80 and Going Strong!

My dad turned 80 last week, so I thought a party to celebrate was in order, as it's not everyday you reach that milestone, and also because he doesn't like to admit how old he really is! Not that he shouldn't be shouting it to everyone because he certainly doesn't look 80( and I am not saying that just because he's my dad). He is still very active, on the go all the time, and very involved in his family (not sure that is always a good thing (just kidding Dad!)).

Dad shares his birthday with my nephew who unfortunately wasn't there cause he's a working teen now (so we ate his share of the cake!).

Anyway I invited our relatives to come and share the day with us, had a bbq and played some washer toss.... it was nice to get together for something other than a wedding or a funeral as is how we seem to come together these days.

That's my Dad in the middle, looks pretty good for 80 wouldn't you say? Happy Birthday Dad!

All About My Family....

This is my family:

This is Gary, my husband of 27 years. Although we have had our ups and downs (as I am sure all couples do) I wouldn't trade him (most days anyway!).

Doesn't he have a wonderful smile!

This is my son Jeff and his long time girlfriend Denai (gotta love that name!). Jeff is 26, and has recently just moved back home (temporary) from BC, and god love Denai, cause she came too (left all that wonderful sunshine from the Okanagan belt for fog and drizzle!) As you can see Jeff has a charming smile (too bad we have to drag it out of him most days!) They are both the outdoorsy (not sure that is really a word?) type, love animals, they brought their dog with them (introduced down further). Jeff is sometimes wound a little tight and has a short fuse (gee wonder where he got that from?), but generally pretty quiet(isn't there a saying about watch out for the quiet ones?)


This is son # 2 Kris (and girlfriend Teressa). He's the laid back type, pretty quiet until you wind him up. He's very tall (6.5 to my 5.2) and loves to jerk you around (he's very good at telling you things that are not true to get your goat, mine especially!). Kris lives with his girlfriend and their cat. He is the mechanic of the family(always nice to have one of those in your family), the computer generation(always nice to have one of those too!).

The little person in the middle is Mom (she passed away a few years back now), with my sister (shown later) and me on either side, still miss her!

This is my dad, Don, still going strong at 80 ( will be on Aug 6th), doesn't look a day over 70 (he would say 60)!

He is the strong willed, very active type, loves his grandsons (all 4 of them), not too sure about the dogs though (at least he pretends not to), but he does babysit my sisters girls (which would be her two cats!).

This is my sister Tracy and her partner Harley, you've seen Harley already (he was the bird man post). Tracy is 9 years younger (notice I did not say I was 9 years senior), small and petite (unlike me), but other than that we are much alike. She loves cats, hates dogs (and boy do our 2 know that, they love her, funny how they seem to know that!).

These are her two boys, Gerry and Nathan.

Gerry is going to be a welder(just finished his main course) and is also very tall (like my sons). Nathan on the other hand is more like his mom (shorter) and a going concern! Very good with his hands (I am sure there is a construction worker in there) can build just about anything!

This picture was taken when my brother Ken (shown in the bottom row third from the left) came home from BC for a visit. As you can see he is also not of the taller version (he gets that from my mom's side).

These are the four footed members of our family at this time, the larger one is Moses, who is Jeff and Denai's addition, then there is Goliath (laying on the mat as he is the older one) and under Moses you will find Zues out beloved cat (who was rescued and brought to us by my sister).

That's all of them for now, I will likely have individual posts on some of them later on!

The Bird Man...

This is my brother in law, can you tell he has a passion for bird feeding? At first it was just the feeders but apparently now he has become the feeder! Great job Harley! Some people just have that knack don't they?

Positively Wonderous

Our backyard friend (??) depending on who you ask, has figured out that there is a feeder in the front yard that still has food in it (as the one in the back is completely empty, which he is not happy about) and here he sits taking one seed at a time, literally sending our cat and dog into frenzies. He seems to know as well that they cannot get to him as long as they are watching from the door and window, always on alert for the door to open.

The poor thing almost had a heart attach I am sure, as Goliath almost caught him the other day on his trip from the back to the front yard. Once he reached the ledge and safety he sat for quite awhile letting his little hammering heart settle down!

This year has been a wonder so far with critters; squirrels and ducks and now this wonderful addition that we caught site of on a pole out front.

We had heard them in the back quite often hammering away, this is the first time we have seen one out in front by the street. Quite a site with that red cap.

Yard Work, the Never Ending Cycle

Rain, rain, rain that's all its been for the past few days, and lots of it! But according to the long range weather we are going to be in for a stretch of sun and heat, heat, heat! So looking forward to it. We have put down the lime before the rain came, so in a few days the lawn should be green, and before long will come the weeds! Oh my, its a never ending cycle isn't it?

This year I hope to get a few boxes built so I can have a small garden growing, but I don't want the weeds, so plan to put it together in off the ground boxes, how smart is that? Read about it on another blog, too cool! Also going to put in a concrete patio (we have blocks there for now so will move them around the yard and create walkways), a little bit each year, by the time I am ready to give up the house, it will be the way I want it!

Backyard Annoyance!

This is our pesky backyard buddy who keeps filling himself full of the bird seed we put out. He even decided to stay around all winter when he noticed that we filled it during the winter this year! He gets a little daredevilish (or he just forgets we have 2 dogs) and moves to the deck to see what he can find there. Once in awhile he gets a little too lay back and almost gets caught! I am sure he must have a pretty strong heart, as he has come close to being a goner a few times, getting himself caught between the 2 dogsand going back and forth between them, or sometimes he gets himself hidden in some pipe at the back of the yard and has to wait them out before he can get himself back to his nest. Yet here he is again, cheeky little devil!

Easter has come and gone, none too soon as I am stuffed with ham and turkey as well as all that "chocolate". You would think we had little ones, with all the chocolate we had around, when in fact its all adults (children none the less). Although even though Easter has gone by, we amazingly had bouts of snow, hail and sleet all day long! Will it never end???

Yep, Spring is Here!

Yes I think spring is now here to stay finally, if the 2 ducks we saw this morning floating around in the puddle in the middle of our backyard is any indication! That was certainly a first, we have seen them in the culverts out front some times, but never in the back, an indication I guess of just how much water we have sitting in our backyard! Which makes it hard when bringing in the dogs (who seem to want out every half hour or so!) when you have to try to wipe off their muddy feet and legs, while trying to make them stay, while trying not to get your face smothered with kisses and your feet trampled on with muddy feet! Quite a feat at times, especially if you are silly enough to bring in both dogs at one time!

I am in one of my baking moods again, so have tried a new brownie peanut butter cheesecake recipe and a new cheese biscuit one as well. I go for weeks with baked goods in the house (as well as bowls of Easter candy) and then will go for months with nothing!

Fishing season has started so my son is off and we will likely not see much of him, especially on rainy days, as they seem to be the best days for fishing, or so I am told,,, we have not seen any fish at our table yet (they seem to catch and eat), I thought it was supposed to be catch and release?