a beautiful and serene scene

 There was only a blip of sun today (so much for the forecast sunshine), but just for fun, I generated a paragraph about the sun shining on the snow using chatGPT:

The sun shining on the snow creates a beautiful and serene scene. The snow sparkles and glistens like thousands of diamonds as the light reflects off of it. The sun's rays cast a warm and inviting glow, making the snow appear to be a sea of white gold. The snow-covered trees and landscape take on a magical quality, as if they have been transformed into a winter wonderland. The combination of the bright sun and the fresh snow creates a peaceful and calming atmosphere, inviting one to take in the beauty of nature and enjoy the present moment. It's a perfect time to take a stroll, enjoy a snowball fight, or simply sit and take it all in.

It reads like some rando wrote it and not like me at all, but I may give up blog writing!

Lupa wore her snowsuit out to the field for a snowshoe this morning. It didn’t seem to slow her down, although huge snowballs hung between her back legs where the suit didn’t cover - the rest was snow free! Today the snow is sticky, packing easily into snowballs so she would have been covered from head to toe… It’s a bit of a pain getting the thing on her, not to mention that she hides when she sees it (she’s much like Spike in her aversion to wearing tight things), but with Carm’s help we wrestled her into it! Hopefully it gets easier with practice.

I realized yesterday why I have so much trouble spelling ‘independent’... our local grocery store spells it with an ‘A’... ‘independAnt’ which is, of course, the French spelling… If only I had the same excuse for all the other things I misspell! Or misuse. Yesterday I’m pretty sure I used affect/effect in the wrong way… is it ‘it affected me in such a way’ or ‘it effected me in such a way’? I went with ‘affect’ (which Google Docs says is right!). It’s no wonder that English is a hard language to learn!

Little Lup-da-loop did some really good ‘find it’ today and then crapped out - did she get bored? Sometimes it is SO hard not to compare her to my little apricot buddy. Speaking of which, I can’t find one of my nice silicon treat pouches - I’ve searched in the obvious spots but, alas, it’s another quest for lost items.

Awesome!

“warm winter day, although that might not be awesome at all as it wrecks the fluffy snow!”

“coffee at just the right temperature”

“having the time to sit around drinking coffee and writing drivel”

“creamy Italian lentils”

snowsuit

 The roads were clear enough this morning for us to make a trip to the pet store. We needed a bag of dog food, and since Lupa has been coming inside looking like a snowball, we brought her along to try on snowsuits. A black one with legs fit her perfectly and has plenty of adjustment and snaps to keep legs and neck tight against snow. 

Does she love it? Ha. No. But she ran around like a crazy dog when we tried it outside so maybe she’ll figure out that it’s better than being covered in snowballs with the potential of being dunked into a sink of warm water to dissolve them.

Awesome!

“sun out for a few minutes in the middle of the storm”

another little storm

 Winter’s fury is bearing down on us again - we had half a day of respite although there were flurries and the sky and land merge into one, interrupted only by a line of Norway spruces on the property line along the road. It makes me feel cosy and cocooned in my fleece pants and flannel shirt, dog snuggled against my legs.

I managed to pry myself off my butt to get the downstairs chest freezer a bit more organized. I added a few jars of stuff to the bottom - 3 jars of turkey broth for gravy and stuffing, plus a big jar of herbs… glass in the freezer is a bit scary hence the reorg to make a safe spot on the bottom. Plus Carm picked up two giant chubs of lean ground beef from Costco that we bagged into 1lb flattened chunks - 20 bags of meat take up a lot of room! A freezer is a bit like a black hole… (note to self, update freezer inventory!)

My phone got an update a few weeks ago which partially broke the bluetooth between it and my headphones :-( It works sometimes but then it will drop and reconnect constantly until I turn bluetooth on and off again… it may work for 2 minutes or 2 hours… frustration has made me play music from the speaker and inflict my music on Carm. I’m not sure what is worse for him - headphones with me singing, or speaker singing along with me, possibly masking my out of tune voice!

The headphones can be a bit of a pain as Carm talks to me, not realizing that all I can hear is ‘wah wah wah’... it’s like being in a bubble of notes that protects me from reality! I wonder if dancing like a fool counts as exercise?

Monday we had my aunt Kari over for a quick supper and then after she left we chatted with the siblings for a few hours :-) Technology!

The hoppin john leftovers have made for some excellent breakfast/lunch food - I may make another batch when this one is finished cause beans for breakfast are so much better for me than bread. I love bread but it seems to turn immediately to fat around my waist and then gives me acid reflux - ugh. Maybe I’ll make bread tomorrow. 😱 

Lupa has turned into a ‘finding fiend’! She not only searches on the floor, but also on top of things - she’s turned 3 dimensional :-) So that’s awesome!

In the idleness of my brain I wondered about the difference between stuffing and dressing - according to google, stuffing is cooked inside the turkey, while dressing is cooked in another dish, which logically makes sense, although I’d think dressing would go on top, like dressing a wound. But what if you cook it both ways - some inside and some in a dish? What then? It also depends on where you are from: dressing is more of a southern or Victorian term as ‘stuffing’ was considered too crass! What do you call it?

All this chatter is making me want another coffee! Surely coffee is still okay to drink? 

Was just outside… there’s a cold east wind blowing this afternoon… too bad it’s not bringing Mary Poppins instead of snow and ice! A spoonful of sugar would hit the spot right now 🤪  Especially since I DID have that third coffee!

tonight: wild wind from the east dropping snow on us at a ferocious rate.

Awesome!

“flannel pants”

“butter bombs”

“dogs running full speed”

hoppin john

 I can’t believe it’s Sunday already… the time is passing at a ferocious rate, even though we haven’t been up to much since Wednesday. I think I’ve been to the grocery store and that’s about it for outings - pretty exciting life eh!

We did have more snow which required a snowblow. It covered the crust from the last freezing rain so it’s been good for snowshoes again :-) Yesterday we even caught some sun while we were out. It was like traversing a white universe filled with brilliant stars. I’m not sure if Adia and Lupa see the beauty but they sure have fun in the fluffy snow!

It has been unseasonably warm which means Lupa comes in from outside encased in snow, some of which will come off with the whisk, but the rest melts off all over the house. The air is dry though so it evaporates off the floor quickly (I wish I could say the same for my socks!).

It started snowing again this evening… all day the sky was heavy and grey like a dingy wool blanket. Even the grow lights had trouble burning through the gloom… another day for hibernating. I did get out for a tramp around the field. It’s hovering around freezing so the snow is packing down well - might even be able to walk with boots tomorrow!

Do you ever marvel at the stark whiteness of a marshmallow? I was surprised to hear they are often made with egg whites and of course gelatin - not a vegan treat at all! 

I haven’t cooked anything new for a while so tonight I made ‘Southern Hoppin John’ which is just black-eyed peas, brown rice, bacon, green pepper, celery, onion, and some spices. When I opened the instant pot, I thought there might be a mistake as it looked like it had already been eaten! Ugh. I thought I’d remove it from my recipe stack but after a few bites (and a bit more salt), I upgraded it to a ⅘. Easy comfort food, although not super healthy with the bacon but it does have legumes 🤪 

Lupa has made a learning leap! She is finally expanding her search for the toy and is even looking on top of the sofas and around corners. She’s looking longer and harder and using her nose. I’ve started using a cue which might be helping at this point - I should probably have started using it sooner. Progress!

I forgot to mention in my last post that it was Lupa’s one year ‘getting day’! She’s come a long way from the days when I was nearly in tears with frustration and exhaustion, when fantasies of putting her in a box marked with ‘free’ by the side of the road churned in my head! She’s turned into a pretty good pup, at least for some things.

The pillow saga continues… I’m mostly used to the brick except when I’ve got a bit of insomnia… is it worth the struggle? Not sure.

Awesome!

“a universe of sparkling snow”

“Lupa finding her toy in hard spots”

“magic butter maker (once I figured it out!)”

“a tart apple”

“cookie tins for $0.44!”

birthday celebrations

 A pillow is a very personal thing and a good pillow is worth its weight in gold. However, even the best pillow has to be replaced every now and again… alas… We picked up a foam ‘cooling’ pillow a few days ago and I’ve been struggling to get used to it. My old pillow was a feathery fluff that could be cuddled into. The new pillow is not. Picture a block of concrete covered in a micron of foam in the shape of a flat pillow… my head does not even make an indent into it. It is not cosy.

Last night was the third night with it. I may be getting used to it but maybe not. The only reason I’m giving it a bit longer is that I don’t wake up with the worst bed-head ever. So either I don’t toss and turn as much, or since I’m on top of the pillow my hair doesn’t get mussed. We’ll see!

Last night we hosted a little dinner for Trudie’s birthday. Trudie, Leo and Marie came, as well as Trudie’s friends Rick and Roger. Roger is a trained chef… We went full out with a turkey and all the fixings… no pressure of course! 

The turkey thermometer gave us some problems part way through - it was reading that the turkey was ready but it had only been in the oven for 2 hours. Not long enough for a 7kg bird to cook!  it was 3:30 and supper wasn’t scheduled until 6 so in a panic jabbed the poor bird with the thermometer in every place imaginable - I finally found a place that registered lower so we went with that and popped it back into the oven. No stress! ha ha.

Everyone got here by 5:30 and had a drink while I finished up the last minute things and then supper was on the table - ON TIME!!! The turkey turned out great - moist and tender. I did roasted carrots and radishes for a change - both good. And of course stuffing, green bean casserole, garlic mashed potatoes, and gravy. Sugar-free cheesecake with a blueberry compote and custard rounded off the meal. We didn’t have a ton of leftovers ;-)

You’d think a turkey dinner would be an easy do - some people seem able to pull such a feast out without working up a sweat… however… Tuesday I did about 3 hours of prep and yesterday was pretty steady… Carm did most of the cleaning and helped with potatoes, moved chairs and got things down from high shelves, etc, but gosh! So much to organize. I spent some time Tuesday morning modifying an old cooking plan cause I was starting to really freak out - it’s been fine tuned and will now be a master plan for any turkey dinner going forward. I’ll just have to adjust times based on turkey size and dinner time. Everything is on it, including which serving dishes I need… it really helped keep me on track.

Carm did the heroic job of doing almost all the clean up :-)

The whole evening, with old friends and new, made it totally worth the effort!!!

Lupa spent the evening after supper moving from one lap to another. She has to get a belly rub from everyone at least once :-) Adia mostly sat with me on the loveseat.

We did have another day of sunshine on Monday but the clouds socked in on Tuesday, bringing a bit of freezing rain and a touch of snow. Blech. Luckily there wasn’t much rain so we’ll be able to re-open our snowshoe trails easily (maybe not today though! it’s more of a chill with a book or movie sort of day.) More weather of some sort is expected tonight but it looks like it might slip south of us.

Awesome!

“new friends”

“turkey breast moist and tender - not dried out!”

“sunshine”

Turkey dinner work plan

Saving here just in case I lose my Docs file!

 Turkey

    butter w rosemary, sage

    dry rub kosher salt, rosemary

    onion, celery, carrots, bay leaf, rosemary for roasting pan

    (roasting pan, blue plate, tongs, sharpen knife)

Dressing

    onion, celery, parsley, sage, bread

    (french white, serving spoon)

Green bean casserole

    green beans (2 bags frozen), onion, bacon, cream of mushroom soup

    (slow cooker, serving spoon)

Roasted Radishes

    radishes, olive oil, garlic powder, salt

    baking sheet, blue bowl, serving spoon

Roasted Carrots

    carrots, coriander, orange zest

    (baking sheet, blue bowl, serving spoon)

Mashed potatoes w roasted garlic

    potatoes, cream, butter, roasted garlic

    (instant pot, serving spoon, masher)

Cranberry sauce

    canned cranberries

(glass bowl, teaspoon)

Gravy

    cream, broth, marsala, cornstarch slurry

    (gravy boat, ladle, gravy seperator)

Dessert: sugar-free cheesecake, blueberry compote, custard

    cream cheese, eggs, blueberries, milk, cream, custard powder

    (white bowls)

several days ahead

turkey into fridge

__________

day before

(dry rub, butter under skin and into fridge)

cube bread

dry bread in oven

dice onion and other ingredients for stuffing

slice onion for green bean casserole

cook bacon for green beans

assemble casserole & into fridge/garage

make dessert (2023 sugar free cheesecakes)

__________

AM    green bean casserole - turn on in slowcooker

dust (Carm dog stuff, sweep, vacuum)

cheesecakes into container in garage

    make some sort of blueberry compote for cheesecake (into fridge)

prep custard (3T powder, 3T sucralose, 4T milk powder)

coriander into dish, orange washed & grater out

lemon water

serving & cooking dishes, utensils, water jug out

clothes arranged

11:30 am    turkey out of fridge (2 hr)

12:45         make stuffing

         wipe dry brine from inside turkey

        make herbal butter (sage, rosemary, butter)

        bubbles into garage

1:00         stuff turkey - neck cavity only

                herbals into turkey roaster (celery, onion, carrot, garlic, sage, rosemary)

                garlic into tinfoil

1:15          pre heat oven to 425

1:30 turkey in breast down !!!!! to be adjusted when we know the size of turkey

30 min at 425F on breast then flip and reduce heat to 325F. Baste after an hour and then every 30 minutes. internal 160°F | 75°C (165F will cook more while resting)

13-15 min per pound  2023 6.8kg/15lbs (unstuffed) approx 3 1/2 hours 

2:00        flip turkey breast up

                            garlic in with turkey

reduce heat to 325F

set table

cookies onto tray

3:00         baste turkey

                            remove garlic

peel potatoes

cut up carrots & onto parchment lined sheet

clean radishes & onto parchment lined sheet

3:30         baste turkey

                bath

4:00        baste turkey

cranberries into dish

butter, milk, cream, garlic on keep warm for potatoes

cornstarch slurry for gravy

4:30        get dressed

4:50        potatoes into instant pot for 10 min NR

                feed dogs

                feed Grace

5:00        turkey out of oven

                increase temp to 400

                baste stuffing with turkey juices

                stuffing into oven

                radishes & carrots into oven

                cheesecake out of garage

5:25        radishes & carrots out of oven, toss with butter & spices

                 reduce temp to 350

make gravy    (cream, broth, marsala, cornstarch slurry)

mash potatoes (garlic, cream, butter)

stuffing out of oven

lemon water onto table

light candles

6pm SERVE SUPPER

dessert:     prepped custard mix, add 2 cup water, ½ cup cream

        6 minutes in mv

        blueberry compote in mv for 40s

pink sky in the evening

 I was disappointed when I woke up to grey skies again. I had been sure the forecast was for sun today and tomorrow but it seemed that they were very mistaken… as the morning wore on the grey slowly morphed into a bright blue sky and I was happy!

The sunshine and white snow, not to mention two dogs careening around the house, enticed us out onto our snowshoes again. It was glorious! The dogs ran around following suspicious animal tracks (coyote?) while we stomped down our trail. Another perfect winter day :-)

It’s 3pm, my spot on the sofa is in full-on sun but I feel like getting supper underway. My favourite time to cook is mid to late afternoon - by 5:30 I’m not in the mood anymore - when the sun goes down my motivation vacates the premises. Sometimes I think that having our main meal during the day would better suit me. I’m making chicken & dumplings which is a slightly more complex recipe than normal.  If I start now, supper will be ready by 4:30… which even by our normal eating time is a bit early. Well, maybe I could do some prep now. 

It’s past 6 now… we’ve warmed our tummies with delicious chicken & dumplings. I did the prep then started the broth. After that I played clicker with Lupa… she’s catching on but she doesn’t hold a candle to Spike. I have a new appreciation for his brains as I struggle to not compare Lupa as she muddles along.

She’s catching on but gosh. She doesn’t have the same ‘try’ as he did. If she can’t find the toy (and seriously it’s in my eyesight), she just lies down and barks at me :-( Today she made big strides in the amount of time she’d look - from 5s to 60s is a big improvement (I keep telling myself). 

I do love her though :-)

We saw the beaver!

Awesome!

“pure white snow”

“Lupa racing down the path and leaping through deep snow”

“Adia stretched in the sun”

“pink sky in the east as the sun set in the west”

uplifting

 Uplifting is today’s word of the day. It is what I consider a perfect winter day: temps around minus 8C, bright blue sky, little to no wind, perfect snow conditions. Yes, I needed a day like today as I was starting to drag down a bit - not badly mind you - but I was trending in the wrong direction. But today!

After a lazy morning Carm and I got our snowshoes on for a little tramp in the field. We didn’t go far but did the loop twice. The snow was soft with a heavy, weight supporting, crust of hard snow about 15 cm below the surface. Adia’s long legs had no trouble, but Lupa had to struggle somewhat. She came in disguised as a snowball again although she had less than yesterday since I trimmed her belly and armpits. She’s game for the fun though!

It was wonderful! It was glorious! If I wasn’t already in my fluffy flannel poodle pyjama bottoms I’d go out again!

The guest room is finally looking like a bedroom and not the scene of a suitcase tsunami. It’s only about 15 minutes from being visitor ready :-)

Sadly, we haven’t seen the beaver since the day Lupa fell into the pond. Did he decide to move away or did the fisher get him. Or maybe his little reed lodge fell down and killed him, or he froze to death cause he didn’t have a proper lodge. Or… were those coyote tracks in the field this morning?

At 5pm tonight it was still light out - not a blazing light, but the pinkish early evening light just before the sun sets. I changed the on/off times of my little lights and candles today as the days are getting longer so they no longer need to come on before 4:30!

Awesome!

“the brilliant blue of a winter’s sky”

“the sun!!”

“Lupa sunning herself as I tidyied the spare room”

“Adia running in the snow”

“Lupa struggling through the deep (for her) snow”

snowballs

 Well… I won’t do that again…

Friday Carm braved the snow for a drive into the city to pick up the box of chicken hearts that we’d ordered so I had him pickup a box of chicken livers as well. Unfortunately the livers were frozen solid - think a 5kg block of frozen solid grossness - so I had to defrost them in the sink under hot water… they basically disintegrated in the water - liver soup anyone? 😱  It’s not a big deal for the dogs, but next time we’ll order ahead and get unfrozen!

Another storm hammered us overnight and into today - it’s 2pm and still snowing. So far we’ve gotten 15+ cm of snow plus a bit of drifting. NOTHING like the Christmas 2022 storm thankfully!

Carm has done snowblow #1 - it took about 1.5 hours - hoping the snow slows down soon so he doesn’t have to do another one! I was lazy and just did some shovelling and a short snowshoe out into the field. I turned back after only a few minutes as the wind was whipping across the creek from the north, turning my cheeks red and uncomfortable. The snow is perfect for snowshoes though!

Lupa came in disguised as a giant snowball! I saw a hack on fb using a whisk to brush the snowballs out and it actually worked pretty well. Regardless, once she’s dry I’ll get the clippers out and do her armpits etc to reduce snowball gripping hair. On my way back to the house from the field she ran ahead but didn’t come back to me when I called her - perhaps she was frozen!

I know someone who’s been sick, really sick, with Covid for over 12 days…

Awesome!

“a cardinal in the window”

"good snowshoeing snow!"