Wordless Wednesday

 

 

Hellebores and Strong Wind

 5C this morning with a few drops of rain when we walked. Just saw all the regulars ( birds and people )

My hellebores are blooming in the flowerbed on the north side of the house where the sunshine never reaches. The only one that shows any sign of facing up is Pink Frost. The others just look downwards. They seem happy though. I started with one Black Prince and there are at least 3 self-seeded ones now. Besides Pink Frost and Black Prince I have a white one that I can't remember the name of.

 We had strong winds the other night and I was shocked to find that the hutch part of my outdoor cupboard had been blown off its base and was wrecked. I had various decorative pieces there but only one plate broke. Some other porcelain bits were chipped but none of the things that I put out there were "special". 

 Thanks for visiting 

Time Change and Pi

 

 

 

11C and breezy this morning when we walked around Fishtrap Creek.  Lots of Canada geese, Mallards and Wood ducks on the water.  I thought there would be fewer people walking because of the time  change but I guess they all had set their clocks ahead.  

When Shannon ( Eldest) came on Friday she brought an old watering can that I had discarded and worked on it while we visited. She's always working on something and that girl has talent.
Needless to say I'll be keeping that watering can when she's done ( unless she wants it but that isn't likely).

Yesterday I did more baking. This time it was cinnamon buns. I pop them into the freezer once they're cooled off.  I'll often take one out of the freezer right after breakfast and by coffee time it's nicely thawed. I make them with low sugar and with no icing so they are not decadent like a store-bought one. I don't use a recipe so I can't give one. One comment I had about the date squares was saying that a recipe would be nice. There are recipes for everything on line and the instructions are there. My haphazard ways of making food are hard to describe. ( My kids might say that the results sometimes look like it too LOL)
On the subject of baking I'll just give you a warning that Pi day is this Friday March 14. This gives us a
chance to decide what kind of pie we'll be making :)

A Strange Science Fact: Albert Einstein was born on Pi Day, and Stephen Hawking died on Pi Day. Pi Day celebrates the mathematical constant π, which is approximately 3.14. The holiday is celebrated every year on March 14. Notably, Albert Einstein was born on March 14, 1879 and Stephen Hawking died on March 14, 2018

 Pi Day is celebrated on March 14 (3/14) to commemorate the mathematical constant π (pi), which is approximately 3.14. The day is celebrated by eating pie, reciting pi, and participating in other activities. 

Thanks for coming by.

 

 

 

Date Squares and Library Books

 I baked a Date Square using an old recipe that I believe my Mom used. We always called it date square but I have heard it called Matrimonial Cake. Of course I had to look it up and according to the internet it is a term mainly used in Canada.
Date Squares under any name are a favourite of my Dear Husband.

 

Why are date squares called matrimonial cake in Canada?

 

Some feel it is called matrimonial cake because of the two separate layers brought together by dates which symbolizes two people courting and solidifying the relationship in marriage. Others feel that the smooth and rough textures of the date squares represent the easy and difficult times of a marriage.

 

Do you ever make any, and if so, what do you call it?

 

 

 

 

 

These are the books I chose at the library yesterday. I've already begun Stitched in Crime which promises to be interesting. From the blurb:   When murder pierces the fabric of the close-knit Crandlesburg Craft Fair, it's up to the Ninth Street Knitters to make a killer slip their stitch.
 

I think this will be a fast read. 

It's Friday and Eldest is coming for lunch; maybe youngest too if he's not working.
I hope your Friday is going well. Have a lovely weekend.

 

 

Thanks for visiting,

 

 

 

Wednesday Chit Chat

 11C and sunny. I've been puttering outside watching my helpers move pots around, dig up some compost ready to use this year, and other small jobs that make a big difference.  Now  they have gone home and I am going to sit and read for a while. This is the book I'm currently reading.

 

In the kitchen....some over-ripe bananas needed using and this is the result.

Tomorrow is World Book Day. I have books to return to the library and more waiting to be picked up.

 Not much else is happening. It's quiet and peaceful....the way I like it.  

Thanks for coming by.

 

 

 

 

Spring Flowers and some Trivia

   

Our favourite garden center is open and we made a quick trip to see what looked good. All the different Spring flowers were so beautiful. I chose some and then yesterday when the kids came over they brought more. I love it!!

In the background you can see my messy kitchen also some little jars of jam that I made earlier. I was awake and up early and after we walked I got busy.

Some bits of trivia...... our length of days here in Abbotsford got 1 hour and 30 minutes longer in February. In March we'll gain another hour and 48 minutes. 

Tomorrow is Shrove Tuesday  also known as Pancake Day. That will definitely be our supper.

I somehow managed to guess today's Wordle in two tries💗💗 

Thanks for visiting!

 

Hello March

 

 

March has come in as a lamb for us with sunshine and warm temperatures.

from Nature Diary of an Edwardian Lady

 

Crocuses are opening. Looks like they are mainly purple with a few clumps of white.  I think I may have some yellow ones in the front yard.   The bees are busily visiting one flower after another.

We attended an Open House for DH's brother's 80th birthday. It makes Saturday feel more like a Sunday. It doesn't take much for me to get my days of the week mixed up.

 

Otherwise not much to blog about.  

 

Thanks for coming by. 

 

An Ordinary Day

 

 Yet another puzzle finished. 

I finished reading my latest library book. Definitely recommend it.

Ten years ago, Lena Donohue experienced a wedding-day betrayal so painful that she fled the small town of Watersend, South Carolina, and reinvented herself in New York City. Though now a freelance travel writer, the one place she rarely goes is home--until she learns of her dad's failing health.

 Fridays Eldest and Youngest come for lunch and stay to help us. More power washing was done.
Also more tidying up the flowerbeds.  

DH wore out his old recliner and we found a replacement at the thrift store.  While they were here the old one was loaded onto the pick up and taken away.

"the real evidence of growing older is that things level off in importance ... Days are no longer jagged peaks to climb; time is a meadow, and we move over it with level steps." ~ Gladys Taber

 

Thanks for visiting.

Monday Chit Chat

 I picked up this pretty primrose at the grocery store. Once it's milder out I'll transplant it but for now it brightens up my sunroom.

 My Thanksgiving Cactus is blooming again. Not as abundantly as in November but still doing its best!

 A bouquet for the table.

 The latest puzzle that we finished on the weekend.

 Eldest brought an early Easter gift!

 That's it for me on this lovely Monday morning. All our snow is gone. The temperature this morning when I got up was 8C.  We had a pleasant walk around the lake. Blackbirds are beginning to sing their Oka-lee song. A Northern Flicker was drumming on a lamp post.  Here's what the internet has to say about that:

 The males search for a hollow tree, an old telephone pole, or even a chimney with metal flashing or a metal top, to drum out their mating call, telling all the other male flickers nearby that this is their territory, and saying “have a look at me baby” to all the females.

 

I hope your week is off to a good start.  Thanks for visiting.   GM

 

 

Getting Ready for Spring

 The weather cooperated and we had a work day yesterday. I say "we" but actually all I did was tell my faithful helpers what to do.  A job Youngest enjoys is power washing and he washed the front path and driveway.

 Eldest cut all the old leaves off the hellebores in front then did some much needed raking.,

 Then she helped me affix this Dollar Store branch onto my Gather sign on the front door....

 

...and hung this decoration from last year on the inside of the door.

In my last post I wrote that I was planning on making a Lemon Pudding Cake.  The recipe called for 3 eggs separated and when I broke the second egg I managed to get some yolk in the bowl containing the whites. As I'm sure you know, there's no use trying to get whites to whip properly with even a speck of yolk. I had to make a different recipe, one that called for 2 eggs....hence the lemon pie below.  DH and Youngest thought it was okay. Eldest and I did not :(

Today is a much less busy day. I picked up the books I requested at the library and I plan on doing a lot of reading on the weekend. Who knows? I might even be able to sit on the swing in the enclosed porch if the sun is shining.

 

Thank you for coming by

 

 

My Day

   It was raining so hard this morning that we decided not to go walking.  Now, in the afternoon, it is cloudy and dreary but plus 7 so not all that cold.
I decided to bake bread and the breadmaker is making the dough for me.  Once the bread is baked  I'll make a quiche for our supper. I want to try making a Lemon Pudding cake, a recipe new to me. I'll let you know how it turns out.

 

I put away most of the Valentine decorations. Left a few and added a couple of other pink items.

We started this 300 piece puzzle yesterday and finished it earlier. It's a fun one, easy to do, with nice big pieces. We've done it before. We will often redo a puzzle that we liked. We're always on the look-out at the thrift store for puzzles 500 pieces or less with pictures with lots of detail. Most puzzles are 1000 pieces and that's just too many for us.

I finished this library book and can recommend it as worth reading. NO bad language which seems to be hard to find these days. ( Don't I sound like the old granny that I am).

 A Million Little Choices deals with marriage, infidelity, and restoration in a Southern location.

 

That's it for today.   Thanks for visiting.

 

 

Coots

 3C with no wind this morning. The ice on the lake is beginning to thaw.  We saw lots of coots by the water, more than usual but fewer Canada Geese and ducks.

 

 Coots are such strange looking birds.They look and behave much like a duck but their feet are not webbed. Instead they have  long flat lobed toes. This picture from the internet makes the toes look  gray but they are more greenish. When M was little he said their feet were the colour of celery.  LOL.

It's a day off work for a lot of people on this Family Day Monday. For retired people it doesn't make a lot of difference.  I, of course, am doing laundry.  We have a quiet week ahead. I foresee lots of reading time. When the library opens tomorrow I'll go pick up the book I had requested ( another Ann Cleeves mystery).

Thanks for coming by.

 

 

 

Valentines Day

 Things are looking up. The temperature this morning was 0C  and according to the forecast no more minus temperatures in the week to come.  We'll get rain, no doubt, and it will wash away our snow.

I put out some Valentine things and took pictures.  As I know I've already mentioned Valentines Day is also our middle son's birthday so we'll be celebrating with  him mainly 💗

 

 

 

 I made a Pineapple Upside Down cake which was really good ( and lasted one day!  We do all love our sweets).  I didn't have pineapple rings so I used the tidbits.

 Lovely tulips from the children.

 Some pretty Valentines from Pinterest.

 Happy Valentines Day

 I'm glad the memes ( I'm not even sure exactly what a meme is!!) that I find amuse some of you. I know I find them amusing.  Other times a serious one will touch me and I post that. 

 

Thanks for visiting!!