Changing Colours, Weather and More Party Prepping

The Ridge

Thursday, Sept. 29^th was a pleasant change to the day. The morning was dry and although cool at 3C/37F, no wind to make it feel any colder than that. Bill said at 6 that the sky was clear with stars but at 7:00 some clouds had passed over the Ridge. He left for work in Black Beauty at 7:30 and called me later, telling me the lower fuel price in Hanover. Ptooties was at ½ tank.

The sky to the East provided us with a morning show
when the sun prepared to arrive

Bill has been taking the truck because his morning commute is only 20 minutes and he also knows that I need the car with all my running around. 😉 I finished my tea and my games while sitting with Leroy Jethro Gibbs and hopped in the shower. I couldn’t even tell you what time I left the Suite but arrived in Hanover myself for just a few things this time. First stop was the Pioneer gas station where I filled up at $1.39.3/litre. In Durham, the price had increased to $1.53.9 so I'm glad Bill called.

From the east hill, the view across the pond is pretty

Like I said, a beautiful morning.

The list has grown 98% smaller with all purchases crossed off now so I’m happy about that. Now just the ‘doing’ stuff and that’s why Friday is important! I was back home within an hour and a half quite pleased with myself. I can’t tell you how great it feels to have a sunny day. I had my jacket off within half hour and my plan was to get outside with Gibbs a few times this afternoon.

a nice drive to town
with a few pretty trees

I didn’t plan much for lunch and when I warmed up some leftover cream of chicken soup, it was gross. It was Campbells but one of those no salt added ones. Blech! I couldn’t finish it so dumped it and had cheese, avocado and pepperoni instead. That would get me through to supper. I can’t say what I did for the rest of the day but it was all focused on Saturday’s party. 😉

Even the bushes in the ditch are hanging
colour
This is gorgeous!

My favourite North Line tree is starting to change

It was a great day to be out in the Bunky finishing things up. Gibbs ran around as if he too was free for the first time. He’s also been cooped up through all the rainy days. He had fun and stayed close to me without having to be coerced back. ♥ We walked down to the mailbox and on to the corner around 3:30. Bill was home just after 4 today and after having a brief shut-eye, we went out together to dump the black tank.

Another one near the corner

In front of our neighbour's property

With the mower down the road at the repair shop, it meant pulling the blue boy by hand so I went to help. It was a good thing because I think I truly got the process today. Next time, I will go out again and do more so it sinks in. 😊 I’d like to be a better rv’ing partner and that will help. We also put the hammock and the umbrella away in the storage shed for the winter.

Gibbs was waiting for his Daddy
and only issued very few barks

Grilled sausages and leftovers fried on the stove was our supper. We finished off the keto crumble, cleaned up the dishes and then relaxed for the evening. My blog may or may not get finished tonight. I hope so, tomorrow is a busy day.

Supper was easy to prepare and delicious
Good night!

This was a good day and I thank you for stopping around! Your comments are always appreciated.

My Delivery! Gorgeous but Cool Morning, Party, Ride, Campfire, Birthday

The Ridge

Saturday, Aug. 27^th, I didn’t have to get up for anything specific so it was 7:30 when I got up. Gibbs only jumped off the bed a few minutes before me because he heard his Daddy into the cookie cupboard. Bill was getting ready to go flying and was packing some snacks. It’s a cool 10C/50F when I came downstairs so when Bill left, I turned the furnace on for a couple of cycles. I know that’s silly but it was 14C/60F inside our home and I was chilly.

We had a nice walk
longer than normal

The house on the corner has this
in their yard
I had to look twice and then realized it was just target practice

I had my tea snuggled with Gibbs and then we went for a walk. I knew that would warm me up so I turned the furnace off before we went out. It was a great walk, down as far as M’s shop when Gibbs decided it was far enough. 😊 I will be unplugging from power today too; the sky is fully blue. Love these days! It will be quite warm by mid-afternoon, somewhere near 30C/84F, so I may regret not keeping things closed up at some point. We’ll see.

My latest book

I forgot to mention that I received a delivery yesterday when I was in Hanover. No signature was required but at least Bill was here to accept it. 😊 The photobook that I’ve been working on during August arrived! I’m always excited to see the finished product and Bill pleases me that he is always anxious to read it too. ♥ I think I mentioned it was a new company, if I mentioned the book at all, and I went a bit too big on the font (the better for older eyes to read it!), but I’m very pleased.

The hummers are so cute to watch
but a challenge to capture on camera
when swinging in a hammock with Gibbs

Unless I tell him to get off the hammock,
he waits for me to come back

Gibbs and I hung around outside with the birds, swinging in the hammock until Bill texted at 12:40 that he was leaving the field. I came in and made some toast and peanut butter for a quick lunch. I was thinking there would be food at the party we’re going to. Yes, we’ve been invited to our neighbour’s place, 2 doors down, to a Housewarming/Birthday party for 6-year-old, Carson.

#4
I'm still baffled

One eggplant is flowering nicely
I don't know if it will be ready for harvesting
before we leave though

The tomatoes are happy!

Meagan gave us a heads up that there would be about 15 little ones and their parents. 😊 We won’t stay long, methinks! We dressed in our jeans, even though it was a hot day, and we rode Jazz down the road. I’d listened to Carson and his brother on their dirt bikes all morning so we decided to show them ours. Ha ha.

I was happy to see white hosta flowers
A nice change from the usual purple 

Chicka-dee-dee-dee

King of the castle
Ever wondered why birds perch on the tallest branch?

Meagan met us with hugs and we were introduced to many young people, 3 sets of parents (in-laws plus step parents), and about 6 large friendly dogs. The place was buzzing. 😊 They have lots of room for the overnight, shelter tents and a parent’s trailer. 

This is actually Carson's little brother, Colton,
opening some gifts too.
I remember doing that for our children

The family dogs
Luna is on the left, Gibbs' furry 'fighter'

It was nice to be included and after a tour of the house and chit chat for about 90 minutes, I slipped into my boots and leather jacket and we went for a bike ride for a couple of hours. It was perfect weather.

A few places on our ride
Mount Forest

Clifford

Clifford wins the prize for the most
gorgeous flowers along the Main street

Neustadt
Prettiest town in Ontario?
So the sign says

It does have some pretty cool looking
buildings, of which are still in business

On the way home, we were hungry around 5 so stopped at our favourite stop, Jenny G’s, for fish and chips. Oh my, they were very good. Back home, we felt exhausted so cat-napped for half hour. 

There was a Harvard flying over
It wasn't easy to catch a moving target in that
blue sky on a moving motorcycle!

Are the kids ready to go back?
I'm sure it's 50/50

Droool, this was delicious!

A selfie on the bike
Not a halo, just bright sun behind me 😂

Bill slept and Gibbs and I rested. I can never drop off so easily in the afternoon. We were having a campfire tonight so invited Donna and Gerry over around 7. It started out to be a very calm night but by 10, the winds from the south were cool on our backs.

Gibbs was a little imp around the fire
Good thing we love him
He went inside around 9:30 and went to bed. 💗

Long post, many pictures, a day late.
Good night!

This was a busy but good day for all of us. 

My big sister is having a birthday today. Happy Birthday, Gayle!

Thank you for stopping by!

Positive Weather Vibes, Party Day Means Another Year Older, Perfect, Full House

We woke up on Saturday, Sept. 30^th basically at the same time. It was before 6 when Bill reached across and rubbed my arm. I think there was a little excitement in the air and in our minds for the upcoming day. I’ve been praying for a sunny day all week and even if that only partially comes true, a good day it will be!

Today, Bill turns 65. A great number! No one should grumble about getting older, I don’t think I have, ever. 60 gave me a bit of a start but when you think each year older means you’ve beat the alternative, what is to grumble about? I gave Bill a card and some jubes, one of his favourite treats. He gave me a look of “I told you not to get me anything” and quick on my feet I said “They are from Clemson”. Mom didn’t raise any dummies!

Happy Birthday Bill!

After my first tea, I drove into the Foodland to pick up my Romaine lettuce hearts and a couple of other things needed for our everyday living. Bill was on the move too but went the other direction to fill the water bladder at the Acreage. The sun is making an appearance and that is so encouraging! Back at the ranch, I mean, the Ridge, I cooked the hamburger and sauce for lasagna. How much will 10 people eat? We’ll find out!

Bill worked away at installing the equipment shelf in the bedroom and only needed my help to hold the tv once. The tv needed to be removed so he could screw into the bottom of the cabinet and it gave me an opportunity to dust back there. Oooh! That is disgusting, I’m glad no one else saw that!

It is a different colour but with the black tv and window shade it seems to blend in just fine
It looks great! and I have my cupboard back

While he was doing this, I got out my ‘newly-discovered’ waffle maker and finished off the remaining batter for breakfast. Bill loved them and I loved the quick, easy prep and cleanup. After eating, he vacuumed up his mess and put things away and I finished putting the lasagna together into two foil pans. My daughter interrupted our prepping with a phone call to her step Dad to wish him Happy Birthday. She is a keeper for sure! A phone call is so much nicer than a FB or text message, let’s face it.

And the sky is co-operating

 The good news for us is that her weekend plans all fell apart so I thought I’d invite her to come for dinner. One more mouth to feed meant nothing and Bill was very pleased when she said yes! If we’d had more room and if more family lived closer, I could have invited more but geographically it didn’t make sense for them to drive so far for such a short stay. The indoor space for a larger crowd is one thing we have sacrificed but we entertain however we can. One of his daughters would have come being only an hour away but she is in Myrtle Beach until tomorrow.

Turtles still gather on the log to get their suntans

With most things started, I took a walk down to the corner of Baptist Church Road. I wanted to see how cold 8C really was and was it feasible if we wanted to hang around outside at all. The winds are the kicker even though that sun is very warm. We might be sitting inside all afternoon which would be unfortunate but still entertaining!

Delicious!

I had my shower around 1 and Bill finished vacuuming the Suite and decided to lie down for his nap. He has been going steady since he got up too. The geese were in the pond again this morning, I’m sure also planning their journey south. I love how they follow each other through the channels in our ponds. Woops! I spooked them again!

Follow the leader

Spooked!

I walked up to my garden and gathered today’s bounty and as I walked down on the south side of the Suite I noticed that there was hardly any wind back there. Hmmm. I really wanted us to sit outside in the beautiful sun and this seemed possible since the wind was coming from the north. I began setting up our chairs in the sun in a circle and Bill joined me. 

A nice warm spot and Bill and Clemson relax for a bit

It wasn’t too long when our guests began to arrive around 3.

Our 'family' friends, Pat and Rob

My sister, Donna and Gerry

My sister, Cathy and Bill

My sister, Gayle and John

Our friend, Mike (also 'family')

My daughter, Bridgette with Clemson and Rob

At 4 I popped one pan of lasagna into the convection oven for an hour. Once it finished, we placed it on the grill mat in the Weber at a low temperature to keep it warm. The second pan went in the oven and by the time it was cooked we served dinner up. I’d planned this process out in my head many times over the last couple of days. How are we going to cook both pans to be able to serve them hot? Hmmm.

Supper was ready just after 6 and by the time we ‘herded’ everyone inside and got them seated it was close to 6:30. I dished up lasagna and they helped themselves in buffet style to the Caesar salad and rolls. We indeed had a full house but everyone was seated comfortably and enjoyed the meal. I heard many times ‘this is really good, Pat’ so that made everything worthwhile. Bill enjoyed himself and I do believe everyone else did as well.

We've moved inside and our addition of  the hi-lo coffee table was an asset

Couldn't get a smile out of Bill no how!

Mike declined a seat at the table so I could sit
and found it 'just fine' on the stairs

This one includes Gayle eating off our keyboard tray

When I brought in the carrot cake from the bunky, I lit the tea light candle I’d put in the centre and we started singing Happy Birthday. 

We had many choices for dessert as I had a Black Forest Cake and Rob and Pat brought a variety box of cheesecake. Yum! 

Forgot to capture desserts before we dug in

When the evening rolled on with laughter and stories, I felt very content and relaxed. Saying goodbye to our friends and family we all noticed how cold it was, already dropped to 8C.

The dishes will wait for morning, I’m only keeping the plastic plates and tossing the plastic ware. We have lots in a large box from Costco from years ago. Bridgette has the farthest to drive so I will be anxious to hear that she got home in her little Mini Cooper. I love her new look with at least 10” of her hair cut off. It was so great that she came for the afternoon/evening.

I'll pat myself on the back for putting a successful party together
Bill was very thankful
Just enough lasagna left for two - perfect!

Bill and I had another sliver of cheesecake and I poured myself some more Colio Blush wine. Time to really relax. We watched some tv and settled in for the evening.  I wouldn’t change a thing! The sun was hot and we sat outside out of the wind for at least 3 hours. I hope your day was at least half as good as ours.

Thank you for stopping in today. I love reading your comments.