Sunday, October 30, 2011

a postcard from Yosemite...

He is like a tree planted by streams of water...
which yields its fruit in season and whose leaf does not wither.
Whatever he does prospers.
Psalm 1:3 NIV

Greetings from the beautiful Yosemite National Park.

P.S. It seems that cyber mail is also dependent on the mailman.  Though this postcard was to be sent from Yosemite last night or this morning...the wi-fi mailman was slacking off and it couldn't be sent.  By now we are some 400 miles south of the park...under trees of another kind.


Thursday, October 27, 2011

a tree alone...

 Speaking of trees...
 
I think that I shall never see
A poem lovely as a tree.
~Joyce Kilmer 1886-1918 


The little oak tree outside my kitchen window is likely one of the world's most photographed subjects.

 Whether it is peaking through the morning mist...


...or standing tall in the evening sun
...it always seems to find a way into the photo.

The creation of a thousand forests is in one acorn.
 ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson     


The golden locust tree makes for a lovely photo as well.
I took one more...
for the record....
as the sun was setting.

You see...
we are off in search of trees of another sort.

By the time we return home...
the oak and the locust may not look quite like today.

Where we are headed...

the trees look more like this...

  ...and like this.

I'll let you know if we find the trees we are seeking!


Wednesday, October 26, 2011

lilacs for lucy...

As I mentioned yesterday...
I was going tree-shopping!

I came home with a little lilac tree...
and by the time lunch rolled around...
the tree was planted.

and it was time for Lucy to have her own tree.

Magnolia for Maggie...
lilac for Lucy.
It just seemed right!



The tree was barely settled in it's new spot...
when Lucy stopped by to check it out.
I think she liked it!


So...Grammy was supposed to pick Lucy out of the line-up above.
Hmmm...both babies look the same to me!
Only Mommy knows for sure.
Maggie (left) ~ Lucy (right)...
both at three months of age.

I suggest Mommy label all her baby photos!

Have a wonderful Wednesday....

Tuesday, October 25, 2011

the weekend in the rearview mirror...

Now that I've had a moment to put my feet up...
I'll share a few thoughts about the weekend past.

We have the most amazing little gift shop in our town...
whose owner invited us (MGCC team) to join her at the West Coast Women's Show this past weekend.

What a great time it was!


The Winks booth was the nicest one at the trade show...
in my unbiased opinion.

We had such fun meeting the shoppers...
and all those who came by to say 'hi'...
or to have a cookbook signed.

I'm remembering some of those fine folks~
...the master painter from the booth next door who came to buy a book
...the gal who said she had the book and called it her 'idiot proof cookbook'
...the one who didn't even bother to look at the book but bought several because she loved our cause
...the two gals who remember me as their Pioneer Girls Club leader from eons ago (really?)
...Amy from Star FM who came by to purchase a book before work
...the gal who got us to sign her book just as we were about to go on stage for our cooking demo
...the one who was purchasing a book for her Mennonite husband in hopes that he will learn to cook
...the gal who flew in from Calgary just to have us sign her book!

And yes...
we did two cooking demos at the Kitchen Theatre.

We've all had a chance to watch Chef Dez in action as he does his cooking classes.
This time he introduced us...
and said kind things about us...
and came back for a taste test after the show.

Those who were there had a chance to sample waffles with custard and berry sauce...
and fall soups after the second demo.

We just gave out wee samples.

Those who wanted more...
bought the cookbook and went home to cook up their own!

 If you are still wanting a cookbook...
I know my friend Pondside is giving one away over on her blog this week.
Go pay her a visit!

Today?
I'm buying a tree...
having a pedicure that I won at a fundraiser...
and having a visit from some grandgirlies this afternoon.

It's all good!

Have a great day...

Monday, October 24, 2011

'make mine milk' monday....

Milk...


...as fresh as it comes.
And delivered on demand by the milkman.
That's right.
Does anyone else still have a milkman...
in this day and age?
And my milkman brings milk in jugs that look like this...


I send them along empty in the morning...
and hope they come back full later in the day.
Sometimes I call him on his cell to remind him...
that I am out of milk.
Sometimes he tells me that the tanker just came...
and the milk tank is empty.
If I know the grands are coming...
I go out and buy milk like everyone else.
It seems they aren't used to drinking milk without any butterfat removed.
Raw milk...as it is called.  

If you aren't quite sure about drinking milk...

It may just make you want to go out and buy milk...
or maybe a cow or two.

Truth be told...
I'm not that fond of milk.
Oh...
but I do love the milkman!

Friday, October 21, 2011

celebrating my daughter...

A daughter is a day brightener and a heart warmer.  
~Author Unknown

On October 21st...
many years ago...
a daughter arrived to brighten my days.


Thirty years ago...
on this date...
Heidi posed with her favorite doll...
Jenny.

She still has Jenny!


Twenty years ago...
she celebrated her birthday with a sleepover.
 And lots of friends...
some whose names I no longer recall.
 I see her dog was at the party as well!
 Heidi was the wee one in the middle.



Ten years ago she celebrated her birthday with her husband...
for the very first time.

Today is Heidi's birthday...
a good reason to celebrate.
We did just that...
last night.


A daughter is the happy memories of the past...
the joyful moments of the present...
and the hope and promise of the future. 
~Author Unknown


Happy birthday...
daughter of mine!

With love,

Thursday, October 20, 2011

cranberry time...

For the first time in history...cranberries are being harvested in my neighbourhood.  We watched with interest several years ago as the fields which were once grazed by horses...became a nursery for cranberry plants.

 
Yesterday I noticed one of the fields was flooded...and soon the first cranberry harvest was underway next door.


The water is only about eight inches above the vines...and a harvester is driven through the beds to separate the fruit from the vines.  I didn't stick around to see how the floating berries were removed from the pond...but big trucks were on hand to take away the first crop of cranberries.  So now I know where my cranberries come from.


I took a hint from Lorrie and poured half of my hot cranberry sauce into wee jars and sealed them when I was preparing Thanksgiving dinner.  How nice to cranberry sauce on hand!


Here's a tasty little cranberry sauce appetizer that I sampled recently at a friend's.  Brush baguette slices with with olive oil and sprinkle with poultry-seasoning-herb-mix.  Broil on high until golden brown...and serve with cranberry sauce. 

In scones...as juice...or as a saucy topping for poultry...cranberries are the best.  And good for you too!


Wednesday, October 19, 2011

done...

My morning walk takes me past fields of golden corn...


...though I know that will soon change.


The birds have a field day...
flitting about among the stalks.

Their fun is about to end...
as one by one the fields of corn are being harvested.

We've had a spell of beautiful weather...


...and things have been busy on the farm. 


On the weekend...


 ...the last crop of grass came in from the fields.


The grands were over...
and Micah was in his glory watching trucks and tractors.
He wasn't all that thrilled about leaving his post at the window to have supper...
so Grammy let him eat at a window with a view.
His sister informed him that trucks and tractors were very boring!
He did not believe her.

As of  yesterday...
our corn harvest is done for 2011.


The bunkers are full to overflowing.

We are always thankful when the cropping is done...
and grateful to all the friends and neighbours who pitch in to make it all happen.

And most of all...
we give thanks to God for his bounty!


Have a wonderful Wednesday!

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

out and about...

We are so enjoying these days of fall sunshine.
There are many pictures begging to be taken!

 (photos taken on a country road in Rosedale, BC)

Bright red Virginia creeper...
hens running free...
snow on Mt. Cheam...
a picture of autumn in my corner of the world.

On Sunday afternoon we went for a drive...
to a place we had never been before.
Our destination was Rolley Lake Provincial Park...
which we had often heard about...
but never visited.

It seems the powers-that-be think mid-October is too late to visit the park.
We didn't think so!
So we left our car outside the locked gate...
and walked in.
We were in good company!

A quiet little lake...
with spacious campsites...
it looks like a lovely place to come in the summertime.


We walked along the lake...
and down a short trail to Rolley Falls.
I see I should have done my homework before we set out.
We saw the Upper Falls...
and were not aware that if we had carried on a little further...
we would have come to the more spectacular Lower Falls.

 We returned the way we had come...
and visited nearby Stave Lake before heading home.
Allouette Lake, Stave Lake and Ruskin....
three adjoining dams...
provide hydro power to our part of our province.
So close to home...
it was high time we explored some of these places.

Monday, October 17, 2011

going to camp ~ again...

It had been a very long time since I had been to camp.  So to visit two different camps in one day...was really something!

Saturday turned out to be a beautiful, sunny day...the perfect day to take a drive past Hope to Camp Squeah.


We arrived a little early...


...so we did a little exploring before the 'big reveal'. 


We were a 'surprise' for the women gathered there for a fall conference.  Five of us from MGCC made the trek...and Lovella shared our story.  Which she does so well!


We stuck around for awhile...in case anyone might want us to sign their book.  It seemed there were many...and we signed away for over an hour.  Again...we met the nicest of people...from the Cowboy Poet to the cupcake lady.

After lunch...we hustled off to our next appointment...


...at another camp situated a good hour's drive away.  Camp Stillwood is where I attended summer camp as a ten year-old.  It was there that I learned to swim...and how to sleep on a mattress of straw.  There were outhouses...not washrooms.  There was nothing fancy about that camp back in the day!  It was camping in the true sense of the word.  I had not been to visit the camp in over a dozen years...


...and could not believe it was the same place.  It has grown up a lot lately! 


The cabins are not quite so rustic...


...the tuck shop is now a general store.


Where the covered picnic area was once located...sits this handsome barn of a structure.

I wasn't here to tour the facilities.  We came to do an afternoon book signing at the Ten Thousand Villages kiosk for another women's conference.  Again...we met the neatest people...including a long-lost cousin or two.  And before we left...


...we stopped by Stillbuck's for coffee, of course!


No camp should be without a Stillbuck's, right?


And just for old-times sake...I had to check out the view.


In my days as a camper...we used to hike down to that lake for a swim.  Now...I'm sure the on-site pool makes the hike to the lake unnecessary.

I think I'm about ready to go camping again.  It looks like it would be a totally different experience than the one I had long ago.  I think I could like it!  Though sleeping on straw...and swimming in the lake might still be a good experience for the young'uns!  I'm just saying....