Life at our house...

We're just trucking along. Literally.

Today was my one day at home this week and I ended up piloting for Pat. Then quick picking up the boys at Wendels and bringing them to the shop to do rods. And quick going to Melanie's for coffee with Syl and Arlene. That was awesome! :) My days truly never turn out quite like I expect them to.

I've ended up piloting for Pat a few times lately. Work has been super slow. To the point of laying off all the guys except Mike. Then. Things started to happen. I mean, tanks started to sell. We've had a nice little harvest for which we are grateful. Like, very very grateful.

I've spent parts of days and days and days at the shop. We (I use we loosely here) haven't exactly kept up with the bookkeeping. :) And because the guys haven't necessarily been around the back of the shop, Wyatt has had his share of skid-steer rides and truck rides and he feels very manly indeed.

Tonight I was singing to Wyatt and I laughed about the phrase Where are the mothers whose... 
Where, indeed, is the mother to clean This house?? I'm thinking I should hire someone to help me spring clean at least.

I've been keeping busy with sewing too; home-ec, sewing for a couple other ladies, sewing a couple frocks for myself and of course a quilt or two on the go. I'm in the process of making a baby quilt that would be similar to this:

Books

 There's a long row of books on the floor in front of the fire place:

The Bobbsey Twins In The Great West

The Last Chance Detectives

Biggles Flies East

I Survived The Children's Blizzard, 1888

Animal Ark Racoons On The Roof

Animal Ark Animal Ark Favorites

Taking The Reins

I Survived The Bombing of Pearl Harbor, 1941

I Survived The Great Molasses Flood, 1919

Biggles In France

Health, Safety & Manners

This is Wyatt's current list to read.

March Musings

 It's the last day of March in 2022, a very exciting event, as it brings spring one step closer. Large snow flakes swirl and cling to wet surfaces outdoors. Inside, Wyatt taps the window incessantly and I tap the keyboard. Pat is on his way home from Edmonton with (probably) the last load of coal for the season. Colby is at Paul's, welding today. Zach went to Delisle first thing this morning to help Jeff install cabinets at folks, then headed to Jeff's to help him on their house. 

So far today, I've napped. And read a bit of Black Heals to Tractor Wheels. And done some work for Pat in the office. And drank some coffee. 

Really big stuff.

But yesterday was bigger. I had a group of ladies over for coffee in the afternoon. And Colby invited the youth over for Easter practice in the evening. Both events involve food prep. Also, after school Wyatt came running in, all excited, because he had just watched Polly hatch a kitten by the back deck! We warded off the dogs with a straw broom and Wyatt fetched a plastic storage container from the garage to haul Polly and her offspring to safer grounds. Polly proceeded to 'hatch' kittens for the rest of the day in the warmth of the garage. 

I have taken on a new job since we last talked. I am currently doing books for school. The first learning curve here was talking with Victoria from the Royal Bank of Canada and setting up the GRSP accounts for the teachers along with arranging online appointments for each of them, all while they were gone for in-service and  I was gone to Colby's class program. What I'm trying to say, is that I don't always sit around and do nothing.

And.

I quit my writing group. And it was such a good writing group. I truly loved it. But. I couldn't do it all. 

This is how I got here; to the old blog, dusty and unused. 

Do I dare to dream of writing once again?

Tuesdays With Jo

Dear Mother Jaskey, 

I'm witnessing an absolutely gorgeous sunrise in rich pinks with our spruce trees as a silhouette. 

Pat just left for AB and Zach for Jeff's place. I have a marathon before me, as in cleaning my house. Because, we are actually planning Grandpa's funeral for tomorrow, the Lord willing. 

This last week has been a blur of good food, late nights and reading together as a family. I've always dreamed of a Christmas holiday like this and it was lovely. 

But I'll just whisper it, I really miss people. It's kind of hard to imagine that we need to go walk through Walmart to be with people. 

Anyway, have a great day! This writing a letter once a week thing was a great challenge for me and I thank you for it! 

Love Jo

P.S. Trevor came out for the funeral and Wyatt is mesmerized by him.

P.P.S. Now we're reading Old Yeller aloud together. 

P.P.P.S. Our basement bathroom has white tub-surround again. After a lot of elbow grease.

Tuesdays With Jo

Dear Mother Jaskey, 

Good morning from the snowy plains of Saskatchewan. The sun is barely up in muted hazy tones. Its a lazy Christmas holiday feel around here.

My Christmas cards are draped across windows on jute twine and the coffee bar by the dining room window is well used. I just watered the giant poinsettia basking on the old singer sewing machine. Wyatt and I have a 1000 piece Cobble Hill puzzle going in the living room. 

We finished school on Friday with a party and food from Saskatoon. Pat, Jeff and our boys finished the casket (I spent a day helping line it with black and red buffalo plaid). On Sunday the school board met in the teacherage basement for a time of bonding over flood waters. 

I'm so excited about these two weeks, even though we still have a funeral on the horizon (maybe Dec 31st). We ordered a deep fryer and ice-cream machine with Christmas gift money (from Grandma Isaac) and we're living the life!

So grateful for you, 

Love,

Jo

P.S. We're reading Where The Red Fern Grows aloud together late at night. 

P.P.S. Zach helped me mix a giant batch of Christmas Coffee. 

P.P.P.S. Colby made a doughnut hole cutter. Guess what's in our future?!

Tuesdays With Jo

Dear Mother Jaskey, 

It's a chilly evening. The heaters are blasting. The thermometer says -13C but the weather app says a windchill of -19C.

What a year this last week has been. Grandpa Esau passed away peacefully on Sunday after a week of poor health and a sharp decline. He had been told in August that he had congestive heart failure and that he had 6 months to a year left. Somehow it feels shocking. Only a week ago I was kneeling by his chair feeding him blended up lentil soup. He didn't have the strength.

Last week felt gloomy and overcast every day. In reality Grandpa's life hung in the balance. And so did Ben Ginther's. So working together with Paul's and Jeff's on the school board was... heavy. Ben is feeling better, praise God. Grandpa is safely home, praise God. 

Imagine our surprise to find out only yesterday that Grandpa tested positive for that ugly word. The phonecalls that ensue. The weight. The no funeral. The quarantinement for some. The aloneness for grieving people. The joy that Grandpa's battles are over. 

But let's talk about other things. Jay's came to visit us Sunday evening. Linda brought us soup and biscuits today. Nicole and Isla came to stay with Arlens. I guess I'm always circling back.

I did books today in the shop. And wrote out Christmas cards. And Colby and Zach went to Jeff's to help build Grandpa's casket. There. I did it again. 

I guess its where we're at.

Love

Jo

P.S. Grandpa used to sing with a group, a quartet in Linden and they called themselves the Groaners. 

P.P.S. The day Grandpa went to Outlook on the ambulance he waved to Pat and I and said, "I love you". It felt like goodbye. 

P.P.P.S. Wyatt brought me a little toy chest on Sunday evening. He had wrapped a dead fly in a kleenex and put it carefully inside.

Tuesdays With Jo

Dear Mother Jaskey, 

It is a glorious warm winter day. +2C and for a moment when I was busing this afternoon the sun shone in glimmering splendor over the world. The clouds have bonded once again and the grey envelopes the long late afternoon. 

Grandpa Esau has been quite sick, with a terrible cough, no appetite and a general feeling of misery. This afternoon he perked up when the ambulance came to get him and some of the grandchildren waved to him outside his window. He told Pat & i that he loved us this morning when we left. Only God knows what his future holds. 

Colby and Zach have been working for Jeff the last week, north of Saskatoon a ways, doing long days outside. Pat has been on the truck hauling grain into Alberta and coal back to Saskatchewan. Wyatt is so happy to go to school every day. There certainly are things we don't take for granted!

Love from,

Jo

P.S. 'Tis the Season; peppernuts, mandarins, poinsettias, and Christmas candles. 

P.P.S. It's the Most Wonderful Time... of the year....🎵🎶🎵 shopping Christmas gifts for everyone at Trevor and Robin's request. 😅🥳🥰

P.P.P.S. Tell me more about Christmas... from the eyes of little children and school children. It is truly delightful.

Tuesdays With Jo

Dear Mother Jaskey, 

Today I started a tunic factory. Its not something that's ever been on my list of things to try but I did enjoy it. I've already closed the doors. I think we made 24 tunics. 

That was for school. They are putting on a Bethlehem Walk and believe me, there has never been anything like it before in Swanson. I'm looking forward to it. 

Other than that we've been providing a bit of compassionate care here and there. Last night our neighbor boy stopped by for supper with many questions on his mind and heart.

The weather holds out at possibly the most beautiful November ever, with hoarfrost and snow and glinting sunshine.  The one thing our youth can do is play hockey. So that is what they do. 

I met my fellow Quacky Quilters at church today for a time of fellowship, although we should really call ourselves the Band of Bonding Masked Bandits. 

I miss you, 

Love Jo 

P.S. Wyatt was carefully reading the licorice package. "This has 30 gigs of sugar Mom!" He said, horrified. 

P.P.S. Wyatt opened his report card carefully. "Mom, I've never got this in all my life!" His eyes glowing.

P.P.P.S. Colby got a call to a bad accident last evening and he finally got home about 5 in the morning. I'm immensely proud of him.

Tuesdays With Jo

Dear Mother Jaskey, 

Hello from snowladen and hoarfrosty, foggy Saskatchewan. The other day Wyatt and I cleared the back deck and now he can go running the length of the deck and slide out onto the snowpile.

We are down to only 5 people per household, but our school is still going for which we are very grateful. I got a sewing day around at church last week and now our church sewing got canceled. Its disappointing but I guess we're getting used to changes, aren't we?

I delve into domestic things randomly and one thing I tried lately was making bar soap. My men were keenly interested in the scientific aspect of it all. I cut my soap into bars and its curing in my laundry room. 

Pat has been hauling grain to Edmonton and coal home again. Colby and Zach have been doing 12 hour days on a cementing project for Lance the last couple of weeks. Good times. Every spare moment they have the youth boys have been flooding the rink. I love love the stage we're at with our boys. The food consumption is truly phenomenal. 

Love 

Jo

P.S. Have you made soup lately? The Potatoe Soup recipe from the Klassen cookbook by Vivian is one of our favorites. I made a giant pot of it last week. 

P.P.S. And talking about food, my husband took me out for dinner on Sunday and I ate steak with delectable roasted tomatoes and onions on it. Mmm 

P.P.P.S. Food. Ahhh. Excuse me, its time to go make lunch.

Tuesdays With Jo

Dear Mother Jaskey, 

Hello from snowladen and hoarfrosty Saskatchewan. Wyatt and I went out after school today and cleared the back deck and now he can go running the length of the deck and slide out onto the snowpile.

We are now down to only 5 people per household, but our school is still going for which we are very grateful. As far as I know our congregation is mostly well.

Today I went to Melanie's for coffee with the schoolboard ladies. And we planned and discussed and it was suddenly 12:45! And I went grocery shopping on Monday and I hadn't gone for over 2 weeks so it was a haul! 

I delve into domestic things randomly and one thing I did yesterday was make my first batch of bar soap. My men were keenly interested in the scientific aspect of it all. I just cut my bars and set them in my sewing room to cure. 

Pat has been hauling grain to Edmonton and coal home, last week and this week. Colby and Zach have been doing 12 hour days on a cementing project last week and this week. Good times. I love love the stage we're at with our boys. The food consumption is truly phenomenal. 

I miss you, 

Jo

P.S. Pat took me out to Montana's for lunch the other day and I had the best fish!

P.P.S. Melanie served steaming tall bran muffins with real butter and coffee with cream. Yum.

P.P.P.S. You know how food blesses and satisfies along with the fellowship? We had Lindsay and her parents over for supper on Saturday and just plain grilled sausage and baked potatoes and old fashioned cherry cheesecake. And fellowship.