scary stuff

If you were looking to be scared out of your wits this Halloween, our house was not the place to be.


There was a wee pumpkin patch




some bat wings




and rocky road caramel apples for the kids, (OK, I have to admit that these are quite frightening due to my serious lack of caramel-apple-making-skills)





And any evil spirits spooking around outside were kept at bay by these guys








Actually, the scariest thing about our Halloween this year was the slug infestation on our deck. I have no idea exactly where they're coming from, it must take them days to climb the stairs from the garden, but they all arrive at the same time only to be flung right back into the compost heap. The other night I found one of the little beggars in our living room right on the door sill, half in and half out. Eeew. He got flung extra far. Must remember to hang out the no vacancy (for slugs) sign.

Happy Halloween!

Mmm...pie

(It's way after midnight here but I'm pretending it's still Monday)

To a Canadian, the second Monday in October can only mean one thing - Canadian Thanksgiving. We celebrated today with our usual turkey dinner. A ten pound bird served with apple and sage and cranberry stuffing, bacon-wrapped green beans, maple-glazed carrots and roasted potatoes. Leftovers await.

For dessert I made two pies, one pumpkin, one apple. Can you believe there are some people who don't care for pumpkin pie?




I'm one of those people who LOVES pumpkin pie and I had a little extra pie filling left so I put it in these ramekins and called it pumpkin custard. Guess what's for breakfast tomorrow?




As most of you know, I've been having kind of a rough year, but I also have so much to be thankful for. Here's just a small selection of things that have been on my mind today.


I'm thankful that my health issues turned out to be not quite as serious at they had originally though (more on that in another post, I need to get it out of my system but now is not the time)

I'm thankful for my family who continue to put up with me during this difficult time. What would I do without you?

I'm thankful that my mother is doing so much better on her new medication.

I'm thankful that we got all six cousins/grandchildren together this summer. Who knows when that will happen again.

I'm thankful for a wonderful holiday in Vancouver.

I'm thankful that I got to talk to my youngest brother and my niece and nephew on the phone today for an hour. I wish I could be four again like S. so I could dress up as a unicorn for Hallowe'en.

I'm thankful for the roof over our heads and the food on our table.

I'm thankful for these. Are they cute or what?




I'm thankful for the changing of the seasons and a place to sit and watch the leaves turn colour. So beautiful.






And...I'm thankful for YOU guys who keep on reading even though I've become what some would call a 'sporadic blogger'. Must try to improve, I've still got such an awful lot to say.