ROSIE DOES A COMPLETE 360

Sunday afternoon at Rosalie Park - Frank is working in the shed and Dale is reading a book (napping). Rosie, the Chocolate Taunting Temptress is basking in the warm spring sunshine on the driveway. All is calm and peaceful.  UNTIL ...

Frank whips the sliding door open and asks "Where's Rosie?". 

We both go into panic mode, because she's our baby. She's six years old, but we have had her only for eighteen months. She was a "free" dog who had had way too many puppies (25 in total) and is gun-shy so she needed a new home with no more Rosie-puppies, no guns, lots of room to run, her own pond to swim in, her own cats, and where she could suck the hearts right out of her new owners with her furiously wagging tail, big brown eyes and puppy ears. She's very gentle and well-behaved. We don't even have to keep the gate closed. Make that "didn't have to keep the gate closed". And she always comes when she's called. Make that "always came when she was called". UNTIL SUNDAY. 

Gate open. Dog not appearing. Frank checks the barn. I check the front yard. NO DOG. 

Then I remember something from Saturday. There is one house between ours and Becky and Colin's. The between house has new people (they are not really "new people" - they are our age, but new-to-us people) living there. They have been doing a lot of work - clearing the ugly stump forest and tearing down old fencing and trying to create a park-like setting (just like we are). And they have a pond. One that Rosie had been swimming in just the day before with her new best friend - Becky and Colin's Cain, the Chocolate Frog Dog. Swimming was followed by a bunch of ball-throwing and pats and running free and just good ol' fashioned neighbourhood friendliness.

Apparently Rosie decided that more fun was available than shed-working and book-reading and off she trotted. According to Becky, Rosie helped herself to a dip in the between house's pond then headed to Becky and Colin's for a dog-frolic with the Chocolate Frog Dog. 

I showed up with my stern dog-mom look, but realized she'd already had a great time and I could not say "bad dog" because she was just doing what she had done the day before. Rosie was having a great time with the Chocolate Frog Dog, Becky and Colin and another couple, C & W. The humans were very interested in a horse that was alone in the riding ring and were looking over some kind of chart marked off in squares. Turns out they were having a fund-raiser for their horse club and had sold tickets for each square. The idea was that the squares corresponded to areas of the riding ring and they were waiting for the horse to poop and whoever owned the corresponding square on the chart would win the pot. 

Becky asked if I would like to buy a ticket - she could lend me $20. She trusts me - what with just living up the street and all and they come here for G&T and Rumoli and we give the kids "little pops" (half-size Coke) and usually support her horse club fund raisers (beer & burgers, silent auctions, etc.) So I buy 4 tickets, have a cup of coffee, call Rosie and we head home. I am happy because we have great neighbours and I have our Chocolate Taunting Temptress trotting along beside me.

GATE GETS CLOSED.

Monday morning I get a phone call from Becky. Horse has pooped. On one of my squares. Thanks to Rosie, I won $360.

Love to my family and friends.

Kae-Lee with her "little pop", Rosie, the Chocolate Taunting Temptress

and Cain, the Chocolate Frog Dog (taken when we still had snow on the ground)

NEW DOOR

Did you ever, in your entire life, get from your sister-in-law a gift that left you completely and utterly speechless? Did you ever, in your entire life, expect to get from your sister-in-law a gift that not only left you completely and utterly speechless, but also wondering "Heavens to Betsy, what ever am I going to do with this ... this ... this ... THING"? Because you know full well that this gift from your sister-in-law is supposed to be put on full display for the whole world to see and that if you don't put it on display, snarky comments will be made about how she goes to the trouble and expense of buying gifts that no one appreciates. And how she's never buying anyone a gift again. And it turns out that two other people are getting something similar and you get to see the reaction of only one.

Jeepers Dale, you say - did you get a Shamwow for Christmas? And I say "No" - then I change that because yes, if you break down "Shamwow" to its parts, it is a "FakeWow" and that had to be our reaction - fake "wow". As in "You shouldn't have" and really mean it. "You shouldn't have. YOU SHOULD NOT HAVE" - now or ever.

And here is a little taste -

but you already saw this picture on my Facebook page, didn't you? So, here is another taste ... (maybe "taste" is not the right word - perhaps I should have used "snippet")

We need to rewind back to October, 2008 for a bit of pre-amble. Her brother (Frank) and I decided that we had enough stuff. Make that we had enough stuff that other people had either bought for or given to us and that we could buy our own stuff. Ergo ... (don't you love that word?) it seemed like a good plan to discontinue the practice of exchanging Christmas gifts with grown adults who also have a lot of stuff. So we tell SIL "No gift exchange for Christmas anymore". And SIL says "But I already bought you a gift". I should mention that I wonder about people who have their Christmas shopping done in October, but I'll save that for another time.

I just bet that by now you are starting to get the picture, aren't you? Turns out that this THING was hand-made just for us - a custom order if you please - by a motor-homing friend who makes these for other motor-homing people who use them as decorative pieces by their motor-home doors ...  

Our niece got one with horses. One in a very interesting position that defies description. Her brother got one with dogs, but I have not seen that one.

These THINGS are bound together with recycled nylon rope. The wood posts look like normal wood. The figures look like other normal resin/acrylic figures. But wait! There's more. Not only are they decorative, but they are also useful! They aren't just a custom-made THING at all! They are, in fact (and unbelievably) solar lights! How very environmentally friendly. Because now, while we are saving electricity, we have to look at one of the fugliest things on the face of this planet. And we will even be able to see it in the dark!

Have nothing in your house that you do not know to be useful, or believe to be beautiful. William Morris

In the background is our new door to the garage bathroom - isn't it useful - and beautiful? 

MY ROSEWOOD BOOKCASE

Today I took photos in my my sewing room to post on the NING group I belong to and after I looked at those photos, I started to think about the things I have in this room and where they came from and how much they mean to me. Most particularly, my rosewood bookcase.

The rosewood bookcase where (funnily enough) my needle-related books are was one of the first pieces of furniture Frank and I bought when we moved to North Vancouver after living in Prince Rupert for five months when we were first married. It's about 34 years old. I still think it is a lovely piece of furniture.

Stored in the bookcase are:

Recipes collected and and saved in a 2lb chocolate box by my mother-in-law, Cora Abeling. A lot are written in Dutch or cut, very carefully, from the newspaper. Aunty Mary Richmond's recipes are in a plastic file card box. Most of hers are low-calorie and low fat or are for Colonel Blimp Chutney. One day I will make a collage for each of them. Just because.

A little book called "Little Sally Mandy and the Shiny Penny" which was given to me in 1956 by Mrs. Dorthea Fountain - a friend of my grandmother Ada Georgina Shoemaker Richmond. Mrs. Fountain was one of the first female doctors to graduate from the University of Toronto. Sadly, both of her sons were killed during WWII. Mrs. Fountain used to send us scratchy socks and Barley Sugar Sticks for Christmas and a $2 bill for our birthdays until we turned 16.

A small pink cup and saucer that Donna and Rob Laydon (Leighton?) gave me when I was born - way back in 1951. My father Charles Herbert Battison and my cousin Sydney Carol Dean broke it when they were throwing a rolled up sock around the house many years ago. It is held together by imbedded Scotch Tape residue and is one of the very few things I own that came from my life with my father and mother. Another item from my life with my father and mother is my father's camera which he left with my mother (Ada Margaret Richmond Battison Smith) so she could take pictures. She didn't bother very often, so there is very little documented evidence of my existence between the ages of 7 and 25 and even then, its spotty!

A handcrafted pottery bunny that my sister Ann Margaret Battison gave me. A cat pushed it off a shelf and broke its ears which have been Crazy-Glued back in place. I know Ann won't mind that a cat broke it, because she likes cats too!

A little Grecian villa, two stuffed desk ornaments, rock bookends, an 'earthquake indicator' and three Russian figurines that were actually purchased in Russia by a Steele & Co. client and which remind me of some of the finest men a girl could work for!

A plaster of paris carving that I made for Aunty Mary when she was Director of Nursing at Vancouver General and I was in Grade 10 at Royal Oak Junior High. A piece of driftwood that either Ann or I cleaned and varnished for Aunty Mary for Christmas back when our mother was feeling 'artsy crafty'. Ann says she made it; I say I made it. Doesn't really matter. I have it.

Framed petit-pointed pansies made for me by my friend Kass who also made the framed cross-stitched butterfly and my own silk-on-silk embroidered flower kit that Frank gave me for Christmas the same year he gave me a calligraphy pen and some Henkel knives - which was the same year his sister got gold-plated faucets for a house they don't live in any more. I still have the knives and I can do calligraphy.

Pieces of decorative china and magical, wondrous sewing things that belonged to Dorothy Peacock and her half-sister (my father's cousin) Kay Peacock Little. Decorative bone china sent to my mother by her uncle George Richmond (Nr. Swindon, Wilts., England) for Christmas over the years.

My precious collection of thimbles - gifted to me by my husband, a former employer, friends, family and Aunty Mary (Helen) Battison Dean who gave me some of Dorothy's and Kay's sewing treasures.

Not one, but TWO cases containing the feet and some other (but not all - by a long shot!) attachments for my Bernina Artista 200 sewing machine that I bought just for me in memory of my mother who taught me to sew and my Aunty Mary who encouraged us in everything we did. (My old Bernina 830 is stored behind my sewing table and my new Pfaff is under the stool that Aunty Mary bargello-ed.)

My rosewood bookcase is a very special piece of furniture.

And look - I have a project underway on the ironing board! It's a scrappy log-cabinish type of quilt and I have actually used some of my stash, including one spool of thread!

And another look!! I have another project in waiting - the floor needs to be vacuumed!

I'll do that sometime.

Stay tuned for things mentioned, but not elaborated on, in this blog! May be tomorrow - may be next week!

UPDATE: Because of this post, I was contacted by relatives of Mrs. Dorthea Fountain's! It's a small cyber-world! Thanks Leslie!

IF YOU HAVE TWO AND USE THEM BOTH IS IT USING THE STASH?

Wallpaper stripping continues. The wallpaper from the main entry area and hallway is now in the trash. The area by the front door was decorated with silvery/flocky/ridgey flowers in a mauve/pink/shiny combo (quite frankly, not my taste at all) and the border print that went down the hall, across a doorway and back up the other side of the hall was another flocky/ridgey floral, but in completely different colours (blue and yellow) from the door area. The remaining border print is in the room I have named the aquarium/cookbook librarium for lack of a better name. Since all the other rooms have names that are indicative of their function or contents, it works for me. 

The stash that was used the past few days? Well, you might think it doesn't count, but if you have two of something that you bought a couple of years ago and plan NEVER, EVER to buy or need again (a.) because all the wallpaper will be gone, and b.) because you will never, ever hang wallpaper again in your entire life), and use both of them, then it is using a stash which, in this case, is wallpaper stripper solution. I must question the instructions on this product. The solution is in a 650 ml bottle. (I assume, but the instructions don't say) The solution is to be poured into a bucket large enough to accommodate the 650 mls plus the required 7 litres of hot water (I ended up with over 1/2 bucket full) and to apply with a paint roller to the wallpapered walls, wait 15 minutes, reapply, wait another 15 minutes and scrape off the offending fugly wallpaper. The instructions say to "USE IMMEDIATELY". I do not understand how this could actually happen, unless one was trying to remove wallpaper from the floor and was able to dump the entire bucketful of solution on the floorpaper, swidge it about an area exactly large enough to use all of it, wait 15 minutes (while waiting - make more) and reapply, then scrape of the fugly floorpaper. I think I need to email the manufacturer and I am just in the mood to do so.

Dale, you say. However did you get yourself involved in the Great Wallpaper Caper when it is so much more gratifying to loll about in your sewing room with paper, coloured pencils, heat tools, that new package of Tyvek ... etc.? Well, I answer - can you read back to the blog about the dumpster bin? I am not going to refresh memories here - just look for the pictures of the blue dumpster and/or the guy on the ladder and you will get the general idea. Think sledgehammer and about 3 tons of bricks and marble.

After the painting of the dining room and living room (and cleaning, dusting, vacuuming, polishing, washing, putting backing, etc. associated therewith), the new roof and associated removal of the fugly fireplace and associated cleaning, dusting, vacuuming ... (and some other improvement project, but I can't remember what), it was (almost mutally) decided that more work was required. Since I am not a carpenter, I let Frank do the filling, sanding, hammering, sawing, ladder-climb-past-three-rungsing, lifting, and drywalling. In return, I got to whine and complain that I already cleaned, dusted, vacuumed, polished, washed, putted backed, etc. from the previous home improvements, make lazy dinners due to the fact that nothing has been cleaned, dusted, vacuumed, polished, washed, putted backed, etc. because this is an ongoing project and I have learned my lesson.

Since Frank has little (or no) patience with finicky work (hence his lack of skill at quilting, pattern drafting, wedding-dress making, embroidery, cross-stitch, artsy-quilty-melty stuff, calligraphy, etc.) (or two periods of 15 minute waiting) to strip the wallpaper from one area, I thought I can do this as long as I only have to climb three rungs of the ladder. So I said I would do it. So I am.

THE FUGLIEST FIREPLACE IS IN THE DUMPSTER. DAMN.

So, Frank has returned from a successful business trip to Nelson. I picked him up from the ferry terminal at about 10:25 last Wednesday night. My two nights or so being able to do whatever I wanted - not so successful. I had started an artsy-quilty-melty experiment to play with while he was gone. The Black Prince's mother returned from her vacation. We had the Balderson's 5-year old cheddar. All the stars were aligned for me to have a perfect few days.

However ... real life intervened and totally screwed up my well laid plans. Firstly, we had snow. AGAIN. The first three flights out were cancelled and the fourth - well, let me put it this way.  Frank rebooked his flight, ending up on the last flight out at approximately 4:30 by which time the snow had almost completely melted - at least enough for me to drive in it.

Head on home from the harbour. Eat Balderson's and have a glass of wine while sewing. Make a few phone calls, e a few mails, ignore Skype due to a plethora of people with screen names that when spoken out loud sound pornographic and wonder why they don't get a life of their own. Poke around with stuff, bore myself into a comatose state and go to bed. Next day, an excursion to Ladysmith and a visit to the Wordly Gourmet (thanks Jenny and Cal) and a walk-about. Return to car to head home and cell phone call from Helen, Black Prince the Relentless's mom.  For some reason, she wants HER dog back. We agree to meet at the Crow & Gate for lunch. Thoroughly enjoy a lovely 2-hour lunch with a glass of wine and pot of tea (she's a Brit) and return home where the Black Prince is out of his mind with excitement and Rosie the Chocolate Taunting Temptress heaves a huge sight of relief and settles into her big puffy pillow for a very long, uninterrupted nap. I realize I don't feel so good and end up with a stomach bug that does not go away until Friday - i.e. two days after Frank's return. SHIIIITTT. So much for quality time by myself with just me and some wine, Balderson's, and my sewing machine. No stash used. Hardly any wine consumed.

Felt much better by Friday afternoon and continued to improve, so Saturday's dinner with our dear friends Patti and Nolan at the Wesley Street Restaurant went ahead as planned. Oh my God. What a fabulous restaurant. What fabulous food. What wonderful friends to have in our lives after nearly 20 years of missing out. The hostess/sommelier chose for us a perfect Pinot Noir (last week's choice was also a Pinot Noir from a different winery) and I look forward to Frank's next birthday in April with great anticipation. He has suggested that we try to go there once a month. TRY? I'm in for once every two months! But, being a dutiful wife (no women's lib here), I'll go there once a month if he really, really wants. After all, I did promise to "obey".

So far for the past couple of weeks, no measurable stash used. Not even thread puked up by one of the cats. I am beginning to think that "using my stash" is just an euphemism for spending time in my sewing room, watching what I want on TV and playing with the laptop. (Or doing diddly-squat and not having to justify it!)

Pictures to be posted in a bit. The greatest news! The fugly fireplace is gone. Toast. History. Derbish (don't ask - or do, if more info is required or you are in need of a good laugh).  And we have a new roof. The roofer had a dumpster delivered for the discarded roofing material. Informed us to put stuff in it, because he wouldn't be filling it. (My regular reader will remember that Frank recently painted ... and I recently washed, waxed, polished, dusted, vacuumed, etc. everything I could get my hands on. Well, those same decorations, ornaments, objets d'art, pictures, windows, walls, picture frames, picture glass,  etc. ad infinitum now require a repeat of ... oh SHIIITTT BUGGER DAMN!)

Anyway - the roofer finished today. (We really hope he brings his wife here for coffee or a beer one day - we liked him. We are keeping our fingers crossed for his wife Sherry whom we have never met - she just had a total hysterectomy and lumps were found in her breast.) The last of the fugly fireplace is in the dumpster, the dusting etc. have commenced. Dinner and wine have been consumed - and even though I know that when I get up tomorrow, I will be spending time with the Beam vac - that goddawful fireplace will never again have Christmas stockings hanging from it and that makes me very, very happy.  New garage doors are to be installed tomorrow. No more rotten/frozen veggies and fruit stored in the garage. Added bonus - there's a tax credit ... great.

Oh. Except ... The flooring will need to be replaced (throughout the house) ... and the ceiling needs re-crumbing or whatever that spray stuff is called (in at least two rooms - no sparkles please).  And the wall where the fireplace was needs painting ... and on and on and on -  but I AM happy. However, I could be ECSTATIC if ... the kitchen were ... the flooring ... new windows ... french doors ... carpeting ... 

WHERE THE FUGLY FIREPLACE WAS ...

WHERE THE FUGLY FIREPLACE IS ...

AND ... futhermore ... I don't understand why my photos end up at the top of this blog and I have to move them myself - no cut, paste, copy, insert or whatever. Just appear at the top of the blog and make me crazy trying to line them up (anal retentive) where I (bold, underline, italic, big font) want them.

If my long-lost friend ELM (formerly ELD) is reading this - hugs - and I apologize for being a bitch 40'odd years ago.

Next up may relate to calendars and the daunting task of  blogging EVERY DAY?!!!

Love to my family and friends.

AND THIS IS THE GUY WHO DID IT ...!!!!!! (He has been climbing ladders for me for nearly 35 years.)

We have more snow today - about 4 inches. The crocuses are up to their pistils in snow, but it sure was pretty with the mauve and purple blossoms poking through the snow. I have no idea how many crocus bulbs the original owners of this house planted, but they are now happily self-seeding in the garden and in the lawn (the bulbs, not the original owners ...) and most of them are in the mauve/purple family. It is supposed to turn very cold tonight, but fortunately the snow has melted from the main roads, so I shall be able to get out and about without too much trouble - I think.

Frank has gone to Nelson for a few days. He was supposed to leave around 11 am, but most of the early flights today were cancelled, so he did not leave until nearly 5 pm. I have all day tomorrow and a large chunk of Wednesday to play in my sewing room and eat Balderson's 5-year old cheddar and crackers for dinner! 

The Black Prince's mother is due home from her cruise late tonight and she plans to pick him up sometime tomorrow. I think Rosie will be glad to have him gone for a while - she being nearly 6 years old and he being only 2. He's very rambunctious, but not entirely to blame since she's a Taunting Temptress!

I started another artsy-quilty-melty experiment, but it is not yet ready for photographing. Hopefully, I'll have it ready later this week. I did an interpretation of the crocuses too - but forgot to leave the camera set on auto, so a lot of those photos turned out very dark.

I had a birthday yesterday - not a big one really. Only one digit changed. Frank took me to a fabulous restaurant in Nanaimo - The Wesley Street Restaurant. The food was wonderful and the wine perfect. Our friend Patti's birthday is today and she and her husband and Frank and I plan to go out together next Saturday. I would love to go back to the Wesley Street. Pricey, but fabulous.

On Saturday, we went to George and Marjorie's for pizza and hot wings with them and Marjorie's cousin and her husband. Had a great time. We had planned to play Rumoli, but ended up just talking.

On my actual birthday, Frank and I ran some errands and had A&W for dinner ... not gourmet but it worked!

I have joined several NING groups and enjoyed seeing the wonderful work posted by the talented members.

I am now returning to my sewing room - Zero stash used completely, but I have used snippets and scraps from my last artsy-quilty-melty project in the one I am working on tonight. I have also dragged out various and assorted fancy threads for machine embroidery. I need to make something I can work on by hand in the evenings - beading or silk ribbon embroidery or something, now that the needle-hole in my middle finger has healed again.

Love to my family and friends.

Our colds seem to be getting better - and we both felt well enough to go to the local pub for dinner tonight (glass of wine for me, G&T for Frank) - for the first time in nearly three weeks. We ran into friends who tell us that we are lucky because they know people who have had this friggin cold for three, four, five weeks.

Last night I decided to make a friend's brand new baby granddaughter a quilt. I located the fabric (didn't like it then - don't like it now) I bought five years ago for another friend's brand new baby daughter ... anyway, today I finished the quilt and decided to put the babe's name on it with the font feature of my Artista 200. Babe's name is Nevaeh (Heaven backward ....). I mis-spelled it as Neveah because I am old and names should be forward, not backward. My friends all have names that don't spell anything backward - my name backward is Elad. The chances of naming a tiny little 8 pound baby Elad - slim and nil. My sister's name is Ann - Nna. Nope. Frank or Knarf - nope. Ssak - Kass. Neleh - Helen. Eirojram - Marjorie - that's it!!! I'll name my kid Eirojram!! Backward spelling does not work in most cases. Including Heaven. Good thing they did not name the poor wee babe after something that cannot be pronounced when spelled backward. Anyway - the end result - after carefully embroidering Heaven backward, folding the quilt and putting it in a giftbag, I started to second-guess myself. Sure enough, I sewed it as Neveah. Names should not be spelled backward to make yet another name. However ... if one had a bowl of Alphaghetti ... one could experiment first ...

My problem now is how (or if) to fix the goddam quilt. This is not a life-time quilt. It is a large floral - with a satin stitch border. About 8 hours of work, if that. Big enough for a three or four month old ebab to be diapered and talc'd on. Not big enough even for its tsrif crib. Cover up the babe's name with an ironed-on overlay? Pick it out and leave all those needle holes? Ignore the spelling error? Tell the kid's mom that she should have named the baby something forward instead of backward? Neveah/Nevaeh - whatever ... it doesn't change the baby in any way. And just maybe - who knows - the mom may have mis-spelled it on the birth certificate ... and I could be right? There will be no picture of this quilt posted ereh, so don't bother looking for it.

It will be fixed somehow and given to the babe's mom - puked and pee'd on - and passed on to the next baby in that family - perhaps his name will be Bob. One can only hope.

In the right place at the right time - we have been the very lucky recipients of 15 rhododendrons. Our friends have listed their house for sale and had dug up a lot of rhodos that they were unable to replant and which they gave to us. Thank you so much Helen and Bryan. We will miss you.

Love to my family and friends.

Sick - of Colds and Snow!

Winter has returned. On Wednesday night it snowed again! The remaining patches of December and January snowfalls had only just melted and the pond ice had started to thaw. We had even managed to spend a few spring-like days in the yard, cleaning up winter's debris. The snowdrops were blooming and crocuses starting to show colour. Tulips and daffodils were erupting. Now they are all covered in SNOW. AGAIN. 

However, since both of us have had colds for the past week or ten days, it doesn't really matter. We have been lolling about on sofas, sleeping, watching cooking shows and CNN and sleeping some more. It is the first time in nearly 35 years that both of us have had colds at the same time. My brain is still not functioning properly, we are both still coughing, sneezing and nose-blowing, but both of us are feeling a bit better and coffee is beginning to taste better than tea!

The Black Prince (Rosie's Boy-Toy) has returned for a ten-day stay while his mother is on a Caribbean cruise. He has had some obedience lessons since his last stay and tries so hard to please. He and Rosie decided to wake us up at about 6 a.m. today. Frank managed to settle them down for about half an hour, but the excitement of a new day was just too much for them and we all got up.

This miserable cold and the few days of nice weather since my last post have meant little or no time spent in my sewing room. The time I did spend in here was re-enacting the definition of insanity - doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result.  (Refer to comment regarding brain function.)

However, I managed to spend a good deal of time looking at fibre art sites yesterday and found stitchinfingers. I explored their website and oohed and aahed the different groups' work, so I decided to join. It seems that I should now be adding a link to this blog to my page. I am not sure it is ready for the public domain (or perhaps I should say I am not ready to expose myself to the public domain ...). 

An Artsy Quilty Melty experiment from a few weeks ago. The base is Kunin felt topped with several layers of fused sheers, then melted with the fine tip of the Walnut Hollow heat tool. The turquoise areas are a metallic ribbon attached with fusible thread.

Life's a Peach!

Now for something completely different ... all about My Life! I have been married to the same great guy (Frank) for nearly 35 years. We have no kids, three cats (Josie, Cassie and Haffy) and a Chocolate Lab (Rosie). We are transplanted sort-of-retired city folk who choose to live in a rural area of Vancouver Island. We have learned that the very best eggs, chickens and turkey come directly from the farmer and John Deere tractors are pretty much a must-have on nearly 8 acres. 

Our property was once home to grazing animals that decimated a lot of the native growth which we hope to regenerate with native plants we brought with us from our former home in Lions Bay. We want to create a park-like atmosphere throughout the whole property so we can meander about with Rosie and a nice glass of red or white (bottled at The Mission - I highly recommend the Muller Thurgau and Amarone!) and realize how truly fortunate we are. We have a large pond and an island which is not accessible without a small rowboat. I don't "do" small boats so I have not set foot on the island, but Frank has created a secret garden using HIS stash of saved and repurposed items. He is a very talented designer and has envisioned and created some beautiful outdoor spaces. Of course, I added my two-bits worth and helped ...

We are privileged and (still) delighted to share our space with a lot of wildlife - deer, mink, beavers (well, maybe we could have done without the beavers who chewed down 6 trees when we first bought the house and which have moved across the street to continue their "damn" building), squirrels, river otters, jack-rabbits, various and assorted ducks, a Great Blue Heron, eagles, hawks, California Quail, Great Northern Flickers and the occasional pheasant. 

And frogs. Many frogs. Indigenous frogs and introduced frogs. We love to hear the indigenous frogs at night in the spring and autumn when, as we say, it's "frogging" outside. At times, the frogs are so loud they wake us up.

The introduced North Amercan Green Bullfrogs - not so much. The bullfrogs remind me of Jabba the Hut and sound like sick cows. Apparently if one is saving-native-habitat-minded, one can catch these frogs, put them in Ziploc Bags and then place them in one's freezer where they go into "permanent hibernation". 

I have some problems with this process. Firstly, the catching. These frogs leap into the pond at the slightest shadow or vibration. Secondly, the bank of the pond area can be extremely slippery. Thirdly, Beaver Fever has been caught by people (an 8 year old boy) who have purposely or unwittingly gone into ponds in this area. Fourthly, and I don't know about you, but our freezer contains tasty, appetizing food. Butter tarts. Lasagne. Pork chops. A 20 pound farm turkey. Apple pie and frozen fresh peaches from our trees. Frankly, I don't think adding dead - ooops - "hibernating" frogs stuffed into Ziploc Bags sounds all that appealing.

There's a local person whose name is Ketcham (not kidding) who will pick up the HagenFrogs and take them to Vancouver Island University for whatever it is university students do with frogs. (I don't want to go there - not VIU - the frog possibilities.) I was in Grade 12 when it was still apropos to dissect frogs. My science lab partners (yes I remember their names) decided that I was best-suited to do the dirty work. On the last day, before we had to say "goodbye" to Mr. Frog, I announced (quite loudly), that I had done enough dissection and it was someone else's turn.

In addition to the forest, pond, secret garden, frogs, cats and dog, we have 2 hazelnut trees, 8 apple trees, 3 cherry trees, 1 yellow-plum tree, 1 peach tree, 1 pear tree and 2 butternut trees. When I was very excited about rural life (and a few years younger), I planned to make tasty preserved jams, jellies, salsas, pies, sauces, etc. and would grab my basket (or "panier") (after hanging out laundry on a clothesline for that fresh, outdoorsy smell) and prance gaily about the orchard, singing folksy songs ... sparrows and bluebirds perched on my left shoulder, kittens, bunnies and baby bambis dancing and frolicking about my feet. 

Apparently, no matter how tasty and delish, the canned/jarred/bottled comestibles sit in sterilized Mason jars in the cupboard - uneaten. So, next year ... apples will be stored in boxes. Pears will be stored in boxes. Nuts - yep. Nuts to the nuts! Peaches will become smoothies and whatever is left from the fruit crop will be fed to the deer when it snows. I love being an earth-mom kinda girl, but I hate spending my time over steaming kettles and boiling cauldrons making stuff that no one eats.

I hope Ree Drummond at thepioneerwoman.com forgives me.

Love to my family and friends. 

Three-Dog-Day

We had a three-dog-day today. Dianne and her friend Mary came by on their walk with their dogs Rosa and Molly respectively. After they left, Becky and Kae-Lee came for a visit with their new Chocolate Lab Cain who just moved in with them yesterday. He is two years old and very rambunctious. Rosie is exhausted after a sunny, blue-sky play in the yard with her new dog friends. 

Official Gardening commenced today! Not only was it a sunny, blue-sky day, but it was also warm enough to spend some time outside doing yard work. Frank pruned the peach tree and the wisteria while I started raking amongst the trees.

We had our trip to Duncan this morning.  While Frank got what he needed at the marine aquarium store (and what he "needed" included two fish!), I wandered off to Fabricland, but left empty-handed. On the way home, we bought some halibut for dinner tonight and scallops for dinner on Friday.

I poached the halibut in water with a glob of Meyer Lemon Chutney and some lemon pepper and sprinkled spinach and asparagus with soya sauce, rice wine vinegar and sesame oil and cooked it in the microwave. I had made extra Thai black rice last night, so I heated the leftovers and added a dash of chili oil. I put some fresh cilantro and Thai sweet chili sauce on top of the halibut. We both had two servings. It was delicious and colourful!

I added some beads to one of the trading card pieces last night. I will take more pictures of this experiment in a few days. In the meantime, this is a picture of the other side of my altered book.

Another ArtsyQuilty Melty Experiment

I really liked the blue/green/rust Melty Experiment from the other day, so last night I decided to make another one. Although I did not take any pictures last night, I took this one before I started to do anything with the piece. There are several different colours of red, orange, teal and yellow scrap pieces of sheer fabrics placed over a foundation of black Kunin felt covered with a scrap of some slightly metallic gold cotton/nylon blend that shrinks badly and is quite heat-reactive. The gold fabric has been fused to the felt with fusible web and the sheer fabrics have been fused either to the gold fabric/felt foundation or to each other - just enough to hold everything in place. At this time, the piece measures 9"x12" and the only non-scrap piece is the felt. Now, on to some free-motion embroidery and embellishment.

In the second photo, I have added Kreinik braid and blending filament, Fiesta rayon floss, Cresta D'Oro metallic yarn (which I used up!) which I twisted together and stitched with Madeira metallic thread (purple and overdyed brown/rust).

Before I stopped for the night, I added some copper Fyre Werks and some copper foil using Bonash powder and did some melting. Then I cut it up to make trading cards, post cards and two little teeny-tiny pieces that will probably end up in the garbage!

Today we ran some errands - which included taking the power head from the vacuum cleaner to the fixing place and having lunch at The Cactus Club, some grocery shopping, a trip to the Age of Aquariums to indulge Frank's hobby, and home in time for tea. Since neither of us were particularly hungry, we had nachos for dinner. Age of Aquariums did not have what Frank needed so we are planning to go to Duncan tomorrow. The marine aquarium purveyor in Duncan is right next to Fabricland!  How very convenient.

I finally saw one of our formerly-invisible barn cats today.  Oh lordy!  It is absolutely ginormous.  I did not see it, but the other cat was further back in the barn. Frank says they look like litter mates. I think we will try to live-trap them and get them spayed (spaded???) or neutered and then they can live happily ever after in the barn.

MORE Excuses!

Today's excuse?  It's too tidy in here!

OK already!  Enough!  

My sewing room is now as tidy and clean (dusted, vacuumed, windows washed, Christmas fabric put away) as the rest of the house. I am afraid to go in there because I don't want to mess it up.

I have a plan (and the ingredients) for dinner - chicken breasts with a white wine/mushroom gravy, asparagus and rice.  While I was thinking this dinner plan through, I thought perhaps a dollop of Dijon. Imagine my surprise when I found a Rachel Ray recipe using almost all the same ingredients as my plan. I have made the mushroom gravy. I think this may turn out to be delicious. (Update:  It was!)

Sadly, the vacuum cleaner is not working properly and needs to go to the vacuum cleaner fixing place.  A terrible state of affairs since I still have that one room to go and it is VERY dusty. Then, of course, the rest of the house will need vacuuming again ...  Happily, the vacuum cleaner fixing place is in the same mall as The Cactus Club ... and we haven't been there for several weeks for wonton and Kim Crawford Sauvignon Blanc!

I shall leave this blog for a while and return later - after I have created something.

Well, it turns out I did not create anything, but I brought out a piece of painted fabric/paper that I made this summer with my friend Becky.  I cut it into ATC size and ended up with about 20 cards.  I then started to put Kreinik braid and beads on two of them - until I jabbed the needle straight through the grown-over holes in my middle finger. I had forgotten how much that can hurt! I just packed all the paraphernalia up and put it away. Now my sewing room is back to where it was a few hours ago - tidy. I am beginning to think the creative switch that was turned on about 4 weeks ago has shut itself off again ... and I have not been for a walk for about four days.

I need to start taking pictures of things that I have made and putting copies in my altered book/ journal. The above is a picture one of the covers. It was made with pieces put together from a class I took with Pat Crucil (curved piecing) and with Barbara Shelly at the Thread Bear in North Van before we moved to the Island. I love it!  

I understand from a news clip that a Birmingham, England has eliminated the use of apostrophes on their road signs. I wish they had eliminated periods some years ago!

Finally Finished

The painting is finally finished (at least in two rooms) and we have put all the furniture back where it belongs (or where it fits). We are very pleased with the results. I spent four days washing windows, cleaning decorative objects, vacuuming cobwebs, and rehanging pictures and carvings throughout the main rooms of the house. I then spent much of yesterday doing the same thing in the spare bedroom. The bathroom is immaculate and the dishes have been loaded into the dishwasher. The only two rooms left - our bedroom and my sewing room.  I will probably do the windows in both rooms tomorrow and then see where inspiration takes me. Oh, and the laundry needs doing.

Today was a couch-potato day while we watched the Steelers win the Super Bowl.  Helen left Prince here for a while and stayed for tea when she came to get him.  He will be here for a sleep-over on the 11th.

Becky and Colin came up for a "munchies and Rumoli" evening. We bought nacho ingredients. They brought nachos! It was fun!

I have not spent much time in my sewing room for the past ten days or so, due to the ongoing painting project and I have not been for a walk for the last four days. I need to get back to both.

ArtsyQuilty Melty Experiment

I started to write a blog on January 25 and lost interest ... this actually all happened on January 26 ...

A scan of my experiment (8 3/4" x 7 1/4") with sheers, Textiva, Angelina, Walnut Hollow heat tool, metallic threads and free-motion embroidery on a piece of Kunin felt covered with a green metallicy fabric I bought to make something with for Christmas a few years ago. I am not too pleased with the colour, so I shall try the camera and see what happens to the colour with a photo, rather than the scan.

It HAS occurred to me that if I continue making small items, my stash will NEVER get used! I really must try something a bit larger.

Frank and I went to Qualicum Beach today to the Old School House to see the surface design exhibit. I liked some of the work, but I came away feeling like I am creative and do good work. We then went to an art supply store/stationers. At both places, I was spoken to as if I were an artist. It was just great. Then on to a quilt fabric store for a look-see. Lots of notions and fabric, but nothing I needed!

I have spent the evening in artsyquilty mode with the above piece doing a little more melting with the small pointy tip from the Walnut Hollow tool. It is a neat little gadget, but one needs to take care with the amount of pressure used as it gets very hot and melts the fibres quickly. Next to be added - beads I think, and maybe some hot-fix crystals - then a backing. I was originally planning to cut it up to make ATCs or APCs, but have decided against it because I like it the way it is.

I went for my walk today before we went to Qualicum Beach. The swans were in a different field and there were not as many as there had been. I love to watch them on these wonderful, bright, crisp, sunny days. Apparently we are expecting more snow tonight and tomorrow. 

The dining room is almost back to normal and even though I said I wouldn't be cleaning the glass and mirrors in the china and curio cabinets, I did and put the cleaned and dusted china, glasses and curio stuff back. The room now has a warm, rich look.  

Frank has put two coats of paint on one wall of the sun/living room with the vanilla-y/ caramelly colour. The remaining walls will  be the same orangey as in the dining room. It would be great if we could paint the windows too! They are old double-pane with broken seals with crud between the panes. Oh, and if we could paint the ugly carpet too ... 

Prince Visits

Rosie's Boy-Toy Prince, making himself at home on our chair.

I was right yesterday when I said I would not be spending a lot of time playing with artsyquilty stuff. I made myself available to the painter (Frank) to provide ice water, tea, coffee, paint tray cleaning, sanding-dust vacuuming and preparation of really yummy wraps for lunch, and super-yummy roast pork, mashed potatoes and gravy for dinner. He made his own G&T and my V&T when he was finished painting. The final result should be just great, as the Creamsicle colours looks great with the oak furniture.

Anyway, I just settled into artsyquilty mode and had the iron steaming when Helen phoned to let us know that she had a large amount of leftovers from her dinner party tonight and if we liked, she could bring them for dinner tomorrow night. So I guess HER stash will be used before it turns blue and furry in the fridge.

One wall in the dining room is finished with the second coat of orange paint and three other dining room walls have been given their first coat of the vanilla-y/caramelly paint.  Tomorrow's plan is to fill and sand one wall in the living room and finish the remaining second coat in the dining room. No cabinets will be cleaned until ALL sanding has been done - I just can't face the prospect of cleaning them twice. As a matter of fact, ongoing sanding is a great reason to do NO dusting or cleaning ... and I am quite happy not to! 

I shall provide more ice water, tea, coffee, paint tray cleaning and hold the door open for HMc when she gets here with dinner!

Perhaps I should NOT have torn off the ugly wallpaper ... I shall think twice before I do it again!