The first raised bed that we prepared and planted full of "spring greens" has done very well and it's been such fun watching it grow and eating delicious salads. The germination on the beets wasn't quite what I expected but they are ready to be thinned and I hope to get some good-sized beets in a couple of months. Spinach is doing so well and that will be the mainstay of our meals for the next week. Happy salad eating, everyone!
I completed this stocking a couple of weeks ago and was pretty pleased with how it turned out. I wasn't pleased with the first one that I did for my granddaughter. I'm actually knitting a similar stocking to this one and going to let her take her pick in a couple of months when she comes to visit. These are the really old Mary Maxim knitting patterns that a few of the Kaslo knitters still have kicking around. I can't find any of my old patterns. Since gardening has taken over my life for the month of May, it will be a long time before I get to Miro's stocking. Good thing I've still got 6.5 months to go! What an honour to be asked to make Christmas stockings!
Last week was the week that I needed to have "At Home and In the Garden", but it simply didn't get done. In September of 2012 when we celebrated my parents' 70ieth wedding anniversary (yes, it really was 70 and this is not a typo) they honoured all of their kids and grandkids with a package of 70 bulbs. Mine came up beautifully and last week was the peak of their achievement. It was hot and sunny all of last week so it was a quick display. However, those of you on FB can see a good number of them here. Thanks, Mum and Dad for this fine gift!
We had 3 campsites on the Kootenay River and this is the picture that I took that turned out the best. Each campsite was lovely in its own way, but this one had such a beautiful evening sky. We're just south of Wasa on the Kootenay River (before entering Bummer's Flats). Three of us enjoyed a quick swim in the river (yes, it was frigid) and we all enjoyed campfire singing and great food. I like these cooperative trips where each party prepares an evening meal and it is shared by all. It's very meditative to paddle down a calm river. It was exciting to paddle down the more vigorous parts of the water. A great experience for me. Thanks, canoeing campanions. 
We selected 4 perfect May days to do our paddle on the Kootenay River from Canal Flats to Wardner. The first day was basically a "get there and shuttle vehicles", but we did manage a couple of hours on the river. The first 5 hours of the paddle were definitely the most interesting - the river is fairly quick without any major rapids or anything too scary. I was surprised that it did take nearly 5 hours to get to Skokumchuk (location of a pulp mill). After the mill, the river slowed down considerably and we had a pleasant paddle for several hours. The slow part was Sunday where we paddled through the aptly named Bummer's Flats. It was HOT! Reaching Fort Steele and the junction with the St. Mary's River was great - speed increased and we found a terrific camp spot on the river with a grand view of The Steeples against a true blue sky. 