Blaahh

Today is a blah day, it's raining, so no chopping firewood right now. I know that's a strange thing to say but I enjoy it. There is something about seeing that pile of split wood growing in front of you and knowing that it will keep your family warm this winter and the next. It's relaxing, calming and fullfilling. Crazy you say?...yes probably, but for me it works.

To top it off the kids have cabin fever, it has been raining for days and we are all wearing on each others nerves. So not only is it a blah day but, I feel blah, I look blah,blah blah blah blah blah! I want to be out chopping wood. I am tempted to sit the kids in front of the Tv and watch them from the screen door while I go out and get rid of some this blah. Besides that's a lot of wood and right now it's kind of blocking the driveway....and it's only rain.

So long but not forgotten

Well spring and summer have come and gone a I have not written a thing on this blog. Partially not my fault some horrible little virus thing got on our computer and I couldn't get on to this website. Then accck couldn't get on to any website. Tried fixing it and couldn't finally I just gave up and started saving to get the machine fixed. Well I got used to not having the computer and all the things I managed to get done. Amazing. So then we forgot about fixing it. The other day I tried again to fix it an cross fingers knock on wood and all that stuff. It seems that I have kicked the bug to the curb. I waited a few days before attempting to get on the blog and so now here I am.

I'll post pics later but here are some of the things I can remember finishing this summer. I made the little princess two new summer dresses so cute. A skirt, a tutu and crochet new slippers for both my babies. Pink and purple felted ballet stlye slippers and blue shagged dogs with googly eyes for the little guy. Crochet a new door mat out of my husbands old T-shirts, looks quite nice I might add. Started and finished one lap blanket with cream and brown wool from my stash. I will have to keep an eye out for more of the same I still think the blanket is too short. Started on another really crazy blanket, I'll post a pic when it's down and also started on a blue themed granny square blanket. The goal this summer was to finish started projects and any new ones could only be made with things already in my stash. I am proud to say I have accomplished that goal not a single new craft thing was bought this summer. Can't forget the little man, he got a "man apron" made from Daddy's old jeans and some leftover camo fabric. He loves it. Pirate costumes for him and his sister and Daddy made wooden swords from some leftover bits. They turned out really well. I'm sure there was more but that's all I can remember right now.

Now that I've got this computer working again maybe I'll be able to keep a better handle on this Blog thing.

What a nice way to spend an evening.

Last night my husband came up with a wonderful idea.

He dragged out an old canoe he bought from an auction a few years ago. This poor thing was so beat up no wonder he only paid $20 for it. Along with it came the paddles and my question "Will it sink"? Really it was that bad.

So after dinner we all put on bug spray, strapped the kids into their life jackets, and walked through the back field to the bird sanctuary in behind our house. It's tucked away in amongst warehouses and a few other properties like ours. I'm sure that very few people even know it's there. So after the kids and cat trudged through grass as tall as them and hiked what my daughter called a small mountain; we put the canoe in the water and I held my breath as we all climbed in.

It was lovely! I haven't paddled in a canoe since I was a teenager and had forgotten how calming it can be. The kids sat beautifully one behind with my husband and one in front with me. We paddled around for a half hour or so and just enjoyed the scenary. We discovered two beaver dams, two lodges and we even heard and saw the beaver. Well we kind of saw the huge splash of water has he slapped his tail. The kids loved it. Further on we spotted some baby ducks but, I couldn't get close enough to get a picture. I did managed to get a picture of one of the red winged orioles that were flying around.

It was so relaxing and peaceful that my little man fell asleep in Daddy's lap. About the only hard thing was getting the sleeping boy out of the boat.

Definately something that we will do again.

Patience, it's worth it.

When we moved into this house it was with the knowledge that no one had cared for it in a Very long time. The family previous to us had done work in the garden but, they took all the plants with them when they moved. A little upsetting when come spring you are hoping for something other than slush and mud to appear in your front yard. I believe I had one lone tulip which had somehow been over looked. Along with a mess of over wintered kale in the so called "veggie garden".

That first year the garden was very bare as I waited hoping, that some of the other removed plants might make a come back. To my delight some columbines poked their heads out and grew vigorously. All spring and summer I waited, but no flowers appeared on them. The only bloom other than the tulip was a lone iris. Pretty, but one flower does not a garden make. Some other plants popped up that I really wasn't sure were plants but, thankfully I have left them in. Now I have some lovely perennial geranium, some additional irises, Shasta daisies and some pink cone flower. I raided my mother's garden for her cast offs and friends gardens for seeds and found a great deal on some out of season bulbs.

Thankfully the second spring was a little better. I had some lovely Daffodils, tons of Grape Hyacinth, my lone tulip and the start of more columbines. Spring faded and summer past with a few more blooms but still no columbine flowers. I couldn't figure out what I was doing wrong. All the other plants were blooming. So this year at the advice of one of the garden centres I put fertilizer on the garden as soon as the snow melted. The daffodils, hyacinths and new tulips came up beautifully and with them came my columbines. They now created huge foot and a half mounds of foliage and I was preparing myself for another year without blooms. Much to my delight one day I noticed new shoots of growth coming up from the middle of the mounds and on the shoots were flower buds. I know this is how they normally grow but for me after two years of waiting this was a miracle. This weekend Finally they opened.

My other favorites so far are the English daisies, I got a great deal on them at the local flea market. They remind me of something from a Dr. Seuss book. So this year the garden is shaping up to be a colourful display.

Why write a blog?

As I sit here composing this first entry I am asking myself "Why am I doing this?"

It certainly isn't for lack of things to do, to which the mountain of laundry, unfinished projects and a very weedy veggie garden can attest. Maybe it's the need to communicate with people other than playdate parents , children and family. Something all to myself.


In my previous position I had a constant barrage of people to talk to, and equally as many that I didn't want to. I am now a Full Time Stay at Home Mom and while the title doesn't have the same ring as CMBC Customer Information Workleader, I can say it has many of the same challenges.


I am in love with, amazed, frequently surprised by and forever in debt to my children for the changes they have brought to my life. However, sometimes you need something more than the conversational skills of a 4 and 2 year old. So here goes... Maybe this will give me a reason to finish all my projects if not for anything else than to have something to write about.