June ~ Memories and Moments

As we are about to flip the calendar page once more...
let me share just a few 'memorable moments' from June.

The month began at Scotch Creek...

on Shuswap Lake.

Flood level high water made it difficult to sit on the park bench...

or eat at the  picnic tables...

or access the beaches at all.

The geese have no concerns about high water!

We spent the weekend at the 'Baerg cabin'...

guests of my sister Dot and Terry.

How nice that Dad could join us once again!

It was once my parent's cabin...

and we all have many good memories of time spent here in bygone years.

We had a relaxing weekend...

good food, good visits,

bike rides and lots of Rook games.

We sat under the trees...

with the campfire going...

and listened to stories being told and retold. :)

It was a good time...

and likely the last time we will be at the cabin with dad.

He turns 96 in a few months.

We took a detour through Kelowna on the way home to visit my SIL Martha in Kelowna.

She invited us for coffee in the early afternoon.

Coffee?

We arrived to this spread!  

Thankfully  a few nieces and nephews joined us.

We spent the night...

and caught up with all the Kelowna family while we were there.

We don't see them often enough these days.

It seems most of my photos were of 'birds and blooms' this month...

but I'll just post a few.

I moved my bird feeder closer this year...

and have enjoyed watching the birds from the kitchen window.

Peonies and roses were my favorite picks this month.

The dogwood tree barely blushed pink...

where it normally blooms a vibrant rose colour. 

Does it need fertilizer?

 

Earlier this month we had a Mennonite Girls Can Cook '10 year anniversary celebration' dinner at Lovella's.  

We made a decision to quit posting new recipes to the blog...

though the blog will remain as a very large on-line cookbook!

Thanks to all of you for your encouragement and support over the years.

We are so grateful for all the opportunities that came our way...

including all the monies raised to feed the hungry through cookbook sales.

And I am so thankful for the friendship of these ten women.

That was an unexpected gift from God.

After a very hot and dry May we had quite a mixed bag in June...

some heat, some cool weather and a little rain.

Even a rainbow or two!

As June comes to an end...

everything is quite green in the valley.

Emme brought her other 'Nana' on a farm tour across the fields...

...as they were harvesting the second crop of grass.

Father's Day...

a drive in the old car...

a relaxing afternoon with a book...

and evening with the whole gang at Kris and Lina's.

Love her little French country garden!

We took in Ranen's last Irish dance feis of the year.

Several costume changes...

soft shoes and hard shoes...

rolls of tape to keep the shoes in place...

bobby pins to keep the hair in place...

and always a smile.

Number 302 danced her heart out!

Ranen and Maggie both have very 'fast feet' and both represented their respective schools at the district track meet last week.

Running is their thing.

Very fast! 

And then there were the year-end music recitals.

Ryder wowed us on his drums.

Ranen and Micah performed at a violin concert in a park in Abbostford.

A beautiful setting and a lovely evening of music.

Keep it up, Ranen  and Micah.

We had good times with friends in June...

around the table or the fire.

Last Sunday afternoon we cycled to Harrison Lake through the countryside of Agassiz.
Sunshine.
Corn fields and Brown Swiss cattle.
Blueberries hanging ripe on the bushes.
And then...Harrison Lake.
Lunch at a patio and bistro and ice-cream cones on the beach with good friends.
A perfectly fine June adventure.

Before I close this post...
let me just share what was happening on the home front.

Some three weeks ago...
a pair of killdeer decided that our front driveway was a good place to build their nest.

They couldn't have found a worse location ...
since it was right where the normal flow of traffic would pass.

What to do?

We put up barricades on either side of the nest...

and allowed mama to sit on her eggs.

Those were a very long three weeks...

with no easy access to our front door.

But we have our driveway back.
And the waning  killdeer population got a bit of a boost over here.

I just happened to be out on the yard when I noticed mama killdeer was off her nest...
and there were two brand new killdeer chicks.

She was soon back on the nest...

but before long the chicks were out and about.

Papa killdeer seemed to be their guardian.

The nest has now been abandoned.

The killdeer are here, there and everywhere...

and you are free to drive up our driveway if you so wish.

It was an 'awesome' experience...

watching these birds this past month.

What an amazing Creator we have.

As this month comes to an end...
let me wish you all a very happy Canada Day weekend.

May God keep our land 'glorious and free'!
 

The Merry Month of May

Let me try to sum up how May played out in my corner of the world with a few pictures...and a few words.

Lilacs. Irises.  Peonies.  The flowers of May!

The first crop of grass came in off the fields.

I have a 'front row seat' to the action from my kitchen window.

(click on photo)

 

When I walk my usual route on the country roads, I am quite accustomed to meeting tractors pulling all manner of farm equipment.  But on this particular evening I had no idea what was coming towards me.   This was a first!  Three young ladies on a tractor and one skate-boarding behind.  And that is what my granddaughters and their friends do for entertainment.

Marg hosted the MGCC gals for a lovely brunch early in May...the eight of us who live nearby.  The sun was shining and we moved the party outdoors for dessert and tea.  Good food, good friends and good fellowship!

The tulips were in full bloom...and so some of us stopped at the tulip fields once the brunch party was over.

Such beauty in our backyard!

An appointment in Vancouver found me at a window with a beautiful view of the harbour.

Later that week, I joined a busload of farm gals heading to Chemainus on the annual 'Ritchie Smith  Ladies Get-away'.  As always, it was a great time...from checking out the murals in Chemainus, to taking in the dinner theatre production of Kim's Convenience, sharing a suite with Lovella and Mary, shopping, chatting and taking in the beautiful scenery of the west coast.

On Mother's Day we packed along a picnic and  went to Silver Lake in Hope for the afternoon. Though the Skagit River was wild and turbulent the lake was calm and peaceful...the perfect place to relax with a book.  We spent the evening with all the kids and grands at Kris and Lina's...a great way to end the day.

We attended a fundraising party which included the premiere showing of the new Himalayan Life documentary at Highstreet Mall a few weeks ago.  Who knew the venue would be standing room only?  Heidi (daughter) has worked hard in sharing the work of this organization in our area...and was thrilled with the outcome of the evening. They raised $100,000 for the 'forgotten children' of Nepal that evening. We were blown away!

The cornfields were prepared and planted.  Dust clouds in May are not the norm over here!

We have had next to no rain this month and things are really dry.  It has been the driest month of May in history.  It would be nice to have a good downpour...and then a return to sunny days!

Lucy is playing violin...her first year. She did a little 'practice run' before heading out to her spring recital last Saturday.  She takes it quite seriously and is  playing so well after just a few short months.

We took Ranen and Ryder on a little outing to the putting course at Cultus Lake earlier this week.  What fun for all!

And that is a sampling of what went on here this past month.  Besides that, the front porch was re-stained, the back patio has a new sealer, the beds have all been mulched.  Bring on the summer!

Thanks for visiting!

 

April remembered...

April was a good month to get outside and kick up our heels a little...

after many months of being cooped up indoors.

Let me start back at the beginning of the month with easter celebrations...

...family gathered around the table...

and a scavenger hunt for treat-filled balloons for the grands.

Brrr...it was cold outside and no one stayed out there for long!

The daffodils and white heather bloomed beautifully all month...

...and didn't seem to mind the snow showers early in the month.

When do we ever have snow in April?

 

We had our fair share of dreary days...

but there is always a bright spot if one looks hard enough.

The sun is shining somewhere...

and the forsythia glows gold even on a grey day.

And then came the sunshine...

...and tennis with my faithful tennis partner.

Truth be told...

we had not been at the courts since last summer.

And not too frequently then!

Maybe we'll do better this year.

Our beautiful Hannah tree bloomed on April 4th, as it always does...

a reminder of the grandchild who was with us for such a short time on April 4th, 2008. 

She will not be forgotten.

The star magnolia planted when Maggie was born...
also put on a lovely show for us in April!
It's our Maggie tree.

The tulips fields of Chilliwack are now in their glory

...and I plan to visit them this week.

This photo was taken a few weeks ago...

on a Sunday afternoon drive-by.

Last Sunday afternoon we went in search of a waterfall not too far from here...

 one that we had heard about but never visted.

It is not to be found on any maps...

and the trailhead is poorly marked.

But we eventually found the trail...

and followed the sound of the rushing water to the prize...

Bosumarne Falls.

Such a lovely spot...

about 40 minutes from home.

We'll be going back!

The grands had a day off school on Friday (ProD Day)...

and so we planned an outing for all the girls.

High tea at Tracy Cakes in Abbotsford...

with all my granddaughters and their moms.

They may not care for tea...

or even fancy sandwiches...

...but they all found something to their liking.

Their cousins!

'A cousin is a little bit of childhood that can never be lost.'

There was actually a reason for our tea party.

Ranen and Auntie Broni are having a birthday this week...

and so we started the celebrations a little early.

It seems to me that we have many photos of Ranen sitting on Broni's lap.

Not this year!

After waiting patiently for spring to arrive...

we went right into summer weather last week.

The temperatures soared...

and we broke records that had stood for 121 years in our area.

And on the farm...

the first of the cropping for this year has begun.

They will be busy out there this next month!

Sunshine, dandelions and snow-capped peaks.

And that was a wee glimpse into April 2018 at 'my front porch'.

Thanks for stopping by...

and happy spring to you all!