A Little More.....

Just getting in the swing of blogging so thought I would add a little more as we have been quite busy over the last few weeks, albeit mostly without Chris. Fraser and I had a day out of 'The Village' last Thursday when we went for a trip to a Hutterite Colony organised by the Military Families Resource Centre who arranges such events. The colony was a 40min drive to Jenner on one very straight road, not much to entertain Fraser except the odd herd of cows. The Hutterite's live very simple lives and have certain restrictions, including no tv, internet or many possessions and home comforts, it is a communal style living where they eat all their meals together. In the dining hall the men sit one side and the women on the opposite all in age order. The sisters who showed our group around the colony had eleven siblings in their family which is quite common. They were very hospitable and showed us all over the colony - Fraser's eyes lit up when he saw all the farm machinery and animals, especially the calves and he was given a chick to hold which would have been a great picture but we were not allowed cameras. The Hutterite's lifestyle is simplistic and self supporting - the men wear handmade black suites and the girls all wear the same style long dress with aprons - just in a different colour fabric - not a life for me! We did manage to come home with some homemade cookies and the most amazing lemon and poppy seed cake - shame Chris has been on the prairie so much - it has all gone!!!

Over the last few days I have managed to purchase more things for the house/garden so we now have a gazebo, garden chairs & table, picnic table for children (decided they would make the new chairs too dirty) sun umbrella, firepit and most important a dishwasher. The kitchen is very small but I have decided with a bit a rearranging I can fit a dishwasher in. All the dishwashers in the village come on casters with a special hose as there is no plumbing or designated spot for one - hence people pop them in a corner and then wheel them over to the sink.

Sunday was spent visiting the world's tallest tepee which is on the Trans Canadian highway in Medicine Hat (such an exciting Sunday). Ringing the Tepee are ten large circular storyboards which are beautifully painted by local native artists. So that interested Tegan and Fraser for 5 mins and we were then off on a new dog walk with Jinx.

The remainder of the day was spent at the Leisure Centre swimming which is great as they have a wave machine in the pool and a current stream which drags you along.

Two weekends ago Tegan went on a Girl Guide Summer Camp weekend which involved sleeping overnight on the Friday & Saturday at a place called Elkwater. I'm not sure who was braver - Tegan for going or for me not worrying about her. The coach met the girls and parents at 3pm along with all their suitcases, sleeping bags and pillows - some of which were nearly as big as the girls. There were about 20 girls going from Sparks (5 year olds) to Guides along with all the guiders in charge. So as the coach pulled away there were several parents with huge smiles on their faces and a few wearing dark glasses. I decided to take Fraser and Jinx for a day trip to Elkwater on the Saturday just to make sure Tegan was happy and also for a day out of 'The Village' for us. So back on the Trans Canadian highway, you drive for an hour take a right turn and drive again for 20mins, both straight roads. The wonderful surprise was the scenery as it changed from the flat continuous prairie to pine trees, lots of greenery and a lake. Fraser and I met up with some parents who had parked their RV at Elkwater for the weekend and had a great time wondering around. We called in to see the girls who were having a water fight - needless to say Tegan did not want to come home and was having a great time. Tegan finally arrived home Sunday afternoon - apparently she had had a wash but needed a good bath before going to bed - she had a great adventure, not bad for a 5 year old who has just arrived in Canada.