Time To Renovate ...

It was time to freshen up powder room ... kitchen area ... 

and stairwell on the main floor ...

It took us 5 days to get the job done ...

A new coat of paint ... "Toasted Marshmallow" ...

new ceiling and lights in the powder room ...

as well as a new light fixture to light up the stairs ...

Spring cleaning has begun ... !!!

A Dedication For Daigen ...

This is a Dedication page for Daigen's 2015 Yearbook ...

created by his dad ...

It was so beautifully written ... heartwarming and emotional ...

How blessed this little boy is ...

to have Ian & Kendall as parents ... 

along with his little brother Nixon by his side ...

but most of all ...  

is how blessed we are to have Daigen in our lives ... !!!

Close To The House ...

Love seeing the elk in the field ...

they have been digging up the snow in search of food ...

and bedding down here at night ...

A few of them have ventured up close to the house ... 

rummaging around the trees by the driveway ...

No Time For Work ...

January 18, 2015

Another overnight snowfall greeted us this morning ...

after breakfast it was time to go out and start clearing the snow ...

As Mike was getting the tractor ready ...

I started to shovel the snow off the deck ... and stopped ...

It was the perfect snow conditions for making a snowman...

 I JUST COULDN'T RESIST ...

It was easier to roll the snow into a ball than it was to shovel ...

I continued working the snow to the corner of the deck ... !!!

And viola ... my snowman was created ... !!!

I did manage to clear all the snow off the deck and surrounding area ...

while Mike cleared the driveways and parking area ...

The weather changed again and it started to warm up ...

my poor snowman was melting away ...

by evening he had shrunk down and was leaning against the glass ...

By morning he had shrunk some more and still continues to melt away ... !!!

Still Lots To Do ....

January 2, 2015

Nathan brought all his smoked pepperoni and jerky ... 

to be packaged up in the vacuum sealer bags ... 

He had a couple extra hands helping ...

The guys couldn't wait to go out to the shop ...

the next challenge was to remove the motor from the frame ...

Mike was happy to have his quad stand to set the motor on ... 

now they could continue removing old rusty parts ... 

Oma and I were busy cooking up a storm in the kitchen ...

Bradl (pork roast) ... flour dumplings ... hot cabbage salad ... 

and scalloped potatoes ...

The kids still wanted to get in every moment they could before they had to go home ...

out sledding on the hill ...

and being pulled behind the quad again ... late into the night ... 

We had a wonderful busy holiday ... !!!

Ringing in the New Year ...

December 31, 2014 & January 1, 2015

Grandpa had a surprise for New Year's Eve ...

he bought a box of fireworks ...

to bring in the New Year with a bang ...

Our day was spent playing outside ... the kids loved going for rides ...

around the driveway and field ...

they had so much fun ...

We were all ready for midnight to arrive ...

Ella & I got into our PJ's ... 

and put a few snacks together before heading outside ...

thank you Ella for taking the picture ...

The countdown was on ...

time to go outside and set up the fireworks ...

the kids were so excited ...

they spent the time playing in the snow ...

until the stroke of midnight ...

Happy New Year .... !!!

The boys had a blast ... it was a little to close and noisy for Ella ...

we went up closer to the house ...

After the fireworks display ...

the boys talked Grandpa into going for a few more laps around the driveway ....

being pulled behind the quad ...

After all the excitement ...

we had a nightcap and all were tucked into bed ...

They were three tired amigos ... !!!

In Our Thoughts ...

With my sister, Susie 

January 18, 1956

"Memory is a way of holding onto the things you love, 

the things you are, the things you never want to lose.

The Wonder Years"

So Many Things To Do ...

December 29 & 30, 2014

As soon as we arrived at the house ...

the kids wanted to go out to the shop ...

to put Grandpas Quad & Bike Stand together ...

Well ... somebody had ants in his pants this morning ...

we told him we were going to tie him to the chair ...

and he said "ok lets do it" ...

so Grandpa went and got his belt and fastened him to the chair ...

he sat there until we were finished out breakfast ...

You can see that he was really upset about this ... he couldn't stop laughing ...

and neither could Craig and Ella ...

(there was a time their daddy and Uncle Ian had this done as well)

The kids could hardly wait to get outside to go sledding ...

down the driveway ...

Kita, the neighbours dog ... wanted to get into the action as well ...

she loves when the kids come ...

then the boys talked Grandpa in going for a sled ride ....

"Hold on Grandpa we're going to give you a push ... "

I was laughing so hard ... I could see the fear in his eyes ... !!!

We were invited to our friends Ramona and Glen's place for dinner ...

along our travels up the mountain road to the house ... the sun was starting to set ... 

and oh my goodness it was so beautiful ...

I asked Mike to stop to take a few pictures ... 

I had to hurry as the horses were heading towards the truck ... 

We were in awe of the house when we finally arrived ... was amazing ...

We had a delicious meal which included ... 

some of Glen's wild boar that he hunted in Hawaii ...

The kids had a great time playing ... and looking at all the critters that Glen had ....

all around the house ...

They really liked their big Newfoundland dog Kuma ...

he was like a cuddly bear ...

What an eventful awesome day ... !!!

Craig was the only one who hadn't fallen asleep ...

on the long ride home ... !!!

Ella's First Knitting Project ...

December 27, 2014

Ella has been asking me to teach her how to knit ...

 I found this knitting kit for beginners ... with video instructions included ...

and gave it to her for Christmas ...

I was amazed at how quickly she was able to grasp the art of knitting ...

in just a few minutes ...

I was thrilled to find her sitting by herself ...

and knitting away ... 

saying the little rhyme ...

"In the front door ... around the back ... peek thru the window ...

and off jumps Jack "

Hoping she will continue knitting ... 

and finish making the scarf ... !!!

Proud of you Ella for learning how to knit ... !!!

Time to Experiment ....

December 28, 2014

James wanted Grandpa to help him with a few experiments ...

from his new Christmas gift ...

gathering the materials and then mixing it up ...

everyone excited ... watching the toilet overflow ...!!!

Well done James ... 

Craig was building his water contraption ... 

that transferred water from one container to another making a wheel turn ...

He also built a Pinball game ... the boys had fun playing with it ... !!!

Craig loves Lego ...

and this is what he built ... complete with working gears ... 

now he would like to get the motor to run the accessories ... great job building Craig ... !!!

We decided to go out for Chinese dinner ...

as nobody wanted to cook ... !!!

After getting back to the house ... from a delicious dinner ...

it was time to go to work ...

Nathan had deer meat that needed to be ground up ...

he wanted to make Pepperoni and Jerky ...

After placing the curing ingredients into the ground meat ...

using the new kitchen gadget for making sausage ... pepperoni and jerky ...

we had the job done in no time ...

The next day ... Nathan fired up the smoker ...

(that we brought from home)

and proceeded to smoke the first batch of pepperoni  ...

 he then continued to prepare the jerky batch ... !!!

We would have to wait to try some ...

as we were heading back home ... !!!

Nixon's 3rd Birthday ...

Nixon had his 3rd Birthday Party ...

at the Monster Truck Show ...

they had so much fun down in the pit area ...

checking out all the different trucks ...

Nixon's had a reserved suite for all his little friends and their families ...

to celebrate his birthday and watch the show ... !!!

Happy Birthday our little "Monster Truck and Motorbikecycle Guy... !!!!"

Christmas in Alberta ...

December 27, 2014

We left on the 26th of December ... stopping in at friend's (Vern & Ellen) for dinner ...

We arrived at the Knight household the next morning ...

to open our gifts ...

The kids were always after my back scratcher ...  so Santa decided that the children would love to have their own ... !!!

Santa also left remote control monster trucks at our house for the kids ...

Oma loving her pictures of the great-grandchildren and her bottle of Yukon Jack ... !!!

Oma getting smothered with hugs and kisses ... !!!

Excited to hang up our framed pictures of the family ...

Grandpa helping the children with their Monster Trucks ...

they had fun for a few minutes out in the frigid weather ...

driving their trucks ... batteries do not last long in the cold weather ...

Thanks to Nathan & Katie for arranging ...

for us to see our nephews, niece(Nathaniel's wife) and grandniece in their home ...

We had not seen them since 2008 ...

The four boys now reside in Calgary and are all taking Electrical apprenticeships ...

We contacted Ian & Kendall on Skype ...

It was great that they were able to have a visit with all of us ...

During the evening the party was moved to the rec room ...

and the battle was on ... 

with boxing matches on the Wii ...

Everyone participated and had a good workout ... !!!

Christmas Day ...

December 25, 2014

What a beautiful Christmas morning ... the sun shining on the mountains ...

I couldn't resist getting Mike this Redneck Martini glass ...

now he can take it with him wherever he goes ... !!! 

He was also thrilled to see the bike and quad stand ...

 that was is that large heavy package ... that he had to carry upstairs himself ...

He also loved his new TV gadget ...

Oma having a good laugh when she opened up the large package ...

only to reveal a new frying pan ... (she really needed one so she can make ME crepes!!!)

Oma was also very happy to receive her new adjustable necklace ... 

 Look at that view from our dining room table ...

just breath takingly beautiful ...

perfect for us to enjoy our Christmas morning waffle breakfast ... !!!

Our turkey dinner for the three of us ... !!!

Blessings to all ... !!!