A bit freaky......

One thing I don't talk about on my blog is politics and religion.  What you believe in regarding those two subjects is your business and has nothing to do with me.  However this post is about religion, well sort of.

So I have started going to church on a Sunday in a nearby village and I love it.  The Reverend is really nice and I enjoy his sermons.  The first week his sermon was good and I thought yep I agree with what he was saying and something he said hit home with me (can't remember what now) and that was good.

So this last week or two the weather has got a little warmer and because of that the cluster flies and the ladybugs have been out and about in the house again.  I have been cursing them up and down and been vacuuming them up whenever I see them.  So I go to church on Sunday and sit down.  I look at the stained glass windows and lo and behold there are cluster flies on the windows.

So I am feeling slightly better, thinking well we're not the only ones with these rotten flies.  The Reverend starts his sermon and talks about Lent and how Jesus went into the desert for 40 days and 40 nights.  He then went on to say about how one of his Clergy friends when in Israel had decided to spend the day in the desert to see if he could get a taste of what Jesus went through.

So this friend, said he discovered how silent it was, how hot it was, and how many flies there were, and that Satan had used this things to try and break down Jesus and himself.  At this point my ears pricked up, with the flies comment.  I have been cursing these flies up and down these past couple of weeks and here is the Reverend talking about those same rotten flies.  I thought wow that is so ironic and so freaky!!

I was relating this story to the Reverend on Monday and said I didn't want to know what this coming week's sermon was about, but if I turn as white as a ghost and run for the hills, then I guess what ever you are talking about must be very relevant to what I am going through at the moment!!

Then on yesterday's post I posted that joke about the Diary of a Snow Shoveler.  I prepared that post on Monday evening, and it posted as normal at 1am our time on Tuesday morning.  Meanwhile Tracey emailed me that same joke in between hands......freaky or what!!

There are just too many coindenceses happening to me at the moment.  I must admit I can't wait to see what the Reverend has to talk about this coming Sunday........

A sermon about lying



A minister told his congregation, "Next week I plan to preach about the sin of lying. To help you understand my sermon, I want you all to read Mark 17."


The following Sunday, as he prepared to deliver his sermon, the minister asked for a show of hands. He wanted to know how many had read Mark 17. Every hand went up. The minister smiled and said, "Mark has only sixteen chapters. I will now proceed with my sermon on the sin of lying."

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:Reevaluate the stuff in the rooms in your house. Go into a room and go through every single item in it. Do you really need that item? Are you happy that it’s there, or would you be just fine if it were not? If you can find stuff to get rid of, get rid of it – it just creates clutter and it might have some value to others. You also improve the perceived value of your house – and you’re likely to get a lot of cleaning done in the process. It’s a frugal win-win-win.

Another column and more English Paper Piecing....

Another week, therefore another column from me for the Eden Valley Messenger  I would love it if you had an extra minute to pop by and have a read and leave a comment.  If you know of anyone else who may be interested forward it onto them as well please?  A couple of other bloggers were kind enough to mention me and my column on their blogs this past week, Expat Mum and Smitten By Britain, so a big thank you to them for that!!  If you have another couple of minutes to spare, pop over to their blogs and say hello, they would love that.

I just finished this table runner, it's around 25 inches by 12 inches.  It's dusty pink, brown and cream.  All the hexagons are hand sewn and hand sewn on the table runner.

This is the back of the table runner.

Below is the material for my next project.  As with the table runner, I have no idea what I am going to make yet.  I will figure it out as I go along.

It was a quiet day around the acreage on Monday.  As predicted it started to snow around lunch time, so much for the Spring like weather on the weekend, back to Winter weather again.

I am not at this point yet.....but could be there shortly!!

The Diary of a Snow Shoveler

December 8


6:00 PM. It started to snow. The first snow of the season and the wife and I took our cocktails and sat for hours by the window watching the huge soft flakes drift down from heaven. It looked like a Grandma Moses Print. So romantic we felt like newlyweds again. I love snow!



December 9


We woke to a beautiful blanket of crystal white snow covering every inch of the landscape. What a fantastic sight! Can there be a more lovely place in the Whole World? Moving here was the best idea I've ever had. Shoveled for the first time in years and felt like a boy again. I did both our driveway and the sidewalks. This afternoon the snowplow came along and covered up the sidewalks and closed in the driveway, so I got to shovel again. What a perfect life.



December 12


The sun has melted all our lovely snow. Such a disappointment. My neighbor tells me not to worry, we'll definitely have a white Christmas. No snow on Christmas would be awful! Bob says we'll have so much snow by the end of winter, that I'll never want to see snow again. I don't think that's possible. Bob is such a nice man, I'm glad he's our neighbor.



December 14


Snow lovely snow! 8" last night. The temperature dropped to -20. The cold makes everything sparkle so. The wind took my breath away, but I warmed up by shoveling the driveway and sidewalks. This is the life!



The snowplow came back this afternoon and buried everything again. I didn't realize I would have to do quite this much shoveling, but I'll certainly get back in shape this way.



December 15


20 inches forecast. Sold my van and bought a 4x4 Blazer. Bought snow tires for the wife's car and 2 extra shovels. Stocked the freezer.



The wife wants a wood stove in case the electricity goes out. I think that's silly. We aren't in Alaska, after all.



December 16


Ice storm this morning. Fell on my butt on the ice in the driveway putting down salt. Hurt like heck. The wife laughed for one hour, which I think was very cruel.



December 17


Still way below freezing. Roads are too icy to go anywhere.



Electricity was off for 5 hours. I had to pile the blankets on to stay warm. Nothing to do but stare at the wife and try not to irritate her. Guess I should've bought a wood stove, but won't admit it to her. God I hate it when she's right. I can't believe I'm freezing to death in my own living room.



December 20


Electricity's back on, but had another 14" of the damn stuff last night. More shoveling. Took all day. Darn snowplow came by twice.



Tried to find a neighbor kid to shovel, but they said they're too busy playing hockey. I think they're lying. Called the only hardware store around to see about buying a snow blower and they're out. Might have another shipment in March. I think they're lying. Bob says I have to shovel or the city will have it done and bill me. I think he's lying.


December 22


Bob was right about a white Christmas because 13 more inches of the white crap fell today, and it's so cold it probably won't melt till August. Took me 45 minutes to get all dressed up to go out to shovel and then I had to poop. By the time I got undressed, pooped and dressed again, I was too tired to shovel. Tried to hire Bob who has a plow on his truck for the rest of the winter; but he says he's too busy. I think the jerk is lying.



December 23


Only 2" of snow today. And it warmed up to 0. The wife wanted me to decorate the front of the house this morning. What is she nuts!!! Why didn't she tell me to do that a month ago? She says she did but I think she's lying.



December 24


6". Snow packed so hard by snowplow, I broke the shovel. Thought I was having a heart attack. If I ever catch the man who drives that snowplow I'll drag him through the snow by his nose and beat him to death with my broken shovel. I know he hides around the corner and waits for me to finish shoveling and then he comes down the street at 100 miles an hour and throws snow all over where I've just been!



Tonight the wife wanted me to sing Christmas carols with her and open our presents, but I was too busy watching for the snowplow.



December 25


Merry -bleeping- Christmas! 20 more inches of the slop tonight. Snowed in. The idea of shoveling makes my blood boil. I hate the snow! Then the snowplow driver came by asking for a donation and I hit him over the head with my shovel. The wife says I have a bad attitude. I think she's a fricking idiot. If I have to watch "It's A Wonderful Life" one more time, I'm going to stuff her into the microwave.



December 26


Still snowed in. Why the heck did I ever move here? It was all HER idea. She's really getting on my nerves.



December 27


Temperature dropped to -30 and the pipes froze, plumber came after 14 hours of waiting for him, he only charged me $1400 to replace all my pipes.

December 28


Warmed up to above -20. Still snowed in. THE WITCH is driving me crazy!!!



December 29


10 more inches. Bob says I have to shovel the roof or it could cave in. That's the silliest thing I ever heard. How dumb does he think I am?

December 30


Roof caved in. I beat up the snow plow driver he is now suing me for a million dollars not only the beating I gave him but also for trying to shove the broken snow shovel up where the sun don't shine. The wife went home to her mother. 9" predicted.



December 31


I set fire to what's left of the house. No more shoveling.


January 8


Feel so good. I just love those little white pills they keep giving me. Why am I tied to the bed?

Oh the joys of Winter!!

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?
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Today's Money Saving Tip:

Is less better? Perhaps it was due to the booming economy, perhaps "keeping up with the Joneses", maybe its ego, but for many of us, we often seem to insist on the biggest and the best, no matter what the cost. When a $15,000 new car may be more than acceptable, we stretch the seams of our budget to afford a $25,000 vehicle. We buy $25 shirts with $35 designer labels attached. We opt for the $100 dinner at the trendy restaurant when a $20 meal would have been just as delicious. Think about where you are spending the family money--and how--to see if there couldn't be savings found with minor changes in habits.

Isn't this the most pitiful sight you have ever seen?

What do you think is wrong with poor old Molly?  Well seeing the bath towels there should give you a hint.  I had to haul her upstairs for a shower and she knows that's what's going to happen.  She won't go upstairs with me when I have my dressing gown on, as she knows what's going to happen, so I have to carry her upstairs!  What you don't see from that photo is how she is shaking.  Its a pitiful sight, it truly is, and it wouldn't be so bad, but it's all over in 15 minutes at the most.  I don't know, I have tried reasoning with her, that it's for her own good, as the shampoo I use eases the itchiness on her skin, but that doesn't make her feel any better!!!  I can't win.

Then when I let her out of the bathroom, she runs around the house, rolling around on any rug that we have down, quite a funny thing to watch.  As I am typing this she is sitting beside me, and I have to admit, she smells worse now than before, as wet dog smells worse than a dry dog if you ask me....LOL

On Sunday afternoon I was sitting sewing and looked up to see the two horses and wagon going over the field.  By the time I had grabbed my camera this was the only photo I had chance to take before they went behind the trees.

(click on the photo for more detail)

While I was outside I took a random photo of a Chickadee at the bird feeder.

Dh worked Sunday morning.  After church I went to get my grocery shopping, so we both arrived in the house within minutes of one another.  After a late lunch dh went to do some electrical in our bedroom, while I sat and sewed.

The sun was shining and it was above freezing I am sure in the sun.  It felt like a Spring day; however when you are reading this on Monday the snow should be coming down AGAIN!!!

Did you remember to put your mone in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

In the winter when the sun is shining make sure you open all your curtains/drapes, or pull up your blinds, to let the sun shine in and warm up your rooms.  Do the opposite in the summer, in the heat of the day close your curtains/drapes and blinds to keep your rooms cool.

Our day out........

We went to the National Home Show in Toronto on Saturday.  We had VIP tickets so for once we went through the "Dream Home"  It was very, very modern, and not my cup of tea at all.  However there were a few things that we liked.

The garage was really neat and I said to dh he should get the tire rack made up to store my winter tires on there. Yes that was some sort of fancy dancy tv in the garage!

(as always click on the photo's for more detail)

This is a doggy shower in the mud room,  It took me a couple of seconds to click what it was.  I suppose it's a handy thing if you have a dog, or even kids with muddy boots.

I love this sink, it was one of a pair in the master bedroom, and I could see those fitting in our house.  Wasn't sure what exactly you would clean them with, I suppose something that is non abrasive?

I have to say we were disappointed this year with what was exactly on show.  We have also clicked that before we make enquiries about anything we have to make sure they are willing to service our area where we live.  It takes us a good hour outside of rush hour to get to downtown Toronto, probably an hour and a half in rush hour.  So a lot of people won't even consider coming out to our area.

We want to try and get the basement windows replaced, but I had wanted to get a couple of quotes this time.  So I think we'll use the local guys again.

This is a photo of the Direct Energy Centre where the show was held.  That is the CN Tower in the back ground.

Next door to the Direct Engery Centre, is BMO Field where Toronto FC (Football/Soccer) play.  Notice the big wind tower in the background.

Food is so expensive at these shows that we decided to have a late lunch and we had left the show by 1:30pm.  So we headed into Brampton, and had fish and chips at the Heritage Restaurant.  They have the best fish and chips around our area.  They even had knitted tea cosies for their tea pots ever so cute, the same as this one.  They have a lunch time special of haddock and chips for $5.95 and you get a plate full.  We shared a dish of mushy peas, so guess we'll be "gassy" tonight...LOL

We also lucked out today, as Home Depot were having a 20% sale on all their interior doors, so we picked up the four closet doors.  They should have been $89 each, we paid $71.20 each, so the savings nearly paid for one door.  We could have done without getting these at this moment, but couldn't turn down that savings.

So tonight I am going to go through my bag of goodies I got from the Home Show, and read up on all the things we looked at.  Oh and dream about what we could do if we had the money!!!

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

If you're going to eat out at restaurants, eat out on a lunch time, as more often than not it's cheaper and if you eat a large meal at lunch time, you probably won't want much to eat later on in the day.

Sorry I didn't get around to visiting your blog today (I am writing this Saturday night)........

Bit of a catch up..........

Molly:

Well she likes her new food.  I have her down to 1/2 steroid pill per day, she's chewing her paws, but nothing too drastic.  I am picking up some of this Holistic Blend Organic Bee Pollen now this is supposed to help with the airborne allergens, who knows, it's worth a shot.  I need to get it into her system six weeks before the grasses and trees start growing again, so this will be the right time to start this.  At this point I am willing to try most things.

I ended up donating all her biscuits (had brewers yeast in them), all her old food; fish and sweet potato flavour and her shampoo, it had oatmeal in it, to the local animal shelter.  I also gave the vet her Omega 3 supplement, as that is fish based.........

Finally her back leg seems to be fine, she's a bit stiff going up the stairs otherwise she is fine.

As of Friday I can see patches of grass on The Acreage, finally.  The sun shone all day on Friday, so melted a lot of snow.  Which in turn let me see where all the dog poop was.  Considering Molly is a small dog, she poops a lot!!  I also dug out the end of the driveway where the snow had blown over.  It must have been knee high again in a couple of places.  Right beside the road though it's a mud bath, so that will be the next thing I will be complaining about, all the mud.

I finished the staining on Thursday and as I predicted I had the headache from hell on Friday and still have it.  That stain kills me, but its still much too cold to have the windows and doors open.  However on a more positive note, with the wind chill we are now only in the minus 8oC to 10oC, which is balmy hot!!

Now with having all this sun on Friday, those new blinds of ours came in handy.  Oh and that isn't a dead dog, that is Molly sound asleep on her ottoman!!  She was snoring again, I think that dog needs her adenoids out!!

An exciting photo of the close up of the blinds!!  If you enlarge the photo you can still see the snow.

The closet situation is on a go slow.  Dh is working six days a week at the moment, and like with any job we start in this house we have ran into problems.  This time its the electrical.  One of the plugs/sockets was to move.  When dh had a look in it, the guy had wired it wrong, and to cut a long story short that is only of interest if you are electrically minded, which I'm not, dh had to rewire it and pull new wires in, or something like that, and that involved taking up part of the attic floor.  I am actually writing this as it saves me telling my dad when I talk to him next.  Then he has to move the telephone jack again not a five minute job, and on and on it goes..........

I have to say it a bloody miracle that neither me nor dh have been shocked with these plugs in this house, dh is rewiring as and when he gets the time.  He's putting in a new electrical panel this summer, so he says.  As I have said before I have little to no interest in all of this, as I am of the opinion why do something yourself when you have someone else (dh) who can do things a heck of a lot faster and better than I can; that groaning and whining is my dad........I am so going to get a lecture next time he talks to me.....LOL

I have added more links to blogs on the section above my header photo.  If your's is not there please let me know, as due to me being nearly a year older, I have a tendency to forget things!!

We are having a day out from The Acreage on Saturday, as I got two free tickets for the National Home Show in Toronto  I was hoping to see if Stihl or Husqvarna were there as I need an industrial strength brushcutter this spring, in the hopes I don't burn out the motor this year!!!

Well that's my exciting news for today.  I will try and remember to take lots of photos at the Home Show.

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Ask your real estate agent for tickets to local events, especially if the company she works for is sponsoring the event!!  Remax is sponsoring the Home Show, and our real estate agent works for Remax!!

Gassy or Fart? Bathroom or Toilet?

When I open my mouth to speak, it's obvious I wasn't born in Canada; same with my dh and my dad.  When the kids start talking they are Canadian through and through.  The only way you would know they were British is by some of the words they use.  However there are certain Canadian expressions I prefer to use though rather than the British versions; and one of them is "gas or gassy."  I personally find the word "FART" not a pleasant word.  No idea why, just don't like using that word

Being gassy sounds more ladylike than saying farting in my books.  Breaking wind isn't an expression used over here, pumping is I think more of a British word, I will say trumpeting now and then, but "gassy" is my all time favourite word.

However for me being gassy can also mean I will burp as well.  I am especially gassy after I have had a carbonated drink like Cola.  Carbonated drinks make me burp something rotten, so I rarely drink them.  Again it's not ladylike to be able to burp the full alphabet after drinking a can of pop, now is it!!

I also like to say I am going to the bathroom rather than going to the toilet.  I think if you say bathroom, it sorts of give's the whole situation an air of mystery as to what you are exactly going to do.  Whereas if you're going to the toilet, well you're using the toilet...

Finally one other Canadian custom we have embraced is taking your shoes off when you go into a house.  It always horrifies me now when people walk into a house with their dirty great shoes on and walk all over your clean carpet?  Now in our case it doesn't matter as we have wood floors which are generally freezing cold.  However any house we visit that has a carpet on the floor, we immediately take off our shoes, unless the place looks dirty..........

(Mental note to oneself, if I visit a house of someone who reads this blog and don't take my shoes off, they will think I think their house is dirty now, so must remember to take off my shoes!!)

Finally, something I find funny.  Dd works for an international company and often they have conference calls with people around the world.  For some reason whomever they deal with in Britain must have a stronger accent that all dd co-workers have trouble understanding.  Meanwhile dd is chit chatting away to him no problem, while the other's sit there with a puzzled expression!!  She translates as the meeting progresses!!

A man was driving along the highway, and saw a rabbit hoping across the middle of the road. He swerved to avoid hitting the rabbit, but unfortunately the rabbit jumped in front of the car and was hit. The driver, being a sensitive man as well as an animal lover, pulled over to the side of the road and got out to see what had become of the rabbit.



Much to his dismay, the rabbit was dead. The driver felt so awful be began to cry.


A woman driving down the highway saw the man crying on the side of the road and pulled over. She stepped out of her car and asked the man what was wrong.


"I feel terrible," he explained. "I accidentally hit this rabbit and killed it."


The woman told the man not to worry. She knew what to do. She went to her car trunk and pulled out a spray can. She walked over to the limp, dead rabbit, and sprayed the contents of the can onto the rabbit.


Miraculously, the rabbit came to life, jumped up, waved its paw at the two humans and hopped down the road. Fifty feet away the rabbit stopped, turned around, waved at the two again, hopped down the road another 50 feet, turned, waved, and hoped another 50 feet.


The man was astonished. He couldn't figure out what substance could be in the woman's spray can! He ran over to the woman and demanded, "What was your spray can? What did you spray onto that rabbit?"


The woman turned the can around so that the man could read the label. It said: "Hare Spray Restores Life to Dead Hare. Adds Permanent Wave."

I groaned at that last line!!

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Give up expensive habits, like cigarettes, alcohol, and drugs. Those habits cause money to flow away from you with nothing in return. Call up your fortitude and work hard to kick the habits and you’ll find that money staying in your pocket instead of burning up and floating away.

I don't do any of those things, she says as she shines her halo!!

Just call me the "Staining Queen," and a funny..

Truth be told I would prefer the title "The Dancing Queen," but not going to get that title anytime soon.  So I guess Staining Queen will have to do for now!!


I went to the trim store on Wednesday and picked up the door trim along with the corner blocks and the plinth's.  As they were all unstained I set too staining them all.  There are three more door trim pieces out of the photo.  I have to stain them all again on Thursday, so that dh can put them up on the weekend.


The down side of this staining though is the house stinks of stain, so I can see a migraine in the near future!!


Oh and on the right hand of the photo is our treadmill all folded up, so I am proud to say that I DO NOT hang laundry on my treadmill like some people do........ I just don't use my treadmill at all :0)

Here's a photo of Molly down the basement investigating my staining skills!!  Her foot is a lot better I am pleased to say.

Things Housepet Beagles (and most other doggies) Must Try To Remember....

 I will not play tug-of-war with Dad's underwear when he's on the toilet.


The garbage collector is NOT stealing our stuff.


I do not need to suddenly stand straight up when I'm lying under the coffee table.


I will not roll my toys behind the fridge.


I must shake the rainwater out of my fur BEFORE entering the house. (MOLLY!)


I will not eat the cats' food, before or after they eat it.


I will stop trying to find the few remaining pieces of clean carpet in the house when I am about to throw up.


I will not throw up in the car.


I will not roll on dead seagulls, fish, crabs, etc.


I will not lick my human's face after eating animal poop.


"Kitty box crunchies" are not food.


I will not eat any more socks and then redeposit them in the backyard after processing.


The diaper pail is not a cookie jar.


I will not wake Mommy up by sticking my cold, wet nose up her bottom end.


I will not chew my human's toothbrush and not tell them.


I will not chew crayons or pens, especially not the red ones, or my people will think I am hemorrhaging.


When in the car, I will not insist on having the window rolled down when it's raining outside. (MOLLY!)


We do not have a doorbell. I will not bark each time I hear one on TV. (MOLLY!!!)


I will not steal my Mom's underwear and dance all over the back yard with it.


The sofa is not a face towel. Neither are Mom & Dad's laps. (MOLLY!!!)


My head does not belong in the refrigerator.


I will not bite the officer's hand when he reaches in for Mom's driver's license and car registration.


Thanks to this site for those tips!!


Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Wrap your water heater and pipes with insulation to avoid wasting energy.

Just thought I'd mention I cashed in my Swagbucks again last night for another $5 Amazon e-card, so that makes $30 worth for doing very little!!

(oh and I felt the urge for a larger font today??)

I give up...............

Poor Molly has now hurt her back leg, on what I have no idea.  I had to carry her upstairs as she can't manage them.  Although she is managing to hobble up the basement stairs?  Those voles and mice outside the patio doors are too big a temptation for her.......LOL

It must be bad as she is not attempting to get on the ottoman, the couch or the chair!!  She is managing the three steps on and off the deck and can walk down the stairs as normal.  So I will keep an eye on her and see how things go.

Then poor dh went and hurt his back on Sunday morning.  He was walking out to his truck to go to work, by the time he got into the truck he was in agony.  His laptop bag is so heavy, it's full of "stuff" and he must have carried it wrong.  It's been a long time since he has been in so much pain with his back.  Backs are funny things though, I first pulled mine out, by bending over to put some clothes in ds chest of drawers.  One minute I was standing, the next thing I am on my knees in sheer agony.  He is talking about going to the chiropractor to has his back cracked, he goes once a month anyhow.  Hell will freeze over before I let a chirpractor touch my back!!

Here is a link to my column on the Eden Valley Messenger.  As always please pop by and have a read of it.  I am talking about how our house disguises itself as a "Wildlife Hotel" on the side.  If you know of anyone else who may be interested in it please forward it onto them.  The Eden Valley is a small area of Britain, which is overlooked, so the more people we tell about it the better!!

It was Shrove/Pancake Tuesday on Tuesday and we were supposed to go to the local fire hall for a pancake supper.  However I wasn't feeling 100% and dh's back was still sore.  So I made our own pancake supper:

Now I have to say although it looks good, I now realize why we don't have pancakes very often I find them very dry, even though we put butter and syrup on them, along with bananas.  Still it made a change.

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Club pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Shop with a list and then STICK TO THE LIST! This one tip alone can save you a lot!! Impulse purchases tend to be expensive as well as unnecessary.

And what do you have drying on your clothes horse/dryer?

Well newly stained baseboard/skirting board, don't you???

When we stripped out the attic last summer we saved any woodwork that may be of use in the rest of the house.  There was a lot of baseboard in the attic, but not all the way around the attic, so we knew we couldn't use the original baseboard up there are again.  Meanwhile we needed some more baseboard for the closet we are building and so we pulled some from our stockpile.  A lot of the baseboard was damaged, so we can only use bits of it.  As you can see on the bottom of the photo, that piece has quite a bit of damage on it, so I only stripped what we can use.  You can see some of the original stain/varnish on the right hand side.  I have stained it English Chestnut to match the rest of the wood.

It is too cold in the new basement for it to dry in a few hours, so I popped it on my clothes horse, close-ish to the fire where I knew it would dry a bit faster.  I am going to pick up the door trim this week from this store  This is the only place I have been able to find trim to sort of match our house.

It's family day here in Ontario.  Bit of a strange holiday if you ask me, because half the people don't get the day off.  Dh is working, as the factory where he is contracted out too don't get it as they already get "X" amount of paid days off that's allowed???  Future son-in-law works for the Federal Government and as this is a Provincial Government holiday they don't get it.  Ds, he's working, no idea why as he's a chartered accountant for a private firm.  I'm guessing that they're super busy and that's why.  I actually know they're super busy, but don't know the reason for them not getting the day off.  Dd is off and is going shopping.....she is her mother's daughter.  And me........well as one day seems to be like another I guess I won't be celebrating family day either.  Although dd did ask me to go shopping with her, but as I have no money I hate going shopping when I have no money, plus I have a lot to do this week!!

My contribution for Valentine's Day.....I made a sherry trifle and put heart shaped sprinkles on the top of it!

It was my classic sherry trifle recipe.  Cake, broken up in the bottom of the dish.  Drizzle sherry over the cake and let it soak in.  Make a jello/jelly and pour over the top of the cake.  Make a custard, let it cool and put that on top of the jello layer when it has set.  Whip up some cream and put that on top of the custard, put sprinkles on the top, and then dig in!!!!!

Did you remember to put your money in your daily savings pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

One of the easiest ways to save for a particular goal is to include visual reminders of that goal around your house.

Want to retire to a remote island at the age of 55? Place some pictures of exotic beaches on your refrigerator or bathroom mirror. The picture will stick out like a sore thumb and constantly remind you of what you are saving for. This tactic can work for almost any of your financial goals including cars, homes, college education, bags full of cash, etc.

Busy day on Saturday and a Happy Valentine's Day....

We're not big on Valentine's Day in this house.  I will give dh a card but that's about it, and he will probably give me the same.  He has to work today, but will hopefully be home by mid-afternoon.

We had a busy day on Saturday.  Dh worked on putting the baseboard up in the closet.  Bit more complicated than normal as he had to join pieces and deal with other issues.

I did my usual morning chores, of doing the ironing, cleaning out the fire, bringing in the logs, picking up the poop and feeding the birdies.  Below are a couple of photos of Northern Cardinals.  The first one is a male and female pair.

Below is the male Northern Cardinal.

I then finished machine quilting the table topper, and cutting out and joining the binding for the table topper.  I just have to sew it on now.

After a lunch of cheese and cucumber sandwiches; it's ages since we have had cheese and cucumber sandwiches and they were good; we went to the city to run some errands.

I had ordered the closet organizer through the week, so we had to pick that up.  We also wanted to go to Lowes to check out a couple of things.  Glad we did as we were able to pick up some cordless Levolor  cellular shades like these that they custom cut to our sizes for only $58 a window.  There was also 15% off them as well.  I also got three spray cans of paint that covers rust, regularly $9 a can for just over $2 a can, in Hunter Green.  Not 100% sure what I will use that for, but I have a couple of projects in mind.  At that price you can't go wrong.

Got back home and dh did a little bit more in the closet, still a ways to go though.

Molly meanwhile was lying on the newly upholstered ottoman.  She looks depressed doesn't she....................though maybe not, it's her usual expression...LOL

When I was talking with Karine's mother on Friday, she though Molly may be a Beagle/Spaniel mix and I think she may be right, what do you think?

We are half way through the month, did you remember to put your money in your Daily Saving Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

When in a store, always check out the clearance section, as you never know what you may find!!!  Also I am finding our hardware stores are carrying more and more blinds that they can custom cut to fit your windows at much cheaper prices than custom ordered blinds.  It's worth checking them out!!!  Make sure you get an employee that can use the cutting machines properly though, as it easy for them to make a mess of the cutting. We originally bought blinds from Home Depot, and they made a mess of the blinds, she didn't make a straight cut and they were crooked, and we had to return them!!!

It's been a stressful week for me this week......

ever since I picked up Molly's allergy report.  We have been overwhelmed with what we should do.

The vet called back on Wednesday night and is still telling us to go with the ATOPICA, which we cannot afford.  She suggested I try some of the vet's special food; so I called around at the vet's office on Friday to discover that a small bag of the food, which would last Molly a week was over $50 :0O  So I refused to buy it!!

I spoke with Karine's mother on Friday, as she also has a dog with allergies, and I have to say what she had to say made sense and left me feeling a bit better.  I also called the pet store and found another food for Molly that doesn't have any ingredients in it that she is allergic too, it's Dick Van Patten's Venison and Sweet Potato.   This also has no fish oil in it, which a lot of foods do have.  Even the Omega 3 oil supplement we have been giving her has fish oil in it, so we have had to stop that.  The new food has flaxseed in it which is a good alternative to the Omega 3 oil.

So I feel a little better knowing I will probably have her food allergies under control in time.  The food allergies are the easier of the two things to take control of.  The environmental allergies are another kettle of fish though, and with Molly's being so severe I am not sure what is going to happen there.  As I have said before she is on Vanectyl-P which is a steroid/antihistamine.  As with any steroid it is not good for humans or animals, so the aim is to get her off those as soon as possible.

So we may try a holistic/natural alternative for the environmental allergies.  Any suggestions would be appreciated here.  If none of these work, we are considering putting her up for adoption.  That is a last resort, and one we don't want to do, but at the end of the day if ATOPICA is the only thing that will give her a pain free life, then it's something we will have to do.

I want to make it clear we love Molly to death and she is a great dog, but we honestly cannot afford the $100 + a month it is going to cost us keeping her on the medication.  Also having to get up before 6am each and every single day as she needs to go out for a pee, no matter how late we keep her up is getting tiring for me.  That is a side effect of the steroids, she has to pee a lot.

I will keep you informed on how things go with Molly.  Our hope is to find something that will work against all her environmental allergies before the end of March, when the snow will start to melt, as we will be heading towards her worst period of time for her allergies.

Sorry for such a doom and gloom post.

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip's:

• Help your pet practice good hygiene. Grooming and trimming nails regularly helps prevent many types of infection. Brush your pet’s teeth at least three times a week to avoid tooth decay and gum disease, which can spread to other parts of the body.


• Keep pets at an ideal weight and make sure they get plenty of exercise. Obesity leads to a host of orthopedic problems as well as diabetes, heart disease and other medical disorders. Find a high-quality diet that your pet likes and stick with it. If you must switch, do so gradually to avoid stomach upset.

• Keep your pet current on vaccines and parasite preventives. Don’t wait until your pet is infested or ill. Contact your local animal-control organization to see if it offers low-cost vaccines, including shots for rabies.

• Spay or neuter your pet early. You’ll save on vet bills for serious medical conditions such as breast, uterine and testicular cancer. You’ll also greatly reduce the risk that your pet will be hit by a car or injured in a fight, since animals “on the prowl” are prone to wandering and aggression.

• Keep cats indoors. The average life expectancy of a cat that goes outside is only three to five years, compared to more than 12 years for indoor cats.

• Pet-proof your home and yard. Store medications and chemicals safely, make sure that fences and gates are secure, and keep poisonous plants out of reach.

All tips are from this site

I would also like to apologise for not visiting your blogs, but with the Molly thing and everything else I have had going on this week, I am just pooped...

No way, and, something to make you smile on a Friday.......

I am in the process of changing the layout on my blog, so things will be moved about and changed over the next few days when I have time........I am pretty busy with "stuff" around the house though.

I was reading on another site I go on about what someone was getting for Valentine's Day. She is getting a HANDGUN and a bunch of flowers. I had to read the post twice to make sure I was reading it correctly.

Thought I'd mention this as if you're a bit stuck on what you want for Valentine's Day, a handgun would be something different!! This is someone in the States where owning a gun is a pretty common thing.

5 Minute Management Course

Lesson 1:

A man is getting into the shower just as his wife is finishing up her shower, when the doorbell rings.

The wife quickly wraps herself in a towel and runs downstairs.

When she opens the door, there stands Bob, the next-door neighbor.

Before she says a word, Bob says, 'I'll give you $800 to drop that towel.'


After thinking for a moment, the woman drops her towel and stands ***** in front of Bob, after a few seconds, Bob hands her $800 and leaves.


The woman wraps back up in the towel and goes back upstairs..

When she gets to the bathroom, her husband asks, 'Who was that?'

'It was Bob the next door neighbor,' she replies.

'Great,' the husband says, 'did he say anything about the $800 he owes me?'

Moral of the story:

If you share critical information pertaining to credit and risk with your shareholders in time, you may be in a position to prevent avoidable exposure.

Lesson 2:

A priest offered a Nun a lift..

She got in and crossed her legs, forcing her gown to reveal a leg.

The priest nearly had an accident. After controlling the car, he stealthily slid his hand up her leg.
The nun said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'

The priest removed his hand But, changing gears, he let his hand slide up her leg again.

The nun once again said, 'Father, remember Psalm 129?'

The priest apologized 'Sorry sister but the flesh is weak.'

Arriving at the convent, the nun sighed heavily and went on her way.

On his arrival at the church, the priest rushed to look up Psalm 129.

It said, 'Go forth and seek, further up, you will find glory..'

Moral of the story:
If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great opportunity.

Lesson 3:

A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp.

They rub it and a Genie comes out. The Genie says, 'I'll give each of you just one wish.'


'Me first! Me first!' says the admin clerk. 'I want to be in the Bahamas , driving a speedboat, without a care in the world.'

Puff! She's gone.

'Me next! Me next!' says the sales rep. 'I want to be in Hawaii , relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life.'

Puff! He's gone.

'OK, you're up,' the Genie says to the manager.. The manager says, 'I want those two back in the office after lunch.'

Moral of the story:

Always let your boss have the first say.

Lesson 4

An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing.

A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, 'Can I also sit like you and do nothing?'

The eagle answered: 'Sure, why not.'

So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.

Moral of the story:

To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.

Lesson 5

A turkey was chatting with a bull.

'I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree' sighed the turkey, 'but I haven't got the energy.'

'Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?' replied the bull. They're packed with nutrients.'

The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree.

The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch.

Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree.

He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.


Moral of the story:
Bull S__t might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there..

Lesson 6

A little bird was flying south for the winter. It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field.

While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him.

As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was. The dung was actually thawing him out!

He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy.

A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate..
Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.

Morals of the story:

(1) Not everyone who dumps on you is your enemy.

(2) Not everyone who gets you out of doo doo is your
friend.

(3) And when you're in deep doo doo, it's best to keep your mouth shut!

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Club pot?

Money Saving Tip:

A couple of frugal ideas for Valentine's Day:


MAKE A SPECIAL MEAL If you know your loved one, you will more than likely know what their favorite food is. If not, take some time to find out what he or she likes to eat. Your loved one will feel loved just knowing that you know even the little things about them.


MEMORY BOX Write your favorite memories on small pieces of paper. Your loved one will have a wonderful time thinking about wonderful times from the past.

Belated Happy Birthday, a recipe and other stuff....

It's come to my attention, namely through my other brother Nick, that I didn't wish him a happy birthday on his birthday.  So to stop him accusing me of favouritism, could you all pop over to his blog and wish him a belated Happy Birthday, it was on January 4th and he was 42.......oops wasn't sure if I was supposed to mention his age ;0)

I had planned on doing aanother post today but have other things to talk about.  It's also come to my attention that my laptop battery is not lasting any length of time any more.  When I am using my webcam I only get about an hours usage on it.  Not sure if that's a normal thing or not?

I made a couple of Sour Cream Lemon Cakes on Tuesday, below is a photo of them.

The recipe is from here

Ingredients:


2 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder

1 teaspoon salt

1 cup butter, room temperature

2 cups granulated sugar

3 eggs

grated zest of 1 large lemon

1 cup sour cream

.

Lemon Glaze:

1/4 cup melted butter

2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice

2 cups sifted confectioners' sugar

Preparation:

Preheat oven to 325°. Generously butter and flour a 10-inch bundt pan.

Into a bowl, sift together the flour, baking powder and salt; set aside.



In a mixing bowl with hand-held electric mixer, cream 1 cup butter and granulated sugar; beat at high speed until mixture is very light and fluffy, about 5 minutes. Beat in eggs, one at a time, beating well after each addition and scraping down side of bowl frequently. Blend in lemon zest. Add flour mixture to the creamed mixture alternately with sour cream, adding each in 3 additions. Scrape sides of bowl frequently. Pour batter into prepared cake pan; bake in the preheated oven for 55 to 65 minutes, or until a cake tester or wooden pick inserted near the center of cake comes out clean. Cool in pan 10 minutes. Meanwhile, combine lemon glaze ingredients in a bowl, blending until smooth. Carefully turn cake out onto a platter; drizzle evenly with glaze.

Serves 12 or more, depending on size of servings.

****Now this makes a heavy cake, almost like a pound cake.  Personally I would only make a half quantity of the icing, using all the lemon juice though.  It makes an awful lot of icing if you use the suggested recipe.  It also took the full 65 minutes to cook, and you need a large bundt pan****

This recipe though is a keeper!!

Did you remember to put your money in your daily savings pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Keep your hands clean. This one’s simple – just wash your hands thoroughly each time you use the bathroom or handle raw foods. You’ll keep yourself from acquiring all kinds of viruses and bacteria, saving you on medical bills and medicine costs and lost productivity. That’s not to say you shouldn’t explore the world and get your hands dirty sometimes – that’s good for you, too – but basic sanitation does help keep the medical bills away.

Don't you think that's a good tip, makes sense when you think about it.....

A Happy Birthday and other bits and bobs......

Well it's my baby brother's birthday.  He is 40 today.  Happy Birthday Pete.  Gosh time has flown by.  It doesn't seem like two minutes since you were an annoying younger brother who was always in trouble, and I mean he was always in trouble......he was forever getting a good hiding (spanking)  We fought like cats and dogs when we were younger, but I feel the older we get the closer we are getting despite there being an ocean between us.  Mind you the comment about the gift I sent him wasn't nice..........I sent him a Poor Boy Canada Cap, this one.  They are very hip and trendy, he thought they were for old men.  Guess he's not up on the latest fashion trends, despite the fact that I have seen both George Clooney and Justin Timberlake wear those hats!!!

Laura over at Ten Things Farm has a weekly post where she shows you what she has been working on this week.  I participate and this is what I have been working on:

This is going to be a table topper or centrepiece.  All the hexagons are hand sewn together and are hand stitched on the background fabric.  I will sandwich it together and do a little machine quilting on it.

I am not sure if I am going to keep this piece or try to sell it in the summer?  We'll see.

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Saving's Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

1. Don't Over-Purchase

The supermarket is a tempting place where the enormous variety invites you to spend, spend, spend. Try to buy only as much as you need to make a recipe, unless you have something else in mind for the same ingredients over the next day or two.






2. Buy Seasonal Ingredients


This is one of the most effective ways to keep your budget down; when fruits and vegetables are grown locally and needn't be shipped in from elsewhere, their costs drop substantially. So, try to use ingredients at the peak of their season: tomatoes, corn and eggplant in the summer; apples, pears and root vegetables in the fall; and peas, asparagus and stone fruits in the spring and early summer. Not only are these ingredients at their least expensive in season but also their peak of flavor.






3. Be Resourceful


If you develop the skill of using all parts of an ingredient, you'll be able to get the maximum value out of each and every one. For example, finding uses for herb stems or potato scraps, or knowing how to butcher and use all parts of a chicken, can be the first steps to real economy in the kitchen.

All the above tips came from this site

Bits and bobs.....

I made fabric softener today using the last recipe from this post  However it looked a bit "thick" to me, so I used 1 cup white vinegar, 1 cup baking soda, and 4 cups of water, plus a few drops of essential lemon oil.  I have made this without the oil and you do NOT have vinegar smelling clothes.  I just happen to love the smell of lemon.  Just a word of warning, make sure you shake the fabric softener bottle up before you use it each time.  I used it last night and it worked really well and everything smelled wonderful.

Molly decided that the newly upholstered ottoman wasn't good enough to sleep on, so she would sleep on the chair.  I didn't have the heart to yell at her to get off it!

Look at her paw behind her ear.....

This weeks column is up on the Eden Valley Messenger.  As always I'd love it if you could pop by for a quick read and forward the link onto anyone who may be interested.  If you twitter I would love you to "tweet" about it,  or have facebook pop the link in your page.........please and thank you!

I rang a couple of local newspapers to follow up with email's I had sent them regarding me writing for them, but no luck.  One guy did say he would keep me in mind if one of his regular columnists decided to quit or take a break???  I thought it was nice of them to accept my call, and as I said to them, if you don't ask you don't get.

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Savings Pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

Cleaning your natural wood floors. Since no two surfaces are alike, no two surfaces should be cleaned alike. Contrary to popular belief, wood floors hate water, wet mopping or any kind of excessive cleaning. My suggestion is to clean your wood floors with a solution of one-quarter cup of white vinegar (about 2 liquid ounces) mixed in a recycled spray bottle with about 30 ounces of warm water (most commercial spray bottles hold about 32 ounces). Spray a cotton rag or towel with the vinegar and water solution and use it to lightly damp mop your floors. Once soiled, replace each rag with a fresh one. This gentle method will clean your wood floors without destroying them, and ensure years of pleasure from them.


This tip came from this site

Lots of photos for a Monday.........

Sunday was a busy day for me. It was lovely and sunny and I am sure we were hovering around the freezing mark, Spring like weather!!

Took advantage of the good day to fill all the bird feeders, pick up the poop(!!) empty the ash bin and even clean the outside of the family room windows!!!

I got some sewing done, you'll see what I am working on, on Wednesday.

I cleaned up in the attic for dh as he had to work all day on Sunday.  He was surprised to see how tidy it was up there when he got in from work.

Have you seen my nursery below. My babies.....I took cuttings of an Apple Geranium. I hope to sell them in the summer for a couple dollars each. Its the leaves that smell of apples.  I used yogurt, sour cream and cool whip containers, along with a coffee container.

Here is the photo of our ottoman.

A close up of the fabric.  I am so pleased with how it looks.  I also cleaned out the storage space in the ottoman.  Which was also a bonus.

This is a photo of a needle book I got off my nana many years ago.  Not sure what the age of it is, but to me the front looks as though its from the 50's, what do you think?

This is the inside of it.

Did you remember to put your money in your Daily Saving's Club pot today?

Today's Money Saving Tip:

When you're out of money. Plants can be expensive, so when your running low on money using cuttings to grow new plants would be a good idea. Buying extra soil and rummaging around your house for an extra container to put it in is definitely cheaper than buying a whole new plant.