Fishing and Saltspring

I have been trying to soak up every bit of summer I can, so when John asked if I wanted to go fishing last night, I said yes! It wasn't good for fishing (one little greenling which we just had for dinner and it was delicious) but it was such a warm beautiful night out there. Oh yes, I caught a starry flounder, but we threw it back because we don't like the taste very much. This morning I rode my bike to the ferry and over to Saltspring Island, to see Heather in the Gay Pride parade. Heather is not gay but the roller derby ladies wanted to show their support. I made it just in time to see them come down. Heather was busy but we had a quick lunch together. The bike ride was kind of brutal but I am glad I did it. Saltspring is a very hilly place and it took about 50 minues each way, even though it's only 14km from Fulford to Ganges. Getting to the ferry was another 30 minutes, going my fastest because I thought the ferry was 11:00 (turned out it was 11:30!). John kindly picked me up at the Thrifty's. It was about 3 hours return. Heather was surprised to see me. She looked great in her derby attire. She needs to made up her mind what she is going to do after September but we didn't talk about that.

Happy birthday Andrew John MacRae

32 years ago I was holding a red, bruised, most beautiful baby boy in the world in my arms. That was a wonderful morning. Now he is a dad himself, of course, and a very good one too. He phoned last night to say that they wouldn't be coming next week after all because he has an interview at Berkeley! Our fingers are crossed tight for that. Yesterday we missed Andrew's call because we were at Glen Meadows at the driving range. It was a warm, beautiful evening, and good to be taking advantage of this summery weather. Maybe we will get out in the boat before the cold dark nights arrive.

Sweet little baby girl is 5 pounds

Yesterday was a good day, though not too action-packed. We had our carpets cleaned and they look great - for now! We visited John's mom, who was looking good with new earrings and her hair done. We missed her ukulele concert this time but we now know about the next one. Catherine phoned to say that all was looking good for the baby. The ultrasound showed one very beautiful baby, just a little small - 5 pounds, which isn't too bad at all. She has been eating well and feels lots of movement. After Jazzercize I rented a movie - "Jeff, Who Lives at Home". It was short but sweet. We enjoyed it!

Mill Bay bike trip

Yesterday John and I rode our bikes to the Mill Bay ferry and rode up to Merridale Cidery. It was about two and a half hours of cycling, plus an hour on the ferry. It was a great day. The tasting and lunch at Merridale was spectacular. It was so warm and sunny, and I thought how great it was not to be working! For dinner we barbecued the salmon I caught Tuesday and shared a small crab. We had a very "locovore" dinner, having grown the arugula, caught the fish, and harvested the apples from Chillis's back yard. Today we got the carpets cleaned. I know this shouldn't be exciting but they are so clean! I don't want anyone to walk on them now. Catherine has her ultrasound today.

Monday, last day before school starts - we went fishing and I caught a little salmon. It's a chinook, and we will have it for dinner! It was a beautiful night, a little cool out there but I had my jacket and sweatpants so I was OK. Today we are going on the Mill Bay ferry with our bikes and riding to Merridale Cidery for lunch. I wanted to do something special on my un-teaching day!

Saanich Fair

Yesterday, Sunday, we went to the Saanich Fair. We go almost every year, and sometimes I dread it. It makes me think about when the kids were little and then I miss them so much! John wanted to go, so we went and had a really nice time. We spent time looking at the kids' exhibits (so many of my little students had entries!) animals, plants, sheep shearing demonstration, bingo, and good shows at the main stage. Our favourite was a band called Younger than Yesterday, a cover band who do songs from the 60's. They were worth the price of admission! It was cute to see the kids dancing. Weather has been really good all summer, making up for a soggy May and June.

Back to school - well not really

Today is the last day of summer really - since school is back in tomorrow. Even though I am retired, it still feels like summer is over. That means that it's my New Year's Eve, since the January 1st one means very little to me. Years are measured from September to September in my world. So I have decided to start my blog again. It's OK if no one reads it. I am going to try to keep a journal. John used to but he has stopped, and sometimes I wish we could check back and see what happened on a certain day, or how long ago that was. So I will try to start, and seeing as how my handwriting is getting worse and my typing is better, I will type it. I am also thinking of getting out of Facebook. If I do, people can send me news and photos on this site, and I can share my news too. Well, it has been a good summer. So much has happened. Jackson and Sheralyn spent almost two months in Victoria while Andrew went to Europe and also completed his Ph.D. It was great to have them here so much more. Now they are moving, probably to New York, very soon, and we are going to look after Jack while Andrew and Sheralyn look for a place to stay. I hope they will also have at least a couple of days to be tourists and see some of New York City. Catherine and Paul are getting closer to being parents. They are having a little girl, due in October! Right now Catherine is just a little over 34 weeks, and things are going well. We spent a few days at their lovely home in Calgary just last week. We drove, which was long and monotonous but do-able once a year. C&P have a great house. We were there for nephew Ryan's wedding to Amanda Hindmarsh, or should I say a reception, since they got married in Cuba. It was so nice to connect with family. A highlight was sitting on the swing with 3 sisters! and later to sit with Kelly and Catherine, the two very lovely and very pregnant ladies. Kelly is due in just three weeks! Catherine is still teaching and doing well, but feeling extremely tired. She is looking very fit, and has kept swimming almost every day. Alex has continued with his welding. It's been up and down. I know he is anxious to move out but has no money. Welding is taking a while, and he is still on the learning curve about how to make/spend money. He has a lovely girlfriend, Sharah, and I hope they stay together. It was her birthday on Friday, and on Saturday Alex organized a party boat for about 11 people. Good for him organizing it, but he had to borrow money from us to do it, which I was not pleased about. It's a tightrope we walk as parents and sometimes I am not sure we are balancing it right. We haven't seen or heard much from Heather (Lorill) but she came over on Father's Day, and then again a couple of weeks ago. She is still on Saltspring, happy at the daycare but needing more money - and she has no permanent place to live. She is seriously thinking of going to Calgary to look for work. We hope it works out for her, but I hope it doesn't mean that she has to go to northern Alberta or something. We had almost a month at Savary. It was wonderful in every way. We got out on the boat, we had Catherine and Paul for six nights, we met new friends, went to the Frolic, Paul was in the Triathlon (next year - recreational! - he didn't do great but he got a medal!) I think I have gained five pounds but I'm scared to weigh myself. Some things are tight and I will try to get them looser before I put myself on the scales. I guess that's what happens when you have fun and eat some good food, despite daily running. One of the highlights of my trip to Calgary was a shopping trip where I was turned loose at CrossIron Mills and had four hours of shopping. It was great. I got running shoes, dress shoes, boots, shirts and a great dress. We're back home now, and it's good to be back. It will be a busy September, and we will be back to Calgary in October (or earlier!) A goal is to get the room above the garage cleaned out and made into a kind of games room/extra bedroom. Wish us luck!