Weekends

Last weekend Ron and I drove to our almost mountain getaway...okay, so it might not be ours but our son has a room at his house where we can stay and see the mountains.  It's wonderful.  On the Friday the boys went skiing/snow boarding while I stayed at the house and did the mom thing.  I cleaned, cooked and looked after the animals.

After a good day at Lake Louise they arrived home ready for a hot dinner.  Ron came in with a bit of a sports injury.  He had hit an icy patch and his shoulder was sore and his thumb was twice the size and a lovely shade of blue.  Fortunately they were skiing with a nurse who told him that he would survive.  The next day we drove to Radium, B.C. where we took it easy on the injuries by having a soak in the hot springs.

The air was cool enough to make the water feel wonderful but not cold enough to make us freeze when we had to walk back into the change rooms.  We got back to the house in time for me to make lasagna and for the energetic one to head to the gym...and no, it wasn't Ron.

On Sunday we headed home and on the way we went to church, out for lunch, picked up groceries and got gas for under 70 cents a litre.

This weekend I'm back at that almost mountain getaway.  Ron is working so I came alone to doggie sit because someone is snow boarding for a couple of days.   Tanker chose my bed to sleep on so my feet were warm all night.  The only problem through the night is that every time the dogs heard a sound of a vehicle they thought that their boy might be coming home which meant they would jump off the bed and run downstairs barking.  They come back when they realized it was a false alarm but it sure wakes a person up abruptly.

As for life back on the prairie, a mild spell came along which resulted our back up sump pump sending out an alarm that the primary pump was not working.  Fortunately this time we caught it and a new pump has been installed.  Thankfully I was home and a flood was avoided which means I am still sane.

Happy weekend...wherever you are!

Life and Death

After spending two years in northern Saskatchewan the news of a shooting on a reserve caught my attention this past Friday.  It was not the same reserve that we were on but we know members that are currently serving there.  I was relieved to find out that they were okay but still my heart ached for the loss of lives.  Young people who should have a whole life ahead of them ended in a second.  A new teacher, with a career developing, suddenly dies because of what?  Seven other lives in critical condition and one lone shooter holds the answer of why?  Does he really know?

Many of the reserves have young people who have seen too much sadness.  They have developed addictions to substances that rule their lives.  Family is so important but many are haunted by memories of horrific events in their past.  What is the answer to such hopelessness?  We have seen many who want to change the cycle.  Good, strong people on the reserve that have a desire to work hard, stay away from the things that are determined to destroy their people and make family a positive influence on the lives of their children.

While we lived on the reserve we did have some scary moments but thankfully nothing as devastating as what happened this past weekend.  As we look back we have many good memories.  Memories of  our DL family gathered around our table for meals and developing a friendship that continues.  We enjoyed the world around us in all seasons.

Sadness can happen any where.  Terrible events can cause death.  I want to choose to live and enjoy the moments that we have; wherever we may be.  As for the seven people in critical condition I pray that they will recover physically and somehow mentally they will be able to find life again without being haunted by the memories of this terrible event.

Waiting

Life sometimes seems to be all about waiting.  Sometimes it can be exciting like waiting 25 days until a cruise or 2 more sleeps until we go to our boy's house.

Waiting can also be more of dread or even fear, like waiting for results of a medical exam or for me, a procedure that is scheduled in March.

And waiting can be ....well a feeling of uncertainty.  That is how I am feeling right now.  I went for a job interview last week.  The job sounded like a great fit for my strengths.  On one hand I would love to have the call and say that I got the job.  It would mean:  working again, making money and overcoming that feeling that I quit my last job to stay at home.  The other side of me says that I don't really mind staying at home.  I enjoy having the days off with Ron and not working 40 plus hours and then coming home to try and keep house, make meals and do the laundry.

My office in Swift Current

So either way I guess the news will be okay to me.  I wouldn't mind sitting at a desk again and feeling professional.


Getting a paycheque would definitely be a bonus.  (Ron doesn't pay me too well to cook and clean.)


But, if the position should go to someone else then I will be busy planning motorcycle trips all summer long on Ron's days off.


To be continued....

Looking Ahead ....past Christmas!

I love Christmas....I am little bit like the retail stores.  Once Halloween is over I start to think about when I can put up my Christmas decorations. 

I try to wait until the end of November but sometimes things slip out a little earlier.   I am not like my mom who thought  Boxing day was meant to box up the decorations....nope, they have to stay up until after New Year's and perhaps even a few days later than that.  The family across the street from us still have their Christmas tree and lights up and for me, I'm okay with that.  The weeks leading up to Christmas includes lots of driving around and checking out the best lights.

Some may go a little overboard but I'm okay with that when I am on the hunt for some great Christmas lights.  Then Christmas comes and eventually you have to take down the decorations and it is always a bit of a sad day for me.

I know some people kind of enjoy it because their house feels cleaner and bigger with the clutter of the decorations packed away under the stairs again.  For me, I miss the soft glow of the Christmas tree lights in the corner and I miss walking outside at night seeing the snow covered lights on the houses and trees but all good things must come to an end.

And so as the last decoration gallops into storage for 10 months I notice that I need to adjust my timer for our living room light.

The days are getting a little longer and you know what that means?



Yes, I enjoy Christmas but I'm over it now....time to think about cruising!  And as for settling into Three Hills, I think I am doing it nicely.  We had company last night for supper and even pulled out the Catan game and I just got a invite for coffee today.  2016 is looking promising!

It Frosted Last Night

When we lived in Deschambault Lake, surrounded by the woods, I loved the beauty of the snow on the trees.  Yes, I am one of those strange people that enjoy winter and that means, snow.  There is nothing prettier to me than the snow hanging heavy on tree branches.  I really like to go for a walk when it is lightly snowing.  It always puts a smile on my face.


Here in Three Hills, we have gotten a little bit of snow but what we get more of is heavy fog that frosts the trees.  The air will start to get colder and a fog settles in around us so thick that we can't see past our deck.  The fog may stay for a couple of days and then it lifts leaving behind picture perfect scenery.  Today was one of those "grab the camera" moments.  We had to dress warm but it was a gorgeous walk.

This is the street just down from our house and everything you see on the trees is frost....not snow.

I wanted to step into the snow to take a picture of the red berries hanging in the frosty tree.

And then a pretty bird flew into the tree and waited for me to take this picture.

The heavy frost also sticks to the wires which means at times you may lose power and that is what happened this morning.  Just when it was time to make my morning tea, the power went off.  Since Ron had worked until 3:00 a.m. we decided to crawl back under the duvet and have a morning nap.  Two hours later the furnace clicked on and it started to heat up our home which was now down to 13 degrees Celsius.   That morning tea sure tasted good at that point!