Lilacs

After visiting the garden centres today, my sister, Connie and I stopped along the river and cut some lilac stems.  The buds aren't fully open yet but the scent is incredible!

I have two shades of purple lilacs in my garden.

I love to cut a big bouquet when they are full and blowsy and the scent hangs on the air.

The deeper purple were here when I arrived but I've had to prune them back severely.

I'm joining Claudia's favourite things party today over at Mockingbird Hill Cottage.

Another beautiful gardening day here in southern Ontario.  Hope tomorrow is the same!

I planted these paler ones to provide a little privacy from the neighbours...

Julie

Shopping in the U.S.A.

Last week, my friends, Sandy and Cindy and I went on a shopping trip to Watertown and Syracuse in New York.  It was my first girls' shopping trip but certainly not my last.  I had so much fun.

I found a Hobby Lobby which I knew I would love from seeing references on Judy's blog.  Boy, did I ever!  I blew the budget there.

But we also hit Kohl's, Macy's, Target and a lot more besides.  I got some great deals on new pjs and a skort and t-shirts and sandals...

I noticed a few differences between shopping in Canada and the US.  Primarily, the prices...wow. We got some amazing deals that I can't find around here.  It was nice to see things that were different and unique.

It felt weird that everything wasn't in English and French.  I am used to seeing that so it always felt like something was missing.  I bought a bunch of fabric at Hobby Lobby too (I'll share that as I use it) but I bought it in yards, not metres.  We had to try to figure how long it would take to get somewhere, converting miles back to kilometres.  Although we seem the same, there were little reminders that we were in a foreign country.

Can we interrupt this post for a moment to let you know I fell in love with this chesterfield?  It would be perfect for my sunroom but it wouldn't fit in my shopping bag.

I must compliment the store staff on their excellent customer service.  Every experience I had was exemplary.  When I was younger, I worked at Sears and we worked hard to welcome people, to help customers and to try to actually sell something.  I feel we have lost that here except in small owner operated stores where the food on their plate depends on the way they treat the customer.  I had staff say hello and welcome and offer assistance every where I went.  I don't know if that is consistent all through the United States or if the cities along the border are catering to Canadians and are therefore, trying harder.  Maybe it's because the economy has been worse in the States and people are so happy to have a job and show it.  I came home and stood in the lineup at my favourite grocery store and watched the cashier.  She was cashing through a large grocery order and totally ignored the woman while gossiping with the teen in front of me who was obviously a friend.  This friend only had a couple of items, not a full cart but it took the girl a lot longer to cash her through than the first customer.  Welcome back to Canada!  We really need to work on that here.

And the dressing rooms.....well, I think Americans might be offended by our dressing rooms.  I went to try on some clothes at Kohl's and I'm standing at the entrance to the dressing room, wondering where the girl was.  Then I noticed customers just going in and out.  Whaa???  At home, our dressing rooms are guarded like they hide the national treasury.  You show the girl how many pieces of clothing you are taking in (often it is restricted to 3 items), you are given a tag and allowed through to the dressing room.    You try them on and then if you aren't buying them, you return them to the guard at the door.  I always feel a twinge of guilt if I'm not taking it and feel I need to explain.  Crazy, eh?

And finally, the food and drinks.  Oh My.  The drinks at the restaurants all seem to be supersized, holy cow.  It was interesting to see what was cheaper or more expensive in US grocery stores.  But the plates of food in restaurants!  I thought our servings were too big here but in the States, they are HUGE and cheaper than home.  We ordered a pizza on the second night and made margaritas and played rummi-cube in our room.  It was great but we ordered a large pizza.  After all, there were three of us so a medium wouldn't be enough.  We thought it was on the expensive side until it arrived at our hotel room.

Dear God, the box was almost as wide as a single bed.  It's a miracle they got it through the door.  I have never seen such a big pizza in my life and we were hungry, really hungry but the 3 of us could only finish half.  We tried; I promise you we did.  I threw away my crusts and Sandy only ate the bacon off her last piece.  Incredible!  I'll definitely be back though.  I had a blast!

Julie

Happy Mother's Day!

We had a lovely celebration last night at my sister's house.  My very talented niece, Allyson made an absolutely stupendous dinner which I will share with you when I get the recipes written down.  Here's a picture she took of my Mom and me.

I didn't get to blog last week as I went to Watertown and Syracuse, New York with my friends, Sandy and Cindy.  We had a blast!  I'll share some of my shopping highlights with you this week.  In the meantime, I wanted to introduce you to the newest member of my menagerie.  She doesn't have a name yet but she was born on St. Patrick's Day so I expect it will be Irish!

She looks a little scared here.  It may the noise of the camera or the fact that my other cats haven't adjusted yet and there's a little hissing and spitting going on.

The baby needs a snooze now....

Julie

Magnolia Blossoms

Another warm and sunny day in southern Ontario.  I got out and did some gardening and then took some pictures of my magnolia in bloom.  Heading to Syracuse for some shopping this week so I'm going to miss some of the peak blooming time.  These pictures will help me remember how beautiful the tree is.

Julie

Spring Gardening

The weather in Southern Ontario has been warm and sunny this week.  Sometimes it feels like we go directly to summer from winter.  The blossoms are starting to pop...

on the forsythia...

on the daffodils...

on the hyacinth and the violets

I knew that little volunteer violet in the paving stones wouldn't last long.  When Mom came outside, she ripped it out first thing.  I have a soft spot for thriving little things that grab a toe hold in an adverse world and hang on tight.

The pulmonaria is so pretty growing in the shadow and protection of the shed. It is always one of my first plants to bloom.  I love the pink and blue flowers on one plant.  I think it must be a flower invented by the fairies so I'm going to build a fairy garden here this year.  Maybe they'll move into the little house I make for them :).

The magnolia should be out in full bloom by tomorrow.  I'm puppy sitting again this weekend so I think I'll take them home with me for the afternoon.  I'm hoping they'll enjoy running free in my fenced yard and that the cats won't get too bent out of shape by their puppy cousins.  The dogs aren't used to cats at all so I'll have to keep them separate.  Lucy likes puppies but not Finn.  Based on his thrashing nightmares, I think he's been chased by a dog or two in his time.

I got a little veggie seed planting done this week.   I was soaking my bean seeds when Finn decided to drink out of the cup.  He's such a help in the garden.  I noticed today that he's messed up my snow peas and Swiss chard so they will need to be planted again.  Those little white discs are basil seeds in planting mats.  I've never used them before so it's an experiment.  I can't wait to be eating my own home-grown vegetables.  I'm even going to build myself a potato tower this year.  When I'm working in the garden tomorrow, I'll take some more snaps for you so you can see the difference in just a couple of days.

The lovely trillium, Ontario's provincial flower.  I have a few in my garden but I wish there was more.

Julie

First Fresh Herbs

One of my favourite signs of spring is the fresh herbs shooting through the soft soil.  I can't wait to snip some and make something good to eat.

So I decided to make some cheddar chive buttermilk biscuits.  I was already making some chicken pot pies for the freezer and for my friend, Anne's husband.  She is going out west to visit her daughter soon so I'm making some freezer meals for her husband, Wayne.

I thought it would be nice to top them with biscuits instead of pastry.

The rest I popped in the oven.

Boy, are they good.  So light and tender.

They have a nice tang of chives.  Such a bright green flavour!  If you want to make some for yourself, the recipe is on my food blog.  This time I didn't use my food processor.  If you do it all by hand, may I suggest that you grate the cold margarine or butter?  Don't handle it too much so it will be tender.

I'm joining Claudia at Mockingbird Hill Cottage for her Favourite Thing linky party.

Julie

My Kitties - Past and Present

I am joining Donna for her Pet Parade to honour her beloved Teddy who has passed.

I am going to share pictures of my kitties...

Lucy

Finnie

Pinkie

Mousie

Lucy

Finnie

Lucy

Finnie

Julie

The Pagoda Bridge

Mom and I went for a walk today at Jackson's Park.  This is a lovely wild park crisscrossed with pathways.  I've spent a lot of time here throughout the years.  Such an amazing place in the middle of the city.

I took a lot of pictures but it was a cold, clear spring day and unfortunately, the weather made the park look cold and grey.  I don't want you to see it like that.  When the summer comes and it's warm and beautiful, I will take you on a tour.

I will show you just a smidge...the Pagoda Bridge.

This bridge is a registered historic place.

It was originally built in 1894-95 and designed by John E. Belcher, the city's engineer.

Jackson's Park was 30 acres of land owned by Lucy Jane Dixon.  She sold it to the Nicholls Park Trust at a bargain basement price.  This trust was set up by another prominent Peterborough benefactress, Charlotte Jane Nicholls in the nineteenth century.

This gorgeous bridge fell into disrepair and actually decayed to the point of collapse and so was totally rebuilt in 1988.  It is a gem and we are very lucky in Peterborough to have such a jewel.  It is incredible to me that some shortsighted people want to build a massive 4 lane roadway over this pristine parkland and feel it won't infringe on the environment or the citizen's enjoyment of this park.

Julie