Bye 2014 - Hellooooo 2015

(Photo from my wild looking veggie plot this July)

Whoah, that went fast!
I feel like the year went by particularly speedy this time (of course having that ridiculous flu/bronchial infection for over a month of it didn't help).

Time to recap the year with a 2014 Resolutions Report Card:

MORE: 
B+  time outside, walks and gardening and painting trim gave me lots of time outside this year.
A+  wholesome food, nothing but good stuff for my body by the end of this last year
A    gardening, lots of amazing foods came out of our plot this year!
B    billable hours, I changed gears and it paid off
B    kindness, I took the time to reach out to good people and now we are friends
C+  learning, I have read some great ideas, in all sorts of areas, but not implemented it as much as I could
C    housecleaning, Same as ever. A struggle with dirt and grime.
C    patience, Next!
A    quiet time, Honoured my needs by enjoying time by myself gardening or reading more
B+   time for loved ones, every dinner together as a family and walks as a family helped create an excellent forum for contact
C+   creating art, I bought supplies and clipped ideas, but not much happened yet
A++ respecting my health, marvellous results! Paleo has worked miracles for my family

LESS: 
B chaos, schedules, decluttering, better health all help have less chaos
A++ processed foods, that crap isn't allowed in my body any more!
C+   useless stuff, I bought an ornate chinese noise maker because it was so beautiful, and a stuffy because it made me laugh, and more clothes than I need... but I'm getting better!
C     procrastinating, room for improvement. minimally meeting expectations
C     pushing my opinion, lifelong challenge for my obstinate nature. no worse than usual.
B     TV definitely watching less. we only have basic TV and no desire for any more.

Continuing on this path, I want to accomplish more of the same for this year: 
A comfortable, safe environment to live and work for myself and my dear family through good nutrition, growth through learning, clean home, loving attitude, calm listening and healthy habits.

So far so good. No grains, processed, dairy, sugar, nor legumes is leaving us with an amazing, colourful, delicious menu and we feel great! Not sure one ingredient is the magic bullet here, probably a combo of some causing enough inflammation to make the others harmful. I don't even care, this is sustainable.

I feel especially blessed that  live in a time and place where food choices can be for optimum health, not just survival. I can be a food snob only because I live here and now. And trust me, I am thankful to my very core for that fact.

I am optimistic about this year, my oldest is graduating high school (if the stars align), and moving into manhood. He will either move north or continue with school (or both). One thing  I am sticking by my guns with.... if he's not in school he will be paying full market price for room and board. 18 is adult, no matter what generation he's from! This year, I am getting serious about teaching him to bachelor cook and keep house (he knows how to cook an assortment of breakfasts, does laundry and vacuuming already). He's got a good sense of money handling, but his follow through is terrible, so he will have to be taught how to internet bank and pay bills too. 

The odd part is I don't remember my parents teaching me a damn thing about money except that it was hard to come by. Ample chores taught me how to keep house and prep-cook, but the bills were "none of my business". It was a rude awakening when I moved out. Rent contracts, tuition, supplies, phone, hydro, keeping clothed and getting the house outfitted from scratch (I had only one cooking pot for a few months), all of the car expenses, FOOD.

But that was the past.... THIS year I will work towards preparing my boy for independence along with the regular goals for health and prosperity.

We went camping!

For a change of pace, we went to an ocean site. You would be surprised how few and far between the undeveloped ocean recreation sites are! But we did our research and found a site a couple hours (plus) North of our town on the Discovery Passage. Instead of posting tonnes of pictures (it was a beautiful place) I will post the permalink to my new shutter fly book that I just made up for it!

Here it is!

The days were lovely and warm enough in the sun, the evenings were breezy and cool (keeping the trailer fresh even with 4 unwashed bodies in there). We enjoyed a waterfront spot all private and clean. The water was sparkling (though much too cold for me) and the sea life was really active with sockeye jumping right out in front of us (no fishing gear though!) and even a pod of orcas within sight.

We were way out there. Long, treacherous road up and down to get to the site. The bush was closed to logging because of the dryness, so there was NO traffic with the logging trucks not running, that made it very quiet on land. On the water, it's a busy shipping lane with boats of every shape and size going by all day and night. Tugs, log booms, cargo ships, cruise ships (HUGE), pleasure craft, many kinds of fish boats, sailing, military, and wickedly fast whale watchers.

The water was silky smooth so kayaking was marvellous. Even more interesting sights to see out on the water than on shore. And there was no shortage of interesting beach combing!

The only downside was there was so much interesting stuff that I got barely any reading done LOL.

Have a look at the link, the photos say so much.

Slow Projects

Renovations can be tackled 2 ways:
1) Pay through the nose and hire a professional to get it done completely and quickly.
2) Do it on your own, when you have the time and when you have the money.

Obviously, with my frugal personality, I have generally chosen Option B. And that's why, after 2 years in this house, the baseboard trim and window casings and interior doors are still not painted. We managed to paint the exterior of our home last summer (JUST before the rain came back) but the exterior trim was left as the peeling, faded brown until we could get back around to it.

Inside, I'd finally had enough of looking at the old, dark door casings, so I have primed them at last! It looks like streaky primer, but already so much brighter! You would be amazed how much nicotine leeched through the primer (its a good thing I invested in the stain-blocking "kilz" primer).

Also, very exciting, the double french doors between the front room and the kitchen are now painted! It was fiddly and stressful painting all the little ridges and grooves around the 30 glass panels, but worth it to have the glorious feeling of FINALLY removing the glass-protecting plastic! Hooray! Bright and actually finished looking!

I guess my inside work inspired some outside work too, hubby hired our teen to scrape and wash the exterior facia and posts. Then we went out and scored a big bucket of professional quality exterior paint that was a miss-tint and close enough to the colour that we wanted that we couldn't pass up the great price! (FRUGAL HINT: Always check the miss-tint section before buying paint. Much less expensive, and often I find an upgrade in paint quality too.)

It's miserably hot weather for painting, but it's the perfect dry humidity for good adhesion, so out we go, and it's looking SO much better! We are doing one side of the house at a time... front first :)

Whomever painted the trim last time was very sloppy. Drips below and dabs up in the soffit. I never know what to do about that. I painted carefully and straight and but then there is the ugly brown still there in blobs and smudges. Maybe I have to find some white metal paint for the soffits, but I suspect that would open up a whole host more work! So I will try to live with it for a while.

All in all, the progress feels great. With every brush stroke the house looks more finished. It makes me wonder why I waited so long to do it. Oh ya, I hate sanding! (shiver) the sensation is so very 'abrasive' on my nerves. Thats why I'm doing the non-sanding areas first LOL.

On a different note, the garden is a wild jungle of yummy veggies! Seriously overgrown and challenging to harvest, with excellent yields. Everyone who comes to visit gets a complimentary zucchini and some fresh beans to snack on while they visit. :)

Cluck Cluck Cluckity Cluck Cluck

 (translation: "Nice to meet you")

My sister in law is moving (the house they were renting sold out from under them) and the selection in their town is VERY limited. The only place that was even close to what they need allows NO PETS OF ANY KIND. A sad day for the 3 kids as they are scrambling to find homes for the cat, dog and 17 hens, a rooster and 4 new chicks.

Since a few of our hens are mostly past laying age, we said we would adopt a few of theirs. The stopped by last night with 4 large hens and a tiny bantam hen. Well that puts us WAAAAAY over our coop's limit, so I posted on-line for 3 free hens. The response was incredible! We chose a casual hobby farm just outside of town. They have 30+ chickens of all shapes and sizes, ducks, geese, turkeys, goats and even a couple piglets! She said she doesn't mind keeping old hens because she gets more than enough eggs and they have work to do clearing her field for a future veggie garden and keeping pest off the apple trees. They are not only free range, all the different species are together as they please all over the lot. I brought our 3 least productive hens (made me a bit weepy since one of them is my favourite hen-friend (the bottom one on the picture), Cami was very sad packing them up too, but he ended up happy with the farm. 

So we left them there. Angel, Penny (top left) and Stripes. We hope they are happy on their new farm.

The new-to-us chickens are still getting their bearings. They are all in their prime laying age, so they might actually be able to keep up with our appetite for eggs! One is downright feisty and instantly tried to assert dominance over the whole flock (bloody beaks and combs all over the place). But 18 hours later she seems to be calming down. I guess they need to figure out their pecking order, right?

Introducing the new members of the flock:

"Puffy Cheeks" soon to be re-named "Toast"

"Arwen" Ya, she's keeping that name!

"Stripe II" soon to be renamed "Oreo" (big bird upper left) and the little birdy to the right is actually an adult chicken named "Penny"  or "Little Penny"

and this black, camera-shy one is "Lucy" but the kids want to rename her "Maleficient" because of her black feathers and her comb that looks slightly like horns

There you have it. I will miss our originals, but look forward to getting to know these new hens. I can already tell that Toast and Arwen will be sweeties.

Coming Alive

“Don’t ask yourself what the world needs; ask yourself what makes you come alive. And then go do that. Because what the world needs is people who have come alive.” -Howard Thurman

Thank you "Art of Simple" for this post and the above quote.

This weekend I was lucky enough to experience one of the things that I love MOST in the world. It's a simple activity that is in line with my personal values and totally free... a walk in the woods with my family.

In my area, there are loads of trails -- the land used to be a coal mining camp of some sort and is on the (now quiet) railway. The trees may not be first growth giants, but the woods are filled with forgotten relics, and mysterious holes and mounds. The local modern neighbours to these woods have built networks of trails for everything from walking dogs, jogging, ATVs and mountain bikes. It's technically private land, but undeveloped/left to go wild for the last hundred or so years. We are not discouraged from enjoying it.

That is the single feature that drew me to this particular neighbourhood and this particular house. It backs onto this vast network of trails that loop and twist all up and down the ridge, between wetlands, farmlands, suburbs and a highway.  I can walk for hours and hours with no chance of getting lost, and always some exciting scenery from panoramic valley views to a beaver dam to deep mossy woods to rusty relics. It's a perfect hiking place to me, and it lifts my spirits like nothing else can to walk in the woods!

The kids throw sticks, and climb trees, the dog charges through the undergrowth and dives into the marsh, my husband and I quietly chat while we walk, and I am often taking pictures or collecting edible wilds along the way. 
We bond.
We exercise.
We connect with nature.
We connect with the world immediately near our home.

On these walks we have seen a black bear, owl, swans, hawk, ducks (and other waterfowl), great blue herons, deer, woodpeckers, squirrel, bunnies, dozens of different varieties of songbirds, and massive evidence of the local beaver population and we've startled tiny rodents too. The flora is stunning anytime of year, and the wetland's ebb and flow with the rain is always fascinating to me. We are a part of nature, not separate, no matter how hard we try to disconnect from the dirt and the weather. I love that intimate reminder that the woods give me. I come home muddy and tired and really, truly happy to my core.

It beats watching TV for me any day.

But back to "Art of Simple"'s message. I may not be able to make money doing this activity that makes me come alive, but I recognize it for what it is. I savour each walk and let the experience fill me up with joy that carries through for days. I am so thankful for it. 

What makes YOU come alive? Is it exciting or quiet? Is it alone or social? Is it flamboyant or internal?

(As a post script, I should mention, my wonderful walking trails are slated for development, the plans have been approved by the city already. It is just a matter of time before they are gone, and I will have to get my forest fix elsewhere. I will not cry. It hasn't happened yet.)

vivid

I need some sleep.

I go to bed early enough, but I can't seem to get comfortable or the right temperature. Then I finally sleep and I have stupid, vivid dreams that wake me up in a state of agitation. Then the cycle starts all over again.

Apparently my teenage son is experiencing the same troubles. I wonder what it is?

achy breaky abdomen

I had day surgery this week. Just an exploratory peek into my abdomen laprascopically. The incisions are tiny, but I guess they HAVE to use general anaesthetic for it. Going under stresses me out so badly. Complete lack of awareness while strangers are touching, poking, yanking… meanwhile all chatting about whatever they want while I lay prone and helpless. I HATE the thought of it. I wish they recorded audio of it all (like an airplane's black box) so I review it later… at least then I could get a sense of how it went.

This time I had the forethought to tell the anesthesiologist that I have a throat that catches on things (last time he tore my throat up quite badly forcing the tube in, but I didn't remind him of that specifically). So he showed me how he would use a small scope to help guide the tube this time (yay!) Sure enough, other than my throat feeling weirdly stretched and achy, no rips this time… so relieved. It felt terrible adding that recovery to the regular recovery last time.

It's cruel. Not allowed to eat a thing after midnight the night before the surgery. But of course I don't stay up to midnight, so I hadn't eaten a thing since about 8pm. Then I had clear black coffee, a bit of water and clear bouillon in the morning. I had to be at admitting by 2pm for a 3:30 surgery. Of course the surgeon was delayed so everything was delayed. I don't know when I finally got into the O.R., but it was definitely dark out. I was cozy in the cotton layers they had me waiting in. And I had a book. VERY hungry, but nervous enough that eating wasn't really something I wanted to do anyhow.

They drew some blood for a test before the operation (I don't know what for, but it passed the time).

Happily, the nurse that rolled me on the gurney to the O.R.'s hallway was nice and chatty. She asked me some questions in good humour and put me at ease. I overheard her as she went into the O.R. telling the other crew in there that "She will be easy. She's young and in good health."

As I waited (without my book) on the gurney, in the hall, for the surgeon to be available, I watched other techs and surgeons come and go from other O.R.s and I watched the crew of cleaning personnel come and go too. Our hospital has really stepped up their game with taking sanitation seriously. They had an appalling track record for infections for a while… but from what I saw laying there, it will be better now.

The WORST part is going from the cozy gurney to the narrow operating table, having my arms spread out with the sticky dots put on my chest and the tubes inserted into my arm… suddenly the reality is undeniable that I won't know what is going to happen to my body for who-knows-how-long and then I will be moved unconscious to another gurney and wheeled to a different part of the hospital to wake up - hopefully.

But I didn't have time to panic because I promptly fell asleep with the sound of a male nurse (another stranger) talking about bedbugs found in the Vancouver Library books …. nothing.

I woke up badly.

The other 2 times that I woke up from previous surgeries, it was a surreal experience of sleeping in one place and waking in another. I woke up groggy and more bewildered than uncomfortable. The discomfort came afterwards as shoulder pain, thrashed throat and abdominal aches.

This time I woke up crying and really sore. I had a little bit of shakes and moaned until the nurse noticed me. She was a really lovely caring young lady (Julie) who brought me a warm blanket. She could tell I was green around the gills and gave me some gravol, even though I said I'd probably be fine without it. She smiled and said I would be much more comfortable if I took it. And she was right. Before she got it to me I nearly hurled, and that sensation was enough to add insult to injury.

More tears and a terrible sense of something being wrong was pervasive in every cell of my body. Maybe they used some different sleepy juice on my this time?

My husband was already at the hospital when they called for him to pick me up. I had a prescription for T3 to be filled before I went home. And he rolled me out to the car and away we went. I was HUNGRY even though still a bit nauseated. So we stopped at a by-the-slice pizza joint downtown and I enjoyed 2 massive slices of the best pizza I have ever had… just what I wanted.

I think the T3s don't agree with me. I didn't sleep that night. I felt like my eyelids were spring loaded. I also felt like I was going to hurl every time I tried to lay down, so I propped myself up with pillows on the couch (quite comfy) and watched Netflix on my tablet. At one point I thought "wow, I've seen a lot of episodes, I wonder what time it is" and it was 3:56 am! Considering I am usually asleep by 9:30pm, this is ridiculous. I turned it off and tried to sleep, I may have got a bit, but at 5:30 I had to take some more pain management and drag my wobbly self to the bathroom.

I had supervision the whole next day. My wonderful husband took the day off to babysit. Again, I couldn't nap. But I was fine at laying still as much as possible. Queezy and sore and my voice was gone 60% of the time, but it could have been worse. Now a couple days after the fact I feel almost all the way better. No more T3s required since yesterday morning! I even slept last night!

The funny part of it all ; in recovery, the nurse gave me some papers. Recovery instructions and 3 sheets of photographs with notes on them. They were pictures of my guts!!!!!! The mysterious internal workings of ME. I love it! It's so tidy in there… smooth organs in various shades of pink, white and orangish. He drew lines to which organs were what (helpful) and wrote "healthy" on every one.

Isn't that cool? I have a portrait that I have never seen before.

bye bye 2013

I shocked that 2013 is over, it flew by so fast that I wonder what it all meant.

Time to re-visit my resolutions from last year, time to do the last invoices for my business and see how our household finances compare to year's past…. I feel good about it actually.

2013 Resolutions Report Card: 

MORE; 
reading, C- (not as much as I was hoping)
writing, C+ (definitely MORE but not lots)
billable hours, B+ (very good effort!)
time teaching my kids, D (I didn't apply my energy!)
learning, C (learning software upgrades)
vegetables, B+ (yay!)
whole foods, B+ (good improvement)
housecleaning, C+ (some improvement, a ways to go)
walks, A (rain or shine and dragging anyone that will go)
yoga, F (I think I went once all year)
time for friends, B- (more phone calls, more lunches)
kindness, B (the kids are seeing a less judgmental me)
time outside, A (gardening, walking, chickens, dog!)
patience, B (it seems to go with the kinder me)

LESS; 
dairy, A+ (almost done with it except aged cheeses)
fructose, B+ (it sneaks in rarely)
excuses, B+ (good improvement!)
processed foods, A- (I read ingredients)
shopping, C+ (slightly better than last year)
criticism, B (more kindness)
procrastination, D (still prone to leaving unpleasant things to the last second)
TV, F (time-sucking box of doom)
food hoarding, C+ (good effort up to about a month ago)
chaos C+ (there is less, but still room to improve)

As far as resolutions go I think I made progress in a decent amount of areas! I'm so glad to have done this and I will certainly continue.

2014 Resolutions:

MORE: time outside, wholesome food, gardening, billable hours, kindness, learning, housecleaning, patience, quiet time, time for loved ones, creating art, respecting my health

LESS: chaos, processed foods, useless stuff, procrastinating, consumption, pushing my opinion, TV

What I want to accomplish for the year: A comfortable, safe environment to live and work for myself and my dear family through good nutrition, clean home, loving attitude, calm listening and healthy habits.

Phew!

The mayhem is over for another year.

It was the duck in the movie "Babe" that exclaimed "Christmas is Carnage!" …. yes that's how it feels when there are 9 youths and 7 adults from a few generations milling around my kitchen waiting for the giant turkey with all the fixings.

It was messy, it was noisy and it was wonderful to see the family and sit down to a sumptuous meal together.

I like that part better than the present exchange.

For some reason the gift selection got me more frustrated than usual this year.  I want with all my heart to have Christmas be about family and caring for each other, and simple gestures (gifts that are a silly treat), not about buying "the PERFECT thing" that it has grown into. It actually worries me to my core, but I seem to be the only one that cares about it. Truly I would have been happy with a few pleasant tokens. There were points when I wanted to cry over how out-of-hand the whole present thing got this year… but don't worry… it all went well so I will have to get over it. Not that I don't think my family DESERVES the very best, its just that it all seems too much somehow.

That being said I really do like what I got for Christmas, I appreciate the thought and the effort too.

Just like every 29th I am itching to take down all the decorations RIGHT NOW. Why is that? I actually like my decorations, I like the sparkly lights and our photos with santa and special ornaments that hold all the fun memories of holidays past…. but I just can't WAIT to get them down! I wonder why.

Maybe it's just too overwhelming. Bling, money, stress, food, Christmas tunes to EXCESS for Nov/Dec it's everywhere - sooooo intense!!!!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas with loved ones. I did, truly I did, despite what this whiny post implies

fall foraging feast

A beautiful walk in the woods with a camera is a wonderful thing any time of year... but THIS time of year is MUSHROOM SEASON! Oh my there was a beautiful assortment of mushrooms! My camera was so happy clicking away at colourful (toxic) looking fungal fruits. Our trail system was THOROUGHLY picked over for edible varieties.... kicked over and stomped through...sad sad for me. BUT I did a shaggy mane, a puff ball and some lobster mushrooms (which I have not tried before but were too gorgeous to leave behind). They are heavy and dirty and technically what makes them lobster mushrooms isn't the mushroom at all but the mushroom's parasite! Freaky, but cool.

 Just one of the 50 or more mushroom photos from today...

 Cleaned, it is much more appetizing..

 I decided to make a Newburg sauce with extra paprika (lobster mushroom, but no fish)...

 The finished meal with puff pastry and chard from the garden....

The whole family enjoyed it thoroughly and now I have one more food in my foraging repertoire.

Wildlife

We have a bear.

Not that I mind (actually it's pretty cool to think I share my territory with a big animal like that)
BUT this particular bear has been a bit destructive in it's hunt for fall food. Other than ripping limbs from my apple tree, (and massive poops) it took out 6 fence panels of my neighbour's backyard and left more poop and other debris right up on her sundeck!

Miraculously it has ignored the chicken coop even though it is directly adjacent to the apples trees.
The neighbour is worried about what it will do next. Or worse, what her husband will do next. So she called the conservation officer... And THATS how a live bear trap got taken through my driveway.  It's about 10 ft from my garage right now.

Last night the bear came back but was more interested in mauling my green bin than climbing into the trap for the big bag of stinky cat food. Smarter than your average bear? Or just a vegetarian? So the trap is still vacant... for now.

Creativity

A dear family friend once told me...

"You and I are the same, we are not whole unless we are creating"

At the time she was refering to my desperate search for meaning when I had a nasty bout of depression after my first son was born. But she hit the nail on the head! I was in a place then of domestic survival. I was on mat leave with a "high needs baby" with no experience with childcare at all, and barely had any time to sleep or eat let alone be creative. (It was a dark time, but everyone survived it thank heavens.)

I heard her through the mire, and I took action. I forced myself to look outside and collect pretty flowers (with babe in stroller) and I tried to think beyond the desperation of the moment to anything ANYTHING inspiring (listening to music was very helpful when nothing else was available -- though sometimes any noise at all was more grating than soothing).

As interesting as it is to look on that part of my life, that's not what this post is for.

I NEED TO CREATE. I KNOW I AM HAPPY WHEN I AM CREATING ON MANY LEVELS.

Right now I am creating on so many levels I'm not even sure I can list them all.

I am drawing, writing, working, organizing my home, cooking, gardening and enjoying long walks in the woods as much for the ambience as for the exercise.

And yes, I am a happy, happy mommy and a happy happy wife too.

Married 19 years...

... how cool is that?

 

We went for a walk on the waterfront and had a terrific meal at a floating cafe called "Penny's Palapa" -  featuring Mexican themed, extremely fresh, fish dishes..... oh my it was tasty! Too bad it's only open in the warm season (outside-only dining area). Then we walked some more down the seawalk and stopped to watch the local water wildlife (and the local people too). It was simply lovely.

 

We've been a couple more than 2 decades and I still genuinely love spending time with him. Sure it's not always perfect, but I feel gratitude for what we have together every day.

More Camping!

We got a few days off in a row, so we took to the hills with trailer and truck.

Our favourite place is a modest campground with pit toilets and fire rings - no services - no cell service either. A spot that is a 45 minute drive past the pavement up and down logging roads hugging a very large lake on Vancouver Island (approximately 40 km long and 1.6 km wide).

I love it there. Just love it. We tried a new spot this time, just wonderful!

(you can see the lake from the picnic table with it's own short trail to the shore)

 (looking back up the trrail to our site)

 

(here is our private beach)

(sitting in a kayak on the beach - yes the dog is in a kayak on the lake!)

(the weather was stunning the first day and the lake was warm)

(then the weather changed... and stayed spotty if not downright miserable the rest of the time)

(at least we were allowed a campfire with the rain)

(the morning we left we were tired of being damp, this shot was taken after we had packed up and just before the heavens opened up in a torrent with thunder and everything!)

 

We all got to paddle around in the kayaks at one point or another, and it was quiet and relaxing in the kayak in the rain. Steve had his unicycle, Cam had his R/C rock crawler truck, I had my e-reader and T got to leave work and the honey-do list behind. The camping trip did it's job, we all felt relaxed and happy the whole time. The only wild food I got to harvest was a lovely white chantrelle mushroom and a few berries (honestly the rain wasn't fun to forage in). The spot was excellent for it's scenery, sheltered beach and it's extremely quiet location.

Harvest Time!

Lots of weeding this week (I let it get a little out of control) rain or shine, I uncovered the veggies among the unwanted grasses and weeds.

Happily gardening, there was harvesting of veggies.
And digging out the canning supplies... pickled green beans anyone? I'll be tacking tomatoes later in the month. And the apples are just getting started!

 

It was a disapointing year for zucchini, and raspberries, but a bumper crop of peas and beans, and my first attempt at potatoes and broccoli was rewarding enough to want to plant more next year.

The onions were being systematically destroyed from leaf tip to hollowed out root bulb by something, so I pulled the remaining ones early (and small) just so I'd have SOMETHING of them.

All in all the first season in this new garden (the test run for the soil and space) was successful, and it will be getting more action and even more plants and rows next year. I will be enlisting hubby and children to really make it an honest effort for food production instead of the dabbling of fresh treats that it has been up to now.

I must move the raspberries. The spot that I put them is hard to access (not that I got any berries anyhow) but I can't think of where a good spot would be with good sun, easy access and not in a place that would block other veggie's sun. It will come to me.

And I get to explore my small greenhouse's potential now too. The summer sun was too intense to use it, but now that the sun is more shy, I should be able to plant some lettuces, spinach, and maybe beets and kale. The potted strawberries will head for the shelter as well.... I wonder if that will help them. I found a really neat thing on line for a tiered strawberry planter made from large PVC pipes that I want to try to make... pretty sure gutters would work too.

I have a fig tree. It looks very sad. I think it wants to stretch its roots deep in the ground instead of the pot its in. Where to plant it? Figs CAN grow very large. But I'm not sure if I have that kind. They also like warmth and sun.... like the raspberries, I need to find that sweet spot for the plant before I dig. Somewhere that I can easy wrap it to protect tender shoots from winter frost until it's well established.

This weekend wasn't ALL work. T and I managed to get to a friend's 50th birthday BBQ and T's dad's birthday lunch. I visited my sister, went for a couple walks and the family even went to the park and whacked at some tennis balls with a baseball bat (the first time ever for that activity). So it wasn't raining the WHOLE weekend. LOL.

CAMPING!

Stamp River Provincial Campground was perfect for us! Lots of trees, privacy and no frills.

 

After a brisk swim in the fast flowing river, we went for a walk to the falls

 

Very pretty canyon that the river squeezes into

 

Next morning we head to McLean Mill to go to the "Steam-Up" festival (which was the whole reason we came camping in Post Alberni in the first place)

 

Very interesting steam machines from the classic Stanley Steamer automobile, to a small steam boat, a gorgeous shiny firefighters pump wagon, lots of tractors and engines and donkeys and huge lorries and of course the mill itself has been restored to steam power! There is something awe-inspiring about the beautiful steam equipment.

 

Cammy managed to get enlisted for the old-time logging demonstration. He got loaded down with old-fashioned faller's gear and there was a lot of it especially for a sunny summer afternoon.

 

And then the lucky bum caught the eye of a man moving his machine and got to ride on a vintage tractor around the mill site! His face is so serious.

 

It was a good weekend, the camping and steam, and museum, and general relaxing around the firepit roasting marshmallows and reading a novel. Very nice indeed.

 

(and the beloved trailer was perfect)

PS; fox&bee, we got some great sound bites of the steam equipment running if you want it

365 days

It's been one year since we got possession of this, our 3rd home.

It was stressful, it was expensive and it was a LOT of work to get to this point, but I still believe this was a good move for us. The floor plan is terrific, the yard is amazing and it's potential hasn't even been reached yet.

It was stinky, dirty, extremely dated and 1/2 torn apart inside, but that couldn't hide how wonderful it could be with some scrubbing, painting and updating. Oh ya it's nice now if I do say so myself.

When I think back to the other house, I do get wistful about the intimate spaces and BRIGHTNESS of it with the white framed, ample windows, and the southern exposure... I also feel a little guilty about leaving a house that was within a few years of being paid off... then again, I'm not romantically delusional about the old house's shortcomings. The rooms were small, things that I loved never fit properly. The driveway was STEEP and the yard was tiny. The brightness that I loved came with a price -- HOT summers. And maybe I could have lived with all that (I did for 13 years after all) but the worst part was that crazy neighbour, she wasn't just threatening me or my husband, but the kids too. A real whackadoo.

This place is better.

365 days we have owned it now. It's home. Our home, noisy road and all (no we haven't "got used to it" like so many people have told us we would).

Bad Dog

We came home to the recycling all over the yard. So T buried him in the bits of plastic and cardboard and made him "stay" for 1/2 hour.

I know Max is doing it to "punish" us for leaving him behind, he gets into in MINUTES of us leaving... Perhaps he thinks getting in trouble is worth it?

It's annoying that's for sure.

Cold Cruel Facts

I did something I loathe today... I added up the expenses, I subtracted the income and I felt my blood run cold at the results.

My income and expenses are so close they squeak. I guess that is waaaaay better than finding out they AREN'T close (think red), but still I was hoping I had more wiggle room than I do.

My inner dialogue is playing good cop bad cop inside my stomach right now....
"You idiot! How could you be so careless! Now you are going to have to buckle down and work harder girl!" one side says, then, "Hey now, don't be so hard on yourself! In your expenses you have included savings for long term, short term and a little extra for the mortgage once a year" my other side sooths

Its not fun being of 2 minds about so many things. Diet, Exercise, Housekeeping, Career, Parenting, Money. I come down hard on myself for not giving it 100% and then get lazy again with the placating phrase "It could be worse".

The good news is that with very little effort my budget could look better. A few more billable hours (not always within my control) and a few less trips out for lunch with my sister (definitely within my control) would make a world of difference. The important thing is that I know where I stand RIGHT NOW and that knowledge is power.

The bad news is that the numbers I was working from are from 2012, the reason that is bad is because of the gigantic, unusual expense of selling, buying and renovating. Also, while in the midst of the sale/move/reno I didn't get a whole lot of income. I tried to ignore all of the really specific expenses/income that relate to the transaction.... as a result I am not happy with the thoroughness of the numbers.

What did I learn from all this?
- We spend a crap load on vehicles (running, insuring, repairing)
- My kids go through clothes/shoes/food at an alarming rate
- Vet bills are devastating when budgeting
- Braces are devastating when budgeting too
- I won't be updating my work computer as soon as I was hoping to.

Rendering myself Obsolete

My goal as a parent is to put myself pretty much out of a job within the next 10 years.

That's right. They can continue to love me (and I sure hope they do!) but I am counting on them not needing me to cook, clean, schedule or buy things for them in the next decade.

My 16 year old can now do his own laundry

My 11 year old can fry his own eggs (even crack them into the pan - I'm so proud)

Both of them are slowly acquiring the skills for proper nutrition and home care - It's part of the big picture as a parent.

For the first 12 months the primary task is to keep them alive and hopefully thriving.
The next couple years are all about socializing and communication skills (and hygiene!)
School years are about refining skills with other people, education, safety, health, emotional growth, building character, humour, love and play... big stuff!
Teens are back to the basics of respect, survival, safety, money - with the added edge of sexual stuff
And HOPEFULLY by the time they are age of majority we hope they are able and willing to leave the nest to begin productive, happy, law abiding lives of their own.

My boys may not be excelling in academics, but they will have been taught skills to shop properly, feed themselves and keep their living space clean enough.... (oh ya and be able to forrage edible wilds, mow and weedwhack the lawn, drive stick, ride motorcycles and know proper firearm handling as a bonus).