Winter 2012 in Canada

The boys left Jen and I at The Bluffs for a few days to shut the place down. It was during this time that Elliott found his thumb, just like Auntie Sissy!








In mid-January, on a bitterly cold and windy but very clear day, we left for Montreal, spending the night in Levis, complete with fire alarm in the hotel just as we were about go to bed! It was a picture-perfect drive as we headed north and the snow was heavier on the trees in Northern NB and into Quebec. We did stop briefly to take some pictures of an ice-fishing village in Sainte Anne de la Parade-you might think this is a permanent fixture, but this is all built on the river emptying out into the St. Lawrence!








We drove to Ottawa on Beth's birthday to visit her, Sil and Madison (nearly two years old). She was quite taken with "Baby Eh-yiot"!




In the afternoon we went to see Auntie Elinor for tea in her downtown apartment:




Ben took the "official" 4 month old pictures of Elliott when we got back to Montreal-here is a sample:





Posing on his Texas quilt made by our dear friend, Joan, in McKinney:












Aunty Sissy came from Denver at the end of January to visit before Elliott's christening. We had a busy week, including a celebration of Christmas in January!




More later...

Location:Sypher Cove, NB and Montreal, QC

New Year's weekend 2011

On December 30th, we drove to Bathurst to attend the wedding of Sarah and Dan. It ended up being a fun weekend reunion of old friends who all roomed near each other at UNB in Tibbits Hall back in the 70's!

Sarah and her Dad, Norm:



The happy couple after the ceremony:




We stayed over New Year's Eve so we could bring in 2012 with all the old gang around our new raclette maker in a house on Youghall Beach. What a success that was! Along with the required cheese, we also grilled veggies, chicken, pork tenderloin, steak and shrimp. Add in a salad and some wine, and we were all set for a really fun evening!

Pat, Chris, Sandy, Bill and Steve:



Steve, Norm, Kathy and Pat:




Bill showing his skills as The Master Griller:




The only tricky part was driving back to our hotel in the freezing rain...by morning, though, the worst was over and we got back to The Lake by mid-afternoon.

Happy New Year to you all...now that it is early May and I'm finally catching up on this long overdue blog! My apologies to all my loyal fans for the absence! As Chris (above) will tell you, "Life is meant to be lived, not blogged!" so please check back again as I attempt to fill in the gaps! Needless to say, it's been a busy year so far!

Hasta luego...

Location:Bathurst NB

More Christmas 2011 at The Lake pics...

We finally got snow on Christmas Night, although not a lot of it. It made for some pretty typically Canadian scenes, however:

Looking towards Grand Lake:







The driveway...before it was plowed!




The front yard, looking towards the neighbours' new garage:






Our newest (incomplete) addition to the property: boat and tractor storage!





Elliott's first ride in his new sled...he screamed all the way from the front door to the roadside! Maybe he will like it better next year!




The birthday boy on December 27th:





And for dessert, his favourite cheesecake:





More later...

Location:Sypher Cove, N.B.

Christmas 2011 at the Lake

We spent our second Christmas at Grand Lake with Ben, Jen and Baby Elliott who turned three months old...look who we found under the tree, Santa?!










We had yet another green Christmas this year, but Santa didn't know that when he decided to bring Elliott a sled! He was able to go for a ride in it on Boxing Day, just before leaving to go see his Nova Scotia family.


All the excitement proved to be just a little too much for the wee man...he slept through most of Christmas Day!









In the afternoon we drove into Fredericton to visit Ann in the hospital:





Christmas Dinner back at The Bluffs:





And to all a good night...

Location:Sypher Cove, New Brunswick

Museum of Chocolate

A highlight for the two young Ohkuysen girls on their first trip to Spain last week was an afternoon trip to the Chocolate Museum in the Barrio Gotico of Old Barcelona. The entrance ticket (less than 4 euros each) was a chocolate bar! The history of the arrival of the cocoa bean in Europe from the New World was interesting enough, but the displays of "monas", a Catalan invention made for Easter Monday, were impressive! A "mona" is an elaborate chocolate sculpture, often of famous building, people, cartoon characters, etc. They are displayed in pastry and chocolate shops during the Easter season and are purchased by godparents to give to their godchildren on Easter Monday, often containing whole eggs corresponding to the age of the child. These below are all made out of chocolate! Enjoy!

A bullfight:





Modeled after the famous lizard at the entrance to Parc Guell in Barcelona!





Old posters:





La Sagrada Familia:












Hungry, anyone?!?

More later...

Location:Barcelona, Spain

La Sagrada Familia Revisited November 21, 2011

Recently I was very fortunate to play "tour guide" to our friends, the Ohkuysens, whom we knew from McKinney and Slidell and who now live in Puerto Rico. Kristin and Pancho had visited Barcelona on their honeymoon 15 years ago and the first thing they wanted to revisit was La Sagrada Familia to see the changes, the most impressive being that there is now a roof! Pat and I had first visited on our "look-see" trip to Barcelona in July 2009 when the interior was still just a dusty and noisy construction site. I took Jen and Ben there in February 2010 and things didn't look much better. But now...just look! What a difference another year makes and particularly since the consecration of the Church by the Pope in November 2010! We felt the entry fee of ~12.50 Euros was warranted and just sitting inside the nave was rewarding as we listened to the organist practicing for awhile. Amazing!

Entrance to the Nativity Facade:



Close-up of the stained-glass window:



Looking to the roof was dizzying!




The High Altar and organ:











Back of the Church which will eventually become the main entrance upon total completion:



Taken from the back of the Church-note the beam of light over the High Altar:






Pictures of Gaudi designs seen in Barcelona today:



View of the city and the Mediterranean from the tower:




View of the waterworks building from the Tower:




Typical residential/shop blocks in the Eixample area of Barcelona:



Ongoing construction of the outer towers:




Current construction site:




More later...

Location:Barcelona, Spain