George Washington Inn

So my Hubby and I went on a bit of an adventure this past weekend. One of our stops included a night as guests at the magnificent George Washington Inn in Port Angeles, Washington

Here I am (far right) with Janet and Dan (Inn keepers) and their daughter Elizabeth. I have been friends with them for over 31 years. How can we look so good after 31 years!

In between catching up with the latest news with Janet, I went around their Bed & Breakfast and snapped a few pictures. My apologies for the darkness ... poor camera ... and even worse photographer!

Their B&B sits on 10 lovely acres. Here is a view from our bedroom window. On one side of the B&B you have a breath-taking view of the mountains ...

and if you turn around you see the vast Pacific Ocean. Yep ... God certainly has blessed Dan and Janet abundantly with this find.

Here is the back view of George Washington Inn. I know ... it's much bigger than my house too.

And finally, I snuck into the under-construction area of the B&B. Above the basement ... above the main floor ... and even above the 2nd floor there is yet another floor that they plan to open for conferences. An architecturally beautiful area with sloped ceilings and dormer windows. Perfect for a training retreat or seminar. AND if that wasn't enough ... above that is a cupola ... from there you can see in ALL directions for miles and miles and miles.

~ * ~

Unfortunately, this photographer has a horrible fear of heights and only made it half way up the spiral staircase. Maybe one day I will share the view!

Thanks Dan & Janet for the lovely stay and fellowship!

Check out George Washington Inn at: http://www.georgewashingtoninn.com/

Tell them Lori from British Columbia sent ya!

One Year Ago Today

I can't believe it ...

It has been one year ago today that I started this blog.

Time has flown.

The sad thing is that I don't have time to do anything about it.

Life is still getting in the way.

But here we are,

my good lookin' hubby and I,

in a candid shot this summer.

~*~

One thing that I can say for sure ...

It's STILL a Wonderful Life

Painting the Poop Deck - Before

Okay, okay ... sort of an icky title for this post.

Let me say it in a more poetic broken French sort of way ...

"Painting the 'ensuite' "... yes that's much better ...

The time had come to paint this room

The colour: Benjamin Moore Caramel.

Same colour as your master bedroom.

My camera does not do it justice. It is really a lovely shade.

As a side note: Our family teases the bearer

of this foot for his insistence on

'wearing socks with sandals'

But he still remains the man of the hour

... or hours and hours ...

for all his labours of love for us

Even Johnnie-Girl got in on the action

Plain and Simple Advice

Do not anxiously hope for what is not yet to come;

~ * ~

do not vainly regret what is already past.

Goats on the Roof

Yes, Goats on the Roof .... for local yokels this means

of course ... trendy, beautiful Coombs, BC

~ * ~

Country market, delicious ice cream, local artisans,

wooden carvings, sculptures, jewelery,

and did I mention yummy ice cream?

Here's Johnnie-Girl sampling the local fare

Here is a stolen shot of a magnificent table and chairs
offered in one of the many shops

Hubby even got to try out a Harley!

Genius patiently waiting for sisters and mom

who did their share of window shopping

~ * ~

Check out Coombs when you get over to

Vancouver Island ... You will thank me later

~ * ~

A Last Visit with Tim

Ah ... Tim Horton's.

Home of the Canadian Donut and great coffee

Also the more health friendly fast-ish food

Dreamer cools off with her last (for a while) iced cap

before she returns to her final semester

in that South Carolina university

Johnnie-Girl savours her coffee ...

And then leaves her garbonzo beans !!!

She's my somewhat selective picky eater :o)

Wild Play Element Park

During the weekend of August 14 - 16th, our family went to

Vancouver Island
to celebrate my father's 80th birthday.

The whole family got together for this grand event and we had a great time.

One of the activities planned was a visit to

Wild Play Element Park
in Nanaimo. Now I didn't go ... an intense fear of heights held me back ...

but my hubby, kids and brother went for the thrill.

See the 'stairway to heaven' in the background?

To me that would even be too much of a thrill ...

but that was just the beginning for these adventurers.

A picture of Genius pondering

just how high they have actually come!

But has no trouble at all with the heights!

Dreamer pushes Genius off the platform

... in a swing

And then gets tangled in a 'spider's web'?

Now as much as I stand in awe of God's handiwork,

it's the awe-ing that I do

standing on the ground that I enjoy.

Do you see the little speck that is Johnny-Girl on the platform?

And the figure precariously perched on the wooded bridge is the Genius.

And these little clips kept them all safe ... in God's Hands of course!

Check out the videos featured on Wild Play website ....

http://www.wildplay.com/nanaimo/galleries/video-galleries.php

Dream a Little Dream

During our weekend away, my Hubby and I almost cruised by one of the most enjoyable adventures that we share together: Investigating new sub-divisions and the show homes they have on display.

Ahhhh .... Harrison Highlands ... perched atop the hillside in Agassiz, BC ... It claims to be 'The Largest River View Master Planned Community in the Fraser Valley".

The following are a few pictures of the the two show homes that we toured. The above is a large deck off of the kitchen and living room area. I love the West Coast feel of the cedar timbers used in the front window.

Take a look at the large TREE growing in this living room!



And the kitchen ... pictures don't do it justice. The back splash was unbelievable!

Nobody would complain about doing the dishes at this kitchen sink! You can see for miles and miles. Imagine the view as the seasons turn!

Back to earth girl ...

and a glance at some of God's handiwork. I'm sorry I don't know the name of these flowers, but I know that I like 'em! Hope that you are having a lovely summer too.

Weekend Away

I actually tore my Hubby away from the busyness of life and we retreated to beautiful Chilliwack and Agassiz. Such spectacular sights and relaxing moments.

We drove around without a care in the world ... we have a GPS in the car so how lost could we get? ... and explored. A new sub-division up on the hills of Harrison Mills has a look out tower. You can see for miles and miles perched up there!

A walk along the Fraser River in Hope was a breeze during low tide. When it is up the water is only about a foot or so deep along the edge, but the 'dry' river rocks were so much easier to walk on AND we were able to make our own version of the 2010 Olympic inukshuk icon. Doesn't he have such broad shoulders!

Not sure what plant has seeds like these, but I thought they were so interesting and wanted you to see them.

And last photo for today are the flags blowing at the Hope Information Centre. Notice the clouds in the background? During the weekend BC got one of it's most exciting lightening, thunder and rain storms. I unfortunately didn't get any pictures of that, but I will share more of our weekend adventures tomorrow.

It keeps on coming ....

A few days after our profitable Garage Sale of 2009

our neighbour phoned and asked if we had sold

a bicycle she had eyed at the sale.

When I assured her that we hadn't,

she was relieved and offered to buy it from us.

For the $30 we were asking!

That brought the GRAND total up to $495.80.

Just thought that you would like to share the joy!

Garage Sale Success Story

This Saturday my daughter Johnnie-Girl and I

put on a very successful garage sale.

We worked most of the day on Friday

running around the house

and out building pulling out stuff that we have

been storing for years for

no apparent reason.

It was a great time of purging

and an enlightening time for our spirit.

The key to our success ... I have to say ... was not the 'stuff'

but our signs and presentation.

Years ago a visiting pastor from Ontario gave us

a valuable piece of advice

while visiting with our family

KEEP IT SIMPLE STUPID

or KISS for short

Large cardboard signs simply need to say
YARD SALE in big black painted upper case letters.
Add a few very large arrows painted
on other pieces of cardboard
to aid in direction and these signs bring them in
from miles away every time.
Please don't get caught up with the urge to include
address, sale times, or a list of items.
Remember the KISS method.

As for item presentation ...
beg, borrow or steal lotsa tables.
We borrowed our from the church.
Most people prefer not to bend over to look
at your wares spread out on bed sheets or tarps on the ground.
Remember that garage sales are usually on hot summer days.
Tables allow customers to view at a comfortable height.
Have items arranged according to type.
One table for housewares. One for toys. One for tools etc.
I also include a table marked
25 CENTS AN ITEM.
And then mark it down to 10 cents an item at about noon.
Gets them every time.
Also put bright removable price stickers
on every single item!
I find that people are generally not bold enough to ask
how much an item is and so with that holding them back
you have lost a sale.

After all was set up
Johnnie-Girl and I simple sat back
in the shade of the house
and took in the profits.
Oh, don't forget to be friendly.
Smile, talk, joke
Enjoy yourself as perfect strangers help you to
clean out your house.
For our fun and little bit of effort
we raked in $465.80.
Not bad for a bunch of stuff we didn't really need.

Picnic in the Park

The other day the family decided that we needed to get out.

Out into the wilds of Aldergrove.

Out to Aldergrove Lake Regional Park!

We packed a lunch,

donned our sun glasses and bug spray

and off we went.

This is the first post that I have ever included

actual pictures of our family.

Looking at other blogs, I found myself most interested

in the ones with personal pics.

So may I present some of my family ...

This is a sideways (??? Computer glitch ???) shot

of the Genius.

He is keeping close watch on his last UNO card

This is the Dreamer

She wrapped herself in the yellow picnic table cloth as we

walked up the hill to a better location

And finally the youngest of the tribe.
Johnny-Girl
I tease her that she has Audrey Hepburn's
Breakfast at Tiffany's glasses

~ * ~ * ~ * ~

Okay, now it is done.
I am now officially going to add personal pics for those
who care to take a gander at my humble blog.

I hope that you are out enjoying the sun!

Sushi Supper

Sushi Time in the Summer

I have had the pleasure to go out for Sushi

TWICE in the last few weeks.

Once with my daughter the Dreamer

for our annual Sushi night out together

And then the second time with my dear Hubby.

He had NEVER had Sushi before so I sorta dared him.

I am not too daring myself, so we just had an order of

a California Roll, Dynamite Roll and a beautiful plate

of Vegetable Tempura

I made the mistake and forgot to take a picture

of the plate of Sushi when it arrived, so you have to settle

for an almost empty one.

One of the best things about a Sushi meal is the presentation.

Presentation is Everything

Hope that you have tried Sushi.

If not,

I DARE YOU