Toot my Horn

One of the greatest joys in my life are my grandkids!
And I am going to Toot my Horn about these two.... We got to hear them play in the orchestra they are a part of...

Boys arrive instruments in hand!

One plays the trumpet...that once was played by his pops!

One plays the saxaphone!

He looks a little happier now that its over!
Great work guys, you did a great job!! We are very proud of you.

Weekend Thoughts...

                                            .

For since the creation of the world God’s invisible qualities - His eternal power and divine nature have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made. Romans 1:20

Lake Louise

Hubby had a conference at Lake Louise. He talked about hikes up the mountain watching spring happen when he booked this conference last November! Well.....Welcome to Lake Louise

 This is the beautiful Emerald Lake Louise! Skating any one? It is the middle of April!

We're talking loads of snow! So much for that hike up the mountain. We forgot our snow shoes!

We did hike down to the village along the side of the road......4 km in the blowing snow...after all we are Canadian! With the wind and snow we decided that it was an endurance test...not a nice stroll in the afternoon but it felt good when we got back to the hotel.

 The hotel is interesting to explore...

Got lots of reading done while Brian was at his conference!

All in an Afternoon...

Want to go for a drive? It's a dreary day...but lets go... 

Past the farm fields...

And the Ranches

Into the Foothills..

We're in Banff National Park

Let's stop in Banff

Have supper at our favourite restaurant in Banff

continue on our way...

pass the animal crossovers

Here comes my favourite mountain. When I was little it was called Mt. Eisenhower and it was the mountain I always looked for when we drove this way!

Then they changed the name to Castle Mt....(history of the naming of this mountain to follow) This mountain is prettier when the snow is gone. above the tree line there a carpet of green above the tree line! This is such a majestic mountain!

The mountain was named in 1858 by James Hector for its castle-like or fortress appearance. Following the post-warvisit of U.S. president Dwight D. Eisenhower, the name was changed to Mount Eisenhower by the then Canadian Prime Minister W. L. Mackenzie-King. Eventually, public pressure forced the name to be changed back in 1979 to its original but an isolated pinnacle at the southeastern end is now called Eisenhower Tower.
(hmmm I always wondered about the name change!)
 Thats it for our drive for now...tomorrow...lets visit Lake Louise!

Vegetarian Cooking

About a year ago, I changed the way we eat. It started because of a Boot Camp I attended...then it just evolved. I can't say I am vegan...but I do try not to eat animal protein... most of the time. I have come to believe that the health benefits are worth the change! It has been challenging and fun! New cook books, new items in my pantry, rolled eyes from family and friends...but I have enjoyed the journey. It is definitely time consuming to cook this way (although the longer I do this the easier it becomes). Here is an example of one of my busier cooking days;

Potato Mushroom Crepes

First you make 'Buckwheat Crepes"
11/2 cups plus 2 tbsp soy milk
1/4 cup water
1/2 cup buckwheat flour
1/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 cup chickpea flour (I did not have this so I used oat flour and it worked well)
1 tbsp cornstarch
1/2 tsp salt

Blend ingredients together (batter will be thin)
Chill batter covered for at least one hour.

Meanwhile. . . 
peel and chopped about 2 med sized potatoes (place in med size pot cover with cold water boil for approx. 20 mins or until easily pieced with a fork) then drain and mash
1 small onion diced finely
1/2 lb mushrooms any variety sliced thinly
heat 2 tbsp oil in heavy pan stir and fry the above until golden brown and very soft about 15 mins. season with plenty of fresh pepper and caraway seeds if desired

After batter for crepes has chilled you can start frying the crepes.  (for crepes I have a crepe pan that works great... I have no problems with them sticking...a heavy frying pan can be used. Make sure the pan is oiled well and I spray it as well before each crepe)
Ladle 1/3 to 1/2 cup in the center of the pan. The batter should sizzle when it hits the pan. Holding the handle tilt the pan to spread the batter in a thin layer across the bottom. Continue to tilt the pan until the batter is fully spread and then sets. Cook until the top of the crepe is dry, the center is bubbling and the edges appear firm and lightly browned when gently lifted with the spatula. (approx. 1 - 11/2 mins) Gently run the spatula under the crepe to loosen it, then carefully flip and cook the other side for 30 seconds. Slide the crepe on to a regular-sized dinner plate.

Fold the cooked mashed potatoes and mushroom mixture together.
Assemble Crepes
place 3  - 4 tbsp. of filling in the center of the crepe.

Fold two opposite side over the filling then fold the ends over those. You will have a rectangular little bundle. In a heavy skillet over medium heat...heat a bit of oil. Fry crepe seam side down then on each side for 3 -4 minutes. until crisped and browned.

Serve immediately. (Serve with a sauce - mushroom gravy, natural applesauce or I made Dill Tahini Sauce) a light salad is all you need to complete this lunch!

Where are they now?

As I was out in my yard... I noticed mounds of grass where the snow had melted....

Would they be mouse houses? (I found 6 of these so far...and over half of our lawn is still under snow)

And here are the little roads they were building under all that snow we had this year! 

Sooooo where are the mice now???

Gardening 101

We live on almost an acre of land on the edge of town. We purchased the land approximately 11 years ago. It's now hard to believe that at one time this land was a 'slough' and filled with weeds. Over the years I have enjoyed preparing a garden and flowers beds. During the next few months I will be blogging about some of my gardening experiences. I am a novice when it comes to names of plants and trees. But I love working in the dirt!

I saw my first Robin this weekend...

So spring is coming....I'm sure the Robins are a bit confused with all the snow... 

 This little guy inspired me so I made my first spring purchase .....

A new watering can and few packages of flower seeds.

The snow is melting and I have flower beds exposed that I can start to work in!

This flower bed is the first to bloom and the perennials don't last that long so I thought this would be a good place to start with Sweet Peas and Old Fashion Flowers. We'll see how the seeds do....Our evenings are still freezing?

Once I had cleaned it up I found plants starting to pop up their heads!

At the front of the house there were not many perennials coming up...but I did find a pansy in bloom!