What's Happening in your neck of the woods? Friends...

Mornin ... early day, again ..

The US Border folks gave the passports a cursory glance .. I do think that by the time your vehicle reaches their station, your vehicle licence plate has provided them with a lot of info ..
The Border person was a dog lover and Lilly was MORE than happy to provide her with LOTS of interaction.
Still galls me all this paraphernalia at the border .. but .. 9-11 changed the world as we knew it ..

Fingers crossed re the pain doc fer sure

I'm sort of a hurtin unit today .. have muscles groaning in places I was unaware I had'em. Used a noodle as opposed to the flotation belt yesterday .. will try the belt today as the noodle was a bit difficult to manoeuvre with.

Take care all .. enjoy your day ^_^

~M~

its a bit chilly out there today only 45 this afternoon there calling for 53.. Hopefully it warms up just a bit so i can push up my sleves and plant a few more seed mats in pots.. My morning gloires are starting to come up, the hardy hibiscus should be up anyday now, I checked a seed yesterday and it was rooting.. The hardy hibiscus i had last year is starting to come up (i'm sure thats what it is) along with my toad lily, and my allium's, still no new cannas coming up, but they were just put in the ground i'm sure they will be a weeks just to start rooting...

Yes i think the us customs has way more info before you even get to the window.. We went to florida a few years back and we drove my finances moms car, when we got to the window, the usual questions, then who is this car registered to.. The knew the answer just making sure we did too..

jen

Interesting about the border, mom keeps telling me when you are just shy a few hours from the 48 mandatory hours you need in order to come back with $400 that they don't know..am sure your plate is logged in and time of arrival and departure as well...I was just lucky that he let me through..Rita's hubby is an O.P.P. infact he pulled a vehicle over just in front of me this morning...ha/ha I know his hidding spot, anyway I stopped and told him the passport was on my dining room table, he said he had mine and would drop in on his lunch and exchange...now watch the community be a buzzing seeing a police officer and cruiser entering my house....lol

"M" hope Lorna gets some relief from pain..my grandparents raised me from the time I was 6 months old..what I remember about grandpa the most as a young tot was he'd complain about toothache all the time and I'd laugh/laugh why? because he had no teeth..now that mine have been removed and I suffer from the odd toothache I know what he was talking about...no different than when you have your own teeth..

Rather cool here today, 4 degrees but sunny..think it's more the wind, calling for 65 mph winds this aft. & as I sit here watching the trees sway I think it's started...

What wonders are happening in my garden..my fruit tress are in bloom..having coffee this morning and looking out at the neighbors I realized they are all but hidden, my trees now have leaves which they did not just a few days ago...

must almost be lunch hour, tummy is growling..

Cool here too and windt.

A quick trip to the doc this morning to have a bunch of skin tags on my neck snipped off. Then home to walk the dogs and had to put a hat on to keep my head warm!

No working in the garden today!

Dogs and I started Rally obedience classes again last night. Have not done a class since before Xmas because of surgery etc. We dont compete just do the classes for mental exercise. I am in a beginners class this time ( sometimes I am in advanced depending on where she needs to put us!) Last night I decided it was time to start working off leash, a treat in my left hand kept them focused beautifully but of course I cant do that if I trial. Might try some trials this summer but it is expensive - $28 each trial. I think. Usually 4 in a weekend ( so if you get 3 you get the title) so with 2 dogs if I did all 4 the cost is high. Of course I could just do one or two.

Historical Society meeting this evening - a talk about Ernest Manning.

Busy girl Carol...know from what my sister Sharon tells me that competing for titles is very expensive but you must get such a feeling of satisfaction winning the trial..

Do they freeze the tags to remove them..yikes, must hurt..

Drats, talk about bored today, been surfing the web even though I brought in rag quilt squares and crochet..just can't seem to settle in..one of these days I'll have to start thinking retirement..

No Betty they were pretty small so just snipped them off - no big deal, a couple of bigger ones she froze(liquid nitrogen) and they will fall off in a few days.Now the clinic has liquid nitrogen in a spray I will go back and have her freeze a lot of skin growths I have - freeze them and in a week or two they fall off and leaves just a light brown patch.

Speaking of crochet do you rrmember these sets of hot pads ? I think they were sets of about 4 diffeent sizes, these were my moms only have two large ones left ( I keep bleaching them for too long and the thread deteriorates!) But do you recall if they were in fact hand crocheted or if they were purchased ( made in China for instance!)

SHEESH .. bizzy folks in this forum :)

Carol ... the Rally/Obedience is a BIG deal here in TBay and district .. Shelties especially .. have spoken to a couple of people who attend and compete .. their lives are totally involved as are their cheque books .. but .. I always tend to think EVERYONE has a particular 'thing' that makes them tick and feel good ... for them .. RALLY is IT !!

Oh Jen .. Morning Glories are SO my favourite .. MIGHT consider palnting them the Mother's Day weekend .. OR .. this weekend .. the temps here are just so darned cold in the mornings !!

HAHahah Betty re the OPP coming to your house .. when DH used to be out and about on an 'orientation run' he would pull the fire truck into the yard and come in for pop !!! The neighbours would be in a frenzy thinking something had happened !!!!!


The clinic visit went SO well today .. Lorna and the doc hit it off BIGTIME .. we see him again in a month, and, anything she needs, meds wise, he will provide .. BUT .. he is NOT taking new patients ... sheesh ...


Had fully intended to have Cod for supper .. realized around 2pm while in the 'Stupidstore' (Superstore) that I hadn't taken it OUT of the freezer .. bought steaks and am now doing the 'ate too much' moan and groan !!!

Taking Lilly for a walk !!

^_^

~M~

Carol, can't recall the pads, could you take a photo of the one you have left then maybe it will job our memory, might even be able to duplicate them...glad taking tags of don't hurt..I imagined them bleeding extensively!

"M" nothing like having a Dr. you like..perhaps over time he'll take Lorna on full time...

As for the dogs, forget what Sharon said it cost her to do the N.Y. dog show but can imagine it was in the thousands..that's her thing just as mine is crafts and wow, hate to think what I spend on that...got to have something in your life you enjoy right?

Darlene who teaches decorative painting at in my studio came 1 hr. early this morning so we had a nice visit..I had bought a gift for her for Christmas when I was in Buffalo on the weekend but as we do stained glass etc. I thought if I took it out we could make quite a few so I did and she loved it..now making a template to work with copper tubbing..will have to post a photo..flower holder it is...

Then I got to show her the swap gift I received yesterday..was a 'froggie' swap..lordy it's 3 frogs, crystal green sitting each sitting on a lily pad and are solar...absolutely gorgeous..I'm just so excited, now I have to think of somewhere to put them to showcase them... have to take a photo of them as well...

Must go find photo of the metal turtle I got at the craft show Saturday...best I stop getting garden art or there will be no place for flowers..lol

Sorry forgot to add the pic of the hot pads.

Spitting a bit here - a lot of rain was predicted for overnight but didnt happen.My lawn was sprayed yesterday morning so I was hopping for a bit of a soak!

Historical society meeting last night a very interesting talk about Ernest Manning by Brian Brennen who has written many interesting books about Alberta history and historical characters. A local book store had some there to sell but I didnt have anything but my door key with me! Need to go get some - working at Lougheed House has got me interested in learning more about Calgary and Alberta's history

Nothing special on today, think I will go over to Zellers and look for some inexpensive chair pads. I use them inside covers for outside chairs- need to revamp a couple of covers for the new willow chairs in the porch. Easier than stuffing -just pull them out and wash the covers.

hmmm Carol, saw something similar..going to look for a pattern...do you crochet??? not to worry if you don't because if I find a pattern I'll make you some..always bored here at work, would be a good passtime...

this one is not the same but would work????

Yes Betty same idea - I just was not sure if the ones I had were machine made or not!

If you are willing to make me some ( I cant crochet) would be happy to pay for materials, and postage ( not to mention time but sounds like your boss is doing that!)

They would have to be green and white or rose and white.I will measure the pads I have and let you know.

Thanks!

Whats happening here is......snow!

From the CTV website:

A big spring storm is blowing into Calgary and Southern Alberta and warnings are blanketing much of the southern half of the province.

Environment Canada has issued Winter Storm warnings for:

Calgary, Okotoks, High River, Claresholm, Airdrie, Cochrane, Olds, Sundre, Drumheller, Three Hills, Brooks, Strathmore, Vulcan, Kananaskis, Canmore, Red Deer, Ponoka, Innisfail, Stettler, Lethbridge, Taber, Milk River, Cardston, Fort Macleod, Magrath, Crowsnest Pass, Pincher Creek, Waterton Lakes National Park.

Rain will change to snow by Thursday evening and up to 20 centimetres of snow could fall.

A Snowfall warning has been issued for:

Nordegg, Forestry Trunk Road Highway 734, Rocky Mountain House, and Caroline.

In those areas, up to 25 centimetres of snow is possible.

Portions of Southern Alberta, including Lethbridge and Cardston, could get up to 40 centimetres with extremely poor visibility likely due to strong gusting winds of up to 70 km/hr.

CTV Meteorologist David Spence advises anyone thinking of travelling tomorrow to rethink their plans.


Oh well we do need the moisture!

M i plant them in hanging baskets, they look so nice.. A bit more wirk to get them to grow down but i think its worth it..

We had frost in some areas last night, had to bring in all my pots.. Now by the weekend it will be up to 80* its funny how this weather is working this year...
jen

Carol
I just had a look on the cameras from AMA's website and it shows snow by Calgary and even more toward the mountains south of you.
We are having RAIN a four letter word that we dearly need so things will pop like crazy with the moisture.
Ann

Stopped snowing about an hour ago but still raining.Windy and cold.
If it freezes tonight will be bad in the morning but lately temps have not been going much below 0.
DIdnt even walk the dogs today - Bailey wont go out the door when it is raining unless he really cant hold it any longer! Fancy will go out but does not linger!

High winds tonight, could barely keep my car on the road...thank goodness I stopped at a nursery and bought a pair of cement legs for the cement bench I covered in stained glass..yikes, must weigh 100 lbs. and still it was blowing me all over the place...please don't send your snow....

Carol, NO you will not send $$$ for material and shipping..I've loads of cotton, time on my hands at work so it will be my pleasure to send you a few...

Thanks Betty!

I have one pad which is 7" diameter, 56" circum. and 3 which are 6" diam and 49" circum. Of course they do need to fit snug and that circum measurement is probably a touch over but only by a couple of mms.

Colors can vary of course but this is the fabric I have for chair seats and table runner/mats- Mostly rose and green

Thanks for the help on the previous thread..guess I was just having one of those days where you cant get anything right..oh well. Ive got a few things planted thus far and Glenda was kind enough to send some brug cuttings which are doing really well. Im borrowing a friends yard space that has full sun to plant the things that I used to grow before the fire happened. Im still not a shady gardener and the insurance company/builders have told me that "maybe" by the fall my condo will be completed..so who knows really.

Im looking forward to reading about everyones gardens and hope you all enjoy your day.

Cindy

Cindy - glad to see you posting again. I hope that hings are improving for you.

Hey Cindy ... nice to see you again ..

BRrrrrrrrrr .. these cold mornings are just that .. COLD !!!! And, then we go on to a brilliantly sunny day .. altho .. without precipitation enjoying the woods is a NONO .. and .. add the EVER popular TICKS to that, and I am thinking the patio is looking better by the day !!

First motorcycle fatality yesterday .. young man.. the ONE thing about this season I tend to dislike .. bikes and motorcycles .. they seem to pop up out of nowhere in front of the car .. I know it's good exercise and cheap transportation and the way the govt's are hounding us to be more frugal and fit .. but, in a perfect world, the bike lane would be good and wide and SAFE for the cyclists .. my rant for the day LoL

Had a wee household misfortune last eveing .. I let Lilly out and as I followed I thought I could hear water dripping .. but I kept walking out .. we played for about 15 minutes .. came back inside .. AGAIN .. 'drip, drip drip', I think to myself, 'the ensuite sink taps'? As I walk into the en suite, I notice water on the floor out the door on the other side .. PANIC !!
Open the door to the laundry area .. well .. I had thrown (literally) our gym bags onto the board covering the laundry tub/sink, one of the bags hit it in such a way as to turn the tap on .. just at the DRIP stage. That would have been at 3pm .. it was now 8pm ... the ONLY good thing about this story is the 'FLOOR DRAIN' .. the water that coursed over the board and down onto the floor, went down the drain !!! And WHAT pray tell was ON the board ?? TWO thick and thankfully, thirsty towels, which weigh about a ton each now soaked with water ...
SOooooooooooo .. I am off to do laundry, and see what kinda damage was done, now tha I have the light of day.

Enjoy folks


^_^

~M~

Once again our corner of the world is white!

Quite a lot of snow overnight, still snowing lightly but very windy. Snow is wet and sticky at least it didnt freeze overnight although I guess driving in slush can be almost as bad as driving on ice, Not nice at all. Will probably cancel the dogs walk today.They only went out to pee yesterday, probably same today since I certainly don't want to go walking in this mess!

I did go out yesterday since I had some errands planned, found the chair cushions I wanted to remake some outdoor cushions for the new wicker chairs. Just have to cut down and resew the old high back covers. I like doing them with the cushions- just have to pull them out and wash the cover.

Cindy, slap me silly, know I'm getting old and forgetful..did I know about the fire??? please tell again..my sincere apologies...I've difficulties as well knowing where each goes..I've some elephant ears to plant so have to find them a home, says they enjoy wet areas but I've none of that, today I bought a bag of potting soil and 30 planting cups to put my seedlings in..mostly sunflowers, we'll see how that works, never been good at starting seeds early...while at the nursery this morning they had just gotten in lilac trees..the boomerang which will bloom through spring/summer and fall, am thrilled that I finally found one although a bit rich for my blood $39.99..told Suzanne here at the office about them so she sent her hubby to pick up 2..well wouldn't you know it, I couldn't keep my mouth shut had to say could he pick me up another one?

No snow but still windy, brrrr...although it's 11 right now, guess it's the wind coming off the lake..calling for 21 and overcast on Saturday but rain all day Sunday...sure want to make that flower shed (outhouse look) so let's hope Saturday stays as is...

Sitting here making my 'Mother's day to-do list' boys always come, are patient, no asking why, how come, I give them my list and they work until it's done...

"M" hope the flood hasn't created too much damage..just goes to show you how easily accidents happen...prayers for the young man...Greg when he turned 18 bought a motorcycle, don't think I slept any night that he was out..told him I'd help him pay for vehicle and gas if he got rid of it...when he started to go steady with Melanie and she didn't like riding he sold it..was a happy day indeed...then a few years ago he bought another, after much complaining by me and his wife he sold it again...
Bike lanes would be marvellous...think in Toronto they are making a lane for peddle bikes on most of the major downtown routes..we'll have to see how that turns out..

I'm new. Hammonds Plains, Nova Scotia. Early makeshift greenhouse is a success. Even got snowed on last weekish.

Welcome Crazyhorse_ca...just went in the address exchange so I could call you by name but don't see you listed....

We're a great bunch here and am pleased you will drop in and chat with us..

OMG are you ahead of the gardening game or what? now look at what you've accomplished....and here I thought you were getting colder weather than we...what all do you have planted?

Name please? lol

Welcome

I am trying something similar to our makeshift greenhouse but have not planted anything yet- good thing too because mostly they have collapsed with the weight of the snow!

welcome Crazyhorse the garden looks good..

Betty I just love ears, I have about 8 different ones.. I started with the plain green ones last summer a gift from hubbies grandfather, and wow they tripled in size in one season.. So i found a lovely lady on here that sells some at a great price so i ordered 7 more kinds, lets see how they do this time.. I have them in all afternoon sun and they do great, some people say they like shade, but then in there tropical gardens i"m sure the sun is just to hot.. Just keep them close, cause yes they need alot of water, I water them everyday.. I also dont have any wet areas so just keep the watering can close by..

M hopefully theres nothing major...

sorry to hear about all this snow, please just dont send it my way... :)

there calling for 18 today, dont have to be at work till 5pm, so hoping to get out and pot up the few seeds I have left still to do.. I'm thinking about planting a few canna behind the pool along the fence today, just cant pick the ones I want lol.. They wont do so great there as its mostly shade, but nothing that gets big and looks tropical does.. We've planted castor beans there the past few years, but they only get about 4 feet, when the others get upwards of 8 feet in sun.. Just want a different look this year..

jen

Think she is wondering what is going on here?

oh jeeeeese i would cry if i seen that now... Were hitting high 70 and even hit 80 a few times i would cry if it snowed..

Welcome, crazyhorse_ca. What are your gardening interests?

Betty, I'm not in the addy exchange either. I reckon if I want my address distributed, I'll give it to those I wish to have it.

Been out to aquafit, allergy shot, got a pass for the Chamber Music Festival too. Need to put together the seniors' Thursday shopping list for Shoppers Drug Mart.

Ann

Hi
My name is Lee. Interested in indoor plants, flower (perennials as I dream of a carefree garden) and veggie gardening.

We moved in a year ago on 25 Apr 09, lake frozen and still lots of snow(more normal than this year). It was really warm here in March but has cooled off past 3 weeks. Not complaining because the result is a prolonged period of nice outdoor weather with no bugs trying to drain you of all blood.

New home on lake facing WNW so we get afternoon/evening sun at the back where the deck overlooks the lake. This is important in N.S. Tends to cool off as soon as the sun starts to go down. We watch the great sunsets and run inside just as the cloud of mosquitoes arrive

Last year concentrated on on flower garden in front of house and very small veggie garden that was a flower bed before- no perennials. When not working or gardening, My daughter has 2 ponies and I have a horse (off site) Show season just starting so the marathon begins.

The way I kept this plastic from collapsing under snow (2in) was many wooden skewers you normally use for BBQ kabobs. If too mucuh more snow probably collapse.
It is an experiment.

Ann, not necessarily do I check address location but when I want to make things more personal I like looking for the first name and usually only found there...you've accomplished much this morning...guess it takes you awhile after travelling...did the weather co-operate for you?

Beautiful home Lee, I also was lucky enough when my children were growing to live on the lake..quite an experience...we all share a love of gardening here...my downfall was moving and not having more than 10 flowers on the entire lot and wanting what neighbors took decades to get...it's now been 5 years and I've done wonders...take it slow and easy....wow..thought your plastic was on stakes maybe 3 or 4 feet high..interesting it is...I'm transplanting into bigger containers tonight, when I put them outside to strengthen them maybe I'll cover them in similar fashion..thanks for sharing...

Lee you have a beautiful home.. yes i agree take it slow, nothing like over doing it in one season, then when they come back next year bigger then before you have to start moving things.. lol thats what happened to us..

We go for more annuals, cannas and castors mostly, only cause we like the tropical look they give and get 6-8 feet in a season.. Other then that Hardy hibiscus have become another favorite, but they take time to get big.. It wasn't until last aug that i even knew about a hibiscus that was hardy for us..

I also thought it was a 3-4 foot stakes lol I was wondering where you got such a huge thermometer lol

jen

Welcom Lee! Beautiful home and what a super location.

Alberta is a bit behind with the recent cold weather. All things are at a stop. My greenhouse now has my seed heat mats in it and plugged in so I can keep the babies warm. It is not quite freezing but I wanted to ensure they survive and thrive.
The tulips that have their heads up have stopped and are waiting. No Hostas with their heads up yet but lilac buds are sitting waiting to pop.
Bye for now
Alberta Ann

Lee I had my plastic over raised beds supported by metal hoops Doesnt matter that they collapsed as nothing planted, next year I will just lay it over the soil the first month to warm up and then put the hoops in ( and more of them!) after I plant

I have a leak in my roof! If that snow would hurry and melt it would be OK until somebody can get here - might be a couple of weeks but I dont want to spend hours phoning around to get somebody here earlier. Guess lots of leaky roofs at the moment!.

Me thinks we were bragging to much late March/early April...just went to lunch..not only did I have a jacket on I could have had gloves!

The lady next door was making a makeshift greenhouse Monday night, 4 or 5 shelves and covered in plastic, I'll have to see how she makes out..guess I should have left the back deck enclosed a little longer and it would have been perfect...

Lee - I'm drooling a bit looking at that lovely home and its location. What a wonderful site to garden.

Hi Lee ... I am Marilynne and I live in Thunder Bay ON .. actually , I live in a suburb called 'Murillo".
We garden on 4 acres .. veg garden .. and perennials beds and pots. We have 6 other acres that are not cleared (yet)
We share our home with a SWEET Westie named Lilly, and a Russian Blue cat named Smokey ..

We are DESPERATELY hoping the rain comes and STAYS overnight .. but .. after just looking at the radar .. it looks as though it has gone NORTH !!!

My mini catastrophe last night has left no lasting effects .. except now I OBSESS re checking the taps !!!!

Went swimming again today .. had a great time .. and may do so again tomorrow ..

Best get the dog out one last time ..

Take care all

~M~

"M" calling for rain here on Sunday, it's 13 but hard to believe, drats sure wish that wind would die down...

As for your mishap, sure hope there wasn't a lot to repair only soaping up..I have to watch myself re bath..usually run the tap and get onto doing other things...carelessness on my behalf...more than 1 floor had to be repaired..

Hoping with getting off at 3pm today that I can plant the shrubs I've been purchasing..I'm thrilled with the boomerang lilac's and have 2 ninebark to plant..decided this morning after walking the gardens and seeing a few dead shrubs that I'm going to keep a log as to where I purchased them and where they are planted, attach the receipt ... no recourse if you don't know where they've come from...I say that now but not likely I'll do it lol

Guess I've got to make the best of this aft. and tomorrow to get projects done because if I don't I'll be another weekend behind..Sunday can be inside work, one doesn't mind doing that if it's raining right?

Are you seeing great changes in your gardens?

This morning I was up early and managed to get most of the seeds I started into larger containers..can't believe how much more they grow when you put the seeds on paper towels, put in ziplock bags and set in the sun..about tripple the size...

Do any of you know, I've about 30 sunflowers growing..stem is long and leggy, no body, now that they are in larger container do I have to prop the stem up with a skewer or will they get more strength and stand on their own..I don't do inside gardening well...I do well starting them but then I kill them before they are ready to be planted...yikes, that's not good...