Sunny Saturday, Again.

Where does the time go? I stay inside every day, so you'd think I could get lots of cleaning or crafting done; but, I am hard pressed to list any such accomplishments. I did work on constructing mini scrapbooks, until I ran out of scor tape. I've since ordered and received some from Amazon. I have written out a couple of notecards that were previously made, and mailed them out. I load and unload the dishwasher, vacuum, water my plants, and do laundry once a week. I guess I am spending more time in the kitchen preparing food because I still remain on keto, but I think the bulk of my time is still on-line. I have spent some worrisome moments this past week concerning family members. That kind of worry seems to drain my energy and I have been napping more.

I requested another order for groceries and they arrived yesterday.

 When I requested whole milk last week, I didn't receive any milk. I borrowed a litre from my sister's house to get me through last week. So this week, I asked for whole milk but added that if it was unavailable, I would take ANY milk. I also asked for 3 cans of evaporated milk for my stock pile. I also asked for plain yoghurt, but it is "stirred" fat-free and don't know if it will work as a starter.

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For veggies, I requested frozen spinach, green beans and 3 bags of cauliflower (riced, whole florets, or mixed. I didn't matter) There were no green beans and the worker missed the cauliflower altogether. Thank goodness I keep a small supply of veggies available in the freezer. I still have 2 cabbage, 2 small zucchini, some red onion and a small tray of fresh mushrooms. In the freezer I have frozen sweet pepper strips, sliced celery, broccoli florets, Brussels sprouts, and 1 bag of oriental veggies still left. I asked for a family sized tray of ground beef to add more variety to my meat supply. I ordered a bag of apples and navel oranges for my sister. It is not a perfect system, but I am so appreciative for this service. I am still learning the ropes and as long as I use it for augmenting my pantry, it works well.

We had intermittent snow showers this past week, along with colder and windier days. The snow is still disappearing, but it was too cold or windy to sit outdoors on my deck with a cup of tea.  I had my sister's dog, Rocky, here with me on Wednesday and it is nice to have a pet for a companion. Not that I am looking for one in the near future, but it is nice during this isolation period to have that kind of company. I have prepared my 25 questions for tonight's Trivia, as the number of people who want to play has grown. I may have reached that point where I may have to run the game twice. I don't mind that. As long as I find the questions to ask, it doesn't matter how many times I ask them. It is a way for family to visit virtually and have some fun. Have a great weekend everyone and I will try to come back here on Monday.

Sunny Saturday

I had a look around my storage spaces yesterday but could not find anything that I could use for Easter decorations. I thought of perhaps turning a Christmas door wreath into a Springtime one, but I did not bring any artificial flowers or greenery with me and my Christmas decor is packed in bins under the stairs. I have paper however, so I decided to get the most out of my supplies I would simply make a greeting to put up in my window. It isn't for me that I wanted to do this anyway. It is for the kids and their parents who walk past my window.

I printed out letters 5 inches tall and taped them to the glass above a line of grass with 6 Easter eggs. You may be able to see from the reflection of the street that most of our snow is gone. I still have some snow in my front yard. There it is just under my tomato cage Xmas tree that is still standing. I can almost remove it any day now. The cage and rope light is still frozen in the ground.

Today I was able to get inside my garden shed, so I went inside to refresh my memory about what I brought with me in the move, and at the same time dragged out the very few outdoor planters that I brought with me. I was pleased to see that I brought my large garden tools, so I should be able to dig up the ground to make some garden beds when it is time. I tried to go on-line to order vegetable and flower seeds, but apparently everyone else has had the same idea. Most on-line stores have sold out already. Ooops! I guess I should have done it sooner. I am hoping my sister will be able to share what she has with me this year. I'm not too worried. Thank goodness I planted a bunch of different Spring bulbs in the Fall.

In a couple of hours from now I will call together the Trivia Club contestants for a rousing game of Trivia. It should be a fun time.  My Dad and "Dee" have not seen my son in Vancouver for a while, so it will be a chance to visit. Have a wonderful Easter weekend everyone.

Spring Weather

We are experiencing typical Spring weather these days....warm sunny days, rain, snow, strong winds and storms. You know, typical. I have always remembered Good Friday as being rainy and dismal, but today the sun is out.

Yesterday I managed to get my fresh veggies packaged up into freezer bags and put in the freezer. I worked on the questions for this week's Trivia night extravaganza and wore myself out, because I had a two hour nap on the couch before dinner. Ha. I was also drawn to the TV news most of the day. Canada explained its COVID model and it definitely looks like the first wave will not be ending until summer. At least we are no longer in limbo wondering when this will all end. It gives us a time frame and a kind of certainty to plan future weeks and months. I think it is the uncertainty that is unsettling. I can plan better when I know generally how long this will last, and I am okay with that. I have a nice outdoor space and lots of work I want to do to build up a garden for both flowers and home grown vegetables.

Yesterday I witnessed a beautiful event on my street. It must have been a little girl's birthday. I could hear and see a car coming down the street with its horn honking (like they used to do after weddings long ago). The car was all decorated with balloons and streamers and a big homemade sign on the driver's side door which read Happy Birthday ________! Those passengers were the grandparents who brought out lots of brightly wrapped boxes and gift bags, a cake, and grocery bags which looked like supplies for a party (paper goods, pop, chips and the like). Another car pulled up behind and that driver got out with more presents. The supplies were brought up closer to the house and left in the driveway, while the passengers in the cars waved and called out to the little girl and her parents. They only stayed a couple of minutes and then were on their way. It was so heartwarming. I can imagine how exciting it would have been for the little girl to be recognised on her birthday like that.

I am going to look around my house today for things I can use to decorate for Easter/Springtime. I brought no decorations with me except a few Christmas items. I bought a few for Halloween from the local Dollar Store, but I am avoiding going out at all these days. Therefore, I will go through my crafty supplies and see what I can come up with today for my door or window. It will be a challenge.
Hope you all have a wonderful Easter weekend. It will be different this year, but it can still be special.

An Easter card arrived in the mail from a sister-in-law.

Grocery Delivery

This may be one of my greatest  highlights from the quarantine in recent days. I received my first grocery delivery in over 3 weeks. I still have food in my freezer and pantry, but I thought I should register with the free delivery service offered by our township. I wasn't sure how long I would have to wait for the delivery once I submitted my order, and since it is being offered as a free service, I imagine there are a lot of people who are taking advantage of it. I was very pleasantly surprised. I registered yesterday, gave my list over the phone this morning, and received my groceries by early afternoon.

 I am limited to 20 items a week. I know that most stores are still limiting number of items each household can buy, and I know that some items are still scarce. I asked for 3 dozen eggs and got them, 2 pounds of butter, the largest tub of plain yoghurt (no substitutions), fresh chicken and 4 litres of whole milk. Where my description was vague, I was more likely to get what I was looking for. I got a whole chicken, but if I had asked for drumsticks or thighs or boneless, skinless chicken breasts, I may not have received any chicken. Because I asked for 4 litres of whole milk, I got nothing......not 2 litres, not 2%, nothing. So I am learning this system. I received non salted Gay Lee butter which I will pay $6 a pound for,  This is not what I would have bought, BUT I was lucky enough to get some of what I needed.

This order of produce was great. I explained I was on a special diet that my doctor had put me on and so I presented a list of veggies I could have, and then said I would appreciate these either fresh or frozen. It didn't matter. It was just whatever was available. And so I received 3 fresh zucchini, mushrooms, a head of cauliflower, green beans and broccoli. I got a large bag of frozen blueberries (I had asked for the largest bag they could find) and Brussels sprouts. I am so grateful that they will honour a request for special diet items. The frozen produce went straight into the freezer, but some of the fresh produce will be cut up and put in the freezer later this afternoon.

I have cut up a rack of ribs for dinner. I have them in the crock pot right now with a keto BBQ sauce that I made using ingredients I had in my pantry. (apple cider vinegar, sugar-free ketchup I ordered from Amazon, garlic powder, smoked paprika, onion powder and stevia) I did not have cumin, (I forgot I had used the last of it when I made up my taco seasoning) so I added some ground cayenne pepper, chili powder and a dash of Braggs coconut amino acids. It tastes pretty darn good.

Yesterday I made a batch of yoghurt, a loaf of keto bread, and a big pot of beef vegetable soup in the morning. In the afternoon, I worked on another page assembly for a mini scrapbook. My sister heard from her surgeon and the surgery will happen a week from tomorrow. Yesterday and most of today has been cloudy and rainy, but right now the sun is desperately trying to come out again. I may spend some time out on my back deck and listen to the birds this afternoon. Spring is really on its way.

Glory of the snow???
Last Fall, just before the snow arrived, I bought a few packages of spring bulbs. I have one tiny garden under my front window which is still covered in snow. With the bulbs that were left over, I stuck them here and there, wherever there was a patch of dirt.  I found these small plants at the side of the house where I remember planting some small corms. I thought at first they were crocuses, but today they have buds that look like these may be Glory of the Snow. I hope so. They will look very pretty here and will spread very quickly in coming years. My first garden flowers!!!

Double Whammy

Everyone knows the feeling of being discombobulated with this pandemic. Our lives have been turned on its ear and we are left wondering if things will ever be normal again; but life goes on, with all of the usual ups and downs. Maybe some of you are caring for someone who is ill, or you are dealing with the death of someone close. At the very least, you are worried for a lot of loved ones in your life right now, and you are feeling helpless to do anything about it. Our staying at home is for the benefit of all.

My sister, as I have been reporting, has been having a lot of tests and medical appointments recently. At a time when physicians are doing their appointments on-line or by phone, she has been asked to undergo ultrasounds, X-rays and a MRI. She has seen a neuro surgeon and a cancer surgeon in just the last week. On the positive side, she doesn't need neuro surgery. A blood vessel is twisted or clamped due to a neck trauma, but the other 3 larger blood vessels can carry the blood flow. She will just need to be monitored. On the other hand, she has very recently learned that she has breast cancer and will have a double mastectomy this week or next. We are awaiting results to see if there is any spread. I think everyone knows the feeling of waiting on medical results. You just feel stuck in time. Add that stress to what is currently going on in the world, and you feel like you have been struck by a freight train. Anyways, I felt like I needed to explain my absences from the blog as of late.

I have been writing note cards that I have made. Sorry, I never thought to take pictures of those cards before I mailed them out. I enjoy making them and I hope that people still look forward to receiving them. I want to let people know that I am thinking of them and I want to encourage them to stay safe and remind them of why we are doing this. I am also using this time to get outdoors for sunshine and fresh air. My cleared deck is dry and is an opportunity to have a cup of tea and enjoy the arrival of Spring. I am also busy on the phone and on face-time, so there is a LOT of virtual visiting going one. Saturday night's Trivia at the Pub was a success. The Red team won the first game by only one point over the Purple team....ha,ha. They would like to do it again this weekend (Easter) and another family would like to join in. I certainly don't mind being the host of these games.

A warm and sunny spot....

Besides sending out cards, I have just been cooking and doing up laundry and just getting through the days. I trust all of you are doing well and staying safe.

Yesterday's News, Today.

I didn't post last night. I felt very tired and went to bed shortly after 9 PM. I also slept in this morning, so I guess I was indeed tired. My weekly Standard was waiting for me outside the front door. The headline read "Civic Centre is Gone". This building has seen a lot of transformations over the past 60 years. It started in the late 50s as a hotel, served as City Hall, became a church, and in recent years was the main cultural centre for the town. Last winter, because of the tremendous amount of snow, the roof collapsed the day before a full-house was expected for a live theatre production. It could have been a major disaster. The crumbled building stood vacant for most of the year while the city held discussions about its future. I still don't know what the plans are for our future cultural centre, but the building has now been completely razed.

I missed my teleconference call this morning. I knew my sister was not going to be on because of a doctor's appointment at the hospital, so I guess I just naturally assumed that the call would wait for my sister's results. I did not hear any alerts from either my phone or my computer, so I just carried on with my morning. So I missed the call with my SIL and "Dee". My morning involved being on my computer reading blogs and emails, so I don't understand how I missed my notifications.

Yesterday, I

• sorted out the mess on my dining table
• cleaned and sorted through my Crafts room
• bought in most of my outdoor Christmas lights and garland and put away finally
• made a couple of cards and wrote out more notes of encouragement
• telephoned a dear friend
• played Battleship against my 8 year old grandson. He won!

I have been challenged again to a rousing game on-line, so I will make my departure to 

wreak vengeance on my opponent. Ta-ta for now.