Rain Update - Big Ol' Post This Sunday!

Our "back yard"

Hi Everyone, it's time for an update!! We still don't have internet, that should be all set up in just over a week (fingers crossed!). I wanted to respond to a few comments from the last few posts. Yes, I'm able to read comments, but responding and commenting is very difficult. Visiting your blogs on my phone is a nightmare! As soon as I get set up online, I'll be back to visit! :) And about that porcupine fish skeleton from the last post, oh gosh I had no idea when I uploaded that photo that it looked like the Covid virus lol!!! 

Have I mentioned how much I HATE using my phone's keyboard??? It takes me forever to type what I want! Plus, my fingers are covered in bandaids from little nicks - moving injuries! This post took hours but I decided to take a day off from unpacking. I sure needed it.

I have so much to tell you all! Firstly, here are some photos of the drive. At the New Brunswick border, there were two lanes; one was a lane for "Quebec" (people who were turned back) and the other was a lane for "New Brunswick"...you already know which lane we were told to take!! That's me, bawling my eyes out from exhaustion, emotion and relief, just after we passed the border.

My sciatica is calming down. Alex and I are taking things slowly, we are both resting each evening - we have a lovely view of the back property from the Sun Room. I took some time to whip out my Tarot cards yesterday morning. It was raining and all I could hear were the rain drops and the birds singing. The back acreage has a lot of fallen/broken trees and needs lots of care. The previous owners were snowmobilers/quad-people and sadly we can see a lot of damage they did to the trees, sigh. We plan to replant a lot of trees over the next few years.

Our realtor Bill brought us a hot chicken dinner the second night we were here - oh boy that was very welcomed!!!

Honestly, temporarily living without refrigeration isn't too hard! We have my little cheese cave fridge (the bar fridge) that we filled with my cheeses and a few eggs that made the trip. But we are mostly eating my canned food. This is how Rain and Alex are "roughing it"...spaghetti dinners, enchiladas with homemade salsa...pizza (the oven here works!) and apple/cheddar fondue (with leftover stale bread we had)...not too bad huh? ;) And before we left, I hit the dollar store and bought bags of candies and chocolate bars...we have juice, wine and pop. The pets have all of their food. We are out of quarantine next Friday the 22nd - that's when we hope to go shopping for a decent (hopefully used) fridge. We have been doing laundry by hand and hanging it out to dry.

Baby Oscar has a comfy spot!

The previous owner left two rocking chairs in the Sun Room, so Alex and I have a little sip of wine after dinner each night, sitting in the rocking chairs and enjoying the view. It's so quiet here, I love it. 

We saw a porcupine waddling up from the woods the other night. He hung around a bit then climbed a tree and stayed there for a long time.

We hear lots of birds around here. I got a nice photo of what I think is a partridge nibbling the catkins off a birch tree. (Andrea, is this a partridge?) Our 1.6 acres is mostly birch with pockets of conifers.

Alex and I walked to the back of our property (we're number 11) and checked out the lot behind us (outlined in blue). I'll post photos next time...it's just under 2 acres and still has the foundation of the cottage that burned down before 2013. We are hoping to buy that property in the next few years to expand ours.

When we were working in the basement, we saw a little squirrel in there. We shoo'd her out, but she kept hanging around, and she wasn't scared of us. We had a feeling she might be protecting her nest. Last year, Alex and I found 3 baby squirrels in our basement and we took care of them and released them a few months later; we both felt like there was a nest inside the basement based on this female's behaviour.

We spent an afternoon searching and listening and finally we found her nest in the fiberglass insulation. It was tucked above one of the beams and wedged between two pipes. These three babies couldn't have been more than a few days old, oh our hearts melted! We followed protocol and put the nest in a box over a hot water bottle, then placed the box outside. Mamma Squirrel came back for them. It was awesome to watch and I tried my best to take photos but none of them turned out. She picked one baby up, curled it into a little ball, held it in her mouth and ran away to her new nest. In intervals of about 15 minutes, she came back for the other two. We made sure to seal all of the holes we found in the basement after that.

We have the bathroom and bedroom set up, I'm working on the kitchen. Alex set up my measuring cups and spoons for me...this made me feel a little more at home! He got our well water pumping. It's clear and potable though it has a little metallic taste to it. A Brita filter is helping with that but we may have to invest in a larger filtration system.

I can finally use my potato!!!! It's been sitting in a box for years, now it's going to house our day to day cutlery.

We bought a fixer-upper. This is the "front" room. It's the teeny-tiny kitchen on one side and the living room on the other side.Those horrid blinds HAVE to go, they are on every window. You can see a bit of the loft. It is now officially the "cat loft"! We have their litter up there and their beds and we feed them up there. They have a big window that looks out onto the backwoods. They LOVE it and spend most of their time up there! "No Dogs Allowed" lol! :)

We have so many plans and ideas for this cottage, it's going to take years but it's going to be a fun journey. I'm so glad you are coming along for this journey! I'll post new photos every Sunday to show you things! Thanks so much for visiting and for your lovely comments!!! Gosh I can't wait to start painting again...and cooking...and cheese making...life is beautiful. :)

Thursday Art Date: Historical Events

Bugs Bunny - Making Fire

Hello Friends! 😊

(This is a scheduled post.)

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is Historical Events. Was fire invented, discovered, or a heat source that our ancestors figured out how to control? Did forest fires always exist? Did bush fires always exist? I think that fire existed and the ancient people of Earth learned how to use it to their advantage, making it a significant historical event for humanity. Imagine life without fire?? I can't!

The following are photos I've taken over the years of our big ball of fire in the sky, the sun! Sunrises and sunsets...which is your favourite? I think sunsets are more vibrant! 🌞🌞

Alex and I are in week 1 of our quarantine at this time and unless I change this sentence, we don't have internet yet! I hope you're all doing well! 💚💚

That's all for now folks! Please check out the link widget below to see more Historical Events artwork! 

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I saw the skeleton of a "porcupine fish" in the window of a shop one day and had to take a photo!

May 21st: Next Thursday's theme is Round and Round. Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 🎨

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes. 

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

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We Made It!!!

Hello Everyone!!

We did it! We made it to our new home in New Brunswick!!! The border crossing was nerve-wracking, filled with military and peace officers. We were asked so many questions, and we had to show identification and the signed deed. We were reminded to quarantine and off we went with a "Welcome To New Brunswick!". The only light on this very rural street was what's called a "dusk to dawn" light. It was installed by the previous owner through NB Power and we were going to have it disconnected before we moved. I have to tell you, we were very thankful it was there when we arrived!

It was a LONG drive...oh my gosh...we left at 6:30am and arrived around 11pm Atlantic Time. Jack drove up in the cab of the Uhaul with me and Alex, while the cats and the two huskies were in our SUV, towed behind the truck. Surprisingly the cats didn't even have to pee or poop once. They basically slept the entire time. I will be honest, I had white knuckles many-a-time along the drive. I'm not used to driving such a humongous vehicle...AND with an SUV on a tow transport trailer behind!!! I'm so glad it's over. IF we move again, we will hire a moving company! Alex and I are very sore from head to toe and unfortunately my sciatica acted up during the drive. It was definitely a challenge, but very worth it.

I have limited internet, friends. Our phone lines are not working so we can't plug in our modem. I am publishing this post via my phone. I don't know if the phone/internet company will come until after our quarantine period is over, so it may be a few weeks until I'm online again. I'm glad I pre-scheduled the art date posts!!!

Thanks for all of your wonderful wishes and words! I love all of you!!!  💙💚💛💜💗💗💗💗💗

Thursday Art Date: Your Flower

Hello Friends! 😊

(This is a scheduled post.)

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is Your Flower. Bugs is posing on my birth flower, the Water Lily. He's doing his sexiest pose, but his swimming trunks kind of kill the sex appeal!! We can be thankful he wasn't in the mood to wear a Speedo thong!!! 😲

Click here to check out your birth flower: Zodiac Flowers.

Water Lily before opening (July 2019)

🚚 🚚 As this post is being broadcast, Alex and I are moving! We are driving about 1000 km to our new home. We were able to pack everything to the gills...and we have an arsenal of documented proof that the new house is our permanent primary residence in case the RCMP has any issues. They are stopping everyone at the New Brunswick borders who are weekenders or visitors...we don't want them to think that about us! I have faith that things will go very smoothly and I can't wait to give you all some updates!

Let's hope the phone lines are intact so we can plug in our modem when we get there!!

Over the weekend, me and the dogs had one last walk in the Quebec woods. The snow hasn't melted around here yet. I thought I'd be more nostalgic, but I'm very much looking forward to seeing this province in my rear view mirror!

Fresh air and exercise is tough business for the dogs...they all needed naps after!

Thanks for visiting! Please check out the link widget below to see more Your Flower artwork! 

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A Historical Event for me was back in 2000 when I decided to leave the city for good. I moved from Montreal up to a mountain village called Morin Heights. I rented a beautiful cottage by a lake and I was hooked! These are my first dogs ♥ Winston and Spencer. ♥

May 14th: Next Thursday's theme is Historical Events. Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 🎨

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes. 

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

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Thursday Art Date: Signs of Spring

Hi Everyone! 😊😊😊😊

(This is a scheduled post.)

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is Signs of Spring.

💓 THANK YOU SO MUCH for all of your lovely comments!!! It warms my heart to read them, thanks again for taking time to visit my blog! And a special thanks to those who continue to participate in the art date! I love it! I will catch up on visiting your posts soon!! I probably won't be around very much in the next month or so though. We are moving in about a week to New Brunswick and once there, we have no idea if the internet will be available or not!! But...I've pre-scheduled Art Date posts all the way until the end of June just in case!!! 💓

Why is Bugs Bunny dancing the ballet? Well, he could be very relieved for the spring weather! But honestly, he happily agreed to pose for my drawing of the ballet The Rite of Spring - which is danced to a piece of classical music written by Russian composer Igor Stravinsky. 

If you're like me, you may not know too much about classical music. I know this piece of music because it was featured in the 1940 Disney animated film Fantasia. (Here is the link in case the video doesn't work) I ADORE this movie, but I always found this particular animated interpretation of Stravinsky's work very disturbing...and for good reason! It's very intense music set to the theory of evolution. Above is the 20 minute adaptation from the movie. 

Photo from the English National Ballet

The history behind this orchestral piece is quite sinister! According to classicfm.com: 

"Stravinsky’s ballet score is an epochal landmark in music. Its English title, The Rite Of Spring, lends a suitably chilling dimension, for the scenario is a pagan ritual in which a sacrificial virgin dances herself to death. The work was such a violent wrench from every musical tradition that had gone before that, to many people, it seemed like the work of a madman." 

I only found out about this recently as I did a little research! Leave it to me to find the work of a madman!! 😊

I got a lot of canning done last week. Thanks again for all of your suggestions! Please visit Jo's blog "The Cockeyed Homestead", she is a wonderful inspiration for all things self-sufficient and she sent me so many recipes and videos to help me prepare for my 2-week quarantine without refrigeration. Thanks Jo!! 💓💓💓💓💓💓💓

Moving day is fast approaching! Even though I'm 99% sure we won't have any issues crossing the New Brunswick border, there is that 1% of doubt terrifying me that the RCMP will turn us back, saying our move isn't essential travel! Wish me and Alex and the furries good luck and if you can, send some prayers and positive energy our way!  💓💓

And please check out the link widget below to see more Signs of Spring artwork! 

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I took this photo back in 2010 during a walk through Mount Orford in Eastern Quebec. The water lily is my birth flower. 

May 7th: Next Thursday's theme is Your Flower. Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 🎨

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes. 

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

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Thursday Art Date: What A Mess!

Hello Friends! 😊😊

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is What A Mess! Poor Bugs isn't feeling quite himself today. He's a mess! 😊 A little too much of the jolly juice...oh I've been there! 😊

Thanks so much to everyone for your foodie suggestions last week, they were all brilliant. I feel so relieved knowing that Alex and I won't suffer too much without refrigeration for the first few weeks after we move! Shopping day was yesterday so I'm spending the next few days cooking and canning!

We are living in quite a mess ourselves. But somehow Oscar has found a comfy spot during all of this! The futon mattress actually fell over onto the tires...and it became a cat bed lol...When I saw this I couldn't stop laughing. Cats can find a bed pretty much anywhere!

We've had some early spring snowstorms here in the mountains, but a few days a week we have such lovely sunny days! The girls love this weather, they sit out on top of the snow for hours!

Jack prefers the porch! 😊

That's all for now folks! Please check out the link widget below to see more What A Mess! artwork! 

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The lake is slowly melting and the geese have returned - a sure sign of spring!

April 30th: Next Thursday's theme is Signs of Spring. Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 🎨

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes. 

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

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Thursday Art Date: Bubbles and Bubbly and Requesting Some Foodie Help!

Hello Friends! 😊

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is Bubbles and Bubbly. Bugs is exploring the Coral Reef today and enjoying life under the sea. I really enjoyed drawing this...it helped me disconnect a little bit! 😊

This was a very challenging week. Alex and I are trying to fit our entire lives into a fifteen-foot truck! Well, we don't have the U-Haul truck yet, but we've taped off the size of it in our living room and we're trying to play Tetris with our belongings to make sure everything fits!

💌 THANKS so much to everyone who is visiting!!! Every night before bed, I read comments and blogs, and I'm sorry I haven't been commenting much. My life is topsy turvy at the moment 😲, we are leaving in about 3 weeks time and there is just so much to do.

To add to the madness, we have to quarantine in New Brunswick for 2 weeks when we get there with the moving van. The RCMP is taking down license plates at the border of Quebec and NB. If we get caught on the road before the 2-week quarantine is up, we will get fined from 2k to 10k. We are allowed to stop for gas as long as we pay at the pump; but we can't even stop for groceries. It's going to be a 12 hour (minimum) drive. Christine you gifted me a Timmie's gift card a few years back that we were saving for our move...I don't even think we'll be able to use it yet!!!

This means preparing 14 days worth of food, snacks, sweets, beverages and pet food, all packed in the moving van BEFORE getting there...I wasn't expecting this! There is a stove at the new place, but it's iffy; and we won't have a fridge. It's going to be challenging.

❣️❣️❣️ A REQUEST FOR HELP!!! ❣️❣️❣️ 

If anyone has ideas for vegetarian "meals in a jar" that I can either pressure-can or water-bath can, please let me know in the comments or send me an email, there is a contact form on my side bar!!! Without refrigeration, it all has to be canned! And these meals can only be either reheated in the microwave or on the stove top. So far I plan to can spaghetti sauce, a few different types of soups, some salsa that we can put on tortillas and some pizza sauce (with hopes the oven works so I can bake the dough). Since I started cheese making, I've learned that some cheeses can be left on the counter so I have a few wheels of cheese I'm bringing that we will be able to use the first week (without refrigeration). I have my pantry staples such as flour, sugar and salt. I bought packets of yeast so they don't have to be refrigerated... I'm bringing a big bag of potatoes, canned juices, pre-packaged pasta, rice, oatmeal, tea and coffee. We can't tolerate beans too much, which is a shame, that would have been a great addition! Beyond that and despite exhaustive internet searches, my mind is completely out of ideas. Next week I plan to do my last run at the grocery stores and I hope I can find powdered/dehydrated milk. DOES ANYONE KNOW IF I CAN PRESSURE CAN MILK AND BUTTER? I'm cringing at the fact that I will be buying processed cookies/chips for snacks...but I don't know if I'll be able to bake while I'm there, so I want to be prepared. I did find instructions on how to microwave popcorn so that'll be a nice snack popped with coconut oil. I'm OPEN TO ALL SUGGESTIONS!! You all have been there for me through thick and thin and I would love to hear your ideas!!!  💙💙

DOGS WHO STARE:

It is nearly impossible to take a nap these days. Once I lie down, the dogs get extremely curious...

I think that Charlie has the biggest staring problem of them all! Every time I look up from what I'm doing, her big husky eyes are on me!

The pets are a bit nervous these days, with all of the packing and boxes. Here's a quick video of them quiet and relaxed. I'm so grateful to have so much love in the house!

A few nights ago, we had our last fondue dinner in Quebec! The fondue pot is packed away now! This was a lovely Swiss Cheese Fondue. Yum!

Alex had an old cotton shirt that we were going to cut up for rags, instead I made five face masks out of them. I followed this You Tube Tutorial. It was so easy, each one took between 15 and 20 minutes.

I'm not taking any chances of getting sick before we move...I haven't had a cold in over 5 years and I want to keep it that way!

It remains to be seen if we will have internet when we move. The company is sending a modem in the mail, but we have no clue if the wiring is there or if it is functional. So as of next week, I'll be scheduling my Thursday posts until mid-June. I won't be drawing too much, but I will definitely include photography as my contribution!! The art date WILL continue!!! 😊😊😊 Thanks for popping in! That's all for now folks! But please check out the link widget below to see more Bubbles and Bubbly artwork! 

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A delicious messy potato, salsa and Cheddar fajita!

April 23rd: Next Thursday's theme is What A Mess! Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 🎨

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes. 

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

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Thursday Art Date: 🐰 Easter 🐰

Hello Friends! 😊😊

A special request 💘: We all know what's going on in our world, let's try not to dwell on it. Let's keep positive and hopeful. Let's stick to the rules. Let's enjoy our time at home and let's be grateful for what we have. Let's learn from it and be better and more conscientious, healthy and self-reliant people. And please, keep any negative or "doomsday" comments off my blog. I don't think it's productive to attempt to instill doubt, fear and anxiety in people as we all deal with this situation. Thanks! 💘

Welcome to Thursday's Art Date, today our theme is Easter. I hope everyone out there has a lovely Easter weekend (if you celebrate!). We managed to get a bunch of Easter chocolate the last time we went out shopping so we're good! 😊 Isn't Tweety Bird a cutie, all dressed up for the Easter Parade? 

I have a memory of when I was very young...dressing up for Easter in Montreal...I don't remember where in the city I was or if there was an actual parade, but I do remember my bonnet was green and I was wearing white gloves and black patent leather shoes. I also remember being so happy to see tulips growing. Up north though, there are no tulips yet, we are still buried under snow.

Here is a fun scene from the movie Easter Parade with Judy Garland and Fred Astaire. I love this scene! Fred Astaire sure knows how to move! Love his spats!

I made some Mushroom Burgers the other day and they really are delicious.

Alex made us pita pizzas and fries...lots of comfort food!

I've packed most of my art studio...all I kept out are my drawing supplies so I won't be doing any charcoal or painting pieces for a little while. We'll (hopefully) be moving in about a month! Thanks for popping in! That's all for now folks! But please check out the link widget below to see more Easter artwork! 

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Water bubbles splashing up from a raging waterfall (Orford Qc 2007)

April 16th: Next Thursday's theme is Bubbles and Bubbly. Click on the link for ideas and inspiration! Remember it's all about creating. You can showcase your paintings, drawings, photography, sculpting, baking, poetry...whatever you like! 🎨

Thursday Art Date With Rain. Click on the link for a description of the art date as well as a list of upcoming themes. 

Don't forget to add the URL link to your post (not your blog) to the link gadget below to share your wonderful creations! The link gadget expires Sunday at noon (EST).

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