Our Grateful Long Weekend May 23-26

It has been so long since I have blogged, I'm not sure I can remember how. Since getting a different cel phone, it has been quite a learning curve to figure out how to get the photos downloaded to my computer. But I am grateful for the new phone... and I'm grateful to finally be getting used to it.

We are always grateful to spend time with family. Shelby, Kim, Maizy and Lucy came for the long weekend... now a week ago.  We went down to the light house at Georgina Point to check out the starfish.

Shirley heard that the starfish on the west coast had some kind of plight... so we wanted to check them out.  We usually see more than a couple starfish... so maybe she was right.  Only two left!

It was fun walking around on the rocks.  Most of us kept dry... but the dogs loved getting into the water.

Beatrice and Dante also love chasing the tennis ball and bringing it back to Shelby. Beatrice usually wins the catch.

Some of the rocks on the beach reminded me of some sculptures we often see in art museums. This is sculpture evolving in nature.

I love taking photos and then looking at them to try to figure out what they might be.  Can you see a face with two eyes, a turned up nose with a moustache on one side? ...and the hair swirl back around the ear?  Isn't that fun?

There were lots of creatures clinging on for dear life to the side of the crack between two rocks.

And there was lots of driftwood randomly left on the beach. Storms have a way of leaving the logs in a hap hazard design. I was reading in the book, "The Golden Spruce," that huge waves pounding against the rocks on the coast of the Haida Gwaii (formerly the Queen Charlotte Islands) would send driftwood logs a top of cliffs a hundred feet high.  Pretty wild stuff!

Lucy posed for me under the edge of this storm worn rock.  She could be a model... or an actor?

I also asked Maizy to let me take her photo by the rock.  Rocks always look better with people.  This grand daughter has surpassed her grandmother by almost an inch already... and I don't think that she is done growing yet!

A candid shot of Shirley with Maizy, Lucy, Kim and Shelby.  Lucy saw me taking photos so stood up to give me a few more creative poses.

I am grateful for spring flowers. Walking to the car to leave the lighthouse park this iris bagged me to take her photo.

Lucy was having some fun with her food at supper that evening.  There is more than one way to get a golden cap on your tooth.

We are grateful to have our first guests use the loft.  The day the kids arrived I finished the carpet and helped Shirley put some beds up for the girls.  They so loved being able to finally sleep in the loft!

Shelby and Kim went to Victoria Sabbath afternoon after our visit to the lighthouse park to enjoy some time at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel... and we got to enjoy Lucy and Maizy. Shirley found some bird houses that the girls could paint. Fun, fin, fun... serious fun.

When Shelby and Kim returned on Sunday afternoon Shelb and I played some meadow golf.  We set up a golf course using rounds of firewood as the target to hit.  Shirley pointed out how similar father and son walk.  The fruit doesn't fall very far from the tree.

Our tenant Chris joined us at the fire pit for some hot dogs and potato salad... the kids always enjoy roasting marshmallows and making smokes.  (-Photo credits to Shirley for the last four photos.)

On Monday after the kids left to go home, we went to Victoria to run some errands and to celebrate Mother's Day at the Oak Bay Beach Hotel. Our kids got us the most gorgeous jackets for Mother's and Father's day.  We both wore them to town.

I don't know what Shirley was taking a picture of... but let's say it was this sea gull.

An Asian girl saw Shirley and I taking a selfie so came and asked if she could take a photo of us... What could we say?

The next morning I got this early morning sunrise shot of Mt. Baker from our hotel room. This photos has not been altered... this is the colour that morning. Shirley was still sawing logs. Later after a wonderful breakfast in the dining room, Shirley had a pedicure at the Spa... and I had a massage. It was one of our best Mother/Father's Days I can remember.  Where is it written that you can only celebrate special occasions only on designated days?

"All the I am, or hope to be, I owe to my angel mother." 
-Abraham Lincoln

Shelby told us that we cannot always trust quotes on the internet... and to prove it he shared his favourite quote.

"The problem with internet quotes is that you can't always depend on their accuracy" -Abraham Lincoln, 1864

Cannon Beach Thanksgiving Memories

We left Mayne Island with the power out... and after driving all day in the rain arrived at Cannon Beach to find the power out within hours after we got here.  So the next day we went out for breakfast in Seaside... where they had power.  Getting there we had to go thru some severe flooding of the road.

Adjacent to the road was this RV campground.  Shelby thought he saw a sign that said "Dry Creek RV Park"... but Sher set him straight... it is "Circle Creek RV Park."  I guess that is because the water circles the place.  Still very appropriate.

Late afternoon the sky cleared a bit so Alan and I went for a walk on the beach.  The wind was having fun with the waves.

As the sun was setting the rain was moving back in... and before we realized it we had to hustle home.

The tide was out more than I have ever seen before here, so we explored up the beach to the north.  Coming back I took this shot of Alan with the famous Haystack Rock in the distance.

As I was taking this sunset shot the rain was pouring down on us.

The golden sun reflects in the windows on the houses... beautiful, eh?   This was happening in pouring rain and we were getting soaked!

Thanksgiving Day was a continual storm and I never once even ventured out the door.  It was delightful today to see the sun come out and wind subside...

A perfect time to go for a walk on the beach with the family.

"love builds up the broken wall
and straightens the crooked path.
love keeps the stars in the firmament
and imposes rhythm on the ocean tides
each of us is created of it
and i suspect
each of us was created for it"

--Maya Angelou 

Sher and Seth.  This young man is getting taller than his mother!

"I hope you always have a shell in your pocket... and sand in your shoes."

Occasionally we would get surprised by a wave that comes higher up the beach than most others.

Shirley was enjoying taking pictures of the foam on the leading edge of the waves... until she was caught off guard and got totally soaked up to her knees.  I found this quote for her.

"My life is like a stroll on the beach... as near to the edge as I can go."

“Don't grow up too quickly, lest you forget how much you love the beach.” -Michelle Held

There was lots of photos taken... with pictures of those taking pictures.

And even some selfie photos.  

Not to be left out, I had Shirley take my picture too... I wanted to show off the hats that Sher made up for the Thanksbirthmas '11 celebrations.  A lasting reminder.

Huge breakers.


"If you want to know how much I love you, count the waves."

The sand dunes were begging to have some pictures taken of them...

The blue sky was perfect today with the sand and the grass.

When Maizy and Lucy saw me over on the sand dunes, they wanted to play and climb around in them too.

It is wonderful to see these two sisters play so well together.

When Lucy was getting tired Maizy carried her quite a long way without a word of complaint.

There is endless variety in the sand dunes and the wild grass.

I love the patterns that the water etches in the sand on the beach.

And these patterns just happen randomly.

So simple. So beautiful.

TGIF Grateful List

What a week!  I have so much to be thankful for... and besides that it's Friday!

I am thankful for my sweetheart!  Shirley Ann is the happiest person I know... and she is always so encouraging to everyone.  She can find something good in almost any situation.

I am grateful that Shelby and family were home last weekend... we had such a good time together.  They had never been to Edith Point, which is one of favourite places to go hiking.  It was cute to see how Lucy could use a sore elbow to negotiate a free ride on her dad's shoulders!

I am always grateful for a picnic lunch... and on this sunny but chilly day we found a sheltered spot at Edith Point where we made almost all the food disappear.  Even Beatrice helped... with her longing eyes she wooed us into compliance and was generously rewarded.

I am grateful for photography.  Isn't it wonderful how today everyone has a camera.  If you have a phone today, you almost always have a camera.  And it is so easy now to share our photos.  Here Shelby is doing a semi-professional photo shoot of his eldest daughter, Maizy... while Beatrice is nudging up with her request... "Take my picture too!" For more photos and humour check out Shelby's blog.

I am grateful for Maizy, our eldest grand-daughter.  She is growing up so quickly!  And what a talented artist she already is.  I bet she drew a dozen pictures while she was with us last weekend.  There were so many on the floor at one time we considered how nice it would be to paper the floor with them.

I am grateful for Lucy, who is now seven years old... and so full of life and energy.  There is never a dull moment when she is around.

I am grateful for the snow... grateful that it was on Mt. Baker and not on Mayne Island.  This past week I was able to use the power washer on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday to take the moss off the driveway.  Wednesday my power washer was frozen and wouldn't start, so I just pulled it into the workshop and put a little cube heater on to it for an hour while Shirley and I had our walk.  When we got back it started with no problem and in spite of it being minus two C. I power washed another section.  

Meanwhile just 18 miles away in Victoria they got six inches of snow and traffic was snarled up on the Pat Bay Highway.  We never got a flake!  Mike at Trio Gravel Mart told me today it took him two hours to drive six miles to work yesterday. 

I am grateful for the curiosity of young children.  Would it be that we would never lose this quality.  Here our grand-daughters are peering with wonder into a hole in the base of an Arbutus tree, wondering if Mr. Racoon or Mr. Rabbit might have it's home there... careful if per chance they might fall in and have an "Alice in Wonderland" experience.

I am grateful to have my MacBook Pro now operating with Windows 7!!!  Rob, the Apple rep at Future Shop help me with the install today.  When we finished I was so happy to see the Windows log come up on the screen... but the Rob didn't want me to make to big a deal about it... he didn't want me drawing the attention of nearby customers to see such an aberration in their store. 

So why did I do it?  The stock trading platform I use is only available for a conventional Windows operating system.  The final straw in making the decision to go with a Mac this time was it had to be able to run the trading system software.

I am grateful for the way MacBook handles photos... and now that I have got used to it I am just delighted how slick and quickly one can crop, straighten, edit and fix little things on the photos.  Anything with photos is a dream to work with now... it makes doing slide shows a delight.  As my kids would say, "I've been drinking the Kool Aide too long."

      

I am grateful for a delightful afternoon in Victoria.  After getting my computer set up with Windows, Shirley and I went to IMAX for a double feature Arabia" and "Horses."  Since we have seasons passes, we just have to get our money's worth, right?  Both were awesome photography and interesting stories.

There was just enough time to go out for a special three-course dinner before catching the last ferry home.  This was our first Groupon Coupon that we have used... and at a very nice place... the Black Olive on Pandora Street.  

The trip home was longer than usual... the route tonight went to Galiano first before coming to Mayne.  But the time went fast when you can spent it on the computer.  I am very grateful for having 3G sticks... both Shirley and I were able to do a lot of blogging as we travelled home.

The Quote of the Day:  

"Let us be grateful to people who make us happy: they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom." -Marcel Proust

Tell me... what are you grateful for today?