Thank you for all your get well wishes.............

I took your advise and took it easy on Thursday.  I took your recommended medicine of Quality Street and rest.  Though I think I may have over dosed on the old Quality Street, but figured I would better take more than the recommended dose so it would help the pain.  I spent the day watching the Food Network and doing a puzzle.

The spasms have stopped, it's just aches like crazy.  I think I will still be careful today and keep taking my "medicine!"

Can't believe we are on the last day of the 2010, it doesn't seem like long ago since we were just seeing 2010 in.  I don't think we will see the new year in, we never normally do.  We may go out for dinner but have no definite plans. 

What are your plans for New Years Eve?

I am in so much pain........

Now what did I do you ask?

On Wednesday I decided to put away some Christmas decorations, which then turned into a full blown lets remove the Christmas tree as well.  As I was putting everything down the old basement this time, I decided I had better tidy up that first.  So I tidied up there first which took ages, moving everything around.  While down there I decided also to put a couple of bags of salt in the water softener, the 20kg ones.

Then went upstairs to tackle the Christmas tree.  We have a 7 1/2ft tree and it weighs a ton.  The top and bottom piece isn't to bad and I got that down the basement okay.  However the middle piece is heavy and to be honest I wasn't sure who was going to win the battle me or the tree, as it wasn't happy about squeezing down those stairs!!  Anyhow I finally go it down there and then started the other battle of trying to squeeze all three pieces into the box.  After a few minutes of me battling with it and Molly watching with a strange expression on her face I finally got it all in the box and tied up.

I then had to move a huge Rubbermaid box of decorations down the same stairs.  I dragged that and slid them down the stairs so that wasn't too bad.  It wasn't until I had completed all this and the sweat was dripping from me that I began to feel sharp pains in my back.  So I quickly hoovered up, all the time the pain was getting worse.

Within a few minutes my back was throbbing and the pain down to my knees was just plain awful.  I took some liquid Advil and that didn't do much good.  I even went to lie down on the bed, but that didn't really help.  I struggled on until about 8pm and then gave in and went to bed.  As normally when I have done too much, a good nights sleep settles down my back.

I got up this morning and although I am not in sheer pain, my lower back and the outside of my legs to my knees are so sore.  The good thing is I don't have pain in my ankles or feet, as that would mean I have a bigger problem.  So I guess for the next day or two I am going to have to baby my back to see if it will settle down, and keep taking the liquid Advil to try and dull the pain.

Oh and another good thing, at least I got plenty of exercise as well, right?  By the way I do keep my Christmas Cards up until the 12th night, as it's bad luck to take everything down before then.

Someone asked yesterday what Quality Street are, they are a brand of chocolate from Britain which is very popular especially around Christmas time.  My favourite one is the Caramel Swirl, followed by the Strawberry Delight and Orange Creme.

You will be proud of me..........

I did 30 minutes of exercise on the Wii Fit.  Very proud of myself, I even managed to score a couple of more games for completing certain exercises.  I have discovered though my sense of balance is way off, as it keeps telling me I am "unbalanced."  What the Wii doesn't know is how "unbalanced" I really am!!!

I have fallen in love with the ski jump thing on there and am not too bad at that.  I did the basic running game, thought I was going to collapse while doing that, but I did manage to keep up with the fella in front of me though.

The music and talking irritates the heck out of Molly though.  She doesn't do a full howl but just whines while I have it on.

Also I was busy snow blowing today, as the bloody wind was blowing a gale and filled in the driveway again, so more exercise for me.

So I would say an hour of snow blowing + 30 minutes of being on the Wii = plenty of exercise for one day!!

How many Quality Street did I eat...........I could say none, but we all know that would be a big fat lie, now wouldn't we!!

Hello from wedding central.........

finally had a long chat with dd on Monday and came to the awful realization that I need to go on a diet so that I will look my best for this wedding.  Now as those of you who have read my blog for a while, know I am allergic to exercise.  No really, I am allergic to it.  I hate getting all sweaty, nine times out of ten I injure myself, and it's not my idea of a good time.

Oh, and for some reason there is a lot of chocolate in the house at the moment!!  So of course I can't throw that out, what a waste that would be.  I am going to have to figure out how to turn the Wii on and maybe pull out the Wii Fit from the box it came in back in May of 2009.  That might be sort of fun I guess, I have that Just Dance Wii game thingy also and I like to dance so I guess that could be fun as well?  If I keep rabbiting on, I may just convince myself that doing some exercise will be a good thing........{{{SIGH}}}

I also had a question for you what would you say of you got a pot of homemade raspberry jam as a wedding favour?  It would have a fancy dancy label on it with the bride and grooms name on it along with the date etc.  I mentioned it to someone and they thought it was a very unusual wedding favour........of course we would think of something else for the kids that would be going, not that there will be many kids going, as in both mine and dd opinion young children and weddings don't mix, it's boring for them.

I am hoping all these wedding posts will fritter out in the next few days as even I will be bored of them!!

Well here we go.........

dd has only been engaged less than 48 hours and her dotty mother had to go out and buy a book.  What sort of book you ask: "The Everything Mother of the Bride Book."

I decided I had better read up on all the things I am supposed to do and wedding etiquette.  Now in my defence I haven't organized a wedding in over 27 years and that was in a different country, so figured I need a refresher course.

I also bought the Toronto Life "Wedding Guide," for 2011.  Thought that magazine would be helpful in finding "local" information.

So there you go it's already started!!!

Oh and then just for a change of conversation we finally splashed out and bought a new washer and dryer.  We are using the one left by the prior owners and they were probably bought when Noah was a boy.  So we got a LG front loader washer and an LG dryer; we got them at Lowes, as they had a better deal.  I hope these will save us both water and electricity.  They are delivering them on January 10th, and we are paying $75 for them to deliver them, set them up and get rid of the old set, which I thought wasn't too bad a deal.  Plus it saves dh's back!!

I have been keeping a secret........

and I must I am very proud of myself for not shouting it from the rooftops.  Just over a week ago, dd boyfriend came up to the house to ask permission to propose to dd.

Anyhow he came over Christmas morning and surprised dd and proposing to her on the front deck.  She had no clue it was going to happen and they are so happy.

Here is a photo of her ring, a diamond solitaire set in a platinum band.

Needless to say there will be more about this on my blog in the upcoming months.  I just hope I don't turn into those monster mother of the brides!!  As yet no arrangements have been made so not sure if the wedding will be 2011, or 2012.

I bought the kids scratch and win tickets and ds went and won $1,000.  Can you believe that.......

So all in all I had a lovely Christmas with my family.

Merry Christmas to you all.......

and here's hoping you all have a wonderful day........



I first heard this song when I watched the movie, O Brother Where Art Thou.  This is sung by Alison Krauss, who is a beautiful singer.

Christmas Eve

I was out and about on Thursday.  Had a doctors appointment and dropped in to see a couple of people in the city.  Once again was thankful we don't live in the city anymore.  The traffic is too crazy, mind you they had no snow.  I had to snow blow again, as it had all drifted onto the driveway while I was out.  Should mention my appointment was the second one of the day at 9:10am, it was after 9:30am before I got too see him; he was busy doing paperwork!!!


Got this stunning Christmas arrangement,  dd best friend sent it too us for Christmas, wasn't that nice of her?

Now I may be a party pooper, but this would drive me crazy if I had to live next door to this house. However it is great to look at if I was passing!!

Should I or shouldn't I? Recipes.........

I got this recipe for Make Ahead Mashed Potatoes in my inbox and had a look at it.  I thought this is something I might actually do.  I normally just cook my potatoes fresh that day.  Have you ever cooked your potatoes ahead of time?  I thought when I pull the turkey out of the oven and let it rest, I could put the potatoes in there to warm through?

Whipped Shortbread

Haven’t made your Christmas shortbread yet?  Here is the easiest shortbread recipe ever.  It can be mixed in a bowl with your beater or done in a food processor.

1 lb butter

½ cup cornstarch/corn flour

1 cup icing sugar

3 cups flour

Preheat oven to 325*. Beat ingredients until smooth, adding flour 1 cup at a time. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto cookie sheet. Bake for 15 to 20 min. or until lightly browned.

Other options are to roll out the dough and use small cookie cutters or, press into a 9x13 inch pan, prick with a fork and when cool, cut into small rectangles. A crowd pleaser for sure.

Recipe courtesy of the Rosemont Observer...........It's a new local newspaper that is only available through email or at our local store, so no link to a website yet!!!  I am submitting columns to it.

I am still writing columns for the Orangeville Banner and the Eden Valley Messenger as well.

Kim sent me this, thought it was neat:





This is a song I have never heard before and it is lovely.

 

Not sure if I should be flattered or offended?

I noticed someone had done a Google search using these words "english women doing toilet in open"  Second on the list is me with this post  I was sort of confused as to why someone would actually want to know if "english women are doing toilet in open?"  I guess it takes all sorts?  Oh and then on a Bing search, someone was searching "fart woman toilet," and up that post pops again..........number three on the list!

I was a bit happier with this google search that someone did "keep calm and carry on quilting"  That brought up this post, number three on the list.  Which reminds me I have a cross stich pattern with "Keep Calm and Carry on Cross Stitching" on it, which I want to do.

This one is also a bit more of a normal search, "can you microwave cakes in a silicon container," that brought up this post which I had forgotten about.  That's one of those recipes that you can put together in a rush, just rememeber to stick some icing over it, so the cake doesn't look so undercooked, as it doesn't brown.  That one was number nine on the search list.

This song is actually quite sad, make sure you listen carefully to the lyrics:



This is a cute little video about some ducks vs Mother nature:

Olive and Rhubarb

Dd sent me this photo of Olive and Rhubarb, sitting in amongst the laundry that had just come out of the dryer.  Olive doesn't look too impressed with it all (in front), does she?

Dd's boyfriend gave her a Cricut for her birthday and she has used it a number of times.  This is the top of a box of cookies she has put together for her friend.  She makes cookies to give to a number of people as Christmas gifts.  She enjoys baking at this time of year.

I haven't heard this song in years:




Managed to get some more stud walls up in the new basement when dh got home on Monday.  It's slowly coming together.  Also got the cats and Molly's presents wrapped.  We actually have a real live rabbit hanging around outside.  Never see him/her until we go to bed, then Molly sees him/her and then starts barking!!  Got to love Molly, you are just dropping off to sleep when she starts!!

I called ds on Monday to see if he remembered he had a mother!!!  He's a busy bee, was going to do his Christmas shopping on Monday night........he only has to buy the one present and that is for his sister, as his sister takes care of all the other presents he has to buy!!!  I wish my Christmas present buying was as easy!!  Can't wait to see them both on Christmas Eve.

Have a super day.......

Nothing much to say, thought I'd have a day off......enjoy this song:

Couple of things for Sunday.....

Just read a funny book called "Maggie Sweet," by Judith Minthorn Stacy.  Its about a woman who for nineteen years has been a housewife with twin daughters who don't get along.  A frugal husband who has just spent their life savings on a cemetery plot, and an overbearing mother-in-law.


She decides to get a life and and things turn out in the most unexpected ways.  It is set in the Southern United States and the way the book is written you feel you are standing there just listening in to it all.  I loved all the characters names and all the small town gossip and humour.  Great little book that doesn't take a lot of reading.

Today's video is a lovely rendition of "Silent Night," and the guys singing it aren't too bad either ;0)




I made Candy Cane Brownies on Saturday they are good.

Ingredients

2/3 2/3cup cup(150 mL) (150 mL) butter 8 8oz oz(227 g) (227 g) semisweet chocolate, chopped 4 4oz oz(113 g) (113 g) unsweetened chocolate, chopped 1-1/2 1-1/2cups cups(375 mL) (375 mL) granulated sugar 4 4Eggs 2 2tsp tsp(10 mL) (10 mL) vanilla 1 1cup cup(250 mL) (250 mL) all purpose flour 1 1tsp tsp(5 mL) (5 mL) salt Topping: 1/2 1/2cup cup(125 mL) (125 mL) crushed candy canecandy canes 2/3 2/3cup cup(150 mL) (150 mL) mini chocolate chips

Preparation:

Line 13- x 9-inch (3.5 L) metal cake pan with parchment paper; set aside.

In saucepan over medium-low heat, melt together butter and semisweet and unsweetened chocolates. Let cool for 10 minutes. Whisk in sugar, then eggs, 1 at a time, whisking well after each addition. Whisk in vanilla. Using wooden spoon, stir in flour and salt. Scrape into prepared pan.

Bake in centre of 350°F (180°C) oven until cake tester inserted in centre comes out with a few moist crumbs clinging, 25 to 30 minutes.

Topping: Sprinkle with candy canes, then chocolate chips; return to oven for 30 seconds (do not let topping melt). Let cool in pan on rack. Refrigerate until cold, about 1 hour.

Here is a direct link to the recipe  I used Milk Chocolate chips in place of the chocolate they recommended.

Make sure you have six and a half minutes to spare.....

as I have got the most fantastic video for you to watch.  I saw this over at Caroline's blog and couldn't believe how graceful a horse could be.  I normally have no interest in horses, but this was marvelous.




Caroline was saying that unfortunately Blue Hors Matine' had to be put down earlier this year when she broke her leg while in her paddock, what an awful shame.

This is a beautiful song, Celine Dion "Oh Holy Night."

I was in town on Friday night and I bought Molly and dd two cats their Christmas presents.  I bought Molly a stuffed rabbit, to go with the her squirrel and hedgehog.  I am going to wrap it up and she can "open" it on Christmas morning!!

Bought myself a Christmas present....

I ordered myself the World Of Cross Stitching magazine as I got an email promoting a 50% discount.  I normally pay around $11 plus taxes for each issue, so this was quite a savings for me.  I then finished off sorting out my floss finally, which is a job I have been doing for the last few weeks now!!


It snowed on Thursday morning, but by the afternoon it had stopped, so out I went again to do some more snow blowing.  We are getting a delivery of oil for the furnace today, so to make it easier on the poor delivery guy I cut a path along the front lawn for him.

I took this photo from the end of the driveway by the road.

Another one from half way up the drive.

Doesn't this look as though all the trees have icing sugar sprinkled on them?

This big fir tree would look lovely covered in Christmas lights, but no one wants to climb the ladder!!

Today's song is another fun song Brenda Lee's "Jingle Bell Rock."



Skywatch Friday -

Well I wasn't expecting to see any blue  skies today as it was snowing like crazy this morning, but by the afternoon it had stopped snowing and there was a glimpse or two of blue sky here and there.

For more Skywatch Friday entries please click on this link

If you have a moment and you're not a regular visitor to my blog, could  you have a quick read of the post below.  I would love it if you could do about post on your blog about Reece's Rainbow.......thanks!

Remember little Olga?

Well she has over $10,000 in her fund now, can you believe that?  I know I was so happy when I saw that.

So now we have to try and raise another $10,000 before Christmas.  As it costs around $25,000 to adopt one of these little ones.  I would love it if everyone would do a post on their blog about Olga and Reece's Rainbow so these poor little ones don't end up in mental institutions.  Here is a link to Olga and the Angel Tree  and to the homepage of Reece's Rainbow  If you can find it in your heart to even donate $10 that would be greatly appreciated.  All these little ones deserve a better life, and there are families out there who are more than willing to adopt but don't have the $25,000 it can cost.

On Wednesday it had stopped snowing and the sun was shining.  Now it was still bitter cold, but just having the sun shining made it feel a better day!!

I think the trees look as though they have royal icing spread over them here.

This song was playing in the liquor store when I was in there on Wednesday.  I was picking up a couple bottles of wine as last minute gifts.  They are for folk who pop in with a gift for us, and I wasn't expecting it.  So I'll keep them in another room, and just pop them in a bottle bag and say, Merry Christmas to you as well!!!



I also bought an Amaryllis kit the other day and have decided to keep that to one side in case I need a last minute gift as well.

And it's still snowing.........

Tuesday was an interesting sort of day. It was the first time in Dh's working life he didn't attempt to go to work.  He took one look out of the door and came back to bed.  The weather was just plain awful.  It snowed again over night and it was blowing like crazy.

This is a photo of the view out of the kitchen window.

This is what we saw when I opened the patio door to let Molly out.  The poor thing was struggling to squat!!

This was the view when we opened the mud room door.

This is when dh had plowed out the driveway for the THIRD time!  We are going to spend the rest of the week trying to plow out the rest of the driveway.

It's hard to see but at the back of the photo you can see the shadow of a tow truck.  A pick up truck went into the ditch just  by our house first thing in the morning.  No one was hurt as far as I know.

The weather has just been horrible and it has been even worse in south west Ontario.  Here is a link to the story and below is a you tube video of it.

For those of you who don't have snow and would like some, please feel free to pop by for some, as we have plenty to spare!!!

Oh and the forecast.....................MORE SODDING SNOW!

Thought this song was appropriate, Dean Martin's "Let it Snow."

Book Review...........

I recently read this book:  Christmas at Harringtons.

"Christmas is approaching, and Lena Markham finds herself penniless, friendless, and nearly hopeless. She is trying to restart her life, but job opportunities are practically nonexistent. When a secondhand red coat unexpectedly lands her a job as Mrs. Santa at a department store, Lena finally thinks her luck is changing. But can she keep her past a secret? "

This book would make an ideal gift for someone on Christmas Day, as its one of those books that can be read in an afternoon (like I did!)  It's very light, in the way it's not a hard read.  It's short enough that you know it's not going to take days to read, but also the storyline makes you want to see what happens next.

It's one of those feel good stories with the odd little twist.  You can sort of guess what's going to happen at the end; with a thought of it always helps to be in the right place at the right time.  I must admit I am a sucker for the underdog coming out on top, so this was a book for me.

I will admit to not being one to go out and buy a "Christmas" themed fiction books, but this one changed my mind.  I enjoyed the way the author wrote and will make an effort to look for her other books.

Stars out of 5.........well I would give it a 4 out of 5.  It was sort of predictable with what was going to happen, but it was a good way to spend an afternoon snuggled up in front of the fire reading a book.

Book has been provided courtesy of Baker Publishing Group and Graf-Martin Communications, Inc.   Available at your favourite bookseller from Revell, a division of Baker Publishing Group

I will be donating all the books I review to my local library.

This is a lovely song.....



Oh and it's still snowing...........enough said.........here are a couple of photos....

Do you remember the Wombles? And Winter Freaking Wonderland!!@!@

It snowed all day on Sunday, so figured I would show you a few photos.

Dh came home early enough that he blew out the driveway with the snowblower.....lots of {HUGS} for dh for doing that.  While he was doing that I was busy wrapping the rest of the Christmas presents.

Needless to say I wasn't impressed with the rotten snow!!


This has nothing at all to do with Christmas songs, but I stumbled upon this song.  I remember it from my childhood.





Then of course one of the biggest Christmas songs of my childhood is "Merry Christmas Everyone," by Slade:





This recipe for Candy Cane Brownies came into my in box and it looks pretty good.......think I will add it to my list of things to bake.

Comfort food at it's best.........

Nothing beats a big pot of mac and cheese on a cold Winter's day!

Here is a recipe for mac and cheese I posted on the blog a while back.

Another classic Christmas song, sung by the Celtic Woman




Saturday's cookie recipe is a good one 3-in-1 Sugar Cookies  It will be one I will be making, as I like sugar cookies.

Well today another winter storm is on it's way, so I need to flex my snow shovelling muscles again {SIGH}  One thing is for sure, we are going to have a white Christmas.  Also it's good news for all the ski resorts, as they are now open.  Here is a web cam of one of the ski resorts close to us.  Oh, I don't ski, I have enough problems walking when it's snowing, never mind hurtling down a hill with planks strapped to my feet!!!  That is an accident waiting to happen in my case..........

Spent Saturday morning helping dh put up the stud walls in the basement.  I forgot to take a photo but will have one on the blog on Monday.  We only worked in there in the morning, as Saturday was dh's last day off until Christmas Day.   Plus we went to his work's Christmas party the night before so we were tired.  We left early as it wasn't that great so were in bed by 11:45 pm, however that's way past our usual bedtime, so that's why we were tired.

Been busy and little Olga

I have been helping dh in the basement and on Thursday afternoon dh left work early so we could spend the afternoon in the basement getting some of the wood put up for the walls.  Namely the wood on the ceiling.  Everything is not as simple as it sounds and whatever we do we seem to run into one problem after another.  However we got all we wanted done before we ran out of wood. 


We then had to drive 45 minutes to Lowes to pick up more BluWood. Dh wants to use the treated wood as extra protection as we are working in the basement.  Oh and Lowes is the only place that keeps this product indoors.  We can buy it at a local dealer, but they keep their wood outside, and it is covered in snow and is as warped as heck.


On the way back we were hungry so we called in at a Fish and Chip store to take home fish and chips and I can safely say we WILL NOT be going back there ever again.  They serve frozen fish that they don't even batter themselves and chips they resemble MacDonald's fries, and to top it off they charged me $25 for the two portions.  I was shocked I wasn't running to the bathroom all night, as it all looked pretty dubious to me; oh I didn't see what it looked like until we got home.


Friday's cookie recipe was Guy's Craisy Oatmeal Cookies.............wouldn't be one I would  make but you may like it?

By the way this is Olga:

She is the little one we are trying to raise money for.  You will be pleased to know over $5,000 has been raised so far.  Liz was talking about this on her blog.  I hope she finds her forever home soon......to donate to her or any other the other little ones, please click on this link 

Also could I ask a big favour of you all.........could you tell all your blog readers about Reece's Rainbow and Olga on your blog, a big please and a super big thank you, as the more people we tell, the more homes we can find for these little ones.......

Change of attitude.....

If you have read my blog for a while you will have no doubt come to the realization that I am not a fan of snow.  So today while I was outside freezing my buns off, I decided to think of things I like about the snow.

So here goes:

• It makes picking up Molly's poop a whole lot easier, as it's frozen........seriously this was my number one reason why I may like the snow.
• Christmas isn't Christmas without a bit of snow on the ground.
• If we get enough dh won't have to go to work...........though knowing dh he will still try and get to work..........there is a whole other rant I could go on here, but won't.
• When sitting in front of the fire and watching the snow flutter down it is pretty.....I guess....
• Canada wouldn't be Canada without a bucket load of snow, and I love living in Canada, so I need to suck it up and get on with it!! AND STOP WHINING ON ABOUT IT!!

This is a classic Christmas carol:


Thursday's cookie is called Polvorones or Walnut Meltaways, they are a Mexican Wedding cookie.  I don't remember having these before, but they do sound familiar.  They are a maybe for me to make, how about you?

Looks can be deceiving......

It was a gorgeous sunny day on Wednesday, but boy was it bitter cold in that wind.

I popped into town to run some errands and I think half the population did as well, as town was busy.  I am guessing the sunny day and NO snow falling from the sky helped.   I also mailed my order form for my trees.  I ordered 10 of the red oak trees and 2 of the hemlocks.  I have a corner which is reasonably sheltered so thought I would try the hemlocks there.  The red oaks will go along the front of the property.  So roll on next April when we get them.


Another classic Christmas song, Johnny Matthis, "When a Child is Born."



I forgot to post the cookie recipe from Tuesday, Fruit and Nut Holiday Shortbread maybe because it didn't appeal to me.  Now Wednesday's recipe sounded a lot better Chocolate Peppermint Pinwheel Cookies I wouldn't mind making this.........

Do you remember this post about Olga...............well would you believe people have donated over $3,000 isn't that really good?  I was so pleased when I saw her totals, here is a link, please donate a few dollars if you have a couple of dollars/pounds that you can spare.

Photos, photos and more photos......

Well it snowed overnight on Monday night, so this is what greeted me on Tuesday morning.  This is out of the side patio door, I had actually swept away some of the snow, so Molly could get out.

The front door when I opened it.

Looking along the front deck, we had previously cleared it off......

Look at all the snow on the seat, and on top of the hose.......

Looking at the garage........

South side of the house.......the trees look pretty don't they..........

South west side of the house, down in the bottom........

Looking to the east.

There must have been another 6 inch of snow to plow off AGAIN.............oh joy!!

This is our "spare" log pile.  We are hoping not to use these logs as half of them are green wood, and really need a year or so to dry out.

U2 did a good version of this song, but this is the original recording by Darlene Love:



I didn't realize she also sang this song:



I remember that song from the movie: The Father of The Bride.