A New Light ...

May 29, 2017

Today we were going to install a new solar light for dads special place ...

I went into town to bring mom out here for the afternoon ... it was dads day of birth ...

On my way to town ... I was brought to a stop...

when a gaggle of geese were crossing the dirt road ...

We decided to take the quads up to dads ...

This was the first time mom has gone for a ride on my quad ...

She was surprised how comfy it really was ... 

Once we arrived up the road ... we stopped and hiked up to the top of the mountainside ...

Mike proceeded to install the new light ... we decided to get a flat solar light ... 

as the animals kept knocking done the other one ...

We loved the new light ... a glimmer of light that can be seen from down below ... 

When we were finished with the light installation ... and made our way back home ...

Mike fired up the BBQ ... to grill up some burgers ...

It was a beautiful day to enjoy our meal out on the deck ...

of hamburgers loaded with all the fixings and a bean salad ...

The best part for me ... was the fresh Rhubarb pie for dessert ... 

looks like Oma was happy to sink her teeth into it as well ...

We spent a lovely afternoon together ... !!!

 

After our dinner ... I drove mom back into town ...

It was wonderful to spend this special time together ...

On my way back home ... making my way up our road ... 

I spotted a turtle on the side of the ditch ...

I stopped the car and took a few pictures ... 

and continued to watch as it made its way into the grass ...

 

 

 

 

Mother’s Day Weekend ...

May 12, 2017

We were invited to Nathan and Alana’s place for the weekend ...

Nathan was in the TransCanada Hockey Tournament ...

We came to help out ... taking Craig to art class then taking the boys to their dance ...

Now ... I thought the boys looked rather dapper (I know I’m probably dating myself) ...

and of course I wanted pictures ...

which is almost impossible with these two goonies ...!!!!

Finally one that was normal ...!!!

May 13, 2017

Nathan left early for another hockey game ...

We were going to meet him for lunch at the Redwater Rustic Grill ...

along with our friends Vern and Ellen ...

It was an amazing place ... the food was delicious ... 

We had a great time visiting before we were off to the arena ...

to watch Nathan’s hockey game ...

Nathan had a bit of time before his game ...

so the kids were excited that daddy had a game of foosball with them ...

We waited patiently for the game to begin ... 

James figured Oma needed a hat for the game ... so cute ...

It wasn’t long before the cheering area was packed ...

with hockey players and spectators ...

I do believe that Nathan had the biggest and loudest cheering section ...!!!!

AND 

that’s what led them to another victory ...!!!

 

May 14, 2017

Happy Mother’s Day ...

It was a beautiful day ... Oma... Alana and I were sent outside to relax ... 

the kids were going to make breakfast with Grandpa ...

First of all ... we were served coffee ... it was heavenly ...!!!

We could here the crew working in the kitchen ...

it was heart warming listening to their conversations ...

It wasn’t long before we were served our breakfast ...

“Poached eggs in cut-out toast with bacon” 

We enjoyed it when the kitchen crew joined us for breakfast ...

After we were finished eating ... 

the kitchen crew cleared the table and proceeded to clean up the kitchen ...

It was a wonderful morning ... 

After breakfast when the dishes and the kitchen were cleaned ... 

we had heard that Nathan’s hockey team had won the tournament ... yipeeee !!!!

Nathan was on his way home ...

Ella and James wanted to go for a bike ride to the park ...

they rode ahead as I walked behind them ...

Once we arrived at the park ... Ella spied up a couple of kites laying on the ground ...

There were some girls there and they did not know who the kites belonged too ...

We soon figured out why they were left ... the kites were ripped ...

but that didn’t stop the girls from trying to fly the ...

We managed to do a bit of a fix on them ...

The girls working together and some help from James ...

they were able to get them up in the air for a short time ...

James climbed up on roof of the play centre ...

just in time for me to get a picture of him with the kite flying up above him ...

Soon it was time to go back home as Nathan would be there ...

 

 

Our day continued with special activties ... Oma and I loved the pampering ...

Nathan and Alana were in charge of dinner ...

Nathan was the Master Grill Chef and Alana the Master Kitchen Chef ...

together they made us a delicious steak dinner with all the fixings ...

The grandchildren were in charge of setting and clearing the table when we had finished ...

After dinner and to Oma ... Alana and I’s surprise ...

we were showered with cards and gifts from everyone ...!!!

They sure knew how to pull at our heart strings ... cards were so heart warming ...

 that they brought tears to our eyes ...

We felt so special and loved ...!!!

 

 

Earlier this morning ... the boys and grandpa moved the double bed out of the bedroom ...

Mike and I had picked up a bunk bed with a double bed frame on the bottom ...

from our one trip to Eureka ...

Nathan thought it was a great idea to have one in the extra room ...

Later on in the evening after dinner ... the guys worked on putting it together ...

Once it was built ... everyone took a turn on checking it out ...

It gives the kids extra sleeping are when they have their sleep overs ...

or when grandma ... grandpa and Oma come for a visit ...

the boys can bunk together ... giving us their rooms ...!!!

 

We had a wonderful time with the family ... 

Thank you for everything ...!!!

 

 

 

Pretty Flowers ...

May 10, 2017

Celebrating Mother’s Day at Joseph Creek Village ...

with Eric and Sharon joining us ...

for the Mother’s Day Buffet ...

After dinner we did some visiting with others that had joined the festivities ...

Oma was in prime form ... 

telling the group at the table beside us ...

 a few of her jokes ...

Everyone had a great time ...!!!

Oma and I had received a special delivery of flowers ... 

from Ian, Kendall, Daigen and Nixon 

 

Thank you for our lovely flowers ...

 

Still Celebrating Easter ...

April 22, 2017

The kids were so excited when daddy and Alana arrived ...

Nathan was having a sneak peek around ...

while the kids were waiting patiently on the stairwell for the signal ...

in search of Easter eggs ... inside and out ...

They had a successful hunt ...!!!

It was a beautiful morning ...

Nathan and Mike decided to take a few shots out towards the field ...

while breakfast was being prepared ...

After breakfast ... the gang decided to go for a ride ... 

the boys on their dirt bikes ...

Nathan ... Alana ... Grandpa and Ella on the quads ...

Craig and James were out driving around in the field ... until dad was ready to go ...

as Nathan wanted to take the Dodge out for a spin ...

the boys helped dad check and fill the tires with air ...

Everything set ... they were off ...!!!

'

Ella wanted to have her hair braided ...

so Alana spent the time with her ...

and then Ella in turn ... braided Alana’s hair ...

Thry looked adorable ... and you could tell they were having so much fun ...!!!

Finally Oma arrived to spend Easter dinner with us ...

and her great-grandchildren were thrilled to receive money for Easter ...

It was a busy time in the kitchen ...

baking pies ... cooking the turkey ... and  preparing all the fixings ...

Everyone helping out at one point or another ...

Nathan volunteered to carve up the turkey ... the kids helped with setting the table ...

and Alana washing the dishes as I was finishing up with the final touches ...

We had a lovely dinner ... 

After dinner ... the table was cleared and we were in the process of getting dessert ready ...

Ella thought grandpa needed a new hair-doo...!!!

Amazing transformation with just a single bobby-pin ...

The two of them had us in stitches ... so much fun ... !!!

I think grandpa liked the new look ... ha ha 

We enjoyed sitting around at the table ... chatting ... visiting ... 

We had picked a gift up for Nathan and Alana ...

on our holiday in Texas ... “sauces are hot there”

Craig and Nathan went outside afterwards ... Craig wanted to ride his dad’s dirtbike ...

Nathan was Craig’s age when he got this dirtbike ...

It surprised us at how well he did ...!!!

Ella hanging out with Granpa on the couch ...

and I drove Oma back into town ... 

when I was in town ... I was on a beer run as well ...

I decided to pick up a NHL hockey glass for Nathan ...

as you can see ... he was pretty thrilled when the glass lit up ...

when his team scored ...!!!

 

April 23, 2017

 

Hoping that Nathan and Alana will be able to handle the heat of their hot sauce ...!!!

It was time to pack up the gear and make their way home ...

Craig figured he should take “Old Blue” out for one last ride ...

 

We had a great weekend with everybody ...!!!

 

Easter Buffet ...

April 13, 2017

We spent time with Oma ... Joe and his family ...

Enjoying a lovely buffet dinner ...

at Joseph Creek Village ...

We also visited with our friends and their mother ...

Mary ... who reside there as well ...

 

 

A New Game ...

March 11, 2017

We were in for an exciting evening ...

Kendall was taking us to the neighbours ... for a potluck ...

and to play a game ... it was a new game for Oma and I ...

They were having a Bunco party ... !!!

Ian and Grandpa were staying home to chill out ...

with Daigen and Nixon ...

We walked down to the neighbours ... and met the gang ...

the theme for tonight's party was St Patrick's Day ...

The house was decorated ... everyone wearing something green ...

Everyone meeting ... munching on some goodies ...

and wine was being served ...

We were ready to play ...

 

There were five tables set up ... to play this game ...

we paired up ... and sat four to a table ...

This is a dice game ... we started to play ... 

At the end of the round ... the losers would move to the next table ...

and switch partners ... and began to play the next round ...

The object of the game is to roll the numbers correlating to the number round we were playing ...

First round you needed to get as many "1's" as possible ... 

if you rolled 3 - "1's" ... that's a Bunco ...

The round ended if the head table reached a score "21" or ...

if someone rolled a Bunco ...

Anytime a Bunco was called ... the person would where a hat ...

and if a person rolled 3 - 2's" at any time ...

that is called a Traveller and they would get the little green Froggy ...

The person with the most Buncos ... at the end of 6 rounds ... wins ...!!! 

 

We continued to play ... moving from table to table ...

taking a break after the first game ...

to fuel up on goodies and beverages of choice ...

We were ready for round 2 ...

we were having so much fun ...

 It was a great way to meet Kendall's friends ... an awesome social game ...

At the end of the second game ...

the cards were tallied up ... to see who won ...

there were prizes for Bunco ... Traveller ... Wins and Losses ...

Oma and Kendall were tied for one of the prizes ...

so they had to roll off to see who the winner was ...

AND ... Kendall won ...

 she did say that she would share her winnings ...

We stayed and continue to party ...

What a wonderful way to spend an evening ...

This group of friends try to get together at least every month ...

or couple of months ...

to have a Bunco Party ... !!! 

 

 

Surprise Treats ...

March 11, 2017

Morning arrived ... and the boys were so excited ...

We had brought the boys some little gifts ...

They were so excited to have gotten a few boxes of Smarties ...

the boys love their Smarties from Canada ...

as they are not available in the USA ...

They also received sticker books ...

Ian & Kendall love anything to do with ...

Betty Page and old cars ...

We found this poster in Williams, Az ...

on Route 66 ... to be hung in Ian's garage ...

Kendall was given a package with ...

garden butterfly ornaments ... calender and a shirt ...

The boys gifts ... Daigen making his way to the bar ...

to play on his iPad and nibble on a few Smarties ...

before breakfast ...

Grandpa helping Nixon with his sticker book ...

and Oma watching the activites around her ...

 

After breakfast ... it was play time ... 

Nixon taking Oma upstairs to show her his creation ...

Later Daigen joined Oma on the couch ... 

He was intrigued with Oma's puzzle on the iPad ... 

and procceeded to help her find some of the pieces ...

We spent the day ... outside by the pool ... 

relaxing ... and playing ...

 

 

 

Off to Houston ...

March 10, 2017

We had a lovely morning with Dave & Linda ...

we were grateful that they were driving us to the airport ...

 

 

We said our goodbyes ... lots of hugs and kisses ...

and making plans as to when we can see each other again ...

We had a wonderful time in Mesa ...

Soon we were airbourne ... leaving Phoenix behind ...

heading to our next destination ...

Houston, Texas 

We were delayed in landing in Houston ...

 we had gone thru a severe thunderstorm ...

we actually were circling the wagons ... and we were told we may have to land in Austin, Texas to fuel up ...

but the weather cleared up and we did land in Houston ...

Ian and Nixon had been waiting for us outside ...

as Ian's truck was too big to park underground ...

 

It was good to see Ian and Nixon ...

after collecting our luggage ...

Ian drove us to the house ...

 

We were excited to see Kendall & Daigen ... when they got home ...

they were at Daigen's piano recital ...

Nixon was so happy to snuggle up with Oma ...

he was fighting going to sleep ...

but Oma had the touch ...

and it was long before he drifted off to la la land ...

It looks like Oma was ready to call it a night ...

after our long day of travelling ...

 

   

Grand Canyon ...

March 8, 2017

Here we are at Pima Point ...

Oma and Mike checking out some of the plants ...

along the path to the lookout point ...

We could see the Colorado River down below ...

the water is quite dirty due to the run off ...

It was really interesting ... reading the information boards ...

We boarded the bus and made our way ...

to the last point on this journey ...

We reached Hermits Nest ...

where we could have a break ... the little building was amazing ...

inside there were souveniers and a snack bar ... 

The building was constructed out of rocks ...

The tour bus took us back to the starting point ...

We then located the car and drove thru the park area on our way ...

to Sedona and back to Mesa ...

The scenery was spectacular ... so different the whole way ...

We saw a pink Jeep ... this company will take you touring thru the area ...

four wheeling around the canyon rim ...

The terrain continued to change ... driving thru Tuba City ...

and down into Sedona ...

The sun was starting to set ... the colour on the red rock ...

was breath taking ...

We stopped to enjoy the setting sun ... 

it didn't take long before we were in dark ...

We continues on our way back to Mesa ...

What an amazing day we had at the Grand Canyon ... !!!