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 ...

 

 

 

 

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 ... !!!

 

 

Oh My ... How Grand ...

March 8, 2017 

We were up early this morning ...

excited for this journey to the Grand Canyon ...

It took us just over an hour to reach our destination ... 

It was going to be a once in a lifetime adventure ...

One that Oma could strike off her bucket list ...

A map showing the area ...

We decided to take the bus tour ... taking us to all the stops ... 

What a magnificent view ... on our first stop of the Inner Canyon ...

We were able to see the snow on the mountain top ...

in the distance ...

Loved seeing this bluebird at one of the stops ...

It was difficult to watch some of the tourists ... taking chances just to get a picture ...

Two people losts theirs lives the week we were there  ... so sad ...

Oma taking in the view ... a perfect photo opportunity as well ...

at Hopi Point ...

Everywhere you looked ... the view was breathtaking ...

There was always someone to take a family picture of us ... 

and in turn we would take pictures of families as well ...

A beautiful keepsake of our time together ...

When we first arrived at the park ... there was snow on the ground ... apparently it had been cold and windy here ... We were fortunate to see the sunshine ...  blue sky ... and by noon time ... it was already quite warm ... We were waiting for the bus ...  to take us to the next point of interest ...

 

On The Road ...

March 7, 2017 

We were on our way ... on an excellent adventure ...

travelling along the highway ... 

Making our way to our first stop of the trip ...

the famous Montezuma Castle National Monument ...

Eric & Sharon had told us about this unique place ...

and that we should definately stop at ... 

Oh my goodnes ... we were astonished by the sight of this Castle ...

how in the world did they create this wonder ...

This National Monument near the town of Camp Verde, Arizona ...

protects a set of preserved Ancestral Puebloan cliff dwellings ...

for more information click ...

 

HERE ...

 

It was a wonderful sight ... to see all the birds' nests ... 

way up in the cliffs ...

 

We walked around the area ...

stopping at all the information spots along the way ...

reading the history ... 

We were also amazed at the size of the Sycamore trees...

 

 

At the end of the path ...

there was a voice interprative centre ... 

with a small replica of the Montezuma Castle behind glass ...

showing you how they lived ... 

with all the activites on each of the floors ...

This place is well worth visiting ... !!!

 

 

Cross Country Skiing ...

January 29, 2017

The sun was threatening to appear today ... so I decided to go out cross country skiing ...

and take a few pictures with my new iPhone ... 

It will take practise with using the iPhone as my camera ...

I am enjoying how easy it is ...

Now I will only be carrying one camera ...

These photos were taken later in the afternoon ...

as the sun was setting ...

It was a beautiful sunset ...

 

Our Last Day Together ...

December 28, 2016

It was a beautiful morning ... the sun was shining ... and it warmed up a bit ...

This was our last day for the family to be together ...

Craig ... James and Ella were going to visit their other grandparents ...

and Rob and Cindy were flying back to Vancouver Island this evening ....

Sooooo... some play time was in order ...

Cindy wanted to try out the snowshoes ... we hiked around the field ...

while Nathan was pulling the kids on the tube with the snowmobile ...

 

 

The kids were having so much fun ...

it didn't matter that they were getting bombarded with snow ...

All you could hear was their screams and laughter ...

 

Ella opted to go for rides on the GT ...

with grandpa pulling her with the quad ...

Finally once Nathan stopped ... and the boys got all the snow cleared out of their gear ...

They gathered together to get a family picture ...

More pictures of all of us together ... enjoying this beautiful day ... playing in the snow ...

Nathan was all packed and ready to head out ...

and another group picture was taken ...

Rob and Cindy were busy for the rest of the afternoon ...

getting packed up to leave this evening ...

 

We decided to go into town for dinner ... picking up Oma ...

to join us for her last visit with Rob and Cindy ...

before driving to the airport ...

One last group picture was taken for this year ...

We had a great time with our dear friends ...

 

 

Holidays Begin ...

 

December 21, 2016

Love how the lights glisten in the quiet of the evening ...

Waking up to a beautiful sunrise early in the morning ...

watching as the day begins ...

Gazing out the window ... seeing a herd of elk ... foraging in the field ...

It just doesn't get any better than this ... how blessed we are ... !!!

 

December 22 & 23, 2016

We spent the afternoon in town ...

getting some the last minute shopping finished ...

before heading to the airport ... to pick up Rob & Cindy ...

They were spending Christmas with our family ...

We had a quiet evening ... relaxing ... watching a football game ...

As of tomorrow ... the quietness ends ...

Nathan and his family arrived around dinner time the next day ...

It took them a little longer to get here ... as it had been snowing ...

and there was a lot of traffic on the roads ...

We had a great time visiting ... playing cards ... and just chilling out ...

and wondering how much snow would be on the ground ... for all of us to play in ...

the next day ...

Craig ... James and Ella were so excited ... !!!

(so was grandma .... !!!)

 

 

 

Our Christmas Tree ...

 

December 8, 2016

Mike worked hard to get the tree ready ...

for the decorations to be put on ...

This tree was covered in fir cones ...

They give it a true sense of a wild tree ...

that you would not have from a groomed tree in a lot ...

Early this morning Mike started with putting the lights on the tree ...

7 strings attached and with over 850 lights to be placed ...

Mike is very fussy about the placing of the lights ...

My job was to hold and guide the light strings ... up to Mike ...

as he was high up on the ladder ...

Unfortunately I was not able to help him out for very long ...

I was heading to Alberta to do some shopping ...

and pick up the grandchildren to head back to home the next day ...

 

This was the scenery on my travels ...

on my way to the highway ...

It was a clear ... sunny day for driving ...

Only encountered some compact snow ... when I drove thru the CNP ...

 

 

December 9, 2016

It was a good trip travelling home ...

some areas were slow going because of the snow covered roads ...

We just took our time ... and made it back safely ...

The grandchildren were happy to see grandpa ...

and they couldn't wait to have a game of Trouble with him ...

They love playing with this game ...

which is very old ...

It belonged to their dad and uncle Ian when they were young ...

 

We were all in awe of the Christmas Tree ... It was beautiful ... !!!

Mike had done a wonderful job with decorating ... while I was travelling ...

I do believe this was the first time that I was not their to help decorate ...

 

 

Baking All Day ...

December 7, 2016

Wow ... another beautiful day ... a chilly one though ...

just luv seeing the ice crystals on the glass ...

 

Well ... the frigid weather won't affect me today ... 

as the oven will be on keeping our home toasty and warm ...

withthe next few batches of Christmas cookies baking ...

 

Baking colourful sugar cookie flowers ...

 

Rolling out the vanilla and chocolate dough to make pinwheel cookies ...

The kids all luv these cookies ...

The first batch of cookies have cooled ...

it was time to decorate them with icing and sprinkles ...

 

The kitchen was definitely warmed up with this days activities ... 

Time to clean up ... grab a cup of tea and put my feet up ...

oh dear ... not going to happen yet ...

we needed to have dinner ...

Anyone deliver out here ...?????