Tuesday, December 27, 2005

wonton soup, cold appetizer plate, eggplant and fish with seafood are on the menu for thursday. Hopefully it will stop snowing long enough for me to get to town to buy the ingredients that I need.

Monday, December 26, 2005

weiners and buns over the campfire, only in the summer you say, not so how about on on the dugout in the winter.

Sunday, December 25, 2005

ha ha ha ha, I can't stop laughing, Crystal's Kareoke machine is a blast!! ooooh and the ribs marinated in bourbon were superb.

Saturday, December 24, 2005

We snowblowed the dug out yesterday, so we now have a big skating rink, well sort of a skating rink, the ice is a little snowy but not real bad. So all those people coming for christmas with skates should bring them. we have a tub and wood for a skating bonfire, we just need the hot dogs and buns. If the weather holds we could even play hockey.

Friday, December 23, 2005

Well, I have a job interview January 4th. Another part time position, if I am successful I will be holding down a total of five part time jobs at one time and I still will have time to plant the flowers and trees I need this spring and summer to make black pansy jelly and lilac jam. I wonder just how many part time jobs a person can have at one time, do you suppose there is a answer in the Book of World Records.

Thursday, December 22, 2005

Happy Happy Birthday to Crystal, seven years old today. Happy Birthday to Angela twenty six years old tommorrow.

Tuesday, December 20, 2005

Peanut Brittle turned into Peanut Crumble, thats what we created today. A little too long on the stove, I think. A slight adjustment in the cooking time should produce the correct product.

Monday, December 19, 2005

wow, Debbie Travis Facelifit can come to my house anytime!! The last show was quite inspiring with the change from the frumpy family room to the exciting and modern family room with all new tv, and furniture. Ok, so who do I have to bribe to get the how to my house.

Sunday, December 18, 2005

When is too much Star Choice, too much? When you get stuck watching Dawn of the Living Dead because you have the movie channels. Yuckk

Saturday, December 17, 2005

ok, now I know why the average person no longer bakes their own Christmas cake. The prices of the indgredients, candied cherries, candied peel, pecans, slivered almonds, raisins, currents are simply out of this world. After considering the cost of labour and materials a loaf size Christmas Cake would be worth about $60.00, or at least $7.00 a piece. Hopefully it tastes relevantly as good as it costs.

Friday, December 16, 2005

Arianna has been making a surprise for Christmas for everyone. Her artistic talents are immense, at least on nine out of ten surprises, the other surprise reminds me of many round rabbit poops stomped on by Max the dog. Just a note to all those who will be recipients of these surprises, the rabbit poop surprise is actually for Arianna herself so everyone else is safe. The Food Network is on a holiday theme these days, the Italian family Christmas Meal being prepared today looks very appetizing with a great deal of variety from seafood to desserts and noodles. mmm yummy. I think I will serve Roasted Dandelion Root Coffee for Christmas, I 've found a great glass perculator thats allows the coffee aroma to permeate the house and the visual process of the dandelion root turning into coffee is also quite appealing. We will see how the die hard coffee lovers make out!!

Thursday, December 15, 2005

warm weather is on the way, now we just need to fix the skidoo. plus four on monday thanks to some chinook from Edmonton. Hopefully this will help me to get my christmas chopping done by christmas. Essentially I still have all of my presents to buy.

Wednesday, December 14, 2005

Well, the ground outside might be white, but inside the house we are dealing with a case of pink, pink eye that is. Well it is off to the Dr. this afternoon, poor Crystal woke up with pink eye. I suppose that will also mean more days off from school, pink eye being highly contagious and all. Hopefully tommorrow we can watch something else besides shrek three times in one day. Her choice for tommorrow will probably be Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.

Tuesday, December 13, 2005

Wow, what a lot of snow!! and more to come!! Looks a lot like Christmas now. I suppose Gerald out driving the grader at 4:00 a.m. this morning to try and clear the snow off of the road wasn't quite as pleased with the whole event the way Crystal, Arianna and I were.

Monday, December 12, 2005

ok, the Chrsitmas tree is decorated, the Christmas lights are on, the Christmas Santa is lit up, oh where or where can all the presents be, still in the store unfortunately!! Well, I must get to it, shopping we will have to go on friday.

Sunday, December 11, 2005

Free sleigh rides for the kids, free hot dogs, juice coffee, door prizes for everyone and a surprise bag for the kids. A great community event in rural Saskatchewan sponsored of all things by the local co-op. It's days like those that remind me of why we left the city. Of course it didn't hurt when I won the cheese basket door prize!!

Tuesday, December 06, 2005

well, how about that, I was thinking about how nice it would be to have a job, one that paid real money, instead of using up all my money as seems to be occurring in our attempt to farm. of course the red clover syrup and the flower jellies are the exception and have indeed been profitable and will be even more so in the future. But in the mean time a job would be nice, and low and behold, the Smeaton Housing Authority is looking for a contract Manager. Well, I shall certainly throw my hat in the ring for that one.

Monday, December 05, 2005

ok, we are really into the flower thing now, we have a florescent light attached to the wall, hanging over the indoor nasturtiums to coax them to bloom. The nasturtiums in the mean time look like strings with flat circles attached to them, apprently they are leaves. The leaves taste good though, a bit less spicy then the flowers, I will just have to make some smoked salmon cream cheese stuffed nasturtium leaves for christmas dinner, if we are not fortunate enough to coax the flowers to bloom.

Sunday, December 04, 2005

Ok, a phone in order for red clover blossom syrup. Fortunately we have about eight bottles of syrup left. Repeat customer, the life blood of the retail industry, hopefully we will have more of them next year at this time.

Thursday, December 01, 2005

ok, two rooms down, one bedroom is organized and one living room, most of the stuff is put away some where. now back to the kitchen. Pansies were transplanted into pots today, we shall see how that works.

Wednesday, November 30, 2005

You Are "Rudolph The Red-Nosed Reindeer"
Rudolph, the red-nosed reindeerHad a very shiny nose.And if you ever saw him,You would even say it glows.
For you, Christmas is a mix of tradition and fun.You're not above strapping on a red blinking nose for a laugh.

Tuesday, November 29, 2005

oh, darn I forgot to look at the seed catalogue today. Seeds for the edible flower garden for next year that is. can't wait, for sure.

Monday, November 28, 2005

well, tommorrow will be a day for finishing the rearranging of furniture and cleaning from trying to move in over the last two months. Finally I have a day where I can dedicate to the house and not the farm, or the chambers in either nipawin or pa, or some craft show selling my wares of making jellied salad and periogies for the community supper (which was indeed delicious and filling).

Sunday, November 27, 2005

aaaaahhh, Juniper FoamBath, hot water, a good book and a big bathtub, recipe for relaxing. We have all of the above except a big bathtub. Oh well, will just have to use a small bathtub.

Wednesday, November 23, 2005

well, since the black pansies and nasturtiums are finished for the winter, I have been getting jelly making withdrawl. Today i found a new recipe, pomegranete jelly. I think I will give that a try.

Tuesday, November 22, 2005

Well, another grandchild on the way. We will of course wait with baited breath for the birth of this grandchild. What will it be???? A boy or a girl??? If it is a girl, she will be the first daughter for Angela, the second granddaughter for me, the second great granddaughter for the great grandparents, but she will hold the lucky place of girl number seven for this family. A family which for two generations and so far at least once in the third generation has not given birth to a boy, will this birth change the trend or continue it.

Wednesday, November 16, 2005

well, I have a much better idea of how to make perogies now, after having made over a thousand perogies today. I suppose we shall see how they taste on sunday, nov 27th during the fall supper.

Tuesday, November 15, 2005

brrrr, a bit chilly today - 27 to be exact. Yet the forecast is for +2 on saturday. Saturday will feel positively balmy after today.

Monday, November 14, 2005

a little skiff of snow, that's what I would call it, just enough to remind us that it is winter. Hopefully that will be it for a few more days.

Saturday, November 12, 2005

wow, I found this great crafters porch and garden magazine. Just what Arianna needs, patterns for her rocks that she paints and more patterns for door knob hangers and plant holders and pots etc, etc, etc. well maybe some of them will become christmas gifts.

Friday, November 11, 2005

still combining in November????? hmmmm

Tuesday, November 08, 2005

grrrr, I hate moving, how many kitchen stoves have I cleaned for the next person, toooo many. I am never buying another kitchen stove with raised burners and lacking a self cleaning oven. Now if they would just invent a self cleaning fridge.

Sunday, November 06, 2005

sold out, sold out those are the words for most of the products this weekend after the craft show in nipawin. virtually no inventory left. definately more craft shows on the agenda for next year.

Thursday, November 03, 2005

well, it's off to the races tomorrow. a two day craft show extravaganza for the products of bedard creek acres herbs & edible flowers. everything is all christmassy, to entice those what am I going to buy my friend, mother, sister, etc, etc for christmas people. hopefully we will do well.

Monday, October 31, 2005

sure why not


You fit in with:
Spiritualism


Your ideals are mostly spiritual, but in an individualistic way. While spirituality is very important in your life, organized religion itself may not be for you. It is best for you to seek these things on your own terms.

60% spiritual.
40% reason-oriented.

http://www.quizgalaxy.com/result_images/bg-map.jpg">
Take'>http://www.quizgalaxy.com/quiz.php?id=47">Take this quiz at QuizGalaxy.com
hmmm, something to look forward to and gee i will only be 61.
You'll become a millionaire on:
Saturday May 21st, 2020
money!
What's the first thing that you'll buy?
Lots and lots of drugs
Take'>http://www.quizgalaxy.com/quiz.php?id=48">Take this quiz at No comments:

Friday, October 28, 2005

Well, looks like it could be a nice Halloween this year. Crystal wants to be a fairy or a princess, seems to me last years custome was also either a fairy or a princess depending on whether your wore the wings or not. Now I only have to find the parts of last years costume hmmm, could be easier said than done.

Thursday, October 27, 2005

So, the plant that I tried to kill about four years ago, by moving from saskatoon to carrot river in forty below weather in december is still alive. I ripped the branches off as it was about seven feet tall and in my way, now the branches are about two feet tall and sprouting shoots like crazy, I have tried freezing, chopping and not watering but this plant seems to enjoy mocking my attempts to git rid of it.

Wednesday, October 26, 2005

hmmm, for six hundred dollars, I can have high speed internet in rural saskatchewan. Inet 2000 offers high speed internet and is not a line of sight tower high speed internet either. My phone line would no longer be tied up, and I could download at the speed of light. hmmm, too bad I don't have an extra six hundred dollars. Sooooo, for now, yucky old sasktel dialup will have to do.

Saturday, October 22, 2005

You Are A: Bunny!http://www.cuteducky.com/cute_animals/bunny.html">Bunny!

%20src="http://www.cuteducky.com/img/bunny.jpg"%20style="border:%20none;%20margin:%200px%2012px%2012px%200px;%20float:%20left;%20height:%20100px%20width:%20100px"%20alt="bunny%20rabbit">These%20adorable%20woodland%20animals%20are%20known%20for%20their%20fluffy%20cotton%20tail%20and%20shy%20disposition.%20Bunnies%20reproduce%20like%20crazy%20and%20are%20found%20all%20over%20the%20world. %20As%20a%20bunny,%20you%20spend%20your%20days%20hopping%20through%20fields%20and%20chewing%20on%20grass%20and%20leaves. %20Your%20cuddly,%20gentle%20appearance%20is%20irresistable!

You%20were%20almost%20a:%20Pony%20or%20a%20 are least like a: Kitten or a MonkeyTake the Cute Animal Quiz!
You Are A: Bunny!http://www.cuteducky.com/cute_animals/bunny.html">Bunny!

%20src="http://www.cuteducky.com/img/bunny.jpg"%20style="border:%20none;%20margin:%200px%2012px%2012px%200px;%20float:%20left;%20height:%20100px%20width:%20100px"%20alt="bunny%20rabbit">These%20adorable%20woodland%20animals%20are%20known%20for%20their%20fluffy%20cotton%20tail%20and%20shy%20disposition.%20Bunnies%20reproduce%20like%20crazy%20and%20are%20found%20all%20over%20the%20world. %20As%20a%20bunny,%20you%20spend%20your%20days%20hopping%20through%20fields%20and%20chewing%20on%20grass%20and%20leaves. %20Your%20cuddly,%20gentle%20appearance%20is%20irresistable!

You%20were%20almost%20a:%20Pony%20or%20a%20 are least like a: Kitten or a MonkeyTake the Cute Animal Quiz!

Thursday, October 20, 2005

saskenergy has taken out an ad in the local paper, warning all of us of their intention to ask for a 41% rate increase to be charged to all of us who are their captive customers. I find this such a farce, why they would bother to waste money on the ad requesting the rate reveiw board to let them increase the costs by 41% when they have not been turned down for a rate increase at any time in the past that I can ever remember. why not just put out an ad that states Ok all you hostages to your furnace you will now pay 41% percent more to save your silly asses from freezing this winter when it is forty below, hmmm 40 below 41% rate increase I think I see a connection here.

Next week I am putting an ad in the paper requesting the rate reveiw board to consider a 41% increase to the price of flax, wheat, barley oats etc due to the high cost of fuel and sask energy bills. lol.....

Wednesday, October 12, 2005

one truck full of wheat has been combined, now we will see how well the dryer works tomorrow.

Monday, October 10, 2005

well, the sun is shining the forecast is great, perhaps we will be able to harvest after all. I have been able to dig two pails of dandelion roots in the lovely sunshine. they smell soooo good when they are roasting.

Thursday, October 06, 2005

ok, I understand that I have been tagged so here is the line from the 23rd post the fifth line, " It was so good we bought two loaves of homemade bread to take home with us." Now unfortunately everyone that I know that has a blog has already been tagged.
hmmm, I could really use Adobe photoshop, sooooo who got my name for christmas again?? Oh well, I guess a fifty dollar maximum wont get me adobe photoshop.

Monday, October 03, 2005

We must officially be farmers now, gerald has just purchased his first combine. a 1983 massey ferguson for $1500.00 a far cry from the 150,000.00 the new ones cost. Hopefully it will combine just as well as the 150,000.00 one only for a lot less money.

Sunday, October 02, 2005

wow, our first order. Twenty one, nasturtium/black pansy jelly, twenty one black pansy sugars and eight red clover blossom pancake syrups. Delivered to PA on wednesday. Fortunately I still have some nasturtiums and black pansies growing. Arianna will be happy xmas money for her, as the sugars are her product.

Friday, September 30, 2005

harumph, well, I've been diligently covering the nasturtiums and black pansies to save them fora few more batches of jelly. Convinced that nothing could or would kill the portulaca and that there would be portulaca until the end of october for garlic butter, aahh not so. The minus three with an inch of white frost destroyed the portulaca. Now I am craving portulaca butter and since it was such a good seller and I wasn't concerned with the life span of the supply I have none for myself. hmmm.

Tuesday, September 27, 2005

Monday, September 26, 2005

The artist in the family has come up with an exceptional label. The computer science guy, is putting together an exceptional website and the process engineer will have to come up with an exceptional process to reduce the labour costs on our products. Nice to have so many talented people in the family. Special note to lynette, when Ang comes out next, I will send some goodies for your family to try. i would have sent something this weekend, but didnt read your comment until to day.

Wednesday, September 21, 2005

We have the new red clover blossom pancake syrup bottle, all we need now is an exciting label, more red clover blossoms and a gaggle of customers.

Sunday, September 18, 2005

Well, Max the neutered dog, seems to think he still has something to prove. Cadbury the old lady doesnt seems impressed. Life for Max is a new challenge, the farm has a lot more things to bark at and chase than town does. It will be interesting to see what happens when one of the things max chases, turns around and chases him back, particularly if it turns out to be a porcupine or a skunk.

Thursday, September 15, 2005

well, life at the farm is interesting, wet lately, quiet and has the distinct disadvantage of forcing me to go back to dial up internet. aaaaargggh. Oh well. we have an exciting plethora of products for the giant flea market in melfort on saturday. such as the likes of roasted dandelion root coffee, black pansy jelly, stinging nettle tea, black pansy sugar, garlic portulaca butter, creamy chickweed salad dressing, nasturtium and lemon butter, nasturtium cream cheese spread, toasted evening primrose seeds, nasturtium and jalapeno jelly, red clover blossom pancake syrup, all purpose extra special salve made with cocoa butter, jojoba oil, rose hip oil, tea tree oil, dandelion, portulaca, red clover, plantain infused oils, vitamin e, ecchinaccea, st. john wort and natural bees wax.

Monday, September 05, 2005

wow!! roasted dandelion root coffee, has a sweet, chocolatey, coffee taste, who would of thought, I will definately be out hunting down dandelions tommorrow for the farmers market on saturday.

Thursday, September 01, 2005

Max, the dog, has a cone on his head. Quite humurous actually, the spaces between the posts on the side of the deck have become an enormous challenge for max, previously he was able to simply jump between the posts and land on the ground. Max is also quite confused when playing fetch as the ball has a tendency to roll between his cone, and his front feet, as the cone is clear it allows max to see the ball but not pick it up. This is funnier than the comedy channel. Oh yes, I must comment on the Nasturtium and sweet pepper jelly, yummy,yummy, yummy. Should be a resounding hit at the farmers market.

Wednesday, August 31, 2005

moving is such fun, and particularly when one is moving two households at once. or at least attempting to coordinate such a feat. Yet, I must feel thankful for the choas of the move as at least my house is not under water or in a pile of wood akin to toothpicks. Yet, I feel compelled to ask the question, would one not consider living below the water level, yet right next to the water, a bit of a risk, relying solely on man made devices to hold back the water, and the powerful forces of nature. Nature has often flaunted her power by destroying man made devices.

Tuesday, August 30, 2005

chickweed is such a nice refreshing drink, an infusion of chickweed is akin to a tonic, revitalizing and energizing, almost better than coffee. Perhaps what chickweed needs is an expert marketer, one who will change the perception of chickweed from that of a garden weed worthy of only the biggest bottle of killex possible to that of a must have can't live without it everyday hot tea or cool refreshing drink, hmmmm I wonder what the budweiser girls are doing these days

Sunday, August 28, 2005

calculators, dictionaries, atlases, pencil crayons, wax crayons, markers and pastels, should all be listed on the will selft destruct once a year product listing. It seems every year before school starts we need to buy new of all of the above. I wonder what happens to the old ones,

Saturday, August 27, 2005

hi, ho, hi ho, off to the market we go. with pansy syrup and petunia jelly off to the market we go. well, we certainly need to make more product for next week. the butters and spreads seem to be particularly popular. gerald has proven to be a talented redclover blossom pancake syrup salesman, competing quite effectively with the wasps. tricky you know, handing out pancake syrup samples past a quick witted, sharp stinger, yellow jacket wasp or two.

Thursday, August 25, 2005

well, we will see how busy the farmers market is this saturday. Hopefully as busy as last week, although getting up at 5:15 in the morning is kind of annoying. oh well.

Wednesday, August 24, 2005

well the portulaca infused oil seems to be a success, at least it smells like potulaca, I take that as an indication that the essential parts of the portulaca plant were actually infused in the oil. Will have to pick more portulaca and start a few more batches this month for it dies of for the winter. hopefully the containers for holding the portulaca salve will arrive soon.

Tuesday, August 23, 2005

rain, rain and more rain, how to pick clover blossoms in the rain, hmmm. Oh well at least the nasturtiums will be replenished by friday. what to make this time. maybe more nasturtium butter, perhaps nasturtium and jalapeno jelly?? hmm will have to decide by friday.

Monday, August 22, 2005

okay, we are trying a bigger batch of clover blossoms today. The pot we are using now today is making 8 quarts of blossoms, that sells out at about $180.00 ,but I think the pot is big enough to hold more. The next thing wewill need is a big pot with a tap at the bottom so it is easier to fill the jars. I would like to be able to can about $400 dollars a day that would give us enough product to sell through the winter.

Sunday, August 21, 2005

we came away with $100. cash for four and a half hours of work and our first time at the farmers market. we ran out of creamy chickweed dressing. go figure. Some people didnt have enough money so they wanted to know if we would be back next week. how cool is that.

Friday, August 19, 2005

oh, oh, we found some of Hannah's toys. Arianna cleaned the truck so we could take it to the farmers market tommorrow and we found an elephant with a ring thru it's nosee and a red and white rattle. We will wash them and they will be all new again for Hannah, next time she comes to visit.

Thursday, August 18, 2005

well, arianna found a big spider in her room and now she is sleeping upstairs. I suppose we will have to chatch it and kill it. So the hunt for the spider will commence at some time tommorrow. I wonder if all the clothes on the floor have anything to do with the spider inhabiting her bedroom.

Tuesday, August 16, 2005

marigold muffins today, and more red clover blossom syrup. I did find some jars though, that will be exciting when they arrive, my pancake syrup will look like pancake syrup that is in the store. Let's see, I think it will be chickweed dressing and stuffed nasturtiums tommorrow, I will get to try out the new icing squeezer thingy that I bought today for three dollars. My chickweed tea should be ready now, a refreshing tonic for low energy, yahoo

Monday, August 15, 2005

thirteen and a half jars of red clover blossom syrup from one batch of flowers, there seems to be about three batches of flowers in one bag so that would be thirty nine bottles of red clover blossom syrup at $5.50 per jar. (250 ml Jar) That is not too bad, if you don't take into consideration the amount of time it takes to cook those thirty nine jars. I need to find a more efficient way to cook the syrup, hence decrease the time of the cooking and increase the profit.
nasturtiums stuffed with cream cheese and chves, rose petal butter were on the menu this weekend. quite yummy fare, part of the offerring, along with red clover blossom syrup, chickweed dressing and garlic portulaca butter at the farmers market this weekend, well, must get to work.

Friday, August 12, 2005

wow, taste of P.A was a blast. People tasted our chickweed, red clover and portulaca dishes and loved them. Some wanted to buy our products right on the spot, everyone had an opinion and would chat with us for five or ten minutes about our funky offerings and now we are registered with the farmers market on wed and sat mornings in p.a. I think I will make some sweet rose butter to be spread on hot muffins. mmmm. yummy. special note to angela, call me when you have a moment.

Monday, August 08, 2005

well, the dressing is ready, now on to chopping the lettuce for the salad

Sunday, August 07, 2005

ok, so each day brings us closer to the three day event, where close to 6000 people will go thru the gates. we have 1500 food items to offer with 7 other restaurants on site. hopefully we will have enough.?? red clover blossom syrup. pasta shells with garlic portulaca butter, and finally flower salad with creamy chickweed dressing. this will be very interesting I am sure.

Wednesday, August 03, 2005

okay, so, pickled red clover blossoms are disgusting, but the creamy chickweed dressing was yummy. Which is a good thing, because i am selling to to 5000 people over a three day period next week at taste of pa.

Wednesday, July 27, 2005

well, we have now made black pansy pancake syrup, yummy, marigold coffee cake, cucumber salad with portulca leaves, chickweed juice tonic, candied pansies (disaster) next time will use spearmint leaves, red clover lemonade (yummy even Crystal likes it) we are now trying garlic portulaca butter. need containers

Tuesday, July 26, 2005

good luck with your new home to angie and marc. The neighbourhood looks a little better on thsi one and I think you will be happier with a full basement with a family room. The yard looks outstanding, can't wait to see it for real.

Sunday, July 24, 2005

this is very yummy Red Clover Lemonade
Herbal lemonades are a refreshing summer drink, and a wonderful way to sneak some nutritious herbs into the family’s diet.
4 cups fresh Red Clover blossoms
1 gallon water
2 cups honey (1 lb) (you can use sugar, as honey is pretty pricey these days)
1 ½ cups lemon juice

1. Gently simmer Clover blossoms in a covered pot for 10 minutes.
2. Add honey, stirring until it dissolves.
3. Cover and let steep and cool for several hours or overnight. (This makes a strong, potent tea, maximizing the calcium and other nutrients in the Clover.)
4. Add lemon juice and chill in the fridge.
well, I now have the first bath of marigold and spearmint hand creme brewing on the windowsill in olive oil. I still need to purchase some beeswax. The clover blossoms and chickweek are awaiting their turn in the oil, I think I will try the crockpot method for some of the clover. Perhaps some cocoa butter or lanolin and vitamin E oil would be a nice touch. Now only to find some containers to use to hold the ointmint when it is ready. Baby food jars would work for samples, but would not look the prettiest.

Sunday, July 17, 2005

Overall, Your Observation Skills Get: C+
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%20color="#000000">You tend to notice the big things in life...But the details aren' t >

some time this week, I am going to try making a batch of red clover ointment to be used for certain skin conditions, including excema. I need to find some bees wax, I thought perhaps they would sell it at the craft area in walmart, but no such luck. Maybe, the craft stores in Saskatoon will provie to be more lucrative of an option. It is really a very simple recipe, the trick is to make it smell nice as well as work.

Tuesday, July 12, 2005

Off to the lake we go, 33 above in town, but we will be at the lake. Ha! Ha! we laugh in the face of 33 above because we will be at the lake. Gerald will have to suffer working every day on the black shiny pavement and now he has a sore leg. Pulled muscles from playing slow pitch, pretty funny actually especially when he had to get out of bed this a.m. to go to work.

Friday, July 08, 2005

I have renewed acquaintances with my slow cooker. Amazing how one can make lovely cooked meals without heating up the house. Sweet and Sour Chicken Wings were the treat of the day today. Mix it up, throw it in the cooker and relax for four or five hours and the house was as cool as if we hadnt cooked at all. Great.

Thursday, July 07, 2005

well, it is indeed a joy to have central air conditioning. I never thought that I would enjoy central air conditioning, as we so seldom have weather hot enough to be a problem. I was wrong, central air is great. This appears to be a hot and humid summer, just when air conditioning works at it's best.

Wednesday, July 06, 2005

Finally done painting the fence, well almost. A small piece on the neighbours side of the property is yet to be painted. Perhaps when it is a bit cooler, right now the sweltering heat would ensure that the painter passed out rather than painted.

Wednesday, June 29, 2005

still painting the fence. sigh

Tuesday, June 28, 2005

For each board we paint on the fence, the fence seems to respond by adding two more. The are miles and miles and miles of fence to paint, or at least it appears that way.

Monday, June 27, 2005

school is out, crystal is very excited about that fact.

Sunday, June 26, 2005

I predict that we will have reallllllyyy big tomatoes this year. Zuchinis the size of a house and cucumbers to die for. After all they are currently growing in thirty years of manure and dirt. Winners for sure!!

Friday, June 24, 2005

epipen, our new word of the month, first Hannah needs an epipen, now Arianna needs an epipen for her death defying shrimp allergy, as well as new Asthma inhalers to deal with a diagnosed asthma condition. ohh mmy

Wednesday, June 22, 2005

The wheels on the bus go round and round, round and round, whew talk about the bus. Over the last four days, I have spent 21 hours on the bus. Of course it was worth it as i had the opportunity to visit in Edomonton. Eat half price sushi, and full price german cuisine, and have breakfast for 2.99.

Thursday, June 16, 2005

If what's for you, won't go by you is the answer to our accomplishments in life, then if I chose to stand in the middle of an open field during a thunder storm and become struck by lightening, does that then mean being struck by lightening was my destiny, or simply my stupidity. While my friend believes in what's for you won't go by you, I simply believe the things that are for you will be presented to you in different forms and choosing or rejecting opportunities and circumstances is a concsious decision.

Monday, June 13, 2005

well, apparently the fish have been smarter than the fishermen this weekend. With only lots of mosquito bites and some sun burn to show for the weekend, we will just have to go back to the ol' fishin hole agin next weekend.

Thursday, June 09, 2005

Today is the big day for max. Max is getting a hair cut today, no more shaggy, matted, smelly, dirty dog hair everywhere. Max will be short, short, short and cool for those hot summer days yet to come.

Tuesday, June 07, 2005

mmmm, mushroom season, good ole Saskatchewan morels picked fresh and sauted in butter. mmm mm

Monday, June 06, 2005

oh where oh where could my little car keys go?? Gerald in his infinte wisdom in the a.m. put ALL the keys in his pocket, including the ones to the vehicle I was supposed to use to get to work in Prince Albert with. well needless to say we had to do some thinking, some walking and some telephoning to get to work today.

Friday, June 03, 2005

A modern day Alice in Wonderand, What the Bleep do we know Anyway, where Alice's reality is thru the looking glass, is this where quantum physics can take us, thru the looking glass and beyond?

Thursday, June 02, 2005

note to self, don't drink coffee at 7:00 p.m. and expect to go to sleep at 11

Wednesday, June 01, 2005

the seeding is done, now we can watch it grow. the garden is mostly up, although none of the 450 potatoe plants seem to showing their nasty little heads.

Sunday, May 22, 2005

the cry of the auctioneer, the smell of the burning hamburgers, the feel of sun beating on my face, aaah a day at the auction. four boxes of who knows what for $2.00, two boxes at 5.oo each and $400.00 for a year old 8 hp snowblower. who'da thunk it.

Saturday, May 21, 2005

mmmm, petunia flowers, pansies, johnny jump ups, spinach, onion and tomatoes, with three cheese ranch dressing,mmmm. yummy fiddleheads sauted in onion, garlic butter very tasty indeed.

Friday, May 20, 2005

well, we went vegetarian tonight. cream of dandelion flower soup as an appetizer, (hard to say if it was good or not, as I over did the celery seed and that was a very overpowering error, so will have to try again when there are more dandelions) spinach and grilled portobello mushroom salad with balsamic vinegar/oil dressing, butternut squash and crimini mushroom lasagna with ricotta, mozeralla and parmesian cheese (oooh, that was good!!) and mushroom pate with cream cheese for later. Complemented by crabapple wine. well perhaps complemented is not the best choice of words. I should have saved some dandelion flowers for the pancakes tommorrow morning, hmmmm where or where can I find a dandelion.

Tuesday, May 17, 2005

mmmmm, dandelions. We have now had cooked dandelion flowers. lightly floured and fried in butter, mmmm, taste like cooked mushroommms. Warning don't eat dandelions from lawns with dogs. lol

Monday, May 16, 2005

ahh the elusive bedtime, bedtime is 8:00 but when it is daylight out side it is hard to believe it is bedtime and not playtime.

Sunday, May 15, 2005

potatoes, potatoes, potatoes and more potatoes. Over 400 potatoe hills, I wonder how many potatoes that could actually mutliply out to be and just how many sacks of potatoes we will need to keep all those potatoes. Anyone who comes to visit this year will be hilling potatoes, checking potatoes, weeding potatoes, pulling potatoes, picking potatoes and maybe even eating some of them.

Wednesday, May 11, 2005

truly refreshing to be in the city again yesterday, to see the expanse of plants available in the greenhouse, to eat at a more than just burgers and fries restaurant with real service and clean tables. Rural Saskatchewan is full of boundless tourism opportunities, unfortunately full of business owners who refuse to believe that the behaviour of their staff and the first impression of the facility have any relation to the success of their business. Often business in rural saskatchewan behaves as though customers are their right and not a result of good service or food as the case may be. A pet peeve of mine that we would continue to promote ouselves as an incredible tourism experience and not place the highest importance on the return of thoses tourists after we have managed to lure them in the first time. Clean tables are nice, waitresses who are interested in their customers are nice, clean cultery and cups are good, food that looks appealing rather than questionable is also good. Bright inviting atmosphere should be a given. Perhaps rather than a five star rating system a new system based on levels of yuckiness would be more appropriate. I can see it now, pulling up to a restuarant in rural saskatchewan, checking out the front window or door for the yuckiness level sticker. perhaps the owner would get the point.

Sunday, May 08, 2005

Mother's day, an apple tree, some paper roses and a decorated jar(pencil holder). Will have to check out the green house in saskatoon to find the apple tree. As there were none left in nipawin.

Wednesday, May 04, 2005

Life is wasted if not lived as an adventure. Indeed, the adventure into farming, herbs and spices, organics, ethical wildcrafting, herbology and natural health food and supplements, certainly will be an adventure.

Tuesday, May 03, 2005

Stopped at the greenhouse on the way home today, hard to make decisions in the green house, fortunately I only had $15.00 cash to spend. I now own a martha washington geranium, a double begonia and some oregano. The fuschias, double impatiens and other flowers were very appealing and the choices were tough, but I perserviered and only spent $11.00 of my original $15.00.

Sunday, May 01, 2005

Well we finally took the plunge, the stinging nettle plunge that is . Cooked stinging nettle looks some what like spinach, tastes somewhat like spinach but not really, sort of hard to discribe actually. Next time we will have to try the dandelions. One word of advice, next time I pick stining nettles I will remember to where gloves. The ends of two of my fingers have a couple of pricky reminders of our supper.

Saturday, April 30, 2005

We are cooking again today, when the weather is bad, what can one do but cook? Today we are making chicken and vegtable pillows, Thai coconut rice and a rainbow veggie/fruit platter.

Friday, April 29, 2005

Lest the world of technology become so simple it becomes confusing. Case in point a simple usb connection, easy to use, easy to spot, yet when the wrong usb cord is unknowingly connected to the computer the device to which the output is intended refuses to respond, yet who could know, who could tell (without four hours of frustration) that a simple change in cords connected to the usb port would solve the problem. aaargh

Thursday, April 28, 2005

If you can't beat em, then eat em. Dandelion Salad. Look for small tender dandelions in early spring before they bloom. If the yellow flowers are open, the greesn will havea bitter taste. Dig up the whole plant and remove it in one piece. Shake of excess dirt. Hold onto the root and dunk the plant up and down in a bucket of clean water many times. Clean thoroughly or the greens will taste gritty. Pull of the leaves and save them. Throw away the root and the flower bud. Boil the leaves until tender in a small amount of salted water. If the leaves taste bitter , change the water and boil them again. drain off the water and serve the greens hot with butter and salt or add a little vinegar and a few bacon bits.

Tuesday, April 26, 2005

Anyone up for a tincture? Perhaps a red clover blossom tincture for acne, or a dandelion tincture for low energy, a an ecchinaccea tincture to strengthen immune system, have a problem, we got a tincture.

Monday, April 25, 2005

snow, snow, the weather man is actually calling for snow on wed and thursday, this week. I am not interested in snow.

Thursday, April 21, 2005

the people of canada will have their say, hmmm really. would that be the people in eastern canada or western canada or canada as a whole. during most elections the decision of power is made before the votes are counted in Manitoba. aaaah the sponsorship scandal.

Tuesday, April 19, 2005

So much for keeping the bugs out. Crystal accidently pushed the lock on the bathroom door, left the room and then shut the door. Normally that wouldnt be a problem, but some has put something other than a bathroom door lock on this door and we apparently have no key. Consequently the screen on the bathroom window has to be cut off in order to allow some skinny person to crawl into the bathroom from outside. sooo, we shall see how this works.

Thursday, April 14, 2005

Thanks to carmen, we had an interesting and enjoyable meal this evening. roasted garlic with toasted pine nuts and goat cheese, stuffed portebello mushrooms with artichoke hearts baked in the oven, roast beef (my recipe) and baked potatoes (my recipe) ceasar salad. mmmm.

Tuesday, April 12, 2005

Anyone's roses blooming yet? Strawberry Rose Cooler: 1 pint strawberries, 1/2 cup fresh petals, 2 cups vanilla ice cream, 2 qts milk, 1/2 cup sugar, Place the strawberries, sugar, and rose petals in a blender; blend approximately 1-2 minutes or until smooth. Add ice cream and remaining milk, 1 cup at a time until mixture is well blended. Recipe can easily be cut in half.

Monday, April 11, 2005

so you think I am crazy, ha! I think the people who go to the health food store and pay $8.98 for 1 cup of dried dandelion tea leaves are crazy. But if they want to be crazy I can supply them with the dried dandelion leaves and they can pay me. By the way, I bought some of that tea, truly disgusting taste and not even only in Canada eh

Friday, April 08, 2005

soooo, who is up for some cream of dandelion flower soup, or deep fried dandelion flowers, with fiddlehead salad and pansies. or how about some candied flowers with herbal ice tea and johnny jump up ice cubes? How about old fashioned pancakes with purple pansy pancake syrup and dandelion root coffee or stinging nettle tea, perhaps just cooking the stinging nettle and serving it as a side dish with butter mmmm, yummy!

Monday, April 04, 2005

I can already smell the basil, thyme, majoram, lavender and dill and the greenhouse isnt even set up yet. I cant wait to try my own personal strawberry leaf herb tea and french vanilla ice cream with strawberry and herb vinergar dressing.

Sunday, April 03, 2005

happy birthday to me, happy birthday to me, I am on my way downstairs to open my new 10" sliding compound mitre saw. hmmmm something wrong with this picture, I am sure that my new greenhouse which i will pick up tommorrow will be more fun.

Saturday, April 02, 2005

why is it that whenever I paint, there is more on me then on the wall.

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

A beautiful day today, no worries about snow on the drive home, that is a nice change, hoo ray spring must be on its way.

Tuesday, March 22, 2005

ok, so just exactly what's up anyway? First I win a new snowboard, then I break my toe, and it wasn't even on the darn snowboard. Is somebody trying to tell me something? Plans to go skiing on saturday, I will probably break my leg!

Sunday, March 20, 2005

ooh, ouch, ayee, ow ow ow, eeee, acch ouch, Crystal broke my toe for me this morning. She dropped the marble rolling pin on it sharp edge first. Oh well, at least Arianna is cooking breakfast now.

Thursday, March 17, 2005

Slowly, slowly the house is getting a face lift, the kitchen has been painted, we now have the new lino for the kitchen, hallway and new carpet for downstairs, also the marble flooring for in the bathroom, a new light fixture for the bath and kitchen. Hopefully we will have it in sometine next week or this weekend.

Wednesday, March 16, 2005

Life is full of ironies. Just when we were talking about how much fun skiing is and how hard it is to snowboard, I win a $300.00 snowboard. How cool is that!!

Saturday, March 12, 2005

In laws are rediculous.

Monday, March 07, 2005

Easter is just around the corner, the Easter Bunny hippity hopping to our house or so Crystal will think. Of course the company we will have for easter will be exciting as well. After such a long absence it will be so nice to see Carmen and Dan again and after all we have yet to see Hannah in real life. Well, won't it be a change when they finally find gainful employment in beautiful less stressed Saskatchewan, where we can visit back and forth every weekend and play with the baby.

Thursday, March 03, 2005

Well, the dog may have learned something, that cars are bigger than he is. The dog was run over by a car a couple of days ago, fortunately for him, he is small enough to be run over and roll out the other side. At least he isn't limping any more, in fact he was quite happy with his steak bone earlier today.

Tuesday, March 01, 2005

Time to set up the fish tank, much easier to look after then the dog, I think.

Saturday, February 26, 2005

Well, we cleaned up and organized the office today. Now it is ready for work and sleep, as it is also the extra bedroom. Too bad there are ten more rooms to be organized and cleaned including the kitchen and living room which seem be cyclical in the need for cleaning. First you clean, then it is messy, then you clean, then it is messy, aachh

Tuesday, February 22, 2005

nasty cold bug, first arianna, then crystal and now me. drip, drip, drip, drip my nose that is. Time for the over the counter medication trip.

Thursday, February 17, 2005

The tooth fairy is going to pay a visit tonight, Crystal's tooth is under her pillow waiting for the tooth fairy. No school next week, hmmm I wonder how much work I will get done.

Friday, February 11, 2005

Well, the proposal is off to SPMC, in the hands of the post office. We shall see what the results will be. The more work the better, the more money the better, the more people working for us the better, etc.

Thursday, February 10, 2005

Another proposal done, two more to go.

Wednesday, February 09, 2005

Completely amazing I say, the fact that is, that my day was quite rewarding. I represented my business at the local tech school career fair. Gathered a good number of resumes, discussed a good number of options with enthusiastic youth, who will soon graduate with a multitutde of skills. Considering the way my day started, the first clue was rushing thru the getting ready for the day part of the morning because the truck was out of gas and gerald needed a ride to work. I quickly threw on some pantyhose, which promptly became stuck to the velcro on my jacket in the truck on the way to the highway depot. Needless to say velcro and panty hose do not mix well together. Of course being in a time crunch I was not able to return home to change panty hose. Fortuanetly for me my skirt was longer than the run on the pantyhose, barely. The pantyhose situation only gets worse from here. The drive in the truck of course, was uneventful as sitting in one position for an hour and half does not further promote runs or crazy things to happen to pantyhose. Some time later though after arriving and checking in at the career fair, I realized the my pantyhose was creeping slowly but surely down past my waist and were slipping lower on my buttocks then one would believe to be comfortable or correct. Much to my dismay I discovered that the pantyhose I had thrown on earlier were devoid of appropriate elasticity at the top of the pantyhose to maintain correct positioning. For the remainder of the day, I was forced to pinch my skirt from time to time to ensure my pantyhose did not simply decide to fall down to my ankles at a moments notice. Adding a bit of uncertainty to the whole career fair, but still the day was truly successful while remaining a challenge as well. The aforementioned pantyhose are well on their way to the local disposal and shall never reside in my abode again.

Saturday, February 05, 2005

dumped on would be the term for the weather pixie, if I had one that is. I shovelled more snow today then I have all winter and I suspect tommorrow will require a re-shovel.

Friday, February 04, 2005

aHa, I won, I won a game of spider solitaire on hard. Of course I should have been finishing the proposal for hug a tree, but I won, how cool is that.

Thursday, February 03, 2005

Wow, I feel like a real tech pro, I added the spam poison link and picture to the blog. We are getting new furniture some time this weekend, at some point when it actually quits snowing that is. and new furniture to us is someone else's used stuff in good condition. We will have two new loveseats, a new table and chairs, a new double bedroom suite and some extra dressers, all for $350.00. Now when company comes to my house we will have two double beds that can be absconded from Crystal and Arianna for the company. Private rooms and all.

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

Every day should be like today, weather was great, the job was hectic, but the weather made it all ok.

Monday, January 31, 2005

There I have added Carmen and Dan's blog to my list. Now that I have high speed lite (at least) life on the net is much easier and faster.

Sunday, January 30, 2005

well, it's been about 6 or 7 years since i've driven a snowmobile. today was a good day for that and fun too, driving a newer snowmobile. even crystal was driving and now she still wants to drive again and again. She was even a bigger speed demon than carmen when carmen was six.

Tuesday, January 25, 2005

Ah for the lazy daisy days of summer. A brief but very wet and icy repreive from the cold weather has disapeared mysteriously only to return us to the bitter cold of -30. Perhaps my airconditioning will break down this summer and I will wish for the cold weather of today to stop the beads of sweat from rolling off my forhead. ha ha ha ha not.

Monday, January 24, 2005

Bean soup can be an interesting meal, later in the day. Dont invite friends over if you plan on serving bean soup. Make sure the dog is sleeping on the carpet nearby, so you can blame the strange smell on the sleeping dog. Just for extra fun serve the left overs the next day and have two days of enjoyment.

Sunday, January 23, 2005

Finally a reprieve from the -51 degree weather. Plus two tomorrow they say, hopefully without freezing rain. It will certainly feel like a good day for ice fishing. Too bad we have to work Monady.

Friday, January 21, 2005

The ability to use the phone and the internet at the same time is certainly a bonus. Although technology seems to come with its own set of bugs these days. My phone for instance, the red message light continues to blink, yet there are no messages. When someone uses my toll free fax number they are unsuccessful at transmitting a fax, yet when people use the toll free phone line, they receive a fax signal. One would come to the conclusion that there was a problem with programming at Sasktel, alas, not so. When I phone the above mentioned numbers (from my cell phone) the fax toll free phone line works fine and the toll free phone line functions as it is supposed to as well. hmmmmm perplexing indeed.

Thursday, January 20, 2005

well, I was able to successfully hook up my high speed lite all by myself. I now have high speed lite. much nicer than dial up. Of course I must remember now to run the virus checker more often but other than that whoopie.

Wednesday, January 19, 2005

Well the t4's are all done for this year. Believe it or not we actually had 20 employees as of august 16, 2004 thru to Dec 31. Total gross wages for that time period $46,000.00 Hopefully we can continue that way into 2005.

Tuesday, January 18, 2005

This is a rant about a paritcular product. I cannot come up with enough negative phrasing to adequately describe how I truly feel towards this particular piece of machinery. Do Not Purchase this item under any circumstances. In fact if someone tries to give this product to you tell them gently to stick it where the sun doesn't often reach. The product you ask, waiting with baited breath, what product could cause such a distaste in ones mouth as this. What product indeed. An HP 5510 All In One Printer, copier, fax, scanner. That is the true culprit, a machine manufactured to increase stress levels of it's owners (defintaley meets goal on that point) Let me just repeat that product, I wouldnt want any one to be mistaken HP 5510 all in one printer, scanner, fax, copier. This is the worst product of this category that I have ever used. This printer is capable of printing one excellent copy of anything, try to print a second copy, or a third copy or a forth copy,,,ha ha ha.. The machine disintegrates like an expired Mission Impossible message. Completly Useless, I Say!!!! Boycott Boycott Boycott HP HP HP HP HP 5510

Friday, January 14, 2005

Well, we couldn't have picked a colder day to drive one and half hours to hand out two hundred business cards. Our bad purchase for the day purchased at Walmart a comfort cushion with a small almost minute system of beads inside, which apparently are toxic, so must be kept away from small children, and used as a comfort cushion only and not even used to sleep with. my advise Dont Buy This Product.

Wednesday, January 12, 2005

cold, cold and more cold, brrrrr.

Monday, January 10, 2005

The car seems to run great, that is nice to know. This will be a great on gas car particularly in the summer months. If the summer months ever get here that is.

Friday, January 07, 2005

Finally found a replacement vehicle for the van that was written off by SGI. We bought a 1994 Mazda Protege for $3,500.00. Should be good on gas.

Wednesday, January 05, 2005

hmmm. I really must take that christmas tree down.

Tuesday, January 04, 2005

Well, it is my goal within the next two days to pick up the self install high speed internet connection kit. We shall see just what type of challenge that can provide.

Monday, January 03, 2005

Nasty, the weather that is. Minus thirty seven celcius and falling. ooh for those summer days, at least one positive, the days are getting longer albeit colder, at least for the time being.
Well, a new year. Many new occurrences happend last year, a new baby, a new marriage, a new house in PA, new self employment opportunities, new job for Dan, (so by the way, how's that going?) I wonder how this year will top all that from last year. Any predictions. Well, I've come up with another new idea. How does Pandora's Box Creative Communications and Inivative Marketing Ideas,, sound?? or more simply just Pandora's Box Communications? This particular company would provide local broadcast fax including design if required and publish and distribute a six page newsletter "The GrassRoots" to voluntary sector agencies in Saskatchewan. A newsletter complete with a new list of funding agencies and their requirements published quarterly.