February...come and gone

February 2014 began like spring...

and then brought a dose of winter mid-month...
and a big dump of snow several days ago. 

And just to round things off...

we are ending the month with a bit of summer.

In our favorite oasis...

...Palm Springs.

A few of the month's highlights included...

...a violin recital by our granddaughter, Ranen.

We also spent some time together working on 'sharpie plates'...

Valentine's projects.

Mennonite Girls Can Cook have helped raise funds for the kitchen at Matthew's House...

and were invited to come for a tour.

Matthew's House is a respite home given to caring for children

who live with serious healthcare issues.

  Here they can be left in a safe place,
while parents can get some much needed rest.

What a privilege for us to have even a little part in this project.

Prior to our tour of the new facilites...

we met together at Lovella's for a wonderful time around her table...

and fabulous food.

Of course!

And then there was Valentine's Day.

The grands all came for a party...

and we had a chocolate fondue this year.

Ryder had a whole plate of bacon to go with it...

just because it was Valentine's Day.

And apparently bacon is his favorite food!

And of course we spent a fair bit of time in Sochi this month...
figuratively speaking!

Among my favorite moments...
seeing the Dufour-Lapointe sisters take gold and silver medals for Canada in mogul skiing.

And...

...the Canadian women's hockey team defeating team USA in overtime to take gold.
And for the grand finale...
we awoke at 4 am on Sunday morning to watch the final men's hockey game...
and see the Canadian guys take the gold medal there.

Our athletes represented us well...
at the winter games of 2014 in Sochi!

And that was February in a glance...
and update sent from another 'front porch'.

Thank-you all for your continued visits and comments.

Enjoy the month of March, my friends!

 

a few national treasures...

The Canadian Tenors are on a North American tour...

and had several concerts on the west coast this past week.

Though they are officially known as The Tenors now...

having dropped 'Canadian' from their title...

they are 100 percent Canadian and great ambassadors for our country in the musical arena.

We took in a concert on the weekend...

and were so glad we did!

They have performed for the Queen...

been on Oprah...

toured with David Foster...

and performed at the Emmy Awards.

If they are coming to your neighbourhood anytime soon...

go hear them in concert.

You won't be sorry!

My favorite tune?

Hallelujah!

And on another front...

(photo courtesy Special Olympics facebook page)

...here's a group of Canadian guys that did us proud in Korea this week.

The Canada West Floor Hockey Team

won gold at the Special Olympics in Seoul, Korea on Tuesday.

I just happen to know  the goalie...

Tyler Gilbert of Saskatoon...

and am so happy for him!

I will be leaving all things Canadian behind for a bit...

and am off to visit the largest city in the world.
I may just send a postcard or two.

If not...
I'll be back before you know it!

olympic wrap-up....

We've been...we've seen...we've cheered...we've immersed ourselves in the excitement that was the 2010 Olympics. It will all be coming to an end soon...but it has been the experience of a lifetime. Hosting the Olympics has made us proud of our country...and has fostered goodwill between many nations...something which has been so special to be a part of.


Yesterday we made the trip out to the acclaimed Richmond Oval to watch long track speed skating. When we bid on these tickets nearly two years ago...it was as much about seeing the venue as watching the event.

The Richmond Oval is situated along the banks of the Fraser River...not far from the Vancouver International Airport. The glassed northern side of the building provides spectacular views of the river and the North Shore Mountains on a clear day. Yesterday was an umbrella day! I came with my new Olympic 2010 black umbrella...and I came home with NO umbrella. Umbrellas were not allowed inside the venue...and could be retrieved from security on exiting. It seemed someone wanted a souvenir...and they are now enjoying my umbrella.

Back to the oval....the roof of the building was designed in the shape of a heron's wing...though one would have to see it from the air to take it all in. The roof is one of the longest clear spans in North America...

...and includes one million board feet of B.C. pine-beetle kill wood linked together in a way to create a rippled effect. This one of a kind roof...and specifically the use of the pine beetle wood...resulted in the Oval receiving an award of excellence in architectural innovation by the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada.

After the Olympics, the Richmond Oval will be converted to a multi-use sport facility that will include two Olympic-sized ice rinks...up to eight hardwood ball-sport courts...a gymnasium...a 200 meter track...a rubberized turf area...and a high performance centre for elite athletes. Think BIG! The speed-skating oval will be covered with removable flooring and could still be used for competition. It will be a lasting legacy of the Olympic games of 2010.

The specific event we had tickets for...was the team pursuit qualification finals...both men and women. Though I took many photos...of all the different teams...and they are all amazing skaters...I'll leave you with a few pic's of my favorite teams. Those were the ones dressed in red...of course!

These three went on to win the first ever men's medal in speed skating for Canada...and a gold at that. We watched both the men's quarter-final and semi-final heat...and the Canadian guys managed to break the standing Olympic record both times. They skated as one...at speeds that are hard to imagine. I'm so glad they were able to go all the way today.

Then the girls had their warm-ups...how fun to see some of Canada's top female skaters on the ice...all at one time. Kristina Groves, Christine Nesbitt, and Brittany Schussler...and our hero from the last Olympics...Cindy Klassen. Cindy did not skate in the heat we watched.

Canada was paired with Team USA...

...and ended the race 2/100ths of a second behind. Despite an amazing skate...their team pursuit dream ended with this race.

Though the stands were predominantly red....

...there was a large contingency of orange throughout the venue. Speed skating is a Dutch favorite...and Team Netherlands had an enthusiastic and noisy fan club. The Holland Heineken House is situated nearby...and is the home away from home for all Dutch athletes and fans. And guess how they get around?

Holland's national railway sent over 400 bikes to be used by athletes and officials of the Heineken House during the games...at no cost. They are using the same mode of transportation to which they are accustomed back home...and many are trying out the new Richmond bike trail. They are easily spotted...they all wear orange!

While we were in the neighbourhood...we stopped by Richmond O-Zone...watched families skating on the outdoor ice rink...and did a quick tour of B.C. Street.

The Richmond City Hall is worth stopping by...

...just to see their display of floating red cranberries. Cranberries represent the largest agricultural crop of the area...and are a part of the 'paint the town red' campaign. In the park next door are the Olympic rings...also filled with floating cranberries...and a huge maple leaf of formed with a sea of cranberries.

Tomorrow will see the games come to a close...and we will be left with only memories...good ones.

The view from 'my front porch' will be very different for the next while...and will look more like the picture you see on my header today. I will be taking a blogging break for awhile...but when I return...I will be giving away a pair of the coveted red Olympic mittens. It seems hubby doesn't covet the ones that were intended for him. Leave me a comment...tell me what you enjoyed most of the winter games...and I'll have a draw once I'm back. Should your name be chosen...you will be in good company...as over three million pairs have been sold.

And if you don't really care to wear mittens...they work as foot warmers as well...I noticed!

I'll be missing you...

about town 2010...

This is not about athletes or venues...but about Olympic trivia...and some of the people behind the scenes...all part of the 2010 Winter Games celebration.

Kudos to the volunteers! I'm thinking it would be next to impossible to get lost in Vancouver during the games...

...as they are giving directions at every corner along the way.

And they all have a smile...

...and sometimes even a joke. Now if I could only remember what it was!

No matter what country they may come from...

...they wear their colours proudly.

We had a little wait to be seated in a restaurant...but passed the time away chatting with this couple from Cologne, Germany. They spoke English perfectly...but we had to try out our pathetic German on them...just for fun! They were having the time of their life...and vowed to one day return to Canada.

Next to Canadian garb...it seemed the Russian Olympic gear is the most popular. Russia will be hosting the next winter Olympics...and so they are in Vancouver in full force...checking it all out...and promoting their upcoming games.

Oh...and trying out the hotdogs as well!

There has been a little controversy about the flowers...it seems some are not that fond of the green bouquets that the athletes are receiving. I...on the other hand...quite like them! And I really like the story behind them. They are made of green hypericum berries, green spider mums and leatherleaf fern, monkey grass and aspidstra leaves....hand-tied with a simple royal blue ribbon.

The bouquets come from Just Beginnings Flowers in Surrey, British Columbia. Their entry was chosen from 58 contending florists. June Strandberg, the bouquet designer and owner of Just Beginnings, teaches floristry to women who have left prison, are recovering from addiction, or have been victims of violence. She believes it is her work with these correctional programs that secured the Olympic contract.

For the Vancouver Olympics the florists made 1,800 bouquets...to be presented to the medal-winning athletes in the Olympics and Paralympics. The flowers were chosen to represent British Columbia and Canada (are all flowers that are grown here), and are intended as keepsakes for the athletes.

And the entertainment at every corner is amazing. I have no idea where this band hailed from...but they kept us entertained while we waited to enter our venue on Sunday. The Sardis high school drum band...from our community...was chosen to play at Whistler during the games...and have been a huge hit. We have seen their story on television several times now...and they have invitations pouring in from far and wide. What an opportunity of a lifetime for these students.

And then there are the zamboni machines. The ones we saw did a fine job...with no meltdowns! It's not until the ice-cleaning machines malfunction that one realizes how important they are to the games.

Today we are off to the new Richmond speed skating oval...with tickets in hand. I'm looking forward to seeing the venue...since a good family friend was very involved in it's design.

He also designed the kiosk that stands in front of Canada Place...the welcome centre.

The games are nearing an end...the red mittens will soon be packed away...

...and all the buses on the road will soon be heading back to Wisconsin...or wherever their journey began. But today...we will enjoy!

Have a wonderful day...

Olympic stars on ice...

While most people that I knew were gathered around the big screen watching the Canada vs. USA hockey game...

...we were at the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver taking in the ice-dance figure skating event. We were definitely in the right place...it was a wonderful evening!

And having the Canadian duo of Virtue and Moir take the top spot nearly brought down the house...and also took a little of the 'ouch' from the outcome of last night's hockey game. We will be watching them tonight...and hoping they come through with a gold for Canada.

Coming in second...were Meryl Davis and Charlie White of the USA.

Placing third were Oksana Domnina and Maxim Shabilin...the number one ranked pair from Russia. They put on a nice show...though I wasn't that fond of their costumes or the music they skated to.

Poirier and Crone of Canada.

Christina and William Beier of Germany.

A brother and sister duo representing Japan...Chris and Cathy Reed.

From China... Huang and Seng.

Skating for Great Britain...Penny Coombes and Nicholas Buckland.

Skating for Russia.

Placing fifth in ice dance...and representing Italy.

Crowd favorites...from the USA...Samuelson and Bates.

I so enjoyed this young couple from Russia...she is only nineteen and he is twenty.

Skating for Great Britain...to American country muisic...were brother and sister Sinead and John Kerr. They placed eighth last night.

Representing France...

...and Israel. By the time I uploaded my pic's...I had a hard time putting names or countries with some of the photos...so I'll leave them nameless until I've done my research!

They all did a fabulous job....and we had a most enjoyable three and a half hours!

It was fun watching them as their scores were announced. All their training and hard work...compressed into a few numbers. And they were all such good sports!

We arrived over the period of a few hours...under clear blue skies. We all left at once...under the cover of darkness. And we were all smiling!