Four More Sleeps

Usually when it is time to go "home" to Ontario I can hardly wait.  Usually I have things packed with time to spare.  Usually I am looking forward to seeing my grandchildren.

....but this time it is different.  This time we will be flying back to Ontario to take back our two summer guests.

I know that come September my house will be cleaner.  I won't have to watch Snow White or Dora.  I will only have one bed to make and less laundry to do.  My dishes will take less time to do because I won't have two little girls eager to help.  The pool and tent in the backyard will be put away.  The homemade play dough will be thrown out.  The kids craft table will turn back into my scrap booking centre.  I will catch up on all the shows stored on the PVR.

 

And I am afraid that I will be struggling with just a little bit of depression.  The house will be too quiet, too clean and too lonely.

Oh, but let us look at the positive...it was an amazing summer.

Sarah took a "selfie" of her and Emma

Yes, I will cherish the memories and enjoy the few days that we have left here.  We will have fun travelling and then a week at home to enjoy family and friends and to see the other two munchkins that we didn't have for the summer.

And then come September...friends expect phone calls, make sure you play your scrabble games and I will be happy to FaceTime or Skype to have contact with the outside world.

Another Special Birthday

Ron's birthday was yesterday.  We packed a lunch and loaded the canoe for an afternoon on the lake.  The girls were pretty tired from a full day in Flin Flon the day before but they wanted one more day of canoeing and swimming.  We found a "perfect rock" and set up for our picnic lunch.  The birthday boy took turns taking Sarah and Emma out to let them paddle.  The exciting part was watching the girls more comfortable in the water.  When they first got here they were very nervous but yesterday

Sarah swam by herself with the aid of her life jacket.  She was pretty proud of herself and we were very proud of her.  On the way back Emma fell asleep in the front of the canoe.

For supper we had Ron's choice of a meal: steak, stuffed baked potatoes, corn and mandarin cake.

No fancy restaurant, no big gifts, no big party but Ron said he enjoyed the day thanks to two little girls, a great day on the lake and a mandarin cake.

Turning Five

Our oldest granddaughter turned five today.  It was great watching her excitement over the past weeks counting down how many sleeps until her birthday and then seeing her this morning when the day finally arrived.

We had the day planned.  First we started out with the breakfast of her choice.  Next on the list was to make cupcakes and she got to decorate them.

Next came lunch which included cupcakes for dessert. 

Through the day there were phone calls and FaceTime greetings and even birthday wishes on Facebook for this special five year old.  Of course there were a few gifts to open.

Supper was the birthday girl's choice ...shepherd's pie and cake.

And Junior Dan stopped in for birthday cake which was the perfect end to a great day.

I am so thankful for this summer and having this time with these two precious girls.  They keep me busy but they sure keep me smiling. Tonight when Sarah was saying her bedtime prayers she said:

"Dear God, thanks for such a good day.  Keep Grandpa safe at work.  Help Nanny to feel better (I was pretty tired) and help Emma and Sarah, that's me, have a good sleep.  Amen"

Now if that doesn't make you smile....Happy Birthday Sarah!

And the Cycle Continues

Living in an isolated post with a two year duration means meeting new members and saying goodbye to friends.  It is always hard for me to see them go.  When we moved here last year at the end of June the sergeant left two weeks later. Justin, the member that Ron replaced, left in October.  Oh how I loved to feed Justin.  He really got excited about meals.  In November, the new sergeant arrived.  At the end of December a new recruit arrived from depot.  His name is Dan and since we already have a Dan posted here he picked up a lot of nicknames.  We call him Junior.  He was replacing Mike who took leave in January.  It was hard to see Mike go too.  He was a nice young man to visit with, enjoyed home cooked meals and had spent Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner with us.  It has been nice that he has been called back to court a few times so that we could visit with him.  Things around here have been kind of settled for the last six months but then today the moving truck rolled up.

It is time for another member to start a new post and this one is another hard one.  With them leaving it means that the only other member that has a wife living here will be gone.  Denise and I took turns hosting or helping each other with meals.  We had nice visits over the past year and she worked at the detachment so with them leaving it is almost like losing two members. 

Sean and Denise lived right next door to us and the "other" Dan lives right next to them.  Not only are we losing two friends but we are losing the pattern of the red dodge truck.

So last night we had our last meal together and enjoyed a great evening chatting about the last year.

There may not be another wife here but at least I still have the two  Dans to feed and they are pretty good guys to have around and one really enjoys cleaning up the dishes.

And the girls think he is pretty great....who doesn't like a man who wears a uniform and likes doing dishes.

So the cycle continues, one last picture, a final goodbye and we will be awaiting the arrival of a new member and a new clerk to the detachment.  Dan "senior" will be leaving in March and we will be leaving next summer. 

And on and on it goes.

A Christmas Wish and 17 Years of Happiness

When Stephen was not quite seven he gave us his Christmas wish list:

• a puppy
• snow pants (so that he could go outside to play with his puppy)

So what are parents to do but to grant the wish of their precious little boy.

And so....Curley came into our family and especially into the heart of one little boy. 

 

 
 
 
Everywhere that Stephen went, Curley went.  Curley seemed to know when Stephen was coming home from school.  When he rode on the bus she would get on the stairs so she could be close to the door. 

How do dogs tell time???  

She seemed to be almost be depressed if he was gone for any length of time but for the most part she was with him.  She was a cute little ball of energy.  She was a nervous little dog but as long as her boy was along she would give it a try.

 Curley had to be a part of any special pictures...family, grad, trips.

One of her favourite outings was our annual trip to the hunting camp where she could run the trails.  She would always sleep all the way home.

Curley had lots of experiences.  She lived in Ontario in:  Sharbot Lake, Frankford and Napanee.  She made the trip west with Stephen to move to Calgary.

From Calgary she travelled north to Whitehorse where she found some new friends.

She may not have been the guard dog of the group but she was Stephen's little girl who got the special treatment and was loved like no other dog could be loved.



Sadly Curley passed away today.  Stephen said goodbye to one of his longest friends.  His heart was broken but he has many good memories of a little puppy who followed him everywhere, loved him completely and lived a very long and happy life.

Curley Clark

October 16, 1997 - July 21, 2014

 

Lots to Say But No Time to Say It

I have so much to tell my few followers about what we have been doing but it is 11:00 p.m. and I am just waiting to take bread out of the oven before crashing into my bed.  The days go by so fast with our little visitors and we are having a great time. 

So here is a little highlight of our last few days....quick before the timer goes off.

Ron had three days off and so we started them out by driving to Bakers Narrows Campgrounds on Sunday afternoon to stay a night in a Yurt. 

If you want to go camping....which we usually don't...this was the way to go.

We had a great time at the beach, hiking up to a lookout and finding a park.

And of course, one of my favourites, the campfire....s'mores!!!!

On Monday we had more time at the beach and park and then there was a truck appointment, an eye appointment for me (new glasses), groceries and of course the 1.5 hours drive home.

 

On Tuesday we were ready for another adventure and so we loaded up the canoe and brought along lots and lots of snacks and headed down the road again for a day on the lake.  The great thing about canoeing is being able to find your own personal beach and we found some nice sandy ones.

 

The girls were very interested in trying to paddle and so Grandpa gave them each a private lesson.

It wasn't long before they were allowed to go out by themselves...with Grandpa standing close by.

This morning we did another little canoe trip and then Ron had to lay down for an afternoon nap to prepare for his night shift.  The rest of us decided that it was a good idea too.  After Ron left for work I took the girls to get their hair cut and then it was bedtime preparations. 

Well the timer has gone off.  I now have two loaves of fresh bread.  It is 11:30 p.m. and I still need to do the dishes and clean up the kitchen.  Tomorrow will be another day of activity.  It is suppose to be a hot one so I am thinking the girls will be playing in the pool and I may just have to sit and watch them.

I hope you are enjoying your summer as much as I am.







Canoeing .... so peaceful

Well that is the way I remember it last year.  Ron and I would pack a lunch and find a quiet lake and canoe all day.  The only sound that might be heard is the plunk in the water from Ron's cast or the lonely sound of a loon.  So on Saturday it was a beautiful warm day.  We packed a lunch and loaded the canoe.

As we set out across the lake it didn't seem as quiet as I remembered it.  Oh wait, we have a couple of extra passengers.

Once we convinced Emma to sit reasonably still the day was filled with questions.

• How come you paddle like that?
• What are waves?
• Are there fish in the water?
• Can I paddle?
• Is it time to eat yet?
• Can we go in that boat?
• Why does Grandpa always sit in the back?
• Can I get out now?
• Are we done yet?
• Can we do this again?

At lunch time we stopped for a nice break.  We really can pack a lot in the canoe.  2 adults, 2 children, 4 chairs, lunch, towels, extra clothes and a pile of snacks.  It makes for a comfortable rest time.

Emma decided to be brave and try the water and Sarah took a quick dip but preferred land.

As we made our way back the girls were learning the art of relaxing in the canoe and the questions were slowing down. 

 

 

There was a very interesting rock island that grabbed our attention and we just had to be explorers. 

It was a great day; perhaps not as quiet as I remember our canoe trips from last year but very fun.  We are so enjoying our little visitors and are going to make the most of every day.  As we loaded the truck the girls looked happy and it wasn't very long before the backseat grew quiet.  We drove home with the music playing and talking about what great grandkids we had.