2021 is over?

 Oh well, another year has gone by! 

My thrift finds we’re few because I did not really venture out because of Covid.

I got this little guy at a convent that a an every thing must go sale

My wreath on my front door….I bought decorations from the dollar store because I refused to pay full price on a wreath

I my neighborhood we had an enchanted alley, where you could come and pose for pictures 

On of my favorite 2021 finds us this sweet blowmold. 

My favorite thing that happened in 2021 is the addiction of this sweet and crazy girl to our family! 

Chipits came in our lives on October 28th. She was found in an industrial parking.

2 last pictures are from the same convent sale. So I got my Xmas jollies for 1.50$ 

I was thinking of new year resolutions, but the kind I know can stick. So for 2022, I plan to help my local food banks, community outreach as much as I can. I my neighborhood food insecurity is high and the Saint Vinny is there to help, and I know another non profit helps but they did not answer my email… so I need to keep on keeping on and just reach out more and give! 

Sleep tight and don’t let the bedbugs bite! 

Just in case

of course I had every intention of blogging every day but as usual life is busy, busy, busy.

we are taking a lot of life changing decisions and during the Holiday season it sure can throw a wrench in someone's Holiday planning!

so even if I dropped a couple of Holiday treats from this year's roster like caramel corn and cranberry fudge....

I am still churning out the classics ...gingerbread, pferffernusse (pepper gingerbread), Xmas candies and candy cane meringues.

and fruit squares and mini butter tarts for Xmas supper at the inlays.....

today I will share my candy cane meringue kiss recipe...very simple in case you are missing a cookie on your cookie plate...

you will need:

4 egg whites room temp
1 cup super fine sugar (I use powdered sugar)
1 pinch salt
1 pinch cream of tartar
1 teaspoon vanilla
crushed candy cane


set your oven to 170F or lower if you can

start whipping the egg whites until they form soft peaks. Add salt and cream of tartar
continue whipping and gradually add the sugar.
whip until you get glossy firm peaks, add the vanilla. blend well
use 2 teaspoons to form little kisses on a parchment lined cookie tray. sprinkle crushed candy cane on top.
bake 2 hours with the oven door slightly ajar. after 2 hours turn off the oven but keep the oven door ajar to let the meringues time to dry.

 These are always a bit hit on our Xmas table!

ENJOY!!!

Total Mish Mash

Today I'm offering what I call a wish mash

mish·mash

  (mĭsh′măsh′, -mäsh′)

n.

A collection or mixture of unrelated things; a hodgepodge.

---

[Middle English misse-masche, probably reduplication of mash, soft mixture; see mash.]

I took down the Xmas tree, I know, I know!

The ornements are waiting in Pyrex bowls to be stored until last year...

 This year these are my favorite ornements. I got them a couple of years ago

in my go to church basement when I lived in the burbs.

I paid a big old quarter for them. I think they we ment to be hung from a chandelier....

But not sure. They are all handmade.

Next up a plumbing issue....

When it is very cold in winter, the bathtub drain freezes....

The first time I freaked out but thank God, Dad was around to explain

that this situation didn't cause damage, that it would thaw as soon as the weather

is milder and that he had tried to correct this but nothing fixed the problem

and this had been happening for 30 years....

I was very surprised to notice that the shower drain was super duper

lazy.....And when I noticed it Dan was in the hospital and it

never occurred to me that it might be clogged by a wig!

Ew! Problem fixed!

 I was so glad I had this nifty tool on hand!

 Since Dan wasn't mobile and at one point I couldn't stand cooking anymore...

So we had some really amazing salmon tartare Japanese style delivered.If you like sushi there is a 

very good chance you will like tartare.....

I marinated and cooked lean pork cutlets on my

new Le Creuset grill pan....

It was free , the grill pan not the pork.....

Grilled pork, with celeriac salad and collards

I need to revise the collard recipe....It needed something
I don't know what but I will figure it out!

Have a great evening

I'll be watching the X-Files!

So Long 2017

On this last day of 2017, I cannot help but look back on this extraordinary year.

This was really a year of changes and transitions.

My mourning was in a different stage. Less sad and more about the good memories.

I sold the rest of the books, the cds and most of the dvds . That is a great weight lifted of  my chest.

And with all those things gone we can start really occupying the space and decorating how we want.

Speaking of which....

 My Dad never decorated outside for Xmas....But I do!

So I got some turquoise wreaths and garlands from the Dollar store and

some battery operated lights...it looks really awesome at night!

 My Xmas table with Charcoal Snowflake Pyrex and canned cranberry sauce.

That tablecloth was real cute but of cheap quality.....

it is fading on some spots....

a little bit of last minute decor! I was too tired and stressed out for elaborate

decorations so I pulled that one of in less than 15 minutes.

the wooden Xmas tree was handmade by Dan as a gift for my Dad in 2015.

Dad loved it! He kept it out all year round.

I just took pictures of the tree which means that I will be able to post them tomorrow

(I hope) 

Dan being in a wheelchair meant that I was the nurse, maid, cook, butler you name it I was it and I still am but now with Xmas behind us I feel more at ease about being caregiver.

We have 4 cats: one is diabetic and has chronic diarrhea. She needs her insulin and a pill every morning to control the output.

one behavioral issued and needs an antidepressant and has stomach issues so he needs cortisone.

One is not sick but seems to spread some type of cat flu to Bandito (antidepressant) and Meghan...

so since October they need 3 applications of eye drops a day plus some lysine to boost their immune systems.

That makes for super busy mornings!

And I work full time! Bless my employer that allows me to work from home a couple of times a week. Then I can keep an eye of Dan....that fell from the chair and now has bursitis.

The company I work for moved from a dusty dingy building to brand new digs downtown

Montreal1 It is heaven! It is connected to the underground city so when the temperature dips I can go walk, or shop, or lunch in 5 different malls.

 New building, all shiny

  I got Peanuts Xmas shoes!

Thank you Santa!

I would really like to post tomorrow...

Fingers crossed!

Happy New Year!

Don't celebrate too much!

New Year!

Happy New Year to all my readers!

2016 was a very important year for me. It was hard, sad, good, teary,happy and then some!

I am finishing a week's vacation where I mostly slept, cleaned,cooked  and slept some more.

I feel so stoked, so energized. It is a wonderful feeling! The sky's the limit!

This year I made achievable resolutions....

NO MORE credit card debt and less procrastination at work.

I added a new one today....Taking better care of myself; drinking more water, eating less sugar, moisturizing more....moving more....

Those I should be able to achieve not like losing 75 pounds in 3 months and becoming an Olympic athlete.

I am also grocery shopping from my freezers. So far with frozen turkey breast I made turkey tacos and there was enough left over to make turkey ramen with edamame (from the freezer too), lasagna with ground beef , Italian sausage and Portuguese bacon all from the freezer, last but not least was a big freezer container of traditional french Canadian meatball stew (ragout de boulettes) served with boiled potatoes and parsley for supper tonight...with left overs for lunch tomorrow!

I say it is a win-win!

Since the beginning of the year we brought 10 boxes of books and stuff to various thrifts.

 Of course I didn't donate any of my beloved Xmas Pyrex!

Way too precious!

And tonight I am watching the Golden Globes...

And I am wondering what the hell Nicole Kidman was thinking when she

embarked on her plastic surgery journey. She was so beautiful, so natural....

and tonight I only saw the plastic doll face....So sad

And Felicity Hoffman! She is a character actress, playing real women and tonight she

looked like an orange Barbie.

I am thinking there was a BOGO on Botox! A lot of foreheads look ironed!

Just what is wrong with wrinkles, expression lines, and creases ?

On this note...I will sign off and go moisturize!

Sleep tight!

Merry Xmas!

First of all, I want to wish the merriest and brightest Xmas ever to you and all your loved ones.

Isn

Like baking gingerbread....and wrapping presents..... 

 Under the watchful eye of the blowmolds....

And I was able to put the finishing touches on my 'buffet'.

I also took the time to reflect on 2016.

This was an extremely difficult year.

As many of you know my father passed in last January.

There was a lot of sorrow, tears and uncertainty.

But there was a lot of joy and laughter as well....

 I learned a lot about myself. I learned that I am very 

resilient, I might stumble but I will get back up stronger than ever.

What's planned for today?

longing in our pjs, watching tv and eating leftovers.....

Have a great day everyone!

Slowly but Surely

In some ways Xmas is like a marathon.....

and it certainly feels that way this year!

Tree? check

Xmas candies? check

Xmas cards? check

Caramel corn? check

Meat pie? check

Meatball stew? check

Shopping? DONE!!!!

 2 large meat pies in flamingo utility Pyrex pie dish.

what is really cray-cray is that I didn't buy any aluminum 

pie plates...REALLY???

So that is when creativity helps you!

Meat pie turnovers!

A bit blurry, but really delicious and really easier than a regular

meat pies!

Even if I am a bit behind...I'm feeling great!

Right now I am watching SNL Christmas Special!

Funny!

Christmas Decor

Just a couple of blocks from where I live,

there is a tiny tyny Xmas market.

You have Adirondack chairs, Xmas trees and open air fires.

 I love the smell of a wood fire.

There's also a heart with a rocking chair, but no Santa.

It seems everyone can be Santa....

NO! I

Xmas is Xmas! I want Santas, stars, baby Jesus, the virgin Mary

and the whole kit and caboodle!

 What is wrong with people?

You want to celebrate Hannukah? Kwanzaa? or Diwali?

GO AHEAD, BUT JUST LET ME CELEBRATE XMAS

THE WAY I LIKE IT!!!

For some reason, here in Montreal there is a lot of tension over Holiday

Decor....

Some town halls decided to take down their nativity scenes to avoid controversy and

some libraries took down their menorahs.

How about we just celebrate our own holidays in peace?

I prefer the melting pot and all its flavors!

After all variety is the spice of life!

On the thrifting front here are some pics of

tackylicious things I left behind!

 I left them behind because there were kind of cruddy

 And broken and sad.

And that is too bad because they had a lot of 

tackylicious potential!

And here is my 2015 Xmas tree!

The 2016 tree is taller.

I started decorating it today.

Picture to follow!

Sleep tight!

Wwwwwhhhhaaaatttt?

In my last post, I wrote about closing the garden.....

Monday morning, I woke up to this!

 Usually the first snowfall melts in the same day....

Not this one!

Definitely time to think about Xmas!

 Those are pics from my house in the suburbs

 I love this little plate! I am so glad

nobody bought in on Easy...

 i still don't know how I will decorate outside because those squirrels

are CRAZY!

I am afraid to loose what Xmas lights are left!

I am sure I will think of something since I am super resourceful

And I will be praying for a white christmas.....

Have a great evening!

In the garden

Fall is definitely the season of the we have to; We have to rake the leaves, we have to plant bulbs,

we have to plant the perennials, we have to weather proof, we have to put the storm windows....
I am sure that you get the gist!

So I am posting pictures of the garden

The fountains have been emptied, the water garden - same. Leaves have been racked and bulbs have
been planted. the windows have been taken care of...

Now it is time to think about Christmas!

AFK

If you're familiar with The Big Bang Theory you might know that this means Away From Keyboard!

I have been AWOL and AFK for quite a while.

Grief kicked my ass and I had several meltdowns (normal) and I went to see my family physician who

prescribed a medical leave....

I just could not cope anymore, I felt so overwhelmed and helpless....

I am told I looked like a deer caught in the headlights! And I felt the same as well.

I felt so paralyzed and lost.

all those books, dvds and cds! 100 facecloths , 70 obelisks , hundreds of eggs.....I just wanted to make it all disappear !

I have been cataloging, packing and cleaning...I sneeze all the time and everyday I have new zits....

Today I took a day off and we went on a wee roadtrip.

I really like the vintage Montreal tile but felt the $9.99 price tag was too much...

 Same here! Who pays  $24.99 for 3 dinner plates and a dozen salad plates...

It is Corning Ware after all not Wedgewood!

  Ditto! $14.99 for 6 saucers???

REALLY?

This was a bit better but I have all the lids I need!

 JAJ Pyrex, It is basically all I've seen lately

 From the Brockville, Ontario Sally Ann

 I nearly bought this platter...

It is so cute and a steal at $1.50!

Instead I got this adorable holly serving dish for $1.00

I have a couple of other pieces but I am so tired I can't remember the pattern name

for the love of God!

It was a glorious thrifting day and I will share

my other finds as soon as I finish cleaning them up

Sleep tight!