I'm Still Here

I still can't figure out where my pictures have gone, and I have alot more to blog about. For now, I have been busy painting the kitchen. Pictures will follow. We have had three snowfalls so far, all in October. I am told this is unusual weather. I don't know. There has been ALOT of unusual weather since I moved here a year ago!!!

My New Profile Picture

Don't you just love this beautiful shot? We were in a canoe ~~ and I can't remember the name of the lake ~~ and we were blessed to see this scenery every day!!! So much of Canada looks like this. It is peaceful and lovely, Heavenly Father has created so much beauty for our enjoyment.

I Can Can, and I'm Not Talking Dancing

After about five years, I decided to do some canning this year. Calvin brought home five bags of apples (my apologies to the person who may have put two bags aside, but that Calvin took also)
from work, so I got busy! I tried a new recipe and method to make apple butter, which involved using a crockpot. It took alot longer than my usual oven method, but it still made the house smell good and netted 9 pints of apple butter.
And here are the 18 quarts of applesauce that I also canned! I even got a great deal on the jars and lids at a little secondhand shop here in town. Instead of paying almost $10 for new jars, I paid $3.60 for a dozen. Woohoo! Can't wait to get my canning supplies moved up here from PA.

Elder Moss

I would love to put a picture of my son on here, but I am having some difficulty with finding my pictures in my computer.

So, I will just say that my youngest son, Taylor (Elder Moss, I should say) entered the Provo MTC today, where he will receive training for three weeks and then travel to the Idaho Boise Mission for the other 101 weeks of his mission!!

He has come a long way in the past year, resulting in a greater understanding of the Atonement, repentance and forgiveness, and what it means to have a change of heart. His whole demeanor and countenance reflect the light of the gospel now.

If any of you who know him would like to keep in touch, his address in the MTC is:

Elder Taylor R. Moss
Idaho Boise Mission
Provo MTC
2005 N. 900 E.
Provo, UT 84604

After September 9th, send mail to:

Elder Taylor R. Moss
Idaho Boise Mission
1111 S. Cole Road
Boise, ID 83709-1869 I'm sure he would love to hear from you!!

WANDERING AROUND NORTH AMERICA

For the past five-plus weeks, I have been busy. I traveled back to Pennsylvania with my mother and spent almost four weeks there, helping her get settled in a retirement home, Country Meadows. I also visited with family and friends, doing numerous things which will be a few of my upcoming blogs.

I flew back to Canada and spent another week driving hither and yon to meet a few more of Calvin's sisters and see even more of the beautiful scenery that is Canada. Posts and pictures to follow.

THE MISSION CALL COMETH

After much waiting ~~and then receiving his call on Friday while he was on his way with the Single Adults to Palmyra, NY and having to wait until Saturday night to open ~~ Taylor, youngest of my four sons, will be serving a two-year mission in the Idaho Boise Mission!! He reports to the MTC on August 19th to begin this chapter of his life. OK, so there were plenty of
spud, potato and the RM movie jokes to go around..... I'm proud of him and he will serve the Lord and the people of Idaho wonderfully.

My Garden One Week Later!

Here is my garden, one week later. Strawberries on the left (see the ONE red berry), followed by two rows of carrots, not up yet. Four rows of green beans, tomatoes, lettuce (not up), a cute row of radishes, ending with onions. It's time to add the Miracle Gro!

Frost Warning -- Blessing Under Cover

These are pictures of my garden a week ago when we had frost warnings -- on June 7th and 8th!! And on June 5th we had two inches of snow overnight!! So we had to protect our little strawberries, beans and tomatoes with garbage bags and overturned pots. I had been wondering why my seeds had not yet popped through the earth, and then we got the frost warnings. A day or two later, everything started to come up and then I understood why my garden had remained dormant.... to protect it from freezing. When Heavenly Father says to pray over your fields and crops, He will truly bless you if you do it.

THE BIG 5-0

Half a century!! I can't believe it!! June 3rd marked my 50th birthday. Calvin took off work and we went out for the day..... I will post some pictures and tell you all about it when I can figure out how to download onto my computer..

The Frank Slide

Two hours away just across the border into British Columbia is the Frank Slide. You will see the pictures from the bottom to the top (as I am techno-challenged about remembering the order to put my pix in here).

On April 23, 1903, there was a landslide early in the morning which sent tons of rock onto the small town of Frank down below. 97 people were killed and there was only one survivor, a young baby that the rescuers named Frankie. Piles of rock covered the town, the railroad tracks and the valley. Tons of rubble was moved in order to restore the railway and to build the highway travelling west into British Columbia, but so much remains and it is amazing to see. These pictures don't do it justice. I was standing on a platform and beyond the layer of rock is a depression down to the highway which you cannot see. We are about two miles from the actual mountain where I took these pictures.

Victoria Day

A day late for the holiday, nonetheless. It was celebrated yesterday. Victoria Day is celebrated in Canada on the Monday before the 25th of May. Officially, she was born May 24, 1819. Victoria Day became an established holiday in 1901. Victoria was the Queen of England. Most Canadians probably can't tell you what is celebrated on this day, they just know it makes for a "long weekend".

The youth in our ward will put a Canadian flag in your yard on this holiday~~ and Canada Day (July 1) and Remembrance Day (November 11) for $40. It is their fundraiser for girls camp and scout camp. The other wards in town also exhibit flags, so there were alot of flags yesterday!!
I prefer to buy and fly my own Canadian flag (which I have not yet done.) But you can bet my American flag will be waving next Monday for Memorial Day!!

Dinner in a Watertower

We recently had dinner at Ric's Grill, a restaurant inside a renovated water tower in Lethbridge. I use the tower as a landmark to get around town. Others use it as a billboard. You enter at the base and take an elevator to either the bar level or the restaurant. Above the billboards is a walkway that is open during the summer months from the bar. It was closed during our visit.
This is just a view from underneath.

This place was so cool that I took a picture of the washroom (restroom). The sinkbowls rest on the countertop and the whole room had the loveliest tile and beautiful lamps and recessed mirrors.

Here we are (look closely in the darkness on the left of the picture) but you can see the view outside much better. I searched for Canadian flags and found six on the various buildings below.

One more picture of the view from the restaurant. The meal was great! It was a bit pricey, but we used a gift certificate given to us at Christmas by Calvin's daughter, Nadine and her husband, Sheldon. Thanks ~~ it was a wonderful date!!

My Curtains!!

Here are my finished bedroom curtains!! I've had the fabric for at least ten years, and they are finally done. I didn't sew the squares together ~~ the fabric came that way. They are even at the bottom. Turned out pretty good, I think.
This picture shows more of my bedroom with the curtains. Now to hang the country border at the top of the ceiling and add a few more touches. Tomorrow I start on the curtains for the spare bedroom, which now has a blanket over the window.

Jackpot! I am a Winner!!

This week the local weatherwoman declared that she was giving away two tickets to the Neil Young concert Saturday night in Lethbridge. All you had to do was watch the weather segment on Thursday, April 23 and answer a trivia question. From the correct answers, she would pick a winner at random for the tickets.

Being old and knowing who Neil Young is, being that I am highly competitive, and most importantly that I love to win stuff for free (hey, call me cheap, it works for me), I decided to bone up on my Neil Young trivia and give it a whirl.

Her trivia question just involved finding the song title that belonged to the lyrics "some are bound for happiness, some are bound to glory" and call a special phone line. So....... to the computer I go to look up the lyrics on www.lyrics.com ~~and the song is "See The Sky About to Rain" (never heard of it but maybe he will sing it tomorrow night, eh?) So I called with my answer and phone number.

So today at noon the phone rings. Caller ID tells me it is CTV ~~ wasn't going to answer until I realized it was the TV station call letters. So Dori Rossiter (the weatherwoman) asks me if I really want to go to the concert... sure! Out of 72 entries, mine was the ONLY correct answer.
Get real. The tickets are worth $137.50 each; much more than I would ever pay, but FREE is great. Since the concert is free, we are going out for Chinese before the show. I love it when a plan comes together.

Spring Snow

Here is my quilting measure out in the backyard. It is stuck in the snow that fell onto the patio table ~~ last night. It measures 8 inches!! And 10 inches on my car. I thought spring had come. Two days ago it was in the high 70's. **Sigh**.
I hear that here in Canada there can be some doozie storms well into May.

Let's Talk Recycling

Here in Raymond and in the nearby town of Lethbridge, there is not a formal blue or green box for each home to place out with the garbage. At a local grocery store in Lethbridge is a long row of recycling bins~~ newspaper, plastic, cardboard, glass, etc. You are responsible to take items to these bins if you wish to recycle. So, in my basement I have a box for glass, one for plastic, and a bag of newspapers. When we go to town, we usually forget to take these along, so the pile gets bigger at home! But hey, I want to do my part to keep Canada beautiful.

However, as far as soda (pop) bottles and cans, these can be recycled at the Bottle Depot.

But first, let me tell you about my shopping experience. At the local store, 2-litre soda was on sale 3/$4.98. Good deal, I thought. So I picked up three and headed to the register. Total: $6.10. What? How did that happen? Enter the CRF and DEP (which can be found on the receipt. Believe me, I checked it.) On every bottle of pop there is a 25 cent deposit fee. Then the CRF, which I can only assume is the Consumer Recycling Fee, or Canadian Recycling Fee, or Crazy Rip-off Fee. Wait, I digress. This CRF fee can vary: 2 cents, 3 cents, 7 cents. I do not understand it, but it adds up. And by May 1, they will be adding a fee for the one gallon milk jugs, too.

Back to the Bottle Depot. If you save all your bottles and soda cans, you can get some money back. 5 cents for small bottles and cans (those mini kind) and 10 cents for 1 litre or more. So one day we got back about $5.00. Pay 25 cents, get back 10 cents. And please remove all the caps.

Here Comes One More Missionary!

Tonight my son, Taylor, called to tell me that he is filling out the paperwork for his mission!! How exciting for him and our whole family! He has been through alot in the past few years, and I am proud (in a righteous way) and relieved that he has turned his life around. A big thank you to his older brothers and friends who have been a wonderful example to him. I think Taylor plans to be on his way by the end of the summer. Here is a picture from when Daniel returned from his mission to Sweden last June. Taylor is behind the wheelchair. Love you, son!

Babysitting, Three Months Later

Jace, now almost six months old, came to visit us the last two nights. His parents are moving into a new apartment, so he decided to stay with us to get out of working.... He has the most adorable, kissable cheeks!!! To see what he looked like in January, you will have to go back to my post from then.

The Houston Temple!!!

What a wonderful day we had on Thursday, March 19, 2009. My daughter, Candace, and her husband, Adam Mealey, along with my beautiful granddaughters, Madelyn and Emily, were sealed together for eternity in the Houston Temple. Here are a few pictures from the day.

This is my mother, Libby, who is staying with me here in Canada. It was a long trip, but having four generations in the temple together was worth all the effort to get there.
Here's my honey, Calvin, and me.. it is not too often we are in the same picture! The grounds were so lovely (and SPRING-like). Calvin was glad to make the trip and get to know Candace's family better ~~ as well as the extended Mealey family. And there's alot of family!!

Here are the four generations of Barnett/Moss/Mealey women. Aren't we all gorgeous? Especially those pretty little girls in white. OK, you can call them angels.....

Here's the new forever family -- Candace, Emmy, Maddy and Adam!! Don't they look eternally happy?

I think this might be my absolutely favorite picture of the whole weekend. It doesn't get any better than this. How grateful I am for having temples on the earth today to unite families and bind them to us beyond the grave into eternity. I love you, Adam, Candace and girls!!!

Here We Snow Again

After being in Texas for four days and having sunshine and 85 degree temps, coming home to Canada is a bit depressing!!! All the snow melted while we were gone, but waking up Sunday morning to three inches of snow.....(sigh)... it's flurrying today and we are to get more snow this weekend. When does spring come to Canada??????

Like I Said.....

If you see my former blog, it is about paying it forward. I just finished watching the movie on cable!! I had not seen it for awhile. Wonderful! Of course, I still wish I had more than four people who even look at my blog so that some of them would respond to it....

Pay It Forward

It's like the movie, but you are actually involved!! The first five people who respond to this post will get something made by me! My choice ~~ for YOU!!! This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:
1. I make no guarantee that you will like what I make (I can only hope).
2. What I create will be just for YOU.
3. It will be done this year.
4. You have no clue what it's going to be. It could be a bookmark, Christmas ornament, baked goodie... or a complete surprise to you (and me!) Who knows?
5. MOST IMPORTANTLY, you must offer the same deal on your blog. The first five people to respond to your blog will get something made by YOU!!

OUR TOWN, PART THREE

In our continuing series showing the highlights of Raymond, Alberta, Canada we bring you ~~
The Raymond Clinic (doctor's office) and the Raymond Hospital, seeing as how we were at both of these places in the last two days. Calvin has been sick since Thursday, developing a nasty cough, sore throat, low-grade fever, aches and BIG back pain. It got worse by the day, so on Monday morning we headed to the hospital since the clinic didn't have an appointment until later in the day. We got fast, friendly, efficient service from caregivers who live in our own ward. In fact, Calvin is the home teacher for the x-ray technician and her sister did the bloodwork. The chest x-ray was clear and Calvin was told to go home and take 3 Advils every 8 hours to relieve the pain; we were in and out in less than two hours, and got the required "doctor's note" after a three-day work absence.
The picture above is the Raymond Clinic where we went on Tuesday for the doctor to fill out a form which Calvin's employer THEN stated needs completed if MORE than three days are missed.

This is the Raymond Hospital. It is on the far side of town from where we live, but is a nice facility. It also is the only place in town with a pay phone~~Calvin discovered that in September when he wanted to call me in PA. Note of interest, there are NO ATM machines anywhere to be found other than built into a bank. Sheesh!! Keeps me from spending money for sure.

This is a "Welcome to Raymond" sign near the hospital, with an old wagon in the background. I didn't even know you could come in and out of town on this road, so I definitely have no idea where it goes. But coming in, welcome to Raymond!!

Service to Others

Last night at 8:30 our doorbell rang. When I answered the door, there stood a member of our bishopric, Brother Anderson.... you know what that means. A calling for someone, and that would be me! So today I became the CTR 7 teacher. All the excited-to-be-baptized-this-year children. It will be so much fun!!

Extended Visit

After a 4+ week visit to Pennsylvania in January, I returned to Canada on February 9th ~~ and brought my mother, Libby Barnett, with me!!! She is staying with us anywhere up to six months ~~ or longer, if she chooses. We left her dog, Chuck, in the care of other family members, but Mother misses him very much. She even called him the other day!

Mother likes to stay inside where it is warm, but still goes out for her weekly hair appointment here in town. She has learned to wear her gloves when outside; handrails are cold on bare hands!

MY OWN PLAYLIST!!

Wow, I figured out how to add a playlist! Some of my faves will now automatically play when you check out my blog! Now if I can only figure out how to put a picture at the heading ~~ messed around with it some last night, but no go!! Guess my braincells can handle only so much for one day.....

OUR TOWN, PART TWO

This is one half of our church building. It is a Stake Center, and one of the largest chapel buildings in Canada. There are THREE kitchens in this building, and the gym is huge! It is as big as the York College Wolf Gymnasium was before a new one was built a few years ago. There is a second floor and a mezzanine over-looking the gym.
Okay, so this is the other half of the church building -- this is the gym side that I spoke of earlier. I don't think I have seen the whole building yet, there is so much of it.

This beautiful building is now home to the library, town hall, and the theater. It is a tripod-shaped building. By that I mean that the third wing sticks out the back and you are just seeing the other two wings. It used to be the stake center and was sold to the town for ONE DOLLAR. What wonderful architecture.. the library is on the right and the theater on the left, which seats about 200 people. There are many plays and concerts performed in our little town -- many musically-talented people reside here. From October to December, we attended at least five performances. I love this aspect of the town!! There is alot going on!

This is the new pharmacy being built, with plans to open this month. It sits right on the town square and will be the biggest store in town! The pharmacy is currently squished in a little tiny building behind this new one.

There is alot more to our town, but that will come another day. Thanks for visiting!!!

OUR TOWN ~~ RAYMOND, ALBERTA

Today you get a tour of our little town on the edge of the prairie -- Raymond, Alberta, population approximately 3,500. We live 20 minutes from the nearest 'larger' city, Lethbridge, which has two Walmarts. But in Raymond, well, see for yourself!!

This is called 'The Merc' -- on one side is the hardware store and the other side is the grocery store. More expensive than going to Lethbridge, but great for last-minute items. But it doesn't stay open very late. (I am SO used to Walmart, 24-hours.)

This is the post office where we have a box --1510-- which is located at the very bottom. I wonder if we get a higher box the longer you live there... I keep my mailbox key on my keyring, or it would be lost. In Canada, there is no mail service on Saturdays, which now the U.S. is considering to cut costs. By the way, to mail a letter from the U.S. to me (hint, hint) it costs 72 cents, while it costs me 96 cents Canadian money to mail a letter to the U.S.

This is a view driving down Main Street (also known as Broadway). The street is very wide and parking on an angle is allowed in the middle. When it snows, sand is spread instead of the salt used in the U.S.

This is Luc's Chinese Restaurant -- the only main one in town. We eat here every few weeks; they have a smorgasbord, but it doesn't begin to compare to the variety found in the States, but it is pretty good food.There is even a laundromat in town, located next to the post office. I have never seen anyone in here so I guess most people do laundry at home. There are five washers and five dryers.

Baby Makes Three!

Isn't he adorable?
Such kissable cheeks!

Talking.

That's right -- a baby in our home~~ but just for a few days. Jace, our 12-week-old grandson, stayed with us for five days while his mother, Jenna, was in the hospital with a kidney infection.

He was a delightful baby and only got up once during the night to eat. We didn't get much done around the house that week, it makes me wonder how we ever got anything done through the years that we each had seven children growing up!!! Wow -- it takes alot of energy to watch a baby. We're glad to be grandparents now; you can love them and then give them back!!

Christmas Past-- Like Last Month

It's January, and I am back in PA for a one-month visit. I brought back the frigid air with me, just so I could share it with everyone!!

Christmas in Canada was busy! We had two family gatherings this year. On December 21 we made gingerbread houses with the grandkids. I think the adults had more fun building their homes ~~ there was some intense decorating going on. It took awhile to get the houses put together because they have square graham crackers in Canada, not the rectangular ones. I borrowed some "normal" crackers from a friend who had gone to the states and bought them on her trip. Thank you, Phoebe!!!