DAY 229 -WED. 08/19

We left the house at 8 a.m. and turned around to get the car instead of the truck because the temperature gage on the truck was indicating that the motor was overheating. This would have been very inconvenient since we had committed to bring Daniel's friend Katie and her mom to Alberta to visit friends. We would not all fit in the car. However, the needle started to bounce around and Jim prayed and asked God what we should do (we had already turned around) . God replied "GO" so we went. The needle on the gage soon settled down to normal and never moved from there again. We did, however, make an appointment for the truck as soon as we got home to have the thermostat changed and to flush the heating system. Jim figures the thermostat was sticking.

The rest of our trip was fairly uneventful. We had a beautiful day for travelling - all sunshine and heat.

This is the view as we leave Calgary going south on HWY 2. This is the point I feel like we are really 'on our way'......

A photo of the Alberta horizon south of Calgary.....

Cardston is the last Canadian town on the road we take. The Mormon Temple dominates the skyline of this small town.

Right outside of Cardston, we can see Mt. Piegan, which marks the border....

In all the times we have crossed the border at Carway/Mt Piegan, we have never had more than 2 vehicles in front of us. That streak was broken today when we could count 14 vehicles in front. Surprisingly, we had only a half hour wait before we were officially in the USA.

This is one of the most often photographed scenes in my photo albums........St. Mary's Lake, Montana.

We drive over 3 mountain passes before we reach Browning, MT. The trees on these mountains have suffered from the attack of the Pine Beetle. The gov't has burned the forests out in an effort to rid them of this destructive pest. In June when I was through, I was fascinated by the fact that the black tree trunks had been bleached mostly white. However, I was driving then so I could not take photos of them. I made up for it this trip.

This photo of bleached trees also includes a little mountain lake that we would not have seen if the trees had not been burned out.

The road over the passes is very narrow and winding - as evidenced by this speed sign....

I love the scenery on this drive.....

And at the end of the 9 hour trip.......our youngest son, Daniel, looking very good......

We went for supper together at the Tamarack Brewery just down the road from the base. We ate on the patio, beside a pretty creek with an interesting tree growing by it.

It was good to finally hear about Dan's experiences.....

day 228 - tuesday 08 18

Although this day was spent mostly cleaning, preparing for Daniel to come home bringing 2 guests with him, we were able to take a break from that to enjoy time with Andrew, Vinj, Kath, and Taliah. Of course, Seth was already here brightening our day.

Andrew was here for just a short time, but Vinj and Kath stayed for a little more than an hour. They were on the way to Circle Square Ranch for a 'gig' tonight and tomorrow night. They will then leave from there to meet Gwanire and Mandolisto at the airport in Calgary on Thursday morning.

We worked hard to get our house in order and pack our bags for our trip to Montana.

day 227 mon 08-17-09

This morning was spent picking raspberries, then the afternoon was spent in our office - with bills, invoices, and tax information.

Later in the afternoon, we went into Wetaskiwin to pick up Seth so that Vinj and Kath could have some time to practice for their Circle Square Ranch 'gig' and also pack for said gig - as well as put the finishing cleaning touches on their home to be ready for Gwanire and Mandolisto's visit.

We had supper with Vinj and Kath before we took Seth home with us. It is always good to visit with them!

Seth decided to try to walk in Papa's boots....not too successfully, I will add.

Jim had some time to cuddle with Taliah.......

Don't be fooled by the lack of photo - I also had my cuddle time with the baby.

While Papa and Taliah were cuddling, Seth compared his foot with Papa's - maybe he wanted to know how much bigger his foot had to be in order to walk in Papa's boots. (Haha)

Taliah was a little fussy so she needed some of Papa's baby walking skills.....

Before we left town, we stopped at Safeway. Seth is still trying to say 'balloon'. When he succeeds, Papa will buy him one of the many balloons displayed in Safeway.

What a cutie.

Day 226 Sun. 08-16-09

Mike called and invited Jim to go fishing with him this afternoon. Not one to pass up the opportunity to spend a few one on one hours with one of his boys, Jim accepted. I went along to spend some time with my Daughter at her 'lake home'. This meant that I was also able to visit with Jacqueline, Victoria's mother, since they live on the same lot as Mike and Tor (actually, it is Mike and Tor who live on the same lot as Kelly and Jacqueline, but we don't need to be technical, do we?)

Tor's little brother, Luke walked around almost all day with these goggles on.....he looked so cute, I had to take a photo of him.....

Jim caught the first fish - a fairly good size, too - but the decided they should throw it back and wait for a bigger catch. Turns out, that was the biggest fish of the day. LOL They caught 3 in total, I think.....just didn't keep any of them. Lots of bites, though.

Victoria's dad, Kelly, took the rest of us out for a boat ride later in the afternoon.

Here's Kaden, singing "This Little Light of Mine". Actually, he only sings the "NO" part on the verse that says 'Hide it under a bush...oh No'. LOL

Another photo of the fishermen - taken into the sun, making it look almost like a nighttime photo......

And, here's a 'lake bird'.......

We had a fun day, a great visit, and yummy supper. We came away with full stomachs, full hearts, and Jim also came away with a sore back from sitting in the bottom of the boat for several hours.

Day 225 Saturday August 15

After sleeping late, we rushed into Wetaskiwin to attend our great-nephew's 4th birthday party.

Donovan (Donny) Johnson, son of niece Jessica had lots of people come to share his special day.

Lana arrived, wearing a special tee shirt that Kathryn had bought for her.......

Here is Donny being shy (uncharacteristically) when his mom asked him to stand on the table and tell everyone thank you.....his Daddy Brock is standing in the background.....

Donny's Mommy....our hostess, Jessica.....

The kids wore party hats......

Some of the guests.....

Michael and Janice.......

Taliah, being admired by her Great Uncle Allan and her Great Gramma......

Kaden relaxes in Donny's new chair....

Janice and her youngest, Levi.......

After the party, Mike, Tor, and Kaden met Jim and I at Smitty's for supper. After we ate, Victoria taught me how to do a Sudoku puzzle (the one on the kid's coloring page)....

Kaden sucked on a lemon and made a silly face and laughed his 'chimpmunk laugh'. This amused his Papa quite alot......

After supper, we went to church - which was being held at the Christenson's acerage. Unfortunately, it was COLD for spending the evening outside. Even more unfortunate, many folks were camping out in their yard - in TENTS.

Taliah tried out her new snowsuit...but it was too big.....

Kath kept tabs on Seth by tieing him onto her back for awhile....

An eventful day, for sure. div>

Day 224 - Friday, August 14

We had a meeting in Red Deer with our accountant so when we were done there, we stopped by at Mom and Dad's for a nice visit.


talking......

listening......

Dad's 'coffee treat' of choice......

Driving home on Hwy 2......

Paying close attention to the crazy traffic on hwy 2.....

The new racetrack near Lacombe....reminds me of Louisiana.....

The scenery near Lacombe....

Day 223 - Thursday, August 13

We slept quite late this morning....maybe we're starting to 'catch up' from lack of sleep over the weekend.

We had an appointment in Wetaskiwin this morning - well, actually closer to this afternoon....it was at 11:30 a.m about the time the first leg of Daniel's trip back to the States was beginning.

After our appointment, we went to Rob and Lana's for lunch.....Lana made a delicious quiche.

Emma and Sophia had dressed as 'samesies' today.....

Ty was happy for most of our visit.....until he decided HE wanted to eat, too.

He always sits in his high chair with his fat little toes pushing against the tray of his chair.....

so funny.

Just as we were finishing our supper, Andrew called to tell us Daniel was on face book and wanted to talk to us so we FINALLY got to chat with Dan.....we haven't heard from him since Sunday night - he was completely unaware that there had been a tsunami warning for the area he had been staying earlier this week. He will be back in the USA tomorrow night at 11:35 pm MST. It was good to chat with him.