Thursday, February 22, 2018

In The Snow


We awoke to snow on Sunday.  It must have been windy too as the wind blew snow up under our covered patio.  These little bird tracks were made on top of our patio coffee table which is a couple feet from the bird feeder.  I have had to bring in the hummingbird feeder each night and take it out each morning as the hummingbirds who insist on staying here year round need breakfast.  It has gotten colder too, a few degrees below zero each day this week which is unusual for us.  



Buddy doesn't mind the snow, enjoys burning around in it but due to him having hair and not fur the snow just sticks to him like crazy then he comes in the house shivering.  I have to dry him off then tuck in him.  Yes, he is super spoiled - that dog loves blankets.


It seems every year since we moved here we have gotten colder snowier winters.  We have made a decision about next winter.  Instead of going back to Europe in 2019 like we had first planned we will skip a year and take my stepson in 2020 instead.  We will go somewhere warm next winter, just the two of us for a week to 10 days at far less cost.  I love Europe but we miss getting away somewhere warm in the winter and my stepson will understand waiting one more year.  I am not sure where we are going, somewhere in the Caribbean or Central or South America.  We have enough points for two tickets to Europe but the fuel surcharges and fees make it so you still have to pay over $600 a ticket.  Those points might be better spent to somewhere warm.  I just looked up Guatamala City and it is only $77 in tax and fees per ticket as there are no fuel surcharges to that destination.  I have always wanted to go to Guatemala, maybe even Nicaragua.  The Caribbean was slammed last year with hurricanes so will have to wait and see on the rebuilding there before we make any decisions about going there.  

Italy is all saved for.  I tried several times yesterday to book train tickets....unfortunately their system must have been down as couldn't get them processed.  Will try again today.  For anyone wanting to go to Italy or France - if you are going to a major attraction try and prepurchase your tickets so you don't have stand in line.  Eiffel Tower tickets go on sale March 1 for the timeframe we are going so I will be sure to buy them as soon as they go on sale instead of waiting in stupid lineups.  The cost is the same either way.  No need to buy costly skip the line tour tickets, just buy direct.  One small bonus, our two stepsons are between 21 and 25 so their Eiffel Tower tickets cost half what hubby and my tickets cost (to the very top 25 Euro each for an adult, 12.50 Euro for each of them).  You can go to the second platform for cheaper but I am pretty sure we will only go to Paris once so might as well go to the top.  I have never really been that interested in Paris, much more interested in other parts of France but we had a free stopover so a couple of days in Paris was a great way for us to show the boys a bit more of the world. 

Less than a week left in the month and we are on track for the grocery budget.  I have been trying new recipes as are bored with our current menus.  I want to find some more slow cooker recipes though, love putting things on to cook in the morning and just letting it cook all day.  Every time I try and eat down what is in the freezer I find a sale and fill it back up.  I am a bit like a squirrel that way but really need to clean it out so effective immediately I will not be buying anything for the freezer that isn't to be used within 3 days. 

Finally - a shout out to our Canadian Olympians.  What an amazing showing, so many medals.  Our town is especially proud as a local girl who grew up skiing and snowboarding on our Mt Washington won a gold medal this week in skiing the half-pipe, kudos to Cassie Sharpe.  She certainly has not forgotten her hometown even though she had to move to Whistler for training.  All week prior to her competing she had been skyping local elementary school classrooms, very cool for all those kids to watch her obtain a gold medal.  Bars and restaurants all over town were filled to the brim with locals cheering her on during the competitions.

Stay warm everyone!


30 comments:

  1. Guatemala would be very interesting. It's on my bucket list.

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    1. Everyone I know who has gone there absolutely loved it....it is not the easiest place to get to from the Island though, almost like flying to Europe

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  2. Have enjoyed watching the Olympics. The final shootout at the women's hockey game was hard to watch though. We do our traveling in the winter, but do several small trips spread out from January through March and usually to Arizona. Wayne loves sports so we can take in basketball, softball and baseball. I enjoy a day at the pool if we can work it in. - Margy

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    1. Yeah, I missed watching the final Women's hockey match but saw footage afterwards, so heart breaking. Hubby is not big on sports but we both do work out and do a lot of walking and kayaking in the summer

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  3. I read all your posts and you share such good travel information and living well with your thrifty living pointers. Big plus is you live on the island (I live in the lower Fraser Valley).
    Joy

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    1. Thanks Joy - I still love seeing your thrift finds :) Do you have much snow?

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  4. Buddy's so cute, I love his groovy blanket.
    Guatemala would be fantastic - all those textiles! I don't blame you for chasing the sun, it'll do you both the world of good.
    xxx

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    1. That groovy blanket is our bedding, bought that set August 2014(looked it up on the blog lol) and it is still like new! I never thought it would stand up so well considering the dog is on it all the time with his sharp. I have lots of sheet sets to go with it as it has lots of groovy colours in it. I hope it lasts another five!

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  5. love the pic of the birds footprints!
    your travel plans sound good - we usually travel in September, good prices & good weather most places. If I could afford it I'd be in Europe every year :)

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    1. September is a great time to travel...just not for us as it is usually one of our busiest months of the year with the business. Weather is great most places and kids are back in school, you have picked the best time

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  6. Buddy is so cute with his blankets. Lot's of great athletes to watch and Minnesota is loaded with Olympians so very full of local pride.

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    1. I imagine Minnesota has lots of winter olympic athletes...funny how the colder climates do so well lol

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  7. Your Buddy looks Caesar is built for the snow and insists on laying out in it even when the temperatures are near 0. I have to go and drag him back in the house.

    I'm with you about going somewhere warm next Winter. Jeff and I are taking a trip down to Las Vegas in the Fall, where we hope it will be warmer but not hot. Our Josh was just there house hunting and told us that it was in the 40's in Vegas but was 85F in Washington DC yesterday. Talk about crazy weather!

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    1. I've been to Vegas before in October and it was still quite hot and then in November when it snowed there....hard to tell I guess. I never have to drag Buddy back in as he gets cold so fast due to being a little dog (13 pounds, just larger than a cat)

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  8. I love the photo of the bird tracks in the snow.
    It is easy to stay warm here since it is 80 degrees and everything that blooms seems to have bloomed within the past 2 days.

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    1. We have some flowers coming up, saw some daffodils although with the snow those probably got wiped out. Chives are growing if that counts lol. Another month though and we will be in blooms too. We usually don't get snow this late, I thought we had seen the last but right now there are flakes coming down :(

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  9. Love the snow photo! And, so inspiring to see all of the athletes.

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    1. Canada has done so incredibly well these games, in second place overall medal count which is shocking considering how little money is spent on professional athletes in our country. Norway...who knew! We never do that well at summer olympics though...maybe next time

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  10. You saw bird tracks in the snow.....last weekend we saw them in the sand....
    I do so love to follow you as you travel. You do it so well!
    We are trying to eat down our freezers. We have a chest one outside and our regular one in the house. Both are full. I'm amazed at finding the things I freeze sometimes. Like, Really?? Why did I save that?? It's kind of fun to thaw out a mystery package and make something for dinner out of it.
    Cold and rainy here this week but nothing like the cold you have!!

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    1. I realized I have two mystery packages last weekend, one looks to be either spaghetti sauce or chili and the other is some kind of soup. Will thaw out on a day when I don't feel like cooking lol

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  11. Congrats to the canadian medalist!Sweet girl!
    Good idea to travel to a warm country (even better to live in one. LOL).
    I admire your ability to plan things in advance. This is the way to get good terms and maximum enjoyment.

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    1. Most of the year this is a beautiful climate...except for 4 months, then we get rain and a little snow but much less winter than most of Canada. The older we get the warmer we want it though

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  12. Awww, Buddy is so cute. If you find a good crock pot recipe, please share. We've tried a few for chicken, but the meat always ends up pretty dry. I mostly use it for pot roast and pulled pork, but would love to try something new.

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    1. I do pork chops in mushroom sauce (just 2 cans of mushroom soup and a can of mushrooms with paprika sprinkled on the chops) and you cook for 3 hrs and then serve with rice or mashed potatoes. We also throw in sliced carrots and at the very in stir in some frozen corn as it heats right up. It is my comfort food :) Still looking for other recipes though

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  13. Oh, Buddy last skin great in paisley. I took picture of bird prints yesterday too. In sand. A chilly 15C above freezing here today! (Sorry.)

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    1. You rat...love bird prints in the sand. Bird prints in snow look a little pathetic and I can't but help feeling sorry for the little buggers

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  14. Cassie Sharpe is delightfully modest and sweet. I admit to being glued to the screen over the past couple of weeks but I did have a sick cat and then a sick daughter so I feel somewhat justified :) And I feel rather smug being home to the amazing ice dancing duo Scott Moir and Tessa Virtue - I had a few good cathartic moments crying my eyes out while I watched them perform - magnificent!

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    1. Scott and Tessa were amazing, no wonder so many people around the world are in love with them.

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  15. He's not spoiled, he's "well-tended!" I can also highly endorse a warm-weather/Caribbean vacation in the winter. We'll be doing one every year from now on (as long as we can).

    I must say I am stunned my country won the gold in curling!

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    1. Yes, overly well tended lol. Good for the USA, I think the Canadians got too cocky expecting to win the curling and blew it, good to shake things up once in a while

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