Day 346 - Fiesta With The Marbles

Today we ventured out! We made arrangements to meet Scott & Shauna in Turner Valley this evening to go for dinner. Scott had found a new Mexican restaurant in Okotoks called Taco Del Mar. 


We arrived in Okotoks shortly after 1800 & as we entered Taco Del Mar, we were greeted with the melodies of latino music, the infectious beats making your hips want to pop back & forth. 


It took us awhile to order - everything looked good on the menu! Eventually we had our dishes & we sat at a little table in the back. We enjoyed great food & great conversation. We stayed for a few hours & then headed back to Turner Valley. 


We stopped at the Hi Ho Esso for Haagen Daas ice cream & then went to Scott & Shauna's for dessert & some more visiting. 


Shauna is the most passionate hiker I know & she has recently taken a strong interest in photography, so I was quite excited to see her book of photos from this summer's hikes. She has seen some spectacular parts of the Rockies! Wow! Just so you know HOW serious she is, she has taken several Search & Rescue courses, assisted as an Instructor on a very elite Search & Rescue course, guided for the University of Calgary, as well as lectured. Yeah, she's not JUST a hiker. She's intense. You go girl! 


Scott, her husband, works for YWAM & also has an interest in photography. Naturally we chatted about cameras, lenses, lighting & all sorts of exciting goodies. He showed me a program for editing photos that was quite interesting - Apple's Aperture. 


Of course, our next topic was humor. Scott & Shauna had told us about some interesting videos on YouTube. The Double Rainbow song & the original video, literal videos, and some cute, but silly videos of animals... I think there are endless things to view on YouTube! 


Anyhow, we had a great time with Scott & Shauna & it was fantastic to get out of the house & spend time with great friends! Thanks for a fantastic evening!


xxxxMJV&O

 Shauna was pretty excited about her burrito. I can totally understand. 

The food was wicked!

Great atmosphere!

Day 142 - Cora's, Sylvia's, Collet's & Peggy's

Up & at it early this a.m.! I was off to Okotoks to meet Sylvia for breakfast at Cora's. Neither of us had ever been there, so we were excited to discover it! I had been told it was quite healthy, so I was especially looking forward to that!


I left a little late, as usual, and when I started the car, the fuel gauge read 1/4 tank. More than enough to get to Okotoks, where the fuel was always cheaper. Well, didn't I just know it. I wasn't even half way there & the low fuel light was already on! Grrr! I'd taken the back way, so I had to try & get to Millarville for fuel. I didn't even know if Millarville had fuel, but I was sure hoping they did! 


Yeah. They did. For 99 cents a litre!!! Argh! I put $10 in & boogied on over to Okotoks. Fuel was 88.9. Ouch. Oh well! Live & learn!


Sylvia met me in the busy little diner & we had quite a time perusing the menu! Wow! Everything sounded good! And pretty much every dish served came with a side dish/garnish/art creation of fruit! What a great way to spice up breakfast & make it that much healthier! 


We enjoyed a wonderful chat & she informed me that her brother had just given Drayton, her son, a puppy for his birthday! Drayton was very excited, but Mommy & Daddy weren't quite as happy, seeing as her brother & his wife hadn't cleared it with Mommy & Daddy first! Whoops! They weren't sure if they were going to take it or not...


I said farewell to Sylvia after I stopped by to see Drayton, Gary & the new puppy... Sure is cute! An 8 month old toy Yorkie! He was the boss! He had Valentina pinned several times!


I filled up with cheap(er) fuel, washed Contemplate - Valentina didn't know what was happening - and then hit the road to Brooks.


I took a 'scenic' route which incidentally led past my brother's place. I texted to see if he was up for a visit, but there wasn't a reply. He's headed to SK for the summer, so it would have been nice to have stopped in & seen him in action! 


I made good time to Peggy & Chris'. Collet was there waiting for me with Ezra. Oh boy. It was a busy household! Peggy was babysitting 2 other kids, 2 & 6, along with Ezra. Adding in the excitement of a puppy & it got pretty crazy! But everyone was having a good time, Valentina included!


Chris & Peggy don't have any pets, so I was very grateful they allowed Valentina inside the house. I put a diaper on her (Valentina, not Peggy) just to err on the side of caution. Luckily, no accidents! We enjoyed Peggy's famous chicken for dinner & had a great chat about this, that & everything in between. Before we went to bed, Peggy showed us her routine. She is a very talented bellydancer & I was so excited to see her perform tomorrow! 


When she finished her dance, I realized that the clocks were moving an hour forward & I had instantly lost an hour of sleep on an already late night, leading into an early morning! It was off to bed! 


Goodnight & here's to a day of rhythm & entertainment!
Maria & Valentina
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Sylvia at Cora's

Okay, so they make this crepe/panini with banana, peanut butter & bacon. Yup. The bacon is in the crepe with the peanut butter & bacon. Eew?

Drayton's puppy, Pitou, & Valentina - she looks like a giant next to Pitou!

Going through the carwash - she was a little nervous!

Collet setting Ezra up on the jiggle machine!

Clearly Ezra enjoys it!!! What a cutie!