December Sunrises

This lovely sunrise occurred a couple of days before I left my rental home in Rossland - everyone can see why I loved this place! December has been a surprisingly bright month around here and in Rossland we had two weeks of clear skies and beautiful sunrises and sunsets. I'll miss it. I do plan to return to Rossland in January, living right in town, with an easy walk to "my boys". The Rosslanders are crying for snow - they got some last night, but the forecast is for warmer weather with rain beginning later today. Hope the ski resort manages to stay in the snow zone!

The Kindness of Strangers

Just back from our "family day" in Grand Forks and it really did work perfectly. The weather remained moisture-free and we had good roads for travel. My sister and her son brought my parents to a home in Grand Forks and the ADAM family and Dave and I travelled to Grand Forks to meet them at the same home. Thank you to Terry and Liz for being the "strangers" who provided us with a home. My parents were able to meet their new grandsons so we had some 4 generation pictures, a nice walk on the outskirts of Grand Forks and a chance for a Christmas visit. Terry and Liz don't know us and it was a "chance" conversation at a bridge tournament in Genelle that brought this home into our use. They are "strangers" who have no fear about welcoming anyone and are open-hearted enough to simply offer the best part of themselves. We could all learn something from the Terry and Liz type people of the world.

Misty Mornings

One advantage of living up high in the snowbelt is that we do get some good sunrises. This is one I saw from my east-facing windows last week. It's interesting to see the mist and fog down in the valley - I see Redstone Creek Valley below me (where all the rich people live adjacent to the golf course) and it's often misty. Even when I go for bridge in Warfield at 11:30, I often drive into the mist - it begins to break up around noon. If one is going to live in Rossland, learning to love shoveling is essential and enjoying walking on icy roads is another plus. Love the skies up high, however!

Roaming Around Rossland

On my many walks around Rossland, this is one of my favourite winter ornaments. It sure beats elves, dwarves and toadstools, doesn't it? The house is located at the top of a very steep hill and I hope you note the snow ready to crash off the roof. It is wise to be wary when walking in Rossland. There are so many precipitous roofs and I've often been blissfully unaware. Now that I have this big responsiblity in the stroller I am taking much better notice.

Doing Diapers

There's been a revolution in the world of diapers since I was the parent of a young baby. The ones Atley and Miro are currently wearing are featured at left. They should fit them for quite a few months because there are rows of snaps to adjust to the different sizes. (My arthritic fingers have a bit of a time with the snaps!) There is tons of padding in each diaper and they seem to work pretty well. The most brilliant part of the whole procedure is that we are simply throwing them into a diaper pail "as is" and then we put them through the rinse cycle of the washing machine to get them rinsed prior to washing them. None of this hands in the toilet business. So far it's working really well, but our two little guys are pretty young and their "number twos" are always small and runny enough to get rid of everything with ease. The boys seem to enjoy their diapers and we're not creating a mess to the moon with disposables. However, we do have laundry! Good thing that I'm the Queen of the Clothesline!

First Ski

I managed to get out cross-country skiing today at the local spot - Black Jack. It's got lots of very fine groomed trails - not everything is open yet, but the loops that I find easy to do were all open. Conditions were excellent for Nov. 20, but still encountered a few rocks here and there on the trail. After my ski, I took over the twins so A & D could get out for a couple of hours. The twins and I had a fine walk around town with light snow falling. A & D enjoyed their hike up Red Mountain and the trip down. Andrea is really excited to be out and about and given the go ahead to exercise once again! Atley was certainly ready for her to get home, however!

First Snowshoe

Today we had crystal clear skies in Rossland and Andrea and I took the boys out for their first snowshoe. We left from my rental house in Happy Valley and wandered over to the Kootenay-Columbia Trail where we planned to walk the "Back of KC" and back to Andrea's house for feeding time. We had the babes out for 35 minutes when Miro woke up and we didn't know how much further we had to walk. So it was decided to go back to my place in case he wouldn't settle again. We managed a good hour outside with them. I found that my back was a little sore carrying Atley on my chest in this nifty rig. I just need him to be on my back, however! We won't be able to try that out for a couple of months because the babes really should be able to hold up their heads (reliably) before we try it. At this point, we're thinking if we really want to work out with skis or snowshoes it's best to go single while someone stays with the boys at home or takes them out in the stroller. This is the view from my driveway at the rental home above Happy Valley.

We've Got Snow!

Today was very much like a good old prairie blizzard, but not cold enough to really qualify. Here's my car after two days of accumulation. I had a fun time walking the boys this a.m. as the stroller cover was continually getting covered in snow and I was frequently blasted as we passed many snowblowers in town. The boys would love seeing all the road graders and sanding trucks in town, but I guess that will have to wait until next year for their enjoyment. Happy ski season, all!

Graduation

Now, don't you think that these carrying bags ressemble something you'd take on a picnic or to the store to put your ice cream into to keep it cold? These are the totes we use to take the babes out in the stroller. When they fall asleep while on our walk, they can simply be brought inside without being disturbed. Brilliant, isn't it? Atley is getting long enough to come to the end of his tote bag, however, so I don't know what we do when he graduates out of it. It is a big day for graduations for these two fellows - they've gained over one kg each so they are in a whole new weight range, they have moved on from "newborn" clothing into 0 - 3 month sizes and today they both wore Bum Genius diapers and we're hoping to forget about disposables! Congratulations on your graduation, grandsons!

Joys of Grandparenting

Tonight, Dave and I really got to know all about the joys of grandparenting! We stayed for supper with A & D and for the first time were able to watch bath time! Atley enjoyed it and Miro didn't. When we left their house both boys were crying lustily and we got to walk away! Oh, the joys of grandparenting.

It's Here!

Got up this a.m. to snow falling and it kept it up all day! This is one thing I have liked about the Kootenays - winter doesn't usually start until the END of November. Not this year, or at least not at 1025m (Rossland's elevation). I didn't get to walk the babes in the stroller so we put them in their Snuglis and took them to town for groceries. I was afraid of falling the entire time! In the p.m. we turned on the kitchen fan to create white noise to put those guys to sleep (it worked!) I missed my walk with the wee ones and it's a bit depressing to think of it being winter, but I will get used to it. Now we just have to hope that it snows TONS and we can get out the skis. This is my view today with snow, cloud and mist.

Unusual Baby Gift

On Friday a guy with a big digger came over to the house and dug out this stump that was sitting in the front yard of A & D's new house. Dave had cut down a huge tree and dug down to expose the stump. Someone came to the house on Friday to visit the babies and then said he was sending a guy over with his machinery to improve the landscaping! I'd come back from walking the babies and they were sound asleep while all of this digging was going on. I couldn't help but think about how excited they would have been to see this equipment in about 2 years time! Guess we'll be there soon enough.

Heading for Old Glory

A beautiful day in southern B.C. (at least to start) and of course I forgot my camera!! The views towards Old Glory were good, although somewhat hazy in every other direction. I hiked up to Record Ridge in about an hour over an excellent trail with plenty of frost on it. The ridge walk is gorgeous with Old Glory straight ahead. Views to the south (WA state) are super. By the time I got to the split in the trail I'd pretty much decided I wasn't going to hike Old Glory - snow up top, it was windy and I really didn't bring the best gear for cold and wind. Also, I had no gaiters with me. I chose, instead, to head over to Plewman Peak and then down the Plewman Trail. Lots of variety on that one, but snow-covered for the top third of it. A really nice circuit back to the car and it took me 4 hours! Very pleased to have passed a couple of hikers on the uphill who were at least 20 years younger!! The running and pushing the stroller must be helping my fitness level.

Cinderella Complex

Friday a.m. I started my "work" by making turkey soup but I had to go outside and clean vegetables that I'd picked out of the garden on Wednesday. I did feel like the scullery maid out there - misty wet weather and scubbing in the garden! The soup turned out okay. I did a few loads of laundry (not a big chore to someone like me with a blog called The Clothesline), cleaned the bathrooms, washed floors and did a wee bit of vacuuming. The best part was taking the boys out for a long a.m. walk along Centennial Trail past the Rossland Reservoir. They slept the true sleep of babes. When I got back an unusual birthing present was given (a planned future post) and I learned that I'm feeling I have a bit of a Cinderella Complex over my new role!

Valley View

This is the view from my living room and kitchen. It's particularly good in the autumn, I hear. I really love looking out at it although the nights are "drawing in" so there's not much time to sit and ponder. Big excitement this morning as a bunch of fire trucks arrived at about 1 a.m. on the valley road below where I live - don't know any details, but I didn't see flames so figured I was safe enough!

Misty and foggy this a.m. as I head out to the babes. It can really settle into this valley I've noticed. Yesterday, had an a.m. walk with the boys (Miro crying through half of it - even running with the stroller didn't help) in mist and fog, but I'm getting my exercise heading up the steep hills of Rossland with the stroller. Not sure if I'll be able to do this when they both start weighing 10 kg. or so. Had them to see the Kiwi pediatrician and Atley (the big one) has gained half a pound. Miro is just a few ounces more and is a slower eater. He's the family "baby" as we call him. Got to yoga last night - a good work out and the walk home in the dark wasn't totally scary - I blew my whistle and had my headlamp.

Morning Sunrise

Sunrise at 6:45a.m. today was glorious. The fog that I could see below me did reach Happy Valley by 8 a.m. when I left the house. It took until 11 a.m. to start clearing in "upper" Rossland. It's day 2 of grandmothering/housekeeping and it's been fun. I do feel tired at the end of the day. The babes have enjoyed their time in the big double stroller and today I took them over to the "other" house and harvested carrots, beets and potatoes while they slept. I didn't go running today, but pushing the stroller up some of those steep inclines in Rossland makes up for it! Not sure if I'll be able to do that when they weigh 10 kg each! We've managed to dry laundry a couple of times on the new clothesline and this could be the beginning of "routine" - who knows? I had a couple of cats hanging around the stroller over at the other house and remember all the tales I heard as a child about cats and babies - is any of that true?

More Twins!

My friend Eva, Kaslo's brilliant librarian, is a fabulous gardener and she thought of Dave and I every time she saw "twins" in her garden. This gift of more twins was given to me last night. Don't you love it? Thanks, Eva and Mike!

They're Home!

The boys arrived home this afternoon. Their parents looked pretty darn good! I think the grandparents were probably feeling the most worn out. We had moved stuff from the old house to the new house and cleaned up both! What a great way to get out of a move - have twins!!! One thing I did discover is that we moved at least 7 Tickle Trunks worth of dressups so we're ready for that stage. The thumbsucker on the right in this picture is getting himself a serious blister with all the sucking he is doing on his hands. Feeding is going really well and Mum keeps looking better and better! It's a Thanksgiving to remember. Happy Thanksgiving, all!

The Room With the Other View

The twins get a good view of what keeps Trail alive - Teck! They can see the smelter from their crib, but fortunately, lots of poplar trees block out most of it. I kinda had to lean into the window to get this picture. We get a tiny glimpse of the mighty Columbia where we'll hopefully all get to go canoeing in the years ahead. I think it's good for the twins to get this view of the "real world" and I sure hope we can turn them into raging environmentalists. Let's hear it for Atley and Miro!

Room With A Literacy (?) View

Here's the view the twins got from Room one. It was really a tiny room and we were hot and somewhat uncomfortable with 2 grandpas, 2 parents, 1 grandma and the TWINS! That was day one. I hope they picked up on all the graffitti out the window because I do want these guys to be readers AND writers. The local high school is located next door to the hospital so you can see how the students spend their free time - at least all of it is "clean"! Mum and Dad got moved to a big room on Friday morning and it is way more comfortable. We now get the view of the Trail Teck smelter!! However, with the leaves on the trees, the changing colours and a peak at the Columbia River, it is actually a really nice view with west exposure. I've been showing the babes the polluted world that they will help to clean up and the river that we'll canoe in a few years.

They're Here!

Happy to announce that I am now a grandparent. Baby boys born on October 5th (the most common day for birthdays, I understand!) at 5 p.m. Today I spent a good part of the day with them both while Dad went home to sleep for awhile. Lots of fun to hold those babes and watch the differences in their personalities (yes, already!). Nothing better than holding a babe and relaxing!

Summer Screens

Dave took the screen doors off today and that always makes me feel a bit sad. I love the sound of the door slamming closed - it has such a summer sound to it. I cleaned up the gardens at the hospital grounds and brought home the pots. Today we made a quick trip out to the local nursery and picked up a couple of plants. I closed down one of the water gardens and pulled up a few more plants out of the garden that aren't producing well. We're actually ready for those grandchildren to be born .... now if only they'd get at it!

Signs of Fall

Summer took a long time to get here, but we've being enjoying summer weather now for two months. The first hints of fall have appeared - we've even had to wait until this week to start picking fruit! Today, we headed off to Monica Meadows and I realized that I hadn't been up here for two years. It's worth a trip EVERY year. Fall is the best time. The larches haven't turned at all in the valley but up here, everything is golden. We travelled over some bits of icy trail and it was coolish, but a perfect day to hike in the alpine. The view here is of the Horseshoe Glacier from the larch laden slopes of Monica Meadows.

It Takes A Village!

The library has been moving back to our "old" location in the 1898 City Hall building. The renos included the installation of a sprinkler system (won't that be good for a library if it goes off unnecessarily?), a geothermal heating system, new wiring, and a somewhat raised ceiling. We started the work last Friday by having a cleaning crew come in to wash all the shelving, clean the bathroom (a new one), and to start putting things away. Last weekend, volunteer crews came in to pack books at the temporary location. That went so well that Monday we were able to cancel the work party. Tuesday, the grade 7 class helped us move our things from their storage location (this was half of our collection, packed into boxes since January) and they did a superb job. Everything was placed into our permanent location and it was colour-coded for location. Wednesday and Thursday, we had volunteers shelving materials from all the boxes. We all worked like stink. It got done. Saturday we plan to be open! Let's hope that the internet gods and goddesses continue to bless us. Our librarian, Eva, is a master of moves!

Fall Planting

We had rain in the forecast so yesterday I got busy in the garden and planted the garlic. We doubled the amount we planted this year. Garlic was a super crop for us this year, but I know it won't "see us through" until next season. I also got a few shrubs planted that were generously given to me by my sister in Summerland. Guess what? It didn't rain!

Yahoos and Moonlight

Monday was the full moon and we had a calm and quiet Kootenay Lake that afternoon. We decided to go "out" for supper and headed across the lake to Powder Falls with all the fixings for a wiener roast and a few beer. Luckily for us, someone just pulled out of the area before we arrived. We had a very nice couple of hours and then headed out at 7 p.m. It's now getting dark at 8 p.m. so we went for a short paddle south on the lake before heading across. It was absolutely magnificent with the reflections. Unfortunately, we had a constant humming in the background as a couple of yahoos followed us and were attempting to come close, but would veer off and head back towards Kaslo. This behaviour was repeated 3 times. As we got close to Garland Bay (directly across from our place), they seem to have given up their hollering and following and we made the sprint for the 30 minute canoe paddle across the lake. The full moon appeared and it was all good! Those moons bring out the madness in all of us.

Go Figure

We just came back from a short trip Stateside while this gorgeous summer weather continues. We understand that America is broke. The day after Labour Day it appears that camping in the national forests of two states has become free! In Washington, we were able to get free trail guides and maps of Colville National Forest. In Idaho, conditions were much the same, although we didn't obtain free literature. Its should be reassuring to see that things haven't changed a bit - "everything's free in America" - but we all know that it isn't true.

We did enjoy the great weather, some nice biking along Sullivan Lake and a new trail into Copper Falls, ID about 1.6 km south of the border. We also enjoyed cheaper prices on many things. I'll confess that my first items of purchase were beer, taco chips and salsa. We loved going out for lunch for less than $30.00 and that includes beer, tax and tip. On our return into Canada, the customs agent asked us how long we'd been in the U.S., if we had any alcohol or tobacco on board, and then said she had to deal with a wasp and waved us on. Free camping and fearful customs officers - go figure!

Hiking 2011: Healy Creek area

The "Sunday" hikers were out on Labour Day yesterday in a new area for me. It's located off "highway" 31 (a gravel road) near Gerrard. It took about 2.5 hours to get to the hiking area from Kaslo and we only walked for about 5 hours so it wasn't the most efficient use of our time. However, the views were amazing! We first walked toward a saddle and had really good views out to the Badshot Range. I wasn't willing to walk to the second saddle (too much gray rock and snow in bright sunshine), so some of us headed back to walk the opposite direction where green alpine slopes gave us views of the Healy Creek Valley. We also had a chance to spot a couple of the spires of the Bugaboos way off in the distance. We're still into full on summer here in the Koots so it was a great day for 14 keen hikers. A bonus for us on the way home was a mother grizzly with 2 cubs (her twins!) crossing highway 31 - beautiful silver-hair on all 3 of them. Mum was very relaxed about us and re-crossed the road, watching the truck all the time before disappearing into the brush with the babes. They were probably going to take a dip in the Lardeau River.

Pulling Up Stakes

I emptied the garden of pea stakes this p.m. and it was with some regret. We had wonderful peas this year and they just kept on producing until about a week ago. However, I have to recognize that we put the stakes up about a day after the snow left the garden and I planted the peas on March 28th, the day before we left to catch our flight to Britain. Five months of support ain't bad! A weird thing that happened this year was that the sweet pea seed that I purchased (mixed variety) came up with only TWO colours - light and dark purple, so I just wasn't getting my usual fix with sweet peas. I do have another small trellis with sweet peas where I can get my daily sniff for the month of September. I always feel that the pea stakes are the beginning and the end of garden season, but we've still got a long way to go before there are ripe tomatoes. The squash are maturing and getting bigger. There are a few ripening tomatoes. Green pepper is doing well and I've tried leeks for the first time this year and it looks like a good year for leek and potato soup.

Summer Bears

I actually took this picture a month ago but haven't had time to blog much these days. The picture was taken around 7:45 a.m. - I'd come around the corner from doing my usual garden work and saw that we had a bear in the yard. He was right beside our fence (electric wire and all), but scooted up a tree as soon as he saw me. I know that he made his entry over the driveway gate; we have no electric wire there. I left for Kaslo for a couple of hours and when I came back the bear was still in the tree! He(She?) didn't leave until 11:30 when it finally decided to come down. I stood on the deck with my pots and pans to make sure it went down OUTSIDE the fence. He certainly took off quickly. Between my pots and pans and the guys who are house building across the road, I haven't seen much of him since. Because the snow took so long to leave the high alpine most of our valley bears have just stuck around all summer and are hanging about everyone's gardens. Now that the fruit is ripening I'm sure we'll see more of this guy.

Mission Accomplished in 2011

Last Sunday we decided to take a quick trip over to the east side of Earl Grey Pass and actually see the scenery that we missed last fall while doing the trail over 4 rainy days. Here is Mt. Hamill and its glacier, one of the spectacular sights that we missed! Our trip was planned very last minute and we didn't get to the trailhead until nearly 5 p.m. on Sunday. Two hours of rapid hiking brought up to our planned campsite. The next day we were on the trail by 7:30 a.m. and had a hot day with splendid weather for peak viewing. It took us nearly 4 hours to climb to the pass and by the time we got back to "teepee" camp we were pretty much totally wasted. It was well worth the effort, however, and I've now seen the beautiful mountains of the east and west Purcells along Earl Grey Pass.

Games Over!

Sue and I finished out of the medals in the C section of our competition, but did manage a 4th place (in C section) and ended up as the top finisher from our Zone, which was Zone 6, representing Trail/Nelson/Castlegar area. After the first two rounds we were doing well and held our own through the third session on Friday a.m. Friday p.m. was a very tough round and we dropped rapidly. This morning we had a very competetive game and played quite well. I wore my Queen and Jack of Spades earrings and with Sue staring at those she had great card luck. We bid and made one slam and had a couple of other great bids. It wasn't enough to place us in the medals. I was pleased that the day I got good cards and played as declarer 9 times we had a good score. In the end, we finished 10/29 so we were fairly pleased. It was a fun event and we didn't complain at all about being immersed in cards inside a school on these brilliant sunny days. Next time, I hope the venue is a lakeside open deck!

All the Excitement!

I know that you're all waiting with bated breath to hear the results from the B.C. Seniors Games! We had our first day of bridge competition and had a rather ho-hum start in the a.m., coming in about 8th out of 13 teams sitting East/West. In the p.m. we managed to get a 2nd place so I think we're doing okay so far. We compete again tomorrow and than on Saturday a.m. Sue and I are enjoying playing teams from different parts of the province and we just LOVE playing this game!

Hiking 2011: Alps Alturas

This hike is one of my favourites in the Koots and we had perfect weather for it today. Ten hikers left Kaslo at 7:30 a.m. and we were "high" by 9:30. The hike only took us 2 hours; most of us declined to traverse the snow slopes which were on a pretty big incline and we didn't want to face the consequences of a fall. I had a few moments of panic, when one person in our party who did decide to go over the snow, lost his balance and did slide down a slope. Fortunately, he stopped before the rocks below! The alpine flowers were nice, although not spectacular - some lupine, paintbrush, arnica and valerian adorned the slopes to the south, but it is really just the start of the season. The west-facing slopes had plenty of aneome that was just finishing, decorated with buttercup and hellebore. It was perfect hiking weather in the high country and several of the party enjoyed a dip in Slocan Lake before returning home.

Hiking 2011: Finally!!

We got out for our first "high" hike on Monday, August 1st. All the roads have been so filled with snow (as well as the trails) so it's been a very, very late season. Lots of places are still impassable. However, on provincial day, August 1st, the "Sunday Hikers" left for the small community of Procter, half way between Kaslo and Nelson, and then took a forest service road up to its end. We then hiked to a ridge where we still experienced pretty limited views. The picture here is looking towards Kokanne Glacier. I found the trail to be pretty steep, but manageable. It was a good trail considering it gets pretty limited use. There were over 60 deadfalls, however! Great to finally have hiking weather.

Britain 2011: Scottish Parliament

The Scottish Parliament buildings are a lovely sight and it's pretty easy to get in to look around - we did have to pass through security, but after that it was pretty much as welcoming as the New Mexico legislature - in other words there were people around to answer questions and try to explain the voting procedures. I didn't pay too much attention to all the details about the electoral process. The Scottish National Party won the bulk of the seats in the May 5th election and we'll see what that holds for Scotland's future. To me, Scotland looked as if was doing very well economically - like Canada, its a resource-rich nation and the oil drillers were at work in the North Sea. The Kintyre Peninsula looked an awful lot like B.C. - full of cutblocks, only ours offer better skiing. If you go to Edinburgh, visit the Scottish Parliament - it's got a lovely view of Arthur's Seat and is across the street from Holyrood Palace.

Britain 2011: The Election

While in the UK, there were general elections in both Wales and Scotland and the voters throughout England had a chance to vote on an alternative voting procedure that was, unfortunately, soundly defeated. We saw lots of charming signs everywhere in England and this one was my favourite electoral sign. It says it all, doesn't it?

Britain 2011: The Clotheslines

When I lived in Britain in 2003, I loved watching all the clotheslines from the top of a double decker bus. On this trip, I got to observe them on oh so many walks and as we drove in our small car. Even though this isn't the greatest picture, it was my favourite "clothesline" picture from our trip - it was taken in Stromness on the Orkney Islands on a very windy day. I'd managed to peg out my own clothes across the way in Thirsk and they dried in an hour. I was doubtful that the clothes pegs would hold the items any longer than that. It was a great way to celebrate a Royal Wedding - doing the laundry and pegging out clothes in a strong Scottish breeze.

Sumer 2011: Myra Canyon

Last week we went to visit the Myra Canyon, just south of Kelowna, and famed for its old rail line and numerous trestles. This is a picture of the canyon - the burn that hit the area in 2003 has made the views really good, but there are a lot of black trees still standing. A total of 18 (?) trestles create accessibility to the canyon area. The bike/hike is 11 km each way and is level. A lot of the trestles are really high but I didn't find that I got vertigo going over any of them. We were lucky that we didn't get wet - the weather has been distinctly bad in the Southern Interior this month. We did 3 bike rides - this shortish one through the Myra Canyon, 26 km from Kettle River Provincial Park to Midway along the old Kettle Valley Railway, and 30 km from Paulson Bridge to Christina Lake along the old Columbia/Western Railway. Each area had unique qualities - highly recommended!

Britain 2011: Readers

One thing that I did notice in Britain - there just seemed to be more "traditional" readers than what we see in Canada - by this I mean people who are reading an actual book. I captured this picture of lunch hour readers in Edinburgh. Don't you love the yellow boots? I noticed book readers on the tube, waiting in line ups at stores, walking through busy stations - public reading in the UK still seems to be a bit of the norm and this is becoming a very rare sight over here in North America.