First grocery shop for July

I began my morning with stripping my bed and doing a large load of whites and lights in the washing machine. I emptied the dishwasher and filled it up again with a second load of dishes while I soaked a sink full of dishes with baked on food. I have been struggling with my mood disorder the last couple of days, so I forced myself out of the house this morning to go shopping. It seems to have helped me a bit. Tomorrow I will go to Amherst Island to celebrate both my friend's birthday and Canada's birthday. It is supposed to rain tomorrow afternoon, so I don't know if the parade and/or fireworks will be cancelled. Regardless, we will be enjoying a pot luck dinner and celebrating a friend.

I stopped first at Michael's with my 50% off coupon for one regularly priced item. I needed a few items including both white and clear embossing powders, another white gel pen, and a package of 50 white A2 sized envelopes. I used my 50% coupon to buy myself another smaller paper pad with solid colours and co-ordinating prints to make more cards with. I also had another gift card left from Christmas with almost $25 left on it, so I was only out of pocket for $10 and change. Now I just need to wait for inspiration to come and sweep me away in a frenzy of crafting and card-making. Ha.

Next, I went grocery shopping at Freshco. Their new sales start on Thursdays.

Miscellaneous  cost $22.40

The no name TP was $3.83 and the Finish was $10.99  Not in the photo were some toiletries and store bought dog treats for $7.58  I was hoping I could get a full rebate for the dishwasher tabs, but I picked up the wrong ones. Darn it! I should have chosen the Max-in-one.

Dairy totaled $15.76

Not in the photo are Black Diamond 24 cheese slices (my plastic cheese) which were only $2.99, but I had a $1 off coupon so it would have only cost me $1.99, IF I had remembered to bring my coupons with me. DARN IT!

Meat cost $11.82

I am craving chicken this week. The whole chicken was $2/lb.and the 2 kg pkg. of seasoned boneless chicken breasts was selling for $5 for the bag. 

Produce totaled $17.00

I count my frozen veggies as part of my fruits and vegetables purchase. I also bought celery, green onions, cucumber, cherry tomatoes, red pepper, apples and clementines.  

Pantry items came to $37.44

At the back of the photo is a bag of oatmeal and a small bag of oregano. I should have bought these at the Bulk Barn, but I don't know when I will get there next. I was completely out of these. I also bought Olive oil, baking spray, honey mustard, two different cooking sauces, Mayonnaise (both generic and branded), tea, 2 tins of mushroom soup and a can of mushrooms, diced tomatoes, peanuts and fusilli pasta. Everything was either on sale or store brands. 

Bread cost me $ 4.48 today

My total for the first shop of July came to $112.22 including taxable items, and my savings due to sales came to $24.47

The Veggie Garden

 Yesterday I made the decision to start weeding my vegetable garden today because the temperatures were expected to be a bit cooler and a little less humid. After emptying the dishwasher and filling it back up again, I went outside by 10:30 to begin weeding. I started at one end where my thirteen tomato plants are and worked towards the centre of the garden. My pepper plants are covered in buds. I have four red peppers and four cayenne peppers.

Tomato plants weeded

This is where I stopped weeding because I have three rows where I do not see anything coming up yet. They were planted with parsnip and carrots. Until I see where the plants are growing, I will not be pulling up any vegetation. To the right of the bean plants is a partial row of beets. I weeded here VERY carefully, but it doesn't look like they have done well (maybe Dollar Store seeds?), so my plan is to try and plant more seeds in the empty spaces. This is a Fall harvest crop anyway, so I still have time. 

Here are three rows of 4 plants each.... Brussels sprouts, broccoli, and cauliflower.  

One pie pumpkin plant

I planted two zucchini plants at the edge of my strawberry plants. Here is one of them. 

I worked outside for 2 1/2 hours in the hot sun. Then dark clouds moved in. I came in to shower and have lunch around 1:30 this afternoon.

Working in the garden this morning was very therapeutic. I had a very stressful and emotional evening yesterday concerning my mother again. The Retirement Home called me again last night. My sister wants to be the first contact but for whatever reason, they call me. (Maybe my mother insists, I don't know). Anyways, I had to calm her and assure her that the strange man in her apartment was her husband, which she refused to believe. At Christmas,  plans were made to get her a new doctor and begin her assessment for treatment for her dementia, and we are not one iota closer than we were six months ago. Because of family dynamics, I feel my hands are tied. I don't have her personal power of attorney, so I am beyond frustrated, and nobody seems to want my help or input. At this point, I don't even know if she is on a waiting list for a nursing home. I am just feeling very sick and helpless over this.

Anyways, I will continue to work outside in the garden as long as the weather allows. My Sweetie cut most of the grass today, and we are filling up the trailer again for another trip to the Transfer Station. It seems a never ending chore. 

Day Book: June 27/16

Outside my window.......it is a dull and damp day. It is overcast after an overnight rain and everything feels damp and humid and hot. Uck!

I am thinking.....that over the weekend, I did a lot of sleeping but feel like I am still tired. Must be the heat and humidity.

 .
I am thankful for..... the yard sale being over and that I got a little bit of money for stuff that I was tossing anyway. As soon as we packed things up after the yard sale, my husband drove the van up to the driveway so we could load up the boxes inside and he drove them immediately away to the thrift store. They never came back into the house.

From the kitchen.....I made a potato salad early in the day yesterday and also put spareribs in the crock pot with my own homemade BBQ sauce. It is what we enjoyed for dinner last night but I am hoping for reruns tonight. Ha. I feel even less like cooking today.

I am wearing.....blue denim capris and a pink and gray cotton button down shirt.  My hair is in a ponytail again so my hair isn't hanging down on my neck. I am barefoot.

I am creating.......more cards this week. I can sit under the ceiling fan in the dining room and do paper crafts when it is too hot to do anything else. I am almost completely out of birthday cards from my stash. My friend who has endured a lot after her abdominal surgery, is celebrating her birthday this Friday (July 1st-- also Canada Day), and I have promised her more homemade cards on her birthday. I also have another lot of family birthdays in the month of July.

I am going.....grocery shopping sometime this week

I am hoping....... to get a lot more weeding done this week when the temperatures are supposed to dip down tomorrow into the low 20s. They will rise again into the 30s by the weekend, but while they are cooler, I hope to get so much done outdoors.

I am hearing......my chimes. There must be a slight breeze. I can hear the television on. My Sweetie is watching Jericho on Netflix.

Around the house....it feels messy and disorganized. It is the aftermath of the yard sale. I am so glad I got the downstairs vacuuming done last week. I have laundry from the weekend that needs folding and putting away. I feel tired and irritable, so I don't feel like accomplishing much today. Maybe this will be a good time to do crafting.

One of my favourite things.......lately, is having a window A/C unit in my bedroom to cool the room down BEFORE we sleep, and a fan to blow over me WHILE I sleep.

A few plans for the rest of the week.......include sorting out my possessions downstairs. There might be more stuff I will pack up for donations to the thrift store. And definitely, take advantage of cooler temperatures to weed the veggie garden and the backyard flower beds. Plans for Canada Day include a trip over to Amherst Island for a birthday potluck dinner, parade, and fireworks display.

Will you be surprised to learn that I took no pictures of the yard sale tables this Saturday? It never once occurred to me. They started arriving before we were ready and it was a constant flow all through the morning until 2 o'clock. Even so, they kept arriving as we were packing everything up. I had no large items. It was only 10 cent to 50 cent purchases. Overall, we made almost $150; but personally, I made $33. That wasn't a lot, but I was very happy to have made something from items I was getting rid of regardless. My son and his GF are putting their $100+ into their house fund, but they also informed me that their tiny house plans are being put on hold for a while. She is planning on going back to school for a year. I suspected something was up, but sitting outside together manning the tables gave me the opportunity to come straight out and ask what their plans were. They will use this year to save money for tuition and a year's living expenses while she is studying.

Here is a picture I am sharing..... my clematis. Look at all the new buds.

Drive Down Main Street

I got up with the dog this morning before 7 AM and started my day early. Garbage pickup is at seven in the morning, so I made sure I took both bags out to the curb last night before I went to bed. It was also Blue Box recycling (cans, glass and plastic), so I sorted that all yesterday and took the bins to the curb after my breakfast this morning. I had two full loads for the dishwasher this morning before 11 o'clock, which means that I unloaded the dishwasher this morning THREE times. I folded and put away all the laundry that I have done this week (about four loads). I vacuumed the front room, dining room, kitchen and living room. I did not do the staircase or the hallway. I decided that the house will need a thorough clean anyways after this weekend's yard sale and everything gets taken out. I had planned yesterday to spend the afternoon trimming the front lawn; but instead, I went to bed for a nap. Oopsie. So I did that today. I also pruned back my rose bush. Yesterday morning, I worked on weeding the gravel driveway and pruning back the Forsythia bush. I started to cut the back lawn, but ran out of gas. I am waiting for my Sweetie to go fill the jerry can for me. I will use the push mower and he will drive the riding lawn mower. So I took the hoe between my rows of beans and also around my tomato and pepper plants. That will have to suffice until after the yard sale, when I can get down in the dirt and pull weeds out by the roots. Temperatures have been warming back up this week since the rain storm. By Saturday we will be back to temps in the 30s. Tomorrow I will set up as many tables as I can get along the driveway and on the front lawn in preparation of filling them early Saturday morning. My son and his GF are making up the signs.

Today on Imperfectly Frugally, Nathalie took us downtown Clermont in Central Florida. I decided I could take you all to downtown Odessa. Anyone who has been here is probably laughing out loud right about now. If you blink driving through, you will miss it. I live in a very small village about 6 minutes drive from the city limits of Kingston, so there really isn't much to see. But if I have learned anything from Nathalie, it is that there is always something to see if you just take a second look. So let's drive down the Main Street.

Our High School (grades nine through 12)

The elementary school is behind and to the right of this building, but I didn't take a photo of it. That will be for another day. Elementary grades go from Junior Kindergarten to grade eight. 

Our volunteer fire department is one of the busiest in the county because it responds to fires, medical emergencies and traffic accidents on the 401 highway. We also have an OPP (Ontario Provincial Police)  detachment in town but it is not on the Main Street. It is just feet away from both east and west exit ramps to the 401. It will be another day's walk through town. 

Next to the fire hall is our local convenience store

Our post office
The Canadian flag was at half mast today to commemorate victims of terrorism

The municipal offices  for Loyalist township reside in Odessa. This is where you pay your water and sewer bills, your property taxes, get building permits, dog licenses, hold town meetings, etc., etc.

Small grocery store

New Veterinary Clinic

Royal Bank of Canada

Home Hardware

Love this place. You can find anything in this store, and if they don't have it, they can order it for you within days. I have always loved nosing around in hardware stores. You can find the most amazing things. 

That is basically it. There is also a Retirement home, a funeral home, and three of four churches in town are on the Main Street. At the end of my block, there is C.P.'s Subs and Pizza place, a Pool Hall and a hairdresser. I told you it was tiny. But it is friendly here and we like it. 

Outdoor Tuesday

We had a beautiful rain storm last night that watered the garden and brought cooler temperatures today. They were forecasting a tornado last night for our little village and the city of Kingston, but fortunately it was just a storm with very high winds. 

Lovely pink peonies

See my bean plants See all the new weeds?

Sorry this photo is so bad. It was the end of the day and I guess I was looking into the setting sun. I didn't realize how unfocused the picture was until I got inside. But you can still see how quickly the sprouts are coming up and how thick already the weeds are coming in. 

I spent several hours outdoors today because of the nicer weather. See that wheelbarrow below? That was my second load that I removed from the garden beds and the drive. I'm still not finished. 

Wheelbarrow load for my backyard compost pile. Notice the Bridal veil spirea bush in the background. It is finished for the year. I will prune it back hard in a few weeks. 

The pros of growing a perennial garden are many.... the most important one being cost. Once they are planted, they come back year after year and you are spared the cost of replacing annuals every year. There is usually something flowering at different times throughout the season. 

The cons of growing perennials is that they sometimes get out of hand. They must be pulled back, thinned out, and pruned or dug up. Some varieties grow so thickly, they sometimes choke out other varieties of flowering plants unless you stay on top of them. In this picture you can see the dying leaves of my daffodils. I won't cut those leaves for a while yet because while they are still green, they are feeding the bulbs for next Spring. The same is true of my allium (which are the tall seed heads that look like spheres) because they are also Spring bulbs. That means that I "have to live with" a very disorderly looking English Country garden look. Hopefully enough new plants flower to help camouflage the disarray. The flowers that are ready to come into bloom next are the bee balm. Once the white and blue Campanula bells die off, I will likely cut them down to a couple of inches to keep the bed neater looking. I tell you this because this bed has been weeded today, but it still looks frightful. Sometimes.....but only sometimes....I wish I had a "landscaped and formal" garden bed. But then I wouldn't have the variety of plants that I do have. The garden would look the same day after day. As it is, walkers pass my garden each day to stop and admire the always changing landscape in my yard. I do buy a few annuals  for my planters to add hits of colour while the perennials are "between" blooms. So I guess as long as I am still able, I will tend to my perennials. But it is a lot of work. 

Hot and cranky

My Father's Day cards that I made

My Dad may not have arrived home yet. He left my sister's place in Guelph this morning where he spent the weekend after leaving the time share in Collingwood. But by the time he sees this post, he will already have opened his mail. So I am posting a photo of the two cards I made. His is the first one with the shirt and tie. The second one is for my mother's partner, who would have received his last week. 

This small banner is one of the few decorations I made with my Cricut die-cutter, some stick on letters and some ribbon. We placed this on the back of the chair for Katie at her shower. 

Chalkboard welcome sign for the shower.

The bridal shower this weekend turned out to be a lot of fun and a wonderful diversion from the work waiting for me at home. I did have plans to do some work today on Domestic Monday, but the hot weather makes me really cranky. I don't like it. It might be time to consider looking into central air conditioning. I cleaned my kitchen and baked the dog his treats. My Sweetie and myself emptied the last of the garden soil in the trailer into the seven Rubbermaid bins that I had emptied last week and drilled holes in the bottom for drainage. These are lined up on the ground along one side of the veggie garden.  I planted my seed potatoes in them and covered them with some soil about 1/4 full. As the plants grow, I will keep adding soil to the bins (much like I did last year in the planters) I had success with this method last year, so I am trying it this way again. They are terribly late going in. They should have been planted early in May, but they were late last year also. When I harvested in the Fall, they seemed to have lots of time to develop, so I am keeping my fingers crossed for this year. My bean seeds have sprouted already and are about 3 inches tall. The weeds are also doing well. 

I did not vacuum. I did not pull weeds. I don't feel like doing much of anything. I am frying pork chops for supper with frozen  mixed veggies and potatoes baked in the micro wave. I am hoping for a change in the weather overnight, and I strongly suspect my Sweetie is hoping for a change in my mood sooner rather than later. Have a good evening. 

Day Book: June 20/16

My resolve to blog everyday didn't last long...two days, and then the weekend happened.

Best laid plans......

So I had my own agenda today, but so did my Sweetie. He decided that he was going to clean out the basement so I ended up helping him sort through some bins and collected quite a bit of stuff  (mostly Hallowe'en decorations) for the upcoming yard sale. I also have a collection of empty Rubbermaid bins now which I will use in my garden. Yippee .

Other than that, doing one load of laundry and washing a load of dishes, that is ALL I accomplished today. I was hoping to go into town to do some shopping, but another day in June has gone by without my having bought any groceries (apart from bread and milk from Shopper's Drug Mart). I am going in tomorrow morning to help another friend prepare for a wedding shower on Sunday. That is the opportunity I will use to pick up a few things. I need more vinegar to make more homemade weed killer for Monday.  The weeds are taking control of my yard and I am now having nightmares. I am also putting down "vacuuming" on my To-Do list for tomorrow afternoon. I will report back here tomorrow with my list of successes.

Frugal Thursday morning

My first few strawberries

My Weekend in Collingwood

Heated outdoor pool at Georgian Manor resort in Collingwood

What I DON'T buy.

I have been thinking lately about getting back to how I live more frugally and ways that I can improve. With that in mind, my post today will explore the different ways I save money by talking about the things that I do not buy.

In the pantry:
Because I cook mostly from scratch. I rarely buy prepared meals. I will freeze my own cooked meals for certain occasions.  We rarely eat out in a restaurant or even fast food places, so it is important to keep such foods for convenience.

I make porridge for breakfast most mornings, but I also make my own granola for breakfast cereal. Muffins or pancakes are made from scratch.

Most soups in this house are of the homemade variety, made with vegetable or bone broth that I make. I still buy canned tomato soups and cream of...soups for making casseroles, but in a pinch I have a recipe for making cream of .....soup base. I also like to make and keep my own soup mixes on hand.

 I still buy my whole wheat breads and buns, so there is also room for improvement here. I have made my own bread in the past. I have a great recipe for making my own Bisquick to make biscuits and casserole toppings.

I should  grow my own herbs and dry them, but I do not. I buy them from the Bulk Barn and create all of my seasoning mixes from these. Instead of buying canned gravy or gravy mix, I make my own mix and keep a supply in a mason jar.

I do not buy canned beans. I cook them from dry and freeze in one cup measures for when I need to add them to a recipe.

My barbecue sauce is homemade. Salad dressings are very easy to make. I have horse radish growing in my garden. This year I will make horse radish sauce.

I make my own freezer jams, but I want to learn how to make cooked jams and jellies. I also want to learn how to can food from my garden instead of freezing it all.

In my cleaning closet:

With baking soda, washing soda, borax, bar soap, dishwashing soap, and vinegar, I make all of my own cleaning products from laundry detergent to an all purpose spray cleaner. I do buy rubbing alcohol, peroxide,  essential oils, bleach and ammonia  to expand some of my cleaning products.

So there you have it. Have I forgotten anything? What are some of the products you use that you no longer buy from the stores?

A Walkabout

Yesterday found me in my Craft Room because I knew I had to make my Father's Day cards. Instead I ended up doing some long neglected sorting of things, and I managed to find a couple of things that I have purged from my belongings. There wasn't a lot that I was willing to let go, but I did find a couple of things.

I found lots of silk flowers and containers to put them in, unpainted wood projects, popsicle sticks, a ceramic Hallowe'en plate, tattoos and some ribbons. After a few more days of  organizing and cleaning, I will hopefully get rid of much more. 

My vegetable starts that I planted a few days ago in time for the rains. 

I worked in my strawberry patch again today. It was very cold this morning; but by mid afternoon, it had warmed up considerably. While I was indoors this morning, I got two birthday cards into the mail for June (they were two of the ones that I made before leaving for Vancouver), and I made two Father's Day cards...one for my Dad and one for my mom's partner in Cobourg. I won't show them to you now for the obvious reason, but perhaps on Father's Day (if I remember).

I don't know the name of this plant that was given to me, but it is very colourful and will bloom into Autumn. 

Coral Bells (and lots of clover)

Columbine

My planters are filling out and looking good. I suppose I should fertilize them, don't you think. 

Domestic Tuesday

I started my day in the garden pulling weeds from between my strawberry plants. This is the area that I hope to plant some of my seed crops. I tried transplanting my strawberries last summer into very large planters, but unfortunately they didn't all survive the winter. So after these strawberry plants in the main garden  fruit, I will try to transplant them as well. I don't know why they are not doing better in containers, but I will keep trying. I should never have tried planting them in my vegetable garden because they are taking up valuable space. I worked for about an hour before the rain forced me inside. So now instead of a day doing yard work, it suddenly became an indoor day of domestic chores.

 I washed and chopped the rhubarb I had and was going to put it in the freezer until I remembered I had enough pastry to make a pie. So that is what I did.

I washed another  load of dishes after unloading the dishwasher this morning. I hand washed the dog's bowls.

I cleaned the cats' litter box.

I folded two loads of laundry and put away the clothes.

I commented on some blogs and answered some emails.

I made pork chops for dinner and washed yet another load of dishes.

The weather this week is supposed to remain unsettled. We have had sun, rain, windy conditions and tonight is is downright chilly. Maybe tomorrow I can finish weeding out the strawberry patch.

Great Canadian Cheese Festival

Nathalie started one of her blog posts with a picture of a cow's head for the benefit of Tara over at Daily Delight. So I figured I could also post a picture of a cow's head. In truth, it is actually a photo I took of a water buffalo that was on exhibit in Picton at the Cheese Festival. Cheese is made from the milk of cows, goats, sheep, and yes, even water buffalo. (horns have been removed)

Water buffalo

and one of her calves. 

Inside the largest pavilion

Vendors were set up inside buildings and under huge tents. Most of the vendors were there to entice us with samplings of their cheeses, but there were also vendors there to sell cured meats, honey, lavender, wines from the Picton vineyards, jams, jellies, roasted nuts,  and chutneys. There were free samples of almost everything being offered, except the wines. "Samples" were offered for $1, which was still an incredible bargain. I didn't buy any wines this year, but I have a list of new ones to look for this summer after trying some samples. 

The plan is simple. You try to visit every table, grab a toothpick, and spear a cube of cheese you want to try. If you like it, you might make a mental note to come back to purchase later. But this year, if I loved it, I bought it right away in case I didn't get back, or worse....they ran out before I got back. Last year I bought cheese that I really wanted to buy again this year, so I was prepared for that. But I also made a decision to buy different ones again this year. 

There are a lot of great wines produced in Prince Edward county, and they were well represented here this weekend. I picked up the 2016 tour map of the wineries in case my Sweetie and I plan to go later this fall. 

This is a wonderful opportunity to try Award-winning cheeses from all over the country. 

I am very fond of cheese made from sheep's milk, though not especially from goat's milk. (I have bought some goat's cheese here that I like, because of sampling.)  We did NOT make it to every vendor this year, but we gave it our best shot. Lunch was also included with the price of the ticket, and it was award winning grilled cheese made with artisan bread. By 2 o'clock in the afternoon, laden down with all of our purchases and not wanting to look at any more cheese, we gave up the fight. Nathalie is going to be skeptical that anyone could be cheezed out in only three hours, but it is true. You have to live through this experience to know that there can be too much of a wonderful thing. 

This is what I bought this year.

In the back row, next to the 2016 wine tour map, are two small bottles of flavoured balsamic vinegars...one is cranberry pear and the other is fig. Mix a very tiny bit with extra virgin olive oil, and drizzle over salad or dip your bread into it. It tastes like heaven. In front of those, from the left is dried chorizo. This is the third year I have bought this. I LOVE it. The next five cheeses in line are from Quebec. I could stay in this pavilion the whole time. I love all the cheeses that come from this part of Canada. The French make the very best cheese. The curd is flavoured with roasted garlic and the block at the end of that line is carmelized onion. They are both Empire cheeses from Campbellford Ontario. My smoked cheese variety is cheddar from St. Alberts and from Ivanhoe Cheese, I chose a soft old cheese for spreading and a firm extra old cheddar. The second one from the left (first row) is the sheep's cheese that I had to buy again this year. It was so yummy. It wasn't until now that I realized it came from Quebec also. Should have known. 

Day Book: June 6/16

Outside my window......

roses are making an appearance on my "tree".

It is sunny, warm but a little breezy today. There is a possibility of more rain later today. I can see every weed on my front lawn because the grass is so brown and "crispy". Those are the only green bits on my lawn. I should take advantage of that and dig them out today.

I am thinking.......of the great time I had yesterday at the Great Canadian Cheese Festival in Picton. My brother and SIL picked me up shortly after 10 AM to drive to the Exhibition grounds. Even though it was a rainy day, it was crowded with people and even more vendors this year. We stayed several hours, ate cheese until we were cheezed out, and tasted some wine. Great times. 

I am thankful for......all the rain we got yesterday. The worst of it fell during the night before and early morning before we left. It continued all through the day but wasn't so bad to ruin anyone's time at the Festival. We desperately needed this rain, and I had just planted all my veggie starts the day before in anticipation of the rain. Yay ME!  I am also thankful for my son and GF arriving home safely yesterday from their Californian trip. 

From the kitchen.....not much has happened all this week. I need to make more doggie biscuits (already?) I am trying not to have any baking in the house, or I might be tempted to eat it. I need to find more cupboard space for my son and GF, although they were very happy to see the effort I made already to accommodate "their" kitchen needs. She has special diet requirements, so they buy and cook their own meals. And yes, I like that very much, so I will try to be more accommodating. 

I am wearing.....light tan capris and green T-shirt from Magnolia Plantation and Gardens in  Charleston, S.C.; and no, I have never been to South Carolina. 

I am creating.....a pile of  boxes in the downstairs hallway for the upcoming yard sale that we hope will happen this coming week-end, if we can get our collective hind-quarters in gear. 

I am going......into Kingston later this morning to visit with my friend who returned home from the hospital yet again two nights ago. 

I am reading........nothing. Who has time to read? 

I am hoping......everything is okay with my Sweetie. He has been having a rough time the past few days and has called his doctor this morning. He has become quite dehydrated because he can't seem to keep the fluids in. He had a very bad night last night, but is sleeping comfortably right now on the couch. I am also hoping I can write another blog post later on today. 

I am hearing.....CSN (Sports Network) on the television right now as the background noise to my husband's sleeping. The chimes just outside my window are blowing in the breeze. I hear the occasional vehicle traffic passing the open window. 

Around the house.......I am trying to prepare for a yard sale and do some long neglected yard work at the same time. I roto-tilled and planted half the garden with veggie starts, but I haven't even pulled weeds in the other half of the garden where I plan to plant my seed crops (beans, carrots, parsnips, potatoes, corn and beets) I am so far behind. 

One of my favourite things......right now, is my "new-to-me" van that my father and "Dee" gifted me. I am able to go visit my friend so my husband has a vehicle if he needs it. Otherwise, we would combine errands and make one trip.

A few plans for the rest of the week..... pull weeds, plant veggie seeds, pull weeds, set up tables and set prices on my meager contributions to the yard sale. 

Here is a picture I am sharing.......

These are the items I purchased at the Cheese Festival.