Puzzle - Austrian Village

 A full day of rain put Brian's backyard project on hold so he cleaned up the table upstairs and started a puzzle.  With "lakes" in the back it took a couple of days for the water to clear which was plenty of time to get this puzzle made of an Austrian village.  All the pieces are there!!  Therese

Blueberry compote

I made some compote with large blueberries I bought from BuyLow when the BC blueberries first arrived.  I used them last year as well and they make really delicious compote.  I used 16 cups of frozen blueberries, 3 cups of frozen rhubarb, 8 cups of fresh apples, 1 cup of dates with 2 tbsps of lemon juice.  I was able to fill seven jars and have enough leftover for making a small crisp for supper.    Therese

 

Apples

I have managed to pick a few apples on my morning walk!  These ones are really nice and fairly large.  They are good eating apples and were hanging over the fence so I brought a few home.  I will use them for eating fresh and for making compote.  Therese
 

Houses quilt top

On Sunday I worked on my slow stitched houses quilt.   I had set aside the fabric a while back and was pleased to find that when I dug out the little pile it made sense.  I had set aside enough fabric to make strips as wide as my strip of houses.  As I went, I pieced the strips that needed stitching.  Some were strips the width of the fabric - 42" which was perfect.  After piecing those that needed it I laid them all out and reorganized them to be interesting.  I managed to have a strip of fabric between all the pieced ones which avoided any clashing of seams which was nice.  I highlighted the houses with the same strips on each side of them. The sky pops very nicely which I was hoping it would having placed a black strip next to it.  I did add strips to both end of my houses to make sure that it would be wide enough and to not lose too much into the binding.  It is the flattest quilt I have ever assembled.  It measures close to the same at the top as at the bottom which is a first too!  It is 41.5" x 64".  I was able to get it all done before supper.  I am looking forward to getting it finished with batting, backing and binding!!  Therese
 

Mountain pies and perogies

We had brought ingredients for mountain pies camping but did not make any so Saturday we decided on a fire and put mountain pies on the list!!  We used a sourdough bun from the freezer, a bit of tomato sauce, cheese and salami for the first one.  Buttered on both sides and into the iron.  Worked out really well - the sourdough is a bit stiff compared to commercial buns but Brian liked the taste.  We made a couple of those and then we decided to try to make perogies in the moutanin pie maker.  We put in four perogies - thawed a bit - and some onion and butter.  Worked out really well!!  It was fun to experiment and it was cool to be able to make perogies!!  I am making bread this week and Brian has ordered bigger buns that will fit perfectly in the iron.  Will do!!  Therese

 

Black currant compote

I have been collecting crabapples on my walks in the morning at several places where the trees have branches hanging into the back lanes.  I decided to make compote with them and the black currants from this year.  I had 8 cups of frozen black currants (6 cups thawed ) and I added 2 cups of frozen rhubarb ( 1 cup thawed) and started this on very low.  I washed, cored and cut the apples into pieces and cooked them on high for 4 minutes in the microwave which made my 8 cups of apples into 4cups for the pot.  I cut up  1 cup of dates, added 2 tbsp of lemon juice and cooked in the microwave for a minute.  I mashed them in the bowl and then added them to the pot.  I turned up the heat just a little and got my pint jars washed, sterilized in the microwave and the lids heated so everything would be hot at the same time.  Recognizing that I would be a bit short of fruit I added the leftover nanking/applesauce - 2 cups - I had leftover from last week.  It was a good choice because I had just enough for 7 jars.  I had not added any water but before filling my jars I found the mixture quite thick so I added a quarter cup or so of water.   Made it easier to fill the jars with the mixture a little looser.  I processed them for 20 minutes.  I will see if the dates make any difference in the tast but I suspect not too much.  I compared them online for sugar content and they compare almost exactly with the raisins.  So the process begins.  I will probably add less apples this year being as I have quite a bit of fruit to make into compote.  I have not used everything from last year so I will require a few less jars which means I don't have to stretch the fruit too much.  Therese
 

Us by the fire

 By the time we got back to the campsite we started a fire and had some supper.  It was drizzly in the morning so we read our books.  It is a good way to finish up a camping trip.  We had lunch and got the trailer ready to go and headed out.  We stopped in Gull Lake for an ice cream - no regular maple walnut - which has been the case quite a few times this year.  We were soon home and unpacked with laundry started to get everything ready for the next time!!

Therese

Trail walk

We did a long trail walk just before supper that intersected with several creeks and the river. 

We continued past the bridge over the river - the lake is just beyond where we can see.  It was a long walk.  We saw lots of the purple asters that are so prevalent at this time of year.  

Nearing the end of our walk we saw a housing development which seemed to have a large bay with an island in the center just on the other side of a farmer's field.  A small paradise in a prairie landscape.

Therese

Lakeshore walk - ducks and yellow flowers

The next day we went for a walk along the lake shore to check out the rocks.  As you can see the shore is quite rocky for the most part and you can see just at the point there is a family of ducks hanging out.  They took to the water once we got closer. It is always fun to see the variety of rocks - different sizes, colours, etc.  The water had a lot of algae in some places but I did find one spot to photograph where it was less copious.  The space from water to ground was not very wide generally and quite tight is a few places.  I found some yellow flowers along the way - a bee was collecting nectar on the tansy blooms.

Therese

Our for a walk

We went for a walk along the lake shore trail and saw quite a few wood peckers - some large red headed ones and smaller Downy ones.  Brian spotted this mushroom fungi growing horizontally on a branch.  It was so much brighter than the woods.  We found a gnarly tree and this beautiful scene of the path as we walked back.

We warmed up fried chicken on our fire in a foil container inside one of our wire baskets.  It worked very well and you can see that we had propped the handle of the basket with wood so it could be left unattended.  We had cooked our potatoes a bit in the microwave and then put them on the grill to crisp up while the chicken warmed.  We like cooking on our campfire and then it is nice to just sit and enjoy the flames as well.  Therese

 

Pigeon Lake Provincial Campground - Site B80

We arrived just about an hour later and set up the trailer.  Again, this process seems to be taking less time and we were soon set up.  The site is a little less dense than we have had before but nice and level.  Not too close to anyone though we were between two group sites and had they been booked it would have been too close for our liking.  We did not have many choices as we booked just a week in advance.  The weather was a bit cloudy which was nice.  We did not bring our kayaks as our carrier has not yet arrived.   Therese

 

Going camping!!

We booked a site at the Pigeon Lake Provincial Campground for two nights.  We made a meal plan, made sure we had what we needed in the trailer including the wood we did not burn last time.  It is taking less time to get the trailer hooked up so we were on our way just after lunch.  Therese

 

First tomatoes

 Here are the first red tomatoes I picked from my garden.  They will be very ripe in the next couple of days and will certainly find their way into a sandwich.  Brian has been waiting for them to be ready!!  These were picked off the Manitoba plants and the little ones off the Red Ample.  The pointy ended one is a Kron Prince.  There are quite a few that are yellow so I anticipate that we will have a steady supply now but with 4C overnight this week I am hoping that frost will hold off!!  Therese

Dark red and blue crumb squares sashed with yellow with hand stitched daisies

I have been working on this quilt (48.5" x 59.5") for a while off and on between other activities.  I started by adding yellow sashing between the 12 dark red and blue crumb squares which I made a while back.  I added a large yellow border in the same fabric as the sashing, added a thin cotton batting and a dark blue backer which I wrapped around the edge and used to bind the quilt as well.  I added a row of green stitching between the two red ones on the large border and hand stitched red flowers onto the line.  I had to be careful not to go to deep with my stitches because I added the flowers after the quilt was finished.  I am really happy with how it turned out and how well the little stitched flowers finish it off!!  Therese

 

Second tier of gravel on the patio area

 Second tier of gravel has been added to the patio area and the human packing has been done and awaits the machine packing!! Therese

Black currants

 I picked my remaining black currants today!  Some had fallen off but they were not ripe enough before we left for camping.  I had picked about 3 cups and today I got 5 cups so in total I got 8 cups of fruit off my bush this year.  I am happy with that.  I have put them in the freezer and will make compote with them later.  I am also considering a small batch of chutney - we shall see.  

I have done inventory in my cold room of all the canning I have left.  

I do have quite a bit of compote left so I will likely make a few less jars this year and use more fruit and less apples and rhubarb.  I have some applesauce left as well so will not need too many more this year.  I have 5 jars of pimbina and will likely not need too much of that either and Sylvia has yet to use any of hers from last year so maybe we will pass picking this year and get back to it next year.  I have a few jars of pancake syrup which will do and can be used with club soda as well.  I need to use up the jelly, relish and pickles I have there before I made any more.  

It was good to make an inventory.  I have made up a document where I can document what I add each year which will give me a cumulative total as I go.  

Therese

Nanking juice and sauce

I took all the nankings I had in the freezer and thawed them for making juice.  The pot was completely full when the cherries where frozen - probably 16 - 18 cups in all.  That includes those from my tree, a few from the neighbourhood and a few leftover from last year.  I thought I might pit them but that was going to take too long so I just let them sit.  Once thawed I cooked them up - I did not need to add any water because they had made their own juice already.  Once cooked I scooped out the juice - 6cups - then I put them in my jelly cloth (cheese cloth) and I easily strained another two cups which gave me 8 cups for making juice.  I added a half cup of honey, brought the juice a boil and canned them into little jars (1c - 10 minutes).  I got 8 jars which I am very happy with.  It has been a treat to have nanking juice with club soda on our very hot days.  It is really nice at Christmas to make punch as well.  I do have a few jars leftover from last year so this is enough.

After that I passed the remain pulp and pits through my food mill - not a very easy process and I am not sure I will do it again.  It actually broke a few pits so I passed the whole lot through my fine sieve to remove any shells that might have been left in the pulp.  I got 4 cups of pulp and added some applesauce (1/2  gallon from neighbourhood trees) which made a fairly full pot.  I managed to get 5 jars which I will use just like applesauce in muffins.  The colour is very nice!!

Therese

 

Cucumber chips

 With a bevy of cucumbers I went on line to see what others are doing with their bummer crop of cucumbers.  Someone was making cucumber chips so I thought I would give it a try.  I sliced them thin on the mandolin, salted them then laid them into the dehydrator.  A few hours later they were dry!!  They are very thin though crunchy - a bit too salty for me this time around but that can be modified.  I would cut them thicker next time because these are almost ghosts - very transparent.  Was worth a try and will probably give it a go one more time to see how it goes.  

Therese

Handmade card transformed into a needle case

Suzanne gave me this felted wool card a few years ago for my birthday and I have saved it because it was so beautiful and I had been wondering how I could repurpose.  I found a place on line where a lady was creating a needle case and it dawned on me that I could repurpose this card into a needle case for my slow stitching box.  

It was perfect!!  I removed the paper liner and replaced it with a green felted wool insert and also added a red felted wool heart which I hand cut.  I stitched them into the spine with ivory thread and I now have a good place to put my needles which in the past have resided in two little quilties.  This works perfectly and fits nicely in my box.  

I am so glad to be able to use it with good purpose and see it regularly when I am stitching.

Therese

 

More sunflowers

Nice to have

flowers on the dining room table.  Sun-

flowers  have been working in this vase quite nicely.  This is my second set of them in the last few weeks.

Therese

 

Wasp nest on the lake

We walked the Elizabeth Lake trail on Sundy and saw this wasp nest hanging from a branch over the water of the lake.  I had never seen that before!!  It was a great morning and good to be out walking.

Therese

 

Kale's Programmable Lego Robot

Kale programmed his Lego Robot - which he build himself from the kit - to talk and move around the table.  It has many functions and can be programmed with the IPAD.  He enjoyed the birthday cake and gave his personalized gifts to Mina  - handpicked saskatoons and rainbow flowers!!  We had a wonderful day with family and it was so good to be celebrating with everyone!!

Therese

 

Birthday celebration

It was late coming but Mina finally got cake and gifts!!!  It had been a long day with the Drama Performance in the afternoon at the end of a couple weeks of hard work.  Great cake and with several of us cooperating a sewing machine and some notions for a birthday gift that was late in coming due to Covid restrictions in April. 

 

Drama performance - Drama Camp

Drama Camp finished off on Friday for Mina with a final performance of a drama called "A man came to dinner" where she was responsible for two roles.  There were two performances prior to this one which featured the other people who attended the camp.  All the performances were excellent - amazing that these young people can learn all their lines, keep them straight, manage props and still put so much into the actual performance of their pieces.  WELL DONE!!!!!!!  Therese