Brandon's Latest Project

I know I've promised more photos of Owen Sound, but first, I want to show you Brandon's latest project. This one is delightful. I hate to see him sell it, but this is his goal. I love it, but have no place to put it. I have way too many figurines and such around here now and will be selling many of them in a yard sale this coming spring.

He took a bunny planter I had that had never been used. Put some felt on the bottom to keep it from sitting directly on furniture and then worked his magic.

I think he did a fantastic job and it will certainly sell in my Etsy Shop

Now he is working on some Sleigh Bell wreaths. We will see how that goes and if they turn out well enough, I will post some photos. 

Talk to you again soon. It's so nice to be back blogging and checking in with my old friends. 

Brandon's Bouquets

Brandon has been thinking over what he'd like to do with his life. He's decided he is going to do something with flowers. His dream is to have his own greenhouse one day, but he knows he can't do that right now. He needs to start at the bottom and move up.

He has made flower arrangements before. He made me a beautiful one for Christmas 2 years ago. It was for the step and he used an old bucket, some pine and spruce branches, some birch limbs, ribbons and berries. It was lovely.

Now, he's making indoor arrangements. This is his first and he did really well, I think, except I'm just a little prejudice when it comes to my grandsons.

He's asking $ 9.99 for one this size. It is 5.5 inches long and approximately 3 inches wide, but it would be perfect for a mantle or on a table. 

If you would like to see more as Brandon adds them, drop by my Etsy shop. He's considering starting a shop of his own, but will see how it goes. 

Here is a link to check out better photos of his creation. 

Brandon's Bouquets

That's all for today. I think the next post will be some of the flowers we had blooming in our garden this past summer...or maybe not. Who knows? 

A More Natural Look at Owen Sound.

I decided to change the photo on my header, as the weather is getting really chilly here and there will be snow before we know it. That said, the weekend is to be cold but then it's to warm up again next week.

Thought I'd show you a few more photos of Owen Sound, Ontario. It's such a quaint little town. If it wasn't so far north, I'd consider moving there, but it's cold enough during the winter here. However, it's gorgeous there in all other seasons.

I'm going to show you some photos of the Inglass Falls. It's a beautiful spot and I enjoyed visiting it. The sound of rushing waterfalls is like music to my ears. It gives me a real feeling of peace and tranquility. I would spend  a lot of time there if I lived in the vicinity. Balm for the soul.

This is a well preserved area. There are rock steps you can go down to see the Falls from a better vantage point. We spent quite a while here. No concession stands, no litter...just a natural part of the Niagara Escarpment. 

I have other goodies in store for you at a later date. Yes, more waterfalls and gardens, a bird sanctuary and some shots of the lake.

Owen Sound is such a clean little town and the air of the lake is so clean, not like places in southern Ontario that are filled with pollution and toxins. 

Note: This type of waterfall is called a cascade waterfall. There are several different kinds and I was educated on this subject during our stay. 

Our Little Get Away

The second to last week of August, we took a little trip to Owen Sound, Ontario. It is a pretty little town and home to Billy Bishop, Canada's Flying Ace. The home where he lived is lovely. They have now set it up as a museum. There is no admission fee, but they ask for a donation to help keep up the home. 

We found it very interesting. Brandon and Jordan had never heard of Billy Bishop before but sure enjoyed learning about him. 

Outside the house is a Memory Tree, paying tribute to both Bishop and others who fought in the war. 

The Memory Tree is a pine and it is lit up all year at dusk to pay tribute to those who served in the Canadian military. 

I will leave some other photos for another time. I have more of Owen Sound and also some of the flowers that bloomed in our yard this year. 

What I've Been Up To

This summer has been crazy busy. We put up a fence so Dakota can play in the front yard, which made him a very happy dog. He wanted to be out, but there was no where to put him. We debated. The Landlord wouldn't do it, so we decided if we were staying here, we would do it ourselves. If we ever move out, it will come off the last month's rent.

I've also been lending Brandon a hand looking for jobs. He worked 3 months in the Garden Center before he got laid off for the season and now we're trying to find him something else. We've put in quite a few resumes but are waiting for his Employment Support Worker to lend him a hand with follow up. It's taking forever and I suspect the jobs will be gone.

I've also been messing around with my digital program and making a few digital images and water slide decals for my Etsy shop.

Here are a couple of the ones that I have on there.

At present, hubby and I are working on some children's furniture projects, a primitive child's chair, a potty chair and next, is a adult's chair that is from the 40s.

So many things to do, so little time.

See you soon. 

Blessings,

Mary

Last year I had a castor bean plant growing in the front yard. I had meant to save some of the seeds, but forgot all about it as the chill of autumn set in. This year, I didn't have one and they are difficult to find here. If anyone has seeds they are willing to share, please let me know.

Tonight we have a severe thunderstorm warning. We had a couple of lightning bolts that seemed pretty close, a few drops of rain and now the thunder has faded into the distance. I wouldn't have minded a storm, but didn't want the hail or tornado warning that went with it. I was hoping for just a good rain storm, as we need it badly. 

Update on the back. The chiropractor gave me four treatments and it seems to be much better now, but not perfect. I have another appointment on Wednesday.

For those who knew Ann Butler, who used to write a blog here, she passed away last Monday. She will be sadly missed. We both had FB accounts. Not sure what happened. She was to have surgery. Not sure if she ever got it. Last word I heard was that she was undergoing testing. May she rest in peace. She is home in Heaven now. 

It Never Rains but what it Pours

I was running very smoothly the last few months. Am getting my Vitamin B12 back where it should be and have had energy again. Taking a supplement of 2500 once a week or so. That seems to be doing the trick. Then, last weekend, I put my back out and was in such severe pain that I phoned a chiropractor on Monday. I could barely walk. The treatment brought me great relief and I made another appt for Wed.

Wed I was okay but after the treatment, I felt even better. Still feeling okay but my neck and back muscles are still tight. I am going again on Monday and then probably not until Friday. After a couple of weeks, I will only do it monthly for maintenance. Chiropractors aren't included in our paid medical coverage, so it's costing some money, but also saving because Senior's get a $25 discount per visit. Only good thing I have found being a senior is that you do get discounts.

Well, it is late and need to rest my back. Thanks to all my previous blogging buddies for dropping by in my earlier post to say hi. Miss you all.

Wishing all my male friends with kids, A Happy Father's Day.

Dad passed in 1981 and when the holidays come around, such as Christmas, Easter and Father's Day, I wish he had been with us a little longer.

Dad was strict and stern if you didn't do as you were told. He was known for giving us a spanking if we defied him. I don't regret anything he did. He was the disciplinarian in our family and we knew if Mom told him that we had done wrong, we were going to be punished for it. We usually toed the line fairy well.

Dad was a hard worker, sometimes leaving for work before dawn and not getting home until hours after dark When he became disabled from a fall while working, he was devastated. He needed something that would make him feel useful, as most people do.

Happy Father's Day, Dad. Wish you were here.

Can This Be True?

Some of you may remember Brandon as a little boy. Well, he has grown into a fine young man. He graduated in June 2013 and then took a Victory Lap year in Horticulture. 

Last summer, he got a job at a local grocery garden center. He got laid off in August, but they told him to reapply in March. Between times, he worked for Toys R Us for Christmas and got laid off December 29th.

This year he started at the garden center in April and is enjoying it. On May 27th, last Wednesday, he turned 20. We are having a BBQ for him this afternoon.

Can this be true! It seems like yesterday I was standing in the delivery room and for the next 3 months, walking the floor with a baby that had a bad case of Colic. Now he is 20. Seems impossible. 

Watching the Birds

All winter, we had many birds come to the feeders. We had a large, platform feeder and two small suet feeders. One suet feeder is specifically for woodpeckers and we had a variety of those visit, including hairy, red headed, nuthatches and downy. I love to watch them. One of the males was so used to my husband that he would just keep eating when he went into the yard. If I stepped out the door, he would fly into the tree and when I backed the car out of the driveway, he would return to his meal.

Other species that visited the feeders were male and female northern cardinals, red polls, black eyed juncos, sparrows, chickadees and a few species that I had to look up. The only one I detested was European starlings. They are dirty, loud, aggressive and they chase the other birds away. 

One kind of bird I would love to see in my yard is the Eastern bluebird, shown above. I've never hit the right formula to lure them, but I keep trying. One day maybe I will find out exactly how to get them to come. I'd like a bluebird nesting box. We had other birds coming for the combed out dog fur that Dakota sheds in the spring. It makes excellent nesting material. 

I want to get a niger feeder. They bring orioles and gold finches. I get a lot of pleasure watching the birds and since I don't go out much in winter or when it's really humid, it is a type of entertainment that can't be beat. 

Not much news here. I have been down and out with allergies this week. Since everything is blooming at once and coming to life, this year is worse than any recent year. I've never had them this bad before in my life and wish they would just go away. 

Got a hair cut today for summer and cut off my nearly shoulder length hair. First hair cut since just before Christmas. Feels better, for sure. 

We have a mama coon living in our attic and have to figure out how to lure her and the babies out so we can fix the vents. She's broken both roof vents in order to set up residence. In case you don't know coon feces can be deadly, so she needs to go. I phoned the landlord and he wants me to trap them. Huh? It's his house, not mine, so we are not agreeing on this at all. He says that I live here, not him and I say it's your house, not mine. However, I don't plan to share my living space with raccoons, 

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers. I wish you much happiness today.

Thought I'd update you a little on Mom. She has done fairly well since her ankle healed up last year, but in the last week, I've seen her fail quite a bit. I was shocked when I saw her today. I just saw her on Tuesday and she seemed to look good and was doing okay. Today, her face was drawn and she looked like a really old lady. Well, she is 87 and will be 88 in September, but she looked worse today than some people do at 100. I think she may have taken another mini stroke. She is really having a lot of trouble in certain areas, which I won't go into here. However, anyone who has been around Senior's will get the idea. 

I picked Brandon up today from work today and he really dislikes the new Assistant Manager. Apparently, she is spying on him and his co-worker and is reporting them to the Garden Center Manager on a daily basis. He's getting tired of it and so is his co-worker. She has only been there 3 weeks and is disliked by everyone. I told him to stick it out. If she is that disliked, she won't be there long, as the Manager won't put up with it. He prides his store on Customer Service and this new AM told Brandon to do work and ignore the customers unless they specifically ask for help? What kind of work ethic does this woman have? How did she get to be an AM with an attitude like that. Anyway, we will see how it goes, but I'm going to talk to his Employment Support Worker. Maybe she can contact the Manager and find out what gives. 

After I got home, hubby and I went out to buy a fan to replace the one that quite last year in late August. It was 101F in our upstairs earlier this evening and that is with a window AC. 

That is all the news for today except I took Mom flowers for Mother's Day and Brandon got me some as well. Pretty Gerba Daisies. 

It's been over a year since I posted here and it's time to update everyone.

Brandon worked in a garden center last year and then Toys R Us at Christmas. He loves the garden center but didn't care for Toys R Us. He got laid off at the end of December and they were very happy with his work performance, so he could go back this September. I don't think he will if he can find something else.

He got an excellent reference from the garden center and the manager told him to come back this March and let him know if he'd like to work for them again. He did and started on the 12th of April. He loves it.

Jordan is in his last year of high school, which is hard to believe. It seems like yesterday that the boys were starting school. He's doing much better this year but now there is a danger the secondary school teachers will walk off the job in a strike action and he will lose his year. That is maddening, as the kids get out in just a little over a month. They will have to either go to summer school to make up the time or repeat their semester in the fall.

As for hubby and I, we are doing okay. We are both home and sometimes that makes for seeing too much of each other. I work on my Etsy shop but he needs a hobby.

Well, I'll keep it short and sweet. Nothing else much going on around here.

I miss blogging and miss many of my friends here. I hope to get back soon.