Weather, Wildlife, Ice Hockey, Rockies, Pat & Rick Visit ...

Where has the month gone, so sorry it has been a month since I updated my blog, I really thought I was going to be bored living in Ralston village but as usual I am so busy and the weeks are flying by. So here goes with an update of what we have been up to.

Weather - someone has flicked a switch and changed the weather. As of a week ago I was still walking around in summer skirts and little tops with temperatures around 28 - 36 degrees however on Wednesday last week it all changed. Mornings you can now expect -4 degrees warming up slightly to around 6 degrees I am now just waiting for the snow to arrive, it has already snowed up in Canmore and Calgary this weekend. Since we moved to Canada in May we have on the whole had good weather and for the first time in many years it has felt like a long summer each day putting on summer clothes that for so long have been buried in drawers. This weekend we have bought Tegan and Fraser snow suites, gloves, hats, scarves, thermals, boots - I don't think they realise how cold it is going to be. As the weather is turning deer are returning to the village which is lovely to see as you walk around, Tegan and Fraser love it.

Ice Hockey - I played my first game on Friday 25 Sept what an adrenaline rush! I played with the 2nd year girls against the 1st year boys - I had no idea what I was doing except skating as fast as I could down the rink to try and catch everyone and the puck and then having to try to stop, turn and skate the other way, the time went so quick. That evening we all went to the Prairie Rose club to find out what teams we are in - I am officially a White Devil. Due to the high number of girls this year there are 3 women's teams, Red, Whites and Blacks - so already the rivalry has begun. Every Wednesday night is training and then games on a Thursday night, we play against the Reds & Blacks and all the guy teams from the base such as Icemen, Flames etc - I can't wait. Only down side is that some of the training times are late such as this Wednesday I am not on the ice until 9.45pm - 10.30pm - I'm usually in bed and it will be hard work once all the snow arrives to go out at that time - oh well great fun.

Medman Season - yipeeeee it has finished at last, we have survived our first season. Chris finished the medman on Friday and had a restful weekend, well sort of with Tegan and Fraser around! So we now know what to expect next year although it will be a month longer. Chris now has a regiment of engineers arriving from UK to do repair work on the prairie for the winter, some of who are going to living out on the prairie, good luck to them in -30degrees hope they have brought their thermals! So although he will still be busy weekends should be ours again which is great.

Terry Fox 10km Run. Terry Fox was a Canadian humanitarian, athlete and cancer treatment activist. He became famous for the Marathon of Hope April 1980, a cross Canada run to raise money for cancer research, which Terry ran with one prosthetic leg. He is considered one of Canada's greatest heroes and is celebrated internationally every September as people participate in the Terry Fox Run the world's largest one day fundraiser for cancer research. Unfortunately Terry Fox was unable to complete his run, as his bone cancer had metastasized to his lungs and he died in June 1981. So the base at Ralston holds a 10km Terry Fox run each year to which Sam and I decided we were up for it, along with Jinx who could have kept on running. Unfortunately due to poor communication we thought the run was commencing at 10am in fact the actual run didn't start until 11am which was too late for Sam & I as we had to collect children at 11.45am and no way could we run that fast so we had our own start time at 10.30 am. It was great as we had the whole course to ourselves and came first!!!! We did the run in 61mins although the winner actually did it in 36mins - so we are up for it next year in record time. Fraser also did a Terry Fox run with Little Gophers - they ran round the running track and then a circuit on the prairie, followed by water and snack.

Pat & Rick Visit. We have just had Chris's mum and dad visiting for a couple of weeks which has been great, Patsy is so good at ironing!!!! The weather was fantastic for them with even Patsy getting her shorts on a couple of times. Mon to Fri was dominated around Tegan and Fraser's schedules so Pat & Rick were up to the school & Gophers several times a day and off to swimming lessons. They also got to see Tegan and Fraser ice skating for the first time along with watching me during my ice hockey match. We popped into Medicine Hat a couple of times and managed to go out for dinner at Earls with Chris one evening, who unfortunately wasn't around much. The last weekend Pat & Rick were here I arranged for us to all go to Canmore for the weekend (minus Chris who was working). So we left Ralston on Saturday and set off on the Trans Canadian Highway 1 all the way to Canmore - one road - it still amazes me that I can drive for 4 hours with no turnings on the same road. Saturday evening we were off to watch the Oh Canada show with our friend Sam, her mum (who was also visiting) and girls. It was a very cheesy show but great fun with lots of shouting and participating and the kids loved it.

Sunday we were off to Lake Louise for the day, the weather was still on our side making it a beautiful day for seeing the mountains. After visiting the lake we had a spot of lunch and then headed over to the gondolas for a ride up the mountains, after watching a short film about looking out for bears! Monday morning Sam and I met up to visit the house that we have rented at Silvertip, Canmore for Christmas so excited as it has a hot tub which will be surrounded by snow and looks out over a golf course and mountains. The house is lovely and big enough for all of us, 4 adults, 4 children and 3 dogs including a den downstairs for the kids. After collecting Pat, Rick and kids we headed to Banff for a walk around the town and then off to Lake Minniwanka for the boat cruise, Johnnie was our guide who gave an 1hr 15min talk on all the animals that live in the Rockies with Tegan having a great time answering all the questions on animals. We did quite well on our animal coverage whilst we were there as we managed to see chipmunks, deer, mountain goats, elk and a very large stag, unfortunately all the bears had gone to the other side of the mountains ready for winter. Tuesday morning we vacated the room and drove Pat & Rick to the airport ready for their flight back to Toronto where they stayed with Pat's sister for a few more days and rested after spending time with us.

So this week it is back to some sort of routine with Chris up early and off to the gym before going to work and me off to do my exercise and run Jinx after depositing Tegan & Fraser at respective schools. Tegan and Fraser have swimming every Tue & Thu, Tegan is off to Sparks (rainbow & brownies equivalent) on Wed and they both start ice skating lessons on Saturday. And of course ice hockey 2 nights a week - shame about the housework which really does get in the way of fun.

Ice Hockey - Skate School...

Every evening last week Chris came home and I promptly left carrying a very large and heavy bag packed with all 'the gear' for ice hockey including a long stick which apparently I am going to be able to hit a puk with in the right direction of my opponents net. On Monday night after half an hour of huffing and puffing I was finally ready to hit the ice. There was approximately 20 nervous girls ready to take to the ice and learn the tricks of the trade for playing ice hockey. We had a very good trainer who came up from Medicine Hat for the 5 nights to give us training which was a lot to take in in such a short space of time. Before having all the training I would have said I could skate however when trying to skate with so much padding, wheelding a stick and trying to stay upright at speed has been very entertaining. The one hour lessons went with surprising speed, some nights more positive than others as I often found I was stronger on one leg and when I tried to do the same move on the other leg soon fell flat on my face. But it has been a great week, very very tiring, but I am so looking forward to playing during the winter. At the end of the month I have another weeks lessons on the actual game of ice hockey and learning all the rules etc. Then on the Friday night we all go to the pub to find out if we are playing for the White or Red Devils which are the 2 ladies teams for Ralston. Then the season starts and we have to train every Wed night with a game every other Thursday. Once I know what team I am in I get my own shirt with my number and name on - I might frame it in 2 years time if it is still in one piece.

Saturday night we attended a Progressive Supper around the village. For those of you who do not know what this - there were 17 couples who were all told where to go for their starters with one couple in each group making a starter, but you do not know who your guests are going to be. Then during the first course you open an envelope which tells all the couples where to go for main course each couple being sent to a different house, then the envelope opening is repeated for dessert and finally everyone met up at the Commanders house for liquors and coffee. The weather Saturday night was perfect for wondering around the village from house to house with people steadily getting louder and merrier as the night progressed. Chris, myself and Sam T (Andy had gone back to the UK) were doing the starter at our house. So Sam sorted out the food and Chris was incharge of cocktails - as you can see by the picture it involved a very large melon which was hollowed out and filled with vodka, orange juice and a bottle of champagne. The other rule of the supper is that all opened bottles are taken along with you to the next house, so Chris had to 'griz it' round the village carrying a melon which kept being topped up at each house - needless to say by the end of the evening there was a potent mixture being consumed by the foolish! It was a great evening with a lot of merry people leaving the Commanders house at 1am, unfortunately Chris had to be on the prairie early the following morning as the final Medman of the season started - I think it was a long and painful day for him.

Social Life in Ralston ...

It has been 2 weeks since we returned from our holiday and they have flown by with lots of socialising and great weather. Our longtime friends Andy, Sam and their daughters Francesca and Milly have arrived in Ralston so we have managed several bbqs and beer/wine sampling with them along with trying to sort out our christmas plans - looking to get a condo in Canmore together. So over the last 2 weeks we have been invited to several friends houses for bbq's, the Leonards, Teskey & Bridle families all went bowling at the alley which is within the village followed by another bbq, we have been to the splash park, Chis has managed 2 games of golf, I have been running and the kids have had their swimming lessons, bike riding and playing with friends. It is this time of year when there is always a large turnover of new people and Ralston is no different so there are lots of new playmates for Tegan and Fraser although I have to say the village seems to be full of little girls - Fraser keeps asking for boys to arrive.

Friday afternoon Sam was off on her tank ride which she won during the Ralston Rodeo so Tegan, Fraser and myself went along to watch, Fraser was in heaven with his love of tanks. It was a great afternoon with Sam's girls and Andy and us all watching her zoom across the prairie in this awesome piece of machinery. I was lucky enough to also have a go.

Friday night we attended the Beating of the Retreat up on camp with the Light Cavalry Band playing. Beating Retreat is a ceremony which belongs essentially to the Army and Royal Marines. In medieval times it was assigned to tavern keepers to close taps and serve no more drink to soldiers. Retreat is also a beat of a drum at the firing of the evening gun and setting the watch. Soldiers discharged with ignominy are 'drummed' out of the regiment. Todays beating retreat is a ceremonial parade normally preceded by a marching display. Friday night was a glorious summers evening so lovely to sit outside and watch the Light Cavalry Band, when finished we all went into the Sgt's mess for drinks and a great mess curry.

This week I am starting Skate School as I have joined the Ralston Devils ice hockey team - no laughing please. Not sure how it is going to go but I have bought all the gear which will probably take me about an hour to get on and then I wont be able to move - but as I am living in Canada I need to experience ice hockey and give it a go. More to come about this and pictures.

A few weeks ago we took delivery of a new Dutch Barn garden shed - so I thought it would be a good idea to paint in traditional colours. However the wood the shed is made from is extremely porous and it took at lot of painting. So after a little help from Fraser and Chris helping out this weekend it looks great. Jinx also managed to get involved and now has a red ear, which everyone thinks is actually bleeding.

And finally 9 weeks school summer holiday is over - Tegan and Fraser are back at school today. I have to say the weeks went quicker than I expected and we seem to have done so much. Mind you next Monday is Labour Day so they all get the day off!!!!

Summer 09 Road Trip - Part Two ...

Monday 10 August the next part of our road trip took us from Canmore through the Banff National Park up to Jasper. Although the weather was not great, more like a UK summer's day rain - the scenery was breathtaking with so many amazing mountains and glaciers to look at and even our 4th bear (black) walked across the road for us all to see. Our hotel was a 5 minute drive just outside Jasper town and situated on Lake Pyramid framed by rocky mountains. We ate in the hotel that night and had a superb meal including elk, bison and lobster - followed by cheesecake for me! Unfortunately the weather didn't improve the following day so after a soggy walk around Jasper town, which actually didn't have a lot to offer, we decided to go swimming in the local pool. The pool was great, baby pool, huge indoor flume and large pool with diving board - so the flume and diving board was a magnet for Fraser who thought he was in with all the 14yr old boys as he took his turn in the line and then proudly jump off the diving board, luckily he decided not to copy them doing their somersaults. Unknown to us it was Jasper's rodeo week so we went to a local ranch that evening who were hosting the towns barn dance. All the locals were there including the rodeo princess who Tegan thought was lovely. There was the usual bbq along with horse rides for the kids, face painting, wagon rides, throwing the horse shoe, bucking bronco and a band. Everyone with children had to leave by 9pm by this time some of the local cowboys had had a few beers and the bucking bronco was becoming very entertaining.

Wednesday morning we took a boat out onto Lake Pyramid which started off very scenic then a large grey cloud popped over a mountain top and the wind and rain got up and we couldn't get back to the shore quick enough - which wasn't made easy as it was into a strong wind. That night we went to Jasper's rodeo - our first rodeo since arriving in Canada. What a great night and all respect to cowboys who are 'hard as nails' riding bulls. The rodeo was held in an indoor arena so the atmosphere with everyone cheering was great Tegan and Fraser got into their 'yeeehaa & yahoos'. The rodeo started off with lots of pom and ceremony then out came the cowboys on bucking horses, roping calves, catching larger cows, team events, womens speed riding and finally cowboys riding the bulls with a few of the cowboys walking rather strange afterwards. It was a brilliant evening and Tegan and Fraser thought it was great - although they were a little concerned for the calves when they were pushed to the ground and roped - however were quite happy when they saw them get up and trot away, but a true cowboy rodeo experience.

As the previous night was a late one we had a slow start and then the final leg of our trip across to Edmonton. After checking into our hotel we jumped on a local bus and went to West Edmonton Mall - this is the largest mall in Canada. The mall has over 800 stores, galaxyland theme park, waterworld which is a 5 acre indoor waterpark with waterslides, wave machine and bungee jumping. As you walk along the corridors in the mall you come across sea lion shows, indoor iceskating rink, mini golf, a full size pirate ship, deep sea derby bumper boats and there was a lot more that we didn't see. That evening we just had dinner and tried to take everything in then back to the hotel ready for our full day in the mall. With 2 small children shopping is not really an option for the Leonards so we decided to get a day pass to Galaxyland and all be kids for the day - hoping that we could get Tegan and Fraser to pop into a few shops in between. Chris and I both went on the Mindbender, where gravity forces you into your seat as you go through the triple loop rollercoaster, I have to admit feeling a little strange as I walked off the ride. The day went so quickly before we knew it it was time to go back to the hotel, we had intended to go to the waterpark but we all needed our beds. But we did manage to buy our cowboy hats, shirts and Tegan and Fraser now have cowboy boots.

Saturday morning we started the 5 hour drive back to Ralston and intended to get back in time to go to Ralston's own rodeo. All our previous journeys had been interesting with the ever changing scenary suddenly we noticed that all mountains and trees started to disappear as the prairie took over along with awful weather. We didn't go to the rodeo as the weather was so bad but later that evening found our friends Andy & Sam who have just arrived in Ralston so armed with a bottle we finished off a fantastic holiday.

Summer 09 Road Trip - Part One ...

Friday 7th August Chris, Tegan and Fraser met me at Calgary airport from my trip to New York. We then jumped into the car and headed off to Canmore for the next part of our holiday. We stayed at the Windtower Hotel which has an agreement with BATUS whereby you can get rooms/suites at a discount price. We had a one bedroom suite which in UK could easily be sold as a flat, there was everything in there from dishwasher, full kitchen, washing machine & dryer and balcony. We enjoyed a typical Canadian dinner - steak, pizzas, fajitas at the Iron Goat where we ate on the deck with stunning views of the mountains including the three sisters.

Saturday we were up, rather slowly as we all lay in until 9am, and eventually set off to Banff to go up the gondola taking us to the summit of Sulphur Mountain, 7486 feet. At the top we walked along the summit ridge which was easy under foot as a boardwalk had been constructed. This took us to a small hut which Norman Sanson has walked every week for over 30 years to record weather data. The view was stunning as we were above most of the mountains in the region and had a good view of everything. Following lunch in Banff town we went to Lake Minnewanka (say that without smiling) and decided to go on the lake cruise. Lake Minnewanka is the largest lake in the Banff National Park and is home to a large population of rocky mountain wildlife we managed to see a bald eagle, mountain sheep and deer. The cruise lasted an hour and the guide on the boat was very informative showing Tegan and Fraser all sorts of pictures of the wildlife, including a cougar which had recently been in the area - Tegan was very interested in the big cat.

Sunday was a trip to Lake Louise, north of Canmore and Banff. Driving through the Banff National Park is breathtaking with amazing scenary at every turn. First stop was the Fairmont Chateau Lake Louise, a grand luxury hotel situated on Lake Louise. We decided that as we were on holiday and in such a palatial setting afternoon tea was in order. So we ate accompanied by a harpist which Tegan thought was wonderful, with a view overlooking the lake and glacier. So after eating our tiered tray of food, glass of prosecco (unfortunately only the one glass) and tea, apple and cinnamon, we were off for a walk to the lake and a quick dip in, too cold so only feet.

We then drove to Lake Louise Gondola which is the ski resort and took a chair lift up the mountain - this proved to be one of the highlights of our trip as we saw 3 bears. There are people who have lived in BATUS for 2 years and never saw a bear and we managed 3 in one afternoon, sorry Clare M if you read this. Again the scenery was spectacular and made Chris and I want to go skiing as we could see all the slopes. At the top there was also a wildlife interpretation centre which Tegan and Fraser found interesting as they could touch different animal skins, claws, teeth etc. After a long and very exciting day it was takeaway chinese and back to the Windtowers.

Next part of the journey takes us from Canmore up to Jasper and then over to Edmonton - more to follow....

New York, New York ...

Tuesday 4th August Chris dropped me off at Calgary airport to start my journey to see Harriet in New York - very excited. The plan was for me to catch a flight from Calgary to Toronto then a connecting flight onto Westchester NY. Unfortunately there was a storm at Toronto with a tornado warning so we managed to land and then spent 31/2 hours on the tarmac waiting for a bay to pull into. So at 9pm I disembarked from my original flight missing my connecting flight which left at 8pm for Westchester. Thereafter the story is a very long one and slightly emotional but just to say that I finally sorted out a new flight to Westchester for the following morning departing at 6.55am - this was all resolved at 1am that morning. I then went to find myself a quiet spot to try and sleep in the airport - not great.

So the sun came up, my flight left on time and before I knew it Harriet was at the airport in her giant of a car picking me up, along with Paddy in the back. We drove straight to Harriet's house - again another giant thing - something about living in NY or actually Rye, Westchester which is a lovely place to live, very green with large opulent houses. I then had a 4 hour sleep and then the fun started. Harriet, the boys and I went to their local mall - heaven, I could have spent a very large sum of money but restrained myself to a new pair of sunglasses, trousers and few bits for Tegan. On the way home Harriet did a 'drive by' tour of Rye - as I said a beautiful place to live. That evening Harriet and I went out to a local oriental restaurant for dinner whilst Guy very kindly babysat and had pasta and meatballs - I on the other hand had Red Snapper - yummy.

The following morning Harriet put me on the train and I was then off for my adventure in New York city. Before I begin I have to say I didn't get lost all day and walked all over the city - I was quite proud of myself as I usually get lost. So I came out of Central Station and caught my first yellow cab - first stop was the Statten Island Ferry and from there I walked to Ground Zero - a very humbling and sad experience. Again stood on the roadside put my arm out and got another yellow cab - so cool - off to the Iron Building on 5th Avenue. I then wandered up 5th Avenue taking in all the sights, sounds and smells. I stopped off at the Empire State Building and queued up to get to the 86th floor, the view from there was amazing, quite breathtaking. The remainder of the day was spent wandering up 5th Avenue looking at the Rockerfella Building, Trump Towers, Tiffany's, Saks and ending up in Central Park - all the time so much to take in. I then met Harriet at 6.30pm and we were off for cocktails. We walked up to Central Park and got a pedal taxi up to a museum that was supposed to have a roof top bar but it was closed - however Harriet and I laughed so much as this poor boy was having to pedal so hard with us both in the back and we had haggled him down on the normal price. We then got a cab to the Hudson Hotel which has an awesome cocktail bar - so hip and cool I couldn't believe I was there. We went for a pitcher of Mojito's and spent several hours people watching and having a great time, we were back in our 20's again all giggly. Then on our way to Time's Square we had a hot dog of a street vendor and then I had to have a New York cheesecake in Times Square. We sat on the static seating stand in Times Square and spent an hour just watching the world go by - so many neon lights amazing. Eventually we got the train home to Rye and had to collect Guy's bike from the station, so we slowly walked home and got into bed just after 12.30am - what a great day and night.

Unfortunately Friday morning came round too quickly and Harriet was taking me back to the airport, this time all my flights were on time and I then met Chris, Tegan and Fraser at Calgary airport ready for the next leg of our holiday - off to Canmore, Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper and Edmonton, more on this soon.

A very big thank you to Harriet and Guy for their amazing hospitality in New York - hopefully all the Leonard family will be back next time - mojito's on us!!!!

Make Up Party & Chris in UK...

Another week has flown by in the busy village of Ralston, mind you I have now completed week 5 of the 9 week school holiday so not bad. This week has been filled with swimming lessons for Tegan who is just getting better and better and a girls make up party. My friend Jeanette decided to invite some of her daughters friends round for a make up party - these are all 5 year olds. I then added wouldn't it be great if we painted their hands and feet and put lovely stickers on their nails so things began to esculate. In the end there were 6 little girls and Fraser! So Jeanette and I set to painting all their nails and then the girls went off to do their own makeup, Jeanette then very kindly fed all the children. They had a great time and Fraser decided he was going to have his nails painted but did choose the blue polish as that was for boys! The girls then got hold of Fraser and did his makeup - not a pretty look.

I must say a very happy 70th Birthday to Rick (Chris's dad). Chris flew back to the UK on Friday night to surprise his dad by turning up on Saturday afternoon in time to join them for dinner and spend the night and following day together. I think Chris has made the most of his trip as he got upgraded on his BA flight by our kind friend Simon and then his choice of hire car was a Mercedes - you can tell there were no children, dog or wife around, although the Mercedes turned out to be an estate. He is spending tonight with friends Tonia and Les and as I spoke to them all they were drinking champagne and pink port.

I am off to Calgary airport tomorrow to collect Chris and then on Tuesday morning handover children and dog responsibilities as I am off to New York to visit my friend Harriet for 3 days, should you hear on the news of blond girl lost in NY City then that is me, very excited - cocktails in New York.

I may not update my blog for a couple of weeks as along with my trip to NY on my return we all go off on an adventure to Canmore, Banff, Lake Louise, Jasper and Edmonton returning to Ralston in time for the annual rodeo.