accomplices, how it is, and hopeful

1 An early morning run with the birds, one cat and a few barking dogs.
2 There's no need to over react. Things just play out as they will.
3 Today I'm doing a bit of running around but it's all for a good cause. Fingers are crossed that the kids house will sell and things will go smoothly for the purchase of their new place in the Okanagan.

monday monday monday

1 Summer weather means warm breezes, floating clouds and ice cream cones.
2 We make small talk fun and romantic. He's going to be gone for much longer now and probably after August back to camp, meantime we make the best of it.
3 Our well water is cold, tasty and plentiful.

sea life

early risers, back to sleep, and home soon perhaps

1 We're all fairly alert considering we are up at 4 am so we can arrive an hour before their 6 am flight. They check in and are sent directly to security and with a quick wave goodbye, they're gone.
2 I crawl back into bed as soon as I'm home and sleep another four hours. Oh did I need that.
3 Mr P  tells me that they are considering sending him home on Tuesday. His plans change daily so for today we'll enjoy this thought.

plans, fretting, pizza choice, and whoa

1 Nick and Sara are headed to the interior to spend time with the other side of his family. A week at a remote cabin on a lake then a week with his brothers family. Those little ones are eager to see their aunt and uncle.  After that they're back here with us for a few more weeks with us and possible a couple of families from China who may be coming to the island on vacation.
1a She's apprehensive about spending so much time without her connection to China or her cell but this could be a nice relaxing break.
2 She says that her favourite pizza joint is still Pizza Hut. It must be the stuffed crust and all the meat!
3 A shocker of an ending on the last episode of Game of Thrones. It caught me off guard and I even had a few tears. Strange, I rarely cry watching films. Must be my sensitive side <laughing out loud>

Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday

1 Sometimes words can't say what the heart feels. I love having both my sons near xo
2 Sara and I take a trip to the waterfront while Nick works out at the gym. She's intrigued by the sailboats, seaplanes and the lack of people. In China there are fees to enter any parks or waterfronts and would be packed with people. Here it's open spaces, fewer people, clean air and blue skies.
3 There are no dyers in China. Washing machines yes, but no dryers so Sara does laundry multiple times a day. She says that Bounce dryer sheets smell like Canada
4 He likes to have long showers where he lies in a few inches of water in  bath and lets the droplets hit his body. Water massage.
5 Time to get the yard watered and cleaned up
6 The heat comes to the island so we head to the water.

Thursday through Monday

Holy, time has certainly flown by with the kids visiting us from China. Here's a few of the highlights.
1 Mr P flew out this morning. He will be home in a few weeks this time we hope for a good long time.
2 We head to the beach again and this time the tide is not kind to us. All the shells and sand dollars are hidden under water and the wind whips our faces but we take pictures and act very silly anyways.
3 The cat loves Sara and constantly climbs on the desk surprising her. Soon enough though our little cat is on her lap and quite at home there. It's amusing to watch cats pursue people who try to ignore them isn't it?!
4 They are shopping til they are dropping but it's all fun because they are buying small gifts, books and trinkets for their students. I'm imagining their little faces beaming with joy when they receive their items.
5 The Kelowna kids are busy with house hunting. Soon enough they will be in a new home and putting down roots.
6 There is hope for more editing jobs from the University where the kids once worked. I love editing. I think it's the instant or fairly instant gratification of making something better than good.
7 We create a list of things to do on the whiteboard and strangely enough it seems to be growing instead of shrinking! So nice to have a wide selection of things to do every day.
8  It's fun to try to show them or do new things every day. Sara is posting photos on her chinese chat program and is enjoying the feedback.
9 They sit in the back seat and I drive them around like a limo driver. Now that was fun!
10 A trip to Rathtrevor Beach and then ice cream in Coombs again!!! This time the favourite flavour by far is Root Beer Float.
11 We return to the beach we went to with MrP and it's sand dollar heaven! She fills a shopping bag with tons of them and will hopefully have them dried out enough to take back to China.

12 A work day with no one there but me means I can focus on my project and even though some other work was difficult to figure out with no one there to help me, eventually I figure it out.
13 A yacht is docked at the at marina and it is beyond huge. It is in the slip and takes up enough space for 10 or 12 regular sized yachts.
14 We walk along the seawall tonight enjoying the warm summer weather and the cool breeze from the sea. Nick enjoys a good workout at the gym!
15 Sara cooks authentic Chinese dishes for us for dinner tonight. Beef and green peppers, a tofu dish, steak and dumplings with pork and garlic. Deliciousness in every bite.

leaving, celebrating, and looking up

1 It's another busy today for the household today. Mr P is headed to work for a couple of weeks so he's getting it all organized to fly out tomorrow.

2 Sara has a birthday tomorrow but we celebrate today with a rock climbing adventure followed by a patio dinner where Nick surprises her with a new camera!

3 It is time for star gazing in the hot tub....yes!

heart, ice head?, and green

1 Two of my favourite people. Best fun!

2 The ice cream shop is a big hit. She has a double cone which ends up being three scoops (cream soda, rainbow and wet paint) and his single cone has two (raspberry and cookie dough)! 

3 The little boy has a chin that's green from his ice cream. His dad tells him he's got a leprechaun chin!

pay me, what they did, and sleepy time

1 Monday brings with it a work day! Yuck to work, yay to pay!
2 The kids spend the day doing various things. Nick heads to the gym and then buses it home while Sara lounges and sends me texts that say she's snacking too much and is a little intimidated with being alone. She's used to having people around all the time and our little piece of rural life is a bit frightening for her.
3 A good meal followed by a soak in the hot tub and soon we are all in our beds sleeping it off.

breakfast, beach, and heron

1 He's decided to eat a different kind of sugary cereal each morning. In China it just doesn't taste the same he says. It's hilarious to see the line up of cereal boxes on the counter.
2 The beach calls to us and we head down to explore low tide. As expected it is low and a lot of people are taking advantage of the warm sunny Sunday.

3 The heron let's me approach very closely and the camera lens does not disappoint.

arrival, what it means, and luxurious digs

1 The kids arrive from Hangzhou the same day they left. Their flight comes from Shanghai to Korea, then on to Vancouver followed by a bus ride to the ferry then over to the island to us.
2 Our hug is long and meaningful. I wish it would last forever. In my heart it does.
3 The night ends with two very very tired people falling into bed and literally moaning out loud at the luxury of their bed.

six

1 The mosquitoes and noseeums are feasting on us. We find solace inside and vow to kill every last one of them.
2 The greenhouse is replanted with more lettuce and the cucumbers and tomatoes are ripening nicely. It's all going according to the plan.
3 We take a short 3k walk early enough to avoid the heat.
4 He likes playing risk and rarely loses but when he does he rants about losing to a computer then smiles as he realizes what he's just said.
5 The blinds are up and there are just two panels to put up on the patio doors. Light brown sheers will do the trick quite nicely.
6 They are on their way. She texts me to let us know they're changing planes in Korea and will be landing tomorrow around noon. She sounds very excited.

walkers, take your time, and success!

1 The walking group heads to Cable Bay Trail for a walk down to Dodd's Narrows. We see little wildlife along the way and it's unusually quiet. Perhaps that's because of the warm temperature and high humidity.
1a The hues of blue are shades of awe to me.







2 This creature was trying desperately to make it to the other side of the trail unscathed. As far as we know he/she made it.
3 She has some trouble on the way back and doesn't want to slow the group by taking breaks. I walk with her and encourage her to take her time. It really doesn't matter how fast each person goes, it just matters that we go, try and are proud of what we can do.

whoosh, songs, and cooling off

1 Another hot and humid day on the island but we are blessed to have a patio that is almost always in the shade and includes a view of the bird feeders, trees and our gardens.
2 The wind chimes suddenly play a light sound as a cooler breeze wisps its way through the trees. The birds don't even notice and soon the sound waves are a collaboration between the birds, bees, squirrels and the chimes.
3 Kosha is black and white so the heat is tougher for the old gal. She finds it coolest to stretch out on the concrete under our patio table. She is most grateful for fresh cool water and dips her entire face into the bowl.

happy bday canada, favourite, and sweet tooth

1 Happy Canada Day! We didn't go out, just puttered about and got tons of stuff done.
2 Day lilies especially these in a rich yellowy orange hue.
3 I have a craving for chocolate cake with thick gooey icing but nope we got nothing like that here so after a bit of digging about a bag of chocolate covered blueberries is found. mmmm