Hot Diggity Birthday

A much anticipated birthday.  We discussed the menu for weeks.  His birthday present was ordered and tucked away almost a month before.  

He kept us apprised of the countdown for two full weeks.  

He woke early and eager to begin the excitement.... Just as it happened eight years earlier.. Sarah was there to greet him!  We were surprised by a birthday visit from Sarah and Boomer!  She arrived in the middle of the night and was eager to come in out of the cold when we awoke.  

They went on an early morning walk, which resulted in Boomer discovering some muddy marshy areas and requiring a bath when the returned.  

We then enjoyed Hot Cocoa and croissants.  

It was followed by games and he opened his gift from Whittaker.  

Whittaker had an idea and worked out in the shed in secrecy for two weeks getting the action figure activity house built.  It was a hit.  

Birthday Biking

Obviously a birthday is a great day for a bike ride... most days are, but especially birthdays.  

You  might think that a bike ride every  few days would get old... but we've managed to try a new route almost each time.  We also discover new things each time... such as... a house made out of straw... a teepee house... a few cute tiny houses... some signs that tell us to slow down and enjoy our time... others that say enjoy the retreat... another says, 'this is where love is'.  We discovered Mary Kay's pink vacation house and some 'golden arches'... no drive through though.... no building either.. just the golden arches in the middle of a field.  We also found tangible goodies, some lupine to transplant, a tall stack of old tires just begging to be used for something... a decoy owl which we were joking we should stop and ask if it was any good at keeping the gophers away... we found two stacks of lumber just waiting to be turned into some fun project... we found some baby goats and plenty of dogs.  we found a few hills and a bridge over the canal, and a lot of good rocks to be gathered..  

Now we joke that we have a full day of errands to send Patrick on with the truck to gather all of our finds.... I still want him to retrieve the lovely doors in the old abandoned stone house..  

Lunch was Fried egg sandwiches with Root Beer floats!  Sarah had a gift of colour changing cups that were instantly put to use with our floats.  

After we ate we played Jenga and apples to apples.  Then Jim and Sarah took a snooze while we went out on the porch to hammer nails as quietly as we could.

It was our Thursday art, String Art Project

Once the hammering was completed, we went inside to wrap the string on our creations.  Such a variety of art.  

Supper had been long anticipated..  He wanted hot dogs and tater tots.  I baked hot dog buns, and Sarah had some fun cream cheese stuffed bagel bites.  

Jim presented Emerson with a delightful birthday party hat.  It was fashioned from a punctured wheel barrow tire tube taped to a record; decorated with colourful streamers.

  

He then opened his gift from Mummy and Daddy and was surprised to find a train track turn table and round house.  After dessert (a fruit pizza with a brownie crust, cream cheese icing sauce and plenty of fruit {DELICIOUS}) and another game of Jenga, with Daddy and Jim this time, he headed off to create a train track throughout the entire living room.  

We enjoyed the day until we couldn't go another minute.  Even bedtime was a party.

Jam sessions

Some of our laid back days of autumn.

While Jill was visiting we had many a musical jam session.  

She also taught us to make pepper jelly.  mmmm...we're all hooked.  We sent Miles to get crackers but he couldn't find any in the store... as in he couldn't find them.. not that they didn't have any.  We did eventually procure some crackers however these days we discovered that they're really yummy on cucumber slices!  We also mixed a softened cream cheese and a jar of jelly together and it was a great veggie dip. 

Gingerbread houses at Retirement Center

I've been in charge of the homeschool co-op's monthly visit to the retirement center.   

Scheduling the time was the easy part I learned.  I also needed to decide on the activities.  We had been reading to the elderly, but clearly that wasn't a hit.  Many were nodding off while the kids read and since most couldn't hear well, having ten children reading all at once didn't work well.  

We did a playdough time.  Both elderly and children tried to eat the dough.  Soo... for December I decided to let them eat.   

This was the biggest hit.   We didn't have enough room for everyone.  We've never had so many attend our events.  It also lasted two hours instead of the normal one hour.  Some really got into the decorating, others liked licking the frosting off the crackers and others just watched as their child/partner created masterpieces.  All snacked a little. 

We had so many leftover supplies...  My boys decided we could make houses again at home. 

Cookies and Instant Sugar Rush anyone?

Since the gingerbread house building had been SUCH a success, we decided to decorate cookies for February.  

I was a bit nervous about using the decorating bags and tips since my experience always has the icing coming out the back end..  

I tied the bags closed as tight as I could.  

Only two of the twelve bags had exploding issues.  WHEW!

What I should have been more concerned about was the SPRINKLES!

First of all they came out quickly.. Secondly, once the kids started sprinkling, they didn't want to stop!

Some of the cookies were as tall as they were wide!

We had one batch of store bought icing.  We knew right away who was eating cookies with that icing.... they had the green and blue lips!

I've now been told that my activities are looked forward to.  I can't decide if it's the excessively messiness they enjoy or the recent sugar rush!  Our spring activity last year was planting flowers... it was also messy... and thankfully no one ate the flowers or the dirt.  

Duncan says bingo and art day are the only other really anticipated activity days. 

Maybe we should plan an art inspired bingo party... using candies for markers. 

I have three more to plan.  One will be our class musical recital.

New Year... Old Stove

To ring in the new year... we decided to cook with the cookstove.

Unfortunately.... it took a bit to get started.  We forgot about one of the dampers and instead of just lighting the stove and getting our breakfast started... we filled the house with smoke and had all the windows and doors open letting in freezing winds.

Bring on 2020!

But just as with 20/20 vision... hindsight will hopefully help us remember for future cookstove adventures.  We did eventually have success and breakfast.

We baked all day.   A delightful turkey broth simmered on the stove and wafted a wonderful aroma through the house.  We baked bread and rolls. Then we added vegetables and meat to the broth and had a divine soup.  We still had goodies from Christmas and nibbled on those also.

We had our friends over again and spent the day playing games.  Jamie W. made lovely bookmarks for the girls and our much hoped for snow began to swirl outside.

Sledding was done... firewood was carted and food was consumed.  It was the sort of day that makes you wish everyday could be so grand.  It was a delightful beginning to the new year.

A little giddiness before bed with yet another reference to 'rule #1'.

Off to sleep.... mid-sentence or thought.

We enjoyed each day to the fullest and fell to bed pleasantly exhausted each night.

Gratitude.. Canadian style

It's not every year that I am on top of celebrating Canadian thanksgiving.. It's always more simple than that November one!

We keep it fairly simple.  I had a free turkey so this year I made sure not to forget.  Plus we could celebrate before Miles left!

Since it was a Monday, Miles and Duncan's friend Liam was at our house.  He doesn't eat much of anything... but his mother's parting words were... Try everything!

He did... one tiny bite.  Then he ate mashed potatoes and turkey.

He didn't even like pie!

We had a delightful conversation with the boys though.  Although our life is nothing like we imagined it... we are very grateful for how lovely it has actually turned out.  How fortunate we have been in being able to live the tranquil and serene lifestyle.  .....

We were grateful for such little things and so utterly pleased with them. 

*we adore our new nook

*we are ecstatic to be collecting eggs and watching the chickens and geese roam

*we love the Tin House

*We are eager to start filling the bird feeders for winter and watch the finches return

*we are relieved and blessed that all the wood is chopped and stacked in the barn for winter

*the boys were proud of their newly mended jeans... 9 pair of pants with ripped out knees... now all patched.

*we were thrilled that the boys school books FINALLY arrived after postal set backs of 6 weeks

*we are simply content and grateful 

 I couldn't help adding that I'd love to see more of the sunsets... but that just got me five sets of eye rolls. 

Leftovers of course were more than welcomed.  We had a fabulous turkey soup for days.  

November is upon us and Thanksgiving is sneaking up again... The ranch has already decreed they're having Beef Brisket.  I think I'll bring the brussel sprouts.  I remember in years past all the veggies had sugar glazes on them,  and the salads have cool whip.  

Productive days

Every so often we have days that go according to our plans.  We stacked wood.  We moved the chickens into their new home even though it was not yet completed.  It had enough of the structure completed that we could introduce the ladies and hope they would find it to their liking.

We even found time to play with the kitties.

We also set out to solve our never ending dilemma of what to do eat when we are off to town for the day.  We find ourselves eating two meals away from home at times twice a week.  Other than having sandwiches or rising early to make a soup or stew that we are not always sure where we can eat it we decided to try to make handheld meals.  So we spent two precious days making them. 

We filled  them with:

Eggs, sausage and peppers

Beef and broccoli

Chicken pot pie

Meat pie (meatloaf)

Pizza

Other than the days to devote to it we have a freezer full of quick meals.  And they are nut free!

To celebrate our successful days and after having nibbled and nibbled all day long we made popcorn over the fire.  It was fun and a great end to our long days.

Cucumber Chatter

The following chatter was heard.... in the garden.

Harvesting Memories

Old Mother Hubbard

went to the cupboard

to feed her starved children some food.

When she got there, 

the cupboard was bare

and so they all went to work!

They picked the trees clean

The garden they gleaned.

They washed, chopped, peeled, boiled and canned.

The beets were pickled.

The salsa ole,

The apples; sliced, sauced and cold pressed.

Now the cupboard is bursting

And no one is thirsting

but Old Mother Hubbard is dead!. 

(tired that is!)

Beets are messy work... but so rewarding!

Bittersweet.

We've been canning apples for many, many years... Sauce and slices mostly.  A few years ago I decided to do juice as well, for cold winter days with hot apple cider were calling to me.  Two years ago, a neighbour and Caleb reminded me of the BEST use of apples ever.  Cold pressed apple juice... a.k.a. 'brown apple juice' from my memories of going to work with Dad at Triumph at UVIC.  After mentioning the memory with fondness, Dad sent us a kit to build an apple press and said he'd come Fall of 2015 to chop apples with us.  

We built the press and we pressed the best brown apple juice but Dad was only with us in spirit.  We listened to music of the 50's, read a book aloud as we worked and processed our apples.  We dedicate this batch to Dad.

I'm trying to be like Daddy

He has hollow legs. 

He's determined.  

He is not overly concerned with appearances.

He can fit 20 grapes in his mouth.

What to do with such skills?

Summer is a time for....

BFF's - The odd couple

Impromptu neighbourhood tea parties with our newest FAVOURITE Lemon Berry Pie Cake.

Many visits to the playground.

Little Trees

Someone just picked up these little tree looking things one day and declared they were food, eh?

And everyone just bought into it?

No questions asked?

You say you've even tried it raw, steamed, sauteed and sneaked it in things chopped and pureed?

And I'm still alive so far...

Okay, I'm game.

Brown Apple Juice

Growing up, we would sometimes spend the day at work with my dad.  He worked in a research lab on the campus of the University.  I never completely knew what he did, nor ever understood it.  I think I ended up telling everyone he was inventing a nuclear physics bomb or something. 

None of that really mattered. 

What mattered was 



.................. lunch time. 

More specifically a drink.  We probably had a packed lunch from home but Dad would take us to get some brown apple juice.  We always called it that.  "Brown Apple Juice".  And there was just something incredible about it. 

It's been close to three decades since then. 

They say the sense of smell and taste invoke memories better than any other sense.  I have 7 apple trees in my back yard.  I have made close to 1000 quarts of apple sauce and 600 quarts of pie slices and 100 quarts of juice since moving to this home 7 years ago.  We've taken advantage of the bounteous harvests.  This year, Caleb took a bucket of our apples to a gentleman's home in the neighbourhood.  This older gentleman had been telling Caleb about a press that he had made. 

We typically steam our apples in a juicer to extract the juice.  We also drink hot cider for about a month.  Can't get enough.  It's delicious. 

Caleb was gone an hour and a half.  He returned with 7 jars of brown liquid. 

One sip. 

I was transported. 

I was about 10 years old, on the university campus, drinking 'brown apple juice.'

It was even better than I could have imagined and definitely surpassed what I had remembered.  In looking back on the last 7 years I've missed out.  I should have been cold pressing.  Our cider pales... quite literally... in comparison. 

Tea Time

 How to transform the dining room into a tea room.  (or... how to clean the house!  have a daughter decide to throw a pretty tea party!)

 Finally the side board being used appropriately.  We definitely had more menu options than we needed for our little tea.  Fortunately we also had some willing young men to polish off what was left over!  (cucumber and sprout wraps, chocolate covered strawberries, grapes, deviled eggs, pound cake, trifle, and the closest thing we could find to Peek Freans... assorted Milano cookies.  Also, of course .. herbal teas.   Oh.. how could I forget!  Dinner mints were in sweet little mini cupcake holders in the shape of tulips!

We remembered at the last minute that we didn't own a teapot so a mad dash teapot hunt was on.  We found one that we loved for a little more than we wanted to pay so we tried one more store.  No luck.  We returned to the first store and well.. you snooze you lose!  AHHH  We had to settle for a mini teapot that served two at a time.

Our butler in training did very well. 

He received a lot of on the job training, especially in having to refill our mini teapot! 

 Our ladies had too many tea choices.  Next time we might choose the tea flavour ahead of time.  We had a box of herbal tea samplers.  16 different flavours I believe.  

Our lovely serviettes were folded by our talented butler in training Miles.  Also our centerpieces were provided by the local thrift store (picked up by Grandma) and our dishes were none other than the fondly remembered fancy dinner dishes of my youth! 

Bubba Gump Apples

The best part of Apple Canning is this moment.  The shelves are full and the apple trees are bare.  I can stand in the doorway of the cold storage room and admire the shelves (which I put together myself!) filled with jars of apple preserves and act like Bubba from Forest Gump.. only about apples instead of shrimp. 

"We have apple slices, apple sauce, apple juice, apple jelly, apple butter, apple pie filling.  Now we'll have apple pie, apple cobbler, apple cider, apple butter on toast, apple pancakes, apple butter on waffles, apple muffins, apple spice bread, applesauce with pork chops, apple fritters, apple turnovers, apple strudel, apple tarts....."

My ladies react to a different display that apple canning time is over....

Their run is approximately 50' long and between the apples that we picked up from the ground to give them and the apple peelings and cores, they had between a 4" to 18" apple base all over their run.  They love a good apple harvest. 

Cue Music

One of these things is not like the other..... 

Am I the only one singing along... I'm transported back to my Sesame Street days any time the kids and I compare things.  This was no different.  However this was one of the more interesting comparisons.  Perhaps because I was interested this time. 

When we had finished comparing the size difference of the two eggs and discussed which hen we thought had laid it and whether we might get more this size in the future, the real question of the hour was, "How many thought it would be a double yolker?" 

Duncan suggested that it was so large, maybe it would be a world's first ever triple yolker...  Taking photos was especially important if this potentially was a world record holding egg!

But alas, not a world record.  It was a great double yolker though. 

Torment..

Tomorrow is the final day of the two week cleanse.  It has been a challenge and I'm pleased to say that we managed wonderfully.  No dairy, no processed foods, and most importantly NO SUGAR... none whatsoever!  We managed wonderfully... until this evening.

This evening as I was looking up a recipe for a dessert my husband signed up to make, I discovered another recipe that I wasn't aware that I was always looking for!  To make matters worse.... there were at least three other sets of eyes also watching the screen as the delectable tormenting recipe, complete with photos, flashed across the screen.

So although there is still 24 hours of cleanse left, I found myself tucking the baby in, saying good bye to Caleb and Patrick as they headed out to their three hour volleyball fun, and the other sets of eyes and I made a mad dash for the kitchen.

This is what we spent 35 minutes creating.....

and about 35 seconds caving in and devouring. (home made reese's peanut butter cups.  Are they still called Reese's, when we made them?  Perhaps they are just Peanut butter, chocolate perfection cups.) We had intended to make them and then enjoy them as a well deserved treat tomorrow when the cleanse was officially over, but.....

 I think I'll go to bed now before Patrick and Caleb return home so I won't have to confess.  The other option would be to sneak into the fridge and eat the ones we made for them as well so there wouldn't be any evidence either!