Swans, Cinnamon Buns, and Flowers

We had a good walk at Willband again this morning. There were swans on the water and also flying overhead.  Do you know that a group of swans on the water are called a bevy?  In the air they are called a wedge ( probably because they fly in a V but really so do geese!)   We were surprised that so few people were out walking but maybe they were put off by the forecast which was for rain and wind. That didn't start until nearly noon by which time we were back home.

DH cut down a large  rug that was given to us (5X8'). We replaced the one inside the side door.  this new one needed cutting down to size and he removed the baseboards so he could tuck the carpet underneath. It looks so nice now.  While he was doing that I made cinnamon buns. They are not nearly as uniform in size as the ones below but they are good anyway.  I always have trouble rolling out my dough. I roll and it springs back again. Any tips?

 

 A new bouquet of flowers for the table.  I was planning on making strawberry/rhubarb jam and had taken out the jars that you can see in the background. ( Of course I was using fruit from the freezer.)

 That was my day.  Thanks for coming by.

 

 

 

Baking

 I have two sisters both much younger than I.  Both are talented women ( I'm tempted to call them girls because that's how I think of them).  My youngest sister has begun her Christmas baking and shared her pictures of some of the results.  With her permission I'll share those.  

The first picture is a pretty arrangement  she made from thrift store finds.  

 

 ...and her lovely cookies!!!

 

 

 This sister has 8 young grandchildren for whom she bakes several times a week.  Bread, buns and cookies are quickly eaten and much enjoyed.

 

Thanks for visiting

 

Tablecloths for Christmas

 It may be just a bit early to be thinking of Christmas and decorating our tables but I came upon these pretty tablecloths while browsing Pinterest once again.  They're all so pretty  but the first one is my favourite. Do you have a preference?

When we walked over at Willband on the weekend we saw all the usual waterfowl and also some swans. They come back every winter and our first sighting of them is special.

I've been having problems with my camera and for the time being I hope to find pictures that others have taken, as these were, by a fellow Willband walker who had the good fortune to see an Eagle grabbing a Canada Goose right out of the water and taking it over to a nearby tree to eat it. It actually looks like the Eagle just caught the goose with one of its talons.  I've enlarged the pictures to  make that more clear.

 

That's it for today. I hope your week is off to a good start.

 

Thanks for taking time to visit.

 

 

Craft Fair and Books

 First Christmas craft sale of 2025.  Sheila came by after work and picked us up to go to a nearby church where it was held.  It was fun to browse but all we bought was some food items ( they looked irresistible).  We came back home and called those our supper :)

I feel badly for all the vendors that don't seem to be selling many of their great items.  Are people more cautious with their spending?  Or do we have more than we need or want as it is and no desire for more stuff no matter how pretty? 

 I had library books to return today and while I was there I picked some more.

 

 

That's it for today. Have a lovely Sunday.

 

Thanks for stopping by.

 

 

 

This and That

 

 

My peach coloured Thanksgiving Cactus is blooming.

I found these pretty place mats on yesterday's visit to the thrift store. I had a big box to donate so I don't feel badly bringing home small treasures. These mats are not really quilted. The fabric is made to look like it though.

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 Here is a bit of trivia that I found interesting since I give myself 30 pages to decide if I'm going to continue reading a book. Unless I see that the language is offensive in which case I can tell right away that I don't want to continue reading. I wonder how many people would agree with this.

 Ever heard of the 50 page rule? A librarian has suggested that for books, if you're 50 or under, you read 50 pages and give yourself permission, at that point, to stop reading if you're not enjoying it. If you're older than 50, you subtract your age from 100 and read that many pages before putting it down for good.

Not much is happening here. It's raining and rather dismal outside. Fortunately I have an interesting book to read.  Thanks for visiting.

 

 

Baking and a Tea Pot

 Here we are again...Monday morning. Are you ready for the new week?  

The weekend held some great walks.  I baked a Whole Orange Loaf which  was eaten in no time at all. 

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Every year I make Chocolate covered  Peanut Butter Balls and every year I have trouble forming the balls. The mixture ( which contains PB, butter, icing sugar and Rice Krispies) does not want to stick together and form the balls which then go into the freezer to be dipped in melted chocolate once frozen.  A couple of years ago I declared that I wasn't going to make them any more. Youngest Son took over the job and yesterday was the day he came over to do that. Maybe the ones he made were not quite as uniform in size as these from the internet but they were made. This morning I dipperd them in melted chocolate and froze them in cookie tins for the coming season. We usually start the Christmas goodies in Advent, which will begin on November 30th this year.

 

 

I saw this gorgeous tea pot on Pinterest. Isn't it a beauty? It almost matches my tea cup.

 

That's it for today. Thanks for coming by.

 

 

 

 

 

Books and a Puzzle

 After a day of heavy rain we're enjoying a break in the weather.  9C with some clouds but no rain in the immediate forecast.

I often read more than one book at a time. Here are my current choices.  A Year in Nature is an almanac which I've begun reading for the month of November ( I just picked up this book from the library yesterday)..I'll see how far I get in the 3 weeks I'll have it ( or I may renew it then). The author is Marty Crump.  Shadow of the Solstice is a mystery, and The West Country is a Garden ( my own book) is full of beautiful paintings of wildflowers and sketches of buildings and places that she has traveled to in the UK. It's a wonderful book that I treasure.

 We finished another puzzle. We each work on half and as you can see once we were done we didn't bother actually connecting the two halves. It was a great puzzle to work on with lots and lots of detail.

 

 That's all for today.  I hope you have a lovely weekend.   Thanks for coming by.