Friday, May 25, 2018

An Update on This and That

I was hoping to share some photos of the harbour cruise from last week but I didn't have time to resize them. 

Instead I'll share a few snippets and a bit of sad news.

Two snapshots from my harbour walk. I always love to look at all the boats and yachts at the marina. 

These first two shots are for Skywatch Friday visitors.



The next photo is of a vintage dessert. This one reminds me of my late mom. Years ago when she still had a school age child at home she would make a dessert out of fruit, gelatin and whipped cream mixed in. This one has less whipped cream than she used to use because I wanted to save some as a topping.  When the jelly is half set, I diced fresh strawberries and bananas into the jelly along with whipped cream and then put it back in the refrigerator until fully set. Yummy! Though next time I will use more whipped cream mixed into the gelatin, lol.



I'm reading my 24th book for 2018. This one is by a new to me author.  
Read more about the book here if interested.
I'm enjoying the book. Nothing too taxing. This is just the right kind of reading when I'm very busy and need a small diversion.


I finally finished planting my garden. I got a late start on it due to the long winter we had.  Once the debris was cleared I amended the soil with 160 kgs of compost.  Another 180 kg of potting mix was needed for the many containers.

I've planted vegetables and flowers again.  I've noticed that it is is getting harder and harder to find the starter plants I want (petunias, geraniums and pansies) even though they are common plants.
If, and when I do find them, I might only find one or two small starter plants.  That means there is no selection when the remaining plant might not be well watered or healthy or if you want a different colour than what remains.
Sometimes you just have to suck it up.

I'm not sure why it is getting so hard to find common starter plants.  It may simply be that I arrive too late to the stores and they sell out quickly.  When I purchased the geraniums I asked the store owner if he was going to get more as they only colours were red and pink. He said he hoped so and that there shipment had just arrived that day. They were already very low on geraniums when I arrived.

Another explanation for the lack of plants may be that certain plants are no longer in fashion and so stores don't carry them like they used to.  I remember I had the same issue for the last few years and so last year I went to a large garden center hoping to have more selection. They did indeed have a huge selection but not of the plants that I want.

 I like to plant a lot of pansies. These seem particularly hard to find. This year I only got one container of purple ones.  Fortunately I had one pot of very hardy, yellow  pansies that had survived being outdoors all year even through the cold winter.

 

This year I tried starting plants from seed by purchasing a large tray.  Most of the seeds didn't sprout so I didn't use any of them. I think next year I will plant seeds again but I won't use a large tray. This way I can actually label them first so I know what I've planted.  This will only work if I can get started much earlier in the season.  It's a bit hit or miss when the last few planting seasons have arrived so late after a long winter.





Grandma Sally seems to be doing well at home. So far she has needed one tank of oxygen which the nurse was able to take to her home and administer.  Jonah (Grandma Sally's grandson) has returned home a few hours away for some much needed rest.  He was taking care of Grandma Sally's needs and visiting her every day in hospital for the past 3 months. Now that Grandma Sally is home, culture dictates that males do not enter the bedroom of the females so she has females taking care of her needs. Of course at the hospital when Jonah was visiting, Grandma Sally had staff attending to her immediate care needs.


In sad news, one of my cousins, Connie, was diagnosed with cancer about 2 weeks ago. It was at a late stage as a result of doctors not testing her when she started trying to ascertain the reason for neck issues several years ago. Finally one of her sisters accompanied her to doctors and they were given the runaround until the sister insisted that proper testing be done. This is when the cancer was diagnosed and it was already quite advanced.  Treatment began immediately commencing with some surgery on her spine. The doctors are saying she needs to be moved to palliative care soon as Connie's health is deteriorating rapidly.

My cousin is unaware that the photo below was taken by her sister and shared with me on the occasion of the birth of her great grandson in April. I share it here so you know who to pray for if you feel so led. But I will likely delete the photo soon out of respect. I can just see the love on great grandma's face and the little one in her arms is so very cute.





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21 comments:

Lady Fi said...

Lovely shots of your area and garden. Very sad to hear about your cousin.

Carol @Comfort Spring Station said...

Wonderful photos of the marina, flowers, and food. Sorry to hear about your cousin.

eileeninmd said...

Hello, wonderful view of the boats and marina. I love your flowers and the dessert looks yummy. Congrats to your Cousin, sweet baby. Happy Friday, enjoy your weekend!

Breathing In Grace said...

Your flowers and containers are lovely! Such sad news about your cousin.. prayers for Ms. Connie. But good to hear about Ms. Sally. Thank you for sharing with FFF. Hope you have a great weekend!

Pudding et Biscotte said...

Your pictures are very beautiful. I send all my best wishes to you and to the people who are dear to you and who are going through hard moments.

Jeanie said...

It's always hard when a wonderful and productive week is touched by great sadness. I'm sorry to hear about your cousin -- it sounds very sad and of course I will add her to my prayers.

Cathy said...

Beautiful flowers. Prayers for cousin.

Joanne Noragon said...

Light and love to Connie, from the bottom of my heart. I do regret you have a disappointing start to your garden, but not only does it look OK to me, your Solomon's Seal is enviable!

Rhodesia said...

Dr's are not always listening well to people who complain about aches and pains, sorry to hear about your cousin. A friend of mine who's mother was told she had cancer and only monthe to live, found out a year later it was a wrong diagnosois and she lived many more years so it goes both ways.
Good news about Grandma Sally.
Love your garden.
Have a good weekend, Diane

happyone said...

Nice to see the photos of the harbor.
Sorry to hear about your cousin.
Precious photo of your cousin and her great grandson.

Spare Parts and Pics said...

Beautiful skywatch shots this week! So sorry to hear about your cousin, and my best wishes for her. Sad and frustrating to hear about the poor medical care, and unfortunately, it seems to happen all to often.

Kay L. Davies said...

What a dreadful medical system, when something should have been diagnosed but wasn't. So sad for your family.
The little fellow is just adorable...some people think that a birth and a death often follow one another. But then, there are miracles...!
So good that Grandma Sally is improving and has care at home.
Kay
An Unfittie's Guide to Adventurous Travel

Sylvia said...

Love your photo's and sent up a prayer for your cousin!

magiceye said...

Beautiful captures all! Prayers for Grandma Sally and Connie.

Heidrun Khokhar, KleinsteMotte said...

This surevwas a posts of many parts. I used to make a similar dessert years ago. Now i just eat fresh berries as they come. Here geraniums and all are plentiful this year but were tough to get last year. And a belated BD wish too.

jabbott said...

Hi Penny, I must first say how sorry to hear about your cousin. I am sad she did not get diagnosed when more could be done. I hope her palative care is the very best she can receive. I enjoyed your photos of your garden and love your choice of plants. I have sent you mail so look out in a couple of weeks for it xxx

shayndel said...

Dear Joyful, Praying in agreement for your Cousin Connie and for God's great Healing.
Best wishes with your garden! It sounds like you really know a lot about different ways of planting.
Blessings and Love!

Nancy Chan said...

Wishing the best for your garden! Praying for your cousin.

Angie said...

I am not sure my previous comment registered, so I am trying again, and sorry if this is a duplicate. I will add Connie to my prayer list. As my Mom has gotten older, we have learned to have someone 'strong' go to the doctor with her … they are often rushed and not listening the way they should. I do think a lot of nurseries are trying out new flowers to appeal to a younger generation, which is a little frustrating for those of us that want our 'tried and true' flowers! I am sure it will be a gorgeous outcome whatever you plant!

Valerie said...

Love that shot of the pansies! Thank you for dropping by my blog.

Elisabeth said...

I love all your photos, they always inspire me! So glad to get a glimpse of your cousin Connie...may she rest in peace! She did get to hold her great grandbaby, and that is such a blessing for her, and the family~(((Hugs)))

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