Some Views of Saint John

Saint John is a old and historic port city. There are some very interesting things to see there. We snapped a few pics on our way through there last week. We will have to take more the next time we are there. We lived in Saint John for fifteen years and were tour guides to probably hundreds of people during those years. So we do know the places of interest!

Saint John Harbour Bridge to the far left

A ship to the right

Saint John Harbour

Saint John High School
Andy and Sara graduated from SJ High.

A Lobster house on Water Street

Row Houses looking toward the harbour

The Three Sisters (the lights)
Ships lined these lights up to get into the harbour.

If you are wondering about the farm...

we stopped there on our way home from Calais to check it out. It didn't look too bad! There is still some ice behind the kitchen stove. We wonder if the appliances will still work. The stove is wood/electric. All the wiring will have to be checked out before we think of using it. If the fridge is toast, it won't be a great loss. It was a cast-off from Kay who couldn't deal with it any longer at her camp. The toaster... it has worked for the entire 41 plus years of our marriage, more or less. It is a little temperamental at times. I guess we don't owe it anything. Maybe it is time for a quiet demise. When warm weather arrives, we will do what we need to, to put it all together again, and enjoy it when we can get there.

ANOTHER change!!!

I first was introduced to the Yankee Magazine back in the '80s when we stayed at the Frasers' cottage in Shediac. I loved it right away and have read it ever since. In my mind, it is linked to lazy beach days, a wood burning kitchen stove (which has since disappeared), strawberry picking in Boutouche and the nice little town of Shediac which now has a Frenchy's, but didn't then. I wouldn't think of getting rid of my old copies. (If you need a Yankee fix, you know where to go.) It is all about the New England states. When we lived in Minto, the Fredericton library had a subscription to it. It was obvious that others read it too since the copies were not always available. Lately I have not even seen it. You can imagine my shock when I saw it in Calais yesterday, but it was not the Yankee I had always known! It is bigger in size and the paper is different. As I started to read it, I discovered that this is just the second issue since the format was changed. New Englanders have plenty to say about this! Some do not care for anyone messing with a NE institution!!! I guess it is not fair to pass judgment until I have read it. I'll let you know. Who knows, maybe you will have to look it up to see what I am talking about!

This is for Kari

THIS IS THE STORY

When Sara was a little girl she brought me a brownie on a lettuce leaf one time when I was sick. This past Christmas time, she brought me a truffle on a lettuce leaf just to relive the memory. My niece, Kari, has been sick. She is a busy mom with three active kiddies. If I were there, Kari, I would bring you a truffle on a lettuce leaf...if I had a truffle to bring. The sad story about the truffles is, that they only sell them before Christmas at Costco. I went in a while back to buy some. They checked the computer and said there had been 9 packages of truffles that morning, but they were all gone! I guess it was about 10 AM then. They would not get them again until time to sell for next Christmas. We will just have to wait for them, and they are worth the wait! We limit ourselves to one a day and savour every bit.

So Kari, I wish I could bring you some comfort food. Aunt Connie's tea sounds like a soothing remedy!

This is REALLY OH, OH!!!

It is awful that Paul did not have a camera with him when he went to the farm on Tuesday. If we believe (and I do) what he says, we should have the opportunity to see what we believe! He could not get the door open yet and had to climb in a window to let the other guys in. What they saw was 6 to 12 inches of ice all over the kitchen floor. And that is not maybe 6, maybe 12 inches. That is the difference from one end of the kitchen to the other. We always knew it was not level, but this is ridiculous. It was up to the chair rungs!!! So they spent their time chipping ice and throwing it out the window! Sounds like fun, eh? Then they went to Mama George's for supper.

Well, the place is still standing, for which we thank the Lord! More to come...I am sure!

Reunited with her kitties!

Here is Mary looking very happy with Molly on her lap. Please continue to pray for her. She has had some very trying days and, I think, gets pretty discouraged. However she is making progress. I keep reminding her that she is lots better than she was 3 or 4 weeks ago!

Could It Be Spring?!

Believe it or not, the temp is above 0!!! Yesterday I had quite a bit of running around to do after a dentist appointment. (I have a couple of very valuable teeth now!) I found that my ski jacket was a bit warm in the afternoon. What a treat! Sunshine and water puddles, instead of ice. Today Paul has gone to the farm with three other "farm checkers". I didn't go because it was a guy thing. It will be interesting to see what they found. We will have to hear it, instead of see it, because he left the camera at home.

The Wonderful Travel Mug

Today when Paul took off early to teach his Bible Institute course, I gave him coffee in one of our plug-in travel mugs. It is such a cold day again! Today our newspaper headlines said, "NO EARLY SPRING FOR NB." I didn't believe the ground hog anyway. So Paul needed something to keep himself warm because the van would barely warm up before he got there! These mugs are great! We bought them for $3.49 after Christmas. If your coffee even starts out cold, it will warm it up to nice and toasty!

Notice our retro counter top! And my antique canisters!

The Carrot Cake that Won Him

My Mom was by no means a Mrs. Bennett from Pride and Prejudice, but she certainly was not above helping her girls out with snagging a prospective husband! So when she sent me carrot cake in college, half of it was for Paul. Here it is, well not really the very carrot cake she sent, but the same recipe. Notice the cute cake plate. I saw that on someone else's blog. I will include the recipe for anyone who needs that sort of help. Or should I send it to your mom, Ann?

*Notice the burnt looking edge. We have a deal: I burn things and Paul likes them. His mom always said they were not burnt, just dark brown. It is a good thing he had that training!

RECIPE

Mix together 1 1/2 cup vegetable oil & 2 cups of sugar

Add 4 eggs

Add dry ingredients: 3 cups flour, 2 teaspoons baking powder, 1 teaspoon baking soda, & 1/2 teaspoon salt

Last add 2 cups grated carrots & 1/2 cup (or more) chopped nuts

Bake in a greased tube pan for one hour ate 350 degrees

(You can use a cream cheese icing, but frankly, we don't need it! It is good without and never was included in the original carrot cake.)

Kim Tagged Me

Here is my answer to Kim's tag about my husband!

OH, OH!!!

A Beautiful Day at the Farm
We went out to the farm because the weather had moderated somewhat. We thought maybe we could do something about our frozen pipes situation. BUT we could not get into the house at all. The door was frozen shut! We think the water ran all over the floor and froze! Paul did disconnect the water in the cellar (I am refraining from showing that picture).

THEN he chopped a hole in the ice and caught a few fish and threw them back, of course. They are pets, I think. They have a "deal" between them. They let Paul catch them. He throws them back. Everyone is happy! Oh, I was happy too! I sat in the van with the warm sun shinning in, reading a book. We are so thankful for those occasional "get-aways" even for a few hours.

apple pie for Mary

I removed some "old" fruit from Mary's fridge and decided to make an apple pie from apples which needed to be used. I asked Mary (still in hospital) if she would like some apple pie and if she would be allowed to eat it. She said she would love some and would ask questions after she ate it! So Mary is feeling better, her humor is back. And tomorrow she is going home!!! She has not been there since she broke her hip on December 13! She still needs prayer and will need help as her strength is not back.

This is my apple pie. It is gone but it was very good, if I say so myself, and I do. It is Paul's favorite dessert besides chocolate cake with boiled frosting, carrot cake, chocolate &/or chocolate chip pie, etc., etc. Actually he likes pretty much everything I make. Isn't that nice?

The secret of the apple pie:
the nutmeg in the crust
& specially the variety of apples
(Macs, Cortlands, Gravensteins or Yellow Transparents from the farm are my favs)

And my biggest fan says most people don't bake apple pie long enough!

I received the Watkins Cookbook with the recipe years ago from Dwight & Steve!