Finally, Some Rain

I mentioned Tuesday evening that because we were in a heat wave and because I had twisted my knee while mixing soil, I would probably stay inside on Wednesday. Well, that didn't happen. Because today had an even greater chance of precipitation, I decided I would plant some seeds yesterday. I planted a row of green beans, a row of yellow wax beans, and a row of Swiss Chard. I planted a few summer flower bulbs that "Dee" had given me and I planted some portulaca and marigold seeds in the deck planters that already have hibiscus and geranium plants that I over wintered inside. I put some sunflower seeds in the bed that holds my tomato cages up against the fence. I figured that if I could get the seeds in the ground before a good rain, that would be half the battle. I did not realize that I was inviting the neighbourhood squirrels in for a feast. But that is what I found this morning. Lots of little holes were dug in the freshly planted rows and a cheeky black squirrel giving ME the evil eye when I shouted out at him at 6:30 this morning. I hope they left me some.

I am planning to fill my rubber maid bins with some soil and maybe putting in some zucchini and cucumber starts in those. I have some perennial seeds just starting to come up in the house, but no flower bed to put them just yet. My sister loaned me a couple of large deck planters to put them in as they grow larger and I don't have a place to transplant them yet. I mowed the front lawn yesterday for the first time this season. That is when I discovered I have a peony bush coming up. How exciting! I also have some large bleeding heart plants under my living room window where I planted my spring bulbs last fall.

 You can see my brick wall that tumbled down. I need to find a solution for this bed. But you can see in this garden that I have planted some grape hyacinth and tulip bulbs. The crocuses are done and the alium has not flowered yet.

Today was the day I decided to stay in. It was overcast most of the day and it felt like it would rain. I wanted it to rain. I wanted to stay inside where it was cooler (I finally broke down and put on the central air Tuesday night). My sister had asked me if I would make her two matching macrame hangers for her back yard, so I made one from jute that matches perfectly one I made this past winter. I made it this afternoon and she has already picked them both up. 

Jute is not as soft as working with cotton (think of rope burns), but the uneven and imperfect fibres of jute lend themselves to nice looking planters. I like the look of jute with wooden beads. And my sister was very happy with them. I gave her one for her birthday made from natural cotton fibres that she has hanging in a window in her living room, but these look more rustic for her outdoor space. My DIL has already finished her dishcloth. I have only 9 rows done, but I was able to talk her through her project and she is ready for her next one. I hope you have also had a productive day. 

Heat Wave

I entered another on-line request early yesterday morning for a grocery delivery. Because I waited all day for a phone call to get my grocery list (and because the weather here was hot and humid), I decided to stay indoors instead of working outside. They actually did not phone me until this morning, but I was glad to stay inside yesterday. I worked downstairs in the craft room for a while and I did some sorting of my desk files and did a lot of paper shredding. The basement is a tad cooler during the summer. I have central air in my new place, but so far I haven't needed to put it on. I have fans going upstairs in the rooms I work in.

Today, although there was a heat advisory in Elliot Lake, I decided to work outside for a bit anyway. I planted some tomato cages (ha,ha), but only 4 cherry tomato plants. I want my beef steak tomatoes to grow a little larger before I transplant them.

  I also planted 4 morning glory transplants to grow up the back fence. On the weekend, I ran some twine up the fence boards to give some support to these plants. In the front of that fence is this garden space. It is pretty much shaded by the tree that has grown up behind the fence. I mixed more of the triple mix and piled it high in the centre of the rows. I am hoping to grow my green beans, broccoli, cucumber and zucchini in these rows this summer, though there isn't a lot of sunlight.

Once inside, I showered, did a full load of laundry, and baked a batch of keto buns. I wrote out a greeting card for a friend and prepared another birthday card for the month of June. My groceries arrived. I took no photos because I wanted to wash everything down quickly and put away. Because of the heat, I needed to get packages into the freezer and fridge asap.

I made chili for dinner and then gave a short tutorial on-line for one of my DIL's to get her started on a simple knitting project. I think I twisted my knee today while working outside. It is very uncomfortable tonight, so I will probably take Tylenol for the pain before bedtime. Have a good evening and a great day tomorrow.

A Gardening Update

It was another bright and beautiful spring day. I know because the blackflies are out in full force. I sprayed myself all over making sure I sprayed the inside and outside of my hat, before venturing outside. I had already decided that what I accomplished yesterday was the end of my garden bed this spring. This is the size of the garden bed. So, this morning I placed down 2 more construction bags, layers of corrugated cardboard and lots of newsprint (both flyers and wrappings from recent on-line deliveries). I lay down some cinder blocks at one end and proceeded to fill the bed up with the coarsely screened topsoil. I moved some edging blocks from the front yard where they had toppled over and used them to edge the back and other side of the bed. I will have to come up with a different solution for the front yard.

I am hoping these blocks will keep the grass and weeds from encroaching into my new bed. I have not yet mixed up my triple mix to lay on top of the bed. I will do that tomorrow. But I did make up two wheel barrow loads to add to my patio containers so I could move some of the plants from my back bedroom. I will be using this bed for my veggie garden, especially the tomatoes which need several hours of sunlight. 

When I finished for the day, I came in for a second shower and a change of clothes before collapsing on the couch for a well deserved nap. 

The Holiday Weekend

I expected a lot of rain this weekend, but it never happened. In fact, we had some pretty good weather. The only real rain happened on Friday afternoon after I spent the morning screening dirt. It's a big job I am tackling, so after I came in around 1:30 to eat some lunch, I lay on the couch and fell asleep. When I awoke, I treated myself to a BIG salad with lettuce, cucumber, tomato, feta cheese, roasted chicken breast topped with my new bottle of keto Cesar salad dressing (one of my Mother's Day gifts in that box of snacks I received)

So now I will give you an update on what I am attempting to do in the garden. Those Rubbermaid bins in the photo below are filled with dirt I have already screened from the section of lawn that has the sod removed.

 Once I have removed the dirt from a section, I am laying down black plastic construction bags. On top of that I am laying down layers of corrugated cardboard and layers of newsprint. Next, I will put back the screened topsoil until all of it has been added from the Rubbermaid bins. Finally, I will mix organic garden soil, peat moss and manure and dump that on top.

As of today, I have cleared just over half the area. My screen was made with 3/4 inch hardware cloth. Now I am wishing that I bought a smaller cloth (maybe 1/4 inch would have been better, because I am still getting a lot of stone in the soil. But at least I have removed the larger roots and rocks, and there was a LOT of those. 

Saturday I worked some more in the dirt, despite the fact that it was overcast and very windy.  I came in and showered, did laundry, and Saturday night we had a rousing game of Trivia on-line. 

Sunday turned out to be a beautiful day, although still breezy; but, I did not go out. I stayed in and made cards and wrote notes to go in the mail this morning. I took a break from my back-breaking work of "sifting soil". 

Yesterday (Monday) was my Dad's 95th birthday.  Months ago we were planning a celebration of sorts, but because of covid, those plans have been postponed. But the family did get together on Messenger for birthday wishes and a virtual visit. We like to joke that on my Dad's birthday,  we celebrate by holding a national holiday and light a few fireworks. 

This morning started with making another batch of yoghurt and a tray of keto buns. I had two of those buns for lunch with lettuce, tomato, cheese and keto mayonnaise. Yum. Then back outside to play in the dirt some more. I must be getting used to it now because I didn't fall asleep when I was done. And will you look at that....it's already 10 PM and getting past my bedtime. Tomorrow is another day, so goodnight all. 

Roasted Chicken for Dinner

Yesterday was a crazy busy day. I had my "list" of what I wanted to accomplish and maybe it was too much planned. But I just think that things were happening all at the same time which was kind of stressful. I began by making my yoghurt. Fortunately, I was able to complete it without any distractions. Then my sister called to say that she was dropping something off at my doorstep and she wanted to pick up something from me, and could I have it ready. But before she arrived, I got a call from my pharmacist saying the delivery person was arriving with my 3 prescriptions. I put $5 in an envelope and taped it to my door asking for the drugs to be placed between the screen door and the exterior door. Then I proceeded to make my keto loaf. I forgot to add the melted butter, so then I added it after the stiff egg whites were already incorporated into the batter. Ooops. When pouring the mixture into the loaf pan, I dropped my favourite mixing bowl into the loaf and broke it. After picking out the pieces of broken crockery, I put it into the cold oven. (I forgot to preheat it). At that point I should have gone back to bed, but I carried on. The bread turned out fine. I checked on my seed trays and watered them. Some of the seedlings are just poking through the dirt now, while others are not showing any life at all.

Sometime during the day I managed to wish my grandson a Happy Birthday. His virtual party was starting at two, and he was very excited. He was going to be able to play video games against his friends and cousins on "Discourse", and by all accounts it was very successful.

I also got to talk with my friend from Lansdowne, but by that time it was later in the evening. I did get outside to move more dirt....a lot of dirt. When I finally came in I needed a shower and did a load of laundry.  I gave my shopping order for groceries when I was called, I received a Purolator delivery and  I received two cards in the mail.

Because rain was arriving this afternoon and is expected to stay all weekend, I went outside to work this morning. My groceries arrived around 1:30, so I washed them down with disinfecting wipes and put them away.  I also brought in my newspaper which I forgot had arrived this morning. I am losing
track of my days.


I asked for and got a tray of chicken breasts, a family pack of ground beef, a family pack of hot Italian sausage, and the whole chicken. I took off all the meat from the roasted chicken after dinner  tonight and put it in the freezer. Tomorrow I will put the carcass in the crock pot to make soup broth. And I will also have to repackage all the meat trays tomorrow into portion sizes for the freezer.

I only asked for two dozen eggs this week because I still have 18 left from the last two orders. I was able to replenish my original supply of frozen eggs. I got my two large containers of plain yoghurt which I use as starter when making my own. I ordered 2 containers of cottage cheese (I have been without for over two months) and a container of Feta cheese. They didn't have whole milk.

This was the largest bag of frozen berries she could find. Good thing I asked for two. I also got a bag of frozen beans, broccoli and cauli rice.

I also got a whole fresh cauliflower, lettuce, cucumber and tomatoes. Yay! I will enjoy some salads this week. Since everything was pre-wrapped, I only had to wipe down the packaging and wash the tomatoes with water and vinegar.

I managed to send out a greeting card in the mail before the rain started and then I fell asleep on the couch. The smell of roasted chicken woke me up.  I ate some of that with mashed turnip from the freezer and green beans. I'm expecting to stay indoors until next week (because of the rain), so I will probably be sending out some more Happy mail. I hope everyone is still abiding by health recommendations, staying put and staying safe.

A Snowy Tuesday Morning

Tuesday is garbage and recycling day. I got the bins out to the curb in time, but I had to walk through snow to get them out there. Sheesh! Will it ever end? I think this year we will be jumping straight from winter into summer, with no Springtime in between. The snow did not last once the sun came out, but it remained cold all day. I did not work outside in the yard today. I stayed in and made 4 more cards but  I am only showing two here. I am loving those little bumble bees.

I remembered to call my pharmacist to order three prescription refills and I called and left a message for someone to get back to me tomorrow to take another grocery order. It is supposed to be a sunny (and much warmer) day tomorrow, so I am hoping to get back outside to work in the afternoon. I need to make another batch of yoghurt and some more keto bread, as well as make my weekly call to a friend in the Kingston area. I also need to call  my grandson in Bradford to wish him a Happy ninth Birthday.

Week Eight

The last two months have gone by really quickly I think. There isn't much going on here at home that marks the passage of time. Tuesday morning is garbage and recycling day. Thursday is when my weekly paper arrives and Saturday night is our family Trivia quiz night. I try very hard to keep track of birthdays and when to send out greeting cards because it would be very easy to "forget" those special occasions. Today I meant to call my pharmacist to have my prescriptions renewed. I also meant to phone in another order for groceries. I did neither. I think I forgot it was Monday.

I received a card kit last week and yesterday and this morning I decided to play with my new supplies. I made three cards that are not my usual style, but I enjoyed the challenge and a new way of crafting. I received some distressed looking papers and a sheet of stamps that I would not normally buy. There was a die of a bumble bee that I had a lot of fun making. There was also an embossing folder of gears and a clock face that I haven't used yet. I did use some of the background stamps and the stencil to make some backgrounds.

I got a call from "Dee" telling me she had finished putting my hardware cloth into a large frame for me. My peat moss hasn't arrived yet, but part of my order was ready for pickup from Rona on Friday. "Dee" didn't want me ordering the wood for my project because she had enough at her place. She wanted to make it for me with the measurements and instructions I gave her. She did a great job and the two of us will be able to use it for many years to come. I sifted through 2 full wheel barrow loads of dirt this afternoon.

The wire cloth is 3/4 inch, so it removes a lot of stone and roots from the topsoil. I'm thinking now that I should have bought 1/2 inch, but this works well for what I want. I worked outside all afternoon
sifting soil, raking leaves from the back of the garden and pruning out lots of wild grapevine. I think I overdid it. Tonight I am very stiff and sore. I haven't used those muscles for several months now. I had tuna salad on keto buns for lunch and finished up all the buns I made late last week. It is a recipe I will be making again.

They actually use up less eggs than my usual bread loaf, but I still love my loaf. I've just got a choice now. They are wonderful for hamburgers, but make a nice sandwich bun as well. The recipe makes 8, but you can see I had no problem making extra.

Cold and Snowy

It snowed today. Can you believe it? Mother's Day is this weekend and we have snow in the forecast. Just yesterday I was outside again de-thatching the front yard and laying down more grass seed. I spent more time lifting sod off the side yard on either side of the walkway. I am expecting a call from one of the local lumber yards for a curbside pickup of some hardware cloth. I want to make a sieve to sort out all the rock and stone from the topsoil in the yard, so I can mix it with peat moss, garden soil and manure. Once I complete a big enough garden space, I will plant some vegetables. But during the summer, I will probably continue expanding the size of the garden for next year.

I think for this year, I will only plant vegetables down both sides of the walkway. Next year I hope to have a bigger garden, remembering that I have to be able to weed and maintain whatever I grow.

This is the "hole I dug to China" last week. By the time I finished, it was big enough and deep enough to sink a construction pail and I cemented in the anchor for my umbrella clothesline pole. Once the pole is in, I will put down some garden soil and plant some grass seed.

I received a grocery delivery yesterday. I washed the fresh vegetables in the sink with a splash of vinegar and I wiped down every thing else with disinfectant wipes. Preparing my groceries for the fridge. freezer and pantry takes a bit of time and I did not take any photos. I was pleased to receive everything I asked for, or at the very least....some alternatives that I mentioned on my list. It was a successful shop. I managed to replace some of my pantry  reserves but I have also decided that I need to request MORE deliveries in the coming weeks.

I probably had enough TP to last another two weeks, but because I hadn't bought any since January, I decided it wouldn't hurt to get some more.

I received a package on my doorstep from my daughter, SIL and two grandkids. It was a Mother's Day gift that I was told I could open immediately. When I opened the box, I found this gift inside. So pretty.

Inside the gift was this assortment of keto foods and snacks. I finished the chocolate chip cookies and the crackers in only 3 days. They were so good. I am trying very hard to make the cereal last a bit longer because it is so-o-o delicious and will give me something different for breakfast instead of my 2-egg omelette every morning. I am anxious to try the Cesar dressing, but first I have to order some lettuce, cucumber, fresh tomato and maybe some feta cheese in my next grocery order. What a treat this was!

So I did not work outside today. Did I mention that it was snowing? So instead I stayed inside and made five cards. I have a lot of birthdays this month coming up. Enjoy your evening.

After the Week-end

I expected a nice sunny weekend. I was disappointed that the forecast had changed since the last time I had checked it. Saturday was rainy and dismal. I hadn't slept well Friday night and finally decided to get up at 4:30 AM on Saturday. I think I was anxious about my food supply. I've had some issues with the grocery delivery. Let me be clear. I appreciate having this free delivery option but it hasn't been working out well for me so far. I had hoped to speak to someone this morning to try to clear up some misgivings; however, at 5 PM, no one has got back to me by phone yet. You may get some sense of  how frustrated I have been over this, by the simple fact that I cannot get a hold of anyone. Anyways, it's a long story that I hope to have resolved soon. It is only one of several problems I have experienced with on-line deliveries that have happened during this isolation, and I am going batty.

I was able to sleep a little in the afternoon on Saturday after I changed the bedding, washed a load of dishes, did two loads of laundry, and baked some bread. By 5:30, I had showered, washed my hair, put on make-up and earrings and changed for our Trivia Night quiz. The last two game nights, I have changed up the questions so that it has been more like Scattegories than Trivia. For example, I say Boston, Bibb, and leaf. The answer is lettuce. I say tub, slipper, Windsor. The answer is chair. The participants have been really enjoying this new game format.

Yesterday (Sunday), was again cloudy and cool, but I went outside before the rain started to do some yardwork. I am slowly removing the sod from the side yard, one row at a time because it is a lot more strenuous than I remember it being. Ha! I may be getting older. Then, in order to take a break, I raked and de-thatched the grass on the boulevard before I lay down some grass seed. I managed to get things put away before the rain came, so I came inside to make a birthday card for my grandson.

It is another fancy-fold card called an M or W fold card because of the panel inside that contains four more little images. I think he will get a kick out of it, and I enjoyed getting back to making cards. I haven't been doing any for a while now.

Today WAS a sunny day so I got outside again to sweep off the sidewalk in front of the duplex (my side and my neighbours), as well as taking off the sod from another row in my side yard. I planted a few more seeds inside, made a chicken stock from the carcass of the roast chicken, made a batch of yoghurt and made a spaghetti sauce for a plate of zoodles for tonight's dinner. There should not be any trouble falling asleep and staying asleep tonight. I am feeling pretty exhausted. Have a great evening everyone.

Hanging in There

Yes, I have been struggling. I've had a long history with anxiety and mood disorders, and every once in a while things begin to pile up and I have to watch for signs that tell me I need to work on my mental health. Mostly, that means I need to be left alone so I can work it out on my own, but I'm getting better.  This time it was another case of events (some anxious, some sad) falling one upon another very quickly. I was able to get outside this week and do some good hard manual labour in the yard and that usually helps me out a lot. I ordered and did a curbside pickup of 30 bags of garden soil, 10 bags of manure, and 40 pounds of cement among other things. I carried all those heavy bags to the back of the yard and proceeded to dig a 2 foot hole where I would eventually put up a new umbrella clothesline. The ground here is especially rocky so it was hard going. Today I mixed half the cement to pour into the hole with lots of stone to hold the in-ground anchor that will hold the clothesline pole. Tomorrow and all weekend is supposed to be lovely and sunny outside, so I plan to remove the sod from part of my side yard where I want to plant a garden. The last few days I have started some seeds inside for both veggies and flowers, so that by the time I have removed the rock and amended the soil, I may have some starts ready to plant.

I have ordered and I am waiting for another curbside pickup of some peat moss, potting soil, some more outdoor planters and some hardware cloth. I intend to make a screen with the hardware cloth to remove most of the rock and stone from the topsoil here, before mixing through the manure, peat moss and garden soil.  Until I get my wire cloth, I still need to rake the front lawn and lay down some more grass seed I bought to overseed the lawn. I also have to sweep down my sidewalk and driveway which is still full of winter sand and salt. There is lots to keep me busy outdoors, which is a good thing because I cannot seem to get anything done inside the house these days, except for the bare essentials.

I received another grocery delivery this week. I am definitely spending more than if I were the one doing the shopping, but I am thankful for the service.

 This week I asked for 3 cartons of 18 eggs, instead of 3 dozen. I have used up ALL of my stash of frozen eggs and need to replenish.

 Yesterday I peeled, cooked and mashed the rutabaga. I had some last night and the rest is portioned in the freezer. I also received fresh green beans and zucchini.

The whole chicken is roasting in the oven now, while the Italian sausage is packaged for the freezer. Tonight I will prepare my Trivia questions for tomorrow night's game. That is still being well received. Have a great and productive weekend everyone.