Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, September 22, 23 and 24, 2014 (Fort Camping, Brae Island Regional Park, Fort Langley, BC)

Monday morning saw a pretty lazy start to the day. We did our resistance exercises, showered and had breakfast and then I walked into town to pick up a few groceries. Ray and Deb are arriving here at the campground today and we are having them over for dinner tonight.

Shortly before 12:30, we headed into Langley for my doctor's appointment. I arrived about 5 minutes before my scheduled appointment only to find that the doctor had just left his Abbotsford office and wouldn't be here for another 20 to 30 minutes...hmmm...good start! Well, on a bright note, I was his first patient this afternoon. After waiting about 40 minutes, I was in and out in a jiffy...down to business quickly...and then out of there!

While waiting for me, Steve drove over to pick up his chainsaw. He had dropped it off last week because it was leaking chain oil...well, nothing could be done for it. He was told that was normal and there were no seals or gaskets involved.

After my appointment, we dropped the truck off at Gold Key and were driven back to the campground. We noticed Ray and Deb had arrived, so walked down to greet them and let them know that although our truck wasn't there, we were. They finished their set up and then joined us for pre-dinner drinks.

We had dinner inside and then relaxed for a bit before calling it a night.

Tuesday morning, Steve and I got out for a power walk before the rain started. After showers and breakfast, I decided to walk into town to have a prescription filled...best to do it this morning because a major rain storm is forecast to come in this afternoon. I ended up walking in twice...when I got to the pharmacy the first time, I realized that I didn't have the prescription with me. I had cleaned out my wallet and left the prescription on the counter...sheesh! So, I got my exercise today!

It was around 2:00 when a fellow from Gold Key came by to pick Steve up...the truck was ready. They found a leaky gasket in the EGR cooler that was the cause of our intermittent exhaust brake squealing...time will tell. At least its covered under warranty.

Wednesday we woke to rain...a lot of rain! Consequently it was pretty much an inside day. Steve watched a bunch of "his" programs that he had pvr'd. I did a little baking and took care of a few things on my "to to list".

Around 2:00, we managed to get out for a walk. When we got back, Steve took a picture of this rig that came in today. Another big one!

Tomorrow the "Wedding Weekend" starts so I will sign off until next week...stay tuned!

Wednesday, September 17 to Sunday, September 21, 2014 (North Saanich, BC)

We had a busy five days on the Island...filled with appointments, family and friends!

Wednesday morning I was up early to drive Rob to work so that we could use his truck. It worked out well because he and a co-worker are going over to Vancouver later on today and would have had to stop by the house to drop off his truck before catching the ferry. He will be away until Friday night, so we have the use of his truck...thanks, Rob! I had an appointment with my orthopedic surgeon who injected my knee with some super-duper lube stuff. While I was there, Steve had a dentist appointment where they took a CT scan of his head to ensure the bone was ready for the implant tomorrow.

We met with our financial adviser and after a quick visit to Steve's old office, we headed home. At about 4:00, I picked up Conner from daycare...he and Grampa had a fun time playing with his trucks...

Thursday morning, I puttered around most of the morning. Steve was a little more energetic, getting outside for a walk. It was almost noon by the time I had showered! After a bite to eat for lunch, it was time to head off for our dentist appointments...Steve was getting a post implant put in and I was getting a cleaning.

After dinner, Steve's brother and sister-in-law, Dave and Kerry (visiting from Manitoba) came over along with sister, Nadine. Kerry read to Conner...





...and then gave Angie a pedicure! (Angie, Nadine and Kerry)

Friday, Steve and I met our good friends, Rob and Nancy for breakfast...and then Nancy and I headed off for a day of shopping. We had a great day! I managed to find shoes for the wedding along with a few other things. Thanks for the awesome day, Nancy!

When I got home late afternoon, Grampa had already picked up Conner and they were playing....then Gramma read him some of his favourite books.

That night Rob got home at about 9:00 after catching the 7:00 ferry...Conner will be glad to see his daddy in the morning!

After breakfast Saturday morning, Steve and I drove out to Langford to meet more friends for coffee. Jim and Nan live in Cowichan Bay and the Tim Horton's at Millstream was a good half-way spot to meet. We enjoyed a good hour plus chatting with them...good seeing you, Jim and Nan!

That afternoon, we thought we would go see Steve's dad at the care facility he lives in in Victoria. Our plan is to go there at about 2:00 when coffee/tea is served and sit in the dining area visiting. We were a little early so parked nearby and went for a good hours walk along the Galloping Goose Trail on the Gorge waterfront. Another gorgeous day!

After our walk, we had a nice visit visit with Steve's dad. Rob, Angie and Conner also joined us. Four generations of Colibabas...

Late Saturday afternoon, we were back home enjoying a little time out on the sun deck...

Conner chilling on the sofa before dinner...he's such a cutie and talking up a storm!

Sunday morning, Rob, Conner, Angie and Steve went out for a walk along some of the neighbourhood trails. I had packing and cleaning up to do since we are heading back to the mainland this afternoon. Conner fell asleep while on their walk...

About noon, Angie's "island parents" (actually close family friends) came over for a visit. They are down from Campbell River for the weekend and stopped by for a visit. They also brought 'bake-at-home' pizzas for lunch. Very nice!

After hugs and handshakes, Emery and Rob drove us to the ferry terminal in time to catch the 2:00 sailing. Once at the Tsawwassen Terminal, we caught the shuttle back to the Park and Go...and, as Conner would say, "Buster the truck"! The new route back out to Fort Langley takes you along the Fraser River...

...and under all three bridges that cross it . This is the Port Mann bridge...

We got home at about 4:30. We have to drop the truck off tomorrow afternoon at Gold Key Isuzu for servicing which means that the boat has to come off beforehand. With rain forecast for the next few days, Steve decided to take the boat off tonight rather than wait until the morning. When we wound the rope back in, one side was much looser than the other. It's the newer rope, so Steve figures that it had stretched out...so, we had to unwind the whole thing, shorten it about an inch...and wind it back in. Whew...it worked!

As usual, it's good to be back in our home on wheels. We enjoyed our visit on the island, as short and busy as it was. There are still friends that I didn't get a chance to see...unfortunately, it will have to be next spring.

Monday and Tuesday, September 15 and 16, 2014 (Fort Camping, Brae Island Regional Park, Fort Langley, BC)

Just before 7:00 I quietly snuck out of the bedroom to turn on the coffee...I tried not to wake our guests but it's pretty hard in such close quarters! Steve and I had our first cup of coffee in bed, watching the morning news and then he hopped in the shower. When he was finished, it was my turn...and then the rest of our temporary household were forced out of bed.

We visited while I cooked breakfast and then we lingered afterwards...until we had to get going. I have an appointment with a doctor in Abbotsford...it was shortly after 10:00 when we said goodbye to Dave and Kerry. They are going to catch the 1:00 ferry over to the Island so they were going to go for a walk around the park...we left them the key to lock up the trailer. We'll see you sometime in the next week...we're heading over tomorrow afternoon.

Our new doctor in Langley also has an office in Abbotsford, so for my annual checkup, I was given the option of going to his colleague there, a female doctor...I decided to take him up on that option. We arrived just before 11:00 for my appointment only to find that the doctor had come in late and was running behind. It ended up not being as bad as I was expecting...I was taken in just after 11:30. Steve went shopping at Marks Workwear World just down the street and then sat in the truck keeping himself busy on the iPad until I was finished.

Back home, we spent the rest of the afternoon cleaning up and that was pretty much our day.

Tuesday morning I put on a load of laundry and we basically puttered around packing and getting ready to head off to the island. We left shortly after 1:00 for the drive to the Tsawwassen Ferry Terminal and the 3:00 sailing. After parking the truck in the Park & Go, we took the shuttle to the terminal and boarded the ferry as foot passengers. It was a beautiful day for a ferry ride even if though it was quite hazy out with a light cloud covering.

The ferry was about 15 minutes late leaving due to a stalled car but that's okay...Rob has to pick up Conner before swinging by the Swartz Bay Ferry Terminal to pick us up.

So at about 5:25 Rob and Conner picked us up and after a quick trip into Sidney, we were at their place...time to play with Conner! He really took to Grampa...but was a little shier with me...oh well, I'm sure he will warm up to me! We've noticed such a change in him over the last few months...he's talking up a storm! He's so darned cute!
He's absolutely loves his trucks!

We are here until Sunday...it's going to be very busy with dentist and doctors appointments...and catching up with family and friends! So, I'm signing off for now and will do a recap of our trip when we get back to Fort Langley.

Friday, Saturday and Sunday, September 12, 13 and 14, 2014 (Fort Camping, Brae Island Regional Park, Fort Langley, BC)

Friday morning we were sitting having our morning coffee and wondering how Red made out with the drive into Vancouver to drop off Pam at the train station. I looked out our back window and saw his truck was there, so we figured he made it there and back safe and sound.

Well, we received a text message from him at about 8:30...they'd had a change of plans. They were all ready to leave this morning when Pam found a notice from the campground on the door. There had been a complaint about the dogs. Not wanting to leave Red to deal with any issues by himself, they decided to just leave today and cross the border into Washington State. They'll find an RV park close to Kent and Pam could still go on her wine weekend with the girls. Sorry to see them go under unpleasant circumstances. It was great meeting them...we'll see you down the road!

With hugs and handshakes, we said our goodbyes and then Steve headed off for his annual doctor's appointment. :-(  He also had a few other errands to take care of,...so he would be gone for awhile. A good time for me to "wash away the grey" from my hair...I''m finally getting it cut on Monday after 3+ months. I'm a little gun-shy after getting an awful cut last time so am hoping this stylist knows how to cut naturally curly hair!

I was sitting outside reading when Steve got home at about 2:00. He had stopped at Gold Key GMC and they ended up being able to put in new batteries in the truck today...he has booked it in to have the exhaust brake "squeal" looked at when we get back from our visit to the island.

After a quick bite to eat, he went out to the truck to re-program the radio. All of the settings had been lost with the dead batteries we had at Peter Hope Lake. I decided to go for a walk into town and when I got back an hour later, he was still at it. They just don't make things simple with things these days!

Saturday was another beautiful sunny day. We had our usual relaxing start to the day and then decided to get our butts in gear. After doing our exercises, we showered, had breakfast, did dishes and got ready for company.

Just before noon, Doug and Sue, a work camping couple we met at Monck Provincial Park, arrived and we spent a lovely afternoon visiting with them. It was great seeing you both again!
Doug, Sue and Steve...

...and Tucker...

After dinner we went for a walk around the campground. We are amazed at how busy it is...I think we only saw three empty sites! Very unusual for this time of year...mind you, the weather is still fabulous and perhaps with BC's teachers on strike, families are still in summer-mode!

This big boy came in this afternoon...and I thought we were big! When Steve went down to take this picture, there was no one around, so he wasn't able to find out exactly how long he is. They are from Ontario and have kids with them so may be home schooled. There are two motorcycles under the overhang...

Steve and I spent Sunday morning preparing for house guests tonight. Dave and Kerry (Steve's brother and sister-in-law) from Thompson, Manitoba are stopping for a quick visit with us on their way to the ferry to Victoria. They will be visiting family there and then, of course, will be back in Burnaby for the wedding of the 27th.

We have a blow-up bed in the sofa that we have never used, so we figured it was time to try it out. Well, after figuring out how to set the bed up, we plugged in and inflated the bed. After finding and patching 4 different holes and tears with Gorilla tape, we gave up...it was time to turf this never before used air bed!

So we went to 'plan B' and inflated our airbed that we use in the box of the truck....it was a little too high to put on top of the sofa; they'd need a ladder to climb up! So we'll just move the chairs out of the way and put it on the floor tonight.

After that was all taken care of, we went for a walk across the bridge and along the trail for a bit. We stopped at the market to pick up some corn-on-the-cob for dinner. Steve took this picture of a boat pulling someone on a tube...

Chris and Angela arrived just before 4:00 and we sat visiting with them until 6:00 when Dave and Kerry arrived....Dave, Kerry, Chris and Angela...

We all managed to sit around the picnic table for dinner. Unfortunately Dave threw his back out a couple of days ago and was in a lot of pain...

...and then Kerry brought out her nail paraphernalia and did our nails while the guys sat around the Campfire-in-a-Can. Angela was first...she put leopard print over the polish Angela already had on.

Then it was my turn...pretty cool, eh?

It was after 8:30 when Chris and Angela decided they had better head back into Burnaby...after all, they have to work tomorrow! It's wonderful spending time with them while we are in the area. We stayed up chatting around the campfire for another hour or so and then Steve and I went inside to set up the airbed. We had a lovely evening...looking forward to seeing more of Dave and Kerry over the next couple of weeks!

Wednesday and Thursday, September 10 and 11, 2014 (Fort Camping, Brae Island Regional Park, Fort Langley, BC)

Just before 4:00 a.m., the rain woke us up...what?! That wasn't in the forecast! It wasn't just a light pitter-patter either...it was a big downpour!  Well, it's Steve's fault...he washed the truck yesterday!

After breakfast Steve went out to clean the inside of the truck cab and wash the windows while I made the sauce and put together a tray of lasagna together for dinner tonight.

Shortly after noon, Red and Pam arrived. We walked over to meet and welcome them and then left them to get set up. Red and Pam are from Texas and are on their way down from a trip to Alaska. Steve met Red on the RV-Dreams forum last year when they started following us on our trip to Alaska. We were looking forward to meeting them in person and hearing about their adventures up north.

Around 2:00, they came over and we chatted for awhile and then went for a walk down to the end of the island on Tavistock Trail. It was a beautiful afternoon...

By the time we got back, it was time to relax with a cocktail and after more chatting, we headed inside for dinner...

...then it was back outside to sit around our Campfire-In-A-Can. It's great to finally meeting Red and Pam and we are looking forward to spending some time with them over the next few days!

Thursday morning, the four of us walked into town...we wanted to show Red and Pam the quaint little community of Fort Langley.
We walked both sides of Glover Road, the main street running through the town. Fort Langley was bustling with people...the BC Seniors Games is on and today the Dragon Boat races were taking place on the Fraser River.

We had a picture taken on the 'Winner's Podium'...Love the t-shirt, Red!

Great weather for the games!

After watching one of the races, we decided it was time for lunch...at The Fort Pub, of course! Thanks for lunch, Red and Pam!

Walking back across the bridge to the campground...another Dragon Boat...

Back in the campground, we went to our separate rigs...see you later for happy hour! Steve and I spent the afternoon relaxing outside in our chairs reading. Steve did fire up the truck to make sure it would start...he has a doctor's appointment tomorrow and didn't want any surprises when he went to start it!

At 4:00 we walked over to Pam and Red's with a cocktail and spent a lovely couple of hours chatting with them.
Dominique also wanted to join us for a drink...too cute!

Red is driving into Vancouver bright and early tomorrow morning to drop Pam off at the Amtrak station...she is taking the train down to Kent, Washington to visit her sister for a few days. We are going over to the island next week so won't be here when she gets back. We said our goodbyes to her and headed home for dinner...have a great trip, Pam! Good luck with the drive into the city, Red...we'll see you tomorrow!

Monday and Tuesday, September 8 and 9, 2014 (Fort Camping, Brae Island Regional Park, Fort Langley, BC)

We slept in until 7:30 Monday morning...I guess we just can't handle "wild" weekends anymore...haha!

After our usual coffee start, we got our resistance exercises over with, showered, had a quick breakfast...and then it was time to get to work. After getting the okay from the park manager yesterday, Steve off-loaded the quads so he could wash them.

He had all of the washing paraphernalia out and was just starting to spray them down when I was ready to head out in the truck. Wow, it was noon already! I had a big afternoon shopping trip planned...Walmart and Save-On-Foods were on my agenda...woohoo!

It was after 3:30 by the time I got back. Steve was still working on the quads. I unloaded the groceries and put them put away while he finished up on the quads. However, once finished on the quads, the work wasn't over yet. Before he could load them, he decided to sweep out the truck...and that was a job in itself!

It was going on 5:30 by the time the work was finished for the day and we relaxed outside with a cocktail.

We were watching TV later that evening when I noticed something move out of the corner of my eye...a mouse was in our living room! Oh Sheesh! Steve put a mouse-trap out and we headed to bed.

The little critter was caught in the trap when Steve got up Tuesday morning...he was up bright and early at 6:00. He said that he thought he'd get up before me to check the trap...I'm glad our visitor is gone!

I made Steve a hearty breakfast... to sustain him through a work day...and then headed out for a morning walk along the river. When I got back, he was busy washing the truck....and that pretty well took him the rest of the day. It hadn't been washed since we were here last June!


Late afternoon, he did walk into town to pick up some beer and took this picture on the way back...

After my walk, I had breakfast, showered and then put on four loads of laundry and did some baking. I also washed our anti gravity chairs...and that was pretty much my day.

All afternoon we watched lots of RV's come in...apparently the campground is going to be pretty full over the next few days with people coming in for the BC Seniors Games being held in Langley this year.

Saturday and Sunday, September 6 and 7, 2014 (Brae Island Regional Park, Fort Langley, BC)

What a great weekend! The weather was wonderful and the company even better! After doing one load of laundry Saturday morning, we packed an overnight bag and waited "patiently" for our son, Chris, to pick us up.

It was after 2:00 when he arrived. We sat outside visiting for a bit and then headed into Vancouver to the newly decorated basement suite he and his bride-to-be, Angela, will be sharing after their wedding September 27. He just moved in a couple of weeks ago and really likes it...it's so much brighter than his old place! 

We sat chatting and then just before 6:00, I dropped them off at a pub on Commercial Drive where they met up with a couple of Chris' friends, Karina and Chris. Back at Chris' place, I changed and was ready when Angela's mom and two aunts, picked me up. I was going to the "dinner part" of Angela's Stagette! 

I had a great time at The Rogue Kitchen and Wetbar located in the popular Gastown area in downtown Vancouver... (Angela's mom, Lucy, Angela, Maria, Marissa and me)...

...while Steve and Chris enjoyed an evening at St. Augustine's Brewpub...

Chris with his friends, Chris and Karina...with Paddles of various beers...

After a fun time and a great dinner, the "old" ladies left and the girls headed out to another spot to continue the stagette. I was dropped off just before 11:00 and Steve and Chris arrived home (via cab) shortly afterwards. Sounds like everyone had a great evening!

Sunday morning, we all relaxed with our coffee and then I cooked breakfast. Around 11:00, Angela came over...yes, she survived her stagette! We sat chatting for a bit and then it was time to head back out to Fort Langley.

We enjoyed lunch at The Fort Pub...

....thanks for taking a picture just as we have taken a bite of our lunch, Dad!!

After lunch, we said goodbye to Chris and Angela and walked home, It is so great seeing you both again! All the wedding plans are coming into place...only 3 weeks to go!