Emerald Lake, B.C

This is our car. his name is Ged.

This is the little cabin we stayed in. Our room was the top floor.

Me on a canoe!

Big Sky

The thunder storm is still boominmg outside and neil is now running about in the street with my camera. he looks like a mad man. I think he is barefoot. Anuway I figured that as Iseem to be on a roll with posting my pics I'd show you some more. Here we have an example of a prairie sunset........
And her's another smallville style barn......

Stormy weather!

As I write this there is a massive thunder storm going on outside. The lightening comes from all directions and you see fork after fork after fork(...ooooh the lights just dimmed!) anyway this one is right on top of us but the other night we sat out on our deck and watched one off in the distance. We took some photos. It turns out it's pretty difficult to actually photograph lightening but we got a couple of good snaps.....

Photos!

Just put some photos on the gallery so click on the link and have a look!

Welcome to Smallville......

We're here! Yep, finally made it and after THREE WEEKS(!!!) managed to get connected to the internet. I still haven't figured out my email settings yet so thats why I haven't sent any or replies to any yet! So much has happend since we arrived that I don't know where to begin.
Eeerrrr....the goodbye party was excellent, the goodbyes at the airport were horrible. Felt quite deflated sitting at the departure gate by ourselves. We could see Doog's crate sitting out on the runway and we watched as he was loaded (very roughly) onto the plane. It was so strange knowing that he was on the plane with us, I kept thinking I'd hear him howling any minute. The extra legroom seats made the flight sooo much better and it wasn't too bad all in all. When we arrived in Calgary we were pretty much first off and managed to get to passport control before the queue got too big. We had to explain that we were officially landing as new permanent reidents and were directed to the immigration office. The immigration officials were quite unfriendly and not particularly welcoming but I kind of expected that anyway. We filled in some forms and were told that we had to go to the customs desk after bagage reclaim to declare our goods accompanying (Doog) and goods to follow( not much). before we even got into the reclaim area we could hear Doog barking which was helpful as it made hime very easy to find! His crate has been dumped in the oversize baggage area next to a pile of push chairs. He looked pretty freaked out and didn't have any water as it had spilt all over his blanket. We didn't want to get him out yet in case he peed all over the airport so we grabbed our ton of other suitcases and put everything on our trolleys and wheeled it all into customs. Yet another solemn encounter with a moody immigration official followed and we filled in more forms. Doog was getting very impatient and was crying so it was geting a little stressful. Thankfully it was all over pretty quick and we wheeled doog outside and set him free for his first touch of Canadian soil (concrete acctually) Where he proceeded to pee for Great Britain!

Yes, that puddle over by the wall was also down to Doog and believe me there was still plenty more to come! Neil went off to collect the rental car and me and Doog sat on a bench surrounded by piss for quite some time. Eventually Neil returned without the car and said that the queue was enourmous so we may as well come and wait with him. So, poor Doog was loaded back into his soggy crate and off we went. It took us longer to pick up the rental car than it did to get through our landing procedures, probably over an hour. When we did eventually get the car we had to cram all our suitcases, dog crate and dog inside and it was pretty tight! Finally we set off up Highway 2 towards Edmonton. We'd arranged to stop about half way in a town called Red Deer and the three of us were to spend the night at the Holiday Inn. It turned out to be a nice hotel. it was very odd having the dog with us, particularly as we were on the 6th floor and had to take him up and down in the lift every so often to let him pee in the car park! He was quite happy and ended up having a whole queen sized bed to himself.

The next morning we continued our journey up towards Edmonton. The sky was looking pretty moody and soon we were travelling in a rain storm. When we arrived in Beaumont there was lightening and the loudest thunder I've ever heard! We pulled up outside our house and immediately a massive fork of lightening struck what seemed to be right behind the house it was pretty dramatic!!! We stepped out the car to be met by Sean, the guy who owns the whole developement. He was supposed to do a walk through of the house with us. Neil took a step and slipped right over in a pile of the slimiest, thickest, blackest mud and ended up completely covered in the stuff. I was beginning to think this was some kind of a sign or something!! He was so dirty that he has to use the side tap to hose himself clean before going in. Of course I was in hysterics the whole time!

There were (and still are) a few problems with the house mostly because they had to rush to get it finished in time for our arrival but aside from those minor things we love it. After the weather improved and we had made a couple of trips to Ikea it has started to feel like home. Beaumont seems to be a nice little town. Doogy loves the "off leash" park and has made lots of doggy friends already. We've met a few of the neihbours and they all seem really nice. We've been into Edmonton a couple of times and have bought ourselves a car. We've even done our first road trip to the mountains. We stayed in Emerald Lake Lodge which is where we're hoping to get married next year and it was beautiful. On the way up to the lodge we were driving along a road through the forest and came across a moose in the road. We stopped the car as it ambled back to the side of the road where it had left it's baby! So we just watched for a minute as mummy moose and baby moose munched on some leaves and then wandered away. It was really amazing.

Neil started work yesterday and I've been busy letting workmen in and out and trying to get everything up and running in the house. The weather has been amazing, apart from the odd severe thunder storm its been in the high 20's with clear sunny skies every day. There are more trees than I remembered there being and all around Beaumont there are fields and farms. I really like all the barns dotted around here and have taken a few photos. The skys seems so big here just because its so flat and it's amazing to see the weather change off in the distance. You can see storms that never reach you because they're so far away. The sunsets and sunrises are also really beautiful. I've taken lots of photos but for some reason I'm having difficulty posting them on here today so I'll have to update this post another time. Oh and don't worry Shar I haven't forgotten that you want the party pictures! I'll send them as soon as I get the email working.

Party Day.... BYE BYE BIKE!!!!!

29th July 2006..... Party Day.

The party was due to start at 1800. As usual I had last minute issues to sort first.

I had the man who bought the smart car coming at 1700 to pick the car up. At the same time my motorcycle was due to be picked up from the shop where it was being repaired! While all this was happening the person who bought my bike had to come at 1700 aswell!

I was running around looking for the log books and paperwork sweating and trying to keep calm. As my bike left with proud new owner straddled on it, the door bell had rang and buyer number 2 was standing there wanting the keys to the smart car!! Sheeeesh that was close.

All done. I am now the owner of nothing but a plane ticket to Canada and that feels kinda good.

Alberta bound

not long now....and then we'll have all this on our doorstep (kinda)

Barbie at the Ridgeway....

Steak Anyone! Zoolander pose




mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm mmmmmmm mmmmmmmmm!


Dan doing his Stevo from Jack ass impression! pretty good eh?





Zena, Sophie,Kate and Nigel being blinded by the flash.



OH YEAH.

eeerrrrr...is this really happening?

Sorry for the lack of posts recently. Haven't really felt like blogging. We're trying to accept that next week we'll be living on another continent. Nope....can't quite get my head around that yet! We're having a party on Saturday and are completely disorganised. We should've booked a band or DJ about six weeks ago rather than trying to find someone (ANYONE!)three days before the event. I am totally putting it down to the state of denial that I currently find myself in, I don't believe I'm going anywhere yet so why would I need to organise a party and get a band? On a more pleasant note we've had some really nice get-togethers with everyone over the last couple of weeks.Today we somehow managed to get taken out for lunch and dinner! Lovely! We have also experienced a bit of trauma concerning the fixtures and fittings in our new house. I thought it was all going amazingly well so wasn't too surprised when we heard that a few of the things we'd picked were looking unlikey or would be arriving late....the kitchen cabinets, the taps, the light fixtures, the mouldings.... but, thanks to Jo all seems to be back on track and going to plan. I can't believe we'll be there next week, sheesh!

Bye Bye Smarty Pants

Sophies Smart is all ready to go to its new home, It has served us well! BYE BYE SMARTY! We will miss you.

AUDI TT

Finally my Parents have gone and got a new shinny 225 BHP car. Thank god its 4 wheel drive eh?

Not long now.....

Well, our boxes have been packed up and sent on their way so everything we have left will have to be fitted into our suitcases (somehow!). We're trying to organise a party but so far it's proving difficult to arrange, can't find a day when all the people we want to come will be able to make it at the same time. The house is very nearly finished now and looks really good. Every day I feel different....some days I'm excited and can't wait to go, then other days I feel so sad to be leaving and I get a bit of a tight, nervous feeling in my chest, sheesh.... who ever thought it'd feel like this? All part of the adventure though eh?


Here's a photo of the house across the street from ours, can't believe how quickly they go up!



And here's the latest view of our house....

Garage Doors.....

Latest house pics....

We have a deck out the back of the house now.....



And bannister rails on the staircase.

Today Douglas got his passport...

We picked it up from the vets today and sure enough it actually looks like a passport! It even had a space for a photo so we dressed Doog up all smart and took his picture against a white background. It only took a couple of Bonio to keep him still. The trouble is he doesn't much like the photo, mind you nobody likes their passport photo....

HAVE A LOOK AT THE LINKS TO THE RIGHT

There is a list of links on the right hand side you may find interesting.
Have a look at our new neighborhood, make sure you have sound on before you click it though.

Canada Day Stroll...

Yesterday was Canada Day and it is only right that we should celebrate the birthday of our (soon to be) new home country. I took a Canadian flag to work and stuck it on the front desk expecting to be asked all day why it was there. In fact I only received a couple of quizical looks, mostly from people telling me off for not flying the St Georges cross on the day of an England world cup match (England lost and we are out but I will not be held responsible!). So my maple leaf flag sailed unnoticed, on the way home I held it out the car window to flap in the wind amoungst the sea of St Georges stuck to what seems to be every other car window and then I stuck it into a plant pot in my mums garden where it still flies now, O Canada! Happy Birthday!

Other than my bit of flag-waving the day would have passed without further a-do. That is if it weren't for Doogie.....who had apparently been harbouring a rather unfriendly parasite under his front leg for some time. We found it and had great fun trying to pin Doog down and remove the icky tick with a pair of tweezers. To try and cheer him up after the trauma we took him down to the beach for a stroll. It was a realy nice warm evening so I grabed the camera to take few photos. We were having a great time until Doog decided to have a little sprint through the mud and ended up covered in thick Medway tar. When we got home we remembered that the garden hose doesn't work and Neil had the bright idea of trying to get the dirty dog all the way up to the third floor bathroom....needless to say it took us a long time to clean up. Thank goodness my Mum wasn't home at he time.

Picnic at the castle

On Friday we took Neil's mum for a surprise picnic lunch at Leeds castle. It was an absolutely scorching day and we found a nice cool spot in the shade of a beautiful old cedar tree. We tucked into our lunch as a peacock perched above us and black swans drifted about elegantly on the pond just down the lawn.
The peacocks came to eat our blueberries and it wasn't long before the entire bird population of the castle grounds realised there were snacks to had and decided to join us.

We missed the boat.

Today a ship set sail for Vancouver and it had none of our belonging onboard (big sigh), yes we missed the boat! Our belongings are still in a state of semi-packed chaos in various rooms (including the garage) of my mum's house. Packing is HORRIBLE! Eugh! I don't like it! And we don't even have that much stuff left to pack! Our once cosy and cluttered three bedroom home has been whittled away to a few piles of books and clothes and DVD's ( which I keep telling Neil probably won't even play in Canada). I don't know what has happened to both of us but we both seem too lethargic to do anything constructive towards our move. I just want to go to sleep and not wake up until it's time for a big and happy farewell party knowing that all the silly and sentimental possesions are well on their way and all we have left to do is catch a plane. Oh well, we better find out when the next ship leaves.....

Inside 5202.....

This is the hallway with the door to the basement first on the right and then the closet door. The den is just around the corner if you turn right instead of going out the front door.

You've seen this view before, yep its the living room again.

Here's a new view, from the stairs loking through to the kitchen.

Now this is our bathroom.

And finally our bedroom.

Little Rufie is a cutie!

Meet Rufus! This new addition to the family is Kate and Paul's newly adopted little kitten. Aaaww!

And here are the proud parents outside their lovely new home in Upnor.