Thursday, July 28th - it's been a busy few days with those folks from away..

I'm on vacation so not usually really sure of just what day it is. Patti and the three younger kids (Tristen, Meghan and her friend Jill) were to arrive on the late flight Saturday night. Unfortunately that didn't happen. There were apparently some very disappointed members of the group who got home very late and had to get back up very early the next morning to try for the morning flight. Turns out it was worth the wait as they were all put into first class.

They arrived at 11:00 and by 1:00 we were all at the beach over at Lakeside.  It was a pretty quiet day as everyone was tired out from their travels. James arrived on the midnight flight that evening so I sent everyone off to bed and went into town to fetch him. He also had to fly first class, poor fellow. I almost didn't recognize him as he seems to have grown at least a foot since the last time I saw him, which wasn't that long ago.

The next few days seems like a bit of a blur. So far some of us have shopped, because the weather was threatening rain, we've been to Anne of Green Gables, Mariner's Cove in Cavendish,
the beach at Tea Hill, Island Hill Farm, Boom Burger, and even more shopping, as well as a late night bonfire on the beach.

Except for one day with a bit of rain, it has been very hot most of the time so perfect for the beach.
Today (Thursday,  I think!) they have all gone to Shining Waters and / or Sandspit.  I chose to sit this one out and stay home and relax. They should be home around 7:00 tonight when we will be heading over to Lakeside with some wood and hotdogs to have our dinner over another bonfire.

The week has been a blur of activity but I think for the most part, everyone is having a great time. They've discovered our movie program on the TV
so that has led to many late nights watching movies with buckets of popcorn and several late mornings. But we are on holidays so that's what it's for.

Lloyd on the other hand isn't doing much relaxing! He's been busy attending bull fights, festivals, etc as well as showing off his skills on the dance floor! The following video is one of the festivals he attended. It's quite long but if you fast forward to about 26 minutes, and watch to see how it's supposed to be done, then you will see Twinkle Toes himself showing how it's not done !

 https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=g7puXTqjuzY
 
But he's having a great time and I'm sure he'll have lots of stories when he gets home.

We've actually talked on the phone a couple of times and he tells me he went fishing and caught three barracudas.
Now that's some fish!

Thurdsay, July 21st - a little late but I was BUSY!

Well, the first day of being farmer McDenny went well. I was up early on my first day of vacation. I got a few things done before Lloyd got home from work. By the time he had arrived, all the animals were fed, the goat was milked, the milk chilled and in the fridge and all was well.

He had a couple of hours before time to take him to the airport so he caught a bit of a nap. I dropped him at the airport at 11:00 for his 11:45 am flight to Toronto. He had a nine hour wait in Toronto for his flight to Lisbon but one of his friends from the Guelph airport came into the city to go for supper with him so that broke things up a bit. 

I had several errands to run while I was in town because I didn't plan to come back in until the weekend. It was a bit cooler and you could tell it wasn't a beach day. Not a great time to be in town because traffic is crazy. All the tourist use the cooler days to come in to tour the city as it really wasn't a sit in the sun kind of  day. A great day to get done what needs to be done and get out of there!

I bottled thirty bottles of wine at the brew your own place before leaving town so we are well stocked.  When I got home I spent the time doing some cleaning up around the yard, just putting a few things away that got missed on the weekend. While I was out there Meghan Van Gaal came over with some of her friends who are visiting from Toronto. They had a little boy who was quite happy to see the animals, so much so, that he didn't want to leave.

I continued working away until I ran out of steam. After a bite to eat, it was time to feed the animals again. Once everyone was fed, watered and put away for the night I headed back inside where I received a call from Brenda advising that they had fresh strawberry short cake, did I want to come over? Are you kidding me? Of course I did. So a lovely dessert and a cup of hot tea was a great way to end my first day of vacation. 

Today is supposed to be VERY hot so sometime this afternoon will be a beach day for Brenda and me.
Check back later in the week for more updates. I'm waiting to hear that Lloyd has arrived at his final destination in the Azores, but I suspect he's not there yet. I'll keep you posted as he promises to send photos.

One last word, I received a text from granddaughter Meghan, who is currently camping with the family. She got word that this year she will be doing 2 duets with her competition dance team. Last years was absolutely beautiful so I know she's pretty pleased about being chosen to do 2 numbers next  year.

And also in the same family, James will be performing at the Hillside Festival in Guelph on Friday evening. The rock band that he plays pipes in one song with, is playing. Too bad bagpipes don't figure in more pieces of rock music - guess he'll have to start changing things up a bit!

Tuesday, July 19th - one more sleep...

...until I take over here at Old McDenny's farm! Lots to do this morning so check back tomorrow for a report on day one!

Tuesday, July 11th

Last weekend the kids spent some time up at Greg's parents in Port Elgin. Tristen tried his luck fishing in Southhampton....











... and his efforts were rewarded with his first fish!
Well done, T!







The rest of the week here on the island was pretty uneventful. Brenda and I did get out for a bit of a bike ride one evening but after that the weather was mostly cold and wet.  The Cavendish Beach Music Festival was this past weekend and I think you'd have to be a pretty die hard fan to withstand the cold and rain for 3 days. Although I think Friday really wasn't too bad up in that area.  There was quite an exodus of campers and tourists this morning across the bridge from what I was told by a fellow who had come across in the opposite direction.

The good news is summer is returning again this week. I had last Saturday off but thanks to a cold that Lloyd very graciously shared, I didn't enjoy my day off nearly as much as I could have. On the other hand it was great not having to go into work when not feeling very well. A four hour nap on Saturday afternoon helped immensely.

Saturday there was another busy day getting the last of the steel panels on the barn. Lloyd has the trim pieces for the roof and the corners on order and they should be here soon. He can pretty much finish off the rest by himself, a little at a time. We hope to get as much done as possible before he leaves for the Azores, which is quickly approaching. I know he's really looking forward to his trip, as is our neighbour, Frank. The two of them should have a great time. Frank has a lot of family and friends there and is eager to share his culture with Lloyd who is really eager to immerse himself in this new environment.

 The first residents of the new barn are the laying hens. Remember those tiny balls of yellow fluff not so long ago - they have really grown. They have a temporary pen inside the barn until their new permanent spot is closed in. They have perches inside the pen but they seem to like being on the top edge. Hopefully no one falls off or ends up as supper for a fox.

Tuesday, July 5th - belated Happy Canada Day weekend!

And what a weekend it was!

It started off on the right foot with a lovely evening on Thursday sitting on a patio on Victoria Row with Brenda and Meghan. Not a late night but a great way to kick off a long weekend.


Friday was the holiday and we were fortunate to have it off work.  It was a really, really warm day, perhaps not the best day to be working out in the sun, but that's what Lloyd and several others did on Friday. Work progressed really well on the little building. Because we had a few helpers early in the day, the decision was made to put the roof on first, while help was available.

In the evening, I went out to Lakeside with Brenda.  A stroll on the beach and some local fireworks were just what was needed to end an otherwise busy day.







Saturday was another nice day. Lloyd and company had run out of screws for the metal panels on the walls of the barn, so I was delegated to pick them up as I was going into town to shop, anyway. Oh, by the way, while you're going, we also need pig feed, chicken feed, goat feed, etc, etc - better be taking the truck this trip.

Saturday was not quite so hot so working was a little better. The two side walls were completed by the lunch time, when it was called a day.

Time for a little nap and then get ready to go out. We were attending the second feast in the barn at
Island Hill Farm.  The first one was in the winter when the two oldest kids were here and it was probably the coldest night we had all winter. This time was much better. We took a couple of friends with us and had a great time. The food was wonderful, the setting was unique and a great time was had by all.  I met the chef in charge of the food and advised him that I would like to be in the kitchen next time and he was totally okay with that. Now I can't wait for the next one.

It was so great having an extra day. I still had one left! Lloyd was up early on Sunday to go for a bike ride with Bernie. Brenda and I were planning to go but it was a bit cooler and very windy. Instead we took the little car and headed into town. I needed to pick something up at Michaels and then we headed out to Summerside. There was a big bike rally there on the weekend and we thought we would check it out. We were almost there when we met two old bikers going the other direction - Bernie and Lloyd.

We toured around Summerside waterfront, stopped and had a coffee at our favorite spot in town before heading back to our area. All in all a really great day.

Just time to make Lloyd some supper before he headed off to bed as he had to work at midnight.

A productive, but at the same time, somewhat relaxing three days - almost like a little mini vacation.

Tuesday, June 28th - another great week, now that summer is finally here

Wednesday evening, I had the pleasure of attending a Small Halls performance in St. Peter's with Brenda, Meghan and Maureen. The Songwriters circle included  Catherine MacLellan , Stephen Fearing,Tim Chaisson and Sherman Downey. Meghan drove as she had just picked up her new car!  Great night was had by all.






Thursday afternoon, I arrived home from work and was greeted to a new chair sitting on my back step.  We have a very talented friend who makes these chairs with a particular wood he sources in the woods in the spring.  He's made some pretty interesting pieces over the years and I'm very thrilled to add one of his creations to my new flower bed. A huge thanks to Richard.






Friday was our weekly Capture the Queen of Hearts and we were pleased to have her captured! Thus ends our weekly Friday night events, at least until the fall. Congrats to the winner, Darcy Dunn of Fort Augustus. He wasn't there so his mom drew the card for him. A huge thanks will be going to her I expect.

Work is still progressing slowly on the little barn. Weather was great on the weekend so more got done.  Meanwhile the goats are enjoying exploring a new little structure that's out in their field. The roof seems to be the most interesting place to hang out!





Lloyd's flight to the Azores is booked, after quite a  few technical glitches. A huge thank you to Patti for persevering and getting it looked after. It was truly a challenge but she succeeded! I know he's really looking forward to his trip and he's got lots to do before he goes. Hopefully he works well under pressure!

Well, we were truly blessed by the weather gods on Saturday and Sunday. I had planned to ride my bike to work on Saturday morning but had trouble starting it - again. (Just as well, because I realized on Sunday that I'm jut not ready to head to town yet. A little bit of practice is in order). So Brenda met me in town and we headed out for a little tour, with me following in the Miata. Good thing it turns out as we needed the extra cargo space in the end. We met up at Jewell's for ice cream and to pick up a couple of plants for Brenda's garden. The we headed cross country and criss crossed our way around before ending up back in town. A call from the guys indicated they were planning a little guys get together and they needed some supplies, such as beer, etc. Good thing we had the car.

After getting all our shopping done, we headed home. Some lobsters had been ordered the previous evening so Brenda came over and we dined on lobster and wine in bug free comfort, while the boys fought off the mosquitoes beside the creek and BBQ'd sausages.  To each his own!

Sunday was yet again another gorgeous day, with temperatures in the high 20's. Brenda's cousin and his wife were over for a few days so we all met up in Cardigan for breakfast. Lloyd and Bernie were headed out for a bike ride. After breakfast we all went our separate ways.  I took the scenic route home and cut some grass when I got back. Then it was don all the leather gear to meet Brenda for a bike ride. I missed her call and got to her house where we decided it was really way too hot to have an enjoyable ride. I was really needing to go out to a vacant parking lot and do some practicing so I left my bike at her place. Not doing much riding the past two years has left me a little rusty. Better to get in a bit of practice before hitting the road too seriously...








Instead we headed back to my place where we shelled some of the lobster to make lobster rolls.

Our plans were for a supper on the beach later, the first one of the season!  We all met at Lakeside around 6:30 and enjoyed salads and lobster rolls as well as a beverage. Really, does it get any better??? Well actually, yes it does. Lobster season ends this week so we won't have to eat any more of those dreadful little critters. They do get tiresome after a while. One more meal last night and thankfully we're done until next year!!!- just kidding.  We will eagerly await our first feed again next spring.






The beach had a few people on it when we got there, which was no surprise as the temperature was 27'..  The people who had been there all day were just leaving as we arrived so we pretty much had the place to ourselves. 




Meghan came out on Monday evening and four of us did a few rounds on our bikes at the school then we were off.  A short practice run out through Bethel,  around and back through Fort Augustus gave us novices a good  little start. Each ride builds confidence.

Tuesday, June 21st - Goats can be crafty - literally!

Lloyd is still working slowly on his barn. It's not always easy with the help he has. There are three goats who hang around and tend to steal things and walk away with them if they can get them into their mouths.  In fact the whole weekend was all about the goats, but not necessarily in a good way!  Saturday was an absolutely beautiful day. It started out great with Lloyd and I meeting the flying club in town for breakfast. When it was time for me to go to work, I dropped him off at the bike shop where he picked up my little yellow beast and rode it home for me. She's now running like a charm, unfortunately I didn't have a chance to get out on it over the weekend. But there will be other opportunities.

Always looks so nice right after mowing the lawn

After work it was home to help out with some yard chores. I cut grass while Lloyd continued on with
his project.  We finished up the day with a quick but tasty supper upstairs on the garage sun porch. I put the card table and chairs in one corner and it makes a lovely spot to eat supper - not too sunny, nice breeze (if the wind is the right direction), great view, and best of all, NO BUGS!





Everything seemed in order until I later went upstairs to go to bed. I looked out the back window just in time to see three goats strolling down the lane away from the garage. This can't be good! So it was outside for Lloyd to round everyone up and get them back It seems the little beggers didn't mind going between the strings on the fence to go for a walk regardless of how many volts of electricity runs through them.

Sunday morning we were up early to try to figure out something for the fence as well as continue with

Watch for an update next week!

yard work.  We really needed to cut the grass behind the house but a collections of large rocks that had been hauled out of the cellar, was kind of impeding progress. I had glued some ceramic numbers into one of them and wanted it moved to the end of the yard. (We had picked up the numbers back in 2010 when we were in Arizona and still hadn't done anything with them.) Neighbour Frank to the rescue. He happened to come over early in the morning as he needed Lloyd to give him a hand with something. Then he came over with his tractor and bucket and moved the rocks down the
lane.


We still had several large boulders that needed to be moved, but to where? Problem solved. We have a large hole in our front yard that was one time a well. It's sunk down over the years and is now quite a size. So we placed the boulders around the outside and then Frank brought over a bucket of dirt and we filled it in. Instant flower bed!All it needs now is some flowers...



After working all morning., we were ready for a break. It was a beautiful hot sunny day, just begging for us to go for a drive. We put the top down on the little car and headed into town. Lloyd had a couple of things to pick up at Canadian Tire and I wanted to get some flowers for my new plot.  We stopped first and had some lunch, then headed to Canadian Tire. When we finished there we left town and stopped at Jewell's for some bedding flowers and ice cream, before heading back home.

You can imagine our surprise when we got back home to find the gate open and no goats to be seen (except Eddie, as he has his own little yard).  We were afraid they had gotten out on the road and wandered off. We searched everywhere and then Lloyd asked if the door was open at the top of the stairs in the garage. Sure enough, there were the three of them wandering around upstairs in my craft room!  I know they're curious but seriously???  Good thing one of the items we had purchased while out was new latches for their gates.

It's never boring at our house, I can tell you!

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Had a great time on Wednesday evening helping celebrate Meghan's birthday.  A good time was had by all and it was specially nice for the VanGaal family to have all the kids home at once, something that doesn't happen too often anymore.  (Hopefully someone got a photo without the demonic looking eyes!)

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Meghan (2) and her friends returned safely home from a school trip to Ottawa, which was not without it's excitement. They truly enjoyed the city and have brought back many memories including the Great KD Caper (and that's all we're going to say about that but they know the story!) Glad to hear that everyone had a wonderful time visiting our nation's capital.

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And finally, after returning from my brief visit to Guelph, I saw this post on the dance schools page. I hope they don't mind that I copied it.  I found it very inspirational and a great answer to that age old question frequently asked of dance parents - or any other extracurricular activity their kids might be involved in...

                                                                                                                           FROM A DANCE PARENT:

• One of my friends asked "Why do you pay so much money and spend so much time running around for your daughter to dance ?" Well I have a confession to make: I don't pay for my daughter's dance lessons. Or her pointe, Jazz, or tap shoes. Or her hundreds of costumes.
  
  So, if I am not paying for dance , what am I paying for? - I pay for those moments when my girl becomes so tired she feels like quitting but doesn't.. - I pay for the opportunity that my girl can have and will have to make life-long friendships. - I pay for the chance that she may have amazing instructors that will teach her that dance is not just about movement but about life. - I pay for my child to learn to be disciplined. - I pay for my girl to learn to take care of her body. - I pay for my daughter to learn to work with others and to be a proud , supportive, kind and respectful team member. - I pay for my child to learn to deal with disappointment, when she doesn't get that score she hoped for , or fell during a move she has practiced a thousand times, but still gets up and is determined to do her BEST next time... - I pay for my girl to learn to make and accomplish goals. - I pay for my daughter to learn that it takes hours and hours and hours and hours of hard work and practice to create a champion, and that success does not happen overnight. - I pay so that my daughter can be in the studio instead of in front of a screen... I could go on but, to be short, I don't pay for dance; I pay for the opportunities that dance provides my child to develop attributes that will serve her well throughout her life and give her the opportunity to bless the lives of others. From what I have seen for many, many years, I think it is a great investment!
  
  Author : S.Martin