Food

Last evening was the Thanksgiving potluck dinner I went to here in the building.  Thanksgiving is not until next weekend here in Canada, however, the informal social group always plan a potluck for holidays on the last Friday of the month.  Next month is the Halloween dinner.

Oh! the food, the table was loaded with it all, dishes of almost everything you could imagine.  Sausage rolls, salads, casseroles of green beans, squash, corn bread, turkey, ham, cranberry sauce, and my hash brown potato casserole.  The desserts table was just as full with pies, fruit, tarts and cake.  Needless to say no one left the room hungry.  I tried to contain myself by taking just a very small portion of practically everything, so was pleasantly satisfied not stuffed to the gills.

Tonight is another dinner out, becoming a social butterfly.  My DD1's birthday is today, so have been invited out to have dinner with her family.  

We have lovely sunshine today, after several cold and somewhat wet days.   The forecast for the next week looks fantastic, almost summertime temps with humidity which will make it feel almost 30*C.  Thank you Mother Nature, I am not ready for the cold weather, 

I did some sewing yesterday and now my sewing room looks as if a bomb went off in it.  This is the first day I have actually been sewing since being here and I could not find a darn thing I wanted, so today is a tidy up and do some rearranging, the configuration I currently have is just not working.

So better get at it.

Have a great day

Cheers.

  

Great day

Even with the weather cloudy, windy and a bit on the cool side, I had a great day.

I did some alterations on  a dress for my sister, and we decided we would meet up and have lunch in a restaurant in a town equal distance from both of us, delivery the dress and had our lunch.  The chicken soup I had was delicious.  Afterwards, we both needed to pick up a couple of items from the grocery store, then we parted ways, she to her home and me, well I wasn't far from a couple of friends and didn't know when I would be down that way again, so decided a visit to see them would be a good idea.

I had not previously advised them I was coming, and was pleased to find they were home.  Over coffee we had a good natter and catch-up of all of their family and mine.   Two hours later I was on my way back home.  I had a great day.

So what am I doing today, it is wet, raining at the moment, so it appears to be an inside day for me.  Tomorrow the residents here are having a Thanksgiving potluck dinner in the social room upstairs.  I am taking a hash brown potato casserole, easy to make and always delicious.  AND of course, a glass of wine.

They also have a raffle at the dinner, so today I am going to make some Mug Rugs (coasters) to contribute to the table of prizes.  It also looks like the perfect day to get my block finished for my quilting meeting which is next week.  

Saturday, Sept 30th is my DD1's birthday, so I have been invited to have dinner with her and her family.  

My social calendar is filling up but more on that in a couple of days.  

Now, I am off to the sewing room to see if I can find, (still unpacking some things in there) some fabric suitable for my sewing projects.

Have a great day.

Cheers.

Routine

Being in my new home for almost a month, I am finally able to get into some routine, I like routines.   It's the way I am, that's not to say I have no variety in my life, because I certainly do.  

A lovely weekend just passed, family and functions.  Son B and I went to the cremation of the flags, I was disappointed with the number of people that showed up.  Would have thought some city dignitary would have attempted to show some support for the soldiers that fought and died to give them the freedom they now enjoy.  I understand WWl was a long time ago, and most of family has even moved away from the city, not interested or passed.   BUT.    With all the ceremony, the flags were burned, a short service and then drinks in the Officers Mess of the armories where the armed forces reserves and cadets of all departments meet to learn,  memorabilia and photos are kept along with war time equipment is erected on the grounds.   

So, now the beginning of the week, I am finally going to alter my sisters dress today and see what day she is free for lunch this week.  After that is done I am going for a walk, as it looks as if the clouds are parting somewhat to show smatterings of blue sky.  We did have a shower overnight as the road had damp patches on it when I arose.  

No plans for the rest of the week, other than lunch with sis and Friday when the maintenance man is coming in to do a couple of jobs for me. I am sure to find something to keep me out of trouble.

Have a great day.

Cheers.

Visitors

My son,   B and DIL, J visited yesterday afternoon, I needed some techy help with my printer, all fixed and runny smoothly now.  It is nice to have a IT person in the family to fix all my issues, without the asking for anything in return.  

We had a lovely visit, as my DD2 also dropped in too, everyone has approved of my new digs, so happy about that.  

DD2 and SIL celebrated their 33rd wedding anniversary yesterday.  Really! where did that time go.  Flowers and dinner, hope that had a great meal.

B & J are here in town to care for their two granddaughters today, as Mum and Dad are going to a wedding this afternoon, a lovely day is in the forecast.

My son is very interested in the armed forces, in particular, the one here in this city.  My father in law, B's grandfather, fought in WW l in the 91st Battalion in France, returned with injuries, and lived a full life afterwards.  The flags of that battalion have been hanging in a church in this city, however, had to be removed.  They had been there for a very long time and the years had taken their toll of the flags as they disintegrated while being  taken down. They were loveling put together as best as could be, and as all of the soldiers from the 91st are now passed, it was thought fitting to have a service and cremate the flags.  The ashes are going to be place in a cemetery where some of the personnel from that battalion are buried.   I am going with B to the service tomorrow afternoon.

In my mail yesterday there was an advertisement for the local curling club, advising they have several days during the first week of October, where you can go and learn about curling.  Never played, however, B & J and grandson C are in leagues, so I thought why not go and see what it is all about.  So that is my plan for a day come October.   I am always willing to start something new so I thought I will either like it, hate it, or kill myself in the process.   Wish me luck.

Two loads of laundry in, should be done now, so will go and take care of it.

Have a great day

Cheers.

Beautiful Day

 Woke to a promise of some sunshine and decent warm temps today, must take advantage of them these days as I am sure they are numbered.  Getting to be that time of the year where everything and anything with the weather could change in a minute.  Noticed more trees are starting to change colour, such a beautiful time of the year.

Ever since I have moved, my printer is not working, so my son B is coming into town for the weekend so I have commandeered him for a couple of hours to see if he can  rectify the problem, it was working fine, however, suspect it is something to do with the wifi, just a guess, as I am not techy enough to determine the issue.

Also, need to pick up a couple of things at the grocery store, then it is Happy hour again, where did that week go.

Two more pieces of furniture arrived yesterday, counter stools.  All of the necessary bolts, washers and a tool, Allen wrench? came to put them together.  I was able to do that with no problem, so now I can eat my meals at a proper height until my dining table arrives, which I hope is soon.  I am a patient person, but going on almost two months is a long time.  I do believe the manufacturers only make items once they are ordered, none of the stores I went into had an inventory, only display models.  A sign of the times once again.

Now that I am just about settled and organized, I must get into my sewing room, my sister wants a dress altered, the block for the guild is due in a couple of weeks, I need to decide on a pattern for a baby quilt and get that started and also decide on the project for our guilds challenge.  That should keep me out of trouble for awhile.

Have a great day

Cheers.

Did NOTHING

 Since the middle of August I have been on the go, emotionally drained and  packing, buying furniture, travelling back and forth, unpacking and I could go on and on with all the things I have had to do.   I have had help from my family which has been an immense help to me but, there were things that just I had to do.

Yesterday, it all caught up to me and I did absolutely nothing except for a shower, make my bed and prepare meals.  All of my energy had been used up and I had no desire to do anything at all, so all afternoon I read a book on the balcony.

That's what I needed, as today I feel better, still going to take it easy, however, there are a couple of things I need to do at the bank, and a few odds and ends to do in my sewing room, like putting my fabric away in an orderly fashion.  Life is looking rosy today.

The day started out cloudy but, now I see breaks in the clouds and some blue sky, just as the forecast predicted, high temp up to 22 *C.

Have a great day

Cheers.

All put together

 The furniture that needed to be assembled was done yesterday by DD2 and S I L, I don't know what I would do without their help on these two things.   Thank you again, I don't think they read my blog but, just in case, another thank you.

I bought an area rug for in front of my love seat, it didn't look like the right one, so this afternoon I took it back to see if I could find another that would look better.   Moved the hanging racks back and forth, this one? no,  maybe this one?  no.   Finally gave up looking in that store and moved on to another one.   Did the same thing there and then one caught my eye, it is now on my floor.  Another box ticked off.  

Here is a photo of  my granddaughter, I did get her permission. 

She was in the wedding party of her friend she has had for most of her life.   It was an outdoor wedding, the weather was perfect and everything went as planned, so a great day for all.

Went to say "Goodbye" to her tonight as she will be leaving early in the morning to return to Ottawa and get caught up on all of the things she has to do at the University.

Today was sunny with some serious looking clouds but, no rain, it is going to be cool tonight, down to 6*C and warming up to 22*C tomorrow with a promise of some sunshine.  A typical Autumn day.

That's all for me today,

Have a great day.

Cheers.

Must get sewing again.

 Now that I am almost settled and the evenings are drawing in, I must think about getting back into my sewing room and starting the baby quilt for my youngest Great granddaughter.  She was born in late July and due to vacation and moving, it is not even started.  Her nursery is a pale peach colour, so will look for some fabric along that colour way, as I don't have any in my stash.

A cloudy start to the day and 15*C, however it appears as if the sun might just break through.  Later this week warmer temps are predicted.

What am I up to today, my DD2 and S I L are coming over this afternoon to put another piece of furniture together, then I will be making a pork tenderloin for dinner, so hope they will stay for a meal.  A walk sometime today, may go a little further down the path today, I know it leads to one of the beautiful parks we have in the city, it will be a busy place if the weather turns out nice.

My granddaughter K  was a bridesmaid in a wedding yesterday and she sent me a photo of herself all dressed up, she is a very pretty girl.  I will ask her if I have permission to show here on my blog.  The wedding was  a very informal outside wedding, so she will be helping to clean up today.  I will have a final visit with her tomorrow as she returns to Ottawa and back to studying on Tuesday.  She will more than likely be home for Christmas.  My other granddaughter C was flying this weekend so was not able to come home for a couple of days.  Not sure when I will see her, April was the last time, just before she went up north for the summer.

Better get my day started

Have a great day

Cheers

Walk

After I had done what needed to be taken care of I went for a 3/4 hour walk this afternoon.  

Just behind where I now live there is a paved walking trail, don't know how long it is, however, it runs right through the city and beyond.  It is well kept, no potholes or rough patches and no hills, which is a blessing as I have not done a walk for over a month, so need to start doing that again on a daily basis.

Made a zucchini lasagna for my dinner, never done that before but, I had a couple zucchini in the fridge that needed to be used up, also some bolognese spaghetti sauce I had made and put in the freezer.  Along with some mozzarella cheese, a piece of crusty bread, it was a tasty dish and will make that again.   It was suppose to have cottage cheese in it, however, I had none so just made it without.   

Today started out sunny, but clouds, not threatening ones moved in during the afternoon, temp was comfortable at 21 *C.  There is a possibility of some showers tonight, don't mind when then come when I am sleeping.

Yesterday, the building I now live in has a happy hour every Friday afternoon at 4:30 p.m., so I filled up my glass with wine and went to meet some of my neighbours.  All the people there were, I think retired, as they were "Q Tips", I love that.  Explanation:   People with white hair and fairly new white running shoes.  When I was on a cruise I heard that, as a lot of the people were older and had obviously bought new shoes as there was going to be a considerable amount of walking on this trip.  Anyway, back to my happy hour,  everyone was friendly and to my surprise there was a woman there who I met years ago at classes we both took for ceramics.  There was something about her face I recognized, so went up to her and she was as surprised to see me as I was her.  I don't forget faces but, names I am no good at remembering.

They also have a karaoke and trivia night, so plan on going to them even though I can't carry a tune in a bucket, however, I have a lot of bits of information floating around in my brain, so hopefully it turns out to be a couple of fun nights.  I consider myself fairly outgoing, so looking forward to this type of interaction with people, did not have it for the past few years.  

  Have a great day

Cheers

Late getting up

Had my headlight fixed yesterday,  not as bad on my bank account as I thought it would be, which is a good thing as it certainly has been taking a beating so far this month.  

Had a stressful day yesterday too, not going into too much detail here but, needed to return to my old address.   So you can come to your own conclusions.

Went to my DD2 last night for another visit with Granddaughter K.   Was later than I had expected to come home, winding down after a long day I watched the news on TV.   So a bit later going to bed than I have been, thus the late getting up this morning.   Taking today a bit slower,  however, my car is in need of a good wash so that I will do this morning and this afternoon I have a much needed haircut.

Beautiful sunny day but, cool with the same forecast for tomorrow.  Rain showers are on the horizon for Sunday.   So goes the transition from Summer to Autumn.

Have a great day

Cheers

Slowly getting there

 Monday I worked all day unpacking and putting away, moving this and moving that and changing it back again.  Moving is a lot of work.  Did not need to be rocked to sleep that night.

Tuesday, picked up a few things at the shops, one thing was a cupboard for my bathroom that needs to be assembled.  Do they not have people to put furniture together anymore?  I have purchased several items during this past month and everything needed to either have legs put on or a complete assemble before it could be used.  Cheaper  to manufacture and shipping charges I am sure are the reasons why.  

Also had a visit from one of my granddaughters, she is in town  as she is going to be in a wedding on Saturday.  She has been friends with the bride since they were about a year old, as the brides mother was my granddaughters caregiver during the day while Mum and Dad went to work.

Here we are at Wednesday, the sun has now chased away all of the early morning clouds and it looks promising for a nice day, cool but, that's just fine with me.  Had a call yesterday from one of the furniture stores,  my TV stand is ready for pick up, so that is on my list for this afternoon.  It will fit in my car, as it will be in a flat box, you guessed it, it will need to be put together.  

Thursday I hope to finally have my headlight repaired, I don;t understand how something which I consider a simple fix turns out to be a major overhaul.  I am not a mechanic but............................

Friday, can't come too some for my hair cut, I am beginning to feel as if I am being covered by my hair.  It's not long by any means but, long for me.  I will be going to a new hairdresser, so keeping my fingers crossed I will be happy with what she does to my hair.   My DD2 has been going to her for a long time and recommended her.

That is my week, by the end of the month I am hoping I can relax somewhat, knowing all the things I need to buy, put together, unpack, put away and all important people, companies and organizations have been advised of my new information.

Yesterday, September 12th was the anniversary of my husband's' passing in 2010, where have those 13 years gone.  

Have a great day,

Cheers.

Signs are here

Almost the middle of September and it feels as if the Summer heat and humidity has come and gone, the air is clear and cool, time for the season to change and changing it is, as the signs are everywhere for Fall (Autumn).

Fields, ditches and waste land were all awash with the yellow flowers of Goldenrod , along with some of the late blooming Queen Anne Lace, wild blue cornflowers and wild asters.  I am sure they were all alive with bees collecting what pollen was remaining on the blooms and a place for small and mediums size wild animals for protection and food.  I should have stopped and taken a picture.

I visited my sister yesterday and she lives in an area were the soil is ideal for growing a lot vegetables and fruit, the fields of cucumbers which are grown for pickles have all been tilled, so that crop is done, there are still tomatoes and peppers being picked, however, the plants appeared to be almost stripped of their fruit.  The feathery green of the asparagus plants are still nice and green as are the rows of strawberry plants both of which produced a bumper crop this year.  The blueberry bushes  are also finished producing fruit for this season.  Fields of tobacco are still being harvested, only the very top leaves have yet to be picked, I am sure the farmers are hoping to get those off before we get an early frost.  Local apple orchards will soon have all of their fruit harvested, except for some variety that waits for a light frost to be at their best.

Some leaves on the trees have started to change from green to orange, the ones which were stressed for moisture during the Summer are actually losing some of their leaves.     

The clouds in the sky are now more grey than the white fluffy ones we had a week a so ago,  the evenings are drawing in and the air has "that" smell about it of decaying vegetation which has done its job supplying bees, insects, small  and large wild animals with shelter and food during the past few months.  The sun, when we see it, is now lower in the sky and has lost a lot of its warmth.

Squirrels and chipmunks are collecting nuts and seeds and adding them to their pantry for the Winter months.   The hummingbirds were busy for the past couple of weeks drinking the liquid from the feeder to store the sugar in their bodies for the long flight they soon will make to warmer climes.  

Garden centers have sales to hopefully get rid of some of the perennials  and huge displays of potted colourful Chrysanthemums are everywhere.

I like Autumn (or if you prefer Fall)  it is a beautiful season with the warm colours of red, orange, yellow and browns, however, it always comes before Winter, a season I don't particularly care for. 

Have a great day

Cheers.

P.S.  Does anyone know why comments are not showing up on my posts but I can read them when I go to the design page.  Thanks

Errands

Needed to take care of some errands today, pay some bills, change my pharmacy, dropped off something at an old neighbours, pick up a few odds and ends at the grocery and a mat for the apartment door.   Also bought a new mat for the bathroom, however, going to take it back, the colour was not right.  Can't decide on a colour scheme at the moment, tried a soft green, nope that didn't work,  next a grey green, that is not it either, still going to look in another store they might have a better colour selection.

Cloudy and cool just as the forecast predicted, that was just fine with me as I was doing all of the above, it would have been very uncomfortable in the heat and humidity we had a few days ago.  Tomorrow is suppose to be less clouds and some sunshine, we will see.  Hoping it's a nice day to visit my sister, it is a drive that takes  just a little over half an hour to do but, need to remember to head for home before dark.  

My second youngest granddaughter K will be here for a visit on Tuesday, she is in town for a wedding of her oldest friend, which will be on Saturday.  She is going to university in Ottawa studying for her PhD in science, concentrating on plant biology, this will be the first time I have seen her since early May.  I do believe K's sister C will also come home too, not for the wedding but for a visit with the whole family, as she has been in the N.W.T. since April, on a co-op contract with her college course of flight training.  Will meet with her also, it has been a long time since I saw her last.

Doing a load of laundry at the present time,  so should see if it has finished.

Have a great day,

Cheers.

Cars!!!

Today my car was suppose to get one of it's headlights repaired, apparently it is going take much more than a bulb or a fuse.  So what else can go wrong with a headlight, the garage needed one of their techy people to fix it, however, he was busy on another vehicle, so I still do not have a working headlight, plus now some of the dashboard lights don't  work.  I would take it to another shop, however, the shop is really quite reasonable with their prices and it can fix all of the lights issues now.  It will need to go back one day next week, in the meantime I have to be home "before the streetlights come on".   When my kids were young that is when they knew it was time to head home, it was a much safer world back then.

Cooler, much cooler and cloudy today, our weather goes from one extreme to another.  The air has a feel of Autumn in it, we have a couple of sunny days for the weekend, then some showers are in the forecast.

Slowly getting everything unpacked and put away,  one can only do so much of that in one day, so taking my time, it's not going anywhere.  

This week, all the school children went back to school on Wednesday, starting Monday they will have a full week of lessons.  One of my great grands has been at home with her Mum for all of her four years, so is having difficulty leaving and going to school,   I understand she refused to stay, I know my granddaughter has been preparing her for school during the past days and weeks, so do not know what she plans on doing now, because she will have to go eventually.  She has four siblings going to the same school but, obviously not in the same class or room.  I know one of her sisters did not stay in class and left for home many times, now she loves going to school.

It has been a busy day, 

Have a great day,

Cheers.

HOT

 We are in for a couple of days of near record breaking temps, thank goodness for A/C in my New abode. 

Yea, I have moved, by myself to another smaller city.   Been busy unpacking, thus the reason for no posts.

Today the thermometre was suppose to read 30*C however, with the humidity it felt closer to 40*C.  Summer has been so fickle this year, on day hot, then cool, wet and a couple that were down right cold.

All the local children head back to school tomorrow, even two of my great grands sho start Jr. Kindergarten, one will be fine leaving her Mum and Mum will be OK taking her, however, the other may have a major breakdown, as she has always been home with her stay at home Mum.  I understand from my granddaughter, it will possibly be a week or two of just going to school for part of the day when it's possible for Mum's or Dad's to stay for a couple of hours so children can get accustomed to the new environment. 

Today, I had to have a tire repaired on my car, found out it had a nail in it, where did that come from I have no idea.   That's the second on in a week.

Tomorrow, is the first meeting for my quilting guild since June, this year we have decided to have an afternoon meeting, instead of nighttime.  

Thursday, dinner to two friends and then on Friday, a head light on my car needs repair.   

Sounds as if it is time for some new to me wheels, however, hoping to limp my car through the Winer and then look in the Spring once the weather gets warmer.

So that's for me this Tuesday, I am off to bed.

Good night,

Have a wonderful

Cheers.