Cleaning Away and At Home, Getting Pumped & Pie Fiasco

The Ridge

On Wednesday, June 17th we woke from a good sleep to the sound of Bill's alarm. That's unusual, that he isn't awake by 6. It had rained a bit overnight, neither of us were awake and we certainly didn't get any more storms or he would have heard it.

Good morning!
This was last nights indecisive
sky.

Bill left at 7 and I dawdled before I left for town because I had a reason. I left the Suite around 7:45 this morning and went to the bank for some cash first. The Mat had 2 customers and one just as I was leaving. I drove to Impact Tire for our C the A tickets and then parked downtown in the credit union lot.

Remember yesterday morning's
breakfast meeting?
This was last night's supper club.

From there, I walked to Chicory Common Food store. This is the store that offers free space for crafters in the area on Sunday. I think it's only that day and I wanted to get a feel for what was required and where I would park etc. 

After I got home from town,
the sky did this.
LOL not again!
It amounted to nothing and was
a nice day.

David was very nice, is very nice, and encouraged me to come anytime on Sunday, even before they open at 10. I asked about parking Ptooties with the hatch open and he was gung ho for anything I needed to do. 

You'll get tired of seeing these before I will,
I bet. 

There is a food truck in the lot, always, so I will park behind the bank on a cement pad out of their way. 😀 Now, I feel excitement even if it is all for naught. It will be getting my feet wet without any cost to me. I came home anxious to start putting things together but first had chores to do.

Scapes on my garlic plants up
on the berm. Never grown it before
so asked Donna what to do.
Tomorrow, I'll cut them off
and see how they taste.

I dusted the Suite, way overdue, and  vacuumed under the watchful eye of Gibbs. He stayed cautious and well out of my way. 🤭 With that done, I brought all my stuff out, including our Dymo machine to make price tag labels. 

My first 'blooming'
evening primrose.
Soon, we'll be decked out
in yellow everywhere!
I love them!

Only stopping for lunch, a taco, both tables were covered as I tried to organize. They were still that way when Bill drove up the lane. Early again but sometimes you can only go so far in the jobs they do. It was around 1:30 and he and Gibbs had their snooze.

Gibbs and I walked down
to get the Home Hardware
flyer from the mailbox.

Of course, when he woke, he had to do something so got the weed trimmer (now gassed up) out and did some trimming around the front field, gardens, the corral and up the lane. Everything looks so good with that job done. We're expecting more rain tonight and tomorrow.

The gate garden also has
some new bloomers.
Bill was trimming around this area
and the front field.

The pie fiasco? Well, while I worked on my puzzle, I lit the Weber to try and bake it. Our bbq is dirty, we admit, so much grease in the bottom so there was no way this pie was going to sit on an 'unlit' spot on that grill. I did try but it got so hot, we turned it off. 🤔

Gibbs found another large
goose feather to bring
back up.
It's like they are a special prize
to him.

Bill suggested trying the convection oven again - so, when it preheated properly, I put the pie in. I'm cooking it for an extra 15 minutes than what the recipe calls for and my fingers and toes are crossed. For those who missed it, over the winter (can't remember what month) it wouldn't cook lasagna, rolls and a dessert completely. 

As I puzzle, Gibbs watches
Bill through the screen door.
He kills me! So funny.

Of course we had invited Ken and Kim over for supper. LOL. I was fortunate to have access to the clubhouse oven and the meal was saved. K & K were the most patient and gracious guests, making me feel better than I did. 

Looks like it finished, right?
Look again - next picture.

The plan, before we leave, is to remove our stove top and put a whole stove/oven unit in. Remove a couple of drawers and just use the microwave until it dies. I haven't needed to use an oven.......or I've made do without an oven so far. Until today. 😉

The dark table underneath
fooled you!
His pants and Jailhouse Rock shirt
are all that's left.

Supper is fish, chips for Bill and onion rings for me. And pie for dessert. 🤞So, our meal is done and the onion rings had me moaning 'oh, I love these!' until I got the eye roll from Bill. Not really, but, I'm sure he was thinking it!  

Yum, yum, yummy.
(love those onion rings - 🤭🤣)

The pie took a lot longer than it would normally, but finally cooked almost to perfection. Almost. It was delicious! We cleaned up the dishes, ran the dishwasher and watched the rain. Bill debated about going to the Hangar, mostly because heavy rains were expected. He didn't need a shower later!

It didn't brown up but it's cooked.
Maybe starting it on the Weber,
altered the process a bit.
It was/is so good!

This was a good day. I've made a decision, another one. The convection oven worked so-so, which is better than we thought. I don't want to depend on it for anything important but at least it baked the pie! After all that preparation, I'm very happy. We reached about 20C/70F with cooler temps tomorrow and rain and wind overnight.

We found these 2 chairs
on the side of the road
and on June 17th, 2020

I decided to paint them.

They are 6 years old (in our life)
and now beyond repair.
I'm looking for more on the
roadside! 😀
Good night!

Thank you for your visit.

Laundry Day, Photos, Quilling

The Ridge

On Saturday, May 30th, (already!) I didn't hear a thing until 6:15. Gibbs was already back in bed asleep and it was quiet downstairs. Bill did a lot of sleeping last night after we got home and didn't end up charging plane batteries. 

Good morning!
Last nights photo of the sun
saying goodbye.

I assumed that he was up early and doing that before going to the field. I remembered that he was a noisy sleeper last night too and I'd popped my ear plugs in at 10:30 when I went to bed. I haven't been doing that for 3 weeks or so. That's why I never heard him get up.

Traffic jam in the laneway,
so had to wait for this family
to cross. I'm always sad when
they are old enough to leave us.

I left the Suite first, at 7ish after Bill sorted the clothes into 2 loads for me and carried the basket out. Only Dollar Store Dave was in the Mat and we always have a good chat. He's never there on Saturdays so I was surprised to see him. 

Our pond looks so serene in the
morning sun's reflection.

He has a 'date' tomorrow so switched days and wanted to get the laundry done before opening his store at 9. He was gone by 8 and I finished up by loading our damp clothes and washing the floor. Today was a perfect day to hang clothes on the line.

You know what this is.
I wonder if they'll need to trim it
this year?

Gibbs supervised while I did that and it was cool enough that I wasn't bothered by any bugs. It was 7C/44.6F when I left and 12C/53.6F when I hung them. There was a light breeze so they would dry quickly and smell great. 

It's up to the sun and temperature
now.

I worked away on another greeting card and had a poached egg on toast for lunch. I never expect Bill home on time to eat with me on the weekends. Unless, of course the winds pick up or it rains. 😉 

Gibbs and I went out about 3 minutes before the little guy heard a familiar vehicle on the gravel road. His hearing!! Sure enough, Bill was coming down Northline. He'd stopped in town to fill our propane tank or would have been 15 minutes sooner.

I pulled out my photo album
of Ladyfest pictures.

He's had difficulty with getting the tailgate open (& sometimes closed) and sure enough, with a 40 lb. filled propane tank in the back, it happened today. He had to lift it up over the gate and all I could do was steady it for him. I guess Black Beauty will be going to a repair shop to see what can be done.

These are fun to look through!
Recognize anyone here from 33 years ago?

At 2 pm, I brought the clothes in, completely dry. This time, the blackflies found me and I'm sure bit me a few times. They get around my face, my glasses and neck. Grrr! They need to vacate! Bill worked on the tailgate and I came inside with Gibbs.

I wanted to refresh my memory about when I started going to Ladyfest with my sisters. They started back in the 80's, Cathy will remember the date she and Donna hopped on the train to Montreal, which started the whole thing. ☺️ For me, it was 1993 and I've missed 3 years.

I try hard to come up with new
ideas for my cards but then I
realized, they don't all have to be so
different. They aren't going to the same powers are fun to do.lace.
LOL
these flowers are fun to do.

Looking at the pictures is a lot of fun. The places we've stayed, the hairstyles, the clothing choices and the times my youngest sister joined and those precious moments when Mom joined us. She kept saying "this will be my last year, I am slowing you down". ❤️🤭

I have hard copies of pictures from 1993 up to 2008 and the rest are on my laptop. I almost want to put those on a stick and take them in to get printed. Not the scenery ones, just the ones with us in them. 🤔 Still debating that. They are certainly fun to see again. 

Supper was good.

For supper, we had fish and chips. I blanked out the fact that I had fries last night (🤫) and had a handful tonight. Bill deep fried them and I air fried the fish in Rosy. It was a good meal and we had the last of the strawberries and whipping cream for dessert. 

I'd never heard of a sour dough
chocolate chip cookie before.
🤔

Oh, and part of a sour dough chocolate chip cookie that Bill brought home from the field. Friend of a friend (kind of) made them. Good, but quite heavy and filling! We cleaned up the 'wash me' dishes and ran the dishwasher with the rest.

Bill went out to cut the front field's grass before going to the Hangar and I worked on my blog before watching tv while quilling. The creative juices have been flowing but I'm stumped on this particular card. Hmm, need to finish it tonight or I may abandon it altogether.

This is the work in progress.
Not sure yet what I'm doing with it,
but I'll figure it out and share tomorrow.
Maybe. 
😂

This was a good day. I'm disappointed that now that we have such lovely weather, the black flies are still hanging on. I have a handful of bites giving me grief already so I'm a bit timid of being out unless I'm fuilly garbed. What fun is that?

We only reached 20.55C/69F at its peak today and that wind was definitely on the cool side. Tonight, cool again, below 10C and low 40'F but we put the Blue Flame heater away. We haven't been turning it on at night anyway for about a week.

So, Once in a Blue Moon (every 2 or 3 years).........you'll see this. Apparently. It won't be a blue moon, like its name, but it will be full and apparently the smallest full moon on record. 😉🤔 Okay, the sky is clear so I'll watch for it in my dreams since I won't be awake at 4:45 am.

Now it would be much more
fun if it were really blue!!
Good night!

I hope you've enjoyed your Saturday. Thank you for popping in.

Busy Morning, Fun Family Reunion

The Ridge

On Sunday, July 13th Bill woke me up by rubbing my foot at 5:55. My foot was sticking out from under the sheets, as I often find myself doing. He was going to get water at the Acreage. He knew we were getting low but there wasn't going to be enough for me to shower if he didn't go now. 💕

Good morning!
My shadow man was out taking pictures
of the Buck/Hay/Thunder (all names I got from Nancy's blog)
Moon the other night. 

I stayed in bed for another 15 minutes and got up to sort laundry. It was a cleaning day as well at the Mat. Bill was back by 6:40 and I left with the basket of clothes about 10 minutes later. Just Shelley there and as I was leaving with clean ones, Mr. 'me, me, me' walked in. Good timing on my part!

A lovely day on the horizon.
The sky tells me so.

I came straight home and hung the clothes on the line. It was gearing up to be another hot day so they would dry fast. Bill had closed windows before he left and turned the a/c on. It felt really stuffy inside so I bumped the temperature down so it would come on. Gibbs would be alone and I wanted him comfy.

I drive past Robin's house every day
and always make sure things look normal.

My cupcakes got frosted last night so all I had to do was cut up the spuds and mix up the salad. Well, I had to pack a cooler bag with the food, drinks and plates and utensils. Bill wasn't planning on joining me as after flying, the boys were helping Peter get a wood stove out of his house. Timing was up in the air. 😉

I needed to pick some green onions
for my salad.
First harvest! 😂

When I was loaded with the above, my chair, camera and tripod and hat, I headed out. It was just after 11:30. Donna texted and asked if I would pick her up, Gerry wasn't going to go this year. We arrived at my cousin Harvey's in good time. 

Good day for a picnic, eh?

The traditional (from our parents' days of hosting) plan was meet at 12, eat at 1. We've upheld that, even in their absence. There was some updating required in the old family book, eg. marriages, deaths, births, so Donna and I added our own wedding dates and Mom's passing. 

Food was set up inside their home.
Top L to R: Charlene, Jennifer, Tammy, Ralph,
Ellen, Rob.
Bottom L to R: Mary, Brad, Harvey, Charlene, Jennifer

We sat outside on their lovely deck until Harvey announced that food was ready. The shop was all cleaned and swept with tables set up to eat inside.

There was plenty of food but only 15 people
so leftovers!

The heat was a bit much but it is also more comfortable to eat at a table, if possible. 😋

Good eats!
The pecan pie was dessert for Bill.
Honest!

I had a great chat with Brad, Harvey's younger brother, about 'everything' music. Kind of. He asked about musicians in the family, remembering my first husband's talent. The food was great, lots of variety, even those little pastry stuffed sausages that Aunt Fern used to make. Yum!!

Here we all are. A small group of 15 this year
BUT it was great conversation with everyone. 
I really enjoyed today.
L to R Back row: Darcy, Cathy, Harvey, Charlene, Ellen, Brad, Mary, Bill
Sitting L to R: Patsy, Rob, Sue, Ralph, Jennifer, Donna

As we sat chatting, I recognized a voice and saw Bill had come in on Jazz. 💖 That made me very happy. We all sat on the deck until around 4:30 or later. It was a great time. I did get my camera set up and we had some laughs positioning everyone. Poor Jennifer, she got moved around the most!

Who's that handsome biker?
And look at that Yamaha! 
💕💕

Bill pulled out with Jazz first and I dropped Donna off at home before heading to the Ridge myself. It was still warm but would be cooling down for the evening and overnight again. We reached a high of 27C/81F and that was pretty nice. 

Funny story:
Bill usually gives Gibbs cheese with his supper
when he's making his lunch. Gibbs had not eaten his
breakfast (w/cheese in it) so Bill just told him
'you didn't eat breakfast, I don't think you need any more cheese'.
Gibbs dropped his head in a pout......tell me he doesn't understand!!
(ps, yes, he got more and gobbled everything up.

No supper was necessary, so Bill made tomorrow's lunch and we relaxed for the night. There is leftover potato salad and cupcakes for tomorrow and a new week begins!

My Uncle Jerry could not make it today,
his health has gone downhill but he sent some
of Aunt Grace's jewellery items for us to choose from.
I saw this simple gold chain with a heart and
I knew I would be proud to wear it in her honor.
Good night!

Thank you for your visit!

 

Cleaning, Laundry, Holed up Inside

 

The Ridge

On Sunday, May 18^th we were up sorting laundry by 7 and after I’d made my tea to-go I was out the door at 7:15. It was a cold, morning, only 8C/47F and with no sunshine, it felt colder than that. There wasn’t ‘supposed’ to be any rain today, well, originally, but apparently that all changed and it was light spatters most of the day.

Good morning!
This was the best we got
all day.

I arrived at the Mat and found a couple of regulars already doing loads. I loaded 3 machines and went about cleaning. Three more customers (2 in pairs) came in to take advantage of a wet, dull Sunday. They just kept coming in. 😊 This was the busiest I have seen the Mat in many moons! Obviously, I used two dryers and it was about 9:30 when I returned home.

Gibbs was being very good
letting Daddy get knots out
of his ears.

Bill and Gibbs were inside, again obviously, it was a crappy day. I guess we should be grateful that it isn’t wet AND white, just wet but even when the spitting stopped, it was quite chilly. We stayed huddled (I’ve said that a lot this spring!) indoors until lunchtime when we each had toast. Bill went to the Hangar and turned his heater and tv on while he worked on planes.

Gibbs wasn't out much today
but when the rain stopped, he
wanted to sit on the step.

I stayed inside with Gibbs and kept warm with the furnace running occasionally to keep the Suite at a comfortable 19C/67F. Gibbs slept, mostly, and I got out my paper quilling supplies to make some greeting cards. We’ve received a lot of cards from the charity companies, War Amps (who we often donate to) and others.

Look closely and you'll see the
'whole story'.
He has perfect view of the Hangar.

Most are blank and I keep those because of the nice stock they are made on. I reuse them, keep the envelopes and cover the pictures so I can make my own. 😊 They keep sending them, so I’ll keep using them up this way rather than recycling them. I managed to get 4 cards made, using up some of the figures that I’ve quilled over the last few months.

At 5:30, I used Madame IP to reheat a 3 lb. fully cooked ham for supper. Adding a few potatoes and a vegetable for each of us made a nice Sunday meal and there are leftovers. Bonus! It was delicious with the glaze I made for the ham and then we topped it off by having Chapman’s Black Cherry ice cream for dessert. ♥

Supper was very good!

We cleaned up the dishes and watched some reruns of the old tv series Bionic Woman. Remember that one? 😊 This has been truly an inside day for me, since 9:30 anyway! I regret not getting outside to do some work but I enjoyed doing my own thing.

Oh yah! After a long sabatical,
ice cream is in the house.
At only $4.59/carton, it had to!

A surprise ‘accidental’ pocket dial from my daughter this afternoon made it all that much better! ♥♥ I hope your long weekend is going okay too, despite the weather. We reached a high of only 8C/47F.

Two years ago,
there is that tree with very few blossoms
and a hazy afternoon sun.
Good night!

Thank you for stopping by.

Cleaning, Cold Wind and Sunshine

The Ridge

On Thursday, May 8^th we are almost at the end of another week and we are still encountering cold temperatures. I was up at 7 and Bill left around 7:30 for Ayton. It was within 10 minutes and I was on my way into town. After a number of ‘feeling great’ days, I woke up bothered by my sciatica pain again. Good grief! Oh well, at least it isn’t every day now and that is an improvement.

Good morning!

Cathy told me last night that
her male Oriole brought his mate to her feeder.
I think perhaps, ours has done the same today.
One is a tad lighter in colour.

It was quiet at the Mat and I was done within the hour. I drove to Foodland for Bill’s bread, inquired about the Carbonaut bread (which is low carb) and put that in my memory bank for another day when the shelves are stocked. Then, I drove to Impact Tire to pick up our Catch the Ace tickets before returning to the Ridge, and Gibbs. 😊

A goofy picture but I'm liking
these new hats. Bill's is a different,
more manly pattern. 😁

The clouds cleared out and late morning, and the Suite finally warmed up. It was chilly without the furnace, which we ran through a few cycles first thing and then after I returned home. The floors were cold are where we feel it most. Once the sun was out full, it warmed up quickly enough. At noon, my delivery came. Two mosquito net hats and tortillas. I ordered them yesterday!

Yay! Low low carb Tortillas!

I made my bp coffee and had my pizza for lunch, reheated in the air fryer and it was almost as good as last night. Yum. Then I went outside, not to work, but to walk around the property and stretch the kinks out. Gibbs wanted nothing to do with going out, strange, but I kept checking on him to see if he’d changed his mind.

I was distracted by 'someone' cutting grass at
the vacant house with the little farm tractor
that was left when she moved out. 

I walked down for the mail, watched some happenings at the vacant house next door and decided to work on the window frames I’d picked up a few years ago. I knew I wanted to do something with them and finally decided. At least one is finished, the other is close, I just need to come with something for the third pane. 😊

It sat out all winter instead of being
moved into the empty garage. ????

Gibbs had finally come out and enjoyed the sun for about an hour before we both closed things up and came inside. Boy, it’s nice and warm in the Suite now with just the sunshine for heat. For supper, I reheated the meatloaf, my cauliflower, and cooked Bill some potatoes and mixed vegetables. That did the trick and we were filled.

I roughly scraped the loose paint off first.
Notice the hole where a stone from the weed eater
hit?

 

I used my markers to write on the glass.
The words are sprayed to protect them from rain.

The temperature did not get very high today, only 9C/49F, what the heck? At least we were thankful for the sun. Not sure what is happening with our spring weather. Last night outside the restaurant, I took a picture of a sign that has disappeared into cyberspace. It said something like this:

                                     Mr. Weather, you have many

                                      personalities.......................

                                              PICK  ONE!!

This has still been a good day. The birds are happy, we’re making a bit of cash and we are healthy. ♥ Reasons to be thankful.

An easy meal to prepare tonight.
Good night!

Thank you for your visit today.