Happy Holidays Everyone!

Wishing everyone far and wide, 

a very merry Christmas 

and a prosperous 2013!

Just a Little Update!

Howdy everyone! Boy... it's been awhile since I gave you an update of the family so here's what's going on with us right now.

Todd is currently home right now on his 9 days off.  He's due to return up North on Friday.  Sadly, he won't be home for Christmas but will return on New Year's Eve.  We hoping there's no flight delays like last set.

Spencer and I are headed home for a very short visit.  We leave Christmas Day and return on the 29th.  Yes... it's a REALLY short trip.  We're looking forward to spending time with my Mom, Christie & Mark.  It will be our last Christmas in our family home.

We've had some gorgeous frosty morning here on the lake.  The one morning the trees were covered in horror frost.  So beautiful!!!

Here was a picture of the paved road headed towards our house...

So far Spencer is plugging away at school.  With his ADHD and ODD challenges, he struggles everyday but we plod along and help him as best as we can.  His reading is improving by leaps and bounds now that we use a yellow filter over his workbooks and homework sheets.

Spencer has a bunch of teeth ready to pop through his gums - the problem is that they are coming in behind his baby teeth.  I had the same issue when I was his age.  His top 2 teeth are just waiting to pop out!

Last week I enjoyed Spencer's Christmas concert at the school called "Sparkle & Shine".  Here's a little excerpt of the main chorus.  Spencer is on the far right side with the bright orange shirt on.  You'll have to excuse the 2 little girls that walked in front of the camera and my awful mobile phone video camera (it sucks!)...

I sure hope this video shows up!

Spencer has been enjoying the outdoors thoroughly!  Since the lake is frozen now, he likes to venture out on the ice and join the ice fishermen sometimes.  Yesterday he came home with a little minnow in hand!

Hoping everyone is having a good December!  Our fall went way too fast!!!!


Ally.

A Few Weeks of Change

Well the last few mornings we have woke up to grey winter skies.  We've gotten quite a bit of snow already and the drifts around the house are huge even just for only 2 days of snow.  It's windy here on the prairies!

I'm thoroughly enjoying all the visiting creatures that hunker down in our backyard.  For the last 2 days, we've had large flocks of swans, Canada geese mixed with a few ducks stay at the waters edge.  It's hard to believe that we had beautiful green lawn on Sunday!!

A few pictures from these past 2 weeks...

Fri. October 12
A fiery sunrise!

Tues. October 16
One last autumn sunrise!

 Sun. October 21
Arrival of the swans.  Notice... NO snow!

 

Mon. October 22

Snow has arrived along with more shore birds.

 

Wed. October 24

The ice is beginning to form on the lake.

The drifts in the front yard due to the high winds yesterday & last night.

And that's where we're at today.  Spencer and I are both home with bad colds today so we'll probably be bundled up in front of the tv all day watching movies.  Hope we can both feel better by tomorrow...

 

Sunrises and Signs of White Weather

Hello everyone!

This morning is the gorgeous glow that I woke up to outside my bedroom window... a stunning sunrise!  Every one I see lately, I've specifically gotten out of bed to photograph - I'm in awe of the beauty that I see each and every morning.

This morning I was greeted with lots of red, oranges and fiery yellow!  We still have the odd duck too that hasn't made its way farther South yet visiting the lake.  Dad would have loved this place...

This was the sunrise this past Sunday.  It was swirled with blues, hues of lavender and pinks.

Last Thursday we received our first frost.  It was gorgeous and the crystals on all of the bull rushes and water plants were enormous!

And finally the night before last, we got the first signs of whiter weather coming.  The temperature dropped below zero and got about 1-2 inches of snow over night.  When I went off to work that morning, the mist was swirling over the water in little tornadoes (couldn't stop to take a picture though (so sad) ).

I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving weekend.  Spencer and I spent in at home.  I was sick and pretty much didn't leave the couch and he spent it playing with all of his toys in the yard.

Hope this message finds you all well!

 

By the Lake

Howdy everyone!  We are slowly getting the house to a state of "done" but it's going slowly.  One day at a time.  We still have the odd box to unpack.

Today Todd is working on getting the house wired for Ethernet and other media connections.  He spent a lot of time up in the attic yesterday feeding wires to all the rooms of the house.

Last night Spencer and I enjoyed the backyard and took some pictures outside.

Looking South over the lake...

On the dock...

Watching "Muck the Muskrat" paddling out in the lake...

Having fun on the row boat...

One of my favourite photos of the evening...

 

My other fav photo of the evening...

Dick and Judy are due to arrive tomorrow.  It will be good to see them as we missed seeing them in July/August when we were home for Dad's illness and funeral.  We're all looking forward to seeing them!

Settling In

We are slowly but surely settling in to our new home.  We still have lots of stuff to organize and figure out where it will all go but soon each room will look complete and tidy.

Spencer is settling in to school life again. He now takes the school bus to and from school.  This is him waiting for the bus yesterday for the first time.  Makes for much earlier mornings than in Elkford!!

This was the amazing view I had from bed the first morning I woke up here.  Teaco has been enjoying all the wide window sills and the amazing views too!  Marlee just doesn't care :)

Just today I was looking out the dining room window at all the ducks we have visit us each morning and I spied this little fella... having his breakfast too!  I'd always seen the large white shapes across the lake but thought they were swans... not pelicans!!!

We're already anticipating our visits from Dick & Judy in a few weeks and Mom in November sometime.

On a side note, I got a job.  YUP!  Didn't really expect to get one so soon but.. oh well!  I put in an application and got a phone call for a job interview within 24 hours.  I'm now working at the local McDonalds on days when Spencer is in school.  I figured if I wanted some new, nicer furniture that I better save up my own pennies so I got the job to aide my "new furniture" fund! LOL!

Off to work!  Hope everyone is well!

 

Grade 2 Already!

Well it's the start of a new school year for Spencer.  Grade 2 already!  Time seems to be just flying by.

We'll see how his first day went after I pick him up from the new school.  He wasn't too keen on going this morning until he spied the super play ground they have.  It had all kinds of neat stuff painted on the pavement, many sets of swings to play on and 3 huge sets of equipment to play on... and a huge yard with basketball courts and soccer fields too!

Because we live in the country, Spencer will be riding the school bus.  I think we'll do a trial run tomorrow morning and have the bus pick him up at the house even though we don't have anything there yet.  I think he'll be more comfortable that way.

Tomorrow's the day our stuff arrives from storage.  Todd has the day off of work (a vacation day - can you believe it! LOL!!) so we can get the house unpacked and somewhat set up.  I think we're both getting tired of hotel living and not having separate bedrooms to sleep in.  Spencer's sure going to miss his daily swims though!!!  I guess he'll just have to do it in the hot tub! :)


 

The Last Night in BC!

The moving company arrived at about 2:00pm and everything in the house was packed by 6:15pm!  HOLY CANOLY these guys are FAST!

Todd and I had to go to the bank in Fernie at the last minute at 3:30pm and got home at 6:15 to find the entire house packed and ready to be loaded!

Some of the funny things that got packed...

• all of my cleaning supplies - now I have to go and buy more just to clean the house after they're done!
• dirty laundry that was left in 2 laundry baskets - that's going to be RANK when it get unboxed!
• all of the stamps I was supposed to load in the Jeep for project work over the next few weeks!
• **THE BEST ONE** - the dirty cat litter container, the "Litter Locker" - it's somewhere mixed in with my office stuff... OH JOY!!

So the guys will be here bright and early and will basically just have to load all the boxes and furniture on the truck and then it's on to Calgary to unload it at the warehouse until we take possession of the house.  Then we are off to the Days Inn in Strathmore for a few weeks until our things are delivered.  I'm hoping that they deliver them on the 30th, while Spencer's in school and won't be in the way!

Wish us luck!  Well be camped out with TWO CATS for a few weeks in a tight little hotel room.  I hope nobody kills anyone!  LOL!

Our Whirlwind Adventure!

Just wanted everyone to know...

The moving company has called.   They are sending a truck TOMORROW to begin packing us up for the move!  YES... TOMORROW!!  Nothing like a little notice eh!  Well... we knew it might be a last minute thing but not a 24 hour thing!

We will still have the home phone available for phone calls & internet access.  Todd will have his mini book too!  When we find out where we are staying, I will let the family know.  It should be somewhere in Strathmore I would assume but that may not be the case at all.

We have an official possession date for the house:  August 29th.  That's  little less than 2 weeks from now.  goodness only knows when the company will drop off our belongings!  That's something else we don't know either... *sigh*. 

... the joys of moving!  Good thing I don't have a pack!  Wish us luck!  The house is going to look SO weird being empty!

 

A Place Called Home

This will soon be the place we call home... we finally have a start date for Todd's new job!!!

This pretty little 3 bedroom bungalow near Strathmore, Alberta will soon be the place we rest our heads.  We are just in the process of dealing with our relocation company on dates for the relocation of our possessions.  We could be there as soon as August 28/29/30 depending on the arrival of our belongings.

This is the back of the house...

And this is the view!!!  Lake Eagle!

Everything seems to be falling into place... Thanks Dad!  I know you're looking out for us right now!!  We have a call out to Spencer's new school to find out what happens when you transfer schools from BC to AB.  He actually starts school on August 30th.

The Best Dad Ever!

You will be greatly missed by many but mostly by your wife and soul mate Mary, your daughters Christie and Allison and their families; Mark, Todd & Spencer.  Watch over us and guide us to have the most wonderful lives ever.  Thanks for being such a great husband, father and grandfather.

We'll love you for always!

XOXOXO 

Meet Marlee!

Meet the newest member of our family... Marlee.  Spencer just adores this little fella!

He is about 7 weeks old and was orphaned out by Lake Koocanusa.  His mom was thought to have been eaten by cougars out by the lake and our neighbour whom has a trailer out on the lake heard the kittens crying one night and watched for their mom.  When she didn't appear after 12 hours she took in the 4 three week old kittens; 3 orange tabbys and a solid black kitten - all males home and took care of them.

Because he is still so young, he gets mostly bottle fed.  He drank for the first time out of a bowl this morning which is a good sign.

Being separated from his brothers has made him a super big suck. His favourite spot to sleep in on my chest so I tend to carry him around in a scarf around my neck like a baby. He just like a little furry, purring furnace... LOL! The photo below is a little fuzzy since I took it with my camera photo... sorry...

Welcome home Marlee!
 

Have You Seen My Mummy?

A Little Piece of Elkford...

Here's a little piece of Elkford to investigate... I thought it was cute!

Click here!

BIG Changes... Again!

As most of you already know, I sold the business. Yup! I did. It was REALLY quick and stressful process. The new owners took possession of Kapp's on Sunday - April 1st. Needless to say my stress level has gone down now and I know I did the right thing. It's back to normal family life for me but I'm proud that I made a go of it and know that I at least lived a personal dream of mine, even if for only 6 months. I know the new owners will do great things with the business.

On to new adventures we go!

Our Poor Little Town

Our poor little town has been in mourning this week. Last Saturday we lost of member of our community, Ronda Cross. She was killed in a diving accident last Saturday in Mexico. Ronda's husband owns the business right beside ours. She will be sorely missed. She touched each one of our family here as she was our dental hygienist, a frequent customer at the restaurant and a scrapbooker and had attended a few of my crafting classes.

Rest in peace, Ronda! You will be missed!