A BURST PIPE, A REPRIEVE, AND AN ANGEL WITH A GOOD CATCH!

Its a very hot day today, and already the day has been far too exciting for my taste.

We were going to head to Dauphin this morning and do a real good stock-up grocery shop, but then over breakfast we changed our minds and decided that we would put that off for a few days.

So I ventured across the street to water my neighbour's garden, leaving my cell phone at home on the counter.

When I got home, hubby met me at the door saying that a pipe had burst in the closet in his office, and that there was water everywhere.

First thing that went through my head was good thing we changed our plans.

The person who we have always called to do our plumbing had a stroke a few weeks back - and because we live in a small town, you can't just thumb through the yellow pages and find a plumber.

How lucky is it that when men visit they talk a lot about home repairs.  As it happens, just last week when we were having dinner with our neighbours before they left for holidays, the men were discussing a plumbing job that our neighbours had recently completed.  They had used a new guy who turned out to be just great - and our neighbour had passed on the info to my hubby.

We gave him a call, and he was in our house within 10 minutes -  but his first words to us was, had we called just a few minutes later he would have been gone out of town for the day to work on another job.

Would you say, we were being watched over?

I would.  First we were not supposed to be home, but we were.  Then we didn't have a person to call - but we did - and then he wasn't supposed to be in town - but he was.

Yes - for sure we were being watched over.

A new pipe has been installed, the water has been vacuumed up, and the dehumidifier is running in the closet.  I don't remember what I had planned to do this morning, so in frustration, I grabbed my camera and headed outside.

There is not much yet of interest to point a camera at, but I did find a couple of cute photos just waiting to be taken.

I took this one...

then I walked to our new little seating area and took this one...

I looked down the flower bed where yesterday I added a little angel planter that I had put a  marigold in.

And to my surprise - it appears she has managed to catch a recently hatched egg somehow.  My guess would be that the Crackling's have robbed a nest and dropped the egg in flight.

The co-incidence is just too amazing to be real... but there it is even so!

And it's just noon!

Interesting day, so far - can't wait to see what the rest of the day brings!

Have an amazing day, everyone!

IS THERE SUCH A THING AS BEING DOG-TIRED?

Well, here we are halfway through another week already!  Can the time go any faster, do you think?
I feel like I can't keep up with it.  But I'm trying to!

This week is a little slower paced than the past three or four weeks has been.  Now that the veg garden is planted I can coast a bit until things start to pop through the ground.  So far the only thing up is peas - and to be honest - I never grow peas - so I am wondering why I decided to grow them this year!

Oh well, they will grow, be picked and eaten and pulled all before the first tomato is visible, I am sure, and I will use that space for something else like more kale or lettuce, or such.

My biggest chore this week is watering.  My neighbour has gone away for a couple of weeks, and kindly left me in charge of watering all her big veg garden and beds - along with my own watering - this is taking a bit of my time.  But as much as I am grumbling about it - it has turned hot here, with temps in the 30's C -  so watering is very much needed.

This morning I actually spent some time up in the studio.  I am working on some mug rugs that will be sold in my Etsy shop when I get it up and running.  Today I concentrated on piecing 8 apron mug rugs...

( Couldn't get all 8 on one photo)

They don't look like much yet - but here are a couple of finished ones... Details make all the difference!

I also managed to finish a floppy sun hat for myself.  Made from 100% Cotton.  This will be very useful when outside working in the garden!

So even though I seem to be dog- tired at the end of the day, I have tried to keep my fingers moving.

I also posted a couple of new videos on my YouTube channel the past couple of days.

Today's video is about something I have re-discovered that was gifted to me in 1995...   I had forgotten all about it... till now.

You can watch it here...

https://youtu.be/bS1CJ9G0oQI

I have a lot of cut pieces for different designs of mug rugs, so I will be piecing for days to come, and then I will spend a few days appliqueing everything at once...

Of course when time allows...

I just want to take a moment to say hello to our neighbours to the south, whom have been experiencing severe weather events in the form of violent storms and tornado's.  I have friends, who's families have been affected by these events.  My thoughts and prayers are with you all... please stay safe, everyone.

Take Care everyone - 

TO GARDEN - OR NOT!

Many of my readers have been with me here on the blog for a very long time.  By now, everyone will have gathered that I love gardening.

Many of my readers also love to garden - like me they find the activity rewarding in so many different ways.

I cannot speak for others but my love of gardening has been solidly passed down through generations of family who have grown their own food - because they needed to feed large families.  They also grew beautiful gardens of flowers of every description, because they could.

My family's background is in farming.  So to put a seed in the ground, nurture it to grow and produce something useful to eat or to turn into cash to support a family was a natural occurrence.  

My parents always had a huge vegetable garden.  Our family ate fresh vegetables all summer long, and continued to enjoy good wholesome food for the remainder of the year, by eating the canned and frozen produce that my Mother prepared from her harvests. 

 I grew up knowing and appreciating what a tomato that grew and ripened completely in the natural way tasted like.   I grew up knowing how sweet a pea straight from a pod tasted.  How beans could be made to snap,  how the juice from a cucumber could run down your chin,  how raspberries and strawberries picked an hour ago could taste on ice cream.

If you grew up like I did, you can identify with what I say - and you will also agree, that nothing bought in a store or even in a farmers market, can ever compare to from the garden straight to the tummy.  

These days more and more produce is being imported from other countries.  Our governments would have us believe that this is cost-effective and important trade for our economy.  I'm not going to get political - but it's hog wash!

Consumers no longer have control over what they put in their stomachs - unless they grow their own food...  

It's a choice we make - or don't make.

I understand perfectly well that not everyone can grow their own - I couldn't where I used to live either.  But here, I can, and so I will.

The newly launched 2019 version of the Canada Food Guide, has now agreed, that more plant based food is better for our general health and well being.  So much so that they recommend at least one half of our daily dietary intake be plant based food products.

This is a major shift in thought - but one that I totally agree with.

It's a direction I plan to embrace.  More fruits and vegetables, more protein in the form of plant-based foods - less meat, sugar and starches....

If you haven't seen the new Canada Food Guide here is the link for it.  They even have recipes for you to try...

So pop some seeds in some pots or in the ground - and enjoy the flavour of healthy eating!  Your Heart will thank you!

https://food-guide.canada.ca/en/

WORKING HARD AND NOT LOVING THE HEAT!

Well, finally I have convinced  myself to take a few minutes away from everything and come in and sit down and write a blog!

Today was a very warm day - I think the warmest we have had yet this spring.  I worked outside all day long planting the vegetable garden, and it was so hot I had to remind myself that this is what we have been waiting for all these months through winter.  Not being someone who likes the heat - I had to remind myself over and over again.

We need rain - the ground is so dry - my garden soil is very sandy so water just vanishes when you add it to the soil.

So - the vegetable garden is coming along. 

So far I have sewed Peas, Onions ( red and white), Beets, Tomatoes (7 varieties, I think), Peppers (3 varieties), Cucumbers ( 3 varieties) Noodle beans,  Scallop squash ( summer squash), Lettuce, Kale  and Corn.

Still to go in - beans, carrots, pumpkins, butternut squash, acorn squash, zucchini , and some turnips for Thanksgiving.

I have also planted some Aunt Molly's ground cherries, which are a citrusy fruit, about the size of a grape.  Great for eating fresh or making jams and jellies.

I have really stepped out of my comfort box this year when it comes to my garden.  I am mixing things up - planting herbs and flowers right in with my vegetables - and really paying attention to companion planting techniques.  I also have a lot more structures in my garden this year - which is fun, but I am hoping that it also is useful.

Just have to tell you - as I am typing this, I have my windows open.  It is about 11pm, and the cows are bellowing somewhere out there.  I live in town, but there are a couple of farms close by.  They must be weaning the calves - seems to me this goes on every spring!


Anyway - I made a little video this evening.  So if you are inclined check it out.

One of these days I will get my real camera out to take some photos - but for now - the videos will have to do...

Take Care everyone...

Oh - and while you are on my you-tube channel - check out the little video I made about my dress cards...

Bye for now!

https://youtu.be/LkVbVOlLFBk

WHERE HAVE I BEEN, AND WHAT HAVE I BEEN DOING?

Good Evening, everyone!

It's been awhile since I posted anything here on my blog.

Spring has sprung, and I have been focused on spending as much time as I can manage outside working in the yard and getting the gardens ready for spring planting!

I have my vegetable garden ready to plant - now I am just waiting for the weather to co-operate.  We are still getting overnight frosts, so I am waiting for just a wee bit better overnight temps before I do the bulk of my planting.

I did plant my lettuce, kale and some green onions - and have seeded the peas.  I have also been filling my new tea garden with herbs, but the majority of the garden waits for better temperatures.

For those of you who have not joined me - I have started a YouTube Channel, and have been busy uploading some videos. Some are about gardening, some crafts, there is even a family history story series that I have started and will soon be adding the second video - "Love Letters" to the series.

 I am new at this Vlogging idea, so bear with me. Recording the videos is the easy part, then there is the time-consuming activity of getting the video onto YouTube.  Its a learning curve, for sure, and one that I am sure I will manage to learn... eventually! 

I also don't have a proper video camera, but hopefully that will change soon.

My channel is "Whatever the weather may be". If you like what you see, click the subscribe button and the little bell, that will let you know every time I add a new video.  So take a peek and let me know what you think!

I will get back to blogging as well, once the vegetable garden is planted... Phew - its all a lot of work - but I am enjoying being outside again.

I will also soon be re-opening my Etsy shop. I will let you know when that happens. I am just working at building up some inventory so I don't look like a "Wana-be" shop owner.

So stay tuned, my friends - winter is over, and I'm comin' alive!!

Here is a little video I shot today...

Take Care Everyone!

https://youtu.be/DIps_ESJplY