Big news!

 Meet Baisley.

She's been with us for a month. She's a miniature schnauser/poodle cross. She likes treats, eating everything (edible or not), and people.

She does not like work days. 

Yellowknife!

 After 3 years - and 2 postponements - my Girl Guide travel group finally made it to Yellowknife. You can read about our trip here. 

It was a great trip! 

COVID made it a much tricker situation than we'd planned. We'd originally planned to go in March of 2021 and sleep in the Girl Guide cabin outside of town.

COVID cancelled that, and we rescheduled for March of 2022. We couldn't do that either, so we rescheduled for July. And, also due to COVID, the cabin was out, so we booked hotel rooms.

We had to do COVID tests the day before we went - all 3 leaders and 15 youth. I warned them in early July to be diligent about masking, because if they tested positive they couldn't go.

We had to figure out what we'd do if someone got sick while we were there (move two leaders into the same room, put the sick youth into their own room). We also had to figure out which leader would stay behind if someone couldn't fly back.

Everyone tested negative, and all 18 of us got on the plane. And all 18 of us got on the plane back.

Derecho!

 Almost 2 weeks ago - on Saturday, May 21 - Ottawa was hit by a derecho (intense wind and thunderstorm). 

The power went out as the storm hit, and we all hung out in the basement. It didn't last long, and we came back upstairs to find a tree had blown over:

The tree was lying on the power lines, but didn't do a lot of damage on its way down.

Others weren't so lucky - one of my neighbours had 2 trees land on his house.

A lot of trees were down in the neighbourhood.

And still we didn't have power. 

My cousin - who lives about 20 minutes away - got power back on Monday night, so Tuesday morning Wanda and I headed to her place to work. 

Her cat was not impressed. 

They cut the tree off the power line on Friday, and Saturday night - a full week after the power went out - we got power back. 

The freezer had thawed but was still cold, which was impressive. Wanda cleaned out the freezer while I cooked the thawed meat. 

And then on Wednesday, the company I'd hired came to remove the tree. They pulled into a driveway with a crane and pulled it out over the house. Then they cut off the branches and left it there for the city to pick up. 

And then yesterday the city showed up to dispose of the tree

I'm too lazy to go buy a purse

 Today I decided to make a purse. 

I cut 4 sets of 2 pieces of fabric. The outer one pieces were 13"x19"; the inner ones were 13"x20", since there was a direction to that fabric. I then cut the inner ones in half, switched one half upside down, and sewed them back together. 

Next I cut batting to match the size of the outer fabric and pinned the inner fabric (good side down), the batting, and the outer fabric (good side up). 

I then quilted the three pieces together with diagonal lines and repeated for the next 3 sets. 

Because I like pockets, I added a small pocket to the inside of one of the 4 sections.

I sewed binding to the top and bottom of each section, then folded each section in half and pinned a zipper near the top. The zipper pull was down, and I sewed the side away from the binding.

I then turned each section inside out and pinned the other side of the zipper to the other half of the section, being careful to keep it the same distance from the binding. I unzipped the zipper and sewed that side down. 

When all 4 sections were done, I turned them right side out. Next, I cut a flap out of both the inside material and the outside material and sewed them together on 3 sides, then sewed it onto the section with the inside pocket. 

I took a piece of cardboard and sewed a piece of the outside fabric to cover it. 

When it was fully covered, I  attached it to the bottom of the section with the flap. I then attached it to the bottom of another section (making sure that the zippers were going the same way). 

Next, I used bias tape to cover the ends of each section so that they were  closed.

x

I used a piece of cardboard to measure the same distance from each side. I then added the two sections that weren't connected to anything in between the other sections, and sewed each one to the next between the markings.

I added a closure on the flap and attached the strap, and it's done!

Luggage tags

 Today I made 18 luggage tags for my Girl Guide travel group. 

I started by cutting out two pieces of fabric, 4.5 inches x 7 inches. I then ironed interfacing onto one piece - the one intended for the inside of the tag.

After that, I cut a piece of plastic 4.5 inches x 5 inches and folded it in half so that it was 4.5 inches x 2.5 inches. I then stitched along the fold.

I folded the inner piece of fabric in half, and lined up the stitching on the plastic with the middle of the tag. Next, I unfolded the fabric and stitched around the three sides of the plastic that hadn't already been stitched. 

 

 After the pocket is attached, fold 12" of the strap in half and put the open end in the middle of the opposite side of the fabric. Add the fabric for the back of the tag, face down. Sew around 3 sides, leaving the side at the bottom of the pocket unsewn. 

Clip the corners and turn the luggage tag right side out. 

Take a 3" piece of bias tape (or strapping). Fold in both sides of the unsewn end. Pin the bias tape into the opening so that the two ends have a small gap between them. 

Sew around the luggage tag, starting with the open side, and then end by sewing the open side a second time. Make sure you are catching both ends of the bias tape.

Fold the luggage tag in half and push the strap through the bias tape look. That's it!

It's spring!

 This past weekend, I woke up to the birds chattering outside my window. I never notice when they leave, but I always notice when they return. 

My Pathfinders meet in the back yard, and I left a metal pail on the fire table. Last week, it was almost entirely covered in snow. This week, there's snow under it but none around it. 

Spring is here.

Next week is March Break. I was supposed to take a group of Pathfinders and Rangers to Yellowknife, but we can't travel yet. Instead, I'm going to Quebec City for the weekend and then working as usual. It'll be my first trip since COVID (if you don't count last summer's cottage visit). It'll be different - we'll probably buy food and eat in our hotel rooms, and spend most of our time outdoors. I think it'll be fun, nonetheless.

Our Yellowknife trip is now scheduled for the summer, and we're starting to talk about another trip with a different group of kids in 2024. 

All of the events that were supposed to happen in 2020 or 2021 seem to be landing this summer, so it will be a busy one. 

And since the gazebo wasn't finished until November, I also have a lot of gardening/rearranging to do. 

It'll be a busy year. 

A belated welcome to 2022

 So I've been meaning to update since the beginning of the year. Maybe even the end of last year.

I had planned to go visit the family for Christmas, but omicron convinced me to cancel my trip, so it was a quiet holiday here. Lots of video games and relaxing. I'd been needing a vacation, and I really enjoyed that one. We did go to a drive-through light show here, which was enjoyable. 

Once January hit, life got back to the new normal. We'd stopped our Saturday hikes at the end of November, and finally restarted them this past Saturday.

Last week, we got a lot of snow (48 cm, followed by another 5 or so a couple of days later). My Girl Guide travel group persists, although we don't know when - or even where - we will be able to travel. Our current travel date is in March, and that's looking pretty risky.

But 2022 has begun, and only time will tell what it brings.

Not quite Thanksgiving, but thankful none the less

In my last post, I hoped the gazebo/shed would be done by Thanksgiving. That did not happen.

We got the excavation dirt picked up the last Friday in October - which was also the absolute last day for it to be picked up. 10 1-metre-cubed bags on the driveway was not something I wanted to have around all winter! That weekend, the patio went in. 

The following weekend, we got the cupboard doors on. On November 9, we got the siding, and it went on the following weekend. The final inspection was last Tuesday.

The left side of the shed is a typical shed. There's one shelf, and storage for a few other things. The double doors on the right cover three shelves, also for storage. Below that compartment is a section you can reach from the right side of the shed; it's made to fit the lawnmower. 

I'm very glad it's done.

And this past Saturday, my Girl Guide travel group ran a day camp for other units. It was a really good experience, and I was really tired when it was done.

End of summer

 The new walkway is done. They sloped the walk so that we were able to get rid of the stairs near the driveway, and covered the steps in the same stone. There is also a small patio beside the stairs now. 

Mom and Miss B. came to visit. We went to Baxter conservation area, and enjoyed the trains and the ice cream boat. We mostly stayed outside for obvious reasons. Ms. A moved in and starts university today. 

The work in the back yard continues. It will hopefully be done by Thanksgiving.

And Pathfinders starts tomorrow. I guess summer is really over.

Two-dose summer

 I went to the movies on Friday. (Black Widow, which was good, BTW.)

In a few weeks, I'm going to a cottage with friends.

Life is getting back to normal, but day-to-day life hasn't changed much. I'm still working from home, and I'm still at home most of the time.

I've discovered a buy-nothing group in the neighbourhood, and I love it. I am getting rid of so much perfectly-good stuff that I don't need anymore. It's great!

Soon my front walk will be re-done. There is a gazebo being built in the back yard. Things are a little chaotic, but good. 

Fully vaccinated!

 Just over 2 weeks ago, I got my second shot. (Pfizer, which was much, much better than AstraZeneca. With the first shot, I was sick for 3 days, then had a big lump on my arm that didn't go away for 28 full days. With Pfizer, I had a bit of a headache for one day.)

I'm glad, but it's also weird. I've made plans to go to a cottage with friends in August. People are coming to visit. It's great, but a part of me isn't ready! I'm in my little rut, and I don't want to leave.

(Particularly since the more annoying parts of the pandemic like mask wearing aren't going away. That's the right call, but I still struggle with wearing masks, so some parts of life are still more difficult than I'd like.)

Vaccine

 I got the first dose of the vaccine (Astra Zeneca) on Tuesday. 

I've had many vaccines before - the standard ones, of course, but also things like Yellow Fever - and never had any problems.

This one was not like that. By 11:30 on Tuesday, I couldn't get warm. I spent yesterday asleep. (I'm feeling better today).

Still better than COVID, though.

Happy Birthday, Miss B!

I haven't seen my niece in person in over a year, but it is her birthday today! (I do get SnapChat pictures from her,usually looking mildly annoyed, even though I send her awesome pictures like this one:

I've known her since before she realized she could straighten out her legs. 

And somehow, she grew up. (I did not agree to this.) Happy birthday, B! 

Ukulele

For Christmas, I got a kit to build a ukulele. I was super excited about it.

The bare ukulele kit

First, I painted it. I drew criss-crossing lines on the ukulele, then painted each section a different colour. After that dried, I pained black lines of various widths between the colours. I added one coat of varnish - I didn't want to varnish too much since it might affect the sound.

Then I assembled it. It wasn't difficult, but some instructions would have been nice!

Goodbye, 2020

 This has been quite an unusual year, so I wanted to look back on what happened.

In January, my Girl Guide trip to Yellowknife was (finally!) approved, and we started fundraising. We had a craft night in February, and started running escape rooms. 

And then in March, the pandemic hit. I started working from home; Girl Guides were not allowed to meet. I created new escape rooms online, and we continued running those until the end of June.

I changed jobs in April, and now work with a bunch of people I've never seen in person.

In May, Wanda and I painted the living room/dining room/hallway, which is always a huge job. Shortly afterwards, I painted the upstairs bathroom, which is much easier.

I got other stuff done around the house, too - I recaulked the kitchen and upstairs bathroom; I glued down the tile that's been loose for a long time; and I built a hammock stand.

And then, in July, I gave in and got a proper desk to work from. It was well worth it. It's a floating desk, and I set it at standing height. I also bought a drafting (i.e. tall) chair. It's working well.

I recertified my first aid, did a psychological first aid course online, and finally did the boater's course. 

Pathfinders started up in the fall, and we started meeting outside in my backyard. That's working well - we may stay outside even once the pandemic is over. 

I bought new living room furniture (which will arrive on Saturday), bought a Nintendo Switch so I can spend time with my friend Luigi, bought more takeout meals than ever before, and bought a pair of slippers that I love.

I've eaten all but 2 meals at  home since March. (I ate in my car during the first aid course, and I ate lunch at a Pathfinder day camp in November.)

This is the first time in my life I haven't traveled for Christmas. 

I've started playing board games online with friends.

I made a quilt for the friend I do Pathfinders with.

I had several trips planned for this year; none of them happened. But I had vacation time to help a friend with cancer, and I had time off to recharge.

I miss socializing in person, and restaurants, and movies. But I'm doing OK.

Bring on 2021.

Totally certifiable

 Back in March, I said "I'm finally going to do my boater course since there's nothing else to do." I finally did it last weekend. I choose freecourse.ca, which is a lot of reading - and you have to spend a certain amount of time on each page, so I kept getting distracted and wandering off. But I finished the course, and ordered my card.

A couple of weeks before that, I did a one-day first aid recertification course. I debated on whether to do it or not - you have to go to an in person class, which I wasn't thrilled about - but I ultimately decided it would be worth it, since we have no idea when life will go back to what used to be normal. 

After I did that, I did an online psychological first aid course from the Red Cross - it a short course, but was interesting. 

That's probably enough certifications for a while. 

I'm running out of projects to do around the house - except for the ones that involve cleaning, which somehow never make it to the top of the list. My Christmas gifts have been bought and shipped to my mom, who is wrapping them for me. 

But luckily (?) the house is keeping me busy. First there were the mice - one in March, two in September, and then 2 in November. I called an exterminator after we caught 2 in one day in November, and he set traps everywhere. Since he didn't catch any, he thinks they were just an isolated incident, but he did seal up all of the holes on the house to stop more from getting in.

And then the pipe from the laundry room started backing up, so I called a plumber. He cleared the issue, but that pipe is going to need to be replaced.

And before all of that started, I bought new living room furniture. It's been an expensive month, is what I'm saying. 

(I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy a Nintendo Switch, as well. I need something to get me through what will be a pretty boring winter. I miss restaurants.)

Thanksgiving

 It was a quiet weekend, for the most part. I did some cleaning, made Thanksgiving dinner, had some zoom calls with friends and family.

My cousin and I have been doing weekly hikes, so we did that on Sunday morning. I'm really enjoying them - it's a way to get outside and enjoy the weather.

My Pathfinders are still meeting outside, which also gives me a chance to get outside more. The girls are great - we have a big group (15 girls, which is a good size for this age group) and they're all lovely kids. And they strongly prefer outdoor meetings to online meetings, so we will stay outside until public health or Girl Guides tell us to stop.

We're also selling mint cookies; if you're in the market and you live in Canada, you can support us by buying here: https://secure.girlguides.ca/site/TR/E-Cookies/Region-ON?team_id=2964&pg=team&fr_id=4491