Family in Calgary

We went up to Calgary this week to be there for the counter install in the bathroom.  It went well and looks great.  We heard that Tom was now in palliative care and that Mom was back at emergency and not doing well so we decided to head home on Wednesday.  The sink has a leak so it will be need to be redone on our next trip up.  Glad we found it before we left though.  

We had supper at Suzanne's on Tuesday and then helped Karen celebrate her birthday.  Brian had made some modifications to Karen's sewing machine table in order to accomodate her new sewing machine and she was over to pick it up and Suzanne surprised her with cake!!  Karen and her Mom just recently made a trip to Nova Scotia to visit with her sister so it was a good time catching up with her.  Kale is developing neighbourhood friends and James (Mina) is painting up denim jackets!!

We are blessed!!!!

Therese

 

Piers for the steps are all in

Briam worked on getting the piers for the steps in this weekend.  Got the holes dug yesterday and then had to cover because of rain and then added the sonotubes and filled them with concrete today!!  We had a really nice day!!

Therese

 

Top step is in!!

All the prep for the top step is done and with one more pass with the packer this morning it was time to get the second step in place.

Brian did do a little shaving with his cutting wheel this morning to eliminate the large gap there was on the left hand side. It does look much better!!  

So began the process of "waddling" these large stones into place over the "highway" Brian created for them.  It was one side at a time until they were in place.  Go back and do the same thing over again for the next large step.  

 Here they are in their new homes and well placed as well.  These ones required a bit of trimming

in between to get a small gap but it was done before they were put in place which 

was much easier!!  That is the level of the top patio which will be coming along later this year.  There

are piers to put in for the steps as well.  Brian took the rest of the day off today which was really good because that was a lot of physical work though not too taxing on the body with the forearm forklifts today.     Therese

Music in the Park - Overdue Blues

 We attended Music in the Park this week on Wednesday! There was a large crowd so we sat on the edge.  There was enough distance between the rows but in some places the seating was getting tight though I think it started off with a reasonable distance between groups of people.  Overdue Blues was the band and they were pretty good though they had a few technical issues over the course of the night which were eventually resolved.  It was a wonderful evening -  the clouds had rolled in and tempered the heat of the day!!    It was a nice outing and our first time there in a few years.  Therese

Bottom step in place

Brian and I worked on getting the bottom step in place this afternoon.  It worked out well with a bit of muscle, some engineering and some physics thrown in.  We moved the three steps into place. It was a warm afternoon and it was great to cool off once we were done!!    Therese 

Moved the steps

Brian took on moving the two large steps into the yard today!! You can check out the unloading of them from the trailer here.  With some brute force and mechanical advantage and some patience we managed to raise them on the pallet one two by four at a time until they were high enough to be moved to the little trolley.  Once on the trolley we managed to get them into the yard quite easily.  We changed the plan from the one indicated above.  

We moved the plywoods to where it lined up with the grass instead and that went very well.  We brought them to the edge and only had to move them horizontally to the grass. Went very well!!! Therese

 

Raspberries - 7

A small picking today in the raspberry patch!!  That it fine.  We will eat them for snack at lunch and be happy for the blessing they are!!

Therese
 

Nankings

 I picked the nankings today!!  I only got about 1.5 cups so we will eat them fresh.  The hail and the high winds that followed the next week really wrecked havoc with them.  The ones that hung on were very nice though!!  The tree will have to get a serious trim next year because it is back to touching the garage and almost over the sidewalk again.  I will have to trim more out of the middle. Therese

Patio is done!!!!

 The patio has been drying for a few days and it is finally packing time!!  The silicone pad for the packer showed up so Brian was ready to go!!!  He did the final packing and in the process broke a few bricks - some had nicks in them.  So the three broken ones were replaced in no time. 

Next, it was time for the polymeric sand to be applied into the gaps.  It really runs very easily into the crevices and gaps and needed to be applied several times to fill the cracks well.  Just a gentle sweeping to get it in there.  It took 3 bags of sand which is unbelievable because the gaps were not very big!!  It was a two tone sand which was applied to the whole area - dark border and main body of the patio.   

Here it is all finished!!  The polymeric sand just needs to be watered in to solidify and bind the stones together.  Brian left it over night and added another layer this morning just to really fill the gaps well.  DONE!!!!!!  He is a very happy camper and can now move on the other parts of this project.  Pilings, stairs, dirt, etc!!  Therese

Summer in Alberta

This is my favorite scenery!!!  Green fields, a little yellow canola, a few buildings and a row of trees in front of the rolling foothills!!  Would be great to see it everyday  out of our windows but then we would not be able to walk to the bank, library, doctors, dentist, etc so there are always trade offs!!  We are on our way to Gull Lake for ice cream!!

Therese
 

Kayaking at Bowers Pond

We took our kayaks to Bowers Pond on Sunday.  It was a gorgeous day and with the patio exposed and drying we had a relatively free day.  Bowers Pond was great and had a few nooks and crannies to check out and the water was so clear.  A few more people than we are used to and music across the river at Capstone Square whjch was quite decent.  We managed to get in and out without getting wet so that was a bonus!!  Therese

 

Poppies

I pulled the poppies that were forming seeds heads this week to prevent them from seeding all over the garden.  I have to try really hard to pull them when they come up in the spring so it is best not to let them seed in the first place.  

The coral popply plant was snapped off in the wind the other day but because I had tied it up it did not drift off.  I managed to get seeds from a few of those - they are so tiny!!  I collected some from the fuzzy lavendar one and the other pink one that came up in the work zone.  There are few more heads that I will collect once they dry a bit more.  

I picked the flowers and it was nice for a day!!

Therese

 

Raspberries - 6

This is my sixth picking of raspberries this year!  Only about a cup so they are slowing down a bit.  We had them with whipped cream and oat jelly roll!!  Delicious!!

Therese

Raspberries #5

I have picked raspberries again today and got another 1.5  - 2 cups!!!  That makes about 8 cups so far this year which is wonderful!!

Therese
 

My first red tomato in the garden

I have my first red tomato!! I have two coming up right behind this one too!!  My plants have not made a lot of leaves but I do have some tomatoes.   They are a little pocked from the hail.  It is what it is and I am sure it will taste just fine!!!!    There are more flowers coming so there will be another batch in a month or so!!

Therese

 

Saskatoons

We went and picked saskatoons yesterday at the Oberg farm south of Bashaw.  It was a beautiful day and Gail joined Sylvia and I there for an afternoon of picking.  Sylvia picked two pails, I picked 3 and Gail picked 5 pails in the same amount of time.  The berries were nice in certain areas so we just picked where they were the nicest.  There were lots on the bushes!!  We paid $5 a pail - down from last week when they were $7.50 a pail.  A real deal compared to the $15 we paid last year.  I could have picked more but with still a bag in the freezer from last year there really was no need.  Gail had brought muffins so we sat in the shade and had a bit of a visit!!!  What a wonderful way to spend an afternoon!! 

I will be putting two pails in the freezer and sent some to Suzanne with Brian.  I have sent some aside for Loraine when she comes on Friday.  We texted Brian from the farm and he had a fire ready for us when we got home.  We had hot dogs on the fire - one of Sylvia's favorites!!  He headed to Calgary after supper to be there for the counter templating today!! 

Therese

A plant for Tom and Peggy

We visited with our friends - Tom and Peggy - this week!  They are moved into their new place and most of the unpacking has been done.  It has been a very busy time for them as Tom has been facing some health challenges and they continue to address the issues and remain hopeful for a good result. We continue to prayer that the best comes their way but it was really nice to see Tom up and about!!

Therese

 

Raspberries - 4th picking

A few more raspberries!!!  This is about 1.5 cups again!!!  I will be picking at least a few more times so I may get a bag full for the freezer for bavarian later!!

Therese

 

Linen

 We ran errands and took care of some business while we were in Calgary for the drama presentation and we checked out one of the many thrift stores in the area.  I found these two pieces of linen at a very good price.  Two yards of the pink and almost three of the light green!!  Maybe a piece of clothing will result from these pieces!!  We shall see!!

Therese

Dragonrealm

 A new game!!!!!  Dragonrealm - a new game at their house and so we all played. There are only four to play at one time so we ended up with teams!!  Everyone played and had a good time. It is a neat game and requires a bit of strategy and luck to win.  Brian won this time around!!  Sal is wearing the scarft and James (Mina) crocheted while she was at Acting Camp.  It was part of the play so they have learned to crochet  - one of other actors taught them  - and now it is fun and there will be other projects coming from those hands!!

Therese

Double rainbow!!

While we were playing Dragonrealm there was a storm and a look out the window revealed a rainbow!!!!! A double rainbow no less!!!

We headed outside - Kale and I in our socks -  to check it out and had a photo op!!!

Therese

 

Laser tag

Kale has a new set of laser tag gear so after supper the guys had a laser tag session all around the house. It is nice that the sensor decides if there was a hit and no one gets anything in the face!!! 

Perfect!!

Therese

 

Family celebration of Sal's birthday

We celebrated Sal's birthday later with family!!!  A wonderful meal and cake!!!!  

Therese 

Drama presentation

James (Mina) participated in a two week acting camp in July and the final drama presenation  - Jitterbug  - was last week.  We went and watched all three plays - the two "One week" camps and the final from  the "Two week" camp.  James (Mina) performance was great (Well Done!!) and everyone in this group was on their game!!  The other two were pretty good as well though it was challenging for some of the first timers but they did it and met the challenge of their first play!!  It was a warm day so the auditorium was warm but that is part of the experience.  

Therese