Back on the coast....following our Alberta trip.

Jeanette's parents - Mary and John - in their mid to late 80's

After we said our good byes to Jeanette's mom and dad, Jeanette and I drove 85 minutes east from their farm to Edmonton, Alberta, for a visit with our children.

Our son Deni, took a quick break from fence building to fire up the smoker.

Deni's back yard.  Together with his neighbour, they were building a brand new fence.

With the new fence completed - the neighbours at the left, Deni in the middle, Courtney to the right and Jeanette looking on - we enjoyed some fine dinner served outdoors.

Great job on the fence, Deni.

Our daughter Ginette and husband Trevor dropped by to say hello.

Courtney busy watering these lovely flower baskets.

Unloaded the motorcycle from the trailer @ Ginette and Trevor's house.

We spent a couple of days in Edmonton.  I called my nephew Brad and we organized an evening motorcycle ride to the City of Camrose, Alberta....the evening the Canucks were brutally beaten 8-1 by the Boston Bruins.  Sure glad I was riding over watching that hockey slaughter.

Heading out to meet Brad.

Jeanette took this photo but I rode off forgetting to take the camera with me.  Our ride to Camrose - through  the back country - was quite nice. Brad and I talked about organizing our 2nd annual motorcycle ride.  Our plan is to meet in early July in Radium Hot Springs, head south through Cranbrook, BC, and into Washington State.  More on that ride later.

Deni's workplace showroom @ Top Shelf in Edmonton

Jeanette and I dropped in at Deni's workplace to see his new office and explore the brand new showroom At Top Shelf.  The company caters to large developers and custom builders in Edmonton and area.

Group shot with our son.

Highway 16 (The Yellowhead Highway) Jasper National Park entrance.

 The next day Jeanette and I were on the road for the 12 hour drive back to the west coast.

Wildlife along the route.

Traffic was relatively light.  A most pleasurable drive.

Leaving the province of Alberta and entering British Columbia.

Still a fair bit of snow to melt....and the river and lake waters are very high.

The weather was quite pleasant and we enjoyed our scenic drive back through the Rocky Mountains to our home on the coast.

Now back at home, the truck, trailer and motorcycle were in serious need of a good washing.

Almost done.

Well that pretty well paints a picture of our last few days in Edmonton and area.  We are quickly returning to our routine (and normalcy) here in Langley, BC.

Thanks for dropping by.

Playing Farmer for a Day

Grain elevator -  Star, Alberta (approx. 40 minutes east of Edmonton, Alberta)

So, what is with this story, you wonder?  Well,  I had to play farmer for a day to help my father in law haul some No. 1 wheat to the grain elevator.  Above is a photo of his grain truck parked near the exit after we dumped the load.

This is where we started.  We moved the grain auger into place.

Jeanette checks in on her dad.

They examine the quality - No. 1 wheat it is!!!

Once we had the grain auger near the granary, the wheat inspected, and the way cleared, we began the process of backing up the grain truck, adjusting the auger and setting it in place, getting shovels at the ready, and beginning the loading process.

There are easier methods to load grain but this system sure makes life easier.

The man in orange - with the shovel - is me.

With the truck loaded and the tarp secured we prepared for the one hour drive to the grain elevator.

Because my father in law no longer farms (he rents the land to other farmers nearby), he had wanted to sell the last bit of No. 1 seed wheat in one of his old granaries.  That's where I came in.  He needed someone to shovel wheat, place the auger, place the tarp and drive the truck.

Following a bite of lunch, we hopped into the truck and headed off.

I'm the driver but the boss chose to come along to provide direction and guidance.

Once arrived at the grain elevator, I jumped out of the truck, stepped into the office and immediately admitted that I was a 'newbie'.  Once the laughter had abated, two good fellas gave me the scoop on what to do.

You can see the truck in the depths of the elevator.  We're soon to dump the load.  I had to do a quick run to get this photo.

Once unloaded I drove the truck out while my father in law went to the office to collect his winnings.....ah.... I mean his cheque.  The wheat was graded and because it was 'seed wheat', he got the best price per bushel.  He was a very happy farmer that day.

 

 

With the cheque in hand, we were ready to head back to his farm.

This is quite likely the last time Jeanette's dad, John, will take a load of grain to an elevator.  At age 86, he no longer seeds or harvests his land.  It's rented now.

 Come to think of it, this is the first and, quite likely, the last time I will load, shovel and unload wheat in my lifetime.

John provides directions to leave the grain elevator and directs me to the highway of choice for the return drive back to his farm.

Nearing his farm.  I wonder if John got nervous when I held the truck steering wheel with one hand while taking this photo with the other hand.  If he was nervous it didn't show.

Just a nice country road adjoining the farm.

So, that's how I got to play farmer for one day....well....more or less for 2/3rds of one day.

I kind of wanted to say something about the sorry excuse for an NHL Hockey Game last evening but what is there to say that hasn't been said!!!!  I sure hope the Canucks come to play this Wednesday night in Boston.

Thanks for dropping by.

Back in Blogland!

Phew!.....after so many days without internet, it's nice to be 'back in blogland'.  We have been @ Jeanette's parents' place - on a farm, in the country, without internet.  Her folks are well into their late 80's and are not computer users.  I did try to find a few WiFi spots in the area but kept striking out.

Let's see now, we left off with having attended Jonathon's Duke of Edinburgh Award.  That was followed up with our attending his high school graduation ceremony.  Congratulations  Jonathon!!!  Yeah!!!

Proud Mom, Jonathon and proud Dad.

Aunt Jeanette, Jonathon and Uncle René....equally proud!

Paternal Grandmother, Anne....unbelievably proud.

So, we were all in a festive mood to celebrate Jonathon's graduation.  He's moving on to study petroleum engineering this fall.

High school friends.

700 + students graduated from Sir Winston Churchill School in Calgary, Alberta. Whoa!!!!  That's quite a large group!

With a waiting limousine, these young folks were all dressed up for the formal dinner and dance.  Nice group of friends!

From this event, we headed north to Edmonton and east to the country where Jeanette's parent's farm.   In their late 80's, this is the first year they did not seed nor will they harvest.  At age 86, father in law John has rented his land

In the farm yard.  I trailered our motorcycle for the nice weather days. 

Entrance into the farm yard.

A five hour drive north of Calgary and east of Edmonton brought us into Jeanette's parents' yard.  It is about 25 minutes north and slightly east of Vegreville, Alberta. It was here that no internet connection was possible.  For a computer user this can be problematic and lead to some type of cyber detox.  Aargh!  Seriously though, a few days without internet is not a big deal.

Beautiful back country road - north and east of Vegreville, Alberta

This area - in the Lakeland country of north eastern Alberta is dotted with beautiful country churches.  This is Szypenitz Greek Orthodox Church.  Jeanette's maternal grandparents are resting in the cemetery here.

The Szypenitz cemetery.  Beautiful grounds.

The North Saskatchewan River - looking east from the Duverney Bridge.

From Jeanette's parents' farm, it's a 45 minute drive - in this case, a motorcycle ride - to St. Paul, Alberta.  That's my home town.  I have a brother and a sister who live there.  My brother and his wife are winter snowbirds who spend their winter months in Yuma.   They were featured in a late January blog.

Another view of the river.

While Jeanette was busy with family stuff, I rode off to visit my brother.  He was busy completing their new home outdoor landscaping.  Last Friday he poured a concrete driveway on their new place.  I felt it would be a good idea if someone (me, that is) would show up to inspect and make sure everything would be done to spec.  It was!!!

New landscaping and wire fencing.

That is my brother, Bernie.  He did not know I was there or even taking this photo.

From inside the garage, I thought they were doing a pretty good job of this.

My brother is a construction engineer.  I never doubt his abilities to do anything very well.  Although retired - or kinda retired - he is always busy dabbling in some type of home improvement.

All looking great.

Working the cement with a float - followed by some brooming and a coating of chemical product that prevents the cement from drying too quickly.

Great looking lawn!!!

It is artificial grass - a high quality product that is really appealing.  It is guaranteed for 10 years.  Imagine never having to start the lawnmower! 

I was so taken by this product that I took a quick lesson from my brother on the set up and install.  I think a small piece of our back yard will have some of this turf in the near future.

Left to right - Brother Bernie, sister in law Rita, Jeanette and my sister, Paulette.

The following evening - Saturday -  we all got together for a nice dinner.  It gave us the opportunity to catch up on our respective lives.

So much more to 'show and tell' and those stories will be featured in the coming days.  Now that we are back in Edmonton, Alberta - visiting with our two children - and have access to WiFi, we'll be able to catch up  on blogs we have not been able to read and to contribute our musings for the interested and the curious.

Thanks for dropping by.