Tuesday Tidbits and Stuff

 The day has been very cloudy and dark. Harvey has told me to take my laptop to the shop to see if they can get it up and running.  A friend on the forum I frequent said that all we need is a working computer a USB drive and make a recovery thumb drive. Beyond me, but I don't  have the skill for that. Then my files could be recovered and Kris would be able to transfer everything to a new computer. Tomorrow will see me taking it in.

To top it all off my InstantPot made some funny noises yesterday and let off pressure way too soon without my doing anything. I have changed the silicone seal so I hope that has fixed the problem.

Shopping was an adventure today. It seems my shopping list grew feet and wondered away. So, yours truly tried to remember all that was on it. Pretty sure I missed things and many of the items that I did remember were not available. I will do without.

Yesterday I decided to finish knitting the blanket before sewing the dress. Now it seems like my ball of yarn is never ending. No matter how many rows I complete my yarn never seems to get smaller. In reality I know it is, but when I look at it the size seems to be the exact same as when I started. I will get it completed though and completed as quickly as possible.

Off to get a bit more done before making supper. I will visit you all later.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Menu Monday

 

Well, my laptop gave up a few moments ago, which means I am using my phone to post and read. You will all have to forgive me if my fat fingers make a mistake typing.

People are saying that I must be pretty organized to do a monthly menu. It has taken a very long time to get to this point. Years in fact. It is all due to my being able to stock up on various proteins. When I grocery shop I can plan almost 2 months in advance which is lovely. 

Here are the menus for our suppers this week. Lunches are either some type of sandwich or leftovers from suppers.

Monday

Chicken legs with back attached, baked. Served with rice and peas.

Tuesday

Leftover ham casserole from Sunday. Served with carrots.

Wednesday

Soup and eggsalad sandwiches.

Thursday

Hamburgers, pickles, sliced tomatoes and fries done in the air fryer.

Friday

Fish Fillets, baked, rice and carrots.

Saturday

Chili and toast. This is also the day I will be doing a big batch cook.

Sunday

Roast beef, roast potatoes, roast carrots, and a salad.

Everyone have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Saturday Roundup

 

It has been a so so week on getting projects completed and starting new ones. Still it has been a good week. Cloth napkins cut and sewn, the dress cut out to start sewing tomorrow, baking done, bread made, and I finally got my mint salve made. 

Also cleaned up outside (all those little sticks from the trees), covered and moved the deck furniture, and moved the one lavender into the perennial bed to see if the plant will last the winter. 

I washed all the stuffed toys, and mended an outdoor cushion as well as our daughters Cabbage Patch doll. Darned a pair of my socks as well. 

Even managed to get out and have coffee with friends a couple of times this week. While I do love visiting, I am finding that staying home a few days a week enables me to get much more accomplished. That is a "very good thing" as Martha would say. 

My wardrobe has been switched to fall/winter clothing and all the spring/summer items are away now. While doing so I managed to declutter a few more items from my clothing. It was then I noticed that I really could use a few more winter type tops and a few pairs of sweatpants.

Found a few interesting places in Regina that are reasonably priced and some of the condos are actually quite nice. The HOA fees aren't that bad either. When I told Harvey that most only have one parking space, he mentioned leaving the truck at our sons and having it become a joint use vehicle. I have a feeling that Kris would be using it much more than we would unless we purchased a small home. 

I have made my menu for November using the basics we already have in the house. I also picked the days that I will be doing batch cooking. The first day that I plan on having soup and sandwiches for a meal will be my big batch soup making day. Then a bit later there is a day I want to make chili, so that will be my big ground beef batch cooking day. I have also picked a day to use up all those bags of frozen leftovers in the fridge, and that will be a casserole making day. I am hoping that this will simplify cooking around this house. I can pretty much count on both hands and two toes the days we order in, and when we do there is usually enough for at least 2 more meals if not more. 

One of the replies on my last post questioned why basements are never included in the square footage of a home as that would double the amount of space a home has. In this home's case our basement is really only suitable for storage since the windows are not the right size to escape through in case of fire. We did put a larger window in the room Kurt uses when home, but even that one may not be the proper size. Harvey does have his mancave down there, but since it is only used when he is awake that is okay according to the fire department. Even if we add in that square footage we would still be under 1400 square feet. 

Next week I will post pictures of what I have accomplished since my last photo drop. 

Off to visit with all of you.

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Simple Living

 

Why is it the more I try to head towards simple living, the more complicated it gets? 

I have been trying to move away from disposable paper items and while that is a wonderful idea, I am beginning to think things get complicated first.

I made that first batch of tinkle cloths, and while there was enough to last just over a week, me being me thought perhaps more would be much better. After all having enough for almost two weeks would be wonderful... Right?

Then there was the wish to have cloth napkins. I had cut apart an old tablecloth that wasn't being used and got 15 made, but was that enough? So this month I went through my fabric and found smaller Christmas fabric pieces, and a cotton plaid fabric that wasn't big enough for anything really clothing wise and made another 14 napkins. 

Now I know this will actually simplify my life eventually and also be cost effective, but right now it seems that living simply is a touch more difficult than I thought. Is cutting down on paper products actually a way to simplify or is it more of a cost cutting endeavor? 

Is decluttering really simplifying, or is it just ridding the house and myself of things that I no longer find useful? Is cooking every day a way of living simply, or is it something that I need to work on by doing a couple of days batch cooking a month. 

We always look back at our parents/grandparents and think how wonderfully simple their lives were. But were they really? I can remember my mother scraping wax off the floors when all of us kids were in bed, because there was too big a build up on the floors and she had to wax them the next day to get the shine back. I also remember her polishing the hardwood floors and the sound of the floor polisher late at night. 

I can pretty much count on one hand the number of times we had food delivery, Mom cooked every night that I can remember. There were times I got home from school late and had to make my own meal because Mom and Dad had taken my brother to his hocky game. Thank heavens for eggs and hot dogs. Ate a great many meals using those items along with cheese.

I can remember her sprinkling clothes and getting them ready to iron the next day. She ironed almost everything, even my bras. 

The more I think of life growing up the more I realize what seemed to be simple living really wasn't in the term I think of. It might have been simple for me, but not for my parents. At least unlike my grandparents Mom did not have to cook on a wood stove, we did not have to heat water and fill a tub for baths and dishwashing. Meals were hearty but simple and budgets were followed to the letter. 

However simple living right now to me means using what I have to the best of my ability. Sewing by hand when I can, learning to weave to make my own fabric eventually, learning new skills to depend a little less on stores, and taking advantage of every day to be thankful for what I have and what I can do to slow down the pace of everyday life and enjoy the moment. Now that last is something I need to work on a bit harder.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Everybody have

Thrifty and Frugal Thursday

 Thrifty and Frugal

It has been a slow day. My list of household tasks were not many and since I had a slight backache upon arising I have put off cleaning and organizing the chest freezer.

So what thrifty and frugal things have been happening here on the Phillips homestead. 

1.  Sticking close to home. The only time I drove the vehicle was to go to the dentist on the other side of the city. I make that sound like a really long drive while it only takes me 10 minutes or less to get there.

2.  As usual using up all leftovers in either a new meal, or for lunches. 

3.  I bought some sandwich meat on sale and yuck is it ever salty. Quite a surprise to me as I haven't made a sandwich with processed luncheon meat for myself in a very, very long time. I think I will be sticking to leftover roasts, and making egg, tuna or salmon salad to use. 

4.  Mending a few stuffed toys and the Cabbage Patch doll. I also darned a pair of my socks. 

5.  I got free floss, free floss picks, and free interstitial brushes from my visit to the dentist. 

6.  Drapes open during the day for light and to heat the house. Right now it is 25C in here and 9C outside.

7.  Baked bread twice, and I even tried to make hotdog buns once again. Getting a bit better at the hotdog buns thing. Still need to work at it though. 

8.  Pulled the frozen cake and iced it for dessert the beginning of the week. I am now making a rhubarb crisp for dessert for the rest of the week. 

9.  Using up small bits of fabric from my stash to make cloth napkins. Only a few more to go and I will call that project done and dusted. 

So all in all a pretty decent frugal and thrifty week here. Hope all of you have had the same.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Midweek, Oh My

 

I think that pretty soon panic is going to set in. I am in no way ready for winter or Christmas and both are coming up very quickly. 

Not only is it midweek again, but it is almost the end of this month. Yikes time is just flying right by. Still lots I want to get done this month. Hopefully everything will actually be accomplished. Perhaps even a few of the smaller tasks from next month if I am really lucky.

It seems as if there is never enough hours in a day to get things done and dusted. I believe it is because it stays darker in the mornings and gets dark early at night. Some things just need the light of day in order to get done. I do have a very decent light in the sewing/craft room, but some items are just too large to sew or craft in there. This means I have a large folding table in the living room to work on during the sunny portions of the day. 

The weather has changed. It is very cold, below freezing most nights lately and so the heat has been turned on. Still we are keeping that fairly low and I am thinking that perhaps we should use the timer this year a bit more. 

I have been working on getting some cleaning done that really hasn't been done in awhile. I have washed all the doll clothes my Mom made for Krista's Cabbage Patch doll, cleaned that tote, washed all the stuffed toys (need to mend her Care Bear) and tomorrow will wash the Cabbage Patch doll. The tote the stuffies were in has been cleaned as well and once the last few stuffed toys are added can be put away. 

The yard is cleaned up, flower pots, baskets and such have been emptied and all summer decor is put away or covered up on the deck. 

Guess things are moving along for now, but so much more needs to be done to be ready for the dark, cold and snowy days of a Canadian prairie winter.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Tuesday Tidbits and Stuff

 

Well, I suppose it is time to show all of you some photos of what projects I have managed to get done so far this month. I did not manage to get a picture of the 60 pairs of mitts that I managed to finish over the last few months before they left the house.

I made more muffins to eat for breakfasts or for Harvey to have as a snack with ice cream.

I managed to get 6 containers of tomato sauce ready and in the freezer. Some of these will be used to make meaty spaghetti sauce at a point next month.

I finished the quilt, even the hand quilting. Glad the boys were home to hold it up for a picture. It actually turned out much larger than I thought it would. I do hope the recipient likes it.

I did not get a picture of all the scrap fabric cut into various sized squares. I did get this picture of some of my new tinkle cloths before I edged them.

I made two sets of placemats out of this material for our sons Christmas baskets.

Mended an outdoor cushion and our daughter's Cabbage Patch doll. Now the doll can be washed and dressed once again.

Made a set of placemats for us (have more fabric to make some more after Christmas), and I used up some fabric from the making of the quilt to make a pillow. 

Cut up some Christmas fabric and a piece that was really too small to even make a top from and now I have lots of cloth napkins to sew. 

Still have lots of time this month, so I am sure I will be able to show you a few more finished projects for this month.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Menu Monday

 

I could not get back on to post this weekend. I spent most of it planning some projects, doing some extra cleaning, and helping Harvey try and get the yard ready for winter. I think we are almost there now, just a few things left to bring in or cover. 

Once again it is time to post my menus for the week. Heck it is almost time to make next month's menus out. Now that will be interesting as I am planning to do a couple of days of batch cooking. 

Monday

Cream of Asparagus Soup (which I made from the woody parts of the asparagus, just saved them up in the freezer until I thought I had enough) and Grilled Cheese Sandwiches.

Tuesday

Leftover pork from Sunday made into a casserole. I will also make a salad to go with this.

Wednesday

Hotdogs, baked beans and the salad that is leftover.

Thursday

Leftover casserole from Tuesday and I will add some extra veggies to it (should be able to mix them in).

Friday

Pancakes.

Saturday

I have a bag of leftover chicken in the freezer and I think I will make a chicken pot pie or instead of ham make a quiche from it. That will give us a couple more days of meals as well. Probably stick those into containers and have them later next month.

Sunday

I plan on making a potato and ham casserole which will give us enough for another meal (and a lunch) next week.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Things Need To Slow Down

 

As I contemplate the last week and look towards next week and those following, I really think that I need some slow time. Time to enjoy the sights, sounds and smells of fall, before the snow comes and we are once again in a endless vista of white. 

I don't know how I plan on doing that, but perhaps I can take a day or two to just sit and enjoy. My problem is knowing that there is so much to do before winter hits and my nesting habit  begins. In actual fact it probably has already started.

My menu ideas are becoming much heartier and more meat based, I am pulling out projects to work on that are slower, or that I know will never be finished before winter is over. I am collecting reading material on my ereader and computer so I don't have to leave the house.

Stocking up on things like candles, laundry detergent, dishwasher tabs, mostly those things that I would have to drive across town for. 

Planning one last trip to the city in order to visit with Kris and do a bit more stocking up on things we can not purchase here. 

Life does slow down in the winter, I just wish it would slow down in the fall.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Thrifty and Frugal Thursday

 Thrifty and Frugal

I have been sticking pretty close to home and trying my best to reign in my spending for the rest of this month. So what thrifty and frugal things have been happening here on the old homestead.

1.  Made more tinkle cloths from some scrap flannelette I found in my stash.

2.  Cut strips and 4" squares out of the scraps that were not suitable for tinkle cloths. I also cut some 2 1/2" squares from the scraps left from cutting those scraps.

3.  Shopping from home before I run out to purchase anything. One can always make substitutions and there is much to use up after the holiday. 

4.  Shopped my fabric to make some more Christmas gifts for Kurt's and Kris's Christmas baskets. I found fabric to make them each 4 placemats, and probably a bit later some hot pads as well. I also have enough fabric to make us some placemats and hot pads as well. I even found some fabric suitable for some more cloth napkins. 

5.  I have made my grocery and stock up list for this week purchasing mostly sale items, and planning ahead.

6.  Using up leftovers effectively for new meals.

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Midweek Once Again

 My goodness the days are just whipping by as well as getting much shorter. Soon winter will be upon us here in the Northern Hemisphere bring us time to stay in and get our homes in order for the next set of holidays.

I promised pictures of my sister and I visiting the last two living sisters of our Mom. Both of them lost their husbands many years ago.

First we traveled to Norquay to visit with the youngest of the girls.

Aunt Alice lives in the house she and Uncle Russel moved into when they left the farm right in the village.

This is a picture of my sister, my cousin Brian, Aunt Alice and myself. Her other daughter lives in B.C and was not there at the time we visited.

Here is a picture of her immediate family.

Brian, his wife Joy, Aunt Alice, Velda, her husband Ken.

We laughed and reminisced about our visits when young to the farm. 

Of course they put on coffee for us and you can tell they were farm folk as the table was loaded with squares, cookies, donuts, and so many other lovely edibles. 

As we left we promised to try and visit at least once a year.

We made it to Yorkton in time to visit those that are no longer with us. The cemetery there is so beautiful and very peaceful.

Aunt Alice decided that she wished to be buried near her sisters and so buried her husband amongst all the Koch's. 

The flowers were lovely and we found out that our cousin Greg's wife, Ruby, made all of them when they came up from Chicago to visit Aunt Isabel. 

We then went out for supper and checked into our hotel room.

The next morning we did a bit of window shopping as we did not want to bother Aunt Isabel too early. At 97 she deserves her rest, though I am pretty sure she was up and waiting for us to arrive.

She finally moved from the home her and Uncle Sam (who just happens to be our Dad's brother) moved to about 40 years ago. She is living in one of the two retirement homes in the city of Yorkton and just hates it. The suite she lives in is very nice, but she does not like the meals and says things are stupidly run... If the fire drill we went through while there is any indication, she is quite correct.

Aunt Isabel and I out in the backyard of the home. We were kind of stuck there and could not get to the muster point as the gate was locked. Guess we could have had some bad burns.

After we got back in the residence Aunt Isabel phoned our cousin Cam and we traveled to Bunkers (the business he owns) to visit for awhile. 

After taking her back to her suite, we headed to the restaurant to meet up with our brother's and Jay's significant others and twin girls. Our youngest brother decided not to come, which was a pity.

After our supper (mix up over the time, of course) it was the long journey home.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Tuesday Tidbits And Stuff

 

The house is quiet once again, perhaps too quiet right now. Work, other than slowly hand stitching the quilt went by the wayside this weekend. 

My back was much better, just a twinge now and again. With Kris's help Thanksgiving dinner went well. He helped by putting the turkey in the oven and taking it out. Saved my back for sure.

Kurt was outside helping Harvey cut branches off the trees. Those now need to be cut down, the bigger portions saved for the firepit, and the smaller ones hauled to the dump next weekend. He then raked the leaves and smaller sticks up for easier disposal. 

Eiko, our grandcat is getting more and more used to us being around. She is still a bit skittish, but at least does not attack us, claws out when we walk by. 

I spent some time yesterday cutting scrap fabric into strips, 4" squares and 6" squares. One more project finished this month. Sure glad that I only have a few small ones left to do. The 6" squares are being edged and then I will be using them as tinkle cloths... Should have enough now to last more than a week. I got the first 20 or so done this afternoon. 

There are tomatoes left to either process or eat. I do think there are too many to eat, but shall give that a try. I have made 6 containers of tomato sauce, 6 jars of salsa and have numerous bags in the freezer of frozen tomatoes to use in chilies and stews over the winter. 

The days are drawing in and soon we will be turning on the heat. Not something I am looking forward to, but Harvey is complaining that it is pretty cold in here mornings. I am keeping my fingers crossed that I can manage to keep it off until at least the end of this week. The house does warm up considerably during the day. 

Stocking up for the winter will be continuing. Mostly canned items and cold/flu type items are left. Plus a few of the gifts still need to be purchased as well. 

My laptop has been acting up and Kris said it is reaching the end of it's life span. We will be traveling some time soon up to visit with him and he can take me shopping for a new one and then gets the joy of transferring from this one to the new one. He also wants to set me up with the "cloud". Scary proposition as then I would need to learn something else. I do have an external hard drive, so perhaps I can talk him into using that instead. This laptop will be used in my sewing/craft room with my embroidery machine and my Cricut. Should work perfectly fine for those things. 

Tomorrow I will post some pictures of our visit to our (my sister went with me) aunts. One is 92 and the other is 97. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Happy Thanksgiving

 

Just thought I would pop in and let you all know I am still around. Company, projects that needed completing, and my bad back have kept me from posting. I hope to get back in the groove tomorrow. 

Wishing all of my Canadian readers a very Happy Thanksgiving.

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Menu Monday

 I am in a great deal of pain today. My back is killing me and I don't really know why. I can't sit for very long and need to get up and move around often.

So all I am going to do is post my menus for the week, and hopefully be able to visit with you all tomorrow. Wish me luck.

Monday

Turkey soup and egg salad sandwiches. Something very simple is all that I could manage today.

Tuesday

Leftover roast beef made into a kind of stroganoff. Served with egg noodles, and peas. If I am up to it I will make a coleslaw.

Wednesday

I pulled a container of chili out of the freezer. Probably served with toast. Plus the remains of the slaw.

Thursday 

Leftovers from Tuesday.

Friday

This depends on if Kurt and Kris will be home and want to warm something up. I will either do glace, potatoes and eggs, or pancakes.

Saturday

Smoked brisket, potato salad and baked beans.

Sunday

Turkey, mashed potatoes, corn, gravy, stuffing, pickles, and a salad. 

Off to move around.

Everybody have a wonderful evening. See you all tomorrow.

God bless.

Last Day Of Vacation

 I know I usually do a roundup of what has been occurring here on the Phillips Homestead, but thought I would finish with the photos of our last day.

We did a couple of small hikes, I was a bit disappointed that the trails were not clearly marked. One had to kind of guess where they were. No pictures as there really was not much to see. I was hoping for some of those elusive orchids that are only found here, but no such luck.

In the afternoon, we thought a visit to the Lookout Point and Bald Butte were necessary. We were going to hike, but in looking at the map the distance was a bit beyond us oldies. 

One of the signs along the way to the lookout point.

This was located in the lookout point and told the story of how the Cypress Hills was formed. It also mentioned how far one could see from up there. Harvey was amazed that on a clear day one could actually see 100 km away to the Great Sandhills. It was not clear that day, but we could still see Maple Creek, and a couple of the lakes that were 25 and 50 km away.

Next it was off to Bald Butte.

Ignore my finger, I have no way of knowing how it got in the picture.

The Butte is starting to erode so we were warned to stay away from the edge. It was also a very rocky trip to the top. 

After this it was back to the cabin, getting our last meal ready, and Harvey once again feeding all the little squirrels.

If you notice those squirrels are getting much closer.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

More Photos

 Just a couple more photos from our day trip to Fort Walsh.

Remember how the commander of the fort lived. Well this is the enlisted men's quarters.

Pretty spartan really. The beds were hard boards covered by pelts of various fur bearing animals mostly wolf or bison. Those were used to soften the bed. 

This was the bedroom of the leading Sargent, just a curtained off alcove with no heat.

On to our second day.

We started off with a little bit of a hike down into the park itself. Most everything there was closed for the season so no coffee to sit by the water and enjoy.

We did do a drive around the lake after we got back from our afternoon excursion. 

In the afternoon we visited a winery.

No pictures of the inside as I was too busy taste testing. Harvey was driving so did not partake. We bought a few bottles of fruit wine, and some jam and honey that are produced around the area.

After driving around the lake we went to the cabin and relaxed. Once again seeing lots of squirrels (of course Harvey had to feed them) and some deer in the gully below the firepit area.

Supper was once again cooked on our small charcoal BBQ and the firepit grill. Going old school.

Everybody have a wonderful evening. 

God bless.

Thrifty and Frugal Thursday

 Thrifty and Frugal

Tomorrow I will continue with the get away pictures. I have lots of Fort Walsh, but will only post a couple more before moving on to our second full day.

Today this post will concentrate on the thrifty and frugal happenings here on the old Phillips Homestead.

Since I knew the weather was changing I went out and picked all the green or half ripe tomatoes, the rest of the jalapeno peppers, the rest of the Hungarian Black peppers, the remaining bell peppers and more thyme and oregano. I also picked what I could of the lavender and I hope to get more as I want to make some sachets for drawers and closet. Those sachets will use up some of the muslin fabric in my stash.

Found more scraps of fabric which I can cut up into 4" squares to use in more quilts. I also found some lovely soft fabric to make into more tinkle cloths for myself. Thus saving on toilet paper. 

Mended a seam on one of Harvey's shirts, and redid a hem on a pair of my pants.

I froze more tomatoes, and today I made tomato sauce for pasta. 

Heat is not on yet, but things are pretty chilly here in the mornings. I am hoping that we can make it to mid October. 

Made my own hotdog buns (a little on the large size, but this is a learning experience).

Laundry was line dried.

We moved the hydrangea I had in a pot to the perennial bed to see if it will grow again next spring. Soon I will move one lavender into the perennial bed to see if we can keep that growing as well.

Used up all the leftovers in the fridge in other meals or as lunches this week.

Most of the groceries were bought on sale. I will be making another visit to the grocery store to pick up at least one turkey and some soft drinks for when Kurt and Kris are home. Canadian Thanksgiving is in 11 days from today. We actually eat the day before so I only have 10 days.

Used up a frozen package of pumpkin making muffins, as well as a cup of saskatoon berries doing the same thing.

Bought a complete set of towels from bath sheet to wash cloth to add to Kris's Christmas basket. All were on sale and I spent less than $20.00. I plan to get Kurt a set as well. The store had lots on sale. 

Pretty sure there are a few other frugal and thrifty items I have forgotten to list.

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.

Midweek More Holiday Pictures

 While the first part of our trip looks fairly flat, by the time we reached Shaunavon the topography began to change. More rolling hills, valleys, and steep benches of land. We were entering ranch country rather than farming and the homes were so much further apart. Rolling hills are not the best to try and plant wheat, canola, or any other crop on. 

The first day we decided to travel to Fort Walsh. It had rained heavily before we arrived on Friday and the road directly through the park is not able to be used when wet. 

This meant we had to travel up to Maple Creek and across back into the park. Fort Walsh is a National Historic Site. The fort served as the headquarters of the North West Mounted Police from 1878 to 1882. Before then it was just an outpost.

The fort played a role in imposing Canadian law from 1875 to 1883, in implementing Canada's Indian policy and supervising the Lakota who fled to Canada with Tatanka Iyitanka (Sitting Bull) after the Battle of the Little Bighorn. 

While most of what was in the fort was destroyed, there were lots of photos and the government and friends rebuilt many of the buildings using the foundations of the old.

In 1873, the Cypress Hills Massacre took place. Wolf hunters on the trail of stolen horses attacked a camp of Nakoda which resulted in the massacre of elders, warriers, women and children. This event prompted the Canadian government to send law enforcement as soon as possible. 

The Mounties' efforts to bring the perpetrators to justice convinced the First Nations of the impartiality of the force and the government. The memory of the massacre makes the Cypress hills sacred to the Nakoda. 

First we visited the visitor center to get an idea of what life was like at that time. 

We then made the trek down to the fort, first passing the NWMP cemetary.

Heading down the hill to the fort.

This was our first stop. This small building was where the commander lived and did his daily tasks. I was surprised that Commander Walsh's wife never did live there for any length of time. She came to visit once.

This was the commander's bedroom. The bed is really very short, which is something you can't tell in this picture.

There were lots of furs on the wall. This one was a Cypress Hill's Grizzley. They are no longer found in the hills due to over hunting.

A replica of the trunk that was found on site that could have been what the commander transported his personal items.

The commanders personal kitchen. He did not eat with the enlisted men.

The guardhouse. We got to check out the jail cells inside and learned a little bit about how the NWMP meted out justice. Since the First Nations people did not understand white laws their terms of service were much lower than those who were not First Nations. Say a young First Nations person stole a horse (for coup) they might get a month of hard labour, where as if another settler did the same thing, they could and did, usually get 2 years of hard labour. 

Because Canada was still a British colony the fort flew the Union Jack.

More pictures of the fort to come tomorrow. I don't want to bore you all. 

In this picture of the flag you can get a bit of an idea of how hilly this area of Saskatchewan is. 

Everybody have a wonderful evening.

God bless.