100 Mile Thanksgiving Challenge

Okay...so I haven't blogged in a really long time so I guess I should make it worth while.





Mike and I have undertaken a challenge! We have decided on having a 100 mile Thanksgiving dinner this year. All food consumed must have been produced within 100 miles of our house...right down to the nitty gritty - poor Graham, no Heinz allowed.





We are off to the Wolfville farm market tomorrow to try and get things organized. I will keep you up to date on our progress on everything from salt to flour to of course, turkey!

As only my life is...

Do you ever wonder if your life is cursed?? Sometimes I do...not in a bad way but in a funny sort of sick sense of humor way.

We hosted the provincial tournament for Graham's baseball league. Watched the weather for almost two weeks and everything looked great until TS Danny decided to descend on us...here's a little article about the weekend in the paper:
http://www.novanewsnow.com/article-373405-Mosquito-A-squad-battles-opponents-weather-at-provincials.html

Aside from the weather issues, the weekend went well until the very end. The kids were sliding down the hill on their butts and one of the boys from Sydney did as they were leaving and the poor little thing broke his femur when his leg caught. He ended up having surgery at the IWK but his father says he's doing well and thankfully is expected to make a full recovery.

We had a great visit with Tracey, Kaylie and Hannah visiting from BC. My dad took the opportunity to visit all his grand kids at once and he showed up as well. It was a great surprise.

At the end of the visit, I was at mom's house with a couple of the kids. They had wanted ice cream sandwiches from the freezer downstairs...no problem you would think. Only mom's freezer had broke and everything had thawed. If you have ever seen my mother's freezer (the stand up kind) you will know just how full it is. All the meat had thawed and the blood had dripped through all the levels. Of course with all the garbage "laws" you cannot simply put the stuff in a bag, you have to open it all and put the garbage in the appropriate place - GROSS!! There was no cold coming out of the freezer so I decided to un plug it...big mistake...my hands were wet. Yes, you know where this is going...if my hair wasn't curly before it certainly would be now. I got the shock of my life! I screamed, Elysia came flying into the room to check on me...all in all, an eventful day. I cannot imagine what my mother's green bin smells like right now. I also told her she is grounded from the club pack meat section of the grocery store.

911 Again!

What is it with the men in my house and calling 911...? We have this old phone in the kitchen, Graham pressed one of the buttons on it that holds a preprogrammed number...well, guess which number is preprogrammed in...yes, that's right, 911! They called back and he answered and told them it was an accident but of course, they still have to send someone to the house to make sure he's okay. He was in a panic, so he told his sister and then I pulled in from work and he told me so we waiting for the RCMP. The officer was great, she explained that he was not in trouble that she just wanted to check on him and to tell him not to be afraid to call 911 should he need it. The drama that is my life!!

On the weekend we went to Risser's beach with the Ross family. It was the most spectacular beach day, the sun was shining, the waves were awesome, the company was great...only problem was the temperature of the water...holy freaking cold!! I have never been swimming in water that cold! It was that painful type of entry into the water, the type that goes right into the bones and takes your breath away! David Ross thinks they used to take prisoners to Risser's to throw them in as a form of punishment! Perhaps we will try warmer water elsewhere...the hint should have been the wetsuits on the lifeguards. Mike and I have decided we are no longer packing a big cooler to listen to : "can you get me this" "can you pass me that"...each person will get a cooler pack and be responsible for what they put in it (it will have to pass the mother inspection) and they will have to carry it.

Sunday was soccer. Graham has his last soccer of the year, he scored a couple of goals and had lots of fun.

Now it's back to baseball. Apparently we may be having two double headers this weekend that were not scheduled...as the lady who runs the canteen, from buying stuff to packing to loading the car to running it to unloading it, I am not thrilled!

Mike left for PEI yesterday, he is in charge of the food service for the Canada Games...good thing we are not there with him because he is full out until they get this thing going. We are heading over on the 22nd to meet him and spend a few days there.

My husband is 40!!

My husband turned 40 on Saturday...that's right, I am married to an old man!! Just kidding honey, you're still the 20 something I first met in my eyes. We had a lovely dinner out, just the two of us, we went to the Port Pub in Port Williams. Poor Mike had to work on his birthday, two wedding to cook for and another one on Sunday. I think he was feeling his 40 years last night after working all weekend. Happy Birthday!!

Busy, Busy, Busy

Okay...I have been a bad blogger, I admit it!!
No defence, could try the busy thing but it really does not take that long to do.
We've enjoyed alot of baseball. Last weekend we were in Dartmouth for a tournament. We were suppose to camp in Dartmouth on Friday night and play as well, but guess what...it rained. In fact, it poured!! Our game was delayed and we did not camp until Sat. We had a great camping trip. Sarah was able to come and keep Elysia company. They even set up the tent for us (rather than watch another game of baseball). We had all the camping players and their families to our site for a great campfire that included smores, Jiffy pop popcorn, fire crackers and mystical fire. It was a super time.
I have no problem camping and sleeping on an air mattress but I would prefer my own air mattress...nothing against my husband. But once Mike lays on the air mattress my soft squishy bed has now risen several inches and is rock hard. I wonder if they have a double air mattress but with each side having their own air baffle...hmmm....have to look into that.

A few weeks ago, Mike's family was able to visit. We had a great time, and Elysia and Graham love when they get to see their "Cape Breton" family. We had some good food and lots of great chuckles. Sheila's girls, Hannah and Kenna are getting so big and grown up.

We are off to Dartmouth for another baseball game tonight. Their is a big commitment to playing rep ball but Graham really enjoys it so it's worth it. Elysia is even getting into it, as long as I bring my camera and let her take pictures.

What are Hooters?!

Yes...that's right...my son asked "what are Hooters?" last night while I was driving the car and drinking tea...I near spit the tea onto the windshield. I could not look at Mike and Elysia and her friend, Kieran were dying laughing in the back...I didn't say a whole lot so Graham's answer was "that's okay, I'll look it up on the internet"...OMG, can you imagine the search results on that? So we had a little discussion about the restaurant and what the slang was for, we will have to keep a watch on his internet usage over the next few days.

Last night Graham played ball in the city, they won their game and did well. We have a double header on Saturday, three soccer games on Sunday and a ball game in Dartmouth on Monday...busy few days to say the least. In the middle of all that, Mike's parents, sisters, brother in law and nieces are coming for a visit. It will be nice, the kids don't often get to see their grandparents, aunts, uncle and cousins and they are quite excited for it. They are landing in the middle of our mayhem but that's just the way it is...they will come out and watch some ball on Saturday and for those of you who know Graham, know that he will be busting for a hit while they are watching. Elysia will be dragged out of bed again on Sat to work the canteen...not sure if she is loving this whole baseball experience or not.

I got myself a Credit Card...I had given up my credit card a few years ago to be "fiscally responsible"...it had not bothered me to this point. Not until my grandmother passed away and I was unable to rent a car in my name to go to her funeral. Apparently to rent a car, you must have a major credit card and it must be in the name of the person leasing the car...needless to say, the card is in the mail on it's way to me. If something happened to Mike while he was away I would have no way to get to him...

Goodbye Grandma!!

Talked to dad early this morning, my grandmother passed away. Lillian Roy lived a long good life...only the last few years had she started to "get old". I'll always have the picture of her fishing in my mind. My grandparents had cottages on Lac Gatineau in Quebec that they rented. We would go visit and swim during the summer at the lake and snowmobile in the winter. After my grandfather passed away, Grandma kept the cottage by the boathouse...and always had a line in the water and would go running down the dock if the bobble went under water...bye Grandma!! Love you!! She's somewhere now with her line in the water, waiting for a big pike to take a bite!!