Showing posts with label fun afternoon. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fun afternoon. Show all posts

Monday, September 6, 2021

A Push, A Ride, Storm Chasing (or Running?) Collages

The Ridge

On Sunday, Sept. 5th we were up around 7 and Bill and I sorted the dirty clothes. I was at the Mat by 7:45 and had 2 loads in the washers when I started cleaning.  Bill called at one point and asked me to pick up a loaf of bread before coming home and M called to ask if I would throw his comforters in the big machines if he brought them into town.

The morning weather, could have hung the clothes after all

The debate, I was having in my mind, over the sky and whether I could hang the clothes out was soon moot. Since I offered to help with the bedding, I knew I’d be at the Mat long enough that I may as well dry ours too. Of course, once I put the dryer on with our clothes, the sky seemed to clear up. Figures. 😊 I left the laundromat with our folded clothes and M's comforters around 9:30, picked up bread and filled Gibbs’ outdoor water job before driving home.


we wasted no time and after lunch headed out

M had called last night and asked if we could give him a hand at the shop this morning and he had a couple of things for us. Bill and I drove over and gave him a hand, pushing Tommy further up into the shop so he could fit another small car inside. It didn’t take long and we chatted a bit before he gave us some $$ from a sale of a few of Bill’s tools. He also had some green beans and potatoes for us from a friend’s garden. I got them washed and put away and waited for a decision from Bill about our plans for the afternoon.

There were a few overhead dark clouds that
created a cool ride for about 5 minutes

Sticking to the highways, we toured a few small towns
Pinkerton

and avoided the cities
Glammis, Eden Grove, Tiverton

It was an unusual sky from the time we got up, we couldn’t tell what was going to happen in the weather department. After Bill and Gibbs had a rest, we got dressed in our bike leathers. It wasn’t cold enough to wear our chaps but we’d planned on a ride to the lake so put them in the saddle bags just in case. It is always cooler near the water. This was a great decision and the weather was perfect for a ride. We reached Kelly and Richard’s cottage around 2:15, an hour and 10 minutes after driving out the lane. 😊

Arriving at Inverhuron
The lake ahead is gorgeous!

No one home, so we relaxed at their beautiful cottage
area and decided what to do
Bill tried texting Kelly to see where they were

No one was home but the door was ajar and the windows were open so we knew they couldn’t be far. I had to use the powder room so Bill encouraged me to go in and use their facilities since the door was open. 😏 We drove to the beach area in the hopes that we could spot them. After about 10 minutes of searching the sandy terrain, just as we were about to give up, (there were a lot of sunbathers!) we spotted Richard walking our way. How lucky was that? He pointed Kelly out so we were greeted with an enthusiastic hug. It was a treat to see Jessica, their daughter, and meet Nick as well.

Kelly! Where are you?
Turns out - they weren't far, top right picture
in that grouping somewhere 😀

Found them!

We met back at the cottage, they were ready to call it a day, and shared a cold drink and some snacks on their deck while catching up. Their dogs were happy to greet us all and it was neat to see J & N’s 2-year-old Cocker Spaniel as he looked like a grownup Gibbs in many ways. 🐕 It sounds like Gibbs is already doing great in comparison, McKinnon sounds like a little terror. Also Kelly and Richard's Sadie (?) was her beautiful self although much calmer than I remember from the last time we saw them. That might have been 3 years ago? 😕

Jazz parked back at the cottage

McKinnon and Sadie
Now, I can see Gibbs looks more like a Cocker spaniel 
than a poodle

At 4:20, Jessica pointed out what she called 'a rain cloud'. Indeed, a huge strange looking black cloud was coming in across Lake Huron. Woops! We’d better get moving. We said our goodbyes, geared up and ‘Jazzed’ (heh heh) it for home. 

It sure seemed to be following us
until eventually we felt we'd won the race
The temperature on the ride never really changed much
We didn't need our chaps but I did zip my jacket up

It seemed to be around us but so was the clearer sky

Bill did well keeping us a few hundred feet ahead of it and we made it home without getting wet. Gibbs was happy to see us, he’d been alone for 4 ½ hours. We’ve got such a good little dog. It was wonderful to see Kelly and the family and Bill took the time to text her that we arrived back at the Ridge.


Top left picture, you should remember the grain elevators
I passed often while living in Paisley
We were on Bruce Rd. #3
Bottom left picture looks scary but it was just
an interesting cloud formation

We agreed on toast bacon, cheese and tomato sandwiches for supper and started to prep them together around 6:30. First, I had a cup of tea. After we ate, we finished it off with an ice cream cone. If we hadn't been able to visit, the cone was on my mind from the area. It was the perfect ending to a great day. We both felt whipped, I guess it has been a pretty busy day, and Gibbs was just getting started. 😊 He’d probably been sleeping all day! He ran around the island with his sock toy and had us laughing at his energy. After we were settled, I wondered why the little guy got so quiet.

Home arrival at 5:30
My handsome Biker Babe texting Kelly

Outside, the rain started around 6:30 but nothing heavy, just tricklings. We believe tomorrow will produce more precipitation with a 77% chance of it.

Home sky, the pool got blown around a bit
Supper and Gibbs mark on Bill's comb
It was an absolutely wonderful afternoon!!
Thank you Kelly and Richard for the snacks! 💕
Good night!

Thank you for your visit.

Sunday, October 13, 2019

A Bustling Morning and Social Afternoon for Thanksgiving Sunday


The Ridge
Sunday, Oct. 13th arrived after what seemed like a fitful sleep for me. I went to bed around 10 because I was yawning a lot and not into NCIS New Orleans. Lo and behold, I couldn’t have been as tired as I thought as I was still not into deep sleep when Bill came to bed at 11ish. Maybe that 30-minute snooze earlier did a number on me. There were dreams throughout the remainder of the early morning hours so not a great sleep all in all.

Potatoes in the IP
Naturally, when Bill got up at 6:45 am, I wasn’t ready to do the same, so rolled over and dropped off for another 15 minutes. I wanted to get in to town to clean asap since it would be a busy enough morning. The Mat was in incredibly good condition which helped a lot and within 35 minutes I was ready to leave. I had one machine to wait for, the dirty one. I’d run an empty load through to clean it out. After wiping it out at the end, I headed for home at 8:15.

a nice creamy sauce and cheese and onion topping
I made my tea, Bill was down in the Hangar, and instead of sitting to read blogs I popped the apple crumble in the oven for 30 minutes. Then I peeled 10 cups of russet potatoes, diced them and popped them in Madame IP. This would be quicker and at least I wouldn’t have to watch them. After the pressure built up, they took 8 minutes. I should have set it for 6 instead as they were a bit softer than I wanted. Perfect for mashed though, fyi.

Looks yummy, no?
I did a Quick Release, rinsed them in cold water and drained before adding the sauce mix. Once it was all nicely blended, stirring gently so not to mush them, I sprinkled the remaining grated cheese and onion on top. We are to be eating at 2 so I  will put them in the oven for 30 minutes just before we are ready to leave. Bill came in around 10:30 and got something to eat, to tide him over until that meal. I hopped in the shower and then had an apple muffin and some yogourt.

We took a different route to Chatsworth today

And it was not disappointing

Less gravel roads and just as much  beauty
 The day is sure a cool one. 43F/5C when I left for town. It is sunny at least, but windy up here, 54F/12C, feeling like 9c. I got dressed in my good black pants and a pretty, flowy top and put my hair in a loose braid until it dried. Bill came down looking and smelling all wonderful, as he usually does. That’s my sweetie, rising to the occasion. I had a few blogs that I wanted to catch up on so I made myself a coffee and sat at my laptop to read them.


Bill was upstairs putting things out for Cancun so I went up to join him. Between us we made some decisions and managed to get everything in the carry cases we’ve chosen.  Other than our colognes, my makeup bag, deodorants and teeth care products, we are packed. He needed to get that done this weekend as he’ll only have one day once he returns from Tavistock on Friday night. With that done, he rested for a bit while I started packing up the food.

Arriving at Cedarhaven for 'lupper'
Luckily, both casserole size dishes fit into our soft cooler for transport. We left at 12:30 and arrived a few minutes before 1. It wasn’t very warm out but our hosts were down by the pond with their daughter, s-i-l and his parents whom we’ve met many times. A wonderful couple from Pennsylvania.  We didn’t stay down there long, at least us ladies cooled down enough to return to the house. As other guests arrived, food added up and by 2 or soon after, we were ready to eat.

There were 23 family members present today
My plate of food, delicious!
A lovely centrepiece
My contribution was the funky gourd (of course!)
My dessert plate
There was of lot to choose from, turkey, ham, potato casserole, turnip casserole, baked squash, green beans, salads, dressing and then there were the desserts. Strawberry rhubarb, pumpkin, key lime, cherry and pecan pies, apple crumble, chocolate cheesecake and eclairs. My oh my, plenty to be thankful for.

Instead of a group picture, I captured a few attendees
in their groupings
Noah (great nephew), Alaena (niece), Nate (grandson) Patrick (son)

Morgan (niece) Emma (great niece) Janice (niece)
Kiera (great niece) Gayle (sister/hostess) Bill (friend)

Siblings: Cathy, Gerry, Donna, MaryBeth, Aj, Joanne & Ted (niece and spouse)
Bill

John (host) & sister Wendy

Nadir (nephew in law) Matt (nephew) Tom (b-i-l)
Conversations ensued in pairs, groups of 4 and tables of 8 or 10. There were plenty of hugs to be had with siblings, friends, in-laws, sons, daughters and of course, a grandson. My daughter, her partner and her sons were unable to make it today so those were hugs I missed. We have plans to see Bridgette at least before our southwest journey begins.

My son and Grandson
Patrick and Nathan
It was a very filling meal and after a brief clothing exchange downstairs, Bill and I said our goodbyes. It was around 5 when we pulled out of their drive. Of course, it is sad to say goodbye to everyone, as we won’t see them until the spring, but a new adventure awaits us and who knows, we may see Gayle and John this winter during our travels. 

The drive home

Just as lovely
 Back home, I put the food leftovers away. I’ll put them into smaller containers tomorrow. Bill sat in his chair and I sat beside him to finish this post.

Good night and Happy Thanksgiving!
What a wonderful Thanksgiving Sunday this has been. I hope you had a fine day too. Thank you for your visit! Happy Thanksgiving!