In My World

I was thinking about taking down these shelves and framing and hanging my Clark MacDougall print.  My sister Lori says I should leave things as they are.  What do you think?

You may recall that one of my New Year's resolutions is to decorate our apartment.  I started with what I thought would be the simplest room . . . the entry hall.  Well it's been 2 days and a little help from a son and a brother-in-law . . . and the entry hall is nearly done.  I'm just waiting for touch up paint from the building superintendant and hopefully a new globe for the ceiling light.  The only things I need to buy . . . a "brass" handle for the closet door and some broom and mop holders to install inside the linen closet.  I'm pretty pleased with my simple pine and brass decor.  I will probably spend the next 2 days just cleaning up the mess in the rest of the apartment.  Why is it when you clean up one room all the mess just seems to move to ALL the other rooms . . . LOL??? Nighty Night, Pam

I had so much trouble falling asleep last night because I couldn't stop thinking about everything I wanted to accomplish while Hal is on the road.  So I had a nice early start . . . okay 10 am . . . early in my world. When I am in a purging and scrubbing mood I always pick a corner to start from and work my way out.  I chose the entry hall.  It is a tiny space unless you include the huge hall closet and linen closet.  So I started in the big closet and just pulled EVERYTHING out.  I got down on my knees with a scrub brush and scrubbed the closet floor.  What a mistake!  About halfway through this little job I was shaking because my knees hurt so bad . . . seriously I'm not THAT old yet am I????  But I did manage to finish. All the Christmas decorations are now together in one tote. All my craft supplies have been relocated to the walk-in closet in the bedroom and my picnic supplies and coolers are now in the front hall closet . . . and I now...

You know you've been hugged by a passel of sticky candy fingered boys when you go to sit down on a chair and the back of your shirt sticks to the back of the seat. And Mom still has her cell phone.  The record is 2 weeks.  She's made it to 2 days . . . LOL . . . Breakfast out with my Red Hatted friends and Mom.  A ton of errands run.  Lunch at the Stationmaster.  And I've started cleaning the mess which used to be my apartment. So how's your day been? Pam

. . . and I will be days getting the place cleaned back up again.  But it sure was fun making the mess.  Hal was off duty for 5 days and we spent them doing things we enjoy and relaxing a lot.  Today was spent running errands, visiting, and spending the evening with the grandsons.  We had a pretty great time . . . watching cartoons playing cards making personal pizzas eating apple pie and chocolate ice cream and whipped cream making and eating snow candy talking and telling stories Hal went back on duty this morning but just got called out for his first load tonight.  That's the way it usually goes.  Welcome to the trucking industry.  And of course we have freezing drizzle tonight so I will worry about Hal all the way to Toronto.  He promised to call when he arrived so I will be able to relax and sleep.  Once he is in his big truck I don't worry so much.  So its going to be a long night tonight. I made Hal take the r...

I hate insomnia.  It doesn't happen to me too often, but when it does it seems to take 3 days to recuperate.  Because I was so tired I didn't accomplish much yesterday . . . including the first time I slipped and didn't post to this blog.  At 11:58 last night I did remember to take a photo.   Hal and I spent yesterday going through old family photos and identifying the people and locations.  And then the rest of the day was spent cathching up on some episodes of Men of a Certain Age.  Love it.  It's by Ray Romano. We had to set the alarm this morning . . . grrrrrr . . . I think you all know how I feel about that by now . . . LOL . . . And Hal went back on duty this morning so he will be "on the road again" by midnight . . . we had a really good time the past few days off.  Nothing too exciting happened but sometimes that is a good thing.  We are picking the boys up for supper and a little grandpa time because they really miss Hal w...

Okay, so I don't have all the facts yet but I am having fun finding them.  It seems my great-great grandmother was charged with bigamy in 1915.  Hal and I searched through the microfilms at the local library and found several articles in local papers during the spring of 1915.  Don't worry, she was found not guilty . . . LOL . . . It seems she was still married to my great-great grandfather when she married husband #2.  A couple years later she married husband #3.  Husband #3 is the person who had her charged.  She was released on $1000 bail. According to the court because Husband #1 (my ggg) was still alive when she married Husband #2, Marriage #2 was null and void.  Because Husband #1 was no longer living and Marriage #2 wasn't legal, therefore she was not commiting bigamy with Husband #3 . . . and that's all she wrote. This story brings up so many unanswered questions and we are looking forward to digging into more family stories in our quest ...

Okay  . . . a horrible title but my brain is on holiday.  Three highlights to my day . . . 1.  Taking Cameron to curling lessons . . . he is so cute. 2.  Being hugged by my almost 13-year-old grandson and finding out he is taller than me . . . yikes. 3.  Seeing The King's Speech . . . wow!!

Yeah, I hate to admit it but we had another pyjama day today.  It was so cold and snowy and blowy out that we decided just to chill around the house.  We watched tv, movies, played on the computer, cooked, tidied, laundry, played cards, read . . . absolutely nothing exciting happened today . . . but sometimes that is good.  We all need a little down time.  And Hal really needed down time.  And I think that Cameron enjoys when we have a quiet day.  I did manage to scrap one layout today and spent a few hours working on my tablecloth . . . Nighty Night, Pam

Had a lovely pyjama day today.  And Cameron arrived this afternoon to spend the weekend.  The "boys" always have a good time together. I cooked a lovely supper but I'm getting sleepy so I will post the recipes tomorrow. Hal has been on the road for 2 weeks so he needed sleep desperately.  I didn't want to be rattling around the house and waking him up this morning so I decided to just read.  And I did.  This is the first time in a long time where I have read an entire book in one day.  But once I picked it up I just couldn't put it down.  I loved the characters.  Jack and Ma seemed so "normal" and real in the Room.  It wasn't until they were Outside that you realized what they were lacking.  Their journey is absolutely fascinating.  I think it really helped that the book was told in Jack's voice.  Loved, loved, loved this book and recommend it highly. I also had a knitting finish today.  I've been knitting toque...

I don't know why I woke up at 7 am.  My usual wake up time is 9 am or so . . . I'm a bit of a night owl.  I'm wondering if it was snow shoveling.  When I went to sleep last night the sidewalks were a mess.  When I went out at 10 am the sidewalk was cleared . . . and that didn't happen while I was awake. So I've been tired all day . . . sigh . . . And Nanna and Mom wanted me to go shopping with them.  I hate shopping unless it is a huge sale and then I can't resist.  But I had Mom's van so I went and picked up Nanna and drove to Mom's to hand over the keys.  Fortunately, they dropped me off back at home.  I was kind of worried that they were going to kidnap me and drag me off to Tender Tootsie . . . LOL . . . I've been tired all day . . . yawn . . . I've only been picking away at the Dreaded To Do List today but managed to accomplish a bit.  I did finish a layout I had started last week. But even though I was tired I did have a good...

It was quite "froggy" here in St. Thomas today . . . with the warm temperatures and rain and all the melting snow there was some fog (also known as frog when my kids were young) around . . . And then I went to Ladies' Day Out where I took my photo of the day of Charlotte "frogging" a scarf.  Frogging is knitting terminology for ripping apart a project or several rows of a project . . . "rip it, rip it" . . . get it??? Deb's daughter Judy was at Ladies' Day Out because the buses were cancelled for an "ice day".  She made her mom a lovely necklace featuring . . . A FROG !! I didn't think to take a photo of the necklace this afternoon.  It only occured to me tonight when I got the idea for the froggy blog post.  But Deb is used to my craziness and didn't even question me when I called her at 10:15 tonight and asked her to photograph the necklace.  In fact here is her Facebook status:  "weird request for 10:15pm! Of c...

I have just described my day in a few short words . . . I had to set my alarm this morning.  You may have noticed that I am a bit of a night owl just by looking at the time of night I do my daily blog posts.  Mom is an early bird . . . really early . . . So if I want to hang out with her I have to get up early.  I went on a little shopping excursion today with Mom and Sandy and we hit quite a few stores.  I picked up some sweet bargains along the way . . . nothing too too exciting except . . . Mom took one look at my purchase and thought it was hysterical.  I was sort of offended . . . Okay not really . . . I cannot grow plants indoors in this apartment.  Christmas 2009 Connie bought me a Chia pet (Spongebob Squarepants) and I tried to grow it.  I actually got a few sprouts before the whole thing croaked and the seeds turned to slime.  This past summer I had a lovely little herbery on my patio as well as tomato plants and...

Lettuce, Clementine and Fig Salad 2 servings Preparation 10 minutes 200 calories per serving 1/2 Boston lettuce, or curly leaf 2 cups baby spinach 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 3 Clementines 1 tbsp lemon juice, freshly squeezed salt and pepper to taste 1/3 cup walnuts 2 dried figs, cut into small pieces Rinse and spin-dry the lettuce and spinach, then put them in a salad bowl. Squeeze the juice from one clementine into a small bowl. Peel the remaining clementines, separate into segments, then add them to the salad bowl. Add the extra virgin olive oil to the clementine juice, pour in the lemon juice, then season with salt and pepper. Whisk well using a fork until the dressing is emulsified. Pour over the salad. Add the walnuts and chopped figs. Toss well. Serve. Pasta in a Bolognese Meat Sauce 2 servings Preparation 5 min / Cooking 15 min 450 calories per serving 160 g tortiglioni or pene 2/3 cup Bolognese Meat Sauce (recipe below) 2 tbsp pasta cooking water 2 t...

Sugared Oranges, Farfalle with Tomatoes and Brie, Fennel Salad Fennel Salad 2 servings Preparation 5 min 140 calories per serving 1 fennel, very thinly sliced (360 g) 2 tbsp Classic Vinaigrette (recipe below) salt and pepper to taste Remove the stalk and feathery leaves. Thinly slice with a mandolin, then place in a serving bowl. Pour the classic vinaigrette over the fennel, then add salt and pepper to taste. Toss and serve immediately. Classic Vinaigrette 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil 3-1/2 tbsp. wine vinegar 1 tbsp Dijon mustard Shake or mix well for 1 minute. Will keep at room temperature for 1-2 months Recipe is from http://www.soscuisine.com/ I thought I might like this salad because I have had cooked fennel before but . . . it was just okay . . . I doubt I will make it again. I found that fennel has a flavour that is a little too "perfumy" for my liking. If I was served this salad at someone else's home I wouldn't spit it into my napk...

I rode the bus (with a transfer) to spend the afternoon with my grandsons.   Kate was home sick so we stole her van and took off.   After lunch we went to the book store at the mall.  You may remember me telling you about this store in an earlier post.  This is one of of the stores where I received great customer service.  I gave Taylor his gift certificate to purchase a book as a belated Christmas present.  I love that the boys all love books.  I think we could have spent all day just looking through all the books that caught our interest.   Taylor asked that one day we could go to one of the big book stores.  I think that might be a little overload for them . . . LOL. While we were at the mall the boys volunteered to help me shop for groceries.  I haven't been eating as well as I should and I think that is why my weight loss has stalled.  So back to healthy, home-cooked meals as of tomorrow.  We had adve...