Sad

My Hubby's late wife's aunt passed away yesterday.  She was in her 99th year and had terminal lung cancer.   She chose the day she was to die.  It was difficult for me to accept.  She was a lovely lady,  drove her pick up truck  until just a year ago, loved to go to the casino and most times came home with more than what she had when  she left.   A couple of years ago, Hubby and I visited her at Christmas time and we had some of her shortbread, they were delicious, so I asked her for her recipe.  I did not make any this past Christmas as there was no one came to eat them, but in future each time I make them I will think of her.  Rest in Peace, A.

We have a cloudy sky this morning and we can expect some precipitation of some kind  sometime today,  It depends on the temp whether we get rain or snow, preferably the first.  A lot of snow has melted during the past couple of days, but still a lot to go. 

Not planning on doing a lot today, likely some sewing.

Dinner tonight meat loaf, broccoli, squash and a salad.  Dessert, chocolate mousse.

 

Waiting for number three

 What's that all\\about......  The first of the week my steam iron quit, yesterday just before dinner the microwave over quit working.   Things usually happen in three's right....so waiting for number three to happen.

This morning we went to purchase a new one, which is similar to my old one, which I think must have been 13 years old.  It did not own us anything.   

Wanting to place  the new one one the same place, we had to pull out the stove to reach to electrical outlet, finding dust bunnies and other identified bits, it needed a good clean.   Which then led to the fridge being pulled out and cleaned behind it to.  So Spring cleaning has started, and all is back in place spic and span.

Another nice sunny day, with just a little more snow melting.  

Had my hair cut today.

So a busy day.

Dinner was salmon, mushrooms asparagus and salad.

Fling open the windows

 Yesterday was such a lovely day, temp up to double digits, 11*C.  Time to open the windows, so bedroom and bathroom now smell  so nice with all that fresh air coming in.

Sun is shining again today, but it is not as warm as yesterday, however, the mercury is above the zero mark, so can's ask for much more at this time of the year.   This weather will certainly encourage the sap in the maple trees to start running.  A sure sign of Spring.

This evening is my quilt guild Zoom meeting which usually last about an hour.  We are all hoping in person meetings will soon happen.  We have only had three meetings during the past year and no sewing/ retreat days during that time.  One of the members puts together a show and tell  presentation.  Members send her photos and a brief description about a project they have completed.  It is so much nicer that everyone trying to hold up their work in front of a computer.  

Not much else going on in this part of the world today.

Dinner ...have not given it much though yet, but should soon I suppose.  At times I would like to try and make something a bit different but I don't know what,  so stay with the same meals just rotate them a bit.  I did buy some frozen Chinese food this week,  and we have not had that for a long time....dinner solved.  Now dessert, I have banana bread I made about about a month ago and froze, so dessert is now taken care.

Dinner. Chinese  and  banana bread.    What are you having for dinner tongiht?

Two days in a row

 Yesterday afternoon, we had sunshine, glorious sunshine which pushed the temp up to 9*C , the snow is melting.  When we woke this morning the sky looked promising and yes, we have blue sky and sunshine again.  But, it is short lived as the forecast is predicting possible rain for this afternoon, that's OK it will melt more snow.

Went for a short walk again yesterday, the wind in my face had a bit of a nip into it, but the sun felt good just the same.  

I have been having a problem with my left hip, think a call to the Dr. is in order, however, he is not in his office, Wednesday's or Friday's so when I get an appointment is a good question. 

Time goes fast,   just finished talking to my youngest daughter E and my sister B on the phone and here it is almost time for lunch and not much has been done this morning.  E bought a new car last Summer and when she arrived home from work one day last week, it would not shut off, so it is now in the repair shop. They don't make things to last these days, do they?

Well I should get doing something or the day will have come and gone and nothing has been done.  

Dinner tonight, BBQ ribs, brussel sprouts and a salad.

Winter Wonderland....again

During the night we had another coating of wet snow, the kind that clings to everything, making the countryside look like those pictures on Christmas cards.   That is the good, the bad and ugly, it difficult to remove from the driveway and is very slippery for cars and pedestrians.  Have not seen the snow plow go through yet, not even on the main streets when we went for our early morning grocery trip.  The temp is forecast to go up to 4*C so there could be some melting happening later today.  We can only hope.

I do not do any "online" banking,  I go to the bank to do all of the transactions I need to do on the machine.  My Visa bill was in need of paying this morning, going to the bank a young man removing snow from the sidewalk, advised the bank was closed.   Why, I asked, apparently there have been homeless people going into the area where the machines are, (which is usually open 24/7) and sleeping there where it is warm.  I though, how sad the homeless are having to find places like that to get warm and also the bank having to close that area. 

Just a small shop this morning, only fresh produce and dairy products mostly.  Only a few people in the store, which was good.

Hubby is our clearing the driveway.....again.   I am just finishing a coffee and then I should start doing something too.

Dinner tonight our usual Tuesday chicken , asparagus and a salad.  Dessert ....not even thought about it yet, however, I am sure there will be something.

Wet

 Overnight we had about two inches of wet snow and it is now 2*C  and it appears as if there is some really wet snow or pellets of ice coming down, so we have a bit of a melt going on today.  Forecast for tomorrow is possible rain, what a mess that is going to be.  I don't care what it does just as long as some of this white stuff starts to leave us.  The snow was too heavy for Hubby to use the shovel, so the blower came out again today.

Made an appointment to get my hair trimmed on Friday,  over the lockdown it has grown quite a bit, and now hard to manage.  Then on Monday, I have a regular visit with the dentist, if she is still taking in patients. 

I am currently sewing down the binding on the last I Spy quilt I made, this Thursday is our Zoom quilt guild meeting and we have been sending photos of our completed projects to one of our members and she prepares a presentation so everyone can see what we have done over the past month.  Hopefully in March we might be able to have an in person meeting, if all goes well with the virus.  During the past year we have only had three in person meetings, the Zoom ones are OK but certainly not the best way to have a meeting.  

Changed my mind about dinner last night we had ham and scalloped potatoes instead, there are enough potatoes left for dinner tonight, so that is all taken care of, think we might have shaved beef tonight.

Right side of Winter

 Looked on the local weather network this morning and if if is correct, it looks as if we are going to have daytime temps above the zero C mark for all of next week.  Last night the sky was clear, moon and stars were clearly visible thus the reason for the temp to go down to -15*C.  However, today we have lovely sunshine again.......I think we are now on the right side of Winter and soon we shall be able to see the bitter cold temps leave us.  Mind you, we still could have some miserable days ahead but things are just looking a bit brighter, the evenings are getting longer too which is also a good sign.

I went for a short walk yesterday to get rid of the cobwebs and get my blood moving, have not done that for quite awhile due to it being so cold. 

When I was watering my house plants yesterday I noticed my Christmas cactus is producing flower bud again, but have not see any sign of a flower on the African Violet.  The Dragon cactus keeps on growing and growing.  This plant is so ugly, but I love the  way the "leaves" going every which way possible.  It started out and a small plant from the grocery store about a year ago. now its hanging all over a large pot.  The geraniums I started from cuttings last Fall are doing very well, even had blossoms on them throughout the Winter.  New cuttings will soon be placed in pots ready for planting in the Spring.  Can you tell I am just itching to get out and do some garden work.  BUT that is going to be at least a month or more, depending on how fast the snow melts and things get warmer and drier. In the mean time, I will get some Spring cleaning done, and continue making my quilts.  

Dinner tonight roast beef, cauliflower, salad, gravy and not sure what is for dessert.

Overheated

 I have (or should say, I had)  really good iron, my son gave it to me some years back, as he worked for the company that made it.  Today, while I was doing some sewing it smelt hot, and boy, was it hot, just touched piece of fabric and it was scorched.  I think the thermostat is not working. It is well past it's warrantee date, so it was have to go in the trash.  We have another one, but it is old, but works like a charm. So will be using this one for awhile.  

We have some sun and a little snow once in awhile, but nothing accumulating.  It was so nice I ventured outside and went for a short walk.  The roads are still a bit slippery, so went to the University college up the street and walked around their clean and dry side walks.  I was out for 20 minutes, but it did not seem that long really.  If the weather co-operates I will do the same tomorrow.  I have not been walking for about a month due to the weather, the snow was deep and it was very icy, plus I have  painful hip for some reason, so just took it easy.  The hip still feels painful, but not like it was, should go to the Dr. I suppose but with all of the virus still around, I don't feel like going into a building for an x-ray as I know that is what he will do.  Should just go and get it over with.

Not much else going on here today,  laundry and housework which never seems to be finished.  This house is really easy to keep clean, so I am not as busy as it sounds.

Dinner tonight is left overs from last night, Chili con carnie, salad and broccoli, not sure what is for dessert yet.  I might just skip it tonight, trying to cut down on calories.

Done

 Hubby and I  have been left behind in the computer world, so when trying to accomplish something is trial and error at the best of times.   We have spend two days trying to do something that we did not and apparently can not do.  Even with the help of family we were stumped.  So Hubby finally enlisted his son to help us out and now it is done.  Thanks you, thank you,  S.  

Hubby was on Facetime with his brother in B.C. last night, it was his birthday.  It still amazes me how a person over 3,000 miles away can show up in our kitchen and we can talk as if we were in the same room.

Light dusting of snow last night,   however, it is not as cold as it has been and early next week we can expect temps above the zero degree mark, so it is possible some of this snow might melt.

Laundry currently being done, some housework is also on the agenda too, then this afternoon I will d so sewing, I am sure Hubby will be watching a game of some kind on the TV.  

We had the chili con carnie for dinner last night, quite enjoyed it with a salad. there is enough for dinner tonight so that is all taken care of.  Will make biscuits or we might even have a slice of toast with the chili along with another salad.  Butterscotch pudding for dessert as there is still two left, I might just skip that for dinner tonight.

Better get the clothes into the dryer.

A BIT

 Yep, a bit of this and a bit of that, and a bit of not much else.  That is a description of the last few days around the house.

A little digging of snow, housework, sewing, watching TV,  working on the program on the computer and really not much of anything.  Didn't even cook dinner, we had take out.  I am suffering today.

I do not cook with oils or fats, no fried foods in this house, and I don't use salt either, it was hard to get use to at first, but now when I eat anything salty, it is unpleasant for me.  So when we had the chicken burger, fries and onions rings they did not sit well in my digestive system.   It will pass.  (literally)  LOL

Looking in the mirror today,..... where did that bulge come from, those rolls of fat.  That did it, cutting down on all of the sweet desserts, and even some of the carbs.  With all of the non activity during this cold Winter and not being able to get out and walk I have packed on a few extra pounds that I don't want.  I am short so any weight I put on really shows and I feel very uncomfortable about the way I feel and also the way I look.  Not being hard on myself just realistic, at this stage of the game I don't need to hinder my health in this way.  Both Hubby's late wife and my late husband, were over weight people with multiple health issues which were  increased by the extra poundage. 

We have had several small falls of snow this week, Hubby has just gone out now to clear off the driveway yet again, there is still the odd flake coming down at present but the sun is trying to shine too, so don't expect any accumulation.  

The sun sets this evening at 6:01 p.m. I am loving these longer days.  There has been talk about not doing the Daylight Saving time, when we put our clocks forward an hour.  Have not read or heard anything more about it, so assume we will continue to do it.  One thing at a time Government, get the Covid under control first. 

Dinner tonight is chili and a salad. Hubby is having butterscotch pudding,  me  nothing.

Trials and tribulations

Woke early this morning to get our groceries during the hour set aside for seniors.  It was COLD -15*C when we walked out the door, Hubby brushed off his car, we had a light dusting of snow overnight.  We both got in, buckled up.....grrrrrrrown,  grrrown the car would not start.  Removed ourselves from that car,  into another which was in the garage and we were on our way.  We were the only customers in the store for a short period of time.  Home and everything put away.  Hubby waiting for it to warm up  (good lucky sweetheart), but he is hoping that the sun will stay shining until it creeps around to the spot where the car is and then he will use the cables to jump start his car.  Fingers crossed, it is only a dead battery.

Hubby and I are not very knowledgeable when it comes to computers, I can do the basics but that is about all.  Hubby needs an electronic signature to insert on a document, so now we are trying to do that.  It's hard to teach these old dogs new tricks. Enlisting the help from a Grand daughter.

 Yesterday, we had another six inches of snow, Hubby was outside blowing it off the driveway and removing a huge pile of snow which was deposited by the plow as it went around the corner and down the street.   His thumbs got very cold and hurt when they stated to warm, no frost bite thank goodness.  The sun is streaming through the windows in the living and dining rooms, while sitting in my chair it is nice and warm, there is a lot of heat, and it feels so good.  

Worked on the new quilt I have started, liking how it is looking already.

Cannot decide what to have for dinner tonight, asparagus will be a veg for sure and we have some fruit in jelly to finish for dessert.  I am sure I will find something when it's time, always do. 

Pristine

 We have some light snow over night and now all of the sandy dirty snow on the side of the road is clean, until the truck comes around again.  It is brightening up since we got up, so hopefully we will see some sunshine later today.  It is not quite as cold as yesterday, ONLY -10*C last nights low.

Visited my GS, and his family on Saturday,  socially distanced and masked of course,  he liked his photo album, so I was pleased with that. GGD was a little shy, 12 months old,  she was more interested in my boots, she loves boots.  Showing us her snow boots and rain boots and getting them on the right feet.  She looks at the bottoms to see which foot to put it on.  Smart child, but I am allowed to say that I am her Granny.

UPDATE

I started this post yesterday, then got involved with Hubby's computer and whoosh the day was gone.  They are such a  time water, but so much to learn and see, its hard to put it down sometimes.

So today, Tuesday Feb 16th

This is usually our grocery day, however, there was a winter storm forecast on the news last night, and when we sent to bed it was snowing, so decided the grocery shop could wait until later in the week.  We are plenty of food in the house.  I am glad we decided not to go out today, we have a lot of snow and at 11;25 a.m. it appears it now has  slowed down a bit until later this afternoon when it is to start again.  Hubby will soon be going out to clean off the driveway, the snowplow has done the street so once we are out of the drive, it will be easy to go anywhere if the need arises.  Plans now to shop tomorrow.

I only have the binding to do on my second I Spy quilt then it is done, I can do that while watching TV, now I have finally started to make a quilt for our bed.  Again, I am only using fabric that I have in my stash.  I do have a lot of grey fabric as I started this quilt twice before.  I needed a pop of colour for this quilt, and have a small piece of turquoise, so using it.  Excited to get it started.

No idea at the moment what we will have for dinner, have a little while before I need to think about that.

Dusting

 No..... I am not dusting...... just a little fall of snow that I describe as a dusting.  That is our weather today, but it is still cold, and the wind is blowing a little, enough to disturb some of the light flakes and they twirl into the air.  

A fellow blogger indicated today that there is a hint of Spring in the air, I hope she is right, I am tired of Winter, but really cannot complain as it hasn't been all that bad.   Winter is hard on my hands they are dry and one thumb has a crack in the skin from being too dry, and it hurts.  I have tried everything, but the relief is short lived.  We have a large humidifier which we fill with water twice daily and change the filter once a week, which helps the air stay moist in the house.  Not much else I can do for the time being.

Going to see my Grandson and great grand daughter this afternoon, (social distanced and masked, of course).  It is his birthday today.

Laundry done, folded and all put away, we have not been generating much these days, so its a job that does not take any time at all.   Not much else in the line of housework needs to be today. 

Hubby is watching the news regarding the U.S. impeachment trial.   I understand the TV reporters need to keep their viewers up to date on breaking developments,  but at some point I do believe it is "overkill" I often wonder if they get tired of repeating the same thing hour after hour.  I also know that people watch certain programs and different times, so they need to present the latest developments,  That is all I am saying about politics.

Dinner tonight is Christmas dinner,  we had a lot of turkey leftover from Christmas, so I left one side of the breast intact and froze it, also  had more dressing that we needed so froze that too.  All I need to to is make our Cauliflower (mashed potatoes) and gravy, brussels sprouts will round out the main course.  Not sure what is for dessert at the moment.

Grey to blue

 When we first got up the sky was grey with a few flakes of snow, now just after lunch we have blue skies and sunshine, but again it is cold.

Not much going on at our house today,  just like all the other days I am afraid.

Hubby has been on Facetime with his brother on the West coast chatting about investments etc.  as that is what his is involved with to keep him busy in retirement.  It has been almost a year he has been home, first due to the virus and then he finally decided to call it quits.  I have been retired since 2001, that seems like ages ago, well it really is, isn't it?

Did some much needed cleaning in the kitchen yesterday and also some sewing on the quilt I am making.

Dinner last night was really nice.  Tonight is port chops, some left over beans and cheese biscuits with  kale slaw.  Dessert not sure yet.

Have a great day.

Mixed bag

 It is on noon hour and we have had all kinds of weather so far today, clouds, heavy snow at times and now lovely sunshine and blue skies and it is cold.

Due to the very cold temps and the snow we have had recently, I have not been going for my daily walk,  now feeling sluggish, however, don't want to go out and walk, even with my hiking poles, in case I slip and fall on the icy conditions.  Falling at my age and breaking a bone is not an option for me, so I will continue to feel sluggish instead of being in a cast or worse.

My post yesterday talked about being crafty, and recently I was looking through some old documents and found an old report card of mine.  It was written by my teacher at the time of was 12 years old.  This report card was to be given to my new teacher when I started going to school here in Canada,  Don't know why I still have but that teacher must have given it back to me.  Looking at it I appeared to be an average student in most subjects, but one stood out.   Art.  The report showed that I was not very good at this and the words implied I would never be.  To be honest, I am not an artist as such, drawing with pencil and pen and painting are not strong points of mine, I guess you could say I have no talent for that kind of art at all.  However, not all art is done with those mediums, I use fabric, thread, stitches and many other things.  I would love to go back to that teacher in England and show her just what I have done and still doing.  I hope she would change the grade I received on that report card.  The lesson I have learned and I am sure others have done also, is that, even if you are told you are no good at  doing Art, or anything, in a certain way, there is always other ways you can excel in what you do. 

I made this wall hanging several years ago.  The fabric came from Walmart, have no idea why I bought it, however, I cut it into squares and reconstructed it into the basic picture of sunflowers.  Machine stitched the petals and added beads, lots of beads for the centers.  It then needed something else so I used voile and burned the edges so it would not fray and added the pale purple flowers.  Some embroidery, a lady bug and hand quilting and it was finished.  This still hangs in my sewing room.

My eldest daughter like elephants, so when I had made this one she wanted it.  Again the background fabric came from Walmart, it reminded me of a sunset.  Now, I confess, the elephants I copied from a book, and the large ones ears are padded so they look 3D, it does not show in the picture.  She still has this one hanging in her home.

Dinner.. Ham, beans, cheese biscuits and salad.  Still have two helpings of  chocolate mousse left, so dessert all taken care of.

Crafty

 I am happy to be a bit crafty.....no not that crafty.....the one that lets you makes all kind of things sewing, knitting, etc  This has kept me somewhat sane during the weeks of  lock down we have had during these Winter months.  Where I live we still have at least a month and a half or possibly two months of weather which will not allow us to do much outside, and I have numerous projects to work on.

Over the years I have made clothes for myself, two daughters and a christening dress for a grand daughter, which I then redesigned and used for her to be a flower girl at a family wedding.  Prior to quilting I did a lot of knitting,  a dress for another grand daughter, hots, gloves and sweaters for the whole family.  Counted cross stitch, embroidery, flower arranging, saddles for gravestones and ceramics.  Now I have the quilting bug and made one for each of my children, 

grandchildren for their 18th birthdays,  one for each of four GC when they married and then when GG's arrived one for each of them.  My guild makes dozens for a local hospital chemo unit. and I have donated several to the nursing home my Mother was in.  

A couple of Summers ago I wanted something a bit different for me to do, so over the season I gathered blossoms from the flowers in my garden,  got Hubby's hammer and pounded the flowers on top of a piece of fabric.  The colours from the flowers were transferred to the fabric, I iron them to set the colours and  made a  framed picture from the result, see below.  I did some embroidery to enhance some of the flowers.  

Just recently competed a photo album for my Grandson's birthday on Saturday.  I included some of the drawings, letters and home made cards that I kept just for this purpose.  I believe he will appreciate the fact I saved all this stuff over the past 30 plus years. 

A grand daughter will be having a birthday in early March and I want to get one done for her too.  Then I have a break as the next grand daughter birthday is in June.  

So that's the post for today.

I was busy yesterday, doing what....a bit of this and a bit of that and before I knew it the day was gone and too late to post anything.

We have a lovely sunny day, but cold, no additional snow which is just fine with me.

Dinner tonight ribs, cauliflower, salad and dessert? 

BRRRRR.....

 It is down right COLD....last night temp went down to -15*C, and it is still cold this morning, the sun is shining and there is no wind today, so not a bad day after all.  Don't plan on being out much today, so just happy to see it from the inside. 

Hubby and I watched the Super Bowl last night, did not have a favorite team to win.  I have only been watching football for a short time, not that I watch a lot of it, however, now I know the rules and regulations it makes sense to me.  I was not impressed with The Weekend's half time show, the 9 million dollars he spent could have been used to do a lot more constructive things in the pandemic times we are in.   

Started on a new I Spy quilt for my other great grands, this one has more "boy" themed fabric in it as this one will be for a family of children.  Once this one is finished, I will start one for our bed that I have started twice and hated each one of them, have a new pattern so three times and out.  I also need to make the February block for our guilds chemo comfort quilt.  This one has to have a tree in it, so it will be easy to do.

I believe I have mentioned that I came from southern England, I still have relatives there  and some of them are my FB friends.  My cousins granddaughter post photo's of her children playing in snow.   Snow? and her son was in shorts and a T shirt, the pictures show more grass than snow, it was funny to see actually.   I offered to send her some of the snow we have and she thought that would be a good idea.   During the 12 years I lived in Sussex, I can remember only once having snow, and I am sure it was about the same as the pictures I saw today on FB.  The teacher, I still remember her name.....Mrs. Duke,........ let us all go outside and play in it. 

Dinner tonight.....not sure, but should start thinking about it I suppose.

Brilliant

 The snow we were forecast did not materialize, there was just a dusting, nothing really to speak of.  This morning it is very cold, -8*C with a strong wind which is making it feel mush colder.   But.....we have brilliant sunshine and blue skies.   Feeling good today, the sun making it so.

On February 7th, 1906 was Father was born, it is his birthday today.  He passed in 1991, a life well lived.  As a youngest he would tell my sister and I some of the things that he did, they were all not good.  He was a dairy farmer, played English football, was a Home Guard soldier during WWll,  a pioneer, uprooting his family to emigrate to Canada.   He had a great sense of humor and loved to tell a good joke, not all of them clean.  I cannot remember him ever swearing but, I am sure he did.  Only a look or a tone of voice directed to you, and you knew you were in trouble for something you did or said.   He cried while watching the sad portions of the  "Little House on the Prairie", and loved watching hockey on TV.  

Farming was and is still a dangerous job, he was gored by a hog, that left him within inches of loosing his life, scalded on his upper body with a pail of boiling hot water.  Cuts and bruises too.  But the farming community is a close knit group of people, as lest they were back "then".   Farmers came from all around to help with chores if someone needed help., and he always pitched in to help in that regard.

He suffered from Parkinson's Disease and had a stroke both were contributing factors to us loosing him.   I still miss him.

I finished my great grand daughters "I Spy " quilt.

 The seashell and bugs blocks.

The back and then the front.

Dinner  tonight left overs from yesterday.

Stalled

The snow that I mentioned yesterday, did not amount to much which is just fine with me, however, it is to start up again  later today.   But it is bloody cold.  Went down to -11*C last night and that is the forecast low for the next seven days.  By that time it will be the middle of the month and hopefully, a changed in the weather, keeping fingers and toes crossed.  Not holding my breath though.  The sun is trying to shine this morning, so all is good.

I have mentioned previously about sorting photo's, and all of those have included my late Mother's too.  Looking at them has brought back a lot of memories from my childhood.  I was telling Hubby about a picture of me, I might have been about 8 or 9 years old.  At that time I went to dance classes, cannot remember where I attended these classes.  On with my story, this photo shows me in a number which was called The Wedding of the Painted Dolls,  I was one of the bridesmaids, my sister was suppose to be in this number, however, she was recovering from, either chicken pox or measles, so could not participate.  If my memory proves me right, we did this dance outside on a lawn, which was in a back garden of a big house.  The lawn was surrounded by a high brick wall and a border of flowers.  I also remember dancing to the song "The Teddy Bears Picnic" and Hubby and I were trying to remember the words to this song.  
We were able to get most of them, but had to resort to the web to find someone singing it.  We found a cartoon video with Anne Murray singing the entire song.  We try to amuse ourselves with some crazy things these days.  LOL

In the coming days I might share other memories from these pictures.

Laundry and some housework in the process of being done today, thought I had better do something, one, so we have some clothes to wear and second. well just because it needs doing.   

Dinner tonight:  I am thinking about putting a roast of beef in the over for dinner tonight, because tomorrow is Super Bowl Sunday and it would not take long to put left overs on the table.  

I have only been watching American football for the last four years, my late Husband did not like watching it, but Hubby does.  He explained all of the rules so quite enjoy it now.

On to the tasks st hand.

It has started

 We have been forecast snow, winds and cold temps, at the time of writing 1:45p.m. it is starting to snow a bit more than it was.  We did have about 2 inches over night, so Hubby is out there right now clearing it off, too make room for more.  .Ha ha.

Finished sorting all of the photo's and now putting together my grand son's album, will show a photo of the cover of it when I am done.

Don't seem to have much ambition these days, just do the necessary, was starting my Spring cleaning, but that mood has sprung and don't know when it will be back.  

I would love to go out and have a lovely dinner, to choose something that I don't cook, that is brought to my table ready to eat and then someone else to clean up the table when I am done.  This feeling is temporary, tomorrow is another day and hopefully the sun will shine.   I need sunshine.

I am over wintering some geraniums in the downstairs hallway as it gets all of the sun, (when we get it) and a couple of those plants have some nice blooms on them at the present time.  But, I am goig to by some daffodils when I get the groceries next week.   The snowdrops are all covered with snow keeping warm and so that they will bloom again when it is all melted.

Dinner tonight, salmon mushrooms and salad. not sure what dessert is yet.

Frozen Fog

Woke this morning to fog that was freezing on the trees, everything looked very pretty.  Now the sunshine is out again today and it is going to be a nice day, albeit very cold.  However, later today we have been forecast snow again and wind for the next couple of days.  It's Winter, to cannot expect much else.

What did I do yesterday?   sorted and sorted photo's.  I have all the ones that I have taken in the past plus all of those that belonged to my Mother and it is time.    Time to sort them out and do something with them.  I have piles on the dining room floor, one for each child and one for each grandchild.  They are going in albums for them.  I also have a pile for me, so will be making one for me also.  

In my Mother's, I found so many interesting things, a telegram the family received from relatives when we last England, the price of the fares. Photo's taken on the ship and menus from the lunches and dinners.   Looking through all this makes the job so much longer to complete, but I am determined to get it done.  Today I am going to continue with this job.

Hubby doing research on the computer, keeping him busy.   I am so glad he purchased a computer of his own a couple of years ago,  don't know what he would do with himself if he did not have it, during this lock down, and not being able to do any work outside.

Dinner last night was beef on a bun and a lovely salad, dessert left over peach crumble.

I've been on the table not once but twice,

In here it is always as cold as ice,

However, all is not doom or gloom,

Miracles happen in this room.

Everyone is dressed in white,

They are restoring my sight,

20 20 but that's not the year

Everything now is very clear. 

Dr says you will be needing,,

Ones only for reading,

So goodbye, so long,

Your gone,

I am going to give you away,

So that someone else can say,

I can see today, 

I can see today..

Again we have Sunshine

Blue skies and sunshine, but it is even colder outside than yesterday, and the  forecast is indicating even colder temps on the weekend.

The icicles hanging from the eaves are glistening in the sun light, they remind me of the sabers that were used in the Star War movies. 

As I sit here writing this post two deer are walking through the back garden.  There must have been more go through during the night as the snow is showing a lot of tracks.

Visit to eye surgeon was successful.   I had an astigmatism as well as  cataracts, so the Dr. recommended that I have a certain lens inserted.  which I did.  Before surgery, tests were done and these tests indicated the lens be positioned in my eye in a certain way.  However, during the surgery the computer to confirm the tests indicted the lens should be positioned another way.   Yesterday, he said he was glad he listened to the computer as I now have 20/20 vision in both eyes.   Just amazing what medical advancements have been done.

Dinner tonight, at this point in time I do not have a clue, but I am sure there will be something on the table.

Sunshine

Finally a day when we can see that big ball of fire in the sky.  But.....it is cold.

Later this week the weather is going to get colder, so we have decided to empty the freezer, place the food outside in a box or laundry basket and clean out the freezer.  It is an old one, works like a charm, but there is considerable ice build up and I am sure the odd pea or crumbs of bread or maybe an unidentified object  of some kind  is in the bottom.  I rotate the food on a regular basis but have never cleaned it out.  Why....you might ask.   I am short...5 feet tall, (great things come in small packages)   lol , so for me trying to get  to the bottom of that freezer, ( it's a chest type)  is almost an impossibility.  I would be standing on my head with feet dangling on the outside.  Which would not be a pleasant sight I can assure you.  I even have problems getting the clothes out of the washing machine.     

This afternoon I have a follow up appointment with my eye surgeon, then I need to wait until the lock down is over so that I can get a pair of reading glasses.

Did vacuum the entire first level of the house yesterday and washed the kitchen floor.  We have hot water heating, so there is no forced air from the furnace to blow around the dust, so do not need to do that job very often.  I  have also been doing some deep cleaning jobs on a regular basis so there will no need to do Spring cleaning as such.   I plan on washing all of the window coverings next week.  There are some that need dry cleaning but that will not happen any time soon.   The vertical blinds will get a good vacuum also.

I do have a will which states my wishes after I am gone, but I have not advised my children about my finances, what they are, where they are etc. etc.  So as I am getting up in yeasts and with the virus still. circulating, I decided yesterday to write it all down, so my children know all that they need to, to locate everything.    Good job done.

Dinner tonight, chicken, asparagus, salad, and we still have some peaches left from yesterday, so will make a peach crumble for desssert.

Good Morning.

The sun is trying very hard to shine this morning, however, it is filtered through some very high thin clouds.  Don't expect it to get above zero degree mark today.  

February 1st.   Monday.

Birthstone for the month of February-----Amethyst

The February born will find,

Sincerity and peace of mind,

Freedom from passion and from care,

If they the amethyst will wear.

In 1907 Clark Gable film actor was born.

(Taken from the birthday book my sister gave me)

My grandson's birthday is on February 13th. he will be 32 years old.  I have his card ready to send to him and I want to make up a album of  photo's that I am sure he would like to have.  Years ago all the crafting rage at the time was to make padded photo albums, so I made four for the grandchildren I had at the time.  I still have them and yes they are all still empty, so my birthday gift to these four grands will be these albums.  I have so many photo's they are just sitting in boxes so decided to do something about them.    The other two grands have a different album and they are all the photo's I took during the adoption process in China.    I saved newspapers, coins and other little things along with the photos.  They will received these along with some of the most recent photos.  

Dinner tonight, still have enough pork tenderloin left (we were going to have roast beef, that did not happen)  will prepare veg and a salad.  Dessert a mystery at the present time.