Culture in Parksville....

The Victoria-based Starlight Pops choir did a concert in our town last weekend. Friends of ours - Robin, Sheila, Anne and Kevin were all in the choir.













There was a little quartet who sang a couple of sweet harmonies....unfortunately they ended just as I snapped this pic.











After the concert, Maggie, Ingrid, Sandy, Gladys, Sheila and Anne came back to our place for some snacks and wine.











As you can see, the 3 cats are very happy to have us home....! They were not allowed to sleep with our house sitters, so are thrilled to have their Moms back so they can sleep with us again. Here they join Daf who is watching TV.








A few days before that we helped Maggie celebrate her birthday at the Qualicum Beach Golf Club restaurant. Great food, great views, and great friends!








Maggie and Ingrid are adding a "bonus room" on their house.....going to be gorgeous with her treatment room, another bathroom and walk in closet. Now the guest room can be both that and Maggie's crafts room, and clients will have their own entrance to the treatment room above.

Show and Shine in Parksville

Every June the classic car owners put on a show and starts with a parade of all the cars right down our street. We always set up our chairs, invite some friends, and have appies and wine while we wave and cheer on all the drivers.











We had Terri, Larry, Mario, Murielle, Michele, Miki and a neighbour from the park and her Mom with us.













After the parade finished, we did supper on the barby, and sat in the sunroom on the deck to enjoy the last of a lovely day.










Murielle took this one so your trusty blogger could be in the pic. Such a fun night!

Miki's knee surgery....!

At the risk of these not showing up, I will post this anyway and hope for the best....! Miki and I came down to Victoria from Parksville to stay at Mary Lois's on the Gorge during the surgery and post surgery period. 

Off we go to the Royal Jubilee Hospital the morning of June 24!

Miki gets all changed into her very attractive new wardrobe and off she goes!

Here is her lovely private room in the brand new patient care ward...all the latest electronic and computerized bells and whistles. 

She finally arrives after surgery and is lifted onto her bed by a cow sling....not exactly as high tech as the rest of the equipment, but sure worked.

Almost there............

Whew - all settled in for the next few days. Her bed is really a marvel - she can move it every imaginable direction, open and close the blinds, operate the big screen TV mounted on the wall, call the nurse - it does everything except make coffee....! After her surgery, I stayed the night with her to monitor ice chips, help get her comfortable and do a little healing touch.......

This was my less than exciting bed for the night. Got about 2 hours sleep, but very glad to have been there.

Great views of the Sooke hills out the window and lots of great fresh air via the new heating/cooling technology that brings in constant fresh air and then thermostatically controls the temperature. 

Ingrid and Maggie drove down from Parksville to visit the patient, but before that we went with Mary Lois to  Spinnakers for a lovely lunch on the patio. 

June 27 - just 3 days after surgery, and Miki is home to Mary Lois's and roaring around the condo on her walker. She has already mastered stairs in her physio sessions at the hospital and will be doing at home exercises until we get home to Parksville and then she will do out patient physio at Trillium Lodge. Go Miki - she will be dancing again VERY soon!

Blog Frustrations - AGAIN!!!!!

Just learned that my long nhl blog did not post its pics.....here we go again. I have posted a blast on the blog forum and hopefully this will be a much shorter disaster than the last time, although I see a blog I posted a couple of weeks ago also has no pics. Grrrr.......!!! Will try to keep you posted. luv, your trusty blogger, Daf.

Friends!!!

One of the great things about being back in Parksville is to be with friends again.....and this little lady, a 14 year old rescue cat, is the newest member of the family at Ingrid and Maggie's home......and her name is Miss Maggie, if you please.










Ingrid and Maggie hosted a welcome home lunch with Sandy and Gladys....so great to see everyone again.











Sandy and Gladys's rescue dog, Kailie, also attended.













and Chiik is still enjoying snoozing on top of the bookcase at home.











One of Jason's lifelong friends, Harley, with wife Lorriane and their great dog Saba came for a couple of days visit last week.













Lorraine is a designer clothing importer and had a couple of stores in the area to service, so we had time to visit, eat, play and talk together.

More cottage time......

A better pic of the cottage on Pine Lake - that is the bunkie on the left and if you look closely, you will see the Canucks flag proudly hanging on the porch.......the playoffs were alive and well everywhere we went.










The fam used to have evening fires down by the lake, but with little ones running around, it is now safer to use the portable fire and stay on the deck.












Dan did the heavy work of chopping wood for the fire, and then once it was dark we all sat outside around the fire, toasted marshmallows and enjoyed hearing the loons off in the distance. True cottage paradise.















One day we took Gabby out for a row in the boat.











Once we were all loaded in, Miki rowed us the length of the lake, where we beached the boat and walked up to the little general store to get a treat.













We sang all the silly rowing songs.....Row, row, row your boat.....at the top of our lungs, no doubt entertaining all the cottagers around the lake.....









Then Daf rowed back down the lake and we sang all the way back, too.










Daf in mid stroke.....by the time we got about half way back down the lake we had a good blow and white caps, so it was a good workout!!











At home, Lucy and Mummy read books......













......and Lucy did one of her favourite things.....flying......(dancing)

Ontario cottage time

Carl and Alice have a dear little cottage on Pine Lake in the Haliburton area. Each time we go back to Ontario we love to join them there....very peaceful lovely place.
















Cottage is only 2 bedrooms, so Miki and I snagged the bunkie (a small building separate from the cottage with just bed, dresser and another nice view of the lake. With Dan, Carolyn and 2 grand neices in the cottage with Carl and Alice, being in the bunkie meant we could sleep in a little later.....:-)








Pine Lake is so beautiful. The cottage is on one side of the dead end road and the beach and lake on the other. Dock was not yet in, as this was only their second trip up this year.








With a long winter behind them, there was grass to mow.......go Lucy.......











.......but Carl did the main work with his newest boy-toy, this great ride on mower!!!











The lake was way too cold for swimming, so the girls had their own pool on the deck!













On the way to the cottage we stopped at the Beer store (Ontario has liquor stores and beer stores separately....go figure)...and this building had a magnificent mural on it depicting the area in all its seasons.










Here is the other side......amazing!!!!!!