Canada Day weekend

We had another hamster burial at our house last night. The front plant bed has become a defacto pet cemetery.

1- Kamikaze bird

2- Maya hamster

3- Hammie hamster

4- Mia hamster

5- Patchy Face Cat

The Kamikaze bird crashed into the window. After watching the poor thing expire on the deck, I installed colored glass marbles to prevent further bird fatalities.

The remaining remains are former pets marked with a hosta, a ghost fern, and an azalea bush.

We managed to get about an inch of rain the other night, which has allayed the fire hazard a bit.

The girls and Michael came down for a visit this week. Henrietta supplied us with the fresh eggs we had for today's breakfast. Ellie and Michael left this morning after picking up fresh scones from the farmer's market. Kaili will be here until Canada Day on Monday.

I got this cool glass salmon at the market this morning.

Poultry Palace 1.01

Today we made more progress on Henrietta's home. I have attached a wheelbarrow tire on one end and a handle on the other. The tire is hinged so when not in use the pen sits flat on the ground. I will need to put better hinges on it, because it's a little flimsier than I would like.  We also covered the remainder of the roof with clear plastic panels, so if it does decide to rain again, she won't be in a quagmire. While we were doing that, she was in with the fruit trees doing weed and bug control.

Ron's health is continuing to improve slowly, though he's got mild anemia at the moment. I think his allergies are a bit kicked up too with the pollen and dust.

We have been able to enjoy lots of strawberries and peas from the garden recently.

The island is on "total shut down" due to dry conditions now. Which means no campfires, mowing, or chainsaws. Nylon string trimmers can only be used before 1pm each day. Fortunately, the chop saw, circular saw, and brad nailer are OK to use. I still need to get the floor finished and we have another "new to us" door to install.

Dog days already?

Last week Ron was finally relieved of the feeding tube! He has an unrestricted diet other than the amount he  can eat at one sitting. The pacemaker clinic checked him out and said his pacemaker barely had to pace after the surgery,  so she doesn't need to see him for a year.

Friday Ron stayed home with the dogs while I spent the afternoon in Nanaimo. When I returned home, he was having severe shoulder pain. We ended up taking him to Nanaimo Emergency to get it checked out.  After multiple tests, x-rays and a CT scan, we came home mid-day Saturday. He did have an elevated white blood cell count, but was otherwise fine and his pain resolved. We both laid low on Saturday and Sunday- for some reason I don't recover from all-nighters like I used to.

Kaili and a friend came over for lunch on Sunday. They really liked visiting with Henrietta. She's pretty settled in now and regularly provides us with eggs. Bruce and Jan were at Mum's for the weekend.

Monday, Mum, Lloyd, Ron, Bruce, Jan, and I all had Chinese food for lunch in Nanaimo. I don't think I have ever seen Mum eat so much before.

Today was the big visit with the thoracic surgeon in Victoria. He says Ron's white blood cell count is back in the normal range and everything looks good on the CT, so he will tele-conference with us in 3 months. We are so grateful to have the number of medical appointments diminishing so quickly. Now we just need to get the all clear from the hematologist so we can stop the daily injections.

Ron is still fatigued and I am more prone to an afternoon nap, just like the dogs and cats in this house.  The weather was quite warm in Nanaimo today and I think heat records are being broken. It seems to be a little more comfortable over on this side of Gabriola.

Thank you so much for your continued prayers and support.

Henrietta's poultry palace

This evening we welcomed Henrietta to Towhee Corner!  She's a good laying hen who's antisocial behaviour got her moved out of her former flock. Our friend and neighbor offered her to us last week. Since then, Ron and I have been busy building her a poultry palace. The plan is to move her digs around the yard every week or two.

We visited the cancer center last week and Ron was released from their care. He will continue to be followed by the thoracic surgeon for the foreseeable future, as there is always a risk of recurrence with this type of cancer.

The weather has been unseasonably warm so far this spring. We have been harvesting strawberries, rhubarb and greens. I expect blueberries, peas, and chard to be on our table soon.