Rednesday Jun 30.10

Tomorrow is our nation's 143rd birthday. And although I'm a day early, today is Rednesday (Check it out at http://suelovescherries.blogspot.com/). Therefore, this is my chance to highlight Canada's beautiful flag as well as acknowledge the sea of red that will be seen at festivities everywhere tomorrow, from "sea to shining sea".

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I love this country of mine. I love our diversity. I love the freedom we enjoy. I love our reputation of being "nice" and laid-back and peace-makers. I love that we have two official languages (and wish I could do more than read the back of the cereal box and say "Ou est le toilette?" -- although if you need to know a phrase in another language, that's the one to know!!)

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I love our sometimes rather ridiculous national symbols -- such as our national animal, the beaver. (I mean really guys! The U.S. has the magestic eagle, and Canada has an oversized rodent with a flat tail and a penchant for trees! Who came up with that one?). Then there's the moose (rather delicious sauteed with onions and served with small potatoes!). I love that our $1 coin has a loon on it (Canada's national bird) and is affectionately called the "Loonie" (followed by our $2 coin known as the "Twoonie").

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I love that lacrosse is our national sport and that it's origins come from our Native peoples! And I especially love the fact that no one would ever be able to tell that lacrosse is our national sport because of the country-wide fervor that envelopes 99% of our country whenever a hockey game is on! (And I love that Canada's hockey team won Olympic Gold this year!)

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I love Michael Buble and Joni Mitchell and Bruce Cockburn; Mike Myers and William Shatner and Bob & Doug McKenzie; Michael Ondaatje and Alice Munroe and Robert Munsch; Leonard Cohen and Pauline Johnson and Dennis Lee. We are an extremely talented country!

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And although I can't say that I actually love our politians ("They are like diapers; they both need to be changed often ..... and for the same reason". Mark Twain), I do love that we still have strong ties to the monarchy in England and to our beloved Elizabeth II (who is visiting us this week.) [Hope she reads this and sends along some marmalade or toffee to say thanks!]
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I love our Newfoundland blueberries and partridgeberries. I love our Nova Scotia strawberries and cranberries. I love our Ontario peaches, Quebec Poutine, Prairie wheat and canola; and British Columbia salmon (and those sweet Nanimo bars!)

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I adore our maple syrup! And I l.o.v.e our beer! On a hot summer day! Umm um um um um! "How's it goin, eh!"

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I love my country!

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Happy Birthday Canada. Tomorrow, I'll be wearing red and white and hanging out at the street parties listening to traditional fiddle music (and quite possibly a little Drake or Justin Bieber). [But never Celine Dion who has gone over to the dark side!!!] I'll be eating good food and watching parades and enjoying a glass of wine before the fire works!

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Oh! And Canada ...... thanks for the great holiday!

Adiós mi dulce niño

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I drove Adriana to the airport yesterday, and now she's safely back in her Mama's arms.
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What a wonderful Mexican daughter she was? I'm so grateful that God placed her in my care; I'll miss her terribly. She gave me this Circle of Angels as a goodbye gift and wrote me the most beautiful letter as well as a page of "Things that remind her of me".
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There were many tears as Adriana, Libby and I exchanged gifts and letters and cards! Now it's my turn to share!
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Things that will always remind me of Adriana:

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1. Wildwood Cafe

(which is now featured in "Where to Eat in Canada")

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We visited often, especially Saturday mornings after Yoga class: wonderful Mexican breakfasts, paninis, homemade salsa and fuego sauce; and Italian sodas.
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2. Dulci and Jorge:

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Jorge is now back in Mexico as well. But everytime I see a snake, I'll think of him - and then of Adriana.

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And Dulci just lives next door.
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3. "Single Scoop" Ice Cream Cones"
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She was absolutely delighted to find out that single scoop here in Nova Scotia usually means 2 good scoops AND that you can choose 2 different flavors.

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"That's amazing!" she used to say, wide-eyed and smiling.
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4. Frenchies shopping

(as well as Value Village, Yard Sales, etc)
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A lot of people who have never thrifted before turn their nose up at the idea of digging through bins of "used" clothing. Adriana took to it like a duck to water and was always ready to go!

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I remember early in her thrifting days when she was shopping just before her trip home at Xmas. She brought her overflowing basket of goodies to the check-out and the clerk said "That'll be $72.47." She had to step aside to discard some (half) of the items and was sooo embarassed about it. But how quickly she learned to be a pro!

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There are so many other things that remind me of her: "The Flight of the Conchords", "Ponyo", dried apricots, cinnamon --- Oh! How she loved cinnamon.

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We'll see each other again someday. But until then, she's tucked away here in a little corner of my heart.

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Adiós mi dulce niño.

Goodbye my sweet child.

Fertilizer Friday 25 Jun 10

What a busy week. I've hardly had time to stop and smell the roses! But I have; it's therapeudic!
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Friday again -- it's that grand (as we say in Newfoundland)!
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The batteries in my camera died last Friday so I didn't make it for Fertilizer. But I'm back again, blooming all over the place. Days of lovely rain have been followed by a Thurs and Fri of sunshine. So here's this week in my garden.

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And speaking of smelling the roses -- Unfortunately, there is no scent to these tea roses :( ..... but they are covered with buds and blooms and looking so beautiful! .

Look at this sweet surprise. This is from my Mum Brown garden; I transplanted the Creeping Phlox, it bloomed, and now this little stow-away has emerged. I believe it's a variety of Dianthus.

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And here's another surprise. This plant was sold to me as a Foxglove, but that's certainly not what's blooming. Any ideas on what it is? Weed? Or worthy keeper?

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And now for the lilies that I've been lovingly defending against the dreaded lily beetle. Definately worth the fight. They are gorgeous; and again, full of buds! .

Just before I took this picture, I discovered 2 bettles on top of the petals mating! As well as being the scourge of the lily-lover, they are voyeurs, have no fear and no sense of decency!! (And right in front of a lonely widow woman! That one hurt.) So, I crushed them under foot! .

It's the first year for this one in the garden. Isn't the color spectacular!.
The Campanula are very pretty next to the shed. .
And this very pretty sedum is scattered in several places under the ferns..
The Lady's Mantle I bought this spring has taken nicely and is ready to open it's blooms. I love this old-fashioned flower..
And I took a picture of the Ajuga just because I think the colors are so nice..

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My garden makes me happy!

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Fertilizer Friday is brought to us by our lovely host, Tootsie; so please drop by to see what's blooming in other gardens on this Fertilizer Friday. And have a wonderful weekend!

Thrifty Thursday - 24 Jun 10

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Ahhhh! Thursday .......... one of my favorite days of the week.

1. It's the day before Friday - my half day and the start of the weekend..
2. It's usually a good TV viewing night (but not in summer)
3. It's time for weekly Thrifty Thursday at Bloggeritaville

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I've been too busy lately with teenage beauty queens and Mexican suitcases to spend much time thrifting. (Plus I'm saving for this weekend. Shhhh! It's a secret!) But last Saturday after I dropped my youngest off for her early morning shift at Dirty Macs (aka MacDonalds), I saw that my neighbors across the street were just opening up for a yard sale. And I went by to be neighborly!
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I bought 5 more blast-from-the-past CD's (Paul McCartney, Blue Rodeo, Anne Murray, The Divine Miss M and Jesus Christ Superstar) for $1 each.
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And I got these gorgeous little vintage juice glasses for 50 cents each. Aren't they darling!

Elephants and Piggies!

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Don't forget to drop by Thrifty Thursday to check out the other great thrifting finds. I'll see you there.
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And now, if you'll pardon me, there's work to be done ... and the nearness of Friday to be anticipated.
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"Later" my dear bloggie friends!

Prom 2010

Daughters are like flowers, they fill the world with beauty, and sometimes attract pests. ~Author Unknown

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My baby had her prom last night. What a beauty! She looked like a Disney princess Here she is in the garden named after her Daddy
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And here's her Daddy's oldest friend and her wonderful Godfather, Glen. He and his wife, Carol drove down from the city so he could stand-in for Larry on the dance floor and have the "Father/Daughter 1st Dance". It was such a special, special night!

Food for Thought Tuesday - 22 Jun 2010

"Anyone who imagines that bliss is normal is going to waste a lot of time running around shouting that he has been robbed. The fact is that most putts don’t drop, most beef is tough, most children grow up to be just like people, most successful marriages require a high degree of mutual toleration, and most jobs are more often dull than otherwise.
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Life is just like an old time rail journey ... delays, sidetracks, smoke, dust, cinders, and jolts, interspersed only occasionally by beautiful vistas and thrilling bursts of speed. The trick is to thank the Lord for letting you have the ride."
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~ Gordon B. Hinckley

Keji Seaside Daytrip

The batteries died on my camera before I could snap for Fertilizer Friday; and then I came down with a 24 hour bug! And the sun was shining so beautifully on Friday afternoon.
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So when I woke on Saturday feeling quite a lot better, I was determined to make the most of the day. Adriana, Jorge and I headed off to Kedji Seaside and did the 6 km hike PLUS a couple of side jaunts! Man! What a workout!
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But it was glorious! We saw lots of pretty flowers along the way. Things like this one (not sure what it is ... part of a Pitcher Plant?) and wild Iris.

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We started the hike down a woodland trail until we reached a rocky beach. Then we walked along the seaside.

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At one point when I was ahead, Jorge and Adriana had to run away from a snake. Just a harmless little guy, but when you're from Mexico, you take no chances!.
The last part of the walk was along a rock strewn beach (where I collected a few more heart rocks) and then on the boardwalk over the marshland. From there, it was a quick drive back up the highway to Carter's Beach where we ate our picnic lunch. What a relief to sit!

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Brave little Nova Scotia children were in the water -- June 19th in Nova Scotia!.
Sandwiches, veggies, grapes, apple juice and the first of our red, juicy NS strawberries! It was a grand meal!

And as much as I tried, I could not hide my wind-swept "winged" hair behind the kids. Darned skinny Mexicans!

A TRIBUTE

I have a wonderful Dad. I don't see him often; but he's funny and kind and smart and helpful -- all the things a dad should be. And he's 79 and in pretty good health.
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Not so my children's Daddy and my lovely Ex! He died 2 1/2 years ago at the age of 57! And he was a darling man and a wonderful father.
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He was a somewhat reluctant daddy-wannabe at first; afraid that he wouldn't be any good at it, was what he told me. But he was a natural!
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The best gift Larry ever gave his girls was his total acceptance of who they were and his undying love. He adored his girls -- and they know it!
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Xmas morning 1993

Hiking through Kedji National Park.

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Happy Father's Day Larry. You are missed!

Thrifty Thursday - Baubles & Jewels

I'm joining Leigh for Thrifty Thursday at Bloggeritaville.

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This post was prepared a couple of weeks ago but it was never posted. Today is the perfect time to share it.

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This is the jewellery that I bought at one of the church yard sales I went to.

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2 pretty necklaces for $1 each.

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And all of these for $5.

Here are close-ups:
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A beautiful tourquoise pendant.
Another lovely pendant.
Cute pewter hummingbird earrings.
And these nice Rhinestone studs(Sounds like someone you'd pick up at the Rodeo, huh?

But Glen Campbell is a little long in the tooth for me now!)
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And now, as I ride off into the sunset (aka go to work so I can afford these lovely treasures), I bid you --

Happy Trails
and happy thrifting!

Rednesday & the Fight for Good Cholesterol

What a beautiful REDnesday. I planted annuals over the weekend, so I have a few red splashes in my garden today.

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There's a beautiful New Guinea Impatiens in the hanging box on my front deck. It does have a coating of pollen (which cannot be helped these days!) And in the front driveway bed, here are some red Verbena.

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The other red thing I want to share today is my favorite cooking pot. I bought it last year when I had my first International student; she had a boiled egg every morning. I've found that it's the perfect size for my shrinking family. It's boiled many eggs and single or double servings of veg since then. And lately, it's found a new occupation. It's my morning oatmeal pot.

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As I mentioned on Friday, my doctor told me that my cholesterol was high. Then he mentioned medications!

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I hate the thought of adding a bottle of cholesterol meds to my nightstand next to my throid medication. Next thing you know, my dentures will be in the tupperware container with my hearing aid on top and empty prune juice glass beside it! And following that will be loud snoring while I sleep and drool dripping onto my pillow and waking with crusty stuff in the corners of my eyes!

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"Nooooo!" I cry unbelieveingly!

I'm young! I'm much too young!"

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Enter Doris the Great! Defender of this sacred temple of the Most High God! And now her resume can list another superpower -- Unrecognized Cholesterol Scholar!

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High cholesterol is known as the silent killer: you don't have any warning signs but must have blood work done to know that it's there. If it goes undetected and untreated, it can lead to heart disease and stroke.

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High cholesterol is easily controlled with diet, and the negative effects can even be reversed. It's your basic healthy diet.

• Lots of veg and fruit (which contain no cholesterol!)
  
• Hold the red meat and bring on the chicken & fatty fish (full of omega-3)


• Eliminate bad fat -- trans and sats -- at least until those levels are down! (And no more living like I have been for the past 2 months ... full-fat ice cream, trifle, all that butter on my popcorn. Naughty Sandy!)


• Exercise (At last! One thing that I'm already doing right!)


• Supplements such as Omega 3 fish oil capsules, B complex, chromium (Phew! I re-started taking those about 3 weeks ago!)


• And finally, the nemsis of high cholesterol - OATMEAL! The Quaker Oats people describe it as this: "Think of rolled oats as tiny sponges that soak up cholesterol and carry it from your body".
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(Now, if only they could find some little sponges to carry all those nasty fat cells from our body. And if only those sponges tasted like chocolate. Get back to work food scientists! )

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Doris the Great is proactive, people! She looks high cholesterol in the face and laughs heartily! "Ha ha!!!" Armed with her trusty sidekick "Google", she is a superwoman in the know! Donning her full-figured underwire bra" and her support hose (and a cover-up because she doesn't want to scare the children), she hefts her cereal bowl and soup spoon aloft and says.

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"Yes!

This crappy aging stuff sure is educational!

And mighty tasty too!"