Me On A Monday - April 30th

Well didn't that month go by fast!?  Happy Monday everyone

It's been busy in the garden this week.  We were able to get all our front & side gardens cleaned up & we made a start in the back garden by cleaning up the two gardens by the patio.  In our water feature we found not only lots & lots of leaves, but 3 dead mice; so once again we are going back to the Pinterest idea boards for a better solution to a above ground water feature.  

Maybe Something Like This - Source: Internet

During the last ice storm, one of our evergreens broke when the ice on the branches was too heavy.  Luckily the break was only partial & Mr Man was able to screw the branch together & wrap with tree bandage to hold it together.  Hopefully this will allow the wound to knit back together & grow some strong bark.  This method worked a couple years ago on our burning bush that broke from too much ice.

The Wounded Branch

When I was tidying through some "stuff",  I found a book/journal that I can honestly say I don't remembering purchasing.  Maybe as one of my last "Listening" moments from my April's Angel cards, I should take this as a sign about getting my better eating plans & ideas into place - doing rather than thinking about. The only thing I don't like about this particular journal is that it starts on Mondays & I'm a Sunday week starter.  What about you, what day do you consider the start to your week?

May's Angel card is Emerging;  "your Angels are guiding you to honour your true feelings by expressing them to yourself & others.  They are also guiding you to a new level of inner peace as you let your true self come out & play."



 The tulips & daffodils are certainly emerging from their winter slumber & do feel now it is safe to come out.

I haven't been creative at all this week & I feel I need to spend some nurturing time this week as I do feel a little empty.  

We had lots of hospital visits with my sister.  A little set back came about on Saturday when the surgeon was in to tell her that they found bacteria in & around a piece of metal from the car accident days, I think one of pins that held her hip & pelvis together.  She then had a visit from the Infectious Disease Doctor who discussed a 3 week treatment plan to rid her body of this bacteria.  YIKES!

Mr Man says one of my weirder things is I collect my dryer fluff/lint & place outside for the birds to use as nesting materials.  When I was little we use to cut up bright coloured wool , a colour for each of us & then we would watch to see which nests had what colour(s).  

And off we go to begin a new month - the merry month of May.

"The world's favorite season is the spring.
All things seem possible in May."   Edwin Way Teale

Take Three Thursday - Rushing

Thank you everyone for the well wishes for my sister.  She had surgery on Wednesday & we are told everything went really well. She will have an extremely long scar, from the top of her hip to the knee, but she will walk again (hopefully without pain).  We are grateful to the surgeon & medical team.

In an effort to notice more of the ordinary in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.   The idea is to take photos that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in.    What have you noticed this week?  
 
Have a look at what others have  noticed this week:  
Maggie at Farmers Wife Day by Day
Karen at Random Reflections 

This week what I have noticed is the rushing water all about. It has been raining rather heavily for two days so with the accompanying snow & ice melt, everything is busting to capacity.  Our little village is built around a conservation area that was once home to a woollen mill, which is part of the village's beginning.  Part of the mill's origins is a dam which is still in use today to control the water flow down steam, not provide power to a mill.  Standing beside or over the old dam truly gives me a sense of the power of water.

Water is fluid, soft, and yielding. But water will wear away rock, which is rigid and cannot yield. As a rule, whatever is fluid, soft, and yielding will overcome whatever is rigid and hard. This is another paradox: what is soft is strong.

Lao-Tzu

A Black Day In Toronto

Stay Strong Toronto

Source

Me On Monday - April 23rd

Good Morning One & All!  A little late in posting, it has been busy.

Thank You Flowers To Me From Friend

We spent a lot of time to & fro to visit my eldest sister in hospital.  The distance is far enough but mostly that 1 hr drive is traffic & detours.  To make a very long story shorter, she broke her leg two weeks ago & when she did it, she didn't think it was a break but she spent the last 2 weeks in bed thinking she'd pulled a muscle in her back & hip because prior to the fall she had several tests including an MRI for her spine & hip; of course not wanting to be a bother to anyone, didn't tell anyone about the fall.  It wasn't until the other sister & myself took charge, so last Thursday we arranged for a physio therapist to come into her home to access her back, the therapist said - "bad break of the femur, not a pulled muscle in her back,  calling an ambulance".  They will be operating on Wednesday to repair the break, made worse by her trying to use the leg.  Add to the situation, many years ago she was a victim of a hit & run road accident - she was walking on the sidewalk & the driver was drunk driving.  So she has had years of living with the damage from this accident that shattered her pelvis, broke her hip & leg.   She's getting lots of care & pain medication in hospital but they tell us after surgery she could be in hospital for a month.

Busy Sunday Traffic - Ugly Buildings

Staying with the medical side of my life; Mr Man's eye is improving once they stopped with the medication drops - turns out he's one of the few that develops sensitivity to the drops over time.  Now they have to find a replacement medication ... so far no suggestions!

On the weather front, the snow is rapidly melting (yeah) & temperatures rising.  Spring, 2.5 version is finally being installed.  The crocus are pushing through the snow to make their long awaited appearance - welcome I say.

 Windows open for the first time in a long time - breathe deeply.

  
We have been watching Masterpiece (BBC) Forgotten - really liking this series & was pleased to see  next Sunday starts the next 3 part story.  I like the connecting stories, pull on one story thread & 2 more come along.  No one does murder like the Brits.

A little time for a quick non stamped birthday card.

 


Hoping every one has a moment or two to enjoy some sunshine & a deep breathe in fresh air.

Take Three Thursday - Not The Weather

In an effort to notice more of the ordinary in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.   The idea is to take photos that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in. What have you noticed this week?   

While it would be so easy to talk about the horrible nasty weather,  instead I'll share what I did while we had 4 days of weather induced forced house confinement  - I sorted & organized:

Many Canadians like to make lots of jokes & chat about weather, so I am adding a little video clip about weather forecasting in Canada that is making the rounds on FaceBook; Blogs & such.  Rick Mercer is a beloved Canadian TV host, comedian & icon - he had a weekly TV show which he just retired from after 15 funny years.  Thanks Rick for all the laughs & hang on Ontario, better weather is forecasted!

Seven Day Forecast

Me On A Monday - April 16th

You know the weather is bad when all the churches in the village  cancel services, when all the pizza shops close up.
 
Normal blogging will resume once storm has passed & power returned.

Take Three Thursday - Oh So Disappointing

In an effort to notice more of the ordinary in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.   The idea is to take photos that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in. What have you noticed this week?  

Let's see what other have noticed:
 Maggie at Farmer's Wife Day by Day

This week my three are throw backs to more of our water fall hunting times.   This particular waterfall, Devil's Punchbowl,  has to be hands down the most disappointing & the hardest to get to waterfall.  After a really long arduous walk, through some very pretty woods, we came to the bottom of the waterfall only to find a small pool of dirty smelly water, filled with debris, shopping carts, tires - what a let down.  The amount of water coming over the falls was like someone standing at the top spitting down.  

We later found that there was a viewing platform up top.  We have since visited this waterfall but only from the viewing platform to see a little more water coming over.  It is one of the first in the region to dry up in summer.

I have included a photo from the Internet that shows Devil's Punchbowl with much more water coming over it.
 

Source: Internet

Devil's Punch Bowl is a 37-metre ribbon waterfall on the Niagara Escarpment, in the Stoney Creek community of Hamilton, Ontario,


 

Me On A Monday - April 9th

Happy Morning.  Let's make today a creative one.

Last week Karen posted on her blog about an online challenge; 100 Days of Projects (Crafting) & she has also challenged herself to use some older products in her stash along with trying new techniques.  You should see what she is creating - oh my, amazing things, my goal is to one day stamp like Karen.  You can check the start of her projects here: Karen's 100 Day Projects

I am not about to take on the 100 Days of Projects but I did like Karen's challenge of herself.  I am challenging myself to create some cards using some of my favourite flower photos.  I have a stash of 4X6" flower photos that I hadn't used in my albums & of course waste not, want not.   

I had said a few weeks back that I would do a quick "how to" photo steps to using my Big Kick die cut machine as Lady Ella had asked for further explanation. 

As with the Big Shot or what I have is the Big Kick, you need platforms to place your "sandwich".  I have two types of platforms; one that is magnetic as to hold the metal die cuts in place (it is the shorter of the two), the second platform that I have is longer, I use primarily for embossing.  The last piece of a sandwich are the clear plastic plates - mine are scored from lots of use.

My Big Kick Machine - all hand powered

Thinlits or Die Cuts

Platform & Plates for making a sandwich

First I place the magnetic platform down, then I lay one of the two clear plates, then the paper, then the die cut(s) or as Stampin'Up calls them, Thinlits, then the second clear plate goes on top.  The sandwich! (yes those are one of my fur girl's legs - they love to help with crafting of any type!)

Step One: place the magnetic platform down, then the first of 2 clear plates

Step Two; place paper on top of first of 2 clear plates

Step Three; place metal Thinlits or Die Cuts on top of paper

 

Step Four; place the 2nd of 2 clear plates on top of diecuts

Next I use the hand crank to move (push) the sandwich through the machine & with really detailed die cuts I run it back through a couple more times - Dah dah a die cut.   

Finished Product: Cut out die cuts

Lady Ella & anyone who was wondering how I made my die cuts, I hope this helped.  

Last Wednesday Winter & Spring had quite the argument as to who would hold court - Winter won.  Wednesday we had winds gusting at 100/mph doing lots of damage in our region; then the snow arrived over night & into Thursday, Friday, Saturday & again on Sunday;  very wet snow & a fair amount of it.  Mr Man decided he was not up to snow blowing or shoveling the driveway so we chose to drive through it & hope that it melts soon.  

the tree in a beard of snow & ice

The horrible winds of Wednesday saw the destruction of our garden arbour - Mr Man thinks he can repair.   I'm not sure who I am more disappointed in, winter for showing up again or spring for not putting up more of a fight for space ...

Over the last 2 weeks any adventure plans we had, have been put on hold as Mr Man is having further troubles with his eye.  At last Thursday's appointment the eye specialist admitted to being baffled by all of this "non healing".  His eye is red, the lids are red & swollen & 10 days of antibiotic ointment has not done much in reducing either the redness or swelling.  It continues to be a very frustrating situation for Mr Man & the eye specialist doesn't seem to know what to do next. He continues with the eye injections every 5 weeks & the next one is in 2 weeks, until then he continues with the ointment & drops.

"Miracles are a retelling in small letters of the very same story which is written across the whole world in letters too large for some of us to see."  C.S. Lewis

Take Three Thursday

In an effort to notice more of the ordinary in my life, I have decided to share what I have noticed this week in Take Three Thursday.   The idea is to take photos that are linked some how; by theme, by colour, by date, by moment,  by points of view. There is no formal link in but please feel free to join in. What have you noticed this week?  

This week I am combining two things; Sandie's Five In Five On The Fifth along with my three for Thursday. 

One of the things I noticed this week had two stages to it.  Stage one = admiring the scenes from blogs that I read, about their hikes and or walks about the countryside.  Just beauty being enjoyed.
Mel's Walk At Malham Cove 
Lady Ella's Historic-walk 

Stage two = my remembering a time & weather when we would get out & admire the countryside.  For what ever reason, we just don't seem to be having the walks & discovery that we use to have ... it makes me sad & it makes me resolved to push ourselves outside & now that the weather (please don't judge Spring by today's horrible wintery weather) is improving we have no valid excuses.

So today my 5/5 & 3/3 are from my scrap book pages of waterfalls we use to visit & walk about.  Three waterfalls.

Washboard Waterfalls is my all time favourite; we visited in the Autumn.  I realize that there is some glare on the photos, it's so dull outside, the flash is required - but even diffused it gives glare ...

Tews Waterfalls at one time was bigger than the almighty Niagara Falls. We visited in Winter.

 Kakabeka Falls - we visited in early spring & there is a frightening amount of water that goes over this falls & the rushing urgency of the water is loud & rather un-nerving.

 
Please go have a peek what others are sharing with Sandie this day.
Sandie's 5 in 5 

Me On A Monday - April 2nd

Source: Internet

I am: Amused by the "let's have fun" spirit of our, up the street neighbours.  Tweety, which I have shown in winter garb, is showing off her spring attire.  These neighbours decorate their entire property for Easter & host a community Easter egg hunt, all at their own expense.

I am:  Fine tuning our 2018 summer manifesto.  I picked a theme for the types of adventures, ran my ideas past Mr Man, who was in full agreement.  Our theme is Trains, Boats & Automobiles ...

I am: Putting together a 2018 sensational photo scavenger hunt - if you have any suggestions, please share.  Thanks to those that have already given me some suggestions & ideas.   I thought we could get started on the list May to September, which will give everyone a good length of time to find all or some of the items.

I am: Focusing (OLW) on my April Angel card; Listening  - "if you get the inclination to call someone, go somewhere or read something, it's important to follow this guidance."

I am: Pleased with my shaking Easter dinner up a little.  For Mr Man I made a roast turkey breast but rather than having it & everything else taste just like Christmas, I used Lipton's Savory Herb With Garlic to make my rub for the turkey & my soy; adding a little to the dressing (stuffing) & then sprinkling with a little olive oil over the potatoes - oh my it was SO good.  It's good to shake things up in the kitchen once in a while.  Being that cooking all meals in this house falls on me, it can get just a little too routine at times.  What about you, how do you shake things up in your cooking routine?

I am: Reading Trevor Noah, Born a Crime.  Trevor is a comedian on American late night TV.  This book is being made into a movie. Trevor was born in South Africa during a time that "sex between whites & blacks was illegal"; his Mother is South African Zhosa, his Father is Swiss German.   Because I like him I didn't mind the book, one of my sister dislikes him & hated the book.  I finished Bellman & Black. It was ok, not a repeat read for me inspite of my high hopes for this book.

I am: Annoyed at what appears to be a bunny in our front garden chewing the tulip shoots - bad bunny! 

 

 

 

the tops of tulips are chewed off!

 And my final note for the day is, I saw this wine in the LCBO & thought about Ruth's post about her new sweater, so as someone was taking the last few bottles, I grabbed a quick snap with my iphone.  This wine should be enjoyed while wearing this:  Ruth's gorgeous sweater

 Happy Monday - let's do it! (just had to get the pink one in).

Source: Internet