something new

Yesterday I took Mom to the city for an appointment.  We went down a few hours earlier than her scheduled appointment time, in order that I could get my 'running around' done beforehand, and whip right home right after!  It didn't quite happen that way.

While in the waiting room, waiting, we found out that Mom was not the only 1:00 pm appointment.  There were others.  So we waited.  And waited.  And waited some more. My goodness, it was busy in there. An hour and a half into the waiting my cell phone rang.It was the guy at the eyeglass place.  And my glasses were in!  Perfect timing!

So, I dashed out of there, weighed the pros and cons as to whether I should drive, and lose my perfect parking place, or walk.  It was a gorgeous day, so I walked.

While I waited for the lady to bring my my glasses I imagined that I was feeling much like a first time father, waiting at the nursery window, for the nurse to wheel the baby to him for him to see. Except this was just me and my glasses.

She gently placed them on my face and I panicked.  I felt like I was a fish in a fishbowl.  Everything was so distorted. She said I would feel just like that until I got used to them. So, I stood and didn't move, or breathe.  I held my breath.  And then, little by little, everything came into focus.  I could see.  I looked up the stairs, right behind the desk where the adjustments were taking place, and I could see the picture on the wall.  At the top of the stairs!  And I could read writing on the posters!   And then it was time to look through the different parts of the progressive lenses.  "this is where to look when you're looking straight ahead,"   "this is where you want to look when you're in front of the computer screen,"  and "down here is where you will look when you're reading."  My goodness!  That's a lot to take in for an eyeglass virgin.

15 minutes later I ventured outside for my return walk to the waiting room. I felt like I was prancing a bit - my feet looked closer and bigger.  Sidewalks were a little challenge. But I made it there.  And I drove home.

DD liked the glasses, My Sweetheart grunted a giggle,  and thought they looked old, Dear Son grinned and smirked, and said, "mom, are those from the 50's? you look catwoman-ish." Ah, what does he know? I smiled and got on the combine.

And combined, with Mom on the buddy seat, until 11:00 pm! And did that durum ever look good!

The new glasses!

Saturday Brunch

The routine is set after years of preparation. This morning, while waiting for DD and DS to emerge from their slumbering cocoons, My Sweetheart and I are in the kitchen, doing what we've been doing for many Saturdays. It's down to a science actually. The brunch-making.

I get the turkey bacon out of the fridge freezer, My Sweetheart grabs the hashbrowns from the porch freezer.  While they are thawing in the microwave I'm mixing up the waffle batter - measuring out flour, mixing up the egg whites 'til they're stiff, souring the milk.  Then while My Sweetheart is at the stove, I'm plugging in the irons - Mom's old, hand-me down one that was a wedding gift for her and Dad over 50 years ago, and my newer one - the one I received from Mom and Dad on my 21st birthday. DD and I prefer the waffles made in the antique iron - the waffles with the small squares, while DS and My Sweetheart prefer the bigger-squared waffles from the newer iron.

Then, while the irons are heating up, and the bacon and browns are cooking, I'm setting the table while My Sweetheart makes the smoothies. It will be a toss up as to who gets the task of 'sorting out the pills'

The 2 different syrups go on the table - Roger's Golden Syrup for DS and me, and Aunt Jemima for DD and her Daddy. With the different syrups go the different peanut butters - smooth for DS and crunchy for My Sweetheart.

When all is ready the teens will be roused from their slumber, ready to enjoy another Saturday brunch, prepared, as alway, with lots of love.

Around the Bonfire

After I cleaned the sewing room and our bedroom, after DD cleaned her bedroom and the basement, after My Sweetheart and DS had worked on the combine, after the sun had set, we sat around the bonfire. Mom and My Sweetheart's Dad had been chauffered out to the farm by DS to join us.  And our neighbors who live right across the road came for the evening too!

The evening was perfect.  The air got a little cooler as the evening wore on, but the warmth from the bonfire drew us all in. Weiners were roasted, s'mores were made, conversation flowed, and the laughter around the bonfire was contagious.

Anyone could have come out last night, could have sat around the bonfire, and would have been drawn in and made to feel welcome. There's just something, almost magical, about a bonfire.  If we would have sat around the kitchen table with hotdogs and marshmallows it wouldn't have been the same.  What is it about a bonfire that is so relaxing, so refreshing and so rewarding?  Is it the smell of the smoke?  The warmth of the flames?  The tranquility when the flames become dying embers? The touch of the cool  breeze?

Or is it that we took the time out of the busyness of the harvest season to just be still and enjoy each others company?

Whatever it was, I'm so grateful that we sat around the bonfire last night. I'm grateful for the flames that drew us in to the warmth. I'm grateful for my family and for our neighbors who live right across the road, and I'm grateful for my friends, who had they come last night and sat around the bonfire, would have been welcome.

A New Phase

DD, Mom and I went to the city today.  DD had a hair appointment, Mom came along for the ride, and I went with my prescription in tow. My prescription for eye glasses.  After 47 years I finally need help seeing.  Not that I don't see good now, but in the past 2 years, since my last eye examination, my eyesight has shifted somewhat.  My left eye is now a little far-sighted, and my right eye is a little near sighted.  So, after dropping DD off for her transformation, Mom and I headed to the shop where I picked out, with the help of 2 sales associates, and Mom, eyeglasses for this new, improved phase of life. I gasped when they told me my prescription was for progressive glasses. That made me feel, somewhat, old. My first glasses ever, and they're progressive?  Good thing I was sitting down when I was told the final, tallied up cost. Good grief!  I thought I was getting a bargain when the frames I picked out were under $300.  I had no idea the lenses would cost so much. But, if they help...

The glasses that were picked out for me by the very fashionable, friendly lady at the eyeglass place, and my Mom, are hip and cool.  I was told the young people would say, "oh, those glasses are cool", and that I would be referred to by the older people, you know, the older people in my age range, as the "lady with the glasses."  So now I'm quite excited for next week. I'm excited for this new phase. I'm not excited about the 'getting used to progressive lenses' stage though. But, I was told, that I would get over it. I might hate the eyeglass lady for the first week- her words, not mine, but after that, I'd probably like her again.

Progressive lenses, waking up in the middle of the night for bathroom breaks, hot flashes - "Welcome to the new, exciting phase of life!"

Canola Harvesting

We seeded canola this year. We've never grown it, but My Sweetheart thought that he would give it a whirl this year. And today, after the seeding and the swathing, it is time to harvest the tiny little seeds that will eventually be sold to the terminal and then made into canola oil.

I went into town to pick up My Sweetheart's Dad so that he could come for a spin on the combine with DS. The canola field is right by our yard, so is very convenient for taking "Grandpa" for a ride.

Here is DS and Grandpa picking up canola swaths on the home quarter - where my Sweetheart's Grandfather homesteaded in 1909.

The swaths are being fed into the pick-up reel of the combine. These swaths are huge, as far as swaths go. And the stubble is also huge - a person would not want to fall into the stubble, nor would you want to walk through it with anything less than a heavy duty shoe! Ouch!

My Sweetheart is standing in the stubble to give a perspective as to how high and how big the stubble is.  The stubble is simply the stalks from the plant that are left after harvest.

Each swath is approximately 7-8 feet wide, and at least 2 feet high, and that's after being packed down with a special roller as they were being swathed. Otherwise the swaths would be too fluffy and would blow around easily.

The skinny things you see are the canola pods - like a pea pod.  Each pod holds tiny black seeds - the canola! They're black when they're ready to be harvested.

A close-up of the pods!

When the combine hopper is full, My Sweetheart will drive the tandem up, under the auger, and take it 'on the go' - this saves a great deal of time that would otherwise mean Dear Son would have to drive the combine up to the semi, and stop while it unloads.  This way, DS can keep combining while My Sweetheart drives alongside. The canola seed will dump into the tandem.

In the previous picture My Sweetheart was getting the tandem into position.  Here it is in position.  The canola is dumping into the back of the truck. When the truck is full My Sweetheart will take it to the bin and auger it into the bin.

A picture of the picture-taker and Lady, her trusty side-kick!

Lady loves farming!

The tandem is backed up to the auger, and the canola is being augered into the bin.

What the canola seed looks like coming out of the truck!

You can see the color of it!

Tiny little seeds....

being augered into the bin! 

Eventually they will be made into canola oil! I often wondered where canola oil came from, and now I know!



























Relishing the Day!

In over 50 years of gardening Mom has never produced cucumbers like she has this year. She borrowed 2 of our garden boxes for cukes, planted them, DD watered them, I weeded, and the cucumbers took off. Mom had commented the other day that she had never been able to give cucumbers away because they had just never grown like they have this year. Her neighbors, her niece, my neigbor who lives right across the road, and of course, Mom and us, have enjoyed the delicious, fresh, tasty vegetables that have been the fruit of all of our labours. We have enjoyed many, many cucumbers this garden season.

So, when Mom came out the other day, ventured out to the garden area, and picked a pile of cucumbers, there was only 1 thing to do. Make relish! And the recipe for the batch or 2 to be made was from My Sweetheart's mother -Thousand Island Relish.

It starts with the cucumbers - in this recipe, that yields about 12 pints, we needed 8 large cucumbers.

and 6 large onions, 1 large head of cauliflower, 2 red peppers and 2 green peppers...

I am thankful for my Bosch machine which made the chopping of the veggies a breeze - I was also grateful that the cukes don't need to be peeled for this recipe!

After the veggies are chopped, I put them in the largest roaster I could find, and sprinkled them with 1/2 cup of pickling salt and added 5 cups of water, gave it a good stir, covered the roaster and let is sit - for at least 1 hour - preferably overnight.

Then, while my jars, rings and snap lids were being sanitized in the dishwasher, the dressing was being made - it consists of:

3/4 cup of flour

6 cups sugar

1 Tablespoon (TBSP) mustard seed

1 TBSP tumeric

1 TBSP celery seed

6 TBSP dry mustard

3 cups vinegar

3 cups water

This was mixed up and put on the stove. When it started to thicken the drained vegetable mixture was added, brought to a boil, and cooked for 20 minutes. We stirred it constantly.

Then, the jars were brought out of the dishwasher, filled, cleaned off, had the lids put on tight, then loosened - just a smidge, and set on the island to pop and cool!

This is the batch that I made yesterday

Together with the batch that Mom and I finished yesterday morning!

 

And after a day of relish-making, comes an evening of clean-up!  But the mess was well worth it! I wish I could convey with words just how delicous that relish is!

Living Life Abundantly

I love that Jesus came to give us life and give it abundantly. The word 'abundantly' is so rich, so full, so, well- so full of blessing and goodness! And it's mine for the asking- abundant life that is.

I went to a 'celebration of life' yesterday for a good man -  He died rather unexpectedly - and suddenly. He was one of our local seniors- he and his wife had been married 65 years. I believe he lived an abundant life. He loved people, was engaging with everyone he met, was kind, and he loved to play bridge and read.We had the love of reading in common. In fact, quite often, he would come into the library where I work, plop down on the chair in front of the window, close to the desk where I sit, and have a visit. And he would, very often, pull out a little book from his pocket, and proceed to list for me the names of the books that he would like me to order for him.  He had just been in the library last Monday, the week before he died, sitting in the chair by the window, close to the desk where I was, and was telling me about a book that he would like to read - "Heaven is for Real".  He was waiting to read Mom's copy of the book, but she had lent it to a friend. So my 'library friend' - my friend who would stop in for a visit, and a rest, waited.  But he knew what the book was about.And he was very excited to read it.  And now I am convinced, that he is experiencing the realness of Heaven, and that is way better than reading the book.

Abundant life. Waiting for anyone who wants it. Available for anyone who will trust Jesus -the One who came to give us life, and give us life more abundantly.

The book that my friend was waiting to read, written by Todd Burpo. A book that I would highly recommend for anyone to read!