winter-proof…

17 Saturday Oct 2020

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yesterday Hilda the Gardener came to winter-proof the garden…

she trimmed back ferns and hostas; emptied pots in front and back; brought all the dahlia pots onto the deck and cut them back; pulled weeds and trimmed the wild rose in the front flowerbed…

my job will be to remove the dahlia tubers, separate and pack them up for the winter… I’ve had to bring them in to thaw so that I can break up the soil, lol…

we are not raking up the leaves, but will have my grandson do one last mulch in the garden once the furniture is put away…

happy and sad that the garden is nearly prepared for winter…

still a few fish to catch and furniture to move…

tea…

16 Friday Oct 2020

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the tea is here, the tea is here;-)…

the parcel arrived a couple of days ago and I didn’t get around to finding a place to store a dozen boxes of blackcurrant tea until today…

I’ve never had that many boxes at once but I wanted to be sure to get multiples as it isn’t available anyplace in Canada or the UK…

cleaned off a shelf above my mugs to fit them in…

this should last me at least six months…

so delicious;-)…

stuck…

15 Thursday Oct 2020

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after the boys left yesterday, I brought in the plants which they had removed from the pond…

took a while, but eventually I got them all into the tank in a way that made me happy, although the tank looks very full…

not sure if they will last the winter, but it is worth a try as they are expensive and the lilies produced a number of blooms which doesn’t always happen, lol…

once the two pails of fish were in the house, I waited for a number of hours so that they could acclimate to the water temperature in the house…

when I finally poured them into the tank most of them did fine… but one of the biggest ones got stuck between a plant and rock and didn’t seem to be able to get out from the spot… I was very worried and it took about half an hour before it moved out from the tight space…

today they seem happy, but maybe a little crowded;-)…

and I enjoyed having company to talk to throughout the day;-)…

mulching…

14 Wednesday Oct 2020

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what a lovely afternoon… my son-in-law and youngest grandson came over with lunch… we had burgers and subway sandwiches in the garage…

then my son-in-law installed a new security light and camera on the garage… biggest issue was getting it to connect to the app, lol…

while he was doing that, my grandson took on mulching the leaves in the front yard… it was his first time mowing… he is getting big…

and the two of them caught eleven of the nineteen fish in the pond… it was great fun to watch them work together to capture the individual fish…

they also pulled out the plants that I am going to try to overwinter…

what a treat;-)…

panels…

13 Tuesday Oct 2020

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this afternoon I spent three hours outside with the hot tub technicians while they emptied, moved, opened all eight panels, filled, found two small leaks, repaired them, emptied, replaced the panels, moved back, refilled and turned the tub on… it was cold and windy…

now waiting for the two days it will take to heat the water and hoping that this has fixed the problem…

since then I’ve been trying to warm up… finally, about half an hour ago – after five hours – I don’t need any additional blankets and have taken off my sweater…

duo…

12 Monday Oct 2020

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yesterday I prepared a lovely chicken dinner, one of my favourite meals… set up a time and had dinner via Google Duo with the kids in Ottawa…

it was delicious… mashed potatoes and cauliflower, turnip, green beans, stuffing, gravy, cranberry jelly and roast chicken… I had tried a few new ways to prepare and everything turned out well… for a change I added mushrooms to the gravy and really enjoyed it…

although it was as much effort as when the family comes over, it felt less stressful as I worked to produce this dinner… and I really enjoyed eating it, lol…

set the table with a leaf tablecloth, a few decorations, and the laptop, lol…

had a great meal together and then I tidied the dining room… after that a nap may have been involved, lol… put away the leftovers and enjoyed my dessert – a chocolate covered caramel from Hummingbird Chocolate…

this morning I started the chicken stock and enjoyed the aroma of soup throughout the day…

thankfulness…

11 Sunday Oct 2020

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our lives have changed so much in the last months… and I’ve spent time considering many of the things I am thankful for…

my retirement at the end of December has been a huge change… I had worried that if I retired I would turn into a hermit, lol… and so I did…

during these crazy covid times I have been able to find businesses that deliver groceries, books, technology, plants, meals…

I am in touch with friends through various applications, and have enjoyed many garden visits during nice weather…

I have found help with projects and my neighbours are available if I have issues…

my grandson has my car and picks up items on a regular basis when I can’t find them any other way… the younger ones have looked after maintaining the grass and helped with the pond…

time spent in the garden, following the shade, soaking up the peace and serenity has been amazing… watching flowers bud and open, birds and squirrels at the feeders, and fish, frogs, plants and blossoms in the pond have whiled away the spring, summer and now fall…

how blessed I am;-)…

usual…

10 Saturday Oct 2020

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the usual family dinner is not happening this weekend…

this year I decided to cook a special dinner just for me;-)… will use some technology to eat with my Ottawa kids…

today I made stuffing muffins for my grandsons… one of their favourites… the smell was delightful and a reminder of what makes a meal special… the eldest grandson will pick them up…

I also prepared potatoes and cauliflower for cooking… I tried something different as I prepared them because, if it doesn’t turn out, I’m the only one eating it, lol… I also cooked a small turnip and made fresh cranberry jelly…

usually as I am preparing for a special dinner I am thinking of those who will be enjoying the meal… today I thought about what a sunny day it was outside, even if it was chilly… and how blessed I am to have the food I want and a place to eat it safely…

fright…

09 Friday Oct 2020

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last night I went downstairs to go out for a hot tub… could hear a buzzing noise that seemed to be coming from under the cupboard near the stove…

I ran water wondering if something was stuck in the pipe, or if the pipe was getting ready to explode…

couldn’t decide whether I should call my son-in-law and was thinking I should find a flashlight to look at the pipes…

then I opened the drawer and the sound was even louder, yikes… by now my heart was pounding…

after I opened the drawer it occurred to me that the sound was coming from the little IKEA wisk… I had tried to use it for hot chocolate about an hour before and it didn’t work so I figured it needed a new battery… I just put it back but wasn’t sure if the button was on or off but assumed it didn’t matter as it was dead…

eventually my heart rate returned to normal;-)…

doable…

08 Thursday Oct 2020

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while I was working in the garage yesterday – a job I’ve been putting off for eight years – I realized that it was doable and wasn’t as difficult as I had imagined…

my system is to take the garbage bin into the garage on Thursday’s and fill it up with various bits and pieces…

today I also brought a table in to lay things out in piles of things I need, things I don’t really know what their purpose is, and things my son-in-law may want to use or for scrap, things to give away and garbage..

I also found some useful items which were put away in the new spots I’ve decided on…

seems like I spend a little over an hour at a time working but I am seeing improvement and actually found some counter space on the workbench;-)…