156/365 The Pool

There is something very relaxing about hanging out around water. Another beautiful summer day on the prairies. 

 155/365 Mint

I see some Mojito's in my future. 

 154/365 Summer Memories

This is summer. A swim in the pool followed by supper on the deck and Root Beer Floats

 153/365 Breakaway and a Goal! 

 152/365 Summer is here! 

Emma made the design with the pool rockets and rings. 

 151/365 Pool Fun!

The boy who was terrified of the pool last year. 

 150/365 Cannon Ball

It is pool time. The weather is perfect! Our second season with our pool and we are loving it! 

The kids are too! 

 149/365 The Pool is Open

And this year Jesse is diving under the water, no longer needs his puddle jumpers and will soon be swimming in the deep end. What a huge difference from last year at this time when he would not get in the water.  This weather is amazing!! 

 148/365 When Daddy Gets Home

 147/365 Home just in time for Jesse's soccer game.

 146/365 The Garden is Planted

 145/365 Tulip

 144/365 Water

This is the water fountain in our back yard. 

 143/365 Love flying Delta ~ Back in Canada

 142/365 DFW

I am not sure I could get used to living in such a metropolis as Dallas Fort Worth. 

 141/365 

It was a busy week with lots to do so not much time for photos and I didn't bring the big camera, but Grandpa took this photo of me with two of the grand girls. So happy to have time with them. 

 140/365 So happy to see this girl!! Sunny Texas.

 139/365 Off to Texas

 138/365 New Coffee Table

After searching for a new coffee table for quite some time and not finding the right one, we threw caution to the wind and ordered a hand made, solid walnut table from a fellow on Etsy. It came from Vietnam. We couldn't be happier with this purchase. He sent photos as it was made and shipping was 1 week. Very reasonably priced too. 

 137/365 Hydrangea

First signs of life on the hydrangea

 136/365 New Live

It is very low t his year with the cold temperatures, but it is happening. 

 135/365 Yellow Rumped Warbler

The warblers are back, the trees are budding and the wind is blowing sand, dirt and dust at us at 100km/hr!!
May has been a bit of a disappointment.

 134/354 Yard Work

This is my progress so far. I am trying to clean all the brush from under the trees. I would be out there today but the winds are gusting to 90km/hr so I will just take a photo of what I should be doing. 

 133/365 Soccer

It is soccer season and boy are we seeing improvements in Jesse's soccer playing. He is showing us new moves we didn't know he had. He also seems to really get the game and some strategy this year. Still, always amusing to watch five year olds play soccer.

 132/365 Root Beer Floats

Sooooo yummy! 

 131/365 The Sun

I was face timing Isla at my painting desk since she loves to talk painting and I mentioned that I didn't have a 365 shot of the day. She suggested I take a photo of the sun but I explained that would be difficult to do. However that suggestion did inspire me to look up from my phone to notice the evening sun streaming in the window. So today's 365 is a photo of the sun inspired by Isla. 

 130/365 Celebration

 129/365 Regimental Sergeant Major

Chief Warrant Officer Mark Cortens officially assumes the appointment of Regimental Sergeant-Major of 38 Signal Regiment — one of the highest leadership appointments within a Canadian Army regiment.

 128/365 Haworthia (Zebra)

This 8 year old succulent had long outgrown its good sized pot. It not only had numerous babies, it had great, great grand babies. So today I  pulled the whole thing out of the pot and spilt it up into 5 still good sized pots (this is just one of them)..... We will see over the next month how they survived me breaking  up the clan. 

 127/365 Hello Carson

The kids find it amusing when Carson climbs the edge of the pool, comes out of the water, peeks over the edge at us and then disappears back into the water. Silly Carson. I will try to get a photo of him peeking up over the top but here he is climbing.  

 126/365 Carson

Meet Carson working at 8 feet deep. He is our pool vacuum who we truly appreciate. He cleans well even when the pool is a frigid 6 C. Lucy named him and there is no story behind his name. She just picked Carson. We find it a whole lot easier to just say "Did you put Carson in the pool?". 

He has been busy at work since yesterday and we have been too, scooping leaves and debris from a long winter. The pump is on and the main filters are also working hard. 

Now if the weather would cooperate we would be in business. 

 125/365 Happy Painter

Starting them young!

 124/365 Painting

They love to paint and I love that they love to paint. 

 123/365 Crocus

Spring is arriving! 

 122/365 Reflections on the Pool

 121/365 Frozen

It is May but the pool is adamently hanging on to its top layer of ice. Today we hit some double digit numbers so it should soon melt and we can get to cleaning out the leaves and debris. 

 120/365 Chives

Despite freezing temps and very cold single digit days, the chives is pushing thru. It knows that May arrives tomorrow! 

 119/365 Sprinter

This is a little disheartening. I guess the pool ice is not melting today.  

 118/365 Frozen in Time....for now. 

 117/365 Cribbage

One of the perks of retirement is lazy breakfasts playing cribbage. He skunked me royally! Who gets dealt four 3's or two 7's and two 8's and then a 9 gets turned up = 24 pts!!  Crazy!! He did the dishes...

 116/365 Rootbeer Float.

Soooo good! 

 115/365 Kneading

Jesse made the dough for our pizza tonight and with Mom's help, learned how to knead the bread as well. I love that Jesse loves to be in the kitchen. 

 114/365 New Growth

There are signs coming up in the back yard. As soon as we get past the next cold week, hopefully we will be in full on spring mode. 

 113/365 Lucy graduates Gymnastics

I got to watch Lucy's last day of class gymnastics demonstration and certificate award today.  She has done very well and absolutely loves gymnastics. I was going to remove that huge bruise on her knew but nope - this is a mark of hard work and courage! 

 112/365 Lunch

It was a hot one today. Temps hit 24C but I am sure it was much warmer on this south facing deck. Spent the morning on the yard again and enjoyed our first lunch on the deck this year. The snow is almost completely gone and the pool tarp will be off soon. 

 111/365 Bird Bath

Another afternoon in the back yard cleaning up, trimming and cleaning out the bird bath. The birds have returned. 

 110/365 Soon!

We were out in the yard for a few hours yesterday and will be for more today. Expect lots of yard photos. 

 109/365 Flour

Jesse turned the mixmaster on high right after adding flour. It went everywhere and was pretty funny.

 108/365 Finished

We gave Lucy this lego set for Christmas. Every time she comes over she works on it a bit....then Emma takes a bit of it apart and Lucy works on it some more. Today it is officially finished and Lucy is feeling pretty good about that. It will now take its place on the large window ledge in the basement with her other lego sets adding to her village - playground, candy store and now hospital with an elevator and helicopter with landing pad. 

I love lego! So good for the mind. 

107/365 Pease Lily (Spathiphyllum)

I was about 15 years old (almost 55 years ago) when my sister Tanis, who was very, very sick with cancer, asked me to buy a Christmas present for Mom. My Mom was her 24/7 caregiver for a few years thru her treatments and it was a very difficult time. Tanis wanted to have something special for Mom for Christmas but she was pretty much bedridden. She handed me some cash and I headed down to The Bay to find something and all I could really find in budget was this small Peace Lily.  Tanis was happy and my Mom very touched Christmas morning. Mom nurtured that plant and it grew to be a beautiful large plant that faithfully bloomed and I suppose served as a memory of the daughter she lost. That plant moved with Mom across Canada to Victoria and over the next 50 years, each of us surviving 6 siblings enjoyed pieces of it from time to time. I could never keep mine alive but I sure admired Mom's when visiting her in Victoria. 

This fall my brother arrived at our new home here in Oakbank with another piece of the original plant. This is probably a piece of a piece if a piece of the original bought in the basement of The Bay. I was nervous at first because I have killed a couple of these. However, I am no longer homeschooling 4 kids or working and I have time. Time to water it with filtered water and to carefully feed it. Time to figure out I need to keep it away from the heating vent or the cold window and protect it from my penchant to overwater. I am trying. 

And this week it bloomed!