I Tanked at Gardening this Year

Look, I even killed ferns – the world’s heartiest plant.

Why? By the time I got my act together to plant seeds it was mid-August, way too late. I kept forgetting to water regularly because I thought rain water was enough. And I’m supposed to find time to weed?

While I’m not the most embarrassing house on these street – lawn is usually cut and porch swept – I’m far from the most together.

Canadian Tire even sent me the below package of encouragement, along with the flower seeds I requested for my bathtub… and still I tanked it. They know me well too, and sent stuff that was “just add water.”

However!

According to the labels, this stuff will store fine over the winter provided it is NOT opened.

The added bonus is gardening items are on sale right now at Canadian Tire.

I’ve seen the above items priced at half-off. So go shopping now, and I scheduled a post for May 3, 2016 to remind us to plant the seeds.

***

No money was exchanged for this post.

Canadian Tire sent me their products, so I tested them then typed my impression. This is a beta test of my latest idea.

 

 

Last Chance to Summer Road Trip is Now

Road trips are guaranteed fun, adventure, and consistently yield one of _those_ stories… “hey remember that time we went to Wherever HAHA the best memories yup.”

Meet Michael Palmer, the “CEO of Family Travel.” The Calgarian has road tripped over 900,000 km, part of which is detailed his upcoming book, No Tranquilizers! 17,000 kms, 63 Days, 3 Kids, 1 Van 

He teamed up with Canadian Tire, so we had a good laugh on the phone, talked cars, and here’s his list…

Michael’s Top 3 Road Trip Tips

1 – Safety First

Have it serviced, check and inflate the tires, you know the drill.

2 – Find a Rhythm

Arriving at 11pm one night, then 6pm the next, that will tire you quickly. Be consistent, find a rhythm. Michael drove those 17,000 km in 6-hour per day increments.

3 – Keep it Clean

“Things can get out hand real quick, ” Michael says.  He points out food is always coming in and out of the vehicle, and you don’t want a rotting-grapes incident like he experienced, “organization is critical.”

Plus, if you have to brake hard and suddenly, you don’t want stuff taking flight.

Canadian Tire introduced Glovebox, a new line of auto storage solutions. I attended the media launch in January, there’s a good weight and handle to the fabric.

Or do a 24-hour trip, they’re great, here’s one I blogged.

We live in the best country in the world,
go explore it!

***

No money was exchanged for this post.

Canadian Tire introduced me, he’s a fun guy and I like his list so I blogged it. This post has been a beta test of my latest idea.

 

 

Completed the Cleaning Stage of this Renovation

Took all weekend. Not being dramatic, 25 hours anyway.

Saturday night there was even an impromptu neighbour party in my backyard. I’d sail out, dump out another bucket of water, top up drinks, top up the bucket and leave to scrub.

Good timing from Krud Kutter, they’d sent me their lineup of products to test. Non-toxic, biodegradable, and you can spray it on plants and pets.  I’ve never cared about pouring chemicals down the sink, but now that I’m on a septic, I care.

Below is which type is used for what. It’s kind’ve confusing (and not alphabetical?) so here: yellow for tough stuff and laundry, red for everything else, and purple removes sticky residue like stickers and roofing tar.

Hired my kid worker for an afternoon, and we observed it cut grease well, especially where I dropped a stick of butter on the deck.

Kept it old school though for the wood floors – vinegar and drop of dish soap.  Remember when I had to clean like this last fall? What I didn’t tell you was about the chemical burns on my hands. House is same level of clean this time, but without that. So I threw out all the chemical cleaners. Am I a hippie now?

If it wasn’t so annoying, the coverage that drywall dust
can achieve would be impressive.

Still no real furniture, stuff everywhere, just gotta dance it out.

Every item inside the house, every piece of furniture, scrubbed. Every window and screen. Every felt pad replaced. Every drawer emptied, washed and re-stocked. Every furniture bolt tightened. Ceilings dusted. Walls washed. Purged a couple car loads of nonsense.

It’s been like having 3 jobs this past month. Let’s take a little break.

Okay back up, shouldn’t have sat down.

Keep going, going….. DONE.

All that’s left is the fun part – push everything into place and decorate.

And then create a Before/After photo series, which I think about constantly.

***

No money was exchanged for this post.

Krud Krutter sent me their products, it was timely so I tested them, then typed my impression. This is a beta test of my latest idea.