Happy Belated Canada Day

Our Canada Day weekend was spent camping :)

Hubby packed up our trailer along with the two boys and headed out to the lake to meet his parents while L and I stayed home so that we could attend my sister's baby shower on Saturday and then join them the following day. When we arrived at the lake on Sunday they had everything set up.

The boat had been carried down to the waters edge and they had been enjoying rowing it around when the water was calm enough. It got quite windy at times creating to many waves so in between the rain showers and windy bouts they would jump into their life jackets and dash in and out :)

The kids had fun hunting for old train rails and spikes that they played with while we were there. In the past the logging companies used to bring their logs right down to the lake where they were dumped into the water. In fact quite often when we travel this way we will see the loaded trains full of logs being shuttled in and out of the forest as they still move them by train today.

Of course we couldn't have a Canada Day without any sort of fireworks! To our delight the neighbors let off a few...

and the kids had fun waving gigantic sparklers around in the dark :)

I hope you all had a great Canada Day and to all my lovely American friends I wish you a wonderful Independence Day tomorrow!

Hugs,

Rosina

Once Was Not Enough!

Well we're at it again!
Right after I shared with you photos of our trip to Loveland Bay we ran out the door to do some more camping *grin*. We made the quick pit stop home to do some laundry, shower, download the photos and off we went to another forestry campground :)

This time we made our way out to Pye Lake. It's another hidden spot about thirty minutes off road. This stretch on the logging road out to the lake winds along a rock cliff and a very steep drop off into the lake waaay below. To make it a little on the scary side it is barely wide enough for two vehicles to pass side by side let alone two truck and trailers like ours.

Unfortunately for us we met someone on it on our way home and as I looked out the passenger window and couldn't see the shoulder of the road below I was wishing desperately that I was on the rocky side rather than the cliff side *grin*.



When we arrived at the lake we couldn't believe our luck! The best spot right in front of the beach was open and there was only one other camper there. We thought for sure it was going to be busier with the long weekend going on :)

The good weather was still with us and the sun was shining good and hot so the kids got to head down to the beach for some fun.

I love this spot. There is a really nice sandy beach and it is shallow for a long way so you can wander out into the lake and not worry about any drop offs unlike some of the other spots we camp at. It definitely puts any mama worries to rest!

K found the water guns in the toy bag and a full on water fight began :)

They must have played in the water for most of the afternoon which was lucky for them as the weather turned the next day and we got a mix of cloud, wind and rainy drizzle. Not enough to make us want to go home but enough to keep them out of the water for the rest of our trip.

It has been like a mini holiday!

One whole week camping, hanging out with friends, playing in the lakes and yummy barbecued dinners, breakfasts & lunches *grin*. I don't know what day summer officially starts but I think it's happening here :)

Hugs,
Rosina

First Camping Trip of the Season

We finally got to go on our very first camping trip of the year :)
One of my good friends that we get together with quite a bit also homeschools so we thought it would be great if we could arrange to go camping together just before the long weekend this week.

So Hubby asked for a few days off about a month ago and on Monday we packed up, hooked on our travel trailer and hit the back roads. One of the perks to homeschooling is camping during the week! Gotta love getting a great campsite while everyone else is working or in school *grin*.

It must have been just about dinner time by the time we made it out to our destination, Loveland Bay. The sun was starting to set behind the mountains and we took a few laps around the campground trying to decide which spots would be the best for us. Originally we thought one of the double sites would be great but by the time we pulled our trailer in beside one of the picnic tables we realized that our friend's trailer and awning would then be right behind the backside of ours and they wouldn't have access to their picnic table because of how they have those sites set up with the tables around the perimeter. So out we pulled again and settled on two single sites side by side :) We had never been here before and since we had never camped with them before we wanted to make sure that we got a spot that they would be able to enjoy just as much as us. Plus we went a day before they were due to arrive so we had to make all of the decisions on our own :)

The kids were so excited when they could finally bail out of the truck and the first place they raced off to was the water. The wind was blowing and it was cloudy so they looked on from the water's edge hoping that maybe the next day it would be nice enough to venture in!

Oh was it nice to sit around the blazing campfire when the sun went down. Normally we head north for our first trip and it is so cold that you nearly want to sit on the fire to keep warm so this was a nice change... chilly but enjoyable with the toasty warmth :)

To our surprise the next morning was sunny and every morning after that!!

This was the view that greeted my each morning as I dragged my chair to the beach where I could sip my coffee and read a book :)

When the other children arrived on Tuesday the fun really began for the kids and the boys started making a raft.

Even though the water was chilly no one could keep out. Check out the socks! LOL

There were a few trial versions of the raft and finally they had one that they could both stand on and it didn't sink or fall apart *grin*.

Of course every raft has to have a flag so an old pair of skivvies were found and proudly hoisted up on the stick LOL. Oh my goodness was it funny to watch them!

Our friends had brought along a canoe and the youngest two couldn't get enough of it. Her husband was so great about it and took them around the lake quite a few times and I think we're definitely going to have to get one :)



It was a great week with good friends, good food and good times :) We're definitely going to have to do this again!

Happy Weekend!
Rosina

Weekending & Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day everyone!!
The kids surprised me this morning with little pencil drawn cards chock full of xoxo's and a gorgeous bouquet of flowers. Oh it smells and looks just wonderful and it was such a treat :)

I can't believe it has been a week since I was last here! Hubby was home most of the week so we did a lot of work around the yard but it also gave me a chance to take a special trip down island with just my mom. An early mother's day outing you could say :)

We ended up in Coombs which is such a fun place to visit. Every spring they open up their little garden nursery full of super healthy looking veg starters, herbs and perennials...

and there is all of the great fresh fruits and vegetables in the market along with dishes, textiles and more. We had lunch at the restaurant and then slowly made our way back up north. I can't remember the last time we had a mother daughter day without the children, just the two of us :) It was really nice.

Back on the home front our house has been getting some attention. I finally got a new storm/screen door. Yay :)

The old one had an unfortunate incident with a mad one horned goat on a rampage and by the time he was done head butting it only the frame of the door was left. Yes it's true... not a stitch of screen or glass left *grin*. I can look back on it now and have a good laugh but in the heat of the moment you can be sure I was not impressed *grin*.

We have a great re-use store located in the next town that is operated by Habitat for Humanity and people donate all sorts of used building supplies that the sell to raise funds for building new homes for those in need and that is where I finally found my new to me screen door :) Can you believe that I got it for only $20!! All it needs is the screen repaired which is super easy and all of the glass and paint is pretty much like new!

The old railing around our sundeck came down this weekend to. It was in really rough shape. Most of it was rotten and the giant juniper hedge growing around it had wound itself through many of the spaces in the boards so hubby had to bring out the big tools to rip it down. Why use a hammer when you can use a chainsaw :)

So with the deck down this is going to be the future spot of my new greenhouse :) Hubby's been working on plans, figuring out measurements for fitting in the windows and how to make it all work when it's only going to be 8 x 11 feet.

And to top it all off my dad surprised us with a whole bunch of rough cut cedar that he hand cut on his mill :) This is such a blessing! It will save us so much money and I love the skookum size of the big 2 x 6's. I'm crossing my fingers that it will be done and ready to use by the beginning of next month :)

Camping season is inching ever closer as well and every summer we have strict campfire bans here on the island which is no fun. So this year we purchased one of the new propane fire pits that have a low flame, throw off a nice bit of heat, don't spark like a normal campfire and they are allowed during the fire bans :)

Hubby wanted to try it out so we had it set up on the front porch and it really will be nice to use it this summer because sitting around an empty fire pit in the evenings while camping is just not fun!

Hope you all had a great weekend :)

Hugs,
Rosina