Day 365 - Hello Laura & Co!

This morning we were up early & outta the house by 1000. Well, maybe 1030. Sylvia & Drayton were taking us out for brunch before we left for Westlock. We drove all over the countryside on dirt roads, with Drayton as our guide. Sylvia was ahead of us, leaving a dusty trail to follow.  Suddenly we came to a small town with a big gas station & a really nice restaurant. We ordered our meals & Drayton entertained us throughout the entire process. I think he was still experiencing residual sugar effects! He wasn't wanting to finish up his breakfast or smile for a quick pic with Jaco & I. Then, when he finally did smile, he wouldn't stop hamming it up for the camera! What a guy!

We said our farewells & they left for home to meet Gary for lunch & we headed towards Athabasca & then south from there. We stopped at Extra Foods in Athabasca to pick up a few things - like oranges & water. As we were leaving the shop, this little fellow says to his mother, 'Mommy, that lady has no hairs on her head!' It was cute!

I didn't call Laura to let her know we were on our way. I was hoping to pull into the yard & surprise her. Of course, she was waiting for us in the house with the girls. The girls were quite shy at first, but certainly warmed up! They are so darn beautiful! Blonde & blue eyed with beautiful smiles!

We visited for the afternoon & the evening until nearly midnight! The girls took us outside for a bit to show us their bunny, Rainbow. Jaco went with Henk to the dairy barn to see how things are run. He was quite impressed & I can understand why. Henk is very passionate & progressive when it comes to his dairy business. In fact, I only noticed this visit all of his awards for running a top-notch operation. I know very little about the dairy industry (except that I like ice cream), but Henk is always informing me of some incredible technological advancement that I would have never dreamt possible - like a Milk Robot, for example.

Laura made a delicious chicken dinner. That girl amazes me. Three kids, a clean house, meals made, laundry done & she helps Henk in the barn. And she drives Brooklyn to school every morning at 0830. I am signing up for lessons. I was quite happy that Jaco was able to meet Henk & Laura. They told him a little more about Mexico & all the happenings down there to 'educate' him a little more on the 'other side' of things. Laura is in remission & doing very well. (AMEN!!) Not only that, but Henk & Laura are really wonderful people. I felt like I'd just been to see her a week ago, even though it has been 8 months! And of course, we could talk 'until the cows come home'. (Pun intended) I sure wish we lived closer!

Laura showed us this incredible book she put together of their family trip to San Diego last March. It was such a beautiful memoir of their first big trip together. What a lot of work, but well worth it! Laura is a very talented wedding photographer. She showed me some of the weddings she has shot, as well as some engagement photos. She finally went digital & is very excited about the editing process now vs. pre-digital! Yay for no more processing film!

We finally hit the hay around midnight. Tomorrow we were going to church with the family. My biggest decision for the day would be whether or not I would wear a wig or expose my henna tattoo... Was this church ready for a tattoo'd lady? We'll see...

xxxxMaria & Jaco

I knelt down to be on eye level with Drayton. Then he knelt down too! 

 Gotcha!

Hammin' it up! 

He likes Uncle Jaco! 

Yay for the Mom-to-be!!! (April 8th! April 8th!) 

Rainbow meets the rabbit mitten! 

Rainbow - the newest addition to the family!

Day 364 - Hello Sylvia!

Another failed attempt to get away early. I decided to pick up a few things for the kids along the way. 3 hours later, we're finally leaving Edmonton for Boyle. Sylvia lives in the boonies, but it's beautiful & quiet & she loves it. I'm happy for her! The girl's dreams have all come true! She is due in April & had a Doctor's appointment this afternoon, so thankfully we were late & it all worked out fine!

I had picked up some cupcake tins in the shape of ghosts for Halloween & thought that we (Drayton) could make cupcakes tonight. We had a blast! Sylvia told me he loved to help out, so I let him. When there was chocolate cupcake batter flying everywhere (yes, everywhere - even on my sock, the icing sugar bag, the table, the floor & even some in the tin!) she told me, 'Oh, you let him do that? I don't usually let him!' Now she tells me! We had fun, despite the mess. Isn't that half the fun anyhow? I picked up a little zombie that 'poops' candy as he walks. That was a big hit. Drayton enjoyed playing with him for the evening. That is, until we put Jelly Belly beans in the zombie & they got stuck. Luckily the Doctor was on had to give the zombie a colonoscopy & save the day!

Jaco & Drayton got along great. Drayton had a blast playing with Jaco. In fact, the first thing he showed us upon our arrival was the soccer ball he & Jaco had played with on the C-train in August. Unfortunately Chocolate, the Labrador Retriever, had gotten ahold of the ball & gnawed a patch off the side of the ball. Speaking of Chocolate, he was quite the welcomer! Both he & Jake, the other Lab, ran out to the car, barking away. I got out & Chocolate jumped up to greet me. When I told him to get down, he hopped right onto the driver's seat! I shut the door behind him, only to hear Jaco holler through the closed door, 'Babe! What are you doing?!'

After Drayton was sound asleep & full of sugar, we moved the living room & kitchen to the spareroom. Gary & Sylvia were having some work done on the roof & the carpenters were coming at 0900 tomorrow to tear half the ceiling down. We had to have the place cleared out before then. Even the light fixtures! I'm an expert mover with my recent practice, so it was no big deal. (just not the light fixtures!)

What a great night! We had a wonderful visit with Mom-to-be & when our eyelids couldn't stay open anymore, we hit the hay. Thanks for a brilliant night!

xxxxMaria & Jaco

 Pretty excited! Well, at least Drayton is!

 Nearly finished!

 Looking good!

 Finishing touches...

Now, for half a tube of icing... 

 And voilá!

Sorry, just tilt your head on this one! Colonoscopy Zombie in the middle. Funny - he had the same expression all throughout the procedure. Maybe they're not that bad after all?

Day 295 - Soccer on the C-Train & Walking With The Dinosaurs

Wow. What a great day! We were up early (for me) & off to town by 0900. We met Sylvia & Drayton at the south end of the city & took the C-Train to the Saddledome. 


Sylvia is a long time friend from my Wrangler days at Three Bars Ranch in Cranbrook, BC. Her little guy, Drayton, is 4 1/2 & shares his birthday with my brother. Drayton is all boy, but has a heart of gold. He's got a very special place in my heart! I mean, how could he not with those blue eyes & gorgeous blond curls, but in any case, he's got the manners & personality to make anyone's heart melt! 


Last summer when Sylvia & Drayton visited, we went to the Calgary Zoo. It was a fun trip. I was still juicing then & Drayton helped Aunty Jill make her juice for the day. We also did a photo shoot on the old truck in the yard. When I visited the family in February, Drayton didn't remember going to the zoo with Aunty Jill. I was devastated! He didn't remember the fun times we had at the zoo??? That's it. We've got to do something AWESOME this time, so he'll surely remember! :o)


Mom2 suggested the Dinosaurs show that was playing at the Saddledome. Perfect! What little guy doesn't think dinosaurs are cool!? So I phoned Mom (Sylvia, not mine) & asked permission to go. Mom said she'd check it out & let me know. The next day she called back & said Drayton was already excited. Perfect! I thought we could take the C-Train from Shawnessy, as Drayton has never been on the train before. 


We pull into the parking lot & I can see Drayton & Sylvia sitting on a bench waiting patiently for us. I wave at Drayton & he recognized me right away! We bought our tickets & hopped on the C-Train that was waiting for us. We found a row of benches facing each other. I gave Drayton the soccer ball I'd picked up for him & the 'Thank You' card for the lovely care package he & Mom had so thoughtfully sent to me awhile back. Drayton was tickled pink (that's for you Gary!) with the ball. Him & Jaco tossed the ball back & forth for the entire train ride. It went off without a hitch until 2 old biddies sat down beside us - one on either bench. At one point the ball rolled towards the one biddy's foot. Drayton grabbed the ball & I apologized. The biddy quipped, 'Really, soccer on the train? It's a bit ridiculous.' I quipped, 'Well, we only see them once a year & it was my gift to him.' She quipped back. I quipped back & played the Cancer Card. That was the end of the quipping. Thankfully our ride too! 


Whoops! We got off one stop too soon & poor Drayton had to trot the entire way to keep up with the adults. We made it to the show just in the nick of time! He LOVED it. He was enthralled the entire time! Of course, T-Rex was last & that was the best part! 


It was actually a very interesting show. Amazing creatures, those dinosaurs! The dinosaurs looked very 'real' & the effects were quite good! It was a nice trip down memory lane, as I haven't studied much about the dinosaurs since I was in elementary school! We only bought the cheap seats, so we couldn't see everything on the screens, but I don't think the luxury seats would have been worth the extra $20-50. 


We played soccer on the way back in the C-Train again, without any biddy mishaps, and then it was time to say goodbye... I sure wish they lived closer! **Sniff, sniff** They were off to a birthday party & we had to stop a few places too. 


Our first stop was Community Natural Foods. And apparently our last stop too. I don't know what happened, but as soon as we arrived, my energy went right out the door. It was all I could do to pick up what I needed, leave the baby gift for Zoe, wait for Jaco & drive home. I went straight to bed & slept for 2 hours. I didn't feel much better by the time I woke up & I'm happy to say I'm finally off to sleep now. Mom bbq'd some portobello mushrooms for dinner & that's it... I'm done... 


Jaco is sleeping peacefully beside me - no snoring yet. Although he did just kick Adios off the bed, even if he was asleep, but I've never heard my cat 'thud' quite like that before. It must not have hurt that bad, as Adios is already back on the bed. Poor Valentina. Her nose is still out of joint that she can't sleep in the bed anymore.


Anyhow... Lekker slaap...
xxxxxxx
Maria, Jaco, & Valentina

Drayton enjoys his new soccer ball on the C-Train

It's a nail biting, straight ahead staring, hot dog eating kind of event! 

Don't ask me anything about the dinosaurs. It was cool.

Enjoying the show. Full stop. 

Drayton gives me a T-Rex RRRRRAWR!!! 

Some flying bird with fur.

Fast moving carnivores 

Is it Taurosaurus? The ripped off Triceratops? 

Taurosaurus. Was he born in May?

I forget this one's name, but he was pretty cool. Small brained, but cool.

Couple o' dinos. 

Digging in steaming poo for dung beetles. 

RRRRAWR! It's T-Rex!!!

Drayton is pretty pumped about T-Rex! 

Mama T-Rex chases off the other 2 dinos to save her baby. Reminds me of the 'Dingo Ate My Baby' story... 

A little T-Rex affection. 

All smiles! 

Cool teeth!

This sign was made for Jaco! 

Some kids new favourite outfit. I liked the tail. 

Drayton & Uncle Jaco try on the T-Rex heads. 

Jaco, Yahoo, & Drayton 

We sport the T-Rex heads... 

Drayton & Mom try on the heads... 

Playing soccer on the C-train (without the biddies!)

Ready!

Got it!

Smiles! 

Silly faces! 

More silliness! 

So happy to see you!!!