August 29th, 2011

We just got home from church, where Dax gave a great talk on prayer, the little stinker didn't even let on that he was giving a talk today before it was announced. He did an awesome job of preparation even with attending a dance and working several jobs this week!

Yesterday, after the nightmare of a "cash-only" shift at Walmart (more in a minute) we went to Goose Spit for a fireside. The weather was beyond awesome and the ocean was mirror-smooth. We roasted marshmallows and made smores. Our little friend Luella was having a great time in the bucket of water. I always thought the water was there for fire safety reasons, but I guess I was a bit narrow in my perspective.

The sunset over Comox and the mountains was gorgeous. . .

Now the Walmart thing. . .our store's network was down all day yesterday. That meant, no credit cards, debit cards, gift cards, no selling phone cards. . .or any other cards. . .no nada, just cash. It seems not many people carry much cash around these days, and with it being essentially one of the last Saturdays before school starts, people were a little less-than understanding about the whole situation. I was more than happy to escape to the beach. . .

I wonder; is there a "clinical" name for my special brand of crazy?

I have been feeling run off my feet lately (still), so what do I do? Back off a notch or five? Nope, not ME!!! I made a quilt yesterday. . .granted it is a baby quilt, but it is a quilt, nonetheless.

Ron and I were planning to go to Duncan (2hrs away) for the evening for a youth dance, but we decided it was just too much. I have 2 lessons to prepare for Sunday (still not done) and I worked today and am working another short shift tomorrow.
Since we decided not to go to Duncan for the night, that means I am able to attend a baby shower that I thought I would be missing in town this evening. Since I thought I would be missing it, I had no gift ready. . .hence the last minute quilt. I have been wanting to do an "I Spy Quilt" for a little while now, so I managed to do this one. . .
I even managed to laminate a card with a BUNCH of items to find on the quilt.

There were a few inadvertent little "jokes"; there is a panel of bears and they took very interested in the cupcakes in the panel next door to them and the cheetah seems to be eying the little baby chicks.

A few random thoughts-

• The honkers seem to have started heading South, but the weather is still mighty fine
• Ron and I are still sleeping out on the deck.
  
• I got some plums the other day and I am really hoping to get them into jars soon.
• I actually got out the water colors and did some painting while we on Gabriola.
• We really enjoyed Sister Pung's visit with her family and here is one of the photos I never got around to posting. . .

Aug 9th

Kabobs ready for the barby. . . .

So far so good with the new hot water tank; no water on the floor, and hot water is coming out of the taps!

Today was a little of this and that for me, I managed to stay home and catch up on laundry and a few other little domestic chores. Ron has been at work for Don (vending machines) all day. . .he isn't even home yet, and it is after 8pm. The kids helped me with a few chores, then did their own things- Adam plugged away on his schoolwork, Dax went to his job this afternoon, Kaili worked on a sewing project for a hospitalized friend while Ellie read, played piano and goofed around on the computer.

For dinner, I constructed kabobs, Adam BBQ'd them and Kaili made some saffron rice. I guess Dax and Ron will have to do left-overs. . .

Nothing too exciting going on here, but the weather sure has been nice!

August 5th, 2011

Summer seems to have arrived and my succulents are blooming up a storm.The blueberries are plump, plentiful, ripe and sweet!
After a quick blueberry harvest, we got down to a bit of yard work yesterday. The store was clearing out the plants for 50 cents a piece the other day, so Ron and I took advantage of a few of the great deals. As a consequence, we had about 2 dozen new plants to get in the ground, then mulched and wrapped in deer netting yesterday. We planted about a dozen strawberries, 2 grapes, a gooseberry, some dahlias, a canna lilly, a Forsythia, plus a few other assorted ornamentals . . .and as bonus, we finally got the Spartan apple that I had picked up a few weeks ago out of it's pot and placed in the yard.

Ron is doing a family history mission from home and has been having a hard time helping clients over Skype the last few days (the old laptop in his words- has "had the biscuit"). So, after finishing in the garden, we picked up a new laptop for Ron's upcoming birthday. We got a demo model that had already been marked down, so we got a really good deal on pretty nice machine.

Ron wanted to go to the beach, but everyone was pretty tired from the day's activities and decided they would rather hang at home, so we took the kids to DQ for a quick treat, then kicked-back at home for the evening. It was especially pleasant on the deck

Next on the agenda is dealing with the water heater that is showing signs of imminent failure. . .(i.e. it is beginning to leak with greater and greater frequency).

Poor Isis is positively worn out after a day of basking in the sun while the family did yard work. Ron is in his "jammies" on the deck with his laptop enjoying the nice summer evening after our busy day.