Report from the Woods

With a three week thaw in January and almost no snow since, it's been a very easy winter so far. But there still isn't much in the way of food for bunnies so they've been eating the green cambium layer of bark on the trees I laid out for them.


Meanwhile Richard was busy cutting down some dead and dying trees. These we took out along the so-called "river" my parents named "The Mighty Mogelon." While it was frozen, it was easy to skid out the trees.


Our small collection of large wood that will need splitting this spring.


And news not exactly from the bush. My driveway is showing signs of spring. This is usually what it looks like at the beginning of April. Everyone is saying, "We're really going to get it in March." Hmmm. Even if we do, the days are longer now and the sun stronger. I say, bring it on Mother Nature!

Kashi Cereal Taste Test

About a month ago I saw an ad on TV to taste test Kashi cereal so I got online and signed up. Yesterday, I got this neat little box in the mail. Inside it was a box of Kashi cereal.


So I got ready to try it out.


Looks like a good breakfast, eh?


The cereal smelled and tasted like real berries. It was very crunchy too. Not recommended for those who might like quiet mornings (it's loud in your mouth!) but it's really tasty. Two thumbs up.


I gave the bottom of the bowl to Nutmeg. She gave it a two paws-up, although I think her vote was skewed a bit because she's such a milk junkie.

Victorian Window

I did this drawing a few years ago. Now if I could just get inspired to get drawing again. It's funny how it's so easy to fall off the creativity wagon but how difficult it is to climb back onto it again.

Perfect Valentine's Day

On Sunday, Richard and I headed to Cornwall to see the Seaway Valley Theatre Company perform Fiddler on the Roof.


It's a show with a huge cast and lots of wonderful musical numbers. How would they do it?


They did a really good job. The sets were simple but perfect. The casting was pretty darn good.


But definitely, the star of the show was Jean Guy Quesnel. He was absolutely convincing as the lead character Tevye. He was a joy to watch.


We went for an après théâtre snack at the Fifth Wheel down the road...


...where we had a cuppa joe and shared a poutine. A perfect Valentine's Day I'd say!

Junkanoo Valentine

While in the Bahamas last November, Richard and I found out about "Junkanoo." The word is derived from John Canoe, a 17th century slave master. Slaves were not allowed much freedom but when they could they'd hide in the bushes make music, dance and cover themselves in bright cosutmes. In Nassau, there is a Junkanoo Festival, on Boxing Day and New Year's Day. Here I am in Junaknoo gear.


And here's my valentine for Richard this year. Happy Junkanoo Valentine!

Trompe d'Oeil

Check it out. I was driving home the other day and man, doesn't it look like there's a truck coming right at me?


Kinda freaked me out. In actual fact, it was being towed to Herb's Service Centre and going the same direction as I was.

A Beautiful Day in the Neighbourhood

Unlike many of the places on the east coast of North America that have had major snowstorms, around here it's been unusually snowstorm-free and temperate around 0C (32F). I went into the woods to see if there was any bunny action. Check out the size of the snowshoe hare's back feet. As long as my own hand!


My bunny drive-in has been seeing lots of action. You can see two beds (melted oval shapes where the bunnies bedded down), lots of green still left for them to munch on and even a toilet to the left of their bedrooms.


Here's more bunny action. They've been digging around the base of the trees and pulling out pine cones to chow on.


Meanwhile the frozen stream has become a critter highway -- I guess it's pretty easy to get around on.


Richard and I went sliding on the rest of the river. What fun.


Only five more weeks till spring.

Judy's Cornmeal Cookies

I had a visit with my friend Judy the other day and she gave me a container filled with these fantastic cookies. She shared the recipe with me and told me that it was originally Martha Stewart's recipe. For me, they'll always be known as Judy's cornmeal cookies.

1 3/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 cup stone-ground yellow cornmeal
1/2 teaspoon salt
8 ounces (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
1 1/4 cups sugar
2 large eggs
3/4 cup dried currants (Judy omits these)
1 tablespoon plus 1/2 teaspoon finely chopped fresh thyme

1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees, with racks in upper and lower thirds. Line two baking sheets with parchment paper; set aside. Whisk together flour, baking soda, cornmeal, and salt in a medium bowl.
2. Put butter and sugar in the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the paddle attachment; cream on medium speed until pale and fluffy, about 3 minutes. Mix in eggs, 1 at a time. Add flour mixture; mix on low speed until just combined. Mix in currants and thyme.
3. Using a tablespoon or a 1 1/2-inch ice-cream scoop, drop rounded balls of dough onto lined sheets, spacing them 2 inches apart. Bake, rotating and switching positions of sheets about halfway through, until pale golden, 10 to 12 minutes. Transfer cookies, on parchment, to a wire rack. Let cool completely. Makes about 3 dozen.

Raccoons Beware!

Raccoons have broken into my storage shed so Richard and I decided to find the hole (we did) and cover it over (we did that too). But we also had to remove all their mess (yuck). Shredded boxes, styrofoam and paper bits and poop! I was warned about removing animal poop so that's why I have my version of the HasMat suit on. Life in the country, eh?

Super Bowl & Hot Dogs

The Super Bowl game was on last night but it was too cold outside for a tail gate party, so I made hot dogs a beans. Sort of works for football?


They were Hebrew National Franks, my favourite.


Richard's version of the meal mixed it up a bit more.

Baby Plates

I painted this dinner plate and matching dessert/salad plate for a friend of mine to take to her granddaughter in California. I hope she enjoys them!

Thought for Food

Last week I made a big pot of chicken soup that seemed to last me all week. Everyday I added different veggies and made it taste a little different each time. Really yummy on a cold night.


One of the best meals I made this week was a spur of the moment thing. Turkey meatballs browned with onions, garlic and peppers. Then I added tomato sauce and when the brown rice was ready, I added some artichoke hearts. I topped it with a few grates of cheese. Healthy and delicious.

By the Light of the Moon

Last Saturday was the largest full moon of the year -- when it looks the largest to us here on Earth, anyhow. It's called the Full Wolf Moon and it was big! We were invited to a moonlight snowshoe and I was intrigued. About 15 of us strapped on the shoes and off into the woods we all went. We were out for a little over an hour and even though it was -22C, once you got into the woods and there was no wind, it was surprisingly warm. We returned to mugs of hot cocoa and bowls of mulligatawny soup and warm biscuits. Okay, sometimes winter ain't so bad, right?

Our ATC Gang

Last Saturday, our artist trading card group met for our post-Christmas ATC exchange. What a fun gang!


We also had our holiday potluck which had been cancelled from last month due to freezing rain.


Good trades. Good eats. Good times!