New Year's Eve

I usually leave my Christmas decorations up until Epiphany, but today I decided that I wanted them all down and put away. So that is how I spent my day. I have the Christmas linens in the wash with the rest of my laundry, except for the tablecloth. It won't hurt to leave it out for a while longer., as I will also be using my winter china for another month anyways.  And I have moved my lighted picture of candles and pine cones to a wall in the living room where I can still enjoy the sparkly lights for a little while longer. The cards are still strung across the walls in the dining room where I can enjoy them a while longer. I have not dusted or vacuumed or put my every day decor out, so the walls and tables are looking quite bare.

I didn't post on my blog yesterday because I was reading over my last year's entries to get a feel of what I wanted to accomplish and how I did overall. Well as you can imagine, it probably wasn't the best idea I have had. I had a lot of things I wanted to accomplish and I started out well, but my life was sidelined abruptly. I may not have accomplished what I set out to do, but it was an incredible year of learning to do on my own. It was also a wonderful year of family and friends who got me through difficult times. If reading through the blog posts from the past year wasn't already depressing me, I then turned my attention to looking over my budget. There are definitely changes to be made. By the end of the day, I was not in good shape to be writing down goals and plans for the New Year. I will leave that for this first week of 2018. Instead, I will write about past New Year's Eve nights.

My husband was born into a family who emigrated here from Scotland. Christmas was NOT a big thing. The kids (when they were very small) got a few presents from Santa, but mainly it was considered a Holy Day. Rick really didn't have any fond memories of Christmas when I first met him, but I got to change all that after we were married. New Year's Eve was the BIG deal among his Scottish relatives. When he became a teenager, he was often the one who was called upon to "first foot" all of his relations. The "first footer" had to be a tall, dark handsome man, and Rick fit the bill. He would have to stand outside before the clock struck midnight and wait until after everyone had finished bringing in the New Year with hugs and kisses and singing of "Auld Lang Syne". Then he had to knock and be invited in over the threshold. He had to have money in his pocket and a bottle (usually whiskey) in his hand as a gift to the host. He would be poured a drink and they would toast in the New Year. From there they would go to the next relatives house and repeat. I know there were times when family was forbidden to enter a house because they had not been "first footed" yet. It was bad luck to let in a woman or (heaven forbid) a man with red or blond hair before you were "first footed".

But that wasn't the only quirky thing that his family did at New Year's. There was major cleaning and redecorating going on the week before, and especially the day of New Year's Eve. There could be no unfinished housecleaning or laundry. If Rick's Gran had a cup of tea at 11:45, she not only had to wash out  the tea cup and teapot and put them away, but she also had to rinse out the dishcloth and towel she used to clean up her tea things. The table had to be laden with food. There were usually new draperies on the windows and brand new sheets, blankets, and towels laid out. You saved your money all year to buy all these new things for New Year's Eve.  These superstitious rituals were very important to ensure prosperity through the year. After Gran died, it seemed most of the revelry died with her, but Rick's mom still insisted that Rick should "first foot" her house until she passed away. Tonight will be just another night for me. I will not be staying up to greet the New Year, but tomorrow my son, his fiancee and myself are invited out for an afternoon dinner  at Charleston Lake with dear friends of ours. My very best wishes to a Happy, healthy 2018. Stay safe everyone.
 

Testing Out Blogger on Android

So why are you getting two tests from Android? This one did NOT work at all. The only reason it is here is because I was able to capture the post I wrote and send it as an email to myself. The photos did not transfer at all. I can tell you that my next "lesson" will be how to use the camera. I don't know why these pictures are all out of focus, but there definitely is a lot I have to learn. Practice, practice, practice. So here is the first post I wrote that I was sure was going to work, but didn't. They were written from two different apps, so I guess I am learning. BUT, it has taken me all day. Again, on the plus side, I have discovered that I can comment on the comments written on my blog posts, which I was unable to do on the Blackberry.

Posting on Blogger With Android

This is my second attempt at  composing an update to my blog using the Android tablet. My post will be much shorter this time. I was so sure it was going to work, but no.
The first photo is the gift that another friend gave me. It is a picture that I presently have on my wall of candles and pinecones.  A  switch on the side allows the candles to flicker, and because it is kind of a generic winter photo and not specifically Christmas, I am hoping to leave it up for most of the winter.

I have not been able to figure out how to place photos within the text of the blog, so if this works I will have to settle for all the photos to come first, and I will just have to describe them in the text that follows. My son and I agreed that this year we would only exchange stockings. This was his stocking to me, including several additions to my card-making supplies, including 2 new rubber stamps.

I will attempt to send this. Fingers crossed.

Christmas Week

Today I decided to load Blogger on to my tablet and worked at trying to write an update and post some pictures. I worked on it until my head started pounding. I was so frustrated, I decided to let it go another day. I will take some pictures tonight with the tablet and see if I have better luck tomorrow. So I have gone on to my desk top computer to do this so I don't feel like a complete loser.

While I have the downloads I want to show you in my desktop files, I will show you some of the gift baskets I made up to give away. I made up two gift baskets...one around a wine theme and the other was "Beer and BBQ."

 In the back row, I bought 6 different craft beers (3 cans each), BBQ chips, BBQ peanuts, 4 different BBQ sauces (2 bottles each) , paper beer cups with BBQ King marked on them, BBQ serviettes, bamboo steak markers to identify which pieces are to be cooked rare, med. rare, well done, etc., a basting brush attachment that screws right over the tops of the BBQ sauce bottles, beer coasters (one each) and finally a pair of socks. One pair is black with pictures of craft beers all over, and the other pair has writing on the soles which says, "if you can read this...bring me a beer."

 I filled two  plastic ice buckets with identical items, printed out signs announcing BBQ and Beer and tied it up with cellophane and ribbon and attached a snowflake ornament. The bag of chips did not fit, so I handed that to them separately. 

 I forgot to include photos of the spice mixes I made up for each basket. I made up little canning jars that held BBQ spice and Montreal Steak Spice mixes.

I didn't take a separate photo of the "before", but each of these baskets contain a bottle of wine (one contains red, the other white) in a wine gift bag, a wine stopper, a bag of wine gums, a funny coaster, a funny fridge magnet, wine printed serviettes and wine printed socks.  The homemade part of the gift was a packet of six wine charms that I made for each of the women. I enjoy making up baskets of consumables.

So there is my blog post for today. I will try again tomorrow to post from the tablet. I am still getting used to using it by myself. It would be a lot easier if someone were here who knew a little bit about them to give me some guidance, but I won't see anyone until New Year's Day. Bye for now.

Chillaxing at Home

 Here is a picture I took after the first snowfall on Friday. I went outside to shovel snow after the storm and the traffic was quiet. It is usually very peaceful at night and a good time to shovel snow.

Then Saturday, it snowed again. I wanted to deliver my friend gifts that day, but didn't dare venture out in the car.  I was able to walk over to a neighbour's house to deliver their cheese and crackers, but that was it. It snowed all day and I was able to shovel some of it at the end of the day, but there was even more snow than what I had moved the day before. (I didn't take any more photos after that first snowfall) I did some cleaning and prepared the turnip for the next day's meal.
Sunday was Christmas Eve, so I started my day again by going outside to finish the driveway and I moved my car ahead so a car could park behind me. I have a big double driveway that can hold 4 cars. It is a lot to shovel. I came inside to prepare our Christmas Eve dinner. I was expecting 6 people to come for  roast beef, ham, mashed potatoes, gravy, mashed sweet potatoes, turnip, broccoli, cauliflower, and corn. My son came early to make an apple crisp with almond flour and Splenda brown sugar, so that I could partake. I also had a tray of home baking (some that I made and some that my son's fiancee brought with her) and vanilla ice cream. We had our gift exchange afterwards. I have to show you one of my gifts. You will remember how I told you I fell in love with the garden sculptures in Perth this Spring at "Art in the Garden"?

My friend commissioned an artist to make this owl for me. The body is a spade, the head is a large saw blade, the wings are the tines of a leaf rake, the beak is part of tin snips, the eyes are slices of a galvanized pipe, the talons are garden cultivators, etc., etc. Isn't he adorable? He is hanging in my living room right now, but may move out to my fence or the front of my shed in the Spring.

We had a lovely evening together, My friends left for home and my son and his fiancee stayed overnight. During the night we had the third and worst snow storm of all. We were quite literally snowed in. We opened our  gifts to each other, and I opened the gifts I had received from the rest of my family.

 I will show you some of my gifts over the next few days, but here is another one that I have to show you right away, because it has been keeping me busy the last two days trying to set everything up. It is an android tablet from my son and DIL in Vancouver which will allow me to do face time with my grandchildren through Facebook messaging. I am having to learn how to set up the different functions that are available. My next task will be to figure out how to set up Blogger so that I can take it with me on my Cruise.

After the gifts were opened, I made a breakfast of bacon, home fries, toast and omelets. My son's fiancee brought muffins as well. Afterwards, it took several hours to clear my son's car from the driveway. They had to go into Kingston to her family's place to spend Christmas Day. Once they were finally on their way, I was able to back into the spot their car had occupied so that I could finally leave myself for Smith Falls. I didn't get to my brother's place until 4 o'clock in the afternoon. I didn't stay over. I came back here that night because of the dog. There was some drifting of snow across the highway; but fortunately it was localized around Kingston and not Smith Falls, so the drive was not too bad.

Yesterday I crashed. I slept for hours in the afternoon and then got busy learning all about my android tablet. My family has quite the time dragging me into the 21st century....first Netflix, then a very simple cell phone and now a tablet. Good Grief! What next?

 This morning at 7:45, I was awakened by the sound of the road workers removing the snow banks alongside the highway. Yay! There wasn't anywhere to put any more snow, so we are so glad the job got done.It has also got very cold. This morning, it was -22 degrees Celsius. Brrr.  I trust you all had a wonderful holiday and I anxiously await your news.

Saturday Afternoon

OMG! It is afternoon already on my day before the day before Christmas. I knew it was coming, but am I ready? I haven't washed my bathrooms yet. I have to do that before tomorrow because Christmas Eve is usually very busy getting the dinner and last minute preparations ready. I was hoping to deliver my friend gifts today, but we are having another snow storm. I got the "cheese basket" delivered because they live within walking distance here in the village.

After I came back I realized I forgot to pack the cheese knife after all. Oh well, I can save it for another time. I also picked up the snow shovel and cleared the driveway one more time so it won't be quite the huge job it was yesterday.

I spent another day yesterday baking. This is only a fraction of what I used to do when the kids were home and all my neighbours and friends got a container of home baked goodies at Christmas. Also, because I can't eat any of it, I will need to give away whatever doesn't get eaten, and who wants to get a ton of treats at this time of year.

 I started my day by walking to the convenience store (ouch) to buy some baking soda, more flour and their last little bag of chopped pecans. I had planned to go to a grocery store nearby, but because of the snow storm, I decided to walk to the Pop-In Store. I baked 4 mini loaves of the banana, cherry and chocolate chip bread and wrapped them up in Christmas cellophane bags along with the Marmalade loaves for the freezer.

I baked a dozen vegan chocolate cupcakes, also for the freezer. I can ice and decorate when I need them. The cupcakes, chocolate haystacks and cranberry oatmeal cookies are the only vegan treats I made this year, but my daughter will appreciate not being tempted by a bunch of different treats. She eats very healthily and works out. This is my new go-to recipe for cupcakes because they are so moist and rich tasting and SO easy (no butter, no eggs)

Lastly, I made my Jewel cookies, because my friend who comes on Christmas Eve, likes to receive her own little cookie tin of these. Her son expects his own little tin of Rice Krispie squares. Isn't it funny how traditions are formed? Apparently my Jewel cookies are my specialty. They are basically a thumbprint cookie rolled in crushed walnuts and filled with jelly or jam. The green centres are mint jelly, the red is strawberry jam and the gold is apricot.

After cleaning up and loading the dishwasher, I went outside to tackle the driveway. I lose all sense of time when I am outside, whether it is shoveling or weeding; but I cleared snow until it started to get dusk. I knew then that it was around 4 and the dog would be looking for his supper. So before I came in I walked to the Post Office to get the last of the mail before Christmas. There were 3 more cards and a package to pick up. The parcel was from "Dee" with some items of clothing that neither one of us expected to arrive until next week, but there it was. It is under my tree now. One of the cards contained a family newsletter and another had a nice long, newsy letter from one of my oldest friends. So nice to read that over a cup of hot tea. My cheeks were still burning from being outside in the cold for however long I was out there.

I don't think I will be on my blog until sometime during Christmas Week. I will undoubtedly read other peoples' blogs if they write, but I don't think that after today I will have much time. I will be away on Christmas Day if weather permits at my brother's house in Smith Falls. So please everyone stay safe and enjoy your holidays and I will be back.

Some Christmas Baking

Do Rice Krispie Squares and Chocolate Haystacks count towards "baking Christmas treats"? Because that is some of what I did today. I really didn't want to go back to the store to pick up more holiday baking ingredients, so I sat down with some of my favourite recipes to figure out what I could make with what I had. I was also looking for treats that I could serve to my vegan daughter. If the weather allows, she is planning on coming here with my two grand children for at least one sleepover during Christmas week. I don't know if her husband is coming or not, as he is a shift worker.

Here is a pan of Rice Krispie squares setting up in my fridge.  You are probably wondering why I decorate the inside of my fridge with a snowman baker. Well it was a Christmas gift to us a few years ago from the couple that I am giving the cheese basket to. It is a talking snowman that is activated by the fridge light coming on every time you open the door. He has about 5 or 6 different phrases. He's so cute and adorable. I love him.

 After I cut the squares, I wrap them individually in saran wrap. These are not vegan, but I like to make them at Christmas for my grand children and to put on the cookie tray. I haven't met anyone yet that doesn't like these.

I made a batch of chocolate haystacks using vegetable shortening, cocoa, sugar, vanilla and soy milk. These are vegan. I was supposed to mix in oatmeal and coconut, but because I didn't have any coconut, I substituted slivered almonds. I won't have any trouble giving these away either. I didn't have to bake these either. I just dropped the mixture by spoonfuls onto wrappers from cereal boxes. They just peel right off.

Another vegan cookie recipe are these Cranberry Oatmeal cookies made with vegan margarine (no egg) with cranberries, bits of dried apricot and walnuts. These are yummy and if there is a way to make a vegan recipe so that everyone can enjoy, then I will choose that,  because no one is able to tell the difference. This recipe makes over 5 dozen cookies. I didn't have a full cup of cranberries so I added the chopped apricot to make up the difference and then decided to add walnuts (which was optional).

The last item I baked is called Walnut Marmalade loaf. These are wonderful to gift and make a nice citrusy sweet bread to serve with coffee or tea on Christmas morning while opening the stockings. I will also make a Banana, Cherry, Chocolate Chip mini loaf tomorrow; but first, I will have to go to the  store to pick up some more baking soda. Drat! I thought I could get away with not having to go out again.

Well, I finally did it. After reading my email, commenting on blogs, frying up a head of cabbage and all three packages of bacon for the freezer, I felt I had tried to get away from the dusting and vacuuming long enough. I bit the bullet and carried the machine upstairs and got the bedrooms, hallways and staircase done. It didn't take much time at all. It is only vacuuming for goodness sake. I still have to get both bathrooms washed, but that shouldn't take long either. It is the half bath downstairs that most people use. I have already cleaned it and it will only need to be refreshed again on Sunday.

I went out for just a short drive today to buy some garbage tags, pick up my mail, and a quick run to the local cheese factory. I like to make up a cheese basket for one of my neighbours  every Christmas. He was a great friend of Rick's and she is my Avon lady. They don't read my blog so I will show you how I make it.

It isn't a basket at all. I place some hunks of cheese across the top of 2 boxes of crackers and tie it all together with cellophane and ribbon. This year while I was purging, I ran across this cheese knife that I got once as a promotion. Instead of getting rid of it at the Thrift Store, I thought it might be a nice addition to the cheese basket this year. Ha. Let them get rid of it.

I feel like I didn't really accomplish too much today. Once I buckled down and got the upstairs done, I felt I could coast for a while. I did make up my dinner casserole though. I chopped some onion and zucchini, added some cherry tomatoes, cauliflower and broccoli from the freezer, topped with yoghurt and mozzarella cheese and four big smoked sausages. It will be dinner tomorrow night as well. It is in the oven right now and will be ready momentarily. Then I will settle in front of the TV to watch some Netflix. I have finished Longmire and have just started another BBC production called "Hinterland".  I will sit in front of my tree and lighted window and feel all Christmas... y. I can't enjoy my outdoor lights from where I sit inside, but I can enjoy the window.

My Christmas Grocery Shopping Adventure

Yesterday I managed not to go anywhere or do any housecleaning. I am the Queen of Procrastination. When I want to avoid doing something, I am the Master. But if I don't accomplish something, then I feel really guilty and lousy. So this is what I did. My dining room table was in need of repairs. All of the bolts that hold the table top to the pedestal (8 in all) had become loose and fallen out. There was actually nothing holding the tabletop on. I couldn't slide the table across the floor or even open it up to put in one of the table leaves. So this job was actually a priority over vacuuming.....if you think about it.  AGAIN, because of the super duper job I did last week in sorting all the hardware, I was able to find 8 bolts that would fit the job. I used the hammer and a block of 2X2 wood to hammer the heavy tabletop so I could line up the bolts with the holes in the frame. It took a lot of time but job accomplished. I put in an extra leaf and covered the table with one of my Christmas tablecloths. *patting myself on the back*

 Then I changed out my every day dishes....

 for my festive Christmas dishes.

Which brings us to today. I still didn't feel like going upstairs to vacuum. The temperature was very mild and the roads were clear, so I decided to take advantage and get a major shopping done. I went to three stores. In the morning I went to the Giant Tiger in Napanee. I came home and put those away and ate the last of my beef vegetable soup I made at the end of last week.I dropped into the Post Office on my way to Amherstview and picked up my mail (which I did not pick up yesterday) and found 7 cards. One of them was from my good blogging friend Nathalie. It was gorgeous and it crossed my mind that it may have been handmade (??) because it had stitching on it. I shopped at Foodland and Shoppers's Drug Mart before I returned home. The sky got very dark and it looked for a while like there was going to be a change in the weather.  I spent a total of $135.82 at all 3 stores, including tax. This is the breakdown.

Dairy cost 31.28  Eggs are up in price again to $2.49 a dozen, but I got deals on everything else including ice-cream to go with dessert Christmas Eve. 

Meat totaled $44.42  The Sugardale bacon was only $2.99 a pkg., so I picked up 3. The frozen chicken fillets were 50% off, so I just paid $5 I picked up turkey breakfast sausage, Polish sausage and smoked sausages. I also bought 4 lbs. of lean ground hamburger.

Produce cost me $29.48  I am not allowed corn, but I will be serving it over the holidays. The tins were on sale for 99 cents each. I bought 2 heads of cabbage, a bag of sweet potatoes, a bag of rutabaga, more yellow onions, zucchini, a bag of mandarins, orange juice for Christmas brunch, some chopped walnuts in case I decide to do some baking, and a frozen bag of Asian veggies to make a chicken stir fry tonight.

 I will make my own gravy but I bought a can of beef gravy in case I run low. I had to buy another jar of olives because I ate the last jar I bought. (I am allowed those for snacks). I wonder what I can make with red and green Rice Krispies and marshmallows?

One 12-pack of Coke and 2 12-packs of Diet Pepsi for the holidays, plus the pantry items that you see pictured up top came in at $28.04

I guess the vacuuming will have to be done tomorrow.

Daybook: Monday, Dec. 18/17

Outside my window.....the snow is softly falling. It is milder today than it has been over the last few days.

I am thinking.....about doing some baking for the holidays, even if just for the company I am expecting. I feel a little guilty about not doing any just because I won't be eating any. I can always send it home with other people.

I am thankful for.....friends and family, always.

From the kitchen.....I haven't done any preparation this past weekend, but I suddenly realized yesterday that I don't have as much in my freezer as I thought I had. I fried my last pork chops last night with a plate of zoodles for dinner. I am out of chicken, sausage and ground meat. I will probably have the last of my buttered cabbage tonight with some kielbasa that I was holding onto for the cheese plate. Today or tomorrow when I go out for groceries, I will pick up some more. If I cannot get out for groceries for a few days, I certainly will not starve. I do have an extra beef roast besides the one I am saving for Christmas Eve, and I still have lots of eggs to make a fritatta.  As well, I have lots of frozen veggies. I regret sometimes not being able to eat beans, grains, or anything made with flour, but I am accepting my new way of eating.

I am wearing.....black leggings, black socks, and a blue long sleeved T-shirt.

I am creating.....absolutely nothing the past few days. I have been busy dusting, vacuuming and washing up.

I am going.....to the Post Office later today. I may not go grocery shopping today because of the snow.

I am hoping.....to get the vacuuming done upstairs today.

I am hearing..... the blower on the furnace and the sound of the plow and sander going by.

Around the house.....things are getting tidied. Yesterday I cleaned, vacuumed and washed the living room, the downstairs hallway, and the main bathroom floor upstairs.

One of my favourite things....is my enjoyment of  the lights on the tree and around the living room window as I sit on the couch in the evenings while watching Netflix.

A few plans for the rest of the week.....include going to the Wilton cheese Factory to pick up some different cheeses, and to a grocery store to do a major grocery shop. I need to  deliver my gifts and gift baskets to some of my friends. I will fry up some bacon for the freezer. I can peel, chop and pre-cook the turnip for Sunday night. Maybe I can do a little baking??

Here's a picture I am sharing.....

These are little gifts that I received last week in two of my Christmas cards. I love the snowflake made by cutting out snowmen and evergreen trees. How cute is that? And another card held a scratch lottery ticket. I didn't win anything (though I was very close), but I always have so much fun playing the game. This is so much more fun than JUST scratching off the playing field.

Goals Update

This weeks goals were the same as last weeks goals....clean, decorate and maybe bake some Christmas goodies.The decorating was mostly done already, and this past week I have concentrated on the housecleaning part of it.At this point I am not even sure if I will do any baking. I can't have any of it and I sure don't need any of it in the house, so I may just buy a tray of baked goods for those few occasions when I want to serve something.

This morning I woke up in a really grouchy mood, and even though it turned out to be a beautiful clear sunny day, my disposition didn't really improve. But I did get some work accomplished.

I did two loads of laundry.

I washed and attached the bottom kick plate on my dishwasher. I did the same with the bottom of the fridge.

I glued and nailed the wooden trim to the top of my dishwasher. These things (trim and kick plate) had been removed in order to pull out the dishwasher (two or three years ago) to have the pump replaced, and it had never been put back properly.

Because of all the sorting of tools and hardware last week, I was able to find everything I needed.  (screws, finishing nails, carpenter's glue, hammer, screw drivers, and a coping saw) Look at me fixing stuff.

I vacuumed and wet mopped four of the downstairs rooms except for the living room. I will do that tomorrow.

I cleaned the downstairs half bath, washed the floor and laundered the floor mat.

I watered all the indoor plants.

Dinner tonight is the other half of the Tex-Mex casserole from last night. I finished the second season of the Crown and now I am starting the final season of Longmire on Netflix. 

Kitchen Duty

My breakfast almost every morning is a 2 egg omelet. This one is yellow pepper and zucchini.

I got busy yesterday. If I don't post on my blog it usually means I am not home, I am dead tired, or I am too busy to stop and write. Yesterday I was busy. I made sure I remembered to take the garbage and the paper and cardboard recycling to the curb the night before, so after breakfast I got busy with washing down my stove top and counters. I ran some hot soapy water in the sink and washed a few stray items by hand, before I turned my attention to the  inside of my pots and pans cupboard and the bottom cupboard where I stash my cookie sheets and muffin tins. I had washed the cupboard below my sink just a couple of weeks ago, so the only bottom cupboard left was the Lazy Susan (aptly named). I do have a tiny kitchen, so it doesn't take long to clean the cupboards. I bought a stand alone cupboard that I put together and put against the wall between the stove and the window. I keep mason jars of beans, lentils and my bulk spices, so I emptied that and washed down the shelves. I sprayed and cleaned the top of my refrigerator. With the water in my sink now getting pretty cool and dingy, I grabbed the dog bowls and washed them.

After lunch I wrapped up two more gift baskets. I only have one left and all my presents are wrapped. I took pictures so I can share with you after Christmas. I fed the outdoor composter my kitchen scraps and I walked over to the Post Office to collect my mail. I made up some more Spice mixes and I mended some cushions that needed putting back together. The dog likes to get a hold of them. He thinks they are stuffed animals I guess. I commented on a couple of blogs....my reward for getting a lot accomplished, but I did not post my own because it was time for supper and an evening of Netflix. I actually had to re-watch an episode of the Crown because I had fallen asleep during the show the night before.

Today I did not feel at all like doing any housework, but I forced myself to finish washing the shelves in my kitchen pantry. Again, these are ready made shelves my husband and I built to fit between the wall studs (like the ones that hold the tools and hardware in the front room.) With the kitchen now "good enough" until I begin Spring Cleaning,  I turned my attention away from washing and cleaning, to just working in the kitchen. I sliced up all the peppers remaining  in the crisper and froze them.

I made a soup broth with the second steak in my freezer and then added celery, cherry tomatoes, burgundy beans,some of the peeled and chopped broccoli stems, cauliflower all from the freezer. I seasoned with beef bouillon powder, sea salt and thyme. I cut down the steak into small chunks and had two bowls of it for lunch. There is enough for a few days. I fried some peppers, onion and ground beef with my homemade taco seasoning to make a Tex Mex casserole for tonight's dinner. I just have to smother it in mozzarella cheese and pop it in the oven.

The sun is going down already. I still want to go over to the Post Office to check for mail, as it is Friday and I won't be able to go now until Monday. Here is a picture of my outdoor lamp decorated in the back yard. (Yes, it does have a slight list to the right) The lamp comes on with a photo sensor, as do the Christmas lights. I think that last year I had changed out the bulbs to red and green, but I decided against it this year. It sounded like too much work. Ha.

Cold Temperatures and Lots of Hot Tea

I wasn't going to go out today. It was frigid  and I still had my driveway to shovel. I didn't sleep well, so I finally gave up trying and got up at 6:45. I have been feeling hungry all day. I don't know if it is because of the cold or because I got up so early, or maybe because I have been expending more energy. I washed my kitchen cabinet doors, both inside and out. Tomorrow I hope to wash  my bottom cupboards which contain my pots and baking sheets, and also my pantry supplies. They could use a real tidy up. I thought I might clean my bathrooms, but instead I washed down the bathroom walls of the main upstairs bathroom, as well as the face of the vanity. I used the glass cleaner to clean a few mirrors throughout the house. I ate an early lunch of two bowls of soup, because I was feeling so hungry before I went outside to shovel snow.

That is when I decided to go out. I stopped at the Post Office on the way out of town. There was a parcel from my son's family in BC, and some more Christmas cards. They are really starting to roll in now....9 so far this week. Have I mentioned that I love getting cards? It bothered me that I didn't have the chili powder I needed to make my spice mixes, so I went into Amherstview to the nearest grocery store just to pick it up. When I got home I was feeling starved again, so I warmed up some buttered cabbage and had that. I have also been drinking copious amounts of tea both to warm me and to "fill me up". I hope this doesn't mean I am eating to go into hibernation.

Winter Has Arrived

While I was sleeping early this morning, I could hear the fire trucks responding to an accident on the 401 highway. I was expecting snow overnight (that is the reason I got all my running around done yesterday), but I was able to tune out the sirens and go back to sleep until 7:45. The eastbound traffic into Kingston had been diverted to Highway 2 that runs past my house. There is enough snow to shovel from the driveway but I haven't done that yet. After my usual 2 cups of coffee, an omelet for breakfast, and answering emails, I started my day with wrapping some more gifts and some of the baskets I am putting together. This afternoon I finally decorated my tree.

It isn't a designer tree by any stretch of the imagination. It is decorated with things I have been gifted over the years, decorations my kids have made for me at school, and souvenirs I have picked up on my travels. Each ornament has a story. I wouldn't trade them for anything.

I still had time to water the plants that I moved upstairs a week or more ago so that I had room to bring the tree in and put up my other decorations. And while I was upstairs, I made up the beds in the spare rooms for the company I will be expecting over the holidays. By that point, it was already time to start thinking of dinner. I don't know where the days go lately. Winter days really do seem so much shorter.

Fresh fallen snow makes the lights seem brighter. See the little Christmas tree I made using a rope light and garland wrapped around the upside down tomato cage? Oh yes. I am reminded by this picture that I also made a new wreath for my door today. I have a wooden J and a Y attached diagonally to either side of the wreath, which you cannot really see in the photo, so I have just taken another picture so you can see it better.

The wooden letters and the small wreath I bought at the Dollar Store, and the wired ribbon I had in my stash. I have so much wired ribbon....you would not believe. I hot glued the letters on, but I also wrapped some jute to hold firmly in place. Maybe I should have painted the letters?  I figure it is good enough. It was quick and cheap to make.

More Grocery Shopping

I haven't done a lot of shopping for food this month, but I do continue to spend a lot of money. On December 5th, I bought some dairy and some vegetables. I didn't need to buy any meat but I spent $68 because I was still picking up extra items for Christmas stockings. Today I spent $127 at Food Basics, which contained a few items for Christmas baskets. I had a lot of errands to run and a lot of shops to go to, so yes I have spent more money. I bought myself a Christmas gift also. I like it very much but it was totally a spur of the moment splurge.

It cost me $36 and let me tell you, I have never spent so much on a purse in my life. It is big (the way I like it), has a shoulder strap, a kazillion large pockets inside and out to hold a cell phone, camera, water bottle and even one  that will hold a 10 inch tablet, and it is made of a material that protects your credit cards, passport, etc., from being read. It is gray and black with a purple lining. I really, really like it. It is perfect for traveling. Thanks Santa.

So on to the grocery store, which was the last shop of the day.

I bought the ham for Christmas Eve dinner to go with a beef roast I already have. The kielbasa will go with cheese and crackers, when entertaining. The cost for both was $16.37

Dairy cost me $23.91 The Black Diamond cheese bars were the bargain this week at $3.77 a pkg. I bought four......Old cheddar, marbled cheddar, mozzarella, and Pepper Jack with jalapenos.

Produce cost $21.19  Both cabbage cost $6.98, cauliflower was only 97 cents each, broccoli was 2 for $3, a bag of carrots was $1.27, three zucchini were $2.15, a 3 lb. bag of apples was 2.97, and the 4 avocados cost $2.88

Pantry items cost me $13.56  The walnuts, almonds, crackers and olives will be for entertaining.

Sundry items cost $41.51  Not pictured here is a container of 60 dishwasher tabs at $13.99 I was gifted a Keurig coffee machine one Christmas from my brother which I rarely use, except when I have company. The Tim Hortons was on sale for $19.99 for 30 single serves. I was almost completely out of TP and I did run out of paper towels (which I rarely use), so I grabbed some of each. I picked up four spices to make up some more of my spice mixes for only $2.45  If you are adding this up in your head, you will realize that some items are missing, but those are going into gift baskets. I will need to shop again just before Christmas, but I do like to spread my entertaining food items over a longer stretch of time, so the damage is less noticeable.

Getting Things Done

Bless from My Two Cents got me thinking today. She was expressing in words what my feelings have been over the past few days. She didn't feel like she had accomplished much over her Saturday, but she got a LOT done. Yes, I have been making similar comments. The items on my To-Do List are not coming off very quickly but I seem to be exhausted at day's end and feeling quite accomplished with everything that is getting done. I call this "retreating and regrouping". Looking back at my past week, it took a long time for me to arrange getting the water in the basement looked after; but besides getting the job done, I also have fixed the eaves trough at the back of the house and the JUNK in the basement is pretty much gone. All that is left now are pieces of wood that will go into the dumpster in the Springtime. Then I can sweep, vacuum and perhaps even paint the cement walls and floor so the cellar isn't so creepy anymore. I have lightened the basement AND  my well-being. When I started to tidy the computer room, I ended up doing a very thorough job of sorting and consolidating tools and hardware so that I know what I have and how to find it. I no longer feel overwhelmed by the ton of stuff in the cupboards. Today's tidy of my work desk turned into a whole morning. I printed out four pages of birthday card sentiments and placed them in page protectors in a binder reserved for my card making. How does that have anything to do with getting ready for Christmas? It doesn't, except that I was able to throw out several scraps of paper that I was saving in various parts of the desk. My sentiments are all in one place where I can easily find them, and I was able to clean up some computer files at the same time.  I feel good about it. What did I do today? I cleaned off my desk (but much, much more than that).

 Yesterday I took some time for myself by colouring my hair and giving myself a pedicure. I soaked my feet in a warm solution of water, vinegar and Listerine (a recipe I found on-line) before using a pumice stone on the soles of my feet. I clipped my nails and pushed back the cuticles before slathering on a good amount of Avon foot creme under a warm fuzzy pair of socks. It was luxurious and also a great way to save money. When I worked,  I paid for the occasional pedicure and manicure. My aesthetician used Avon foot creme and swore by it. I did up two loads of laundry, set up the Christmas tree, and did some quick vacuuming before my son and his fiancee came for dinner. I roasted more chicken breasts as well as carrots, broccoli and cauliflower in olive oil and cajun seasoning mix. They have set up their wedding website here. Check it out.

So going back to read this week's goals,  they were listed as cleaning and decorating, putting up the Christmas Tree, and perhaps some Christmas baking. Well I decorated, but the cleaning is on-going well into this coming week. The tree is put up but not decorated yet. That would be a good job for while I watch Netflix tonight after supper. The only baking I have done is another batch of dog biscuits that are still in the oven cooling down. Satchel has not run out of biscuits yet, but I would really like not having to bake any more before Christmas now. I have little gift bags of treats in the freezer for when I see my other dog friends this season. So my goals for this coming week are the same as last week's, and I will not be stressing out about what I HAVE to do. I CHOOSE to do these preparations, but mostly I will just enjoy what I have accomplished.

 Not as much as I expected but I think it is the beginning of much more to come.


This week has been rather emotional for me. I still don't have my Christmas tree up....maybe tomorrow. I had lots of good intentions (don't we all?), and I was going to get the house cleaning and decorating done. What I have accomplished wasn't even on the radar for me this week, but I accomplished SO much. First of all I got a call from a good friend who told me I needed to pull on my "big girl pants" and get something done. Now that may seem harsh to some of you, but this is a good long-time friend who knows me very well and knew I needed someone to crack the whip. She spent a day with me in the Spring and between the two of us, got everything done on the list. That was because she did the driving and got me moving. Well this time of the year, she cannot afford the time to drive me around and make me do stuff. So basically, she just told me to get'er done. So what I had to get done, and I had been dragging my feet for quite some time, was to call in some Service people to take care of the water in the basement. Yes, that was still an issue. I was having to pump out the water every day. I am leaving on a Cruise mid-January, so I needed to address that problem, even if it meant paying out a lot of money. Well, it wasn't ground water, and it wasn't a leaky pipe, and it wasn't the hot water tank. It was a failed pump on my furnace which is supposed to pump the condensed water out through the drain. My furnace is only 3 years old, so who would have suspected that the 5-10 gallons of water a day, came from my furnace? My 200 year old house doesn't have a sump pump in it because we have never needed one. The cellar is always dry, dusty and cobwebby and just generally creepy. It didn't cost me anything because I pay a monthly fee on a protection plan, so yay for me. It still took 2 days to have it fixed but that remains a nightmarish story for another time.

I also made an appointment for and got my winter tires put on. That meant loading the tires into the van on my own and I ended up having to replace one of them. I did get a discount because there was still a lot of tread left on the tire, and they had been bought originally through them. I was still out of pocket over $200. I think in the Spring I will buy separate rims for my summer tires and have them store them for me over the summer. I bought them new this past Spring, so I need to protect my investment.

So the emotional bit about this week really happened in the last two days. I did some sweeping, dusting and washing as I put out the decorations. (I had to clear the cobwebs before I could hang the garland and lights. I had to dust the sideboard before I could lay down a Christmas runner and candles. You know what I mean?) Anyways, I got to this front room where my computer is and decided I really must take care of all Rick's tools and hardware that he kept inside this room. He has lots of stuff out in the shed, but some things need to be kept inside out of the elements. Some of those items I brought up from the cellar and didn't know what to do with, now needed to be dealt with. Some of it did go out to the shed to be dealt with later. I am sure his brother will decide to toss most of it, but I need to know what is available for MY use. I sorted roofing nails from deck screws and all sorts of containers. I gathered all the spray paint and drill bits and put them in drawers and shelves so that I would know where to find them. It has to make sense to me.

 There wasn't much storage in this house, so Rick and I "built in" these melamine cupboards between the studs in the walls. Now instead of containers filled with mismatched hardware shoved into a space big enough to hold it, the shelves now hold "like" items

 I haven't labelled these drawers yet, but now I know where to look for something I may need in the future.

There were some moments like when I found his cane and crutches in the closet, or when I found all the parking receipts from his trips to the Cancer Clinic that I became weepy, but I plugged on. Now everything has a place and so I can begin to do some real housecleaning in this room. It has taken a full two days. I quit at two o'clock to have my tea that I had warmed up twice this morning but allowed to get cold, and then I had the last of my beef soup I made last weekend from one of my steaks from the freezer. It is a snowy, blustery day, and I am ready for a lie-down which I haven't done in months. Tomorrow I will get back at it.