Build Day 5 – Will it ever stop?

The morning started out to be quite sunny. But clouds did manage to float in and we had a few minor showers, which didn’t stop us from working.
We got most of the uprights put up, ready for the lattice and we got the bottom box made for the steps from the sliding doors off the [...]

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Build Day 4 – Rain, rain go away…

Paul and T are on vacation and they are in Hawaii. What the heck was I thinking that on MY vacation I would build a deck? There is not one muscle in my whole entire being that is not screeming and writhing with pain. Hawaii? Pain? Hawaii? Pain? Oh ma goh!
Today we got off to [...]

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Build Day 3 – Mother Nature Hates Us

We started off OK at 9ish, but very overcast. We made a rookie error which cost about an hour and $20 but really 5.5 hours because it started teaming rain! And, of course, Trip #3 to Home Depot.
Rain, rain and more rain. At around 2:30 the rain stopped and we immediately got back into it.
We [...]

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Build Day 2 – The House Fights Back

I am just getting too old for this type of sillyness! OHHHH my aching back.
To say Build Day 2 got off to a slow start is an understatement. Not for a lack to trying. One challenge after another. I won’t bore you with them, but suffice to say that we made our 2nd run to [...]

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Build Day 1 – Let the Festivities Begin!

We decided to get as much pre deck work done during the week as possible to allow for concentrated deck building during my time off.
Tuesday June 23 – Demo Day 1 (actually it was evening): Remove overgrown shrubs. Now THAT is manual labour. The root ball of one overgrown evergreen shrub was intensely embedded into [...]

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The New Cocktail Deck June 2009

When we decided to add onto our kitchen, we knew we had to give up our lovely cocktail deck JT and I built about a year or two after we moved into our home. But we had bigger plans! A new, bigger, better cocktail lounge to replace a semi useless, puney little deck off the [...]

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JTs Birthday Dinner

Last Thursday was JTs birthday, we won’t say how old he is, but suffice it to say that I am significantly younger! We decided to stay in for dinner and have our dinner out on Saturday at Le Select Bistro, when things are not so hectic as a weekday. JT decided he wanted his no [...]

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Iced Brie

From the LCBO Summer 2008 Magazine, Lucy Waverman

8 oz (250 g) brie, rind removed, cut into pieces
¼ cup (50 mL) white wine
¼ cup (50 mL) grated Parmesan
2 tbsp (25 mL) unsalted butter
1 tsp (5 mL) dry mustard
Pinch cayenne pepper
Pinch paprika

Combine brie, white wine, Parmesan, butter, dry mustard, cayenne pepper and paprika in a food [...]

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Fred’s Not Here Jalopeño Corn Bread

This recipe cuts in half very nicely.
Makes about 20 Corn shaped corn breads.

1  1/4 medium ground corn meal
1 1/4 all  purpose flour
1/2 cup granulated sugar (I used Splenda as I was making these for my diabetic father-in-law)
1 1/4 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
2 eggs
1 1/2 cups milk
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1/2  cup diced jalopenos (if you like thnings [...]

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Cold Avocado Soup with Cilantro Oil

Although this soup is very rich, I have modified it to a slightly healthier version and suggest about 1/2 cup servings otherwise you won’t have room for dinner!
Modified from Epicurious.
For soup

1 fresh ear of corn, shucked (or 1 cup frozen corn)
2 cups plus 2 tablespoons water
1 garlic clove, smashed
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
3/4 cups chopped white [...]

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