My...oh....my.....How Time Flies.

The blogger header photo is the city of Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada as seen from Kitsilano Beach, just off from the downtown core.

Why the delay in blogging these past couple of weeks?

 The only true answer is due to a lack of time.   

 We have been so busy that blogging and blog reading had to
 take second place to the other stuff.

Other than one major activity that has taken up a great deal of my time, these past several weeks (and that I will write a post about in the future), the other activities are covered in this post.  Phew!  

Beautiful Brie is such a treasure to watch develop into a sweet little girl.

Jeanette and I look after Brie and Easton most Thursdays and Fridays; including an overnight with us.  That time period gives their mom, Ginette an opportunity to focus on her business.  And with dad, Trevor busy with his business and firefighting too, the parents get to catch up on paper work and other necessary chores around the house.

Brie and Easton love hanging out with us.....and, of course, the feeling is mutual for us too.  What a treat!To have the chance to spend time with Owen (in Edmonton, Alberta) is something we long for too.

Easton always brings his favourite fire truck to our home when he comes over. 

A favourite activity for both kids is when we take them to the local forested trails or to the local park.  There are so many activities for them to partake in.  

Cooling off on the sun deck play pool is fun on the hot, hot days we have been experiencing.

At Aldergrove Park, forested trails

Helping to prepare dinner by shucking corn  cobs

Heading out for an early morning bicycle ride

Loving the local park's activity centre.

Easton is trying out the off road  bicycle course.  So did his grand papa.

We were invited to join our good friends, Lorne and Mariette for an afternoon and evening out on the town, so to speak.  Mariette called with the idea to purchase theater tickets for 'Bard on the Beach'.  With that planned, we met up in the Kitsilano area near downtown Vancouver - on the waterfront - several days back.  Meeting before the evening theatrical performance allowed us to enjoyed a nice, leisurely walk around the Kits beach area before settling in for a nice outdoor dinner.

One can barely make out West Vancouver on the other side of the bay, due to smokey conditions brought on by so many forest fires.

L-R  Jeanette, Mariette and Lorne.  I manned the camera.

We chose a good, outdoor spot for a refreshing beer and dinner before heading over to the tented theater site at Vanier Beach.

Mariette and Jeanette were questioning who would want this old jalopy.  I caught the photo.

Shakespearean plays - professionally produced and acted.

I won't get into detail about the plays produced and acted in a professional setting under these large tents but the quality is job 1.  When it comes to Shakespeare plays, I am usually at a loss to understand them (even after having studied Shakespeare in University).  But it was still a great night out.

For details on Bard on the Beach and the plays, click on the following link:  Bard on the Beach Shakespeare Festival - Vancouver, BC

We took in this play.

I also love 'theater in the round'.  The actors move from the stage to centre and the action is very close to all paying customers.

Taken through the smokey Vancouver sky following our evening performance.

The smokey skies cleared quickly once some nice breezes blew in from the Pacific Coast.  And the forest fire situation in British Columbia has greatly improved.

Taking a hike on a very warm day.  The jacket is for the coolness under the forested canopy.

Looking for a shaded activity one day, in the past several, we chose a long, forested walk under canopied trees.  And what a relief that was.  We worked up a nice sweat on the walk - faced with different elevations - but we sure enjoyed the cool breezes while walking.

Pretty wild flower.

This gives you an idea of how well canopied the trails were during our walk.

 Fast pitch action at Soft Ball City

Jeanette and her nursing friends organized an evening out to attend the  Canadian Open Fastpitch International - Welcome ball matches one evening last week.  And they got to watch the Japanese team beat Cuba for the championship trophy.

Jeanette has always loved baseball, fast pitch and slow pitch ball.  And she played a lot of it in her younger days.  Attending this event was a must for her and her friends. 

Canadian Open Fastpitch International - Welcome

The scene from one of our golf rounds.

Although our fore-some could not get together for our regular Friday golf round, my friend, Denis and I did get to play at the  Abbotsford Golf | BC Golf - Ledgeview Golf Club.  What a treat that golf course is.  And I scored well there too.

Two PGA Canadian players (Adam Hadwin included) are regular tour players on the prestigious PGA (Pro Golf Association) tour.  In fact, as I write this blog, a couple Canadian pro golfers are competing at the premier original home of golf; the Open Championship at St. Andrews in Scotland.

For more details, click on the following link:  St Andrews Links : The Home of Golf

First break on our four day motorcycle ride - July 15, 16, 17 & 18.

Six like minded motorcyclists - some whom we ride with during our winter snow-birding months in southern California and Arizona - left on July 15th for a great 1600 km ride through the West Kootenays of BC.  What a treat that trip is.  Although we have done it many times in the past, it is always a joy to ride through that pristine country.  Although we have many rides that include our spouses, this was a guy only ride.  We tend to ride harder and longer.   What fun!

Our first night in Midway.  Midway Bc Canada - Yahoo Image Search Results

A couple of sarsaparillas enjoyed on the outdoor deck of this grand old hotel in Midway.

Countryside view near Midway, BC

Hundreds of motorcyclists converged in the small mountain city of Nelson, BC. City of Nelson | Home

From Midway, we rode east through the towns of Greewood, Christina Lake, Rossland, Trail, Castlegar, Slocan, New Denver, Kaslo and south along the wonderful Kootenay Lake and into Nelson.  That was a long day in the saddle but a rewarding one for all the beautiful topography we rode through. Village of New Denver | Home             Kaslo, British Columbia, Canada webguide

Many motorcyclists chose this wonderful boutique downtown Nelson hotel for their overnight.  What a gem!

While I was motorcycling, Jeanette, Ginette and Courtney (our daughter in law from Edmonton, Alberta) gathered the grand kids and everyone met at White Rock beach for some play time.

Owen and mom, Courtney were enjoying the shade from the heat of the day.

 The tide was far out while Brie, Easton and Owen were running around.  Good fun!

And, without turning this blog into a novel, that's a sampling of what has been keeping us busy.....and, I might add, out of trouble too.  Who can get into trouble when there are so many good activities to occupy us?

Thanks for dropping in.  The next blog will detail the one activity I mentioned early on, in this blog, that occupied many, many hours of my time these past seven weeks or so.