Finding Your Lost Pet...

Finding Your Lost Pet During the dog days of summer, many of us visit family, travel to the cottage or hike in the wilds – and we often bring family pet along for the fun. Unfortunately, sometimes the family pets take a vacation solo. An indoor cat may slip outside while the screen door is opened or the dog may dash out of the car at stopover. Here are some tried-and-true ways – and some technological ideas...

Tips for Garden Centre Shopping...

I have been visiting quite a few garden centres lately – even though most of my plants in my garden are perennials, I like to add annuals in some spots, to balance colours in all parts of the garden. Watching people shop, it dawned on me, that this would be a good topic to address. 1. Do Your Homework and Make a List: Take a pad of paper and a pen and walk around your garden to remind yourself what holes need filling...

Top 10 Green Gardening Tips...

Top 10 green Gardening Tips What I am talking about here is creating ecosystem in your garden – and that means people and plants living in harmony. If that is your goal, consider the following 10 tips. The bonus in achieving this is that you will also safe yourself some work, since an organic garden will well capable of taking care of itself. 1. Make your lawn more eco-friendly: When seeding or over-seeding, reduce...

Texas Beef Barbecue...

This is a definite family favourite – and the great about this recipe is that you can make it on the barbecue  or in your kitchen!The amounts here will make enough to serve up to 16 people, but it is perfectly fine to freeze portions for a quick dinner of lunch later. Texas Beef Barbecue: 1 boneless beef sirloin tip roast (about 4 lbs.) 1 can (5 oz.) of spicy V-8 juice 1/2 cup of water 1/4 cup of white vinegar 1/4...

Homemade Berry Muffins...

These great mixed berry muffins combine the flavours of blueberries, raspberries and strawberries into one delicious freat! Whether you serve them fresh from the oven for breakfast, or with a bowl of cottage for lunch, or with fresh coffee or tea for snack in the afternoon, they are always a hit. I have tried to add raisins as well to this recipe and it sweetened the muffins nicely – go ahead and try, you will not...

Keeping Kids Safe Around Dogs...

Kids and Dogs - Playing Safe With summer pretty much here, I feel that it is important to spread around a bit of caution about children and what should be their best friends – dogs. Dog attacks unfortunately happen a lot this time of year and they happen mostly in homes to children under 10 years old and in most cases involve the family pet or a pet that belongs to someone the children know. To avoid unnecessary...

Homemade Meatballs...

Homemade Meatballs Just like it is nice to have a variety of pastas or any other dishes, it’s also good to have a variety of recipes for meatballs – here are five for you – hope you enjoy them! The directions are the same for all varieties – the ingredients are listed below: Directions: In a large bowl,combine 2/3 cup of fresh bread crumbs with 1/2 cup of water. let stand until absorbed –...

Classic Homemade Pound Cake...

This is a recipe for that perfect, velvety,fine-crumbed and deliciously dense old-fashioned classic pound cake. Prepared with proper measurements and care, this gem is great served with things like fresh strawberries, apple compote, chocolate sauce or pretty much any other "side" of your preference. And it is delicious just by itself with nice,fresh cup of coffee or tea! Classic Homemade Pound Cake: 6...

20 Tips for New Dads...

Some Great Tips for New Dads! As Father’s Day approaches, I thought it would be appropriate to pass on a few words of wisdom, directed at new dads. Becoming a parent is one of the biggest life changing events and I am pretty sure that it is totally impossible to fully explain just how much of a change will take place. But what is important is to remember just what a wonderful change it is and take in some words...

Preserving Your Herbs...

You can enjoy home-grown herbs all the time if you know how to preserve them. Additional great idea is to package them into custom made baggies (ones you make yourself of course) and give them as gift, either individually or as a herb gift basket. People really appreciate receiving gifts that took your efforts and imagination! Here is a simple guide to Preserving Your Herbs: Basil: The one thing to remember about preserving...