Catching Up....

I can hardly believe that it has been two weeks since our last blog post.  Some readers have wondered if we exited earth for some far flung place.  Truth be told, I have lacked the motivation - coupled with some very busy days - to put thought to keyboard.  

Today's skies are grey with cloud and a mild rain is keeping us indoors.  So, why not check out the blogs I've missed of late.....and perhaps, just perhaps, conjure up a blog of our own.

So here goes......!

Jeanette's mom celebrated her 88th birthday.

Deni and Owen celebrating at Mary's 88th birthday.

 There was a buzz of activity with our telephones (Face Time) when my mother in law, Mary celebrated her 88th birthday.  Although Jeanette could not make it back to Alberta for the celebrations, the photos and telephone conversations made for some fun times.

Mary is thriving.......and she celebrated well.  HAPPY BIRTHDAY!

Our Edmonton kids were out here on the west coast for a seven day visit.  We sure enjoyed that.  And we got to spend more quality time with one year old grandson, Owen. He also got to spend a fair bit of time enjoying the company of his cousins, Brie and Easton. 

Owen is likely not aware that he will be giving up some of his home space to a new baby sister come mid-September.  His mom, Courtney is expecting a baby girl near September 15th.  So....there is more excitement to come for Deni, Courtney, Owen..... and us.

Plenty of fun enjoyed in our sun room.

Our sun room has become the go to place for the grand kids to play.  And it seems we adults also gathered there when the grand kids were having fun.

With our daughter, Ginette still away in the far flung Egyptian Luxor region, we see a lot of Brie and Easton.  And with their dad, Trevor's busy schedule, his mom, along with Jeanette and I are spending  a lot of  time looking after our grand kids.  And it is a pleasure to help out.  

Although missing her kids and husband, Ginette is thoroughly enjoying her time in Egypt.  Texting us (with occasional Face Time chats) frequently, it seems this will be the first and quite possibly the only time she will agree to be away from her little family for such a long time.  Although a great contract, she sure misses her kids.  Going forward, she may only accept one week contracts or perhaps two, depending on the distances she needs to travel.  But what a great experience she is living!  And the business contacts she is making cannot be undervalued.  Her worldwide contacts list has grown exponentially.  

A picnic in the park with Courtney, Deni and Owen.

At 16 months of age, Owen is a curious little guy who enjoys everything outdoors.  And it is fun to take him on outings.

Owen and I are checking the flow of the creek  underfoot while Deni looks on.

Just following Owen, as he walks around, is fun.  Why?  He sees things we adults don't and he draws us to those spots.  What drives his curiosity is curious in itself....for us, that is. 

It was a pleasure to spend some quality time with Deni and Courtney too.  To be able to hang out and just chat about all things common was a pleasure for us.

"Where does this path go....?"

Back in the sun room, Easton (at 3 years of age) shares play time with Owen. 

Our little man is so mature for his age.  He is most engaging,

Easton's command of the English language and his sentence structure is amazing to us.  He seems so far ahead of the curve.  His conversations are often quite adult oriented.  

Little princess, Brie continues to amaze us too.  She is growing so quickly.

This was a good opportunity to catch a photo with our three grand kids in one place.

Fun in the park.....and a picnic too!

A new little orange tractor and trailer for Owen.

Owen and his folks had driven the 12 hours from Edmonton to Vancouver.  Seven days following their arrival, the photo below sees them leaving our driveway at 5:00 am for the return drive back to their Alberta Capital city.

Deni, Courtney and Owen leaving our driveway.....

Brie has taken to climbing on anything and everything she can.  

Playing with garden stones is fun for her these days.

When Jeanette and I look after Brie and Easton - including a weekly sleepover at our home - we take them on hikes and to other parks in the area.  It's fun for us and they also discover so many nice things in nature.

"Hey....I can see some little fish in the stream....."

Little Brie is good to follow our slow walk through the forested park nearby.

Of course, Easton has to climb anything he has not tackled before.

Brie surprised me with a little kiss while I was resting my eyes.  What a sweetheart.

Now, those readers who read through to the end of this blog may understand why I have not blogged more regularly.  So much of our time is taken up with our kids and grand kids.  To write a daily column could prove irksome for many readers, I believe.  So.....I plan to only write when there is something of interest to share.

It is not all about kids though.  Jeanette and I have participated in other activities.  I regularly golf with my group of guys and coffee with the 'Open Mic' crowd while Jeanette has had several meet ups with friends.  We continue to exercise our motorcycle in the area; often on pleasant evenings and on longer day trips.  And we continue to take our walks in the neighbourhood or in the parks nearby.

Our Egyptian business traveler daughter, Ginette will return home in early June to resume her parenting duties.  Jeanette and I will then garner a bit more free time.  So we'll see what fodder we can come up with to grace our blog pages in the weeks ahead.

That's about it from here, for now.

Thanks for dropping by.