LIVING OFF GRID

This blog is about our travels in our solar powered "Airstream" and living off grid, in our passive solar home, near Bancroft, Ontario, Canada.

If you have any questions send us a comment; we love to hear from our readers.
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Saturday 27 April 2019

FLOODS

We have some flooding in town but it isn't nearly as bad as Huntsville.

The York River is running at its max and in some spots it is over the banks but so far Bancroft has avoided any major damage.

Wonder what these folks are thinking? Maybe it's time we leave.

Today it is snowing and we may get some rain this afternoon so I expect the water level here will rise some more. There are sandbags on the far river bank protecting the apartments there and so far the water has been contained.

This is the second time in five years we've seen flooding along the York River. They claim this is only expected every 100 years but obviously something has changed; even our cottage road had a washout this spring.

Safe travels everyone and thanks for keeping an eye on us. So far we are high and dry.

Thursday 25 April 2019

GARDEN PRODUCE

Today we will eat leaf greens and baby kale from our garden; well not technically from our garden but from our windowsill. Mary started these March 8th  and now they have grown big enough to consume. Another few weeks and we will be able to transplant them to the hotbed which we cover with plastic every night.

Tomato plants are also looking healthy and strong. They wont be transplanted until the risk of frost has passed.

Mary also planted several pots of basil which are also looking very healthy.

Today she moved her entire farm onto the deck for some sun and cooler temperatures.

Mary is anxious to get into the gardens, turn over the soil and get everything planted. Today we need to go and get more compost soil for our raised beds as well as some lumber to make a few more.

Hope your garden is just as productive as Mary's.

Tuesday 23 April 2019

SCHOOL DAYS

We walked Owen to school this morning; Kate always joins us for the walk.

Can you tell Owen was eager to see his friends? Going to school should be like this every day.

 The field was too wet to walk on so we turned around and went back out to the street.

Looks like the football field just got artificial turf. Beautiful multi-use surface for soccer, football and track and field. Makes the football field I played on look like a cow pasture.

Another rainy day in Ontario. (This was Kate on her way to get her brother at 3)

Guess we will stay indoors and play with our play doh.

Monday 22 April 2019

SUNSHINE DAY

So we started the day at McDonald's, kid's breakfast and two hours of playing in the kids' room and colouring soon passed. I know, not the best location to start the day but the grandkids loved it and it gave their mom some quiet time at home.

After lunch it was research and writing for me, a movie for Owen and Kate went with Oma and Sherri to inspect and weed the garden plot they will be using this summer. Tomorrow they will return to dig and prepare the soil for some plants in a few weeks. Summer comes about 3 weeks ahead of our schedule in Bancroft so there is a need to get things ready NOW!

By the time the gang had returned, I was done with my research and Owen was eager to be outside.

We got some chairs out and watched the kids....................

do chalk drawings on the driveway ........................

play hide and seek with the neighbours .........

tumble on the grass ............ and

give his mother a hug.

Outside, on a sunny day gives us all an excitement for life. Watching your grandkids race up and down the street, across the lawn and climb a tree is just icing on the cake. We are blessed.

Sunday 21 April 2019

OUR EASTER GATHERING

Sherri, Mary and Margaret chatting on the couch before lunch.

Uncle Andrew kept the kids entertained.
Rebecca brought a delicious pan of potato salad to share, much appreciated.and so delicious.

Paul brought the turkey, Andrew did the carving while Paul made the gravy.


Everyone was busy in the kitchen.
Olga slicing up Sherri's bread made with grated beets.. It was delicious.
Time to get our plates and eat.



The food was delicious, the company was great, the weather for travel was just fine. So good to have some time together. We need to do this more often.


EASTER EGG HUNT

Kate got Owen up at 8 for their Easter egg hunt. She is the early riser around here.

She was delighted with all the chocolate bunnies she found. She told us she had chocolate toast for breakfast.

Time to share some treats with Oma.

After breakfast Kate and Owen helped in the kitchen.

Kate organized the munchies. She made sure it was very colourful and the peppers placed properly.

Owen's job was to wash and slice the tomatoes. The kids were a great help.

All dressed up and ready for the party.

We love our grandkids. They spoil us.

Saturday 20 April 2019

MAKING CANDIES

Mary has been busy making Keto candies for our Easter family gathering. Here she is about to pop out the peanut butter centers from their molds.

Next step was to drip chocolate over them and set them in the fridge to harden.


Final step is consumption, which we will enjoy tomorrow.

Thursday 18 April 2019

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!

Today is our grandson's birthday. Owen has become very interested in geology and digging for gold. His Oma found a miner's pan used for panning for gold. Owen is excited to try it out this summer. He already has plans to attend the Bancroft Gemboree in August and buy more precious stones. Happy Birthday Owen from Oma and Grandpa. SEVEN rocks!!!!

MORE CHALLENGES

Good morning friends;

I had to have my computer's hard drive replaced. Of course the new drive came with new software and I can't find the program to load pictures. Until I figure things out I won't be posting on my blog. Hopefully this will be a short disruption and I will be back to full compliance within a week.  Old dogs don't like to learn new tricks and I'm an old dog.

Saturday 13 April 2019

TRANSPLANT

It's been a busy week with appointments and jobs to complete but nothing very exciting to report. Life falls into a routine and each day is much like the one before. Many folks are busy with maple syrup; Mary is busy with seedlings.

Some of the seeds have grown too large for their original pots and need to be transplanted.

The tomato plants in particular have all got new homes in their own pots ready to move outside once the weather improves.

Each morning the pots start off in the east windows moving to the south locations in the afternoon. On cloudy days Mary puts them under grow lights which are those thin black strips you see in the second photo. They are LED grow lights very effective and drawing very little energy.

Our red fox meanders through once or twice a week. I suspect she has cubs in the den and is extra busy these days.

If you enlarge this photo you may see the hawk perched in the center. We watched her sit motionless for a while, then drop down and scoop up a mouse or vol.  We were too far away to tell the breed of hawk or what it actually caught.

The downy and harry woodpeckers continue to visit our feeders. Soon we will leave the feeders empty as there will be plenty of bugs for them to eat.

We've also noticed migratory birds at our feeders some mornings; another sign that spring is here and life is changing.

Now it's time for me to add some logs to the fire and enjoy breakfast.

Safe travels everyone and thanks for stopping by.

Saturday 6 April 2019

NEW TRUCK

 Wednesday, Gerry and Jackie gave me a lift to Ottawa and we finally have the new truck home. Our old truck was fifteen years old and had served us well pulling our trailer to California twice and Vancouver once; but the repairs were beginning to be too frequent.

The Ridgeline is smaller than the Sierra but still capable of towing 5,000 pounds. The ride is comfortable and the cabin spacious both features essential for Mary's sensitive back. Of course being new it has more technology than our old machine; things like lane keeping assist where the steering wheel vibrates if you get too close to the line, adaptive cruise control, collision mitigating braking, lane watch plus a host of other features I'm still learning about.

One feature I do like is the trunk. It is deep and wide with a drain plug as well as a lock. The spare tire is also located there which keeps it clean and out of the road grime. Hopefully I will never have to use it but at least it will be easy to get out when needed.

Yesterday Abe (mechanic) installed the tonneau cover and I was pleased with the fit.  I'll post that
picture later.

Looks so much better after a wash. On these dirt roads a daily wash is essential if you want a clean truck.

Now it's time to go for a drive. I would like to head west, Mary wants to go east; may have to arm-wrestle for that.

Safe travels everyone and thanks for stopping by.