still has frozen water pipes.

We walked around Mill Lake this morning but yesterday we just couldn't face the cold so we walked in the mall.  Stores don't open before 11 on Sunday but the mall is open earlier for people to walk. It's quite a big mall and one walks in a big circle. After a couple of rounds we were tired out. Came home and had a rest.

That's it  for today. Thanks for visiting.

Frozen Pipes, Miniature Rose, and a Witness Stand

 It was inevitable that the water pipes would freeze in this unusually cold weather that we're having. DH has a heater aimed at the area where he thinks the problem lies, so hopefully ...

We needed eggs so we popped out to the nearest grocery store where I not only found what I needed but also a pretty little miniature rose in a 4"pot.  I'll keep it on the table for now and put it out in a couple of months.  If I can keep it alive. I don't have much luck with m miniature roses.

If You would like to buy a genuine, full-sized witness stand there's one for sale locally. I see they are asking $600.  It would definitely be a topic of conversation.

 

 Thanks for coming by today. I hope you're having a lovely weekend.

Cold Weather and a new Microwave

 

 

It's a cold morning, much colder than what we normally have. The actual temperature is minus 15C but with the wind it feels like minus 27.  Needless to say we skipped our walk again. Hopefully this weather system will move on and we'll go back to more reasonable temperatures.
It's hard to keep the house warm with the north wind so strong. I find myself carrying one of my hand warmers around. ( My hands hurt more when they're cold.)

Our old microwave was getting slow and most annoyingly quit showing the time so we went to Walmart and found a nice new one which we more or less decided to buy. We went home and looked that model up on Walmart.ca and found that it was $40 cheaper. It was delivered right to our door 💗.

Seems like I got part of me in the picture. *smile*

I'm pleased that the new one is white and it looks better in my kitchen.

 I'm off to do some one-handed housework. LOL

Thanks for visiting.

Finding a Bargain

 

 

 I thought this was cute, not that we have enough snow to make even a small snowman. We got another dusting, that was all.

We did the grocery shopping this morning.  I found half-price glaced fruit ( the kind I use to make fruit cake and also fruit scones). It lasts forever so no danger of it going bad in my pantry. I have a year's supply now.

I've probably shown this little gadget before. I find it so useful for removing those irritating little pills

 ( fuzz) that happen on my sweaters.  After I washed this one it needed a going over so now it's fit to wear again.

It's another very chilly day.  A good day to get more tidying up done , then read :)

Thanks for visiting.

Sweets

 No walk for us this morning. It wasn't so much the rain as the blustery wind. Branches were sailing off the hedge in the back ( neighbour's hedge, not ours).  Yesterday we ended up having snow fall almost all afternoon with temperatures just above freezing. Then the temperature rose and the snow turned into heavy rain. While the snow was falling I spent a good long while sitting and watching it fall. Pretty but inconvenient, I know.

I got around to trying this shortbread that was given to me at Christmas. I think it's the best I've ever had.  Made in Scotland, I suppose it should be good. Didn't shortbread originate there?
The pattern on the plate that I chose is Brigadoon (Royal Albert).

 I also tried these sugar cookies that one of my DiL's made and decorated. It was an early Valentine trial run. Unlike my slap-dash baking hers is done with great care.....looks good and tastes good too.

 Thanks for coming by today .

Monday Chit Chat

 

We were surprised to find a skiff of snow had fallen overnight. It would seem as if winter has arrived. We had a lovely walk around nearby Mill Lake. Yesterday we walked over at  Willband ( a 6km drive away). No flooding there although the water level seemed high.

We had some worried hours when we couldn't find Miss Kitty on Saturday. She didn't show up for her supper nor Sunday breakfast. We looked in all the places where she sometimes sneaks in and gets shut up but...no response to our calls.  Finally in the afternoon she showed up at the door looking all innocent and wanting food. Needless to say we were happy to see her safe and sound.

We also had some worried hours when granddaughter Kate was admitted to the hospital in great pain. After a couple of days and a variety of tests it was determined that the poor girl has pancreatitis. 

Now a new week begins and I, of course, am doing laundry. Supper today will be an Impossible  Caramelized Onion Quiche  and Apple Crisp. ( I try not to start the oven for one thing so I felt I had to make the Apple Crisp. 

Thanks for visiting!!

Flooded Paths

We were surprised when we arrived at Fish Trap Creek to find the gate closed. We drove on and parked hoping we could still go walking but soon realized that the paths were flooded. I don't remember getting that much rain this past week but what else could have caused it is beyond me.

We did find another place to walk but it wasn't as interesting. Came home and will now do some housework.
It's my eldest son's 54th birthday today.Hard for me to believe I have 3 of my 5 children in their 5th decade...or is it their 6th?

What are you keeping busy with today?  Thanks for taking time to visit ❤

Somehow I managed to delete someone's comment instead of publishing. So if your comment is missing I'm so sorry.

Biscuits, Buns, and Books

 It's another mild winter day. Hardly feels like January. I thought I'd bake today so I got some sweet dough going in the breadmaker to make cinnamon buns.   Meanwhile I made some cheese biscuits. Mine are not nearly as uniform as these from the internet.

More of the books I received for Christmas. I finished The Orphan Collector that I mentioned last time. It was rather depressing.  I'm undecided which book to read next. Hopefully one that's more uplifting.
 

The first pan of cinnamon buns is out of the oven. One more to go. Thanks for visiting,

January I

 

 

We spent a quiet day. It was 2C when we went walking, lots of geese and ducks on the lake. When we got back I did some laundry, youngest son came over and together with middle son we had a great game of cards. A simple supper ( I think that's the end of any leftovers). And the first day of the year has come and  gone.