almost laughable...

It all began last summer...at a family reunion in a little village some thirty miles away.  We discovered an old-fashioned general store...with an amazing candy supply. 

The grands were promised they could visit the store when the reunion ended...only to discover the little store was closed on Sundays...and it was Sunday.  And so we made plans to return to the village at the end of summer...and they could pick out candy to their heart's content.

On a hot Monday in August...we returned...making the trip in three vehicles in order to have the required car seats.  CLOSED on Mondays!  We picked up the pieces and went for ice-cream instead.  But they never forgot about the candy store...and wondered when we would go again.

So...in the dead of winter...on a Saturday in January...we made the trek once again...only to find they were closed for 'winter vacation'.  The consolation prize?  Donuts all around!

The oldest grand-girlies are quite taken with candy stores...and actually have a little candy store side-business of their own...and so their plans to see the amazing candy store in the little village were not easily abandoned.  We decided we would make plans once more to visit the village of Clayburn on Saturday...Grammy, six grands and their mommies...in three vehicles.  And since it was lunchtime...we thought it would be wise to stop for a bite to eat before arriving at the candy store.  There's an wonderful new farm market just a few miles from the little village...and so we stopped there for a quick lunch. 

  

Freshly baked scones, muffins and cinnamon buns...homemade soup or deli sandwiches...it hit the spot.  We were a noisy bunch...and they were likely ready to usher us on by the time we took our leave!

Finally...we were actually on our way to the candy store.  Emme and Ryder hopped in my car for the last little leg of the journey...and Emme asked me if I had called ahead to make sure they were open.  I had not...but knew they were open on Saturdays.  She had her doubts...since she had faced disappointment too many times.  I said, "Emme, if they are closed this time, I will eat my shirt."

As we neared the store I noticed there were no cars...

 

...and we slowly drove by and saw a small 'closed' sign in the window.  There were a few unhappy sounds in the car...and then Emme began to laugh...as she reminded me that I would now be 'eating my shirt'.  Oh dear...did I really say that?  There was a little note on the door...explaining the unexplained closure on a Saturday.  They are closed for 'rejuvenation' this time...and it seems they will need several weeks to get rejuvenated over there.

Should we laugh or cry?  Could this really have happened again?  There's always a back-up plan...since to go straight home would never do!

We happen to have our own old-fashioned candy store in our town...just minutes from home...and so we decided we would return to our hometown and visit our own candy store.  Why did we not think of this in the first place?

They had the fun picking out their penny candy...

...and putting their own coins on the counter...

...and exploring the rest of the store with a shopping cart at the ready...should they find a deal too good to pass up. 

 

We have an amazing candy store right in our own backyard...why do we go elsewhere?  I think the message is clear...we should be shopping at home.

I'm still trying to figure out how to keep my promise...to eat my shirt.  It was a very big shirt!  

Have a happy Monday...

down on the farm...

Yesterday was the day...whatever the weather! 

Ryder brought his pre-school class out to the farm for a tour...

and a hayride, of course!

They came...with their moms in tow...

...who somehow knew that boots would be a good thing!

This momma had her timing just right...

and delivered her baby just in time for all the 'oooohing and ahhhing'!

The little farmhands all had a chance to pet the calves...

...and feed the cows.

How many boys can one tractor cab hold?

They decided they would find out.

Farmer Jeremy (Ryder's daddy) gave them a tour..

explaining how and where the cows are milked

...twice each and every day.

And no...chocolate milk does not come from brown cows!

The boys were most interested in opening and closing gates...

...and using the fire hose to wash down the milking parlour.

Ryder was thrilled to have all his pre-school buddies come visit his farm...

...and I'm sure he'll be asking why he can't host hayrides more often!

Have a great weekend...

pieces of history...

The quilt tells a story...a snapshot of a time that was!  The year was 1995...and our church was celebrating it's 50th anniversary.  We decided a commemorative quilt might be just the thing to remember the occasion by.  I was part of the organizational committee...and we gave packages of fabric scraps to 50 church families...assigning them each to create a square that would have some significance to their family.  Once the squares were all completed...'the quilting ladies' got to work and pieced it all together.  (We have a group of women who meet weekly to quilt.  They provide hundreds of blankets to MCC every year.) It was a wonderful work of art... 

...and hung on a wall in the church sanctuary for some time as a reminder of God's goodness to us as a church family over a period of fifty years.   After a time...it was removed...and I had no idea what might have happened to that quilt.  One day I just happened by the church...and saw the quilt lying on the floor in the corner of a room.  I decided then and there that it was coming home with me for safe-keeping...and so it did!  For several years it has been wrapped and relegated to a storage closet.  I pulled it out the other day...and took a closer look at our little piece of history...and the story it tells. There were 50 squares...and of those families represented...only twenty are still at our church.  We live in a transient society...where no one stays put for any length of time...it seems. 

I so enjoyed looking at the individual squares once more...and the stories they each tell.
 
A.  Does this look like it was done by a school teacher? 
B. They were dairy farming in our area...and now milk cows in Manitoba.
C. I love this quilt block...completed by a gal who is in the legal profession. 
D. "As for me and my house...we will serve the Lord".  The motto of a family where the sons are now grown and serving the Lord.
E. When they weren't around...we knew John and Molly were in Arizona.
F. He was the church drummer at one time...and moved with his family to Alberta.
G. He was the pastor...she played piano...and they now live in the eastern USA.
H. They grew fresh fruits, vegetables and hedging cedars.
I. This quilt block was completed by Frieda...who loved  flowers and gardens...and is one of our 'quilting ladies'.

Those are just a few stories of the many I could share.  The blanket was made fifteen years ago....the stories remain...though many of the people have moved on.  I pulled it out for a reason.  Our church is now sixty-five years old...and has been an important part of our lives.  Both my husband and I have called it our church home for most of our lives.  It is where we were baptized and married...and where are children were baptized.  It's where we learned to sing...in choirs and groups...and where we formed rich friendships that have stood the test of time.  We found love and comfort through the church family when we went through difficult times.  Our church has meant much to us over the years...and so I thought a sixty-fifth anniversary was a good excuse to remember...and be thankful!

Oh...and if anyone is wondering what ever happened to the anniversary quilt..now you know.  I'm quite willing to share it though. 

man's best friend...

I like dogs...actually.

 

We no longer have one we call our very own...

although we like to think we have a little share in Bentley...

the farmyard dog.

Growing up on a farm...we always had a dog...or two.

Over the years we have had black labs...

dachshunds...

German Shepherds...

and an Alaskan Malamute.

I'm not so fond of dogs in places of business though...

especially in the beauty industry.

I shared not long ago how I left my long-time hair stylist...

because of her Jack Russell Terrier.

So let me introduce you to my latest doggy friend.

She comes with a name...which escapes me at the moment.

With summer around the corner...

and sandals replacing the socks and shoes to which I have become accustomed...

I thought I would visit my pedicurist...

who has a shop in her home.

I visited her for the first time on a recommendation a year or two ago.

What a surprise when I discovered that we had met previously about a dozen years ago...

just after her arrival in Canada.

 

I was taking an ESL tutor course...

and she was in the class where I did my practicum.

Since that time...she has had a family...

and set up a nice in-home business.

Though it is impossible to make a silk purse out of a sows ear...

she does a fine job of making happy feet.

While my feet soaked...she left the room.

She left...and her pooch arrived to keep me company.

When I discouraged him from settling on my lap...

...he did a thorough search of my purse....

...and then settled on the chair nearby to keep an eye on me.

And there he stayed...

until she returned and shooed him from the room.

Good thing...

because I really don't care to have doggy company in the pedicure salon.

And I would like to return...

before too long.

Yesterday I visited my dentist...

and half-expected that he too may have a dog in his office.

Thankfully...there was no dog in sight.

It was painless...except for the bill...

and almost spa-like.

Unless it's a farm or a junk-yard...

I still maintain that man's best friend does not belong at the workplace.

Enjoy the day...

season's pass in hand....

When you live within striking distance of a world class show garden...

a season's pass makes sense. 

As of Sunday...I have mine in hand. 

Never mind that two months of blooms have come and gone...

I plan to make up for lost time missed visits.

There's nothing like a Sunday afternoon stroll...along the winding paths...

while the water tumbles over the rocks nearby.

Boxwood art...why not?

I always come home inspired to garden.

It's high season for the rhodo's right now...

...and they know how to grow them to amazing heights!

Look up...thirty feet up!

When I think of Victoria Day in British Columbia...I think rhododendrons. 

And while I was looking up...

I noticed that it's not just the flowers that paint a lovely picture.

Check out the leaves!

Poppies...

...B.C. dogwood

...and the resident peacock waiting to show it's true colours.

I have my walking pass...

and I'll be back...

often.

flavours and scents...

It's a long weekend in our part of the world.

 

What that means for many...is that the car hits the road...

sometimes long before the weekend arrives.

 

It's a good time to visit new places...or check in on old friends. 

As for us...we always stay home on the holiday weekend in May.  

If the weather is nice...there is farm work to be done.

And so we have not strayed far from home...

and yet we have experienced the culinary delights of many countries.

On Friday night we joined friends for a taste of Thailand...

at our local Thai restaurant.

Saturday the grands came for a sleepover...

and we had Mexican cuisine.

Sunday it was German pancakes for breakfast...

and California clubs for lunch...

and back to Mexico for supper.

There is corn to planted today...if the rain holds off.

It's a Canadian holiday...Victoria Day...

and so I think we'll celebrate that by eating Canadian food for a change. 

I wonder what that will be?

Oh...and the lovely aroma is from Korea.

Miss Kim lilacs...a treat on a holiday or any day!

Enjoy your holiday Monday...

a whistler get-away...

Whistler.

They came...they cheered...and they left.

Now it was our turn.

Though I called it a business trip...it was really nothing of the sort.

I was part of a group of farm women that spent a few days in Whistler...

a get-away planned and sponsored by our feed company.

 At this time of the year...things are quite quiet on the village stroll.

Across the creek is a memorial to Nomar Kumaritashvili...
the Georgian athlete who lost his life on the opening day of the 2012 winter games.

The official Olympic store stood vacant...

...and Olympic gear was selling at a discount everywhere.

 

Boarders, skiers and bikers were coming and going....


...or just plain sitting!

Though the weather forecast was mostly about gloom and doom...
the sun came out shortly after our arrival...
and Marg and I went for a hike around Lost Lake.


We met this happy camper...
holding up his trophy catch of the day...

...while nearby his rods were waiting to fool another fish or two.

We were back from our afternoon adventure just in time to join the rest of the group on a 'taste-testing tour'......where we experienced four of Whistler's best restaurants in one evening.

Our first stop was the Bearfoot Bistro...where we were taken to the wine cellar and taught the history of champagne sabering. 

Napoleon's men knew how to remove the top and cork off a bottle with their swords...now I do as well. That is one skill I don't think I will ever be practicing!

Home to more than 20,000 bottles of wine...they also have trophy wines from around the world...
some valued at more than $20,000 each. 

Is that really possible? 
You can tell I know little about wines!

We followed our host from one fabulous restaurant to another...
enjoying delicious and interesting culinary creations at each place.

Appetizer...Cajun crusted blackened ahi tuna at Hy's Steakhouse.
Main course...Veal Scallopine served with signature pasta at Quattro.
Dessert...Phyllo wrapped cheesecake with cherries at the Mountain Club.

We walked through the village and back to our hotel in the light of the moon...
or was that the glow of the street lamp?

It was a wonderful outing...to a beautiful little spot in our corner of the world...

together with a fun group of women. 

Wherever the tour may be going next year...count me in!