Day 301 - Shermanators In The Elbow & Oh Baby(s)!!!!

It was a quick zip over to the mechanics to pick up the car & then to the grocery store... We were having company in a few short hours & we were supposed to be having a picnic! As my timing would have it, we arrived home, only to have our company call - they were 3 minutes away! Oh dear! Panic! Thankfully they were patient enough to wait while we finished getting lunch ready.


Kerry & Shawn, Alina & Mason were coming for a visit today. They have an Aunt & Uncle in Calgary & would visit them after our time together. Doing the traditional 'Tour', we headed down to Elbow Falls & of course, as luck would have it, the weather turned cold as we drove up. That didn't stop Mason! He ran around & raced Alina up & down the paths. Kerry, Shawn, Jaco & I enjoyed more lunch while the kids burnt up energy! We walked the path around the falls & I managed to find a few raspberry patches to share a few bites with the kids. 


After our visit at Elbow Falls, we headed for Forget-Me-Not Pond. We strayed off course to the river & Alina & Mason had a blast hopping over rocks & trying (somewhat successfully) to stay dry. We picked a few wild strawberries along our way & they were deeee-lish!


Naturally, the Tour ends at the Scoops & Snacks for ice cream. Everyone enjoyed a big dip of the good stuff before the Shermans were on their way...


When we returned to the house, I discovered that Collet had her baby! A boy! We were supposed to visit for the birth, but the newest Stephan wasn't going to wait any longer in there! He made his entry swift & there would not have been time for us to get there! Mom was exhausted, but tickled pink with her newest son. 


After my chat with her, Jaco & I skyped with Ross & Krystle & Baby Dash... Awwwh!!! What a cutie pie! I'm excited for all of them! But yeesh, I'm going to have to watch what I eat/drink, all these babies... only means trouble!!! Valentina is enough for now!


Lekker slaap
xxxxx
Maria, Jaco & Valentina 

Elbow Falls!

The Shermans

The Happy Couple

Great to see you!!!

Mason burns off some energy!

Alina strikes a pose

The boys talk shop

Our little monkey for the day!

Mason chases Shawn

Throwing rocks in the river

Mason walks on the water

Blowin' in the wind

Flower feathers

Yum yum on the ice cream cones!

Day 287 - Jenn To The Rescue!

What was supposed to be a quiet weekend has now turned into a chaotic one! After my late night of computer biz, I suddenly found myself with the following schedule:

1. Triathlon kit pick-up with Jenn & Wal-mart for Rubbermaid bins this afternoon
2. Miss Foxy Bron visits tomorrow afternoon
3. Visit Janis, Dustin & Caleb in K-Country tomorrow evening
4. Photograph Jenn's 1st Triathlon on Sunday morning

Oh dear! That didn't take long! In a matter of an hour I had the entire weekend fill up! I think the start of the week will be busy as well - I've got to make room in the room for Jaco! I can barely fit myself in here, let alone him too! Yikes! Plus, I'm hoping to meet with Al & Wilma & Sylvia will also be in town! 

I called Krystle today. She's due tomorrow. She said she's no where near ready to have the baby. We were both comforting each other about not doing much & not feeling guilty for it. Just taking the time needed to rest & listen to our bodies. I joked & said the only difference is that she wants her baby to grow & keep him. I want my 'baby' to perish & disappear!!!! I'm so excited for her & Ross! I can't wait to meet Baby Brown! 

I visited Joe & Duane at EVIC for a few minutes today. The phones were busy, so I didn't stay long! Shauna was busy on her fam trip, so perhaps I'll see her over the weekend or on Monday.

Valentina & Oceana were quite excited to have their 'off leash' time on the way back from EVIC. Valentina gets to play fetch & my 'pitching' arm is getting better, although I missed Oceana by a few hairs the one throw! Whoopsie! 

Jenn arrived at the house moments after I'd walked in. We were off to the city to pick up her goodies for her 1st Triathlon. I'm so excited for her!!! I am even more excited that she asked me to take some photos of her big day! I can't wait to snap away!!! Her 'team' colour is orange, so the entire family is decking out in orange on Sunday. I found some BRIGHT orange poster paper at Wal-Mart this evening, so tomorrow I'll make a few signs, much to her dismay! :o) I'm so proud of her! What an accomplishment this will be! 

We went to Market Mall for a bite to eat & while we were eating (the mall had just closed) along past our window whizzes the Mall Zamboni driver! It was so funny to see! I'd never seen one before & the driver was clearly enjoying himself. Jenn & I had quite a chuckle about how cool his job was!

Due to a change in their life situation, the Burnett's will be heading to Jenn's parents place for awhile. I'm happy their life is (finally) taking a long overdue upswing, but I am so sad they are going to be moving further away. I have so thoroughly enjoyed having her close by & someone I can hop over to visit in 20 minutes or less! I haven't had that for a VERY long time! I will miss her & her beautiful family so much! **Sniff, sniff**

On that note, I'm going to call it a night... It's late already & the weekend is a busy one! Enjoy your weekend & I hope the weather is stunning, wherever you are!

xxxxx

Maria & Valentina

Long line of Triathlete's!

How useful do you think this speed limit sign is when it's stuck next to a building & in a parking lot?

Whee! Zamboni Man zips along!

He was definitely doing doughnuts around the Kernels Popcorn kiosk!

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 218 - Downtown with the Browns!

I've decided 5.5 hrs of sleep isn't near enough! After being rear ended & driving home in a blinding slush/snow storm at 1/2 the speed limit, having to wake up at 0600 is just not my idea of a rockin' good time.


Nonetheless, I haul my butt outta bed & get everything packed up. I was off to the coast to see Jaco for a mere 4 days. Our last chance to see each other before I'm deep in the throngs of chemotherapy. Yay. Thankfully WestJet had a seat sale, otherwise it was a no go! 


I was quite upset, as when I arrived home, I hadn't felt well & my neck was HUGE. I had decided to cancel my trip to San Francisco to see Jaco & Ami & her family. I was very bummed about having to do this. I had also dashed any hopes of flying to the coast to see Jaco the following week. By the time I had spent enough time at home, resting & getting on track with me supplements, my neck had gone down a lot & softened up. However, my flight to California would have been, gulp, $1000!!! I was shattered. I managed to talk to Ami a few times & there is a glimmer of hope that I can still see her in September when she's back for her best friend's wedding. FINGERS CROSSED!!!


So, with Westjet on my side, I booked a record low flight to Vancouver & back from Victoria. I think it was $270 return. (!!!) Mom took me to the airport for 0745 & as luck would have it, my flight was delayed by an hour. I called Krystle & let her know not to dash off for the airport anytime soon! When I landed in Vancouver, OH MY GOSH!!!! I was so excited to see her! She is due with Baby Boy Brown in August & she has the most beautiful belly & is the most beautiful pregnant Mama I've ever seen! Krystle & Ross were colleagues from ships, but since we've left ships, our friendships have grown & I'm so grateful for them both! 


Krystle took me to a place where she gets her eyebrows threaded. I had previously heard of it, but never had it done. I'm VERY particular about my eyebrows & generally only go to the same girl at Merle Norman to have them waxed. When Krystle told me it was only $5 & I'd most likely be losing them during chemo, I thought, why not? It was so cool! It didn't hurt a bit & the lady was so fast! At first I didn't recognize myself - debushing accomplished - but the more & more I looked at them, I realized I finally had beautiful eyebrows! Yay! I'm hooked! Now I just need to find a place in Calgary!


Our next stop was her Mom's house. Krystle has the most wonderful mother. She is an amazing woman, with so many talents! She sewed ALL of the bridesmaid dresses for Krystle's wedding & each one was a different style. She's the kind of person you feel like you've known forever & you're completely comfortable being around them... We didn't stay at the house for long, as we were off to IHOP for lunch. We were meeting Krystle's sister, Mikita, & her niece, Camilah, there. Mikita is due two months after Krystle & she is also having a boy! They will be like brothers! I couldn't believe how much Camilah has grown! She has the cutest little smile & listening to her talk made me smile... Her high pitched little 'Hey!' Melt my heart!


We strolled through the mall close to Krystle & Ross' place & visited Krystle's aunt for a moment. We headed back to Margarita's house & we enjoyed a cup of tea & cookies, while having some chats about this & that. Before we knew it, it was 5 o'clock! Krystle & I headed to Metrotown for a little shopping - Krystle knows all of my weaknesses! But she also finds me the BEST deals! I found a necklace with an old family seal on it. It's a dagger with French writing around it. Translated it means, 'Courage without fear'. I figured that was definitive of my months to come. It will be the first necklace I will wear regularly in over 2 years! I can't wait to have a 'normal' neck again!


We headed home to their new condo. Ross came down & met us at the car. Oooooh! So excited to see the Proud Papa!!! Their new pad is gorgeous!!! I'm so excited for them! They showed me the baby's room, the BBQ patio, Krystle's ever-creative decorating touches, and WOW! The stunning canvas from their PERFECT wedding day! Krystle, again, creative, put together a beautiful wedding album of all their favourite moments from the day. She did an amazing job! I wish you could see a digital copy of it! You can check out her photography here: http://www.krystleimages.com 


We watched an episode of GLEE & the Big Bang Theory. I think I'm a closet nerd, because I really loved the Big Bang Theory! I laughed out loud! I was very impressed with Ross' setup. He had the TV connected to the computer so Krystle & I watched GLEE while he monitored his other downloads! Nice! Oh & we enjoyed a loaded baked potato during our feature presentation! :o)


Pretty soon it was bed time... They made the couch into the craziest sofa bed ever! I was so tired from a full day of adventure! It didn't take long before I was out for the count. 


Lekker slaap!
Maria & Valentina
xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Light packing!

Eyebrow threading

What a gorgeous little girl!

She's a heart breaker!

Chillin' at the Pad!

Krystle's crazy talents!