Day 269 - Reunion!

Well today was a short day! I woke up at 1130 with a migraine. I went back to bed & slept until 1600. The headache was still there, but no where near as fierce. The phone rang & it was Sarah! She's getting married! Yay! Fantastic news!!! I can't wait to be there! Sarah is a friend from ships, who lives in Vancouver. She is super talented in so many areas of life! Wowser! I'm so happy for her! 


While I was talking to her, Jenn called & said she was just leaving the city. I no sooner carried on my call with Sarah, when Dieter & Jim pulled into the yard! Still in my pj's, I told Sarah I'd have to call her back in a bit, as I had company. While Dieter & Jim were there, Jenn & her cousin arrived. 


We had a mini-visit when her cousin had to leave. She was starting a new job tomorrow & needed to make some further arrangements before the big day. I decided to get dressed & we whipped into town for a few things. Once we were back home, we went for a little walk into the yard & caught up. 


Jenn & I worked on the Grand Princess back in 2006. We last saw each other ONE YEAR AGO TO THE DAY!!!! We were at Ross & Krystle's wedding in Vancouver. How funny is that?!? One year later! What a special day!


We made some dinner & looked at a pile of photos - I think I have her convinced to go to Africa! We had tea & chatted some more. Valentina showed off her tricks & charmed Jenn to no end! Before we knew it, it was 0200 & we had a busy day planned for tomorrow! 


I'm so happy to have this far away visitor all to myself for 2 whole days! It's like I've won the lottery! She told me she went to Stampede, but didn't get to go to the rodeo, so here's hoping she'll be back next year & we can fit that in to the schedule!!! 


Stay tuned for more excitement & adventure tomorrow! 
xxxx
Maria & Valentina

The Brat Pack from one year ago.

My Ship Sista!

The reason we all got together!

Day 267 - Hoedown.

Well, today the Stephans left for Ponoka. I was supposed to meet Dad for lunch, but a 'Personal Crisis' had him back in Saskatchewan. Good thing I didn't leave early! 


I left the house around 1300, got fuel in Bragg Creek & said goodbye to Dave, Collet & Ezra at the Husky. I headed for Cochrane to purchase my business license/register my business. Yes, I'm finally doing something! Don't hold your breath. It will be awhile in the making!! :o) I'll leave it at that! 


I had quite the chuckle at the Registry. Some Chinese fellow was doing something with his license. The gal behind the desk needed him to do an eye exam. He couldn't understand English. She asked him to read a line & he would spout off letters & letters & letters until she would interrupt him & tell him there were actually only 6 letters in the line! He couldn't figure out where to put his head, after she told him three times - on the bar in front of you... Oh dear, as funny as it was, how on Earth with this chap know how to read road signs & drive safely?!?! Not cool!!!


I stopped in at Jenn & Mike's for a quick chat - Jenn was sleeping, as was Harrison. As soon as Harrison woke up & saw me, he asked for Tina! Too cute! Jenn woke up a little later & we had a quick chat before I dashed off to the city. I stopped at Winners to return something & when I was there, the lady came up to me, looking all flustered & said, 'I just have to tell you, you look like you just walked out of Cosmo magazine!' Wow! That totally made my day! Heck, it made my week! Thanks Stranger!


I stopped at Stampede to see Mom's friend, Gena LaCoste, who had an exhibit in the Artist's Pavilion. I sat & talked with her for awhile & she told me her son was in the city on a brief break from Training. He's a soldier in Afghanistan. He was doing some hectic training in the wee hours of the morning on the Red Deer River. It sounded pretty crazy. But I think she was pretty excited to see her son, if only for a little while. He's away a lot. Gena is a VERY talented watercolour artist. You should check out her work! Wow!


I also stopped to see Shawna Whiteside again. We had another little chat about health & cancer & chemo. She offered some wonderful tips to make the journey that much easier... I'm grateful for people like her who have traveled down the path & come out smilin' & swingin'! 


I visited the South African/Canadian couple again - I'm excited to keep in touch with them... If you want to check out their stuff - Casa by Meg - it's pretty fun stuff & they also help local children back in SA... Even better!


Another long day, I was looking forward to my bed & a nice relaxing day tomorrow... No more stampeding for me... My feet are killing me & this Cosmo girl is headed straight to bed... Yee-Awn.


And I forgot to mention - I called this post 'Hoedown', as I wore a different pair of boots to Stampede today & I think I pulled a groin muscle. This Hoe is Down for the count. No more Stampede for this chick!!!


Maria & Valentina
xoxoxoxoxox

Gena's booth - showing off her artistic talents!

Day 263 - Git Yer Yee Haw On...

Giddy up! I was excited for today - Mom & I were meeting my cousin & heading off to the Stampede. My cousin, Jori, is a teacher in Roswell, New Mexico & I can't remember the last time I saw her! She has been on a 'Western Canadian' tour, visiting the relatives here, there & everywhere. I knew we were going to have a fun day when we pulled up in the Safeway parking lot & her car looked like a ghost car. It was a big ol' silver Lincoln with black tinted windows. The best part was her license plate - 740 PMS. Ha ha. And she didn't even have to pay for personalized plates. Too funny!


Just our luck, we decided to hit Stampede on a wonderful stormy day. Apparently the weather hasn't been too great so far & today was no exception. Lovely dark clouds, downpours & some brutal hail hit the city this afternoon. Luckily we didn't get the hail! 


We parked in the City of Calgary parking lot & thankfully we didn't get towed. Supposedly after 5 p.m. it is a STARS parking lot & you can donate money to help out STARS. Mom didn't know that. We thought it was a STARS parking lot all day! Luckily the car was still there at the end of the day!


We were late (of course) for the rodeo, but we ended up going anyhow. We managed to catch a fair bit of it. It was a great time! Flint Rasmussen was the rodeo clown & Jori went to University with him. She also knew a lot of the barrel racers. Jori also had the good fortune of being affiliated with the winning horse at the Kentucky Derby - Mine That Bird. It was a very exciting time for my Mom's side of the family. Jori's Mom races horses & our Grandpa had a love of racing horses all his life. It was pretty amazing that someone in our family was in the Winner's Circle!


Meanwhile, back at the ranch... er, rodeo... We were entertained to no end. Flint was hilarious, the barrel racing was intense - it was pretty soupy in the arena after all the rain, and the bull riding was really good too! Of course, the end of the rodeo brought us the wild pony race, which has teams of 3 kids. They give the kids the halter shank and then let the horse out of the chute. They have to get one kid on the horse & ride it for 'a while'. In all that mud, it was VERY entertaining!


After the rodeo, we wandered through the BMO Centre to look at all of the exhibits. I enjoyed looking around at all the interesting displays. I found a 'blingy' belt that called my name & also met a couple from Victoria that sell Springbok bags. The husband is from South Africa, so I enjoyed chatting with them about my beloved South Africa. :o) 


I also bumped into Shawna Whiteside. She is the creator & owner of Sweet Iron Silver & was busy making the belt buckles for the winners of Stampede. I was excited to see her, as she has just finished her quest in conquering breast cancer. I have seen various Facebook updates from Shawna & she has sailed through her treatments with grace, humour & of course, a little attitude! She was very encouraging & I was so glad I bumped into her. She is amazing & an inspiration like no one else! She still has a few rounds of chemo left to do, but she shared with me the events of her last week. She had reconstructive surgery on Friday. Her appendix burst on Monday. She was out of the hospital at noon on Tuesday & setting up her booth at 1430 the same day. Stampede means she has 14 hour days for 10 days straight! Can you say 'Trooper'!!!??? Wow! What a gal! What an inspiration!


I was exhausted after a full day of walking around. Anxious to get home, Mom & Jori actually beat me home! I had talked for so long to Shawna & the South Africans that I left later than planned! I was given a boost when I hopped on the shuttle bus to take me down Spiller Road & the gal across from me commented on my haircut & how well it suited me. *grin* It makes my day when someone comments on it, as it is a big change! I love it, but it's always nice to be reassured that someone else out there thinks it looks good too! 


When I arrived home, I was happy to see the Stephan's camping in the yard. Collet & Dave were in limbo between a family reunion & a wedding. I told them to come & visit rather than pay camping fees elsewhere. Collet was still up & we had a quick chat before we both crashed. I was pretty excited to see her. Her belly is big & beautiful!!! We're going to do some photos before they go. I can't wait!!! 


Okay. This cowgirl's done & dusted. It's time to hit the hay... G'nite y'all...
xxxxx
Maria & Valentina

Best plates ever!

The Greatest Outdoor Show On Earth!

Sorry Mom! You're on the fisheye film!

Checking out the heavy horse action!

The Bobsey Triplets!

**There were more photos, but I think I deleted them by accident. Smooth, I know.**