Life gets so busy this time of year and people get pretty stressed out trying to find the perfect gift, get all the baking done, plan Christmas dinner, go to parties, etc.
Sometimes you just have to take a moment to appreciate some clever inventive Christmas spirit:
RAMBLINGS ... of a transplanted Iowan
December 13, 2010
November 24, 2010
November 17, 2010
Ch-ch-ch-changes
Ah ... the fickle finger of weather. Four days ago it was warm and sunny and Harry was mowing the lawn. Our fall has been so warm everything just kept growing! Harry commented that he doesn't think he's ever mowed the lawn in November.
Fast forward four days and this is what we woke to this morning:
Fast forward four days and this is what we woke to this morning:
Hello winter! Hmmm ... now where did I put my winter coat and boots ...?
November 9, 2010
Dear Family:
You are all so AWESOME!!
Already such enthusiastic participation in the iowanorth.ca Christmas pages!! Check it out regularly as I'm posting stuff regularly. THANK YOU for the submissions so far -- KEEP THEM COMING! Together, we are creating a great holiday resource.
A few clarifications for those who have asked:
Love you all, Karen
Already such enthusiastic participation in the iowanorth.ca Christmas pages!! Check it out regularly as I'm posting stuff regularly. THANK YOU for the submissions so far -- KEEP THEM COMING! Together, we are creating a great holiday resource.
A few clarifications for those who have asked:
- ADVENT page: this could include advent meditations, Advent themes, how you celebrate advent, how to make a unique Advent wreath, a story about Advent ... pretty much anything.
- MUSIC page: share your favourite Christmas song, or maybe a song not so familiar. If you have an audio file for me to include send it (or I'll search for one) . Maybe it's a short video of your child singing in their Christmas program. Or ... I dare you to make your own video singing a christmas song to share with us. Maybe you've written a Christmas song!
- STORIES page: share a story of a good Christmas memory, or a funny one. Or write a story -- now there's a challenge for you! Maybe it's a graphic short story or a single pane cartoon.
- RECIPES page: these don't have to be "goodies you make every year" -- maybe it's just a yummy sounding recipe you want to try sometime.
I've also had a request for a photo album page that would be full of pictures of our own Christmases. For instance: a photo of Dallas' Christmas lights at the end of the drive! OR Jay and Jody's upside-down tree. I'll add that page if you send pictures (please include a short description).
The main challenge to all of you, however, is to at least submit one thing so that the site has participation of the WHOLE family. You guys are great! I'm glad to call you "family".
 |
| - Jacob composing a new Christmas song - |
October 30, 2010
Jack, Anthony, Jacob and Benjamin
October is almost over. Tomorrow is Halloween. We don't really do anything for Halloween. In fact, we usually go downstairs to watch baseball and leave the upstairs dark so we don't have to answer the door. On average we only get 3 or 4 Trick-or-Treaters anyway!!
The one thing we do indulge in every year is a jack-'o-lantern. Harry still likes to carve pumpkins! It's something we did every year with the girls right through high school. It always makes me smile that Harry still wants to carve a pumpkin. This morning off we went in search of a pumpkin. It was warm and sunny so Harry could carve outside.
I got to spend a lot of time with the boys this week. Linda was in town 2 full days for appointments and meetings and errands and such. Benjamin will be 7 months old in 2 days. He's a big, happy baby -- quick to smile and fascinated by his brothers and all their activity.
The one thing we do indulge in every year is a jack-'o-lantern. Harry still likes to carve pumpkins! It's something we did every year with the girls right through high school. It always makes me smile that Harry still wants to carve a pumpkin. This morning off we went in search of a pumpkin. It was warm and sunny so Harry could carve outside.
 |
| Gutting Jack |
 |
| Carving Jack |
 |
| Meet Jack ! |
I got to spend a lot of time with the boys this week. Linda was in town 2 full days for appointments and meetings and errands and such. Benjamin will be 7 months old in 2 days. He's a big, happy baby -- quick to smile and fascinated by his brothers and all their activity.
October 19, 2010
Warm Fuzzies
I listened to a radio talk show today on CBC Radio. The host and guests were talking about how music from our childhood or past can have the same effect on you as comfort food -- they even called theses songs "Comfort Food Songs". In other words, there are songs or pieces of music that conger up a warm, fuzzy feeling that is nostalgic, sentimental, and brings a smile to your face.
Naturally, while listening to the show, I couldn't help but think about songs from my childhood that fit into this category. I realized that for me, it was the circumstances surrounding the songs as much as the songs themselves that make them "comfort food songs".
I realize a lot of you probably won't know these songs, but my mother and siblings will. And I'll bet they will be smiling, too! My Comfort Food songs include:
1. Tell Me Why -- only sung in the car on Sunday afternoons as we drove to Grandma's house. It's how I learned to sing harmony.
2. From the Halls of Montazuma (aka: The Marine's Hymn) -- it allowed for playful joking with Dad and we'll all remember when he put us out of the car at the edge of Aplington and told us to walk the rest of the way!! (Granted that was a whole 10 blocks, but we took our "punishment" and trudged the whole way!)
3. Mares Eat Oats -- this one is a silly song from the 40's (I think) but I was well into college before I realized the songs not a jumble of made-up words, but rather actual lyrics strung together quickly! Was my face red! This video gives you an idea of what I thought the words were!!
What are your "Comfort Food Songs?
Naturally, while listening to the show, I couldn't help but think about songs from my childhood that fit into this category. I realized that for me, it was the circumstances surrounding the songs as much as the songs themselves that make them "comfort food songs".
I realize a lot of you probably won't know these songs, but my mother and siblings will. And I'll bet they will be smiling, too! My Comfort Food songs include:
1. Tell Me Why -- only sung in the car on Sunday afternoons as we drove to Grandma's house. It's how I learned to sing harmony.
2. From the Halls of Montazuma (aka: The Marine's Hymn) -- it allowed for playful joking with Dad and we'll all remember when he put us out of the car at the edge of Aplington and told us to walk the rest of the way!! (Granted that was a whole 10 blocks, but we took our "punishment" and trudged the whole way!)
3. Mares Eat Oats -- this one is a silly song from the 40's (I think) but I was well into college before I realized the songs not a jumble of made-up words, but rather actual lyrics strung together quickly! Was my face red! This video gives you an idea of what I thought the words were!!
What are your "Comfort Food Songs?
October 14, 2010
October 12-13, 2010
I couldn’t stop watching. For 24 hours rescuers worked to bring the 33 miners and 6 rescue workers out of the pit. For 24 hours families kept vigile. For 24 hours media personnel vied for prime photo positions and opportunities. For 24 hours, news broadcasts captialized on the opportunity to hold viewers. For (most of) 24 hours I couldn't stop watching.
I couldn't stop watching, even though the same process was repeated for each of the 39 individuals brought to the surface. The same siren sounded as the rescue capsule approched. The same cheer off “Chi-Chi-Chi, Le-Le-Le” resounded as a person emerged from the capsule. Each family member was startegically placed for the cameras to capture their reaction as they anticipated and then experienced being re-unitied with their husband, boyfriend, son. Broadcasters repeatedly mentioned the $400 Oakley sunglasses each miner would get to keep. Broadcasters crassly listed “perks” (if there really could be a perk from this ordeal) each of the trapped miners would be receiving as part of their compensation package.
Yet, I couldn’t stop watching. I would think to myself, “After this rescue I’ll turn off the TV.” Then, I would hear a bit of the next miner’s story and that was just enough to keep me watching. I think I kept watching because in some strange way I didn’t want to slight anyone. The first one rescued … the oldest one … the youngest one … the last one. None of these were more notable nor important than any other. I couldn’t stop watching because every miner had a story. Every miner was important. Every miner deserved a witness.
I couldn’t stop watching.
I couldn't stop watching, even though the same process was repeated for each of the 39 individuals brought to the surface. The same siren sounded as the rescue capsule approched. The same cheer off “Chi-Chi-Chi, Le-Le-Le” resounded as a person emerged from the capsule. Each family member was startegically placed for the cameras to capture their reaction as they anticipated and then experienced being re-unitied with their husband, boyfriend, son. Broadcasters repeatedly mentioned the $400 Oakley sunglasses each miner would get to keep. Broadcasters crassly listed “perks” (if there really could be a perk from this ordeal) each of the trapped miners would be receiving as part of their compensation package.
Yet, I couldn’t stop watching. I would think to myself, “After this rescue I’ll turn off the TV.” Then, I would hear a bit of the next miner’s story and that was just enough to keep me watching. I think I kept watching because in some strange way I didn’t want to slight anyone. The first one rescued … the oldest one … the youngest one … the last one. None of these were more notable nor important than any other. I couldn’t stop watching because every miner had a story. Every miner was important. Every miner deserved a witness.
I couldn’t stop watching.
October 3, 2010
Celebrating 2
Tomorrow is Jacob's 2nd birthday. But we celebrated today and as far as he knew today was his birthday. He wore a pin all day that said "Today I'm 2!".
To celebrate we all headed out for a little bowling. For my American family: we play 5-pin bowling . As the name suggests, there are only 5 pins and the ball is smaller than one used in 10-pin bowling. Weighing only 3 pounds, it has no finger holes -- instead it rests in your cupped hand. The nice thing about 5-pin is that with the smaller ball you can introduce very young kids to bowling. Don't fool yourself, though, controlling a smaller ball isn't all that easy!
First, it's important to dress correctly! A bowling shirt and bowling shoes are pretty important. Thanks Auntie Dayna for such a cool shirt!
To celebrate we all headed out for a little bowling. For my American family: we play 5-pin bowling . As the name suggests, there are only 5 pins and the ball is smaller than one used in 10-pin bowling. Weighing only 3 pounds, it has no finger holes -- instead it rests in your cupped hand. The nice thing about 5-pin is that with the smaller ball you can introduce very young kids to bowling. Don't fool yourself, though, controlling a smaller ball isn't all that easy!
First, it's important to dress correctly! A bowling shirt and bowling shoes are pretty important. Thanks Auntie Dayna for such a cool shirt!
"Form" ... negotiable.
Body "English" to help the ball down the lane ... totally necessary!
Mom needs help choosing a ball.
There were hugs for Oma when she made a strike!
We all had a great time.
In Jacob's words, "I like to go bowling!" (which is also one of his favourite Raffi songs).
September 20, 2010
All in a day's work
So, vacation is not over, but we have returned to Calgary to spend the last 2 weeks here. We spent 3 days in Kelowna where the weather was marginally nice. Harry got in a round of golf. I visited yarn shops and art galleries. We headed back for Calgary with the idea of doing a bunch of canning and cleaning up the yard for winter. We were about an hour from home when we saw this:
It's a bit early for this much snow on the mountain tops. Not a good omen! We got back here on Friday evening and it has been COLD and raining since we got here. We're expecting snow tonight. Harry says not to worry ... according to him we'll get a snowfall, THEN we'll get Indian Summer. I hope he's right.
We brought fresh produce home from the Okanagan Valley. Today we worked on tomatoes.
We started with 30 pounds of Roma tomatoes. First we quartered the tomatoes and put them through a tomato press. A tomato press is soooo cool! You put the tomatoes in the top and turn the crank. The tomato puree comes out the right side. The peels and seeds come out the left side. We pressed all 30 pounds in about an hour and a half.
While Harry readied cooking pans and measured puree, I chopped the mirepoix for the Italian-style sauce we had decided to make first. Chopping onions gets me every time. However, swimming goggles work wonders!! Yeah, yeah ... I KNOW I look stupid.
We cooked the sauce, then processed it. We bought a steam bath canner in our travels and it is really cool. It uses about 1/4 of the water and energy of a traditional water-bath canner.
We brought fresh produce home from the Okanagan Valley. Today we worked on tomatoes.
We started with 30 pounds of Roma tomatoes. First we quartered the tomatoes and put them through a tomato press. A tomato press is soooo cool! You put the tomatoes in the top and turn the crank. The tomato puree comes out the right side. The peels and seeds come out the left side. We pressed all 30 pounds in about an hour and a half.
Thirty pounds of romas yielded us 12 quarts of tomato puree.
While Harry readied cooking pans and measured puree, I chopped the mirepoix for the Italian-style sauce we had decided to make first. Chopping onions gets me every time. However, swimming goggles work wonders!! Yeah, yeah ... I KNOW I look stupid.
We cooked the sauce, then processed it. We bought a steam bath canner in our travels and it is really cool. It uses about 1/4 of the water and energy of a traditional water-bath canner.
At the end of the day, we had 20 - 500 ml jars of tomato sauce : 15 of Italian-style and 5 plain. (Conversion: 500 ml is slightly larger than a pint.)
... all in a day's work ...
September 11, 2010
On the road ... again
September again and that means Harry and I hit the road for a little R&R. After the epically-long trip last year, we are staying in our own backyard this year -- figuratively and literally. We're spending 2 or 2-1/2 weeks on the road cruising around lower BC. Then we'll hang out at home doing some canning and cleaning up the yard for winter.
We've spent this past week in the Fairmont-Kimpberly area and are now in Creston, BC. We are in search of warm weather. But it seems we are destined to be travelling in cool, cloudy and rainy weather. :-( Tomorrow we will head to the Okanagon Valley where the weather reports promise some heat and sun. The Okanagon Valley is famous for its orchards, vegetable farms and wineries. We plan to get lots of apples for applesauce, some tomatoes for tomato sauce and whatever else strikes our fancy. With all the cool weather this year the crops are on the late side so there is still lots to choose from. And I'm sure the acquisitions will include some nice wines.
Meanwhile, we have had some enjoyable hikes and drives.
We've spent this past week in the Fairmont-Kimpberly area and are now in Creston, BC. We are in search of warm weather. But it seems we are destined to be travelling in cool, cloudy and rainy weather. :-( Tomorrow we will head to the Okanagon Valley where the weather reports promise some heat and sun. The Okanagon Valley is famous for its orchards, vegetable farms and wineries. We plan to get lots of apples for applesauce, some tomatoes for tomato sauce and whatever else strikes our fancy. With all the cool weather this year the crops are on the late side so there is still lots to choose from. And I'm sure the acquisitions will include some nice wines.
Meanwhile, we have had some enjoyable hikes and drives.
We strolled the "platzl" in Kimberly (a Bavarian village):
Made friends with the local bear:
(Funny aside: last week before we left, a friend of ours - David "Bear" Mohr - dropped by. I was in the kitchen with Anthony getting juice and called to Harry that Bear was in the backyard. I gave Anthony his juice and said let's go outside, but he wouldn't. I asked him, "Don't you want to go back outside to play?" He replied, very seriously, "You said there was a bear out there." Yup ... he's at a very literal age!!!)
We've enjoyed evening campfires:
What's wrong with this picture of campside fun?
(WiFi by the campfire?!?!)
We've visited old friends:
It's Marco!
He loves in Creston, BC now with John's Dad and stepmom.
On to the Okanagon ....
August 3, 2010
"Bounty" is a generous word
"tis the season ... to begin harvesting the "bounty" of our gardens. Rochelle had a bumper crop of beans and it sounds as though the rest of her garden will be as fruitful. Our garden has not fared as well. We endured a cold and rainy May and June. That was followed by a hot July with late afternoon thunderstorms ... and way too many hailstorms. My beans (which were labeled bush beans, but were in fact pole beans) got off to a very slow start -- just not enough warmth to make them grow. Unfortunately the tender vines that were trying to grow and climb the poles in my garden were stripped down in a week of hailstorms to this:
This was taken just 8 days ago.
Today, I harvested my bean crop:
Linda suggested I wait a few days in hopes of getting at least 2 more beans so I can have a 3-bean salad. Ha! She's so funny!
July 22, 2010
Transformation
If you have a dog, you don't have grass. Growing grass in our backyard has been a battle for 18 years (13 years of Brandy & Topaz, 5 years of Fargo). The cycle is predictable: plant grass, water grass, enjoy grass, play with dog on grass, dog pees on grass, grass dies. Lather, rinse, repeat .... So I have spent a good part of the summer so far trying to achieve green. And finally, there is success!!
Yesterday, we started with this:
Yesterday, we started with this:
Which turned into to this ...
then this ...
and finally, this ....
Yup. It's artificial turf. It's a product called "Pet-n-Play" designed spedifically for pet yards and play areas. It's made from recycled and waste polypropolene, requires no watering, no fertilizer, no mowing, etc. And if you ever want it removed, they come take it out and recycle it back into new turf. I plan on enjoying this for years without any upkeep other than raking debris off of it in the fall and spring. Yay. :-)
July 7, 2010
5 Days of Summer in Toronto
Last Friday Linda, Benjamin and I hopped on a plane and headed for Toronto. This was Benjamin's first plane trip (at 3 months old) and he was so good. More or less slept the entire 4+ hours on the plane. And when he wasn't sleeping he was smiling a big toothless grin at anyone who looked at him. (He's a very happy baby.)
Our goal in Toronto was to help Dayna clean and paint in her new house. Our goal was NOT to do it during one of the worst heat waves of the year! The average daily temperature was 35C (95F) with 75-80% humidity. Ugh!! Did I mention that there's no air conditioning in her new place? There was so much power being drawn on the system for air conditioners that one day included a power blackout in downtown Toronto. Fortnately we missed the blackout by a few blocks. On that day (the hottest of the 5) we were invited to a nice dinner at a friends' place ... in a luxury apartment building ... on the 16th floor with a great view AND air conditioning! Aaaaaahhhhhhh! :-)
Even though it was hot, we had a great time. We got a lot of work done with the help of many of her friends and we even had some playtime ...
Thanks, Dayna, for a good time! Thanks, Linda for coming along! Thanks, Benjamin for being such a good baby for the entire time!
June 16, 2010
Georgie Jessel
Last week, John and Linda and the boys were at our place just hanging out. Anthony came over and climbed up on the couch beside me and leaned his sweet little head on my shoulder. He looked up at me, touched my face and said, "I love you, Oma." "I love you, too, Anothny."
Then he reached up and touched my hair. "I like your hair, Oma. It's pretty." Thank you, Anthony. That's sweet."
Anthony settled in against me again for a moment, then sat up. He touched my necklace -- the one I always wear -- my Hugonot Cross. "What's that, Oma?" I looked down to where he was touching my necklace and as I did that, his little hand came up and flicked my nose! "Got you, Oma!" And away he pealed full of laughter.
Thank you, John, for teaching this little trick to your son! I must admire, though, the patience and care Anthony took to set me up. I can't wait to see what he'll come up with next.
Then he reached up and touched my hair. "I like your hair, Oma. It's pretty." Thank you, Anthony. That's sweet."
Anthony settled in against me again for a moment, then sat up. He touched my necklace -- the one I always wear -- my Hugonot Cross. "What's that, Oma?" I looked down to where he was touching my necklace and as I did that, his little hand came up and flicked my nose! "Got you, Oma!" And away he pealed full of laughter.
Thank you, John, for teaching this little trick to your son! I must admire, though, the patience and care Anthony took to set me up. I can't wait to see what he'll come up with next.
Big B. Little B.
What begins with b?
Barber, baby, bubbles and a bumblebee!
June 13, 2010
...for the birds...
I was awake very early this morning. I'm kind of an early riser anyway, but when Harry is out of town I seem to be unable to sleep long. I go to bed very late and I get up very early. It's a beautiful, warm sunny day here so I took my coffee and bagel out to the patio to eat.
I've made a few additions to my raised garden bed recently. While mom was here, we dug out a small bush that didn't survive our dry winter. In it's place, we planted clematis against a lattice frame that we have in the corner of the bed. It's been cool and rainy for the last few weeks, so the clematis is getting a slow start. Once it fills the lattice it will be beautiful!
Next I added a small bird bath -- actually, it's just an interesting, old stump and one of my larger pottery pieces. The stump was Linda's idea (thanks!) and she patiently watched me try a green bowl, a turquoise bowl and a brown bowl. We agreed the brown bowl was the nicest.
Then, last Friday, Bruce (the owner of the flower shop at the end of the block) appeared at my back gate bringing me a rather unique bird feeder made by a local artisan. Bruce has been selling these for the last two years and I've admired them many times.
Without actually intending to do so, it seems I've created a "bird" corner. The corner was a flurry of activity this morning. Birds enjoying the feeder ... dipping in the birdbath ... perching in the lattice. That's when I realized that I have a bit of Grandma Kole in me. I like birds! (oh yeah ... and I like clean windows!)
So this morning, as I enjoyed my breakfast on the patio, I also enjoyed the company of birds chirping and happily going about their morning business enjoying their new space in my garden.
I've made a few additions to my raised garden bed recently. While mom was here, we dug out a small bush that didn't survive our dry winter. In it's place, we planted clematis against a lattice frame that we have in the corner of the bed. It's been cool and rainy for the last few weeks, so the clematis is getting a slow start. Once it fills the lattice it will be beautiful!
Next I added a small bird bath -- actually, it's just an interesting, old stump and one of my larger pottery pieces. The stump was Linda's idea (thanks!) and she patiently watched me try a green bowl, a turquoise bowl and a brown bowl. We agreed the brown bowl was the nicest.
Then, last Friday, Bruce (the owner of the flower shop at the end of the block) appeared at my back gate bringing me a rather unique bird feeder made by a local artisan. Bruce has been selling these for the last two years and I've admired them many times.
So this morning, as I enjoyed my breakfast on the patio, I also enjoyed the company of birds chirping and happily going about their morning business enjoying their new space in my garden.
Yeah, the blog look s different again. I'm the kind of person who likes to change it up ... frequently.
June 5, 2010
I have just spent the last 2 days helping Linda out with the boys while John has been out of town. Under normal circumstance, she wouldn't need any assistance (she's remarkably organized and cool about having 3 kids in 3 years). But little Benjamin is fully into the colic months now and that means a pair of extra hands is useful. Jacob suffered true colic so Linda and John know what to expect.
Most babies are "colicky" from time to time. But babies who suffer actual "colic" give their parents a real run. It tests the limits of their sanity! Babies with colic usually overcome it by 3-4 months old. Yay! However, when in the throws of it, they cry unconsolably for hours at a time. Parents of a babe with colic qualify for temperary sainthood, in my opinion!
When he's not screaming, Benjamin is adorable. He's 8 weeks old now and breaks into huge smiles when you talk to him.
While Benjamin fussed,we were visited by ...
Most babies are "colicky" from time to time. But babies who suffer actual "colic" give their parents a real run. It tests the limits of their sanity! Babies with colic usually overcome it by 3-4 months old. Yay! However, when in the throws of it, they cry unconsolably for hours at a time. Parents of a babe with colic qualify for temperary sainthood, in my opinion!
When he's not screaming, Benjamin is adorable. He's 8 weeks old now and breaks into huge smiles when you talk to him.
While Benjamin fussed,we were visited by ...
Mr. T ...
... and a Smurf !
May 29, 2010
Empty Nest
Our house has been the site of visitors since May 13th. Everyone is gone now and the house is quiet again. Here are some random shots from the last few weeks.
Hangin' with Auntie Dayna
Patrtick and Rob (the musicians)
Soakin' up some sun on a lazy afternoon ...
... followed by a snooze!
Reading books with Nana
The newest great-grandchild
Playing in the dirt
Coaxing smiles from Benjamin
Watching Anthony play soccer
Mom and I did other things, too, but that will be posted on http://knittingdoodle.blogspot.com/ sometime in the next week or so. I'll leave you with a video by Patrick and Rob (the musicians who stayed at our place.)
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