Christmas Eve

We attended a Candle Light service at Keawala'i Congregational Church at Makena Beach on Maui.
There were chairs set out on the grounds for 800, but that wasn't enough and some folks stood or sat on the grass. The Church is right at the water's edge making the setting spectacular. First of all we helped decorate the Christmas Tree with fresh flowers we had brought with us. Nick and Anita George were with us and Anita introduced us around before the service. During the service a local singer, Jamie Lawrence, sang an older rendition of Amazing Grace we had never heard before. It was outstanding. Then there was an Hawaiin, Anthony Natividad, who played 2 Hawaiin "Nose Flutes"; one with each nostril! This is an ancient instrument and the sound is very haunting. This was especially true as it was being played in the evening with the old Church Grave Yard in the background. It was an awesome experience.

Oh What a Beautiful Morning

We made it safe and sound after a 1 1/2 delay getting off the ground in Vancouver. The snow was one thing, but the real issue was that as soon as the aircraft backed away from the ramp, its #2 engine wouldn't start! That was really reassuring, but they finally got it going. It meant our wait between planes in LA wasn't so long and after quick lunch we boarded the United Airlines flight and it pretty much left on time. There weren't many on this flight which meant we each had 3 seats to stretch out on and we each had a couple of good naps. We made a quick stop for some breakfast stuff at a grocery store and then found our "home" for the next month. And, here we are enjoying our first breakfast on the lanai. The temps are much like home we understand; hovering in the mid-eighties F!

High Tide

Last Friday morning the 10:30 High Tide was just a bit less than 17 feet. There had been a strong wind overnight so I went down to the Harbour to check Ken & Pat's boat to make sure it was still tied to the wharf! It was! That was a very good thing! You can see the water level is almost across the road of the boat ramp.

Lang Creek Salmon

Last Wednesday morning, November 8th, we went to the Lang Creek Salmon enhancement facility to see the volunteers at work. First of all, the creek was full of salmon in the spawning process. Pretty well all species could be seen in the creek, some of which had already spawned and died. Because the creek level had been so low up until about a week ago the fish were making a major run for it now that the rain had increased the creek level. Some of the fish are diverted into tanks inside the building where they're sorted/separated by species and male/female. While we were there, the female Coho were being taken from one of the tanks and the Roe (eggs) was taken from them after they were killed. Fisheries and Oceans Canada dictate the number of fish the Salmon Society is allowed to kill for this purpose. Once the quota for females is reached, males are "milked" of their sperm. The Roe is transported to the Paper Mill, where the hatchery is located, and fertilized with the sperm. In the spring the Fry (baby fish) will be returned to Lang Creek where the cycle will begin again.
Through this process the fish population is slowly, but surely, being increased!

Laughing Oyster Dinner

We chose Wednesday, October 25th to go for dinner to celebrate Helen's BIG birthday with Marv, Kathy, Ken & Pat. The waitress took the picture of us at the table, but didn't get us all-in. Unfortunately, Kathy was left out. We all had a great dinner and a great time. The next day, Helen & I went to Vancouver where she had a meeting all day Saturday at the Canadian Cancer Society office. We spent the rest of the weekend with Kevin, Shannon, Justin and Jared. We had another birthday dinner with them on Saturday and returned home on Monday. Now that we're both 65, we don't have to pay the Passenger Fare on the ferry if we travel Monday to Thursday! Just another of those "senior perks" for us perky seniors!

New Parlour Game for the Family

After Thanksgiving Dinner, Elizabeth introduced a game that was new to everyone. It didn't take long before everyone was involved. Well, almost everyone...! First of all a paper bag is placed on the floor after making sure the room has lots open space. In our case a small gift bag was used. The object of the game is for participants to take turns picking up the bag with their mouth while balanced on one leg and without using their hands to pick up the bag or touch down on the floor. Once everyone has been given ample opportunity to complete each stage, the successful proceed to the next level. There are no pre-determined levels with the objective being to go as low to the floor as humanly possible. To acheive this approximately 2" is cut off the top of the bag at the completion of each level. Grandson Brett was the winner with Elizabeth and Garrett running neck and neck for second place. Karley and Kelsey worked the hardest! Lots of laughs and good fun was had by all.
 
 
 
  

More Fun & Games

 
 
 
  

Happy Birthday

 
During Thanksgiving Dinner, the family took the opportunity to wish their Mom and Grandma a Happy Birthday. 

Riding With The Girls

 
 
 
 
We travelled back to Red Deer for Thanksgiving and were there for Karley and Kelsey's riding lessons. I took the opportunity to ride Karen's horse, Rocky. The facial expressions (not on the horse) pretty much tell the story. It has been a long time since I was up this high on anything, let alone a horse that actually moves. He's a beautiful animal and after some brisk trotting I was able to get him into a canter! Karley and Kelsey also now have their own horse. Her name is Bailey and she's a great little horse for them. Both girls are now taking jumps at least 2 1/2 feet. Their goal is to compete at Spruce Meadows! 

The Big Guy & His Girls

  

Another Routine Sunset

Here's a picture of our sunset this evening. We thought we'd brighten up the evening of those folks enjoying the rainy night in Edmonton!
  

Maureen & Ken's Visit

Maureen and Ken came for a visit Tuesday, September 5th and we had a great couple of days. On Wednesday we went for dinner at the Laughing Oyster Restaurant on Okeover Inlet, but visited Lund before our reservation. We snooped around the Lund harbor and took a walk on the short but interesting boardwalk to the Sunset at the End of the World Restaurant that is not in business at the moment. Could this be an opportunity? There is also a new house overlooking the harbor that is under construction. Larry spoke with the builders when he was here earlier this summer.
 
 
 
  

Kayaking

It was unanimous! The highlight of Kevin, Shannon, Justin and Jared's visit was our sea kayaking trip from Lund to the Ragged Islands. We took a guided trip with Terracentric Adventures which included some on-shore familiarization and instruction. There was another group on the trip with us; a mother and her 4 children ages 2 to 7. Kevin had one of her boys with him in a double kayak. Shannon and Justin were together and Jared and I were together. We saw lots of seals, some of which seemed to be babies that were in the process of being weaned from their mother's milk. Their cries could be heard all over the water! Including the on-shore instruction, our trip took about 4 hours and wasn't without a little excitement at the end when we were getting out of the water. I dropped my camera in the salty drink! I snatched it out immediately and a guy was there who said he happened to be a camera technician and told me to get the batteries and memory card out and dunk the camera in fresh water ASAP. I did this and then dried it thoroughly with a hair dryer. Presto, everything still works and some of the pics you see here came off the memory card. Talk about lucky and alls well that ends well!
 
 
 
  

Kayaking