How Nature Works

When we got up this morning, we looked out the front windows looking onto the lake which is frozen right now and we saw a beautiful bushy tailed coyote walking across the lake. We watched him come fairly close to our shore where he stopped to feast on the carcass of a deer. We believe that he must have killed that deer last night. He stayed there for a while then proceeded to walk away. After a short while, the crows and ravens landed to have their turn to eat. They kept coming back all day. The coyote came back a couple of times, have a few bites and off again. To top it all off, a mature bald eagle came in for his turn to feast twice. He is one big bird and what a beautiful sight too.

We have had fairly decent weather the last two weeks. Actually, last week we did have above average temperatures and it was so nice. We have gotten rid of a lot of our snow but still have some more to get rid off.

In the last week, I have been quilting quite a bit and have been able to roll twice. I have 4 large blocks and their borders left to quilt. I will be so happy to get it done. Because of the size of this quilt - queen size - it has taken a long time to hand quilt. Of course, there has been many interruptions too, so that did not help on the time frame. The other day, someone asked me what I was going to do next. Well, I kind of think that maybe an old fashioned quilt with scraps of materials would be fun. I also have a lot of mauve and purple fabrics and someday, I want to make a quilt in those colours. The planning and assembling is always fun too.

This past week, I have been doing some genealogy as well. I always find that exciting, especially when I find some of my older relatives.

Take care and have a great end of the week.

How Could I Forget?

On Friday and Saturday nights, we usually get together with friends to play cards. So, as usual, on Saturday night, we did play cards at our friends' home and of course, munchies were served. Some of those munchies were nuts and bolts which I just love. Of course, I ate my share of them and forgot to ask if there was garlic added to these. Since they were homemade, I didn't give it a second thought. By the time we got home I was starting to feel sick and went right to bed only to get up an hour later to be sick to my stomach. At first, I thought I was coming down with the flu. I spent Sunday sleeping. Sunday night, these friends called to see how I was and that is when I asked and got the answer to the garlic question. Since I am allergic to garlic, I now know why I was sick. Lesson learned.

Today I feel so much better. The sun is shining, the temperatures are above freezing and I have done a lot of housework, including some quilting. Because of the cold nights and warmer days, the maple trees are already being taped and so, it won't be long before maple syrup and maple sugar will be for sale in the stores. I just love, love, love maple sugar. Thank heaven, it is only out for a short time - that way, I can have it and not have to worry about how much weight I will put on.

Around our area, there has been some people that have been asked to evacuate their homes for fear of flooding. Apparently, the Nashwaak River has developed ice jams and has caused the river to overflow its banks. It has not flooded homes yet and luckily, the weather is being predicted as sunny for a couple of days, so it has slowed down the snow melting. Hopefully, it will be enough to keep the major flooding away.

We are still thankful for where we live, especially since the awful disasters happening in Japan. It is hard to imagine the way those tsunamis and earthquakes happening to anyone. Those poor people! Our prayers are with them!

Must go as I rambled long enough. Take care everyone!

Dreaming

If one wants to dream, one may as well dream in technicolor. Right? Well, in Canada, we have a lotto that happens each Friday night. It is called Max Lotto. The jackpot climbs each week it is not won until it reaches $50 millions, and on top of that there is a draw for 20 tickets each worth $1 million. Well, guess what? Tonight is such a night.

DH and I often talk out loud as to what would we do if our ticket won the $50 millions. We like to think that we would not move from our present home as we love it here but it would be fun to change other things. We often say that our priorities would be in helping our relatives - yes, Cathey, you would be first on the list. LOL Actually, DH and I would not refuse the $1 million winning ticket either. It is fun to dream BIG!!!

Well we did get more snow this past week and it is getting ridiculous. The snow banks are so high and it makes it dangerous when people come out of their driveways as they cannot see what traffic is coming. They are calling for rain on Sunday with a +6 C for a temperature. Last night, it was a clear night but with a -26 C - that was cold. No wonder so many people are sick around here. The changes in temperatures are so great. I am feeling much better myself but I am still coughing. DH did catch my cold but he has not been as sick as me with it. With his health issues, I am happy that he was not that sick with his cold.

Have a Great Weekend everyone!

Not A Good Month

Usually February is a pretty good month for me. However, this February has not been fun at all. I started off the month by having to go to the doctor for a really bad cold which he put me on antibiotics to clear up the infection caused by this cold. Then, of course, we have had a snow storm after another after another with another big storm coming today. We have had so much snow that there is no place left to put what comes. DH even had to shovel off the roof of both the house and the garages. I don't think he ever had to do that before.

While I thought that this was the end of a bad month, on February 13th, we received a call from a dear friend that her husband D, who is DH's cousin and a close friend as well, had passed away early that morning. So, we packed up and went to Moncton for the funeral which happened on the 16th, a very sad day. February 16th is also my birthday - I know at my age I try to forget the birthdays, but I still wish the funeral could have been on a different day.

We came home on Thursday being very tired and emotionally drained. Guess what? On Friday, I came down with another nasty cold. Argggh! I am starting to feel better today so hopefully, things will not get as bad as the first one. I hate this February. The only good part of having to go to Moncton was that we did get to meet up and stay with my daughter and her hubby.

Enough of my woes for today. Last week, before I got sick, I bought myself a pair of Shape-Up sneakers. They are supposed to be the latest in sneakers and you have to wear them for short periods of time at first as they are supposed to correct your posture, tone your muscles and walk in a better form. Today, I am wearing them for a while in the house. They do feel really different on, I can see why they suggest wearing them for short periods at first. I do need to shape up so hopefully this will help.

The skies are getting dark and it looks like we are in for the start of our latest snow storm. It is supposed to start with rain, freezing rain and then a good amount of snow. I guess I will be doing my walking on my treadmill for a few days.

Have a great weekend everyone!

Snow Go Away

This is unreal. We just got another snow storm last night and they are calling for another one on Tuesday. The picture is that of a neighbour's cottage before last night's storm. The deck rails are four feet high and the snow is at least 3 feet high on the deck. Do you believe this? DH just gets the driveways cleared with his tractor, and here it comes again within a couple of days. Now I wish we had gone South for the winter. To top it all, we have had high winds with most of the storms. Last year, we did go South and in this area, they never had any more that four or five inches of snow after we left. Ah well, I guess we can't do anything about it.

I started walking last Tuesday. The road we live on is 4 km. long and is gravelled. Right now, it is snow covered but the plow has been keeping it clean and it makes it fairly good for walking. A bit slippery if one is not careful. Yesterday, I walked 3.6 km as I increase it everyday. Today it will have to be the treadmill. I don't enjoy it as much as outdoors as even with the TV there, I find it a bit boring. As I write this, the sun has just come out but we are one of the last roads to be plowed so it will still be the treadmill today.

I am back to working on my quilt that I have on the quilt frames. I really do enjoy hand quilting and find it relaxing especially since DH has set me up with the TV, receiver, and a hard drive that acts like a PVR. I have taped a couple of good movies and put them on while I'm quilting. I must say, that is one good thing about staying in the North for the winter. My quilt is queen size and so it does take a lot of time and a lot of quilting to get it done.

The little birds are coming in groves today. We have the white breasted nuthatch, the rose breasted nuthatch, the chickadees, the goldfinches, the redpoles, the downy woodpeckers and the hairy woodpeckers here today. They chased each other off the feeders. It is nice to see them though. At night, we still get the flying squirrels coming by every so often. It is a great life living in the country.

Must go as I have to go do the treadmill thing. Have a great week everyone. Stay warm.

Sunny but Cooooold

Yes, we did get a storm this week - the worst this winter so far. Not only did we get a lot of snow but we also had high winds during and after the storm. Now the snow is done but we are getting hit with freezing temperatures. Right now at noon time, it is -14 C or +6 F. On top of that, with the wind, the forecaster said it could get to a wind chill factor of -37 C. That is cold and therefore, I'm not planning on going outside today. From the inside looking out, it doesn't look that bad as the sun is shining. We have two feeders on the front windows of our house and the poor birds are there continually today. It is hard to believe that those little things can stay warm and not freeze to death.

I am feeling so much better. On Friday, I did a lot of laundry and did some of the ironing. Then yesterday, I housecleaned. That dust on the furniture was driving me crazy, so to work I go. Now, I feel even better as I'm caught up on my laundry and my housecleaning.

I want to get back to my quilting, with a little luck, it may happen today. With the Holiday Season, with visitors during the holidays and with my being sick, I have not touched my quilt since the middle of December.

Have a great week everyone!

Finally on the Mend

Sorry I have not been blogging of late. If I have any excuse, it is that the Holiday Season came around. Before I had a chance to blog, we were happy to have my daughter and her hubby come and visit with us. The only sad part of that was that they were here to go to a funeral of a family friend. And, the day they were leaving to go home, I came down with a terrible cold. The cold got bad enough that last Friday, I went to see our family doctor. He had me go for chest X-rays to make sure my lungs were clear. He did give me a prescription for antibiotics which are finally working. Today, I still have a bit of a cough but feel much better.

We seem to be getting an inch or two of snow every second day or so. On Tuesday evening, it got so mild, we even had rain. However, we are back to much colder weather and a promise of a bigger snow storm tomorrow. It is snowing now but has not caused any accumulation yet.

We have had a visitor in the form of a flying squirrel. We have feeders by our livingroom windows and after dark, he seems to come and feed there. Being nocturnal, he only travels after dark. He is so cute and looks like he would be soft to the touch. We love having him visit.

DH got me a book about Corn Flower Crystal. I love my new book as it tells how to recognize the true Corn Flower and even has a lot of pictures. My crystal is Corn Flower and in the last few years, I have added some nice pieces to my collection. This book even states from what decade pieces have been made, the price it was sold at the time, and the current prices. Love my book.

Must get going as I should go get lunch. Have a great week everyone and please be careful if you have to shovel that white stuff.