Wednesday Witterings . . .

 

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 I enjoyed my first strawberries of the season yesterday.  Boy but were they ever some good.  I went right to the farm market at Spurrs. They grow their own and are known for their berries.  Their fields are not quite open yet for personal picking. They said next week.  Their berries are beautiful. 

These days I cannot pick my own. Can't get down and then back up again. It is what it is, but that doesn't mean that I can't enjoy the fruits of other people's labors! And I am!  Strawberries are low glycemic as are all berries and I can enjoy them without doing too much damage to my  blood sugars. I think I enjoyed half a dozen fat juicy berries last night as I was watching television. They were delicious.  This first box is not do to anything with but enjoy as is.

 

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I hired someone yesterday to come and clear out my garden. She will weed the front one and get rid of the one at the back of the house for the most part. She seems to know what she is doing.  I wish that I could do my own gardening, but, realistically speaking,  I cannot.  Pot gardening is one thing, in ground gardening is another.  Again, it is what it is. My gardening days are over, and there is no point in thinking otherwise.

 

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My Doug and his wife are going to Saint John on Sunday as he has an appointment at the heart clinic there to have his defibrillator checked on Monday, and then they will drive back to the Island after as he has to work on Tuesday.  I hope that everything will be okay with it and that they get there and back safely.  I don't think they will be coming over this summer as they are not able to co-ordinate/sync their work schedules as far as getting time off. So I won't be seeing my "J" boys this summer. 

They are getting older now.  Jon will be looking for a summer job to help pay for his college in the fall and the other two are well into their teens as well.  Josh is 16 and Jake 14.  I think they will be doing day trips around the Island for their summer hols, which is often much nicer than travelling too far afield. 

I remember when my own kids were young and we travelled away from home. We would end every trip telling ourselves that we were never doing this again. Too much arguing and stuff in the car on the way home.  Of course the next year would find us repeating the stressful exercise anyways, lol.  

 

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Any trip with five children and two adults packed into the small space of a car is going to be stressful I think.  "He's looking at me!" "She's touching me!"  "I need to go pee!" "I'm going to be sick!"  Its all "go" in the car. Never a dull moment!! 

Here I am old and wishing for those days back again in many ways.  People tell you that the time will go by far too quickly, but you can't see it then.  Before too long, time has flown by and your once full hands and arms are empty and you realize . . .  they were right.  

We had this old cassette tape, "Hooked on Classics."  It was the music we played all through any of our trips.  Classical music with a disco beat.  My oldest son reminded me of it once and how special that music still was to him.  It is to me too.

I have fond memories of us travelling over hill and dale to the music of Bach and Beethoven, while Kermit drove the car.  He had a Kermit doll with velcro hands and he was always affixed to the steering wheel. The kids loved it once upon a time  . . . 

I recognize also that we were lucky to have been able to do those trips with the children. Even if they were only trips back East to spend time with our parents, and not holiday camps.  Not many people with families as large as ours  and a budget like ours went much of anywhere.

They might have been journeys filled with stress, but we were building memories that now console me in my dotage as I think about the joy filled moments of those same journeys. I am so grateful for each one.

 

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We used to have this painting on our living room wall. My ex and I had picked it up at an auction in Medicine Hat one time for $2.  It was of a cottage in the countryside, with lots of flowers and a pond.  I think there was an old rusty farm implement also in the field near the house if I recall correctly.  I loved that painting. (It was not this one above.) I spend many hours looking at it and wishing I could transport myself into the painting.  If you looked really hard you could almost imagine seeing someone in the upstairs window of the cottage looking out  . . .  It seemed like paradise to me.

I used to wonder about the artist who painted it.  I will never know. I have tried to find the painting in these later years, but not knowing who the artist was, it is near impossible to find.

About a month ago I started having a protein drink every morning for breakfast and it usually carries me well into the afternoon.  This is my favorite flavor here, the orange cream soda.  I get the powder here.  It is low calorie, low carb and it's delicious. No sugars, all natural, vegan as well.  They are sweetened with stevia.  I just mix them with milk, but you could mix them with oat milk or almond milk.  I just use cows milk. (I buy the lactose free milk.)  I am not a person who drinks tea or coffee so I am not having milk there.  Milk is a thing I rarely drink, so this is upping my calcium as well, which is really important for aging bones. 

I find them to be delicious and they keep me from being overly hungry or picking at things I shouldn't be picking at.  I have this orange flavor, a vanilla one and I just ordered a strawberry one. Variety is the spice of life.  I did have a cookies and cream one, but I am not fond of chocolate milk and so I gave that one to my sister who is.

Plant based and full of goodness. I really like them!

 

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There is a house just down the road from me that has built themselves the most beautiful porch. It is loaded with some comfy chairs a table, a rocker, a fern, etc. It looks very welcoming. I have never been a person that really enjoys sitting outside that much, but with the right things to sit on I might.  I have two old chairs that my next door neighbor gave me the first year I was here. They are not all that comfortable to be honest. I would love a couple of good old wooden rockers and a small table and then I might be tempted to sit outside.  I know we need the vitamin D from sunshine and the fresh air. With the right table I could even work on my laptop out there.  

It all bears thinking about. What is the point of having a front veranda like mine if I am not going to use it. It might be pleasant to sit out there for an hour each day.

 

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Well, I best skedaddle.  The yard person is going to be here around nine after she drops her wee one off at daycare and I have a few things that need doing before she gets here, number one getting dressed!   I will leave you now with a thought for the day.  

A thought to carry with you  . . . 

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •
•。★★ 。* 。
° 。 ° ˛˚˛ * _Π_____*。*˚
˚ ˛ •˛•˚ */______/~＼。˚ ˚ ˛
˚ ˛ •˛• ˚ ｜ 田田 ｜門 ★

 *.˛.°My heart found its home long ago

in the beauty, mystery, order and disorder

of the flowering earth.

~Lady Bird Johnson° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •° * 。 • ˚ ˚ ˛ ˚ ˛ •

In The English Kitchen today  . . .  a delicious Coconut Cake.  This cake is loaded with plenty of coconut flavor from the inside out!  Its moist and delicious.  Just a small cake as well, only 6 inches. It is perfect for small celebrations. No fuss. No muss and no leftovers!

I hope that you have a beautiful day. It is sunny and warm here. We cannot complain!  Whatever you get up to, don't forget!

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And I do too!