Happy New Year!  My first New Year in Arizona and my first without snow.  It is wonderful!  People have asked me if I miss the snow at Christmas and New Years.  The answer is a resounding NO!!  After spending as many years as I have in the north, I can honestly say I do not miss winter one bit.  I do miss my friends and family, yes, but not the bitter cold, snow and ice.  So, in that vein, here are a few photos to show why we are not missing winter:

How beautiful it is here!  We usually go for a walk in the desert each day.  We look for interesting plant life and rocks.   We have found an abundance of different types of quartz.   Whenever we find a particularly interesting rock we bring it home to use on the landscaping.  We are limited by what we can lift and carry to the van.  Most people here have quads which allow them easier access to the desert and to larger rocks.  We won't have quads this year so we make do with the van.j

Here are a few pictures of some cranky cactus.  The dogs have learned a new respect for these plants:

 This plant drops dead parts all around it.  They are light so the wind picks them up and scatters them all over the desert floor wherever this plant grows.  The spines are still very sharp even though the plant part is dead.  When the dogs step on them the results are extremely painful!  We have learned to avoid stopping in areas with this plant when we have the dogs with us.

 This is a fierce and cranky looking cactus.  And fierce it is if you touch it.  However, it is easy to avoid as it grows in a clump and is easy to see.

 This is a dead ocotillo.  I think I have spelled that right.  These plants grow in a large clump looking like Medussa's hair.  They have very sharp spines on them, and you can see how easy it is for the dogs to step on them.  Our dogs are learning fast to avoid any plant, dead or alive. 

 Another nasty plant.  They are so interesting to look at but one needs more than gloves to examine them closer.  The spines go through even leather gloves.  Best to use metal tongs of some sort.  I have no desire to handle them. 

 

These little guys show the resiliency of cactus.  This spot was atop a rock outcropping.  There was no soil that I could see, but there was life, in its prickliest form, growing away in amongst the rocks. 

And here is Finn after stepping on, and trying to bite, a cholla cactus.  (pronounced choya).  He had spines in his nose, knee, chest and feet.  Poor guy!  I pulled them out but he was still sore and discouraged.  He just went and lay down in a sandy circle and would not get up.  Finally he decided to come along but was extremely tender footed.  I noticed one spine broke off in his foot pad when I was trying to pull them out.  They finally dissolve but he had tender feet for a few days.

Here are a few more pictures of the areas in which we have hiked.  The picture directly below shows the rock outcropping we hiked up.  The rocks are so sharp that we had to turn around because the dogs were suffering too much trying to climb up.  Being loyal creatures, they kept trying to climb, but I could see it was hard on their feet.  Also, poor Niko cannot bend his back legs so had to pull himself up with his chest muscles and front feet.  It was amazing to see his determination as he tried to stay with us.  So we did not get to the top.  We will save that for a day when we go out without the dogs.

 The desert has miles and miles of these types of roads.  Most are not quite this well used.  Many quad trails come off these roads.  I still could not get too far with the van as the road is dissected with washes.  Even main highways have washes going through them, posted with signs that say not to enter when full of water.

Here's our boy Finn after his hike and altercation with the Cholla.  It was very cold so he pulled his pillow up and stuck his nose in his tail.  Poor guy.  He is much better now, by the way, and eager for his next walk in the desert.

Well that's it for now.  Again, Happy New Year to you all, wherever you are.  May good health, happiness and peace be yours for 2015!

Bye for now.

December 20 can only mean one thing - it's Grandson Matthews birthday!  Happy birthday, Matthew!

We have bee away from home for just over a month now. Time is flying by as it always does when you're having fun!

Going back to our trip down, another thing I noted was the way construction and road work dealt with the traffic. We went through many road construction areas. It was interesting to note that not once were we stopped by a flag person. They just didn't have them. Also, it was rare to have the speed reduced. We sailed through the construction areas at 55 miles per hour (because we were towing, otherwise it was 65 miles per hour).   There were a lot of cones directing traffic to one side or the other, but no stoppages and few slow downs. Traffic moved along beautifully, no one got killed and there were no accidents. It was efficient and simple. We Canadians could learn a lot about keeping traffic moving from our southern neighbour!

I don't have much new to report. Dennis is working on repairing the roof of the house from the hurricane damage last spring. He is replacing some of the tin which will do the trick, with any luck at all!  Once we get the title sorted out (there has been a bit of a glitch which will delay things) then we will likely replace the whole roof next year.

It has been somewhat difficult to stay in touch without Internet and phone. We hope to have our own internet in a week or two which will then allow us to register our newly purchased magic jack which will provide us with a phone number and free calling to Canada and the USA.

I'm going to try to upload a few pictures from the iPad.

December 26 - the picture uploading from the ipad didn't work.  I'm posting this anyway.  It's out of order but it doesn't matter. 

bye again!

Boxing day, 2014.  Connecting with friends and family has been somewhat difficult.  We still don't have internet at our house.  Nothing moves fast around here.  Once we are hooked up then we won't have to do it again, thank goodness.  Lets hope it all works.  I just tried to send an imessage with my iphone.  For some reason the imessage is not working.  It keeps disconnecting, then I get the message "waiting for activation" and nothing happens.  I'm ready to upgrade to an iphone 5 or 6.  I would be interested on comments regarding the newer iphones.  Mine is a 4, not even a 4S, so it is an older model.  However, down here in Quartzsite, things are not noted for being technologically advanced. 

We are enjoying our time out here in the desert.  We love taking the dogs out for walks.  We look for interesting rocks and the dogs love the freedom to follow different smells.  I suppose they scent jack rabbits and coyotes, both of which are plentiful, although we have never seen them ourselves.  We hear coyotes howling and barking at night though.  Recently we had one barking very close to the house.  Close enough to get the dogs up and bark back. 

Here are some pictures near our house:

 Sunsets like this are very common.  I think the desert dust in the air adds to the colour.

 This is in the wash behind our house.  You can see the quad trail.  This one is called Tyson Wash.  It has been known to flood and go over the top.  That is why we had to have an engineer do an elevation siting prior to us moving the house onto the property.  We had to raise the base by about a foot. 

 Here you can see were the water came to last summer.  This was Tammy's ramp to access the wash.  Each year the ramps usually have to be rebuilt.  Luckily, Tammy has a back hoe.

More pictures of the wash, same area, different perspective.

 

 The fence that Dennis built!  A lot of pounding and prying to get those posts in to the gravel!

 The fence, looking from our place to Mike and Delcy's place. 

 The road approaching our house.  This road only accesses the five lots that Tammy subdivided.  Her place is on a dead end, so we don't get any traffic. 

 Enjoying a break from working on the house.  The dogs are ever ready though, hoping for a stick or ball throw.

This picture is of our trail down to the wash.  We don't have quads, yet, so a foot trail gets us down to the wash to give the dogs a good walk.  Now that the fence is finished, we don't take the dogs down there since we don't have gates yet.  It is a nice place to walk in the evening.             

 

The latest update on the house:  We have water inside!  Dennis had to repair a lot of pipes but we have cold running water in all the taps, except the bath tub.  We are not sure why that has no water, but at this point, it doesn't matter, since we have no hot water yet.  The hot water tank is gas and is located outside.  We are waiting to contact the gas company to come and hook it all up.  We wanted to make sure we actually had water first.

 

Living on the desert requires a person to tolerate dust and sand, both of which I have had a very low tolerance for!  But, it is a small compromise in order to enjoy the warmth of the desert sun through the winter.  Last night it did freeze though.  -1 degree over night.  Again, not bad, since it warms up to the high teens during the day and there is no snow to shovel or ice to deal with.  Actually, I had more sand on the door mat at home during the winter than I do here!  The grit from dealing with the icy paths and walkways was far worse than what I deal with here. 

 

Time to go.  I now have use of a laptop so will be able to upload pictures. 

 

I hope everyone had a very happy Christmas.  Ours was certainly different. It was our first without family.  Plus it was our first Christmas out of Canada.  I don't miss the snow, but I do miss my family.  Well, maybe next year some of them will make it!

 

bye for now.

Greetings from Quartzsite!  We have been here over a week now. It seems like just yesterday that we arrived.  After leaving Almond Grove RV park we travelled south again on the I-5. I couldn't belive how polluted Southern California is. We spent the night in another rest area posted with signs that said "No Overnight Parking."  It was obvious other truckers were parking overnight, as that is one purpose of the rest areas. Truckers must take breaks after so many hours as should any person driving long distances. So we just stopped, made supper, played a few hands of crib and called it a night.

California has some interesting road rules, which make sense. We noticed signs posted on all highways, both 4 lane and 2 lane, that maximum speed for trucks was 55. Also, any vehicle that was towing anything was also restricted to 55 miles per hour  (90 kph). I found this very sensible. It allowed regular passenger vehicles to pass easily as their speed limit was 65 miles per hour (about 108 kph).

Another interesting thing was the acres and acres of single crops. As far as you could see would be grape vines, or spinach or other fruit and vegetables. We would drive for miles and see nothing but grapes. Then it would be miles of blueberries, or potatoes. The air was thick with smog which made me wonder what it would be like if there weren't so many plants trying to clean the air.

After our night in the rest area we went down to Bakersfield then across to Needles, then south to Blythe. At Blythe we took the number 10 highway to Quartzsite. We fueled up in Needles and checked the distance to Quartzsite on the gps. We had only an hour and a half to go!  Rather than spend the night in Needles, which was our original plan, we decided to press on. We had a couple of hours of daylight left so why not?

We left Needles and took a two lane road south. This road took us up a steep climb into the desert. At the top of the climb there was a good sized pull out. I told Dennis to pull over and stop so we could give the dogs one good run before we hit Quartzsite.  Before Dennis shut off the engine he said, "Maybe I shouldn't shut it off in case it doesn't start again."  I looked at him with a big question mark over my head. "What do you mean, it won't start," I said. "Just shut it off so we can let the dogs out." He shut off the engine and we let out the dogs. Just a few meters out into the desert was some kind of tramp with a bicycle, and a fire. He was intent on burning something but kept looking at us kind of sideways. I thought, "Good grief. A homeless person way the heck up here!  He must have lungs of steel to peddle that bike up here."  So I gathered the dogs up and put them back into the motor home. They had managed to pee a few times so that was good enough. Dennis turned the key and, you guessed it, the truck wouldn't start!  What the?  Here we were, in the middle of nowhere, literally, and this big lunk of a motor home wouldn't start!  And a murderer lurking behind the shrubbery, as far as we knew!  Dennis tried the ignition several times with no luck. Nothing. Just dead. We sat there, me accusing him of hexing us and he ready to toss me out. We watched the sun set in silence and sat there for about 20 minutes as our minds raced on what to do next, reading the manuals for troubleshooting tips.  Dennis gave the key another turn and let it crank for at least 15 seconds, worrying he would drain the batteries, but lo and behold, it sparked and the engine roared to life!  We couldn't get out of there fast enough.

The road to Blythe was narrow and full of dips and curves. We were so happy to hit the number 10 and four lane it into Quartzsite. It was approximately 8 o'clock when we pulled into our lot. We parked, let the dogs out, made supper and went to bed. We were so relieved to be there!  I was so impressed with Dennis' driving skills. He managed to get us there in one piece with just a few scratches and dings on the van.

More on our life here later. I just want to say that after a week we are loving it more and more. We both love the desert. The vegetation is so interesting. There are tiny little lizards darting about when you move a piece of wood and quails running in straight lines. There is a large flock of doves hanging around and a resident hawk keeping them on their toes. Tammy caught a scorpion but that is the only one I have seen in the three trips I have made down here.

The vendors have anything you want and stuff you never knew you needed!  It is so much fun going to the different tents looking at all the stuff. There are a couple of places that sell damaged food stuffs, like bent tins and crushed cereal boxes. These things are not severely damaged, just bent or marked. You can get a box of cereal that would cost $5.29 at home for $2.00. I like it that they are selling stuff that would normally go to the garbage bins. It makes a living for the vendor and gives good prices on food that is perfectly good to eat.

Speaking of food, if you like authentic Mexican food, this is the place. You can buy real Mexican tortillas, chiles, spices.  If you don't want to cook, there are authentic Mexican restaurants. Blythe is about 15 minutes away, offering a bakery with Mexican breads and sweets. There are farmers markets with fabulous produce. They have things I have only ever seen in Mexico.   You hear a lot of Spanish in all the stores. I have yet to meet a cranky person or someone who isn't willing to help. Life here really is great. I haven't missed snow yet!

As I'm typing this, it is raining. The first rain I have experienced here!  It smells wonderful and the air is still warm. It should lay the dust for a while which is the one downside to desert living. Dust is ubiquitous and just something to get used to.

We are still living in the motor home and will for some while, by the looks of it. Dennis is working on the fence which is the first priority. The poor dogs need some space.

One more issue:  we went to Lake Havasu yesterday, to Lowe's, to get fencing material. I parked in the parking lot and shut off the engine. I noticed I should pull forward a bit and turned the key. Dead. No spark, nothing. What the?  Again?  We went in, buying just what was essential (posts and one roll of wire sine that was all they had). We wanted to get going because if the car didn't start we would have to get help and still get home, an hour and half away, to tend to the dogs which we left inside. It started after the second try, and then just barely. We were nearly out of gas so I stopped in Parker, left the engine running but set the e-brake to turn off the running lights. Dennis gassed up while I ran in to pay. We made it home, thank goodness. We also had to stop at Wal-Mart to get Tammy a Christmas tree, but again, I stayed with the engine running while Dennis went in to buy the tree. Today Dennis checked the battery connections. One was loose. He cleaned both terminals and tightened the connections. No trouble since. Ahhhhh.

Ok time to go. It has stopped raining and the sky is lightening up. Life in the Arizona desert is good!  Bye for now.

We are on the road!  We left home on Sunday, November 16. I am writing this using an iPad so it will be short. We loaded the motor home, shut down the house and managed to depart Dogstar farm by 2:00. We got as far as Kersley, spending our first night in a rest area there. I had made a batch of pasta sauce, full of vegetables from the garden, so we boiled up some pasta and called it a night. It was very cold. Cold enough to keep freezing the water lines (-13 C). Next morning we had a couple of eggs on a bun and pointed our noses south once more. We made it to cousin Lloyd's in Laidlaw by about 5:00 pm. After walking and feeding the dogs we had another meal of pasta and sauce. Too tired to think of anything else. We were in bed by 8:30 that evening.

Tuesday morning saw us at the border by 11:00. No problems there. Then we were really on our way. We spent the last two nights in rest areas having, you guessed it, two more suppers of pasta and sauce. Traveling through Seattle was hair raising and tense. Dennis did a great job of not getting rattled by the six and seven lanes of traffic, a gazillion semi-trailer trucks coming at us on all sides!  It seemed like we went 100 miles, or more, in heavy, heavy traffic with never less that six lanes in our direction. After Seattle was Tacoma and Olympia. Unbelievable traffic!  Portland was not much different. Not as bad as Seattle but bad enough. Then there are the mountain passes. Today was up hill and down dale continually. So was yesterday afternoon. However the good ol mo ho made the grade (literally) and here we are in a small town called Williams. Williams has just over 5000 people. It is a beautiful, quaint town. I notice the towns here in the USA seem much older that the towns in northern BC. They are nicely laid out, very pretty and everything is central. No big malls. A post office, churches, town hall, shops, all in a central spot with homes on straight, tree-lined streets. That is mot to say the wal-marts don't exist. They just aren't in the towns. They are out along the highways grouped with other big box stores.

Speaking of Walmart. We stopped at a mega Walmart to get some groceries as we finished our pasta sauce (thank Heaven!). We picked up a rotisserie chicken, some beer and wine (Apothic Red at $7.67 a bottle). Upon checking out, the clerk asked us where we were from. I said, "northern British Columbia, in Canada."  "Oh," she said, "you haven't travelled too far then."  I said that yes we had travelled a long way. In fact, we had been traveling for 5 full days. She looked at us like we were from outer space, and may as well have been as she had absolutely no idea where British Columbia was, or Canada, for that matter.

Now we are at the Almond Grove RV Park.  We wanted full hook ups with wifi tonight so we sprung the $30 for a pull through site. It is not a luxurious park but we needed to stop and they had room for us, so here we are.

We have learned that pulling the van on a dolly restricts us from going anywhere we want. We nearly got stuck at a gas station yesterday as the turning spot was too tight. Unfortunately the van too a bad scratch from the license plate on the dolly. Today we had another tight spot giving the van yet another ding on the other side. Oh well we will try to fix that once we are in Quartzsite. Oh yes, and Dennis tore the bottom step off the motor home going out the gate, right off the bat!  Other than those few minor mishaps, all has gone as well as it could. I can't say it has been relaxing so far, but it has been a good experience. Tomorrow we go through Sacramento and hope to stop at a rest area near Bakersfield. Then we will head east and off the I-5.

Traveling with the dogs has not been easy, but it's doable. If Rhaq and Finn didn't get on each other's nerves like they do, it would be simple. As it is, Rhaq has to be crated unless we're taking them for a walk. The crate is big and cumbersome. We have to continually move it to open the fridge, go outside, or get to the bathroom. We can do two of the things without moving it, but not all three. So it seems like we are continually sliding it forth and back as we access the door, fridge or bathroom. Oh well. That is just the way it goes.

No pics to send. We have spent all our time, thus far, on the road or at rest stops. The rest stops in the states we have travelled through thus far are incredible. BC could certainly learn a thing or two from the Americans where traveling is concerned!  People are friendly and the roads are excellent, the rest stops abundant and clean and comfortable.   They have very large pull through spots for big trucks and RVs. They have flush toilets, maps posted, and some have people there with free coffee and cookies. And they have pet areas.  It all goes to making the trip less fatiguing.

I had better quit. It's a bit dull with out pictures so I'll try to take some tomorrow. I'm not sure how to load them with an iPad, but it's worth a try.

Bye for now.

The times, they are a'changin'!  Yes, indeed!  Life has changed significantly here on Dogstar Farm.  This year saw the sale of the final remnant of our flock of sheep.  We did not raise chickens nor turkeys.  And now, the tractor is up for sale.
 

That does not mean we will not be farming any more.  We just don't need the tractor.  We don't use it as much as we thought we would.  It was wonderful for fencing the couple of kilometres we had to fence, but now it's time to sell it on.  We also have our camper for sale.

It's been a great camper for us.  Now we would like to have a motor home for travelling with the dogs.  It is also easier for me to get in and out of since my left leg still doesn't work that well after my back injury.  The camper is in excellent condition and will make someone a great home away from home!

Surprisingly, the item that sold the fastest was the Toyota Land Cruiser.  It is a right-hand drive which I bought shortly after it was brought to Canada from Japan.  I loved it!  It is an 1988 and a huge step up from the 1986 land cruiser I had before.  This one had electric windows, mirrors, locks, air conditioning and even a sun roof.  

I had a lot of interest from all over Canada.  Obviously, the price was definitely not too high.  I will miss my land cruiser, but it is time to move on to try something different.

We are off to Prince George tomorrow.  We will spend the night.  Tomorrow is our 22nd wedding anniversary so we will go out for a nice meal.  We will look at motor homes in Vanderhoof on the way to Prince George.  We are also bringing the land cruiser to the people who bought it.  They are flying up from Duncan, BC and will drive it back home.  

To get the Toyota all spiffed up for its new owners, Dennis changed the oil and gave it a good wax.  The auto supply store gave him the wrong filter.  He only found this out when he tried to put it in, and it didn't fit, so he had to clean himself up, drive the 45 minutes back to town, purchase the correct filter, and drive the 45 minutes back home.  The joys of living out of town!

Most gardens are well into their peak, and ours is no different.  So here is a good recipe for using some of those lovely, fresh vegetables.  It is my recipe for Lasagne.  I make this lasagne for my grandson who comes to mind our place when we go away over night. 

The sauce:  Run several carrots, a nice zucchini, some celery, and a handful of cauliflower and broccoli florets, peppers and any other veggie you think might be nice, through your grater or food processor.  Scramble fry about 1 lb. lean hamburger in some olive oil.  Not too hot as olive oil cannot stand too much heat.  (leave the meat out if you are vegetarian).  To this add your shredded vegetables.  Add 4 or 5 chopped cloves of garlic.  Season with a tablespoon of Victorian Epicure Selections Marinara sauce mix, a tablespoon of Victorian Epicure Selections Italian Meatballs seasoning and a tablespoon of Victorian Epicure Basamic Vinaigrette Seasoning or use the herb combination of your choice.  Add about 1 to 1.5 teaspoons salt, less if you're using sea salt.  I use the coarse salt combination from Victorian Epicure Selections called Herbed Garlic sea salt.  If you are using straight basil, oregano and thyme you may want to reduce the amounts to one teaspoon of each.

(I'm cleaning my desk drawers - please disregard the background mess!)

After it has all simmered for a few minutes and the veggies have released their sugars, add a large can of diced, crushed, or whole tomatoes (break up the whole tomatoes), (I use a quart of my home canned tomatoes) a can of tomato paste, 3/4 cup of red wine, 1 tablespoon honey and 1/4 cup dried parsley.  Let the works simmer on low for about 1/2 hour up to an hour.  Just don't let it dry out.  Let it cool down.

To build the lasagne:  You will need 1 pound (or more if you like it cheesier) mozzarella, grated, 2 cups (or more) ricotta cheese, a cup of grated parmesan cheese and 9 or 12 (depending on your pan size) lasagne noodles. Now, you can pre-cook your noodles or leave dry.  I never pre-cook my noodles.

In a large lasagne pan, or a 9x13 baking pan, put a few spoonfuls of your sauce.  Lay 3 or 4 lasagne noodles, I use uncooked, in the bottom of your pan, on top of the bit of sauce.  Lay on about a cup of ricotta cheese over the noodles.  Don't worry if it isn't evenly spread but try to plop it down in a relatively even layer.  Take a third of your sauce and spread that over the ricotta.  Spread over that 1/2 pound grated mozzarella cheese.  Top that with 3 or 4 more noodles, then a cup of ricotta, another third of your sauce and another 1/2 pound of grated mozzarella.  Top that with 3 (or 4) more noodles and the last of the sauce.  Try to ensure your last lot of sauce is enough to cover the noodles completely.  I make sure my last third is a larger third than the first two, if that makes any sense at all! 

Cover your completed lasagne with a Victorian Epicure Selections silicone baking mat, or use tin foil.

 Pop into a 350 degree oven for about an hour.  I always have to put foil under my pan as my pan ALWAYS over flows.  After an hour, take the lasagne out of the oven.  Remove the baking mat, or foil, and sprinkle on your cup of freshly grated parmesan cheese.  Pop this back into the oven and bake for another 20 minutes or so, until it looks the way you want it.  Remove from oven and let it stand for 20 to 30 minutes.  It should still be hot enough.  Cut in squares and serve with garlic toast and a big fresh salad.  

I usually make it a day ahead of time, then just re-heat what I want to eat.  The lasagne tends to gain flavour as the herbs meld in the sauce.

You can add or subtract any vegetables you like.  You may notice I did not use onion.  I love onion but too much of it doesn't agree with my stomach!  Mushrooms are also a nice addition, but I never seem to have them on hand.   I use about 4 cups grated vegetables.  The combination varies with what I have on hand.  If you are vegetarian you can just leave out the meat, sauteing the veggies in the olive oil and going from there..  I have had it both ways and enjoy them both the same.  You can also use whatever herb combination you like.  I love the Victorian Epicure Selections spices and herbs.  They are fresh, non-gmo and all are gluten free.  Speaking of which, you can also make this gluten free with any of the varieties of gluten free pasta available these days.  You can also substitute cottage cheese for the ricotta, but that does change the flavour and texture.  You can also use fresh herbs.  Just make sure you use about 3 times as much as you would dried.

If anyone is interested in purchasing Victorian Epicure Selections herbs and spices, do let me know.  I am happy to send you a catalogue.  It is only available in Canada at present.

If you have any questions or comments about this recipe, or anything else in this blog, I am very happy to hear from you.  Bye for now.

We are in deep summer on Dogstar Farm.  Hot temperatures slow things down, especially with me!  My greenhouse soars to 118 degrees F by mid-morning, with door open, both windows open and the fan on 24 hours a day.  Last night I left the door open to try to keep it cool but the temperature still rose to 115 degrees by 10:30 a.m.  I have ordered a shade cloth from Lee Valley.  I will fling it over the greenhouse when temperatures are in the 30's C.

In order to beat the heat we take to the lake.  The water temperature, according to our fish finder, is now a balmy 17 degrees C.  In one spot it was over 20 degrees C.  That is where I jumped off the boat and into the water.  I can tell you, it did not feel like 20 degrees, rather more like -20!  I did get used to it though and had a quick swim around the boat to cool myself off.

 The usual selfie!  Feeling good!

 Enjoying the wind in his fur!

As you can see from the above photos, the lake was calm as glass.  Very unusual for Francois Lake, which is a 100 km long, narrow lake.  The winds pick up quickly, making boating difficult for small boats and novice captains!  You will also notice the sky is not blue.  Normally, the sky would be a deep, clear blue.  Right now we are receiving smoke from a huge 13,000+ hectare fire west of Quesnel.  We see the smoke billowing up each afternoon from over the hill south of us, across the lake.  Even though it is many kilometers away, we are still impacted by the smoke.  Yesterday we could smell it and feel it in our eyes and lungs.

The above pictures were taken on the beach just a week ago - notice the beautiful blue colours of the sky and lake!  And here we are, enjoying something that is now, or will be on Thursday, prohibited in our area:

Marshmallow roast for dessert one evening!  What a great visit we had with our two beautiful grand daughters, daughter and son-in-law.  We hope we will continue to have times like these after their move to Halifax, which we just found out about today.  So congratulations are in order to son-in-law Chris, who is now promoted to Sergeant in the RCMP.  We are very, very proud of you!  And now is the time for a huge THANK YOU to all the Mounties who place their lives on the line every day to provide us with safety and a peaceful life.

Now, before I close, here are a few pictures of my roses, who never fail to delight me with their colours and fragrance.  Dogstar Farm is such a beautiful place in the summer!

Here are a few more pictures of the yard, greenhouse and the trails.  The wild roses were exceptional this year.  I made 2 batches of wild rose petal jelly and 2 batches of wild rose petal with lavender jelly.  Every jar tastes like summer!

 Beautiful colours of the wild roses.

 Calm afternoon.

 Wild roses at their peak!

 At the pond.

 Thimble berry.

 Wild columbine.

 Thimble berry

 Beautiful Indian paint brush and wild clover.

Along the eastern fence line.

On the way home.

You can see how lush everything is.  It gets so jungle-like where the cow parsnips grow tall, over my head.  I hope you've enjoyed our little tour of Dogstar Farm.  Bye for now.