Savoury Clafoutis

Jan of the Low Carb Diabetic featured a savoury cherry tomato and cheese clafoutis on a recent post. Here is the recipe. I used a pint of cherry tomatoes and 2 cups of cubed old white cheddar cheese in mine.  It's delicious on a slice of bread or even just eaten on its own perhaps with a salad.  Thanks Jan!

After all the Oscar buzz I would really like to see the movie Moonlight now.  Here is a write-up about the author.

Nifty Repair Work

My friend S and I were out for a spring like walk last week and we noticed some nifty repair work in the neighbourhood!

We saw the movie "Hidden Figures" and it is fantastic, a definite "recommend".

Sunday Sketches - Rosebud

I did a rosebud for Sunday Sketches today. It's index card sized (3" x 5") in watercolour pencil and outlined with a waterproof black Pitt Artist pen.

Thinking Outside of the Box

There was an interesting article in the newspaper recently that I wanted to share with you.  The University of Toronto has a library containing very rare books which were being destroyed over time by condensation.  The problem was put to some first year students after being told by the experts that the only solution might be to move the delicate books and insulate the building properly.  The first year engineering students put forth the idea of coating the building with insulation from the outside!  The library has chosen to implement an altered version of their plan.  This is truly thinking outside of the box!

Paint Party Friday - Reflection

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! This index card sized piece (3" x 5") is called 'Reflection' for want of a better name. It's done in watercolour pencil.

Autoshow 2017

Son K, husband M and I were at the 2017 Autoshow recently, we like to go every year to see what's new. I seem to have taken lots of blue cars for some reason. I did enter a contest to win a free Toyota and was happy not to have entered more. They do tend to bombard your email afterwards.

Scribble Picnic - Octopus

Welcome to Michael's brand new art co-op 'Scribble Picnic'! The theme is 'Octopus' and here is my contribution done in my art journal in watercolour pencil (8 1/2" x 11").

Isn't She Great

I was at the grocery store the other day in the checkout line. There was a disabled person ahead of me. The cashier called for assistance to help him outside with his groceries. He was having trouble entering his pin number to complete his payment. After awhile the cashier decided to split his total into 3 payments of less than $50 each and tap them into the system with his credit card. The man did not know he could just tap his credit card for payment. I was impressed with the way the cashier was able to help him keep his independence.  As the man was leaving I had to yell out with a smile 'Isn't She Great?'

On Aging

I had my annual checkup at the eye doctor (opthalmologist) last week. All is well until next year! It is in the same building as my family doctor so the visit brought back memories of taking my mom there. She suffered dementia but I still miss her. I have been seeing the eye doctor for about 20 years. In the way of conversation, I told him that I noticed most of his patients tend to be senior people. This year it seemed to me that they were all my age now. He laughed and said patients are starting to ask him when he is retiring and he is surprised, finds it off-putting. I told him, 'of course not, we need you!'. I'm guessing he is around 60 years old. He went on to say he remembers being the new kid on the block some 30 years ago when he started working at the hospital. Now he sees all these kids coming in to work alongside him and he is taken aback as they seem too young!

Sunday Sketches - Red Mohair

This is a red mohair coat for Sunday Sketches. I saw a pretty pink one in a fashion magazine when I was at the hairdresser the other day. I changed it to red as I am also linking to Art Journal Journey's 'Fifty Shades of Red' theme. It's done in my art journal (8 1/2" x 11") in watercolour pencil.

Fun Contest

It's that time of the year, Tim Horton's coffee shop is running their annual 'Roll Up the Rim' contest. I got lucky with my coffee cup last week, I won free potato wedges when I rolled up the rim of my cup as pictured.

Paint Party Friday - Hoodie

This piece for Paint Party Friday is inspired by a hoodie I saw in a fashion magazine I was browsing while at the hairdresser the other day. It's done in my art journal in watercolour pencil (8 1/2" x 11"). I am also linking to Art Journal Journey's 'Fifty Shades of Red' theme.

It would have been my late mother's 79th birthday today, she died January 4th.

A Delightful Surprise

Daughter L received this delightful surprise fruit basket for Valentine's Day. She was at work when the courier came to the door and was all smiles when she got home that evening.  Can you see the heart shaped pineapples and chocolate covered strawberries?  Her boyfriend knows what she likes.

So the basket was filled with kale leaves and I made kale chips with them, so it was a gift that kept on giving!  We have been enjoying the fruit too.

On Mental Health

I just noticed my coaster matches my coffee mug! It's a new mug I got for Christmas.

Son K mentioned to me the other day that one of his close friends made a post on Facebook for a mental health day he was supporting called Bell Lets Talk.  He was surprised when his friend  publicly admitted to having daily suicidal thoughts a couple of years ago. The young man was smart enough to talk to someone about it and feels fine now. He also thanked a friend for joking around and having fun with him during those times which really helped. Apparently K was that friend. I am proud of him for inadvertently helping out as he had no idea there was a problem. Mental health issues are silent and often go unnoticed.

A New Art Co-op

Happy Valentine's Day! I took this photo at the grocery store for you, I loved all the colours and it brings spring so much closer doesn't it?

In other news Michael of Creative Tuesdays has replaced it with a new art Co-op called Scribble Picnic which will run weekly on Wednesdays starting February 22 with an Octopus theme.  I hope some of you will join us!  The details are on my sidebar as well.  Michael is also hosting a giveaway to be drawn February 23rd!

Smelly

At my hairdresser's last week, I was talking to his assistant.  Somehow the topic went to older people. She started talking about this awful smell that was noticed on the same floor as her apartment.  It forced the residents to call 911, the emergency number so they could check on that apartment.  It seems the old lady who lived inside had passed away for about 5 days before the smell was noticed.  She was wheelchair bound, extremely overweight and lived with a number of cats.  She had fallen in the bathtub.  The awful thing is she had no one to check on her.  People would avoid her apartment because it was filthy and smelly with all the cats and never cleaned.  The cats managed to survive all those days without food.

Sunday Sketches - Lioness

Welcome to Sunday Sketches! This piece is called 'Lioness' done in my art journal (8 1/2" x 11") in watercolour pencil and crayon. Thanks to Alexandra for always hosting!

Outlet Mall Shopping

We ended up at an Outlet Mall last weekend. It had been years since we went there, I forgot about this outdoor adventure store they have there and took these photos for you. They did a great job with the decorations.

There was a Hugo Boss store that we wandered into. The saleslady mentioned how empty the store was and she believed it was a trend due to online shopping. I thought that was interesting. The dress shirts were priced at $199 with 30% off. That is still a lot to pay for a shirt.

Paint Party Friday - A Pretty Woman

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! This piece is called 'A Pretty Woman', of a certain age I might add. It's done in my art journal (8 1/2" x 11") in watercolour pencil and crayon. Thanks to Kristin and Eva for always hosting.

Rabbit Tracks

I noticed these animal tracks in my backyard the other day, they seemed quite large and I wondered what kind of tracks they were. I settled on Rabbit tracks.

Here is an interesting article listing 11 chocolate bars available in Canada but not in the U.S. We take these chocolate bars (Kit Kat, Mars, Smarties, etc) for granted here but they would make good small gifts for friends who live in the U.S.

A Heartwarming Story

Daughter L made some cookies and packaged them in this attractive box. It was a gift to take to a friend's house where she planned to spend the night. They are chocolate chip brownie cookies.

This was a heartwarming story I read in the newspaper the day after the Superbowl. A pizza company (Pizza Pizza) offered free pizza and soft drinks to residents of a Good Shepherd homeless shelter.  After hearing of the offer, the workers at the shelter decided to make it into a real party by renting a 60 inch TV to watch the Superbowl.

Creative Tuesdays - Bubble Gum Machine

Welcome to Creative Tuesdays.  The current theme is 'Bubble Gum Machine'. My piece was done in my art journal (8 1/2" x 11") in watercolour pencil, outlined with a waterproof black pitt artist pen. Yes, it's a lighthouse bubble gum machine!

Simply Steamed

Steamed Cabbage

seasoned with salt, pepper, margarine

Cabbage with Meatballs

This head of cabbage was sitting in my refrigerator for long enough, but I couldn't think of how I wanted to prepare it. Ivy (The Happy Whisk) being a cabbage lover, suggested a number of options to me. Having coincidentally unearthed my steamer the day before, I chose her option of steaming it. After 15 minutes, half a head of the cabbage, quartered, was perfectly tender. I seasoned it with salt, pepper and a teaspoon of margarine. It was delicious and went really well with the meatballs I made the next day. Thanks Ivy!

Sunday Sketches - Squirrel

Welcome to Sunday Sketches! This piece is done in watercolour crayon and pencil in my art journal (8 1/2" x 11"). It was inspired by a squirrel I saw peeking through some trees on a winter walk the other day. He wasn't there for every long, they do scamper about.

Pawprints

Rushing to church on a cold and snowy morning, I noticed these pawprints on the ground. Of course, I had to stop and take a photo for you!  The human footprints provide added interest don't they?

Paint Party Friday - Red Couch

Welcome to Paint Party Friday! This piece called 'Red Couch' is done on good quality red cardstock (6" x 6") in acrylic. I added the girl for extra interest.

Coriander Pork Wonton Soup

My friend S and I were at the grocery store on the weekend and I decided to buy this package of frozen coriander pork wontons for $1.88. They are quite high in sodium but should be okay as an occasional meal.  Bring 3 cups of low sodium chicken stock to a boil then add the wontons for about 5 minutes until they are cooked. I also added a few handfuls of lettuce and was  very happy with the outcome!

Treats

Welcome to February! We received this box of delicious baked treats in the mail recently. It was part of a Christmas gift. We are to receive 2 more boxes over the next couple of months. It was a pleasure to receive such a beautifully wrapped gift.  It contained gourmet pretzels, biscotti, a chocolate butter tart, chocolate cookies and seemed to be from different bakeries.