Tuesday, March 6 - things are still pretty quiet

Our weather continues to be up and down with still no real winter in sight. They are predicting a possible 15 cms of snow on Thursday but we've been told that before and it's just not happened. As we head well into March we're all beginning to think that this was the winter that wasn't! But anything can happen in March so who knows. A memory Brenda shared on Facebook was the year we were till cross country skiing in May - both on Mother's Day and the 24th of May weekend. Albeit we were in short sleeved shirts and Bernie was following us around the field in the tractor as he got ready for spring planting, but we were still able to get out there. Unlike this year, when the skis have been used once, and the same for the snowshoes.

Lately, it almost seems like Christmas here. Almost everyday something seems to be arriving from our friends at Amazon or other online vendors. Lloyd has been receiving items he's ordered for his trip and I've been getting stuff I've ordered as well.It just seems the arrivals are all spread out so that something arrives almost every day! First it was new packaging for this years cookies, then it was my walking poles.

We attended a local event recently that was a hike of a local trail. Because the trail was too icy we hiked instead across country. Walking poles were supplied and I was anxious to give them a try. I was impressed at how well they worked and after doing some research on the benefits of using them, I decided to order my own pair. We've been trying to get out and do more walking. With both of us heading out on holidays soon,  we know we'll be doing lots of walking.  I always tend to over do it and end up with painful shins which kind of messes up your holiday. So we're hoping that getting in some extra walking ahead of time will be beneficial. Lloyd has even purchased one of those gadgets that tracks your steps!

Lloyd's diet is still going very well. He's lost weight to the point that the smaller pants he bought a while ago are now too big. I know it's not easy to be giving up the foods you really, really enjoy such as fresh baked bread, etc, but he's done extremely well.

Our needle felting class is also going well. We have our last class this Friday but unfortunately I'm going to miss it. Next week is our Open House when representatives from the Government branch that funds the LEAP program will visit to see just how their money was spent! I think they'll be impressed.  There are some pretty talented ladies in our group.  Watch for pictures in an upcoming post.

Meghan and her band of merry dancers were very busy last week. They had their first competition of the year and did very well. Here's the list of numbers her studio performed (Meg is in Comp A)

and here are their results. Very well done!  Congratulations to all the dancers. Looking forward to seeing those numbers performed at the next recital, although I know some of them were performed in last years event. I understand how they were prize winners!

Here's a note from the dance studio:  Thank you to @bedazzleddanceofficial for such a fun and amazing first Comp of the season! We had a blast and it was great to see you again! With 18  1st places, a 2nd and a 3rd up against talented competition from other studios. 5 judges awards, an MC Mark award, two 3rd overalls and three 1st overalls we can’t be more proud of all our dancers hard work and dedication

Tuesday, February 27th - welcome back!

It's been a couple of weeks since I was here. Busy, busy times.
Tristen arrived for his visit a week ago Thursday. His first solo  flight, arriving in the wee hours of the morning on Friday. After a quick stop at the all night grocery store for milk, and a quick visit to Lloyd at work, we were on our way home.

Friday morning was quiet. I had to work for a bit so he could sleep in. Then in the afternoon the three of us were off to the Race Track for supper to celebrate a delayed happy birthday for Lloyd. I didn't realize there were no races on at this time so it was just dinner. But still a nice time had by all.

Saturday was our movie day. We headed into town and had lunch at Dairy Queen before seeing two movies - Peter Rabbit and Early Man. We enjoyed them both but agreed we liked Peter Rabbit best.

Sunday was our day to visit Island Hill Farm. They weren't open but we were allowed to visit anyway. I don't have any photos from there but I know Tristen has some.

Monday, Islander Day, was a lovely mild day with lots of sunshine but we were pleased to find out that there was enough snow on the cross country trails at the local ski park to facilitate a trip out. We picked Brenda up on our way and were on our way.  We had a lovely time in spite of all of us falling at least once. Most of the trail was good but some areas were a bit icy. Nonetheless, we enjoyed our outing.

Tristen's departure was delayed a bit with him leaving on Wednesday. As a result we had to find something to do on Tuesday. We went into town hoping to go bowling, but the Alley was filled with many seniors. Just our luck. Instead we went and did a bit of shopping and in the end Tristen found a new toy he didn't have but did have the money to purchase. Lucky us!

He was scheduled to leave on the early flight on Wednesday but weather seems to have caused some delays so it was lunch time before he got on his way.  I think his first flight was a success.

The rest of the week was fairly quiet, once he was gone. On Saturday Lloyd and I went over to Mount Stewart to participate in a snowshoe event. Unfortunately there wasn't enough snow so it was a hike instead but a lovely time just the same. Then on Sunday we joined some neighbours for brunch at Red Shores to celebrate a 60th birthday of one of them. All in all it was a busy but great week.

Lloyd is busy finalizing his plans for his trip which will be coming up before we know it. Yesterday we were talking about travel and we realized we have a week of our time share we need to use before the end of April. Unfortunately  on such short notice not a lot of options exist. But all is not lost. One destination on my bucket list is Martha's Vineyard.  I was thrilled to find a resort that had space. So, I'm going on vacation! I leave the day that Lloyd gets back.  It's not exactly tourist season down there but it should be great anyway.

February 13th - An Early Happy Valentines Day!

...and our roller coaster weather continues. Crazy weather indeed.
In fact, we've not seen this much ice around since we've been here, which will be 9 years at the end of April. Hard to believe.

Saturday I had a catering job in town (more on that later) and when it was time to go home, around midnight, it was raining. Not so bad as we didn't have to contend with icy roads. Sunday was below freezing with a dusting of snow on top of the water, that was now frozen. Monday brought temperatures well above freezing leaving a slick layer of water on top of all the ice. Getting to the garage was quite a challenge. Should have gotten my skates out of the closet!

 After Lloyd got up from his morning nap, he and our neighbour Frank, went out and got some sand to spread around in both yards. Makes a huge difference.

                                                                          
Now Tuesday is expected to be -14' with the wind chill making it that much colder. Then on Wednesday we're back into the plus side again.  I'm hoping for decent weather on Wednesday as I'm hosting my second annual Valentine's lunch. It was a great day last year so I'm hoping this year's will be just as enjoyable for my guests.

It was a fairly busy week. Our Friday craft class was cancelled as our instructor couldn't make it. Not sure why but we should be back to normal this week. It was just as well as I had lots to do to prepare for our catering job on Saturday afternoon.
 

Soup, sandwiches, sweets for 25 volunteers helping out at the Heart and Stroke Gala.

 The ballroom all set for the gala...

Meanwhile backstage...

 At first glance it appeared I might have too much food but in the end, there was lots. Although there really wasn't much left, just a couple of sandwiches and that was about it.  By all accounts they were happy clients.  Rave reviews for our Tomato, Corn and Black Bean Soup. Either that or they were all really polite people! I now Meghan went out on a limb hiring me so I'm really pleased that it worked out so well.

Once everyone had eaten, it was time to head to our work stations. Brenda and I were in charge of the wrapping room - packaging all the silent auction items when it was over. There were bits of confusion part way through but in the end it all worked out.

While we worked away, James was in Sault Ste. Marie at a Biathlon.  He tells me he had a great time in spite of not advancing to the next competition, which is the National one. I was a little disapointed to hear that as it's actually being held here on PEI. But if we don't get some serious snow soon, it might be a challenge for the hosts.

He really didn't mind as he has an opportunity at the same time to visit the universities in Ottawa - something he needs to do before making his final decision. So it all works out in the end.

This week there was a video on Instagram of the girls at the dance school getting ready for their first competition of the season coming up very soon. They've all been working really hard and I know they'll do well.

February 6th - the roller coaster continues

Okay Mother Nature - please bring on some winter! Our weather has been an insane up and down swing. One day it's +10' and then the next it's -16'. Up and down - we have to keep two sets of outdoor clothes on hand at all times.

Once again a pretty quiet week. The highlights of our week was needle felting on Friday and Craft night at Sharyn's on Sunday. But that's winter for us retired people!
Here's the first two needle felting projects. Quite an interesting old fashioned craft. 

My needle felting projects so far...

 I'm also happy to have time to spend out in my craft room. I'm just playing around with some scraps of fabric I had in  my stash and made some place mats. I also made a table topper for Valentines.

After much back and forth consideration, I decided to go ahead with our Valentines lunch.The invitations are done and some delivered so now I'm at the point of no return!  We have a small catering job a few days before, hence my ambivalence, but really  I have no excuse. However we won't have goats giving birth at the same like we did last year. It did provide the entertainment factor though.

Lloyd is still busy planning his trip at the end of March. He's really looking forward to it. He's got his flights all booked as well as his accommodations.  One of the plans is a home stay, where you actually go and stay with a family. He's really looking forward to that one. Everyone is so surprised when he tells them that he's going by himself and are astounded at that fact. They obviously don't know us very well. Traveling solo is something we're both really good at. Maybe next year we'll go somewhere together. That would be different.

He's been ordering super light weight items to take with him, as he's hoping to travel with just a back pack. It's going to be quite the adventure.

Tuesday, January 30 - are we already almost at the end of January?

Another slow winter's week. Our weather continues to be up and down yet again. A week ago we were out in the woods snowshoeing, but this Sunday I went for a walk with my neighbour, Margie, with not a spec of snow and 7' temperatures. Now we're waiting for another winter storm to show up. Although, it's currently 8:20 and nothing is happening yet, except for all the schools closed for the day, Hope it lives up to their expectations. 

Last Thursday Brenda, Meghan and I joined Maureen for dinner in town and then a delightful evening at a PEI Music awards concert. Great food, great music with great friends. Thanks ladies!

Most of the weekend was pretty unproductive for me, although not so much for Lloyd. I worked on some sewing projects in the craft room on Saturday morning while Lloyd worked at making cheese. A trip into town in the afternoon pretty much killed the rest of the day.  Sunday was again a busy one for Lloyd but not so much for me. After he finished cheese, then he moved onto sausage making. I, on the other hand, spent a large part of my Sunday reading a book. I had read most of it and couldn't put it down till I was finished! Isn't that what Sunday's are for?

I attended our needle felting class on Friday afternoon. While the results may not be award winning, it's a really nice way to spend an afternoon, sitting around and chatting while we work. It's a craft you really have to focus on while you work so chatting is all you can do. You wouldn't want to be trying to watch TV while poking that very sharp needle into the fabric. It really hurts when you stab yourself (trust me, I know!).  I've found some pretty amazing needle felted projects on line, and some are absolutely gorgeous. Unfortunately mine is not so much. In fact I've torn it out several times. Practice makes perfect I suppose, or at least reasonably acceptable. But then it has only been two classes so...

I'm really behind in my Wee Bee Bookkeeping and I've been putting it off for a storm day. Guess that day is today. Better get to it.

Tuesday, January 23rd - belated Happy Birthday to Lloyd

Yesterday was Lloyd's birthday. Not much of a celebration this year. Sleep after working on Sunday night then supper before heading off to bed once again. I did try to make him a special supper but it's difficult as he's dieting right now. The good news is he lost weight this past week so he's feeling pretty good about that.

All in all it was a pretty quiet week. I worked at cards two days this week but I also had time to attend a new craft class. It seems I'm finally a senior citizen. Our class is part of the LEAP program which stands for Learning Elders Arts Program. This time around we're learning needle felting. I had no idea what it was until I looked it up online. It will be interesting to see what we produce over the  next 8 weeks.

We finally got some snow this week - enough to actually make use of. Sunday was a beautiful day. We started out with breakfast with the VanGaals and Bairds and then we reconvened to go snowshoeing. Meghan joined us and we actually talked Lloyd into going out as well. He got snowshoes for his birthday last year  but has yet to try them out. In fact when we pulled them out of the shed, they still had all the tags on them. 

Once we reached our destination, the river, after going through the woods, his only comment was "why didn't anyone tell me about this before?"  Needless to say his first foray out into the snow was a success.  It was a beautiful day to be outdoors and in the woods!

Unfortunately we may get rain later this week and it could all be gone, again. Fingers crossed it returns soon.

Congrats to James. He participated in a Biathlon event on the weekend and came first in his division, hitting all his targets and skiing really well. No photos yet but I'm sure there will be some coming soon.

Tuesday, January16th - Settling into normal again

It's been a really busy few weeks. I no sooner got back from Toronto and we were off to Halifax for a mini vacation. Patti, Greg and James flew down on Thursday, just for the day, to tour Dalhousie University. It's one of the locations James is considering for next year.



We arrived there a day early, having left the island on Wednesday morning. We lucked out with a fairly mild and sunny day. It certainly made for a pleasant drive. We arrived around 2:00 and were able to check into our hotel a bit early. Lloyd had worked the night before so he headed off to have a nap, while I found a comfy chair by a sunny window in a lounge to read.

We had a reservation at Chives for dinner. We stopped in quite a bit earlier than our allotted time but they were able to accommodate us early. We enjoyed a delicious meal and a leisurely walk back to our hotel.






The rest of the gang arrived around 2:00 in the morning so we met up with them around 9:30.  After a stop for coffee, it was time for our tour, which lasted approximately an hour and a half. The day started out not too cold and just got better as the day went on.

After the tour we all headed to a local pub for some lunch. By this time both Lloyd and Greg were done in and headed back to their respective hotels for nap time.










Meanwhile Patti, James and I struck out on foot to tour. James was wanting to visit the Citadel but
unfortunately all exhibits were closed.  So we went downtown and toured around.

 We finally all met up again for supper, heading once again to the same  pub, which was much busier than at lunch time. But service was good and we were out in time to get everyone to the airport for their flight home. Patti was working the flight so James and Greg had no way to get to the airport except for a horribly expensive cab. No worries, we had the car so we drove them out. Unfortunately our GPS died just as we got back to town and in the dark, we struggled to find our way back to the hotel. We eventually made it, after stopping 3 times to ask directions. Once we got back, we walked up the street to a local spot to have a drink.  Great way to end the day!

Friday morning was overcast but very mild. The temperature hovered around 15' pretty much all day. We were supposed to have rain all day, but we never really saw any. After getting packed up and checked out of the hotel, we found our way to the new Ikea store in Halifax. A tour through the store and a stop for lunch (Lloyd loves those swedish meatballs), and we were on our way home.

We arrived in town around 4:00, lots of time to pick up the dog at the boarding kennel, stop at the store for some supplies and then home.

Because I was away, I had to do my cards on Saturday. No worries, I only had one stop this week. The rest of the weekend was pretty uneventful. We were supposed to get lots of rain, but in the end, it really didn't amount to much.  We saw terrible images of other parts of the maritimes so we were really lucky.