Thrifty Thursday - 15 July 2010

What a disappointment!

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I made the Strawberry Banana Muffins re yesterday's recipe. But they were awful! -- Heavy with a very strong banana taste and little strawberry flavor (I shoulda' known with bananas!) and a bitter afterbite from all the whole wheat flour. Back to the drawing board!!

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I've no new treasures to show you on this Thrifty Thursday! (That's being really thrifty, don't you think?) And it certainly wasn't a successful exercise in thrift having to throw those muffins in the compost bin! (Unless you consider it thrifty to have added to my future "black gold for the garden"!)

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But thrift is more than just a good bargain. Have a look at these words of wisdom:

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"Thrift is not an affair of the pocket, but an affair of character."
S.W. Straus

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That got me thinking about "thrift" as a lifestyle; and this aging journey that I'm on has been all about lifestyle changes and acceptance of these new lifestyles!

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Thrift is an affair of character; it's a state of being that must be learned and experienced and appreciated in order to be successful. It's not a necessity that I practice because I can't afford any better; it's a Godly gift. It's about being wise with ones finances certainly! But I think there's so much more to thrift!

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Sometimes it can be the sale item for that certain necessity that we've been waiting for; sometimes it's the $2 yard sale treasure that we don't need but buy as a treat! And sometimes it's the organization of one's time so our energies can be "spent" more wisely.

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But what about being thrifty with one's emotions? Is it thrifty to "cry over spilt milk", so to speak? And what about worrying about things over which we have no control and should leave to God? Am I practicing thrift when I grumble and complain that I've just wasted an hour of my evening and a cup of my lovely strawberries in baking that sad batch of muffins? Don't all of those things rob us of our happiness, our contentment and our sense of well-being? And when I'm sad or in a sour mood, I'm usually apt to waste time feeling sorry for myself or spend money trying to make myself feel better!

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Here are some definitions I found for "thrift":

1. Parsimony: extreme care (in spending money); reluctance to spend unnecessarily
2. An obsolete word for prosperity
3. Vigorous growth of living things, such as plants
4. Any of numerous sun-loving low-growing evergreens of the genus Armeria having round heads of pink or white flowers .

Yes! I want to be the definition of thrift!

.I want to careful in my finances and I certainly don't want to ex-spend my energies unnecessarily! I want to be prosperous! I want to experience vigorous growth (I mean emotionally NOT girth-wise!) And yes, I am a sun-loving, low-growing (5'3") trying-to-be evergreen woman who has a round head (usually white; not often pink unless embarassed or in the sun too long!)!.

Say it with me bloggies ..........

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I am a Thrifty Being!

And I am thankful to be one!

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Now, let's all smile and head over to Bloggeritaville for Thrifty Thursday .

Sweet Sweet Rednesday

It's REDNESDAY over at It's A Very Cherry World!
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Let's talk about one of my favorite RED things to eat - STRAWBERRIES!

Nova Scotia has wonderful strawberries! When the girls were younger, I used to take them, and we'd pick at least 2 flats (24 quarts). I'd make jam, pies, muffins, breads, freeze many, many bags for winter eating, and we'd just plain gorge ourselves on strawberries. They were pretty good pickers too, especially Molly.

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This summer with kiddies strewn hither and yon, the freezer still contains a few bottles of jam, and being so busy staining; I purchased 6 quarts ($2.49 each). And because I've been watching my cholesterol, I did not bake a pie :( nor did I make strawberry Romanoff! (So yummy & full of lovely fat!) I did freeze 8 baggies of cleaned & sliced berries (about 1-2 cup in each) for winter munching. I've also been having lots of strawberry smoothies, strawberries sliced and scattered over the top of my salads and strawberries with frozen yogurt. And after work today, I'm decided that I'm going to bake some low-fat strawberry muffins.

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It's another rainy, humid day here in Nova Scotia, and I've no central air, so there's not much a person can do! Reclining on the sofa in front of the fan whilst reading my book and having tea and muffins is, in my view, a perfect way to spent the evening!

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Here's a recipe that I know I want to try: it's from Aparna @ My Diverse Kitchen.

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But for tonight, I think I'll make the following recipe. It has several of the things that I look for when I'm baking low-fat -- whole grain nutrition, yogurt for good bacteria and moistness a la bananas.

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• 2 1/2 cups whole wheat flour
• 3/4 cup granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup firmly packed light brown sugar
• 2 1/2 tsps baking powder
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1 cup chopped fresh strawberries
• 1 cup skim milk
• 1/2 cup low-fat (banana) yogurt
• 1 mashed banana
• 1 large egg, lightly beaten
• 1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat oven to 400 F. Spray a 12 cup muffin pan with vegetable cooking spray or line with paper cups. Set aside.

In a medium bowl, combine flour, sugars, baking powder and salt. Mix well. Stir in strawberries. In a small bowl, combine milk, yogurt, banana, egg, and vanilla. Mix well. Add milk mixture to dry ingredients and stir until just combined without overmixing. Fill muffin cups about 2/3 full.

**Combine 1 tablespoon sugar and 1/2 teaspoon cinnamon; sprinkle over batter.

Bake until tops of muffins are firm and golden, about 20 minutes. Place on a wire rack and cool for 5 minutes. Turn muffins out onto rack and cool completely.

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Have a wonderful Rednesday! And I'll let you know how these turn out.

Sunday - A Day to "Ab-stain"

I've been staining for the past 2 weekends. Phew! I'm pooped!
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I stained the back deck: I used an excellent quality solid stain on the lattice and rails -- one coat did it! (And my boss gave it to me gratis! It was left over from a job we did.) I used a semi-transparent stain on the decking itself and had it tinted to match. The decking needs a second coat, but I am loving the wild punch of color!
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I began the 2 smaller decks on Friday. Again, I used a solid stain for the rails. I walked into my local Gow's Home Hardware thinking I'd perhaps choose a pale yellow; and there in the "mis-tints" section was a gallon of solid stain for $7.99 in a very soft yellow color! Can you say sold! However, it is a cheaper quality and needs a second coat.
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Then yesterday after 2 weeks of beautiful sunshine, the beautiful rain began. The staining moved inside.
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I stained the settle bench that Brandy made for me. Remember I'd talked about perhaps painting it yellow? Well, I went back to Gow's, and there was a litre can of yellow stain for $3.99. Can you say bargain! And can you then say cheerful! This, ladies and gentlemen, is yellow! (I still need to varathane it.).
I also picked up 2 more litre cans of semi-transparent stain for the flooring of the 2 smaller decks for $3.99 each; they're in a barn red color which, I think, will go nicely with the colors in the brick on the front of the house. (I hope it does! Or can you say re-stain!)
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I'm pleased with the progress of these jobs. But .....

• Can you say relief that the rain is here and I'm not able to continue!
• And can you say ouch carpal tunnel!
• And can you say hello paperback and strawberries and ice cream!

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Oh! There was one more staining project. This one:

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Happy Sunday!

Fertilizer Friday - 9 July 10

A huge big TGIF this week! There's nothing like a few days off to make you long for more days off!
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I've noticed 2 things about my garden this summer: none of the Brown-eyed Susans that I planted last year (3 of them) came back (boohoo!); nor did my yellow Correopsis that had been there for 2 years. I thought those plants were pretty hardy?
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The garden is mostly doing well; there are some plants in some spots that seem to be eaten by something small. And then there are the larger pests such as the deer and rabbits. Oh well, you take your chances don't you!

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The Hosta and the Day Lilies are blooming all over the property. The small bed at the foot of the front entrance has been enhanced temporarily with the addition of the flower box and pots from the decks.

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More Shasta Daisies have come up than I remember planting. (Can Brown-eyed Susans morph into Shasta Daisies during the winter??).
My Mum Brown garden has these mystery yellow flowers which I think are Correopsis. And there are lovely, feathery Astilbe in that garden as well.And even more in the front bed..
The back shade bed is beginning to look really nice. Lots of orange and yellow Day lilies there..
Spectacular yellow ones in the front bed..
Along with this little white Asiatic lily that I rescued from the Lily Beetle (but as you can see, not without a fight!) -- and it's the first time this one has ever bloomed. I've got several lilies that have been in the ground for 2-3 years and are blooming for the first time. Hurray!

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The bright pink of the Impatiens looks quite stunning next to the dark, shiny green of the Periwinkle leaves..

And there's lots of bright yellow everywhere: from the prolific Evening Primrose ....

to the beginning few blooms of the Potentilla; and the sweet Sedum..

In spite of being busy and ignoring the garden, it continues without me.

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Now, join me for Fertilizer Friday at Tootsie's blog. And later, if the sun shines, you'll find me staining.

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Happy weekend!

Thrifty Thursday 8 July 2010

Aloha friends! Back to work today after having a week off.
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It was a working vacation while I toiled over my decks. The cleaning took a day & the drying 2 more (1 of which was spent mostly in the hammock with my book and lots of ice tea). I'm relieved to say that the large deck is completed and drying; I used a torquoise stain (which looks lovely on my skin tone -- well, kind-of all over my skin tone!). The 2 smaller ones still have to be stained (a different color perhaps?).
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In the meantime, it's Thrifty Thursday; and it's about time that I showed you the treasures I bought at Value Village on June 29th.

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This super-duper find is for my eldest daughter Cindy in Newfoundland; she has a longtime love affair with purple; and although you can't really see the color , these are three very pretty purple bowls [ Would I lie to you?]- purchased for $5.99.

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I then found 3 beautiful tops for myself:

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$6.99.
$6.99.
And this gorgeous linen blend for $9.99

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These items totalled $30.96; and my coupon for the month of June was "Spend $30 or more and get $10 off!" So, I spent $20.96 + 13% HST = $23.68.

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Some people say that Value Village is too expensive. But I gotta tell you,

I still love that store!

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Hmmm? What to do with those savings?

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I know! Let's go to Homesense ......................

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This New York mug (which is just like my Paris mug I bought last time) is on sale this week for $3. AND next to it is a china travel mug for $5.99!.

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I wonder what other bargains were found lately. Head on over to Thrifty Thursday at Bloggeritaville to find out.

Canada Day 2010

Happy July 4th to all my American friends!

The red, white and blue will be flying high tomorrow!

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The red and white were evident everywhere on Thursday. We had a fantastic Canada Day. Here's a collage of the morning fun!

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Our day began at 9:30 in Lunenburg where the usual Thursday morning Farmer's Market joined with the town to celebrate Canada's birthday. I don't get to visit this market, and it was heads above my own Bridgewater market with loads more room - hence more variety. Fresh produce, baked goods, organic meats, crafts, flowers and even wine! As we sat for breakfast (French dark roast coffee & my favorite apricot pastry from Julian's table), we listened to some local talent and chatted with old and new friends. We meandered through the market stopping to sample various munchies as well as deliciously cold and refreshing wines; I even met fellow blogger Anna Shoub (http://www.hatjunkie.blogspot.com/), better known as The Hat Junkie!

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At 11 am, the very popular local band "Midlife Crisis" came on to play. At noon we were heard a few words from the mayor, we stood to sing O Canada, and then the musical party and free b'beque continued.

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By 1, we were getting pretty hungry. So we headed downtown to Magnolias Cafe for some home-cooking; fishcakes, Spicy Peanut soup and Paninis were happily consumed and sufficiently "yummified"! Then we wandered the streets and window shopped -- Lunenburg is full of the most wonderfully curious little shops and boutiques. Take a look at this magnificant dragon which hung from the ceiling at one local shop -- The Picton Castle is a 3 masted tall ship best known for its sail training voyages around the world, and they have a small shop which sells some of the things they bring home .... but NOT this dragon!.

It was a sunny, hot day; but we were smart and covered our heads as well as applying sun-block. People everywhere commented on how much they loved our hats!

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We were home by 5 pm. And after resting in our respective homes, we gathered at my house at 8:30 for Maple Sparkling wine (quite appropriate for Canada Day, wouldn't you agree!) and finger foods on the deck. At 10 pm, we walked downtown to watch the fireworks which were really pretty!

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A wonderful day, wonderful weather, wonderful food, wonderful friends and a wonderful country! Who could ask for more?

2 July 2010 Fertilizer Friday

Happy Friday everyone! This is an especially happy Friday for me because I celebrated Canada Day yesterday with friends, and now I'm on vacation until next Wednesday -- my first "staycation"! But I won't be idle! I have decks to clean and stain. (I also have books to read in the hammock and wine to be drunk with friends.) I'm so looking forward to 5 days of Me and my house and whatever the day dictates!

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So, take a walk through my garden with me; then drop by Tootsie and see what everyone else is showing this week.

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The roses are still blooming. .
The sedum is blooming (and needs to be weeded!)..

The Evening Primrose are out in full force. Very cheerful!.

Here's the first bloom of the Lamb's Ears.
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The Astilbe are blooming. They are so pretty and feathery. And hiding behind is a day lily.

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Here are the Asiatic lilies again, still blooming (and I'm still picking off the occasional demon beetles or larvae).

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Another beautiful big 'n' tall day lily..
I hope everything's happy, healthy and blooming in your garden!

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Happy Friday friends!