Nice Trip to Alberta - But Good To Be Back in BC

Jeanette and I were away for the past couple of weeks and my only chance to blog came when I was motorcycling with my nephew Brad and we overnighted at his home in Sherwood Park, AB, a suburb of Edmonton.

Leaving Jeanette's parents' farm.

 Unknown to me, Jeanette got these two photos while following me.  She was driving to Two Hills, AB, to visit her mom while I was leaving on my two day motorcycle ride.

Turning onto Highway 45 west to meet my nephew Brad.

Although I had good intentions to write a blog or two from the library in Two Hills, that did not materialize.  We were kept very busy with attending parties, dinners, visiting Jeanette's mom, golfing (of course), and attending to several work projects on the farm.

Jeanette and her mom, Mary.

Bob and Deb

With Mary now living in a seniors facility in Two Hills, AB, there is no one left at the farm to keep up with grass mowing and other needed tasks.  Jeanette's sister Deb, along with husband Bob, arrived several days earlier than us so they managed to complete a fair bit of work.

Nice pasture behind the barn.

My sister Paulette's 65th surprise birthday party

My sister Paulette - seated right on the picnic table.

My sister's two daughters - Tina and Karen.

 A neighbour farmer was offered the hay crop on the home place so he made busy with cutting the crop, raking the hay a day or so later and followed it up with making round bales for his cattle.  Nice hay too!

While the farmer above was busy with his work I was busy mowing 2+ acres of lawn, trimming hedges and cutting overhanging branches from trees.  There are no photos of me at work because there was no one around to do that.

Jeanette dropped by her father's resting place.

The weather, during our visit, was great.  The occasional storm would pass by - mainly at night - and the result was a very high level of humidity.

The second 65th birthday surprise was for Jeanette's sister's husband Bob.  He too earned a Canadian wage increase now that he qualifies for his Old Age Pension.  The day started off with his three brothers, an uncle and I heading to the golf course for a fun round.  Bob still had no clue that there was a gathering of friends and family waiting to surprise him at a barbecue being held at his brother's home.

Me and Bob's brother Stan arriving at the barbecue.

Jonathon - Deb and Bob's son surprised them when he arrived from having driven 4.5 hours from Calgary, Alberta.

A nice gathering.

Bob hugging his mom

Although convalescing in hospital, Bob's mom  Anne  managed to get a pass to attend her son's 65th.

It was a fun group - filled with the party spirit.

Some took advantage to sit in the shade - away from the sun.  All the while, the high humid temperatures led to an early evening thunder storm that lit the skies and dumped more rain.  That led to even higher humidity -topping at about 100%.  That is unusual for normally dry Alberta.

65 year old style gifts.

More gag gifts.

Bob's brother Stan was busy manning the barbecue.

It was a great evening of fun, laughter and banter.  We ate well, let me tell you!  Hmmm mmmm good!

Unwrapping gifts.

Awesome cake - and it tasted good too!

While the gift opening was happening, the skies blackened and the thunder started in earnest.  Within ten minutes or so, the storm had passed and it left this beautiful sky.

The calm - and beauty - after the storm

Long time friends of Deb and Bob - Daryl and Fern - flew and drove from the coastal town of Powell River, on the Sunshine Coast of BC, to Edmonton and then to the country home of Stand and Bev, the party place.  Bob was truly surprised by their visit.

An old Cockshut tractor surrounded by Canadian Thistle  on the farm.

On our return drive back to the coast, Jeanette got this photo of the exact spot where we had to leave our 5th wheel on the previous trip after a shackle broke.  The 5th wheel was immobilized on the spot to the left, just past the guard rail, along Moose Lake in the Rocky Mountains.

Our son (Deni) and our daughter in law to be (Courtney) in their new home in Edmonton.

On the way out and back from the farm, we stayed at Deni and Courtney's new home.  Lovely place it is!

Courtney is very much at home in her lovely kitchen.

So, with the chores done, the 65th birthday parties over with, visiting completed and a better than 800 km motorcycle ride with my nephew, Jeanette and I headed back for the west coast. We left Edmonton very early and got home within the 12 hours required for the drive this past weekend.

It is good to visit but equally nice to be back home.  Now it's time to catch up on the 'to do list' here.  It's also time to catch up on blog reading.  Without internet access at the farm, it's quite crippling for a blogger to detox for a couple of weeks.  I'll catch up on reading in the days ahead.  I'm sure there are interesting reads that we've missed while away.

Thanks for dropping by.