Woodstock Ontario - Jasper's Birthday

My watch alarm went off at 6:00 AM but we ignored it. I think we finally rolled out of bed around 7:00 and didn't get down to breakfast until well after 8:00. The sun yesterday did its job and most of the paved surfaces were snow free, so it was going to be a shoe day.

The parking lot was clear

The neighbors were sleeping in

Heather and Tom's

When we got to the house, birthday boy Jasper had opened the gift Sandy bought for him. It was a Lightning McQueen raincoat and cap. He is enthralled with all things Cars related. Fiona just smiled like she usually does.

Lightning McQueen raincoat

Jasper trying it on

Fiona likes the cap

 OK, it's a bit big

Heather had Polysporin and a large Band-Aid,  so I patched up my wounded heel. I get a little paranoid with foot injuries after all the horror stories I have heard about diabetic people, infections and amputation.

Fiona gets into everything

Mother and child reunion

Jasper watching Word Party

Sandy not watching anything

 Three years old today

We met Kim, Mike, Jolene and Robyn at the TOA truck stop at 1:00 PM for lunch. Then we all headed over to meet Heather and Tom at the Polish Hall for 2:00 so that we could get things set up for the start of the party at 3:00.

The party was upstairs

Lightning McQueen's buddy Mack

Mater is another favourite character

Cars party favours

They call it a chocolate fountain, more like a volcano

Our four grandchildren in one place

Some assembly required

Agnes and Kim

Jolene the photo bomber

Cousins and friends

Jasper and the veggie straws

There was a bit of food

Blowing out the candle

Robyn eating the Mack cake

It was a very sweet cake

Fiona and Aunt Kim

They actually walked in this

There was a good turnout of family and friends. Mike and I are getting a bit crusty because we decided that the only problem with children's birthday parties was the children. Still, everyone was pretty well behaved and the parents seemed to have a good time. Everyone was out and we were packed up by 6:00 PM.

Back at the house, Jasper eventually went to bed and we sat down to watch the pilot episode of This Is Us. I have been hearing great things about this series and the first hour didn't disappoint.

 Fiona shows us that fancy toys aren't necessary.

We left for the hotel about 10:00 PM. There was a jeep in the parking lot with all the lights on so we reported it to the desk. I' hit the sack before 11:00 with my trusty Kindle. We plan to be on the road early in the morning.

Woodstock Ontario

We were up by 7:00 AM and eventually made it down to the breakfast area. It was a good thing they had lots of tables and chairs because the place was overrun by teenage girls and their parents, apparently in town for some type of sporting event. I had scrambled eggs and sausages while Sandy had her usual cereal and yogurt.

In the room, I planned to transfer months of photographs from the phones to the computer. I didn't have a cord for either phone. I miss the days when a USB and a mini-USB plug were all that it took. Now, each device has its own special plug and I hate it. I transferred the photos by downloading a zip file from each of our Google photo accounts and then unzipping them.

Photos downloaded, we headed over to Heather and Tom's about 9:00 AM. After a while, Heather and Sandy took Jasper shopping. They needed to pick up supplies for tomorrow's party, among other things. Tom and I watched Fiona while I sorted the photos. I seem to have a lot of photos. Fiona is a delightful child. She is usually smiling and crawling all over checking out anything she can reach.

Photos sorted for now, I finished blog posts from New Years going forward and managed to get finished up to the end of yesterday. The ladies returned home with Jasper and then Tom went out to pick up the special birthday cake for tomorrow.

Supper was Subway, an old standby. I find their chili is much better than Tim's. It has a little more bite and doesn't just make me think of ground beef soup.

We were back at the hotel by 10:00 again. The young ladies are here with their parents for a basketball tournament. No wonder they all look fit. Back in the room, I proved that I can't be trusted with anything that moves, much less power tools. I rolled the caster on the desk chair up against the back of my right foot and took a chunk out of my heel. I do have three different kinds of Polysporin, but all of them are at home. I'll see if Heather has any in the morning.

I turned in soon after with the Kindle. I'm reading The Day After Never by Nathan Van Coops, the third book in his time traveler trilogy. How about that for alliteration.I got started in the series with a BookBub free offer. It is interesting but, when I get done, I have a large number of non-fiction history and other books (OK, electronic books) that I have been collecting as they caught my eye. I haven't read much in years due to the computer and Interwebs, but it is time to get back to books.

Sudbury Ontario to Woodstock Ontario

Grandson Jasper is turning three years old this Sunday. Heather and Tom are having a party in Woodstock to celebrate and we will be attending. The large dump of snow we got a couple of days ago has been snow blowed out of the driveway. This blizzard was a surprise since we have already had two major thaws since New Years and the snow cover was getting thin. There is another big thaw forecast after the weekend and the sun is getting higher and warmer.

Lots of fresh snow

New snow versus old

We finally got rolling at 10:30 under blue skies. The first stop was for fuel. The second and third stops were back at the house because a) Sandy forgot her pills and b) I forgot my 5 Hour Energy drinks. We do need to get better organized before the travel season.

Before leaving town, we stopped at McDonald's to try out the all day breakfast, a new addition to the Canadian menu. They only have a limited selection, but the hotcakes, varieties of McMuffins and hash browns are more than they had before. With the kiosk, it is now possible to order a sausage McMuffin with cheese, bacon and ham. However, the orders aren't any faster. I watched our food sit in a bag for five minutes before a pudgy, self-important young lady got around to pouring my coffee and delivering our order to us. The personal element is being lost as the new technology gets installed.

We finally hit the road at 11:15, rolling past a whole fleet of tow vehicles and sled trailers parked at the Chateau Guay Motel. Southern folks are here in droves to celebrate the recent snowfall. The salt build-up on the highway caused a mild shudder as if we had a tire out of balance. This is a winter phenomenon I have noted in all my vehicles, and it is one I could certainly do without.

The French River bridge was back to two lanes but the construction zone sign at Highway 522 said the highway construction there will be completed by the fall of 2016. Hello? Am I missing something?

The highways are in great shape

Around Parry Sound, the skies clouded over and gave us the idea that we could be expecting some snow squalls. We stopped at Tim's at Horseshoe Lake Road for a quick bathroom break and then continued south. There were snow flurries off and on until Barrie, where we actually got a few patches of whiteout.

Snow squalls in Barrie

Visibility limited on Highway 400 South

We left 400 at Highway 9 since going anywhere near Toronto later on a Friday afternoon was a no win situation. I was pleased to see an advance left turn signal onto Airport Road in Mono Mills. This improvement has been long overdue. An OPP Tahoe turned onto Highway 24 behind me so I drove within 5 KPH of the speed limit to Highway 10 in Caledon where he turned north. The speed seemed excessively slow to me and must have been even more-so to the officer, but what could he say?

No snow along Highway 24

And blue skies are back

There were Canada geese in the park in Guelph. The new long ramp onto 401 west brought us to a slow moving mass of vehicles. But at least it was moving, unlike the eastbound side. Traffic opened up after Highway 8 and we cruised to Woodstock without delay. The last couple of miles, we encountered some more squalls and found snow on the ground when we got to the Best Western Plus at 4:45 PM. This was the first snow cover since we left Highway 400, and it dashed our hopes of exchanging our boots for shoes.

Approaching Woodstock in flurries

Our King room was spacious. Table, desk, couch and bed. Large flat screen TV. We have stayed here a lot, enough times to be a gold rewards member. That means a complimentary bag of nuts and bottle of water when you check in.

Our room

We headed over to Heather and Tom's right way. She was holding a napping Fiona when we arrived, so I took over the holding duties. Tom and Jasper arrived soon after. We played with the grandchildren and Heather made supper of chicken, rice and (Ugh) Brussels sprouts. I haven't eaten them in decades but I managed to get four down. My opinion has not changed.

Napping Fiona

Now she's awake

Cute kid

Still cute

Daddy and Jasper watching TV

What????

Fiona not walking yet, but soon

Fiona is sure mobile. Not ten months old, but she is crawling and climbing. Jasper is a big Lego fan and has some Batman toys. Eventually, Jasper went to bed but Fiona stayed up babbling away until just before we left at 10:00 PM.

Back at the room, I loaded the photos from the camera and uploaded the map of the day's travels to the blog. Then I took my Kindle and joined Sandy in bed for the night.

Today's Route (313 Equinox miles):

Interactive map

Renovations

We bought our small four bedroom bungalow in the summer of 1984. Although there were a few projects we contracted over the years, such as a new kitchen and windows, much of the place was untouched. I am neither handy nor fussy and Sandy is the same.

However, we will be looking at selling at some time in the not too distant future and the place was looking substantially run down. I have a low tolerance for contractors but found a friend with some experience in a position to work with us.

The project started in early January. It involves correcting previous deficiencies, painting and replacing baseboards and trim. We are adding all new switches, outlets and light fixtures as well as new fans in the kitchen and bathroom. In fact, the bathroom is a complete do over. The kitchen is getting a new counter top and grout in the existing ceramic tiles. It has been fun watching this all take shape.

Front entry we have never used

All new solid wood doors

Original hideous tile under the shower surround (think cotton candy)

I'm not sure when this will be done, but I  expect we might not move as soon as I had though. If we can address the drainage issues this summer (no water inside but a Rube Goldberg situation on the outside) and maybe pave the driveway, I can see staying for more than a few years.

Happy 89th Birthday Janet

Sandy's mom Janet was born January 3rd,1928. To celebrate her 89th birthday, a group of family and friends gathered at Mr. Prime Rib for a late lunch. As usual, the food and service were excellent. We provided the Black Forest cake, a family tradition, and the staff plated and served it for us.

Fiona slept through it all

Year End - A Quiet Quarter

We haven't posted a blog entry since we got back from Arkansas in September.

On October 3rd, Sandy's mother Janet had her right hip replaced at Health Sciences North. Jan was 88 years old at the time, which puts the lie to the propaganda from south of the border that the government health care system here cuts old folks loose. She came through the surgery just fine.

Jan after surgery 

The family decided Jan wasn't going to be able to return to the home where she had lived alone since her husband Harry passed away in 2014. We had arranged for her to have respite care at a retirement residence where we hoped she might take up permanent residency, but they declined to take her after a physical and cognitive assessment.

The week after the surgery, Tom and Heather brought Jasper and Fiona up to catch a Splash 'N Boots show and to visit with Grandma And Grandpa. They managed to visit Great Grandma Jan and take in Science North as well.

Another four generation photo
Sandy, Jan, Fiona & Heather

At Splash & Boots

Multi Axis Trainer at Science North

Jasper meets a bug

During the last quarter, the Freedom Riders made a concerted effort to put the deferred donation account, funds we have earmarked for local children's charitable causes, to work. We donated $500 to the Infant Food Bank, $1,000 to the NEO Kids Foundation at the hospital, $1,000 to a local family facing severe financial hardship due to their son's surgeries in Toronto and $500 to the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Program (CAMHP).

Freedom Riders donate to the Infant Food Bank

Freedom Riders Donate to the NEO Kids Foundation

Sandy and I had the pleasure of meeting Conservative Party of Canada leadership Candidate Maxime 'Mad Max' Bernier at a local bakery. He was passing through town and a few of the CPC members answered an invitation to hear him come out and speak. It was a very small informal gathering, so we actually got some one-on-one time. Max is the only true libertarian running for the leadership, so Sandy and I even joined the party so we could vote for him. We can always quit again when the campaign is over:-)

Sandy and (hopefully) future Prime Minister Bernier

We're with you, Max

We got to mid-November and Jan was still in the hospital. All the Long Term Care homes are under the control of the provincial government. There are seven in our area with 1,600 beds and there are approximately 1,300 people on a list waiting to get in. This is one of the downsides to the government system, not dealing with real finite limits. The system gives lower priority to people actually in hospital so we finally made a move to bring her home. This elevated her status to Crisis and led to a bed at Extendicare York nursing home before she even moved. In the meantime, Sandy and I had been spending six hours a day at the hospital because the facilities were not geared to long term care.

Jan and Sandy in her room at Extendicare York

Neither of the Extendicare locations are the preferred long term care facilities in Sudbury, but the waiting list at the better places is measured in years. She is still on the list for upgrade if something should become available. In the meantime, she is lucky to have a very nice roommate in Pearl, who is five years her senior.

Just after Jan moved, I attended the Action Sudbury Citizens Against Impaired Driving Red Ribbon Campaign Kickoff. MADD originated the Red Ribbon symbolizing sober driving in the USA, but Action Sudbury started the tradition first in Canada. As a past Vice Chair, I like to attend and this time was bringing a message of support from Operation Red Nose Sudbury, where I have been getting more and more involved.

Mary Roy talks to Evolutionary Band director Norm McIntosh

A number of local dignitaries spoke about the need for people to make responsible choices. Action Sudbury Chair Ron Roy told me I would be up right after the presentation of the Rollande Mousseau Citizen Recognition Award. This is the honour Action Sudbury bestows each year on a citizen who has worked diligently to promote safe and sober driving. The surprise was on me when Brenda and Rolly called my name. I was honoured and humbled to be recognized in the company of past award winners, including the late but never forgotten Normie Hein.

The Rollande Mouuseau Award 2016

In mid-November, I started to pick up the pace with Operation Red Nose Sudbury. As volunteer coordinator, I received the application forms and background checks from police, entered all the pertinent data in a spreadsheet and worked out which of the sixteen operating nights each person would be coming out. I notified the volunteers their information was received, reminded them before their shifts and prepared worker lists for each night. Then I oversaw the sign-in table and conducted orientations for the new people. I also backed up President Lesli in supervising the hall and end of night wrap up activities. When I wasn't busy, I went on the road. Damn, that seems like a lot:-))

The Freedom Riders were one of the most active community groups/businesses to support the Red Nose campaign over the last few years.

One of the Freedom Riders nights at Operation Red Nose

Christmas was quiet. Kim and Mike brought Jolene and Robyn up just after the holiday. They saw Great Grandma and we went to a movie together. Heather and Tom were also coming up for several days in the new year.

The family at the movies

It is hard to believe that another year is done. The older we get, the faster time flies. Happy New Year all and we will see you when we see you.