Happy Birthday, Darrin!

It's Darrin's 30th birthday tomorrow! Wow - where have the years gone? It just seems like we blinked and he went from a little one to an independent adult. We hope that you have a memorable day celebrating the incredible man that you have become. May life always smile on you, may you be surrounded with friends and may all your dreams come true. We love you!



Hours were spent with his farm toys




Kindergarten




He's always loved animals




As a junior groomsman




Hockey was a huge part of his growing up years (Viking Cup 1998 vs Slovakia)




With Gramma and Grampa Lange at U of A Convocation 2004




Holding Meadow when she was just a few hours old




He still loves toys with wheels




Once a fisherman, always a fisherman!

Miss Cutie Pie

After a quiet weekend and an afternoon matinee' performance of "A High School Musical" performed by the local Stageworks group, we went to visit Meadow, Na and Jerry for a bit. Meadow has 2 little teeth but we only got a glimpse of the bottom one. Her little tongue and lips were sure busy so you can tell her teeth are bothering her. She's feeling a little under the weather but we had some fun anyway!!



Jerry gave her this whistle to play with and by the end of the day she could even blow it a little! She's going to be right in the thick of every game soon!!




Learning to balance, with Mommy close by.




She just loves walking back and forth, hanging on for dear life!


We are so blessed to live close by and see her so often - what a joy!

In Case You Were Wondering...

My friend Marina tagged me several days ago (thanks, girl!) and I finally remembered to post my responses today.

A=Available – for travel anywhere, but it has to be during breaks from school!

B=Best Friend – I am lucky to have several! My sister Esther, Audrey, DonaMae, Darlene, and my 3 daughters.

C=Cake or pie – this is hard! I really like pastry so pumpkin pie is my fave but any cake with chocolate or cream cheese frosting is a close second!

D=Drink of choice – Rooiboos tea, milk, water, iced tea - and salted Caesers!

E=Essential item you use everyday - the computer, especially for email and the camera

F=Favourite color - orange - or any bright colors, really

G=Gummy bears or worms – neither - I'll take peanut M&Ms instead

H=Hometown - I grew up on a farm, near Millet, Alberta

I= ndulgences – Starbuck's Chai Latte' and Purdy's Sweet Georgia Browns - and scrapbook magazines!

J= January or February - I think February - the day of love, days are getting longer, and it's a short month!

K=Kids and names – 4 - Darrin Robert, Heather Crystal, Melinda Christine, Naomi Marie

L=Life is incomplete without - people and dessert!

M=Marriage date – July 30, 1976

N=Number of siblings – 2 brothers, then 2 sisters - I'm the oldest (and the bossiest they would agree!)

O=Oranges or apples – An apple a day but lately I've been craving nice big juicy Valencia oranges - the ones that you can't find in any stores around here this winter, because of the lousy weather in California

P=Phobias or Fears – fear of snakes and mice

Q=Favourite Quote – "Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in your soul and sings the tune without the words
and never stops - at all." Emily Dickinson

R=Reason to smile – talking to our kids and playing with our sweet granddaughters - oh, and weekends!

S=Season - I love the flowers and sunshine of spring, the warmth and activities of summer and the colors of autumn. Winter - ah, not so much at all!!

T=Tag 3 or 4 people - Melinda, Rhonda, Carrie and Patti T

U=Unknown fact about me –I played softball during the summer when I was in junior high but I really am not a good thrower so they always put me in right field!

V=Vegetable you don't like – Raw garlic - I hate how strong it is!

W= Worst habit – I am really a night owl and I stay up way too late most nights. Seems I have a down time right after supper and then get my second wind about 10 p.m.. I'm really trying hard to be in bed earlier, especially on school nights.

X=X-rays – Only dental ones and mammograms

Y=Your favorite food – Pretty much any food but I really, really like pizza, dislike herring and I haven't developed a taste for sushi yet.

Z= Zodiac Sign - Aries

Thanks for reading!

Internet Improvements

So last week we finally had our satellite internet service installed - and it is amazing!! We've been on another supposedly high speed service but we live right on the edge of their transmission range and the service has been sporadic, to put it nicely. After much frustration and many interruptions in service (especially for email) we decided to invest and try this system. I love it!! Last night I emailed some pictures and lickety split, the files were sent, no problem. With this system and the wireless router, Bob and I can both use the internet at the same time, no problem. Good, good stuff!!

And I learnt how to do linking today! So, hopefully I remember how to do it and you can look at this awesome birthday party idea, courtesy of Melissa.

New Year's Update

I realized that I had never gotten around to sharing these pictures from way back when. So this post is in honour of Chinese New Year!!



My contribution to the light show, in Na and Jerry's front yard, courtesy of Martha Stewart's January magazine. I was very happy with the results and would definitely do it again.




Meadow was asleep but she got up to join the party at midnight!




New Year's Eve just wouldn't be complete without fireworks!




It's really hard taking pictures of fireworks! I'm going to have to practice lots more.




Making pizzas for supper after cross country skiing and skating




Build Your Own Sundae after supper




We had a scrumptious fondue, with chocolate, caramel and chocolate marshmallow sauces, to bring in the new year!




In his glory, Caedin rides his 'horse', wears his hat, boots and holster, and prepares his gun! Na and Jerry gave him the boots and accessories for Christmas.




Caedin loved the long sparklers that were in the box of firecrackers.


And in other news, I've been under the weather a bit. I came home early from school yesterday and was in bed by 3 pm, surfacing only a couple of times to hang out with the great white telephone! It's been many a year since I slept for 15+ hours. I did go to school today and feel much better now. Chicken noodle soup and canned peaches for supper and hopefully I'm finished with that flu nonsense.

Playing with Helayna

Family Day weekend was the perfect time to head to Calgary for a visit with our son and daughter. We met up with Darrin and Kelsey, Heather, Jonathan and Helayna and had supper at the Thai Chili Club House last night. The food was delicious, even if the Basil Beef and Mushrooms made our eyes water! I got to see Darrin's house for the first time (he's only been there about 10 months!) and we stayed over at Kelsey's parents' condo (it's the best 'hotel' in town - thanks H & R!). Today we hung out with Helayna for awhile before heading home. Our visits to Calgary are always too short, it seems to me. Hopefully we'll be back soon.



Heather and Helayna cuddling




Grampa and Helayna had lots of fun playing together today. She is so responsive and we had a great time talking and hanging out. Jonathan captured these awesome pictures!




We were dazzled by this sweet smile so many times! I just can't get enough of it!



More smiles as Grampa flew her by!




While Mommy went for a run and Daddy and Grampa were moving some stuff, Helayna and I went for a walk. It was so bright outside today - we definitely need to get some baby sunglasses.




We had lots of fun while Mommy had a nap!




These two did lots of 'talking' today! Gotta love those wide open mouths!

At long Last

After 29 years (almost exactly to the day!) we have new chairs in our dining area!! The previous set came from Campbell's Furniture Store in Edmonton and cost $99 for the 6 chairs and arborite table. It certainly served us well and the chairs had been recovered once but they were pretty sad looking. So we did a little scouting around and picked up some new ones.



We got 8 of these beauties!!
















I quite like the combination of light and dark wood.









We may still order the matching table but it's narrower than the one we have and a better option might be to just refinish this one. Anyway it looks wonderful, we think!

Playing with Meadow

We were so happy to spend an evening with Meadow and Naomi this week. Jerry was coaching basketball and then had a council meeting so we took supper over and spent some time with the 2 girls, providing Na with a little break and some adult company. It was great fun - and of course we took a few (!!) pictures.



Such a girl - she loves the phone already!




Hanging out on the table, wearing her new Valentine's Day sweater.




We were singing "I'm a Little Teapot" and this was the "tip me over and pour me out" part!! Meadow loves singing and motion so this made her very happy!!




"Okay, I'm all set - let's get going!"




"And here I go - up, up and away!"




"I don't get this crawling thing!"

Oh, that girl is a busybody - constantly looking for action! We just enjoy her more every time we see her. It's amazing how much joy such a little one can bring to life!

Thought for the Day

"Be happy. It's one way of being wise."
Colette

Good words to hear after a busy week. Enjoy your weekend - be happy!

Happy Valentine's Day! Happy Birthday, Jen!

Posting a picture of Bob and I is just the right thing to do on this day when we celebrate love! Our evening is pretty low key tonight as we just enjoyed an awesome weekend in Vancouver, dining at 2 very nice restaurants and spending some fun time together. I've decided that it's the time we spend together and the places that we visit that are big treats for me.



Taken after hiking along the Great Wall of China at Simatoi this past summer.




Happy Birthday, Dear Jennifer! I hope your birthday is full of good things and that the year ahead brings you happiness, a great gardening summer and many awesome photography moments!! (Jen is our sweet niece on the LH side of this picture. When she gets together with Jill (our niece on the RH side), it's guaranteed to be a hilarious time! Here they are lovin' their shoes at the bowling alley.)




From a Valentine's window display in the Granville Island Market area.




This is the apron Bob thought he should have - and my apologies to my blog readers - I wouldn't normally post this kind of thing!

Happy Camera Weekend!

I really had a lovely time with our camera while we were in Vancouver!! It was inspiring to look for unusual and interesting colors and objects. I think I could quite get to enjoy more little trips like this one!



I was surprised at how small the actual Island area was and how twisted the streets were. It all made much more sense when I checked the map. And I can only imagine how busy it gets here on weekends in the summer!!




Oh, my gosh - how funny this one was! We thought of our friend Aime' as soon as we saw it.




I can hardly believe that we didn't even go inside here! Definitely a missed opportunity.



Could it really be? A shop just for me??!!




What can you say about this one? Nothing at all!




If you like angles and straight edges, this one's for you!




This little shop was at the end of an alley and I just loved the look of the open door, the greenery and the color combos. This one totally makes me happy!


You will be quite surprised to hear that we didn't actually do one bit of shopping. We just walked around, window shopped, took a lot of pictures, watched the people and fed the birds - and ourselves!!

Adjustment time

It's a huge change to go from +10 degrees one day to -25 degrees the next!! Oh, my - I'm freezing again. Why did we come home to Alberta???? We should have just continued on our way to the Island and points warm. This is going to take some getting used to again.

We spent a little time wandering around Granville Island (my first visit) taking pictures of signs and people outside. Good stuff! Next time I'm going inside some of the studios and artisans shops - everything was so colorful and artistic. I had fun with the camera - here is a little sample of what we saw.



This cute little aqua bus was ferrying people from one side of the harbour to the other. I adjusted the color in this picture using the curves adjustment in Photoshop. Thanks to Karen Russell, an amazing scrapbook designer in the States, for the instructions.




This big statue was outside the gelato store - made me think of Bob and his love of ice cream!




We found a little guy feeding the pigeons and he shared his seeds with Bob so they could both feed the birds from their hands. He was so sweet! I can just imagine doing this with Meadow and Helayna in a few years.