Lunch with Val

Today I went out for lunch with Val! We went to one of my regular haunts - A Taste of India in Sherwood Park. I've never been there for lunch, but its a busy little place at lunchtime on Friday! It was quiet when we arrived though, so we got a nice quiet table in the back section. It soon filled up fast though and was much busier than it is in the evening on a Wednesday when we normally go!!!

We both had the buffet and Val was good and adventurous trying all kinds of different selections. The owner came over to say hi and she was joking saying how the food isn't spicy at all , so Val should try a bit of EVERYTHING!! ;) then a little later she popped over to our table and asked Val how she liked Indian food (as I had mentioned that it was Vals first time at trying Indian food) - val said she loved it and the owner said that Val would soon be as addicted as Lloyd and I ;)

Val is like me and loves the Naan breads - they really are yummy - so light and fluffy and NOTHING like the ones you buy in the grocery stores which are horrible and I won't TOUCH!!!

This picture shows Val enjoying my favourite dessert there - Gulab jamun - or what I call balls and custard :) YUM!!!! :)

Thanks for coming out Val - I had a lovely time - so good to catch up with you!

we both left to head off in different directions shopping only for Val to get a phone call from her Daughter to say there were funnel clouds spotted in our neighbourhood - so we both headed in the direction of home instead to make sure our little ones were safe! Adult time over :( sigh........

Dusk....

I like this picture....I took it the other evening and it shows the view I have most evening when I sit watching the birds at the feeders. I sit by the steps at the side of the house on the porch. You can see Charlie where she has fallen asleep under the bird feeder after rooting for peanuts and seeds. You can see my bird table that Lloyd quickly knocked up for me in a hurry a few weeks back but that does the job perfectly and my birds love it just fine!!! The box beside it is so I can reach the bird table - Denis gave it to me :) and the little birds love to eat off of it :)

Beyond the bird table you can see down to the pond - beyond that you can see down towards the driveway......on the hill you can see the well (one of two wells we have on our property).

In the trees we have three feeders - two for nuts and seeds and one is a thistle seed feeder. we also have a nut and seed feeder on the porch. We also have two hummingbird feeders on the porch/ deck. I have several other feeders in different other places on our property - by the sheds and workshops/ garage etc etc. We get through a LOT of bird seed each week! Lloyd always complains about how much we spend on bird food but he also loves to watch the birds so I don't think he minds really ;) We spend less in Winter because most of the birds leave Alberta in Winter. Right now they empty the feeders in about two days.

How my flowers are doing......

My tubs of annuals are doing well and starting to bush out nicely now :) The ones in my wooden tub still need to flower a lot more - maybe another week or so.....but the others are starting to flower nicely and I'm already having to deadhead well.

Other gardening news - we have our first strawberries!!! :) Yum!!!! Our potatoes and peas are doing VERY well but some things that did GREAT last year are doing TERRIBLY this year!!! Is it because it is so dry this year or WHY????? I am puzzled as we have used the same soil mix/ manure etc etc....water.....same seeds....???????

Raspberries are doing well - both the garden variety AND the wild raspberries are doing well...

It's very dry here - we're had some rain the last few days but not enough - we are in serious drought conditions and under fire bans again and splash parks are closed - farmers are saying its a disaster and the canola season is a disaster :( They can't feed their cattle this year and are selling them instead :(

Where you'll find me......

So......this is where you'll find me on a hot Summers afternoon...book in hand.....cold drink on the table....Derek (the guy doing the basement) says he promises to tell Lloyd I've been hard at work all day (lol) and Abby and Sam are always busy playing on the deck happily......

.....sorted ;)

Cycle ride.....

Enjoying the good weather and our quiet road.....

Cupcakes....

One of the Moms at Pre-K decorates cupcakes as a hobby - and she made these four cupcakes as a gift for each of the teachers. Aren't they gorgeous???? I took the pics with my iphone so they don't really do them justice. The colours aren't even right as the flower was actually purple!!! The apple glistened like the ruby slippers. These cakes were STUNNING!!!! Like you really wouldn't want to eat them they were so amazing!!! the big burger was incredible! She also made lots of mini burgers for the children to eat!!! Everyone was sayings he should make them to sell!!!!

Sam leaves PreK

Yesterday was Sams last day at Pre-K. To celebrate, his (wonderful) teachers organized for his class to go swimming and then to have a picnic in the classroom. The parents were each given a scrapbook page of the children in their class and the children were each given a goody bag with some toys and bubbles. It was a lovely afternoon! I had such fun with Sam in the pool. I gave Laurie the day off of school so he could babysit Abigail for me as I wanted to have this day JUST with Sam!

I am so sad that Sam has left pre-K this year. I cried at the end. I know he will be in Pre-K next year but it will be a different class at a different place, with different teachers. His class this year was soooooo good and his teachers were great! Sam was so little and his backpack so big it made him look like a turtle! His little hand in mine was so tiny and chubby! His pictures were so cute and he has developed so much this year and his skills have changed so much - he learned to write his name and his numbers and writing have come on so much!!! I know in the next year he will learn to read and write so well it will be amazing and he won't be my little chubby cute preschooler any more!

He is my last little one and I won't have any more little ones walking down that corridor at Millennium Place to a pre school class! That phase is over.....and for that I'm a little bit sad :(