Vacation!!

Last week Mike and I drove back to Portage la Prairie, Manitoba to visit Kelly and Ryan in their new home. It is a nice drive about 21 hrs. We spent our 1st night in Medicine Hat, Alberta then got to Kelly and Ryan's at around 3pm the next day. Their home is beautiful!! They have only been there a little over a month but they are getting it very homey. Kelly does a wonderful job in that department! The weather was great while we were there, they took us to Lake Manitoba one afternoon....nice sandy beaches.

There is even lots of seating available

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The grand-dogs love it too!

One evening they took us into Winnipeg where we enjoyed an East Indian buffet....Delicious! There were all kinds of foods to try!! Then we went to the Imax and watched Avitar w/ 3D glasses. What fun!

On another evening Ryan took us to where he works ( he is a flight instructor in the Canadian military). He even gave a lesson in the flight simulator that pilots actually practice in, that was soo cool...just like being in a real plane!

It wasn't all play while we were there, we did want to help them out some too. Since their new appliances arrived while we were there Mike was able to install their dishwasher and range hood. He and Ryan installed the garage door opener too. Okay, I mostly did play...I shopped, walked the dogs with Kelly, shopped some more, ate to much good food and had a totally fun time with my daughter.

It is always bittersweet to have to go home..But we will be back and can't wait to see all the progress they will have made outside at their home.

The Roof & Dormers

The weather finally gave the guys a break and they were able to get the sheathing up on the roof. These two dormers go into the living room and foyer, there will be a third that is faux. This house is about 2100 sq ft.

My new to me car...Pearl...an '08 Pt Cruiser. I LOVE IT!! It is so fun to drive. We are driving it over to Manitoba next week to visit Kelly and Ryan. This is the first car I have ever had that is what I wanted.

The Walls are Up!!

I love this part of seeing a house built...it feels like things are really beginning to happen! The next two pictures are of the front of the house.

The living room is on the right with the big windows, the two windows on the left are the two secondary bedrooms, and the entry door into the foyer is in the middle.

This is the back of the house (picture below)

Looking into what will be the dining room and kitchen (below)

In this shot you can see where the two sliding glass doors will be in the living room, the laundry room door and the sliding glass door into the dining room (below)

Mike has mountains of dirt and rock to move and more back filling to do but the tractor has broke down. Hopefully the mechanic will get it fixed next week.

House # 4...off to a Good Start!

It has been an eventful last few weeks...the work continues on house #4. Here Jimmy is getting ready for the cement to be poured into the foundation walls, I guess that contraption he is carrying is to to get rid of any evil spirits in the concrete...ghost buster style(lol)

Kelly, always ready to help out!

The pour went well,

Next the floor joists...

Then the floor.

Now for the back filling.

All was going well...then the hydraulics went out on the tractor, so now waiting for it to be repaired.

Here are a few pix of Easter...Kelly and Mike coloring eggs..

Easter Dinner

Kelly and I hiked up to the top of the hill behind our house, you can see our home and home site below. What a wonderful view!! That is a walk I need to take a lot more often.

Lucy and Nevaeh on a walk..

All tuckered out with Daisey.

What intelligent grandpups I have!!

Mike playing favorites

We have had a wonderful spring with Kelly home for a visit! On Monday she loaded up her puppies and took off for her new home in Manitoba. We miss her, but are looking forward to visiting her and Ryan and seeing their new home next month.

What Fun!

Don't you just Love that the days are getting longer!! It has been a great week...we are totally enjoying having Kelly home for a while. Her 3 big dogs and my 2 little dogs are getting along great.

They all love their walks

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The new home site was excavated last week then Jimmy and Mike made the footing forms, on Thursday Jessie came up and helped them with the concrete pour. They will start on the foundation forms soon, then it all seems to go so fast!! Mike drew up his own blueprints for this house and he did a terrific job!

I'll keep you posted on the progress!!

Manitoba, Alberta, British Columbia and Home

Ryan (Kelly's Hubby) has been posted in Portage la Prairie, Manitoba so they have sold their house in Nova Scotia and moved. After much searching they found a home to buy, but it is still under construction and won't be ready for them for a few weeks, so Kelly and the grand dogs decided to come out West and visit us! Yippee!! I decided to drive out with Kelly on the last leg since Ryan won't be making the trip. So, last Sunday Mike drove me up to the airport in Kelowna, BC to to catch my flight to Regina, MB. Kelly met me at the airport after driving about 5 hours from Portage. We stayed in Regina that night.

The pups are all snuggled down for the evening.Nevaeh(at the head) Daisy (in the middle) and Kyisha, a bed full! I don't know where I'm supposed to sleep!



Monday morning we were off across the prairies.

Pretty flat country, definitely different than what I'm used to.

As we drove through western Alberta we saw several windmill farms. They are on the horizon, those are the Rocky Mountains in the background.

We drove about 8 1/2 hours on Monday and spent the night in Sparwood, BC , it is a little mining town nestled in the mountains.

It is home to the 'Worlds Largest Truck'. I think we passed its tires while driving across the Prairies.

Here the dogs are all loaded up and ready for their last day of travel for awhile. They have been on the road for about 12 days! They are good travelers.

What a cool tunnel! It was such a pretty drive through the mountains.

Christina Lake in BC

For lunch we stopped in Grand Forks a town famous for its Russian Food. We ate at the Grand Forks Hotel a quaint little spot. We both had Borscht with wheat bread....

I had a potato & cheese perogie and a pirozhki filled w/cottage cheese.

Kelly had the perogie, pirozhki filled w/sauerkraut and a goluptsi(cabbage roll)

Very yummy!!

Then it was across the boarder and home in a little over an hour. Boy were the the dogs glad to get out and run around in our back yard!! Today we drove about 7 hrs. It was such a nice drive and one I am sure we will be making several times going to visit Kelly and Ryan.

Update on Mom

On Tuesday morning we drove to Wenatchee to Moms Dr appointments. She had to be there by 9:30 for her CT scan. Then we saw her neurologist and neurosurgeon. They were both pleased with the outcome of her last surgery and her resiliency after them. Her motor skills are still doing great..cognitive can take longer, up to 4-6 months to see if there is any improvement. They didn't make any adjustments at this time on the pump since she is doing well as it is. She doesn't have to go back until about April or May for another follow up, as long as things are going okay. She does still have some eye pain, which her neurologist said was probably headaches. In March Mom has an eye appointment with her eye specialist so he can check her eyes further. We were out by about 10:45 am.
We met up with Uncle Clyde and Aunt Lana at their house for a nice little visit, then on home.
It is always a long day for Mom and Dad with so much traveling, but they are Happy Campers!!