LIFE BESIDES WORKING ON THE SHACK

It is now September 25th

We left the island September 1st

Each day just whizzes by!!!

September 9th

Ring Ring

It's Ken on the phone

Get your camera ready

We have a surprise for you

???????

Joe and I sat out back with a clear view of the Naramata Road

My guess.......

Since Devonna loves Stella so much

I thought maybe she bought a bug

I was watching for two bugs!!!!!!!

I was wrong...........

We could see Stella coming up the road

with 'colours' 

Up the drive with big smiles on their faces

LOTS OF LAUGHS

When they stopped at the side of the road to dress her up passerbyers waved and had big smiles on their faces

The young boy with Oscar

You can't imagine how much the boys love this kitten

The napkin was destroyed

We were up with the birds on Thursday morning

A trip to the Kelowna airport

Back to Bright's Grove they go.....

Thanks for driving Stella to Penticton

Lots of dogs

alice  hunter  gwendolyn  josephine

Jennifer was here for the weekend

Pitched her tent outside our bedroom door!

Normally she sleeps in the shack

but

Not this time

Like Mother like daughter

Papa coming up from the shack

A little b & b with the grandson

Nice gardens Lyndsay

Oh the view

The birthday girl

Out for dinner

This past weekend we drove up to Sqauamish

Stopped along the Coquihalla

Spotted two dogs in the car in front of us

Waited for the driver to come back to her car

OH MY GOSH

Never have I seen a bull dog as big as this guy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

He was sooooo friendly

He was sooooo strong!!

This sweet girl was sitting in the front seat

Ha.....the guy in the back took up all the room 

A beautiful drive

Standing on Jenn's balcony

On our drive back down to Vancouver Saturday afternoon

Coming into Stanley Park

Off to the Aquarium

Jelly Fish

Eel

Pretty star fish

This picture is a bit blurry

Right in front of you is a big, big crab

It blends right in

This is an Arapaima

If you hear a loud cough it is the fish going up for air

Sloth 

This guy was so funny

Any time I walked by it was in the same position

What do you bet this ship is heading to Alaska

I didn't even see the 'black' ship

Jennifer had to point it out to me

Statue of a woman in a wet suit with flippers on her feet and her mask is pushed up on her forehead

As we were driving over the Lions Gate bridge we could see the ship coming in the distance

Heading back to Squamish

I was sitting in the back seat so it was hard to capture the sunset

It was beautiful

Sunday morning we went up to Whistler to meet the Battiston family

Dick and Nina were visiting with their son Ted who has been a friend of Graham's since the boys were 3 years old

We met at the Fairmont Hotel where Jennifer works

After breakfast Jenn took us on a tour of the gardens

We have not been there in 'blooming' season before so it was pretty special for us to see Jennifer's work and that of her crew

This photo was taken from the roof top of the hotel

The herb garden up top as well

Garen wanted to go down to the shack to check out the stairs

On our way back to the house he stopped and tasted one of the grapes!

The vineyard had their first pick yesterday

This Merlot will most likely come off in a few weeks

Gail (Lyndsay's Mom) and I were partners yesterday

It was fun to have her on the other side of the vines

Chatting and working at the same time makes the time go faster

At the end of our pick we both 'hobbled' up the hill!!!!!!!!

Here comes the little boy

He is the funniest!!!!!!

And

Could he dribble a basketball

Must take after his brother and his Dad

SHACK RENO 2013

This is the first of stories about the renovation of the shack

It is on the land of Graham and Lyndsay's vineyard

We will only be here for a season or two as at some point in time the shack will be bulldozed along  with the yellow farm house 

Tightrope Winery will be on this spot

BUT

For awhile it will be our little home

Cute eh!!!!!!!!!!

Back view

Have to move the wood though

Have to talk to Graham as to where he wants it piled

Guess they use the wood for campfires when they have their annual Cork Soaker

First job

Joe reinforced the wall where the fuse box sits

Out comes the front window

'New' window in

Taken from the yellow house

Out comes the bathroom window

VOILA

From one bathroom to another bathroom 

Lots of cleaning up 

Pulled the old vines down

Lyndsay had painted the shack last summer up to where the 'healthy' vines had been

Found the paint!!!

I went to Value Village and purchased pj bottoms which will become my painting clothes

Ha Ha Ha

I was sitting on the porch

Saw my shadow

Whoa..........It is the 'Garen' nose!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My Grandpa Garen that is

Old basement windows boarded up

Trimming the frame to make the window fit

A cute little window went in as well

Adds charm I think

The old bed is out

Joe will make the double frame into a single frame and that will be our sofa

Brought out cushions from the cottage that will lean up against the wall

Jennifer was here for the weekend

She brought her 'paints' with her

The boys are painting squares of wood that will cover Flicker holes that the birds made when building their nests into the walls of the shack

A little paint on the fingers there Ethan

Ah..............the basement

It will be transformed into our bedroom

Ceiling and walls will be painted white

Joe will build a wall to hide the sewer pipes

Two windows in the basement sure brighten the room

The main house is way up there on the hill

Finished product

Can you guess which one I painted????

Clue

My saying..............

Ethan and I went down this evening to check out the hole in the floor

The beginning of a stairway to the bedroom

Hey there.....................

Hey Granny.................

Up go the painted boards to patch the holes

This evening