Happy New Week to You

Happy New Week to you friends and fellow bloggers.  This week we face the end of February and the beginning of March. I'm wondering if it will be a cold one or a warmer one.  Right now the forecast seems to be for a cold one with possible snow once or twice this week but we will see. I guess I'm skeptical but anything can happen. 

It's actually been somewhat warm here recently as evidenced by what I found yesterday (Saturday) in my neighbourhood.  Today, although I don't have a photo, there were far more blossoms on the tree than there were yesterday.  But later on Sunday the temperature plummeted.

Tonight when I went for a walk and a few errands,  I had to wear my gloves to keep my fingertips warm. I hope the sudden cold won't harm the cherry blossoms.  Although there have been some periods of great cold snaps around the province, even in Vancouver, there has not been enough snowfall overall.  In fact, many ski hills were not able to open for their usual ski seasons due to lack of snow. All this is not good for the summer when it's predicted to be very hot once again.

In home news, I found this recipe in a magazine dedicated to one pot dinners. It's called Pecan Chicken with Brussels Sprouts and Apples. I made it Saturday night and I omitted the pecans because I didn't have any. I also omitted the sugar because the balsamic vinegar and apples was enough to sweeten the dish.  It turned out delicious.  Now I have a new chicken dish to add to my repertoire when I need a quick and tasty meal. The other one pot chicken dish I like a lot is Creamy Tuscan Chicken.  But I don't always have sun dried tomatoes on hand and I also don't always want to have a creamy dish.

This year I hope to do a lot more things creatively but I'm not off to a rousing start. I'm still reading a bit more than I'd planned but soon the garden/s need planting so we'll see how I make out. It's also tax time again and that always keeps me busy as I do the taxes for DH and I jointly. It means, I have to corral all the receipts for the both of us which is hard enough to do with one of us. I'm sure some of you understand what I mean.

Besides keeping busy in various ways, I'm still trying to be a bit creative. A friend in England sent me this adult colouring book. I see that I need better lighting to colour within the lines and since I like felt tip pens I think I need to work on pressure of ink application. Either that or buy some wooden crayons. How about you dear reader? Do you do any colouring? Do you have any tips for me?  If you don't do any colouring, do you have any favourite hobbies?

Thanks for stopping by! 

Double Headed Sakuru Blossoms

In the middle of April or so we had the first wave of cherry blossoms. But it had been quite cold and rainy so not all the tree blossomed. This week we are experiencing a second wave of blossoms. Most of these are the double flowered cherry blossoms.

They aren't blooming as prolifically as normal but they are beautiful nonetheless. Daily temperatures have been very hot this week but once the sun goes down it is still a bit chilly. I've been wearing sandals all week and the lightest clothing I have. It's a huge change from a week ago.

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you aren't getting tired of my posts about blossoms. Soon they will be finished for the year once more.

I'm linking up with Skywatch Friday today. Enjoy your weekend.

Skywatch Friday ~ April 14, 2023

Hello friends and fellows bloggers,

I hope you've had a great week!

Those of you who've been following my blog know that we've had a long winter and a cold Spring so far with lots of rain. It is still a bit too cool for the norm but the sun is beginning to shine more frequently and I think from here on out we are well on our way to warmer, sunnier weather.

The photos which follow were taken on Easter Sunday on my way to church. I'd been hoping to get some cherry blossom photos during days of sunshine but if I don't get out in the next few days there may not be anything to photograph! Cherry blossoms are so fleeting.  I did manage to get some pictures of cherry blossoms and magnolias in bloom. Hopefully I can get more on a sunny day.
 

I'm joining in with Skywatch Friday. Thank you for stopping by!

Break Time

Hi friends,

I'm popping in to let you know that things are getting increasingly busy for me as I deal with a couple of major life happenings and on top of that spring work and maintenance.  My plan is to stop posting and surfing blogs for a month or two while I deal with things.

Posting doesn't take that long but I get very distracted because once I'm into blogger I begin reading and often commenting on posts. It's fun, but time consuming. Hopefully by staying off line for awhile I will be able to do everything that needs to be done.  Everything is good. I just need to focus right now. 

In the meantime, I'm sending you all best wishes for a wonderful season wherever you are in the world. Where I live it is springtime but still a bit chilly.

I've been hoping for warmer weather and sunshine to better show the cherry blossoms.  However it has been raining a lot and is still a bit chilly.

Keep well and stay safe.

Cherry Blossoms are Here!

Hello everyone, 

I'm a bit late to the Skywatch Friday party. My excuse is it's been a very busy week and I didn't have much of an opportunity to get sky photos.  It's been raining heavily all week!

However it's cherry blossom time again and I was able to capture a few of the beautiful blossoms. The following photos are not retouched so you can see how dull the sky was when I took the photos. It is hard to see the colour of the cherry blossoms but they are still so pretty and soon the sun will shine here.

 

 

Have a wonderful Friday and thank you for stopping by!

Joining in with Skywatch Friday.

March Weather or Not!

 Welcome back to another Tuesday 4 in honor of Toni Taddeo it's founder.

They say March comes in like a lion and goes out like a lamb. Sometimes it is the reverse.  March has a lot of happenings like March 1st the start of Mardi Gras, the 13th is Daylight Savings Time, the Ides of March on the 15th, St Patrick's Day on the 17th, the first day of  Spring on the 20th this year   March 29-31 are the "borrowing days" when weather is traditionally rough or stormy.

1.  Do you celebrate Mardi Gras or St. Patrick's Day and how do you celebrate them?

I do not celebrate Mardi Gras or St. Patrick's Day. These two days were never a part of the celebrations in the town and the region where I grew up.

2. Do you decorate for the spring in any way at all?

I do not decorate for spring. When spring arrives that is all the decoration I need.  There are beautiful cherry blossoms aplenty and many early blossoming plants all around. (Photos ~ blossoms from March 2021)

3. Daylight savings time doesn't make the day longer.  Experts say it puts kids heath at risk  as well as contribute to heart problems for adults.  Arizona and Hawaii don't change times.  It began as "war time" so war workers in WW2 could come home in the light. What about you though? Are you happy to see it return or not?   

I do not like to see the time change in spring or in fall. I have a hard time adjusting to even a small time change.  Many feel the same way such that our provincial government has passed legislation to keep the same time all year long. It hasn't been implemented yet. I guess we are waiting for our  neighbours to the south (Washington, Oregon and California) and our neighbour to the north (Yukon Territory), to do the same thing so we can all be in the same time zone. Our government enacted the change a few years ago. It looks like we could be waiting a very long time for our neighbours. I have no idea why the government needs to wait. Other Canadian provinces have already made the change permanent.

4. How has the weather been in your neck of the woods as March approaches.  What would be your ideal for weather?

The weather here has been a little of this and a little of that and a lot of rain. We had snow just a few days ago too though it's a bit late for that.  The very short video below shows how fast the snow was flying.  It looked quite pretty.

 

The last of the snow was washed away by the rain on Friday.

My ideal weather is spring weather or early summer with temperatures anywhere from 18C to 25C and the sun shining. I love moderate weather in any season but the ideal weather for me allows me to get out and enjoy a walk, enjoy the spring blossoms or early summer colour and not get too warm while outside.

I'm ending with a few sunflowers that I grew some time back.  Apparently sunflowers are associated with the Ukraine so I share them to represent solidarity with the Ukrainian people.

 

Ukrainian Flag

 

Sad News and Taking a Break

 Hi friends,

I had hoped I would not have to ever report that someone I know has Covid, let alone someone in Kenya who doesn't have resources to fight for his own life.

Some of you will know that I've been supporting Ernest in Kenya in various ways for some years now and I've been looking for someone to take on his monthly support or at least partial support. Sadly I have to report he now has Covid 19.  Though we have been treating him with vitamins and a host of other medicines as prescribed by the doctor, he is in need of more major interventions like oxygen. If any of you have it on your heart to help him please contact me (see sidebar or profile page for contact information).

Ernest at an earlier time dealing with a broken leg

A little more than a week ago a prominent politician in the town where Ernest has to visit the doctor monthly for diabetes check up and medicines, died of Covid 19.  Several other prominent politicians are also now dead of Covid 19 or are in hospital. There is no medical assistance in Kenya for many things including hospital tests and stays for Covid. I am fortunate that where I live the vaccines will be free to everyone who wants one and hospital stays are covered by the national health program. Kenya has over 52 million people. Last month they received the first batch of Astra Zeneca vaccines of just over 1 Million doses from the COVAX initiative. As of 2 days ago 196K doses had been administered.

The plan outlined by the Ministry of Health involved three phases, the last two of which were to run concurrently. In phase one, between February and June 2021, 1.25 million health workers, security and immigration officials would be vaccinated. In phases two and three, from July 2021 to June 2022, nearly 10 million over-50s and over-18s with underlying health conditions and five million of those considered vulnerable, such as those in informal settlements, would be immunised. (Aljazzera News, April 3, 2021)

 I am happy for the blessing of spring Cherry Blossoms

Basically, I will be going offline as I focus and try to deal with the issues at hand both at home and on the mission field as there are many other needs.  

I don't want to spread myself too thin by trying to keep up with blogging so I will take a break from blogging and also from commenting on blog posts. Lord willing I hope to be back here at some point in future.

 

Until then please take good care of yourselves.

🙏🙏🙏

💓💓💓

First Blossoms in My Neighbourhood

I missed out on blossoms last year due to inclement weather, wind and rain which blew the blossoms off the trees early and before I could get out and take photos.

To be honest, I am not sure if these are cherry blossoms or apple blossoms.  Either way, they are delicate and beautiful.

 

I took these photos around 6 p.m. on Thursday night. I hope to get some photos earlier in the day next time but I'm not exactly sure when since we are now in a longer period of rainy days. Today's rain was quite heavy. I hope they will not damage the blossoms.

Enjoy your Friday. I'm linking up with Skywatch Friday.

Kazan Blossoms

Time unfolds and marches on quickly and often in ways you don't expect. 

One of the things I did not expect this year was an inability to make time for taking photos of the beautiful cherry blossoms.

I missed out on the opportunity to photograph the Somei Yoshino (Yoshino Cherry) tree blossoms in late March and during the month of April I stayed inside more than ever.  So I was pleasantly surprised to capture these beautiful Kazan blossoms on a late night shopping expedition (between 7-8 p.m.).
I had to lighten them a bit because the sun had already set.  They aren't as clear as I'd like but they bring me joy nonetheless.

The Kazan blossoms are very beautiful especially on a clear sunny day because of the double, showy blossoms.  Apparently this tree can grow to heights of 30 feet and can also spread for 30 feet. They are definitely beautiful to look at but the leaves and blossoms are poisonous to dogs.  They contain Cyanogenic glycosides, which is a toxin that prevents oxygen from being properly absorbed and transported by the cells.

The forecast is for pouring rain all weekend. In fact I felt a few drops Friday night. 

If the weather clears I will see if I can get any photos of Kazan blossoms next week with my camera as opposed to the phone camera.

Have a wonderful weekend.

Stay safe
♥♥♥