bigugli

Must have been pure blind luck,eh??

Thanks for all the best wishes ,gang. Just hope I can be 1/2 as good at being a grandparent as my own grandparents were.

I hope to be as lucky as you, someday, to see and play with great grandchildren.

Just got home from the hospital. Erika weighed in at 8lb 6oz late last night. that makes grandaughter #4.

Today we start the Christmas preparations in the kitchen. Started the day with sweet turnip and squash casseroles with a graham cracker crust That took care of 1/2 the day. Next came the elderberry brandy. Firtst step was done last week with de-stemming the berries. 6 quarts. followed by 2 hours of simmering the berries. the result is 2 qts of juice. After 4 hours of filtering, we add the sugar and alcool, and once it starts boiling, bottle. This is the final result. We'll open the first jar Christmas eve.

Wet snow for most of the day at St Jakobs, yesterday. Nothing sticking to the ground. Just wet.

We do try to please. Glad you liked it.

I don't usually weigh in on these debates. However, there are a few other points to consider. Since the end of WW II there has not been a year of peace. Regional strife and proxy wars have continued non-stop. Canada staying out of a fight will not keep Canadians out of harm's way. A lot of Canadians, including friends and messmates,have died on such misguided fool's errands as "peacekeeping".. To keep Canada out of the fight is impossible. It is already here. To eradicate the threat requires removing every moslem from within our borders. Neither feasible nor wise. Now to take a page from the history we are currently commemorating. The middle east of today is no different than the Balkans some 110-120 years back. A hot bed of regional strife and conflict. All the big players in the world had an interest in the region, and in the end, they were drawn in and suckered into a bigger fight by a single extremist act. The result was WW I. The Middle East is a similar regional hotbed, and we again see all the big guns taking sides and posturing. We also see a lot of extremist factions using violence to attract attention to their cause/s.. Who knows when the balance will topple, or whether cooler heads will prevail.

This is getting bad. Three mornings where I've run out of a way to avoid the Mrs.

Don't you fret none about being left out. We're gonna have more than enough to share with our friends down south.

Just bring a mosquito magnet out on the water with you. You will be unmolested. The human mosquito magnet/sacrtifice gets all the unwanted attention.

Well done spincast Simple to do and full of flavour. And,... sometimes the simplest dishes are the best.

Will be a busy morning in the kitchen. Wifey is hosting baby shower for upcoming grandaughter #4. Guess who gets to play caterer?? 100 cutesy little sandwiches coming up.

There is a plastic dome structure where the old building stood and a much bigger wooden structure on the east side just before the livestock yard. We are certainly kept busy outside.

Went to market this morning and was greeted by snow in Kitchener at 6 in the morning. Of course the weather meatheads are assuring us that we should not be seeing any snow in the near future.

Finallysome pictures

You would be amazed at just how many cities and towns dump straight into our water systems on a regular basis, and during storm overflow events.

As long as the weather is reasonable, we will be there for another 2 - 3 Saturdays.

Thanks for the reminder. My best act of remembrance was in 2000. We took our cubs and scouts up to Ottawa.Pulled them out of school, so they could visit the national war museum, aviation museum, the hill, and participate in the National ceremonies.

At this time of year I have plenty habaneros for making a few batches that are definitely hotter than the Oh My! Blew through 2 cases last week.

You comes down here in Niagara sometimes, and ah guarontee to fatten you up somm good ( said with cajun accent lol.)

Have not gotten to that project yet. Still harvesting cherry tomatoes and hot peppers. Still doing a lot of canning. Probably about 2 weeks behind on my kitchen chores. BTW, how was the salsa?

Sure looks like fun. Guess I can dream. Great report.

My daughter is going through the same thing with 5 month old Savannah. On the breast, and she don't want the bottle. Yes some of it is the comfort/security thing. grandaughter will only sleep 1/2 hour on her own in her crib before she is crying for mommy. She just has to let her cry a little longer each time.

Sounds like a great family trip. Chaudiere is a fantastic place to stay.