I can't believe it is November already. E ven with all this snow  the first day of winter is still more than a month away -- it is technically still fall. Hmmm.  One of my favourite treasures is the Sunbeam Mixmaster that sits on my kitchen counter. It belonged to my dad's maternal grandparents. (We grew up baking with a chrome Sunbeam and I still think it mixed much better than my fancy mixer does today.) I love its yellowed bits and chipped metal. My grandmother gave this mixer to my great grandparents on their 50th wedding anniversary on February 21st, 1956. Another of my very favourite things are old family photos and the stories that go with them. I am fortunate in that we do have quite a few of each from both sides of my family and I am lucky that I have aunts from both sides and my parents who remember the stories.  Marlene and my dad circa 1945 in front of my great grandparents home. Yesterday I visited my Aunt Marlene (she's the li......

Is this gorgeous, or what? Shelley Banks Photo The  Ellis Bird Farm  is o ne of our favourite places to visit every summer. T he Bird Farm is both a working farm as well as a non-profit organization dedicated to the conservation of Mountain Bluebirds, Tree Swallows and other native cavity nesting birds.  It all started in 1955 with siblings Charlie and Winnie Ellis putting out a nesting box for a pair of mountain bluebirds. Charlie began to build LOTS of bird boxes and eventually had a trail of 300 bluebird boxes that he checked daily. By the late 1970's there were more mountain bluebirds nesting here on the Ellis farm than anywhere else on earth. It is a special place. A favourite spot for photos is always in front of the old granary. We visited on a quiet and cloudy day in mid July. A dusk filter on the photos desaturates them. I find the farm one of the most peaceful and beautiful places to spend an afternoon. ......

Okay, so I might not fit, but I've got a swing! If you've ever built a house you know how those construction delays happen. Mr. CF and I built this house late last summer and it sat, without the porch roof attached, waiting for me all winter. Mr. CF attached the roof and installed the posts and I was off and running. I couldn't find one single photo of our build, but hey, he had the table saw out and was building at my beck and call... I didn't want to spoil the moment! Source I used this photo for inspiration... free plans are linked to the source and now I see they even have the cutting list on there.  We used a 1 1/8" hole for chickadees and nuthatches and resized the interior to suit them. They like it small and cozy. With a swing of course! I had rocks & glue left over from the  Fairy Condo  so I had to have a rock chimney. If you are wondering about the fry pan of rocks on the table, that is how you dry your rocks after you had t......

Yesterday we moved my grandmother's sewing machine into the dining room. This move was inspired by my new-to-me pewter coffee pot which was given to my mom by her dear friend and US neighbour Holly who is almost 90. My parents spend the winter in the USA; Mom's parents were both born in the US and I have enjoyed doing lots of genealogy research of relatives in the Spokane, Washington and Waterford, Wisconsin areas. Holly moved from Canada to California many years ago and enjoys the Canadian ties & friendship with my folks. She has been sharing her treasures with us and they are getting a lot of love. The crocheted tablecloth is from her also. Thank you dear Holly -- I don't imagine you expected a bird's nest in the coffee pot, but considering it spent many years in the barn in Quebec, (before you rescued it) a bird's nest may not be much of a stretch! The Dixon & Son pewter coffee pot was made between 1823 & 1835 and made the trek to Qu......