Ella and Daddy

 

I love to catch photos like this.  Ella is showing Daddy how to play Penguins on her Explorer.

Farm Girl Friday -16 December 2011

Joining the other farm girls to share another fun week of Advent preparation.  Even with taking our time enjoying things, it's amazing how quickly the weeks are passing.

Saturday we were going to head outside before bed and look at the stars and the full moon.  Unfortunately we had thick clouds.  We did have lots of fun starting our Christmas baking.

I have a great helper this year.  Other years Ella has 'helped', but this year she did about a quarter of the chopping for the fruitcake and we were done in no time.  I also got the doughs made up for 4 other cookies and they are waiting in the freezer.  We read Polly's Christmas Present and Let it Snow.   And yes, the Let it Snow is by THE Holly Hobbie!   Do you remember Holly Hobbie, I loved everything!  I wish I could find some vintage Holly Hobbie.  They have modernized her and she just isn't the same.

Sunday we headed into Ottawa for Church.  Can't beat the holidays at a 'high' Anglican church  :)   This third Sunday of Advent is full of joy.

Ella loves to go to Sunday School here and came home with a bunch of crafts.   She loves to tell me about the 'Jesus stories' that they read in class too.  We always feel so welcome there.

Since we were in Ottawa I thought we'd check out Wabi Sabi, a yarn shop I've heard a lot about.  To get there we drove through Ottawa's China Town.  I did not expect what we found:

How's that for a surprise driving down the road!  Very cool.  Wish I could say the same for the yarn shop.  People here in the Ottawa Valley like to put down Toronto for some reason, they say how rude everyone is and such.   Well, lets just say I've never had such a visit to the yarn shop, not even the potentially snooty ones downtown Toronto.  No one could even be bothered to say 'hello' let alone see if we needed any help.  I stood at the counter a good 10 minutes without any service, even though the one shop girl was just tidying up.  If I didn't want to buy some yarn there that I've never seen before, we would have just left.
We read The Mitten and The Christmas Baby.

Monday we had a lot of fun decorating gingerbread houses.  I made them the easy way with my pan from Lee Valley Tools.  We made one for us

and one for Ella's friends in Renfrew.

We read The Snowman and Merry Christmas Emily.

Tuesday was great excitement.  We headed out to Killaloe to get our Christmas tree.  We found a great place with nice trees and reasonable prices, unfortunately the owner is really old and plans to retire next year.  This part of the Ottawa Valley needs a nice tree farm.  We read Wild Christmas Reindeer and Trouble with Trolls.

Wednesday Ella and I had a grand time decorating the tree.  I think Ella actually put up most of the decorations.  I did the unwrapping and Daddy did the over 6 foot parts  :)  I was a really good Momma and didn't rearrange any of Ella's decorations over night, even the ones that are clustered together.

We read the Little Christmas Tree and the Littlest Snowman (price on this Golden Book $0.35, must have been one of my Dad's).

Thursday we finally got a start at our Christmas baking.  I can't believe what a help Ella is this year.  I think she must have filled at least a third of the cookie sheets.  I tried really hard not to mention the misshapen cookies.  I don't want to discourage her.  We decided not to paint the cookies this year, just the coloured sugar.  Maybe next year we'll try the fancy painting.

We'll likely do a bit of baking every day, we've still got quite the list to get finished in less than 9 days.  We read the 12 Days of Christmas .

Today we are taking it easy.  After a morning of baking we're going to pop some popcorn and make some hot cocoa and watch a great Christmas movie.  If I have my way we'll watch Little Women.   We're reading Rudolph and Frosty

Time Flies

Here's my little pumpkin skating for the very first time.  This was taken 30 December 2008, just before Ella turned 3.  

 

And here's my little speed demon on Friday!  Ella's not happy unless she's going fast!  She can't wait for me to teach her 'tricks'. 

Help Needed!

We really need to get the cold situation under control.  This is Ella's third cold this fall.  It's going to be a loooong winter.  Any suggestions out there?  Keep in mind Ella doesn't like vegetables (except apples and grapes) and won't eat anything that tastes weird or gross.

I also need some sewing help.  I am loving the side zipper idea I got from my bloggy friend.  But I need to figure out how to put in side seam pockets. I feel lopsided with a pocket only on one side.  I know it's possible but I can't seem to figure it out.

Halloween 2011

Ella and Daddy got to work on her pumpkin Sunday.  Daddy had been saving a great pumpkin out in the pumpkin patch.  Ella drew up her plans.

This is the only action shot.  Ella decided the insides were too gross so good Daddy cleaned the guts out for her.  Ella then marked out her face and Daddy did all the cutting.  It's a good thing Daddy was home because the pumpkin was so thick, I'm not sure I could have done the cutting.

Sticking in the scary pumpkin teeth!

Very pleased with her creation.

As I mentioned yesterday, Ella is coming down with another cold.  She was so miserable Sunday night.  We actually spent the night downstairs.  Luckily she perked up by Monday afternoon.

Ella as Rapunzel (from Tangled).  

I have the best Mommy.  I have been so exhausted with this pneumonia, it's been hard to do anything.  I didn't have a clue how I was ever going to make Ella's costume this year.  So my Mommy offered to do the sewing if I cut the pieces out.  She did a great job.  Thanks Mom!!

Maybe I Should Teach the Child to Knit??

This was taken last year on a trip to Bowmanville (for Daddy to recoup from the appendix nonsense).   What amazes me is how Ella's holding her crayons almost perfectly!  I've been waiting to teach her to knit, the Waldorf folks say after she's 7, but I think she's ready.  I'm hoping it will help with her attention span and also make the drives to Scarborough/Bowmanville.  The 'are we there yet' questions start before we even get to Bancroft.

We Interrupt Our Regularly Scheduled Progamming...

We interrupt our regularly scheduled programming, there won't be a Farm Girl Friday post this week.  The farm girl has melted and is trying to find somewhere cool.  What kind of crazy province goes from -45C to +48C (118F) with humidity???  These are about the only times I miss working, our office was so nice and cold in the summer -sigh!

We had a fabulous visit down to Scarborough.  Auntie Belinda is really making the house look like a home.  She has a perennial border down either side of the front walkway.  In a couple years it will will fill in and be gorgeous.

Sunday we dunked Ella in the sunscreen and headed to Centreville on Toronto Island.  Even though we lived in Bowmanville all my life, we never went to Centreville.   Ella is the perfect age/size for Centreville this year.  There was only 1 ride she could not ride.  A few required an adult to go along, but that wasn't a problem.







A favourite ride was the antique carousel.  This turn around Ella tried out the ostrich.  Ella had so much fun on the roller coaster.  I finally have someone to go on the wild and crazy rides with me and now I don't like them so much any more.  I was is a bit of a car accident in university and since then my balance isn't what it used to be.  So getting spun and tossed around isn't the fun it used to be  :(




Waiting for the ferry.  The crowd on the island was fairly large, there was an India Festival going on.  But the crowd at Centreville was perfect.  Ella got straight on every ride or only had to wait one turn.  Unlike Canada's Wonderland, we didn't have to wait for hours.

I would definitely recommend Centreville for anyone in the Toronto area with little people.  You'll have a blast.

The main reason for going to the city this time of year is because it's Great Grandma's birthday at the end of the month.   We usually come early because we can't leave Daddy alone during sweet corn season -just too much work for one person.  We got Great Grandma a pretty stain glass hummingbird wind chime.  She loves hummingbirds (Great Grandpa did).





Not only did I pick up my supply of yarn but we also went to St. Jacob's Market and the fabric store.  I got a nice pile of material for Ella and I and we picked up some gorgeous fresh peaches and yellow plums.  It's still early for peaches so I was only able to get a small basket, not the big bushel one that I was hoping to get.  Though with this heat I'm glad I don't have to be canning a bushel of peaches.

This and That

Ella and her babies having a tea party.  It's Lucy's birthday.

Daddy finishing up the no-till soy beans.  They are now finished all the field cropping.  Hurray!!

They have been busy this week resurfacing the highway in front of our farm.  This train of equipment was chewing up pavement at one end and then putting it back down as new pavement at the other end.  Made getting up the highway to the other field fun -not!

I'm a bad blog owner.  I completely forgot to take a picture yesterday for World Wide Knit in Public day.  Grandma and I were knitting away at market.  And then I forgot to bring the camera with me today for our time at Expo 150.   There was a good turn out, but we didn't get to see anything except the animal tent.  Had some really good conversations with the general public.  Answered some really bizarre questions.  I wish the people who watch "Food Inc" would realize that it isn't 'gospel' and was produced to further a certain agenda.  They also need to remember that we live in Canada and have much different (and stricter) rules than the Americans.  And we raise our animals differently.

Farmgirl Friday -3 June 2011

Joining the Farmgirl fun this week.

Yesterday, I discovered that adrenalin does NOT over power asthma (at least not in a minor type of situation).  The Canada geese were in this field eating the Indian corn that Ella and Grandpa had just planted this morning.  So I told Ella to run out in the field being as loud and crazy as she wanted  to chase off the geese.  I guess I should have told her to only go so far.  The geese wouldn't fly away, only moved further down the field.  So of course, Ella kept going.  It was so windy yesterday that she couldn't hear me screaming shouting for her to stop.  So I had to try to run after her (she's half way across a 50 acre field by now).  I thought I was never going to get her stopped in time and had visions of her falling in the river (still full and deep) or disappearing into the swamp (has happened to cows) before I could catch her.  Finally the wind stopped for a moment and she heard me.  As I sat on the ground wheezing, we had a good chat about the dangers of the river and not going so far from home.






Inspired by my friend over at Heritage Farmgirl and due to dress desperation (aka nothing suitable for in public).  I've been making some new dresses.  The first 2 are a combination of 2 Simplicity patterns.  I really like them and Colin loves them.  The last is a Vogue and it is beautifully designed (fully lined and everything).  Vogue sure knows how to make a pattern.  I'm just home from Knit Night and Colin was sleeping on the chesterfield, so the pictures are a funny kind of angle.




We have a wedding to attend in June, so this was the first dress I made.  I had absolutely nothing to wear to a wedding.  I found this material on sale at Fabricland for $2.50 a metre -unheard of price these days.  I got enough to make Ella a matching dress too.  Once I finish it and the pins are out, I'll get a picture of her too.  This is the style that Colin really likes.  I like it too, though I think I look better in my head than in pictures  :)









This is just an everyday kind of dress.  Good for groceries or just hanging around doing stuff  :)  The material came from the Mennonite store in Floradale.  I love that store.  They have such a great selection of cotton floral prints.  The fabric is great quality and very reasonable prices.  The staff is lovely too (which is more than can be said for the Pembroke Fabricland most days).  I have been known to make trips to the St. Jacob's area just to be able to go there.  Luckily it's only 1 1/2 hours from Toronto, so it makes a nice day trip when we are visiting my sister.  Of course we hit the market too.






This is the Vogue dress and I'm just not sure.  Like I said, the pattern is beautiful and went together well.  But then I put it on...


  I thought the pattern had a 20's farm house dress kind of vibe and had high hopes for it.


Please be completely honest.  If you think it looks terrible say so.  It's hard to get an honest opinion around here because Colin and Ella think I look beautiful in everything.


  My friends on Facebook have been sharing this old Body Shop ad and I thought this was a great place to share it too.  Obviously from this post it's easy to see how true this really is.  Though I don't want a super model's body (child-like) I really would like the body I had when Colin and I met.  The size someone who's only 5 ft, on a good day, should have.  Sorry I can't make it bigger.  It says "there are 3 billion women who don't look like supermodels and only 8 who do"  Too bad Mattel made them stop the ad campaign.

Big Girl Room

The last little while we've been busy making Ella's bedroom into more of a big girl room.  We finally bought Ella a wardrobe.  Until now all her dresses hung on the back of her bedroom door -her room has no real closet.  That's worked well until lately.  My girl is getting so tall that her dresses are starting to drag on the floor  :)

  It was two long hot days trying to build the cupboard.  I don't know why it's always so hot when we have to do stuff like this.  It was overcast and I had such a headache too.

One good thing with this room change, the cupboard more or less covers the spot where Ella (a few years ago) pulled off the border.  The first couple times I glued the pieces back on, but then some got lost and I gave up.





Here's the cupboard and bookcase all together.  Not bad for 2 days work.  Two doors are closet space and the third door is shelves for undies and sweaters and what not.  I'm glad we finally got her bookcase together.  Now I can get MY bookcase back!







We re-arranged the furniture too.  Ella's room is so small that the furniture only fits in one way.  I'm not sure why these pictures are so blurry.  Maybe it was the headache  :)

And yes, there is room in this bed for Ella.  This pile of stuffies is actually smaller than before.  Ella picked a few to donate.





Ella was less than fun these two days.  I think she might have been fighting a headache too (Momma my brain hurts as she says).  This is the attitude we had to deal with.  Not much help!

But she loves her new big girl bedroom and loves having the bed in a new positions.  She says it feels like a new room.

Wonderful Playthings

A while ago I discovered a really great Esty shop.  It's called Beneath the Rowan Tree and owned by a fellow Ontario Momma.  She has such wonderful playthings for little people.   Beautiful play silks (at reasonable prices), peg people, dolls and other stuffies and so much more.  I bought the pattern to knit a toadstool house.  The pattern knit up like a dream.  I still need to felt it, but I can't wait to give it to Ella.

Beneath the Rowan Tree also has a blog.   I enjoy following this blog.  Her little girl, Rowan, is just about Ella's age and very much like Ella.  Their family seems a lot like ours.  Trying to give our children a special childhood and make sure they don't grow up too quickly.

Happy Mother's Day

Grandma and Ella surprised me with pictures for Mother's Day.  Most of them were the usual kind of poses.  Ella did this just as the lady clicked.  It's one of my favourites.

Happy Mother's Day to all the moms out there in blogland!!

Saturday

Finally got the birthday presents finished.  I made a couple of drawing folios for Colin's niece and nephew.  Their birthdays were yesterday and today but we won't see them until Wednesday (so I'm not late).  I'm sure Jared will love it, he's 7.  I hope Brittany likes it too.  She's 13 now.  But Grandma Isobel always says Brittany likes to draw, so I made her one too.  They were very easy and there are lots of examples out there in blog land.  Most have a section all made up for the crayons.  I just left these ones with 2 large pockets to make them more versatile.  Ella picked out the colours and designs.  Jared's folio has a formula one race car.

Ventured outside for the first time in a while and look what I found!  My bluebells are flowering.  I even found a few that are finally spreading.  Bluebells make me happy.  On the way to church in Toronto (for Easter), we always drive by a number of old houses that literally have blue front yards.  Their bluebells have spread so much over the years.  That's what I want!


Since it was so nice and warm out today, we stopped and picked up some of the branches off the grass.  The grass is finally starting to grow, so we need to get it cleaned up, in no time it will be long enough for Daddy to mow it again this year.

We had a nice while outside this afternoon.  Though I'm not sure what that large, bright, yellow thing was hanging in the sky  :)

One last picture.  Ella wanted to share a picture of her bunny from Easter.  She loves this little bunny.  It even sits on her night table overnight.  The best dollar I ever spent  :)

Yarn Along -6 April 2011

Lots of accomplished knitting to share this week in the Yarn Along.  I have a number of 'orders' for the egg/birds for Easter so I've been busy.  Ella really wants one.  She's giving all the finished ones 'love'.
Today we are reading (and Ella loves) Bible Stories for Little Tots.  It's by the Daughters of St.Paul.  I think it must have been one of my Dad's books, it's a little too "Catholic" to be from Mom's baptist/missionary/united family.    I have to skip some of the stories.  They are too intense for Ella, I know we would have nightmares for days.

I really appreciate Grandma keeping Ella for me last week.  I just wish Grandma did share her cold.  Poor Miss Ella is miserable and coughing.  Last night she woke up sobbing that her ear was plugged and hurting.  She kept asking me to 'fix it', which breaks my heart since there is nothing I can do.  We ended up downstairs because sitting up seemed to give her some relief.  We eventually fell asleep (sometime after 2).  That's one nice thing with Daddy's new chesterfield.  Now when Ella needs to sleep downstairs, Momma doesn't have to sleep on the floor -she gets one reclined end and I get the other.

We are likely heading to the walk-in clinic this afternoon.  I'm wondering if she's got an ear infection.

Hand Me Downs

Ella doesn't get many hand-me-downs any more.  When she was a baby I don't think I needed to buy her any clothes for at least the first six months of her life.  But now it's usually Ella passing on her nice things.    Lately we met some new folks.  They have a lovely candle company in Eganville.  They also raise some animals and gardens.  Luckily for Ella, they also have a little girl a bit older than Ella who loves girly things too.  The other day Lynn dropped off a bag of clothes and puzzles for Ella.  Much to Ella's delight there were lots of Strawberry Shortcake jammies.   Only one pj pant was too small.  The others Ella loves already.  Ella was extra happy to see that there was even a Strawberry Shortcake nightie to fit Lucy.

Ella says 'thank you Lynn'!!

More Snow

We are officially snowed in this morning.  No church for us.  We headed out to play instead.  Well, some of us played, poor Daddy was trying to get the snow off the tarp building.  He ties the shovel to a rope and tosses it up and pulls down the snow.  It's not working so well today as there is much ice under the snow.  Luckily we don't have to shovel out the driveway and sidewalk.

The trees look so beautiful covered in snow.  It's not that cold out either.  The snow by Ella's 'mountain' is knee deep and over my boots!  Most places it is about a foot deep.  Really fluffy so we still don't have a snowman -didn't get out yesterday because the rain started before we could get out and since we still have sniffles I didn't think getting wet was a good idea.


It's a good thing we didn't have to go anywhere this morning.  It took Colin and Ella about half an hour to dig out the truck.  I've never seen the truck bed so full of snow.  Ella has so much fun helping Daddy in the snow.

Daddy and I are about ready for spring.