dbrief2

Apparently I ran out of uploading space for pictures so instead of deleting old pictures from old posts or paying for more space, I decided to start a new blog. It's the same name with a "2" tagged on. You can find it at www.rubydueck.blogspot.com. Cute, hey?

We're home!!

Katy and I arrived home yesterday afternoon after a somewhat longer trip than we had planned. Our plane was delayed 2 1/2 hours in Toronto by a terrific thunder storm. So we sat in the plane and watched the light show as the plane rocked slightly in the wind. I have to say that we were perfectly fine with sitting that one out on the ground!
We arrived home to find our yard completely overgrown! I said I felt like Prince Charming searching for Sleeping Beauty through a hundred years of growth. Wow. What a sight. And the sunflowers just about blew us away!

They are TALL!!!!


And if anyone in the vicinity of our house is reading this, PLEASE come and pick our peaches. The poor tree is labouring under the weight of the fruit.

It is so good to be home. So very, very good. Our house is small and cozy and smells just right! Howard will be home in about 3 weeks after he settles Bethany into college.

brooding clouds

There has been a lot of heat and a ton of humidity in Manitoba in the last week or so. And there have been some brutal storms. Yesterday the clouds looked incredibly ominous but the result was not quite as serious as one the previous days when we got hail damage on our van!

Happy Birthday HOWARD!

Yesterday was Howard's 49th birthday. We had a bit of a family celebration on Sunday - along with the other August birthday people (my sister-in-law, Dianne and I).

Yesterday we had a quiet day together to celebrate Howard's birthday and our 24th anniversary. Since Katy and I are in the middle of packing to go back to Germany on Thursday, things are a bit "hectish" and we decided to just go out for pizza with the girls and celebrate everything together. Howard informed me yesterday that I have now been married as long as I had been single. Works for me! After 24 years with this guy I can't wait to see what the next 24 will be like. I still love him like crazy!

it's a wrap!

Bethany's CD is here! It arrived on Thursday and it was a terribly exciting moment for us all. This has been a huge learning curve for us all and has required a huge amount of patience. But it's finally over and the finished product is beautiful! We are so proud of Bethany! If you are interested in buying one of her CDs let me know.

flying high

Last weekend we went along with Howard's sister and brother-in-law to Vernon, BC. The trip was very relaxing as we were pampered in their extremely comfortable private jet! Yes, it's true! Talk about being spoiled.

Brother-in-law Ben.
Howard's sister Dori.
The riding arena at their ranch in Vernon.
The cabins on the hill. We stayed in the one on the left.
Looking out over the ranch - Lake Okanagan is in the background.
The first evening we had supper in a restaurant overlooking the lake. There have been extreme fires in that area and all evening the water bombers were landing on the lake, filling up their tanks and then blasting the fires with water.





Back at the ranch.

The fire seemed even more serious on Sunday.
On the way home Howard was offered the co-pilot seat until it was time to land.

John the pilot.
What an amazing and relaxing weekend we had!

no joke

We saw this man and his buffalo on the news several weeks ago so it was pretty cool when we saw him in real life! I'm not sure why he likes to haul his pet buffalo around in his convertible but it seems to definitely draw a lot of attention!

a good day

Today was my 48th birthday. It was a lovely day spent with my family. After a wonderful supper we wandered over to the Legislative grounds...

...the light was perfect for some great pictures inside and out.








I think this is the groundskeeper!
The Golden Boy was looking very golden.
I loved the texture and colours in the flower beds.