We Got It!

I found out on Friday that it's the campground that is putting up the fence between us and the cleaning plant next door. Apparently the young guys try to take a short cut over the curb and through the campground to get out onto the road rather than line up to get out at the light. So I walked through the industrial area this morning.

After breakfast the sun was shining and although it was still a bit windy I decided to sit outside and read for a while. I needed my blanket but I sat out for a bit. There was a lot of 'fluff' blowing around. I thought it was from the dandelions but it's too early for them so it must be from the trees. Anyway it kept flying in my face so I came inside and read.

See the white spots flying around between the satellite dishes.



After an early lunch we headed back to Stony Swamp and the Jack Pine Trail. This time we walked the outer part of the trail. There weren't as many red squirrels today but still a few and a few chipmunks and a deer. We saw ducks and the father goose was still guarding the nest that mother goose was sitting on and he was still warning the other geese to stay away.

Stony Swamp


Two male mallard ducks

Deer running away

Chickadee

Violets

Trail

Flowering tree


We continued on to our RV dealer in Stittsville, Vos Trailers and picked up a motor for our bathroom fan and another part that we needed to fix the vent so it will open. We drove back to the RV park a different way. There sure is a lot of building going on around this city!

As we were driving along I asked Gordon if we were going to buy the GPS that I had seen on sale at The Source (formerly Radio Shack). He suggested we go and look at it and guess what? We got it! We now have a pink Garmin Nuvi 250! Now to get it charged up and learn how to operate it!

New GPS just out of the box.

Happy Mother's Day

I want to wish all the mothers out there a Happy Mother's Day!

My sister had invited us over for lunch today but Gordon decided he didn't feel up to going so I went by myself. Danica is part of the National Concert Band this week (this is her third year) so she was given the week off from her duties as a 'fish slaughterer' at the University of Ottawa. She is part of a funded government program this summer for which she is being paid! Two young guys from out of town had stayed at their house overnight and were just leaving shortly after I arrived so it was just family for lunch.

Jasper.



Danica and the Jasper blanket.



Nick and Becky (below) arrived after church. They're dog sitting for Becky's parents this weekend as her parents have gone away for Mother's Day.

As usual, John and Margie prepared an excellent lunch and Danica's Reese's pieces cookies were a great desert followed by one of John's muffins. After lunch we sat around and let our food digest and talked for a while.

Then Nick went out to turn over the garden for his Mom so she can plant her flowers.

And when I got home my stepdaughter called to wish me a Happy Mother's Day all the way from Columbus, OH!

A nice family day!

A Great Day!

This morning was cloudy but not much wind. I decided to walk down to the river which entails crossing four lanes of Prince of Wales Drive. Luckily it wasn't bad since it's Saturday. When I arrived there this kayaker was making his way along the Rideau River.


I thought I might see some muskrat or some other critter but none were to be found. On the way back I did notice that these wild strawberry flowers were out.

This afternoon I suggested that we should get out and do something so we went to one of the trails just on the outskirts of Ottawa called Stony Swamp. Stony Swamp is a large area and has several trails so we took Jack Pine Trail. Neither one of us had been on this trail before. The first thing that greeted us was this little red squirrel.

There were lots of little red squirrels around today. Bird feeders have been erected along the trail and people come along with their bags of food and fill them up so the squirrels, chipmunks and birds eat very well and consequently aren't really afraid of people, just a little wary. Next we came upon this chipmunk, again one of many.

Here's Gordon laden with his camera equipment on the trail

Another part of the trail.

Since the trail goes through swamp there are a lot of boardwalks around. We saw a couple of geese sitting on nests from the boardwalk. In one case the male was guarding the female and we got to see a goose fight when a couple of geese tried to come into their territory.

We also saw a few bluejay.

And this what we think is an Eastern Garter Snake.

It was a beautiful day for a walk and we were happy to see so many little critters and birds around. We also saw quite a few chickadee. The jack pines were beautiful too and the path was quite level with not a lot of rocks or encumbrances. Just the type of place I like to walk.

We left there and stopped to fuel up. It was 1.30/liter and it cost nearly $148.00 to fill the tank. After that we stopped at the library to see if they had any trail maps. They didn't but found them on line for us. We can also go back when the City offices are open on Monday and pay our $2.00 and pick one up.

From there we drove to our old neighbourhood and took a photo of our house. This is where we lived for 11 years up until August 2004.

From there we stopped at my sister's house and picked up the mail and talked to John and Margie for a while.

It was a nice day, good to get out and do something!

Sitting Around

Today was a pleasant enough day but a bit on the cool side for most of the day but reached a high of around 20C (68F) late in the afternoon. I've resigned myself to doing the boring walk around the campground and out on Rideau Heights Drive but I may walk down by the Hunt Club Bridge tomorrow as there will be less traffic on Prince of Wales Drive.

Here are some more photos that I took of the campground yesterday morning.


Gordon went out around 9 a.m. to photograph the tulips again. I took this chance to vacuum and wash the floors.

Most of the day was spent with jigsaw puzzles, my book and making a couple of bracelets. My plan to wash the bugs off the RV didn't work out as they turned the water off for a bit this afternoon for the second day. It looks like they might be making more sites in the middle of the park where they store the RVs in the winter. It was also kind of chilly to be out doing something like that and I didn't feel like it, so enough excuses. It just didn't get done!

Here's a photo of a couple of the houses that border on Commissioner's Park where part of the Tulip Festival is being held.

This is Dow's Lake across from Commissioner's Park.


A lone tulip.
The kitty sitting in the tulip bed.


All this inactivity is making me tired!

Running Around, A Shock and Tulip Festival

Today was supposed to be sunny with a high of 18C (64F) however it remained cloudy with a few sunny breaks for most of the day with a high of 13C (55F).

I just walked around the campground today and out on Rideau Heights Drive. Since I'm going to be limited to that as soon as the fence goes up I might as well resign my self to it.

I had ordered some pants for Gordon from Sears and they were in so I went to pick them up and then picked up the remainder of his pills at Walmart that they didn't have the other day. Imagine my shock when they asked for $667.00. I had paid $74.11 the other day and didn't even look at how many were in the bottle. That's nearly $6.18 per pill and for only 100 mg which means he takes 4 per day. We got the same thing in Tucson for $44.68 or 1.49/pill for 200 mg dosage so only 2 per day. And they say that prescriptions are cheaper in Canada. I think NOT! Let's just hope that the pills are curing him. I decided I had better put a claim in on my insurance so I'll have my 80% from them by the time my Visa bill comes in. So back out I went to get that done and returned one pair of the pants that I had ordered as they were too long and Gordon didn't like the flat front.

The rest of the afternoon I spent on line doing jigsaws, chatting with Ellie and reading.

Around 4 p.m. we left to go to the Tulip Festival. There's lots of traffic at that time as Ottawa is a Government town so 4 o'clock is rush hour. Anyway, we got there and wonder of wonders, found a parking spot. There were a lot more tulips out today compared to the last time I was there. Here are some photos.












I wasn't fast enough to get this Red Hat lady from the front but her outfit was very interesting

This little girl seemed to have no problem crawling on the pavement.

This cat was basking in the attention given it by the little girl above and another toddler.



I was asked by Randy and Terry of Guiler Travels to include their blog on my Sites to See so I've now updated that area of my blog with their site.

And so ends another day in the life of a fulltime RVer. Oh and it did make it to 17C (62F) late in the day.

A Nice Day Turns Rainy

I've been so lazy lately, pretty much since we arrived in Ottawa.

We're trying to be good with expenses so trying not to go out unless it's necessary. Fuel is very pricey up here! Walking isn't much fun. Today I saw that they're putting a fence up between the campground and the hospital laundry facility behind us so that will mean that I'm limited to walking in the campground itself or on the roadway outside the campground unless I want to walk on the busy street.

The beginnings of the fence.


Tulips from yesterday's walk.


I'm soooo looking forward to getting to the campground at Carleton Place although there are some drawbacks there like having to pack up the laundry and take it into town to the laundromat. But other than that, it's pretty much perfect! Looking forward to seeing the flowers there. The owners of the campground have a green thumb.

Gordon went out to photograph the tulips again this morning. He's been going pretty much every morning this week. That's a good sign as he had stopped taking photos when he was sick. So hopefully this means he's feeling better.

This morning I got the spreadsheet for our expenses updated up till today. It's easier to do it when there aren't so many receipts. The task looks daunting then. I also added one or two more links to my 'Sites to See'. If I don't have yours there and you'd like to see it, let me know by leaving a comment with a link to your blog.

The day started out sunny but as it progressed got more and more cloudy and was raining by mid-afternoon. I didn't notice how high the temperature got as I was too busy reading, doing jigsaw puzzles on line and taking a nap. I did get some good times today on the on line jigsaw puzzles. Anyone want to join three of us from the rv-dreams chatroom in doing jigsaws?

The dandelions are sprouting.


This older Mercedes diesel pusher has been stored in the campground this winter and I noticed today that it's been moved to a site. I'd never seen one before.

Not very industrious these days I'm afraid!

Shopping and Napping

Today was a pretty low key day. It was bright and sunny again but cool with quite a breeze. I decided to cross the railroad tracks for my walk this morning. I found out there's actually four tracks not just three as I'd thought. It wasn't a very nice area for walking. The road was really busy and there were no sidewalks. Just as I was about to start back I noticed a sign saying it's a Federal offence to walk on train tracks. I hadn't planned on going that way again anyway but not I know it for sure.

After breakfast I got ready and drove to the closest Walmart to fill Gordon's prescription for his anti fungal drugs. While I was there I picked up a few things. It's not a Superwalmart but does have some groceries. I also went to Chapters (like Barnes & Noble in the U.S.) and found a puzzle book. I never did get to a bookstore when I was in Tucson. I finished up a gift card there that I had been given when I left work nearly four years ago. I stopped in to Future Shop (electronics) to look at GPS systems but couldn't find any and I wasn't in the mood anyway.

After lunch, I decided to paint my nails so I lay down to read and wait till they dried and woke up two hours later! I'm getting that nap thing down pat!

There's not a lot around here to photograph so here's a photo I took in the desert this winter.

Shopping and Dentist

This morning was bright and sunny with a breeze but only 5C (41F). I didn't sleep in this morning and went for my usual walk. Gordon had gone out early to take photos. It was only when I met him coming home that he told me that he had gone downtown to see the tulips down there since it was Sunday and there wouldn't be much traffic. I told him it is Monday so then he figured out why there was so much traffic! Retirement - you just never know what day it is!

Thankfully I knew it was Monday since I watched Desperate Housewives last night and I also knew I had a dentist appointment today.

I left early and picked up some groceries and stopped at my favourite Dollar Store. It's called Dollarama and it has some neat stuff all for just one dollar. I got stretchy cord for $1.00. The same size you pay $2.95 for at Michaels in the U.S. and more than that at Michaels in Canada. They also had quite a lot of beads but I only spent $2.00 on beads and got a container to put them in.

From there to the dentist where she filled two cavities which set me back quite a few sheckles. Thank goodness for dental insurance!

Today's photo (top left) is one Gordon took this morning on his outing of a beaver and its offspring at Major's Hill Park here in Ottawa. The one at the bottom right is one I took of a cottontail rabbit beating a hasty retreat when he saw me.

A Bit of Reminiscing & Happy Anniversary!

This morning I woke up to rain on the roof. Since I wouldn't be able to walk I decided to stay in bed a little longer. I was listening to my oldies station. Every Sunday morning from 6:00 a.m. to noon they have a local singer, Dick Maloney hosting a radio show called 'Sentimental Journey. Years ago when I was in my 20s and single my friend, Linda and I would go to hear him sing at the Butler Hotel in the east end of Ottawa. A few years ago, Dick had an unfortunate accident and is now paralyzed. He resides at a local total care hospital where the radio station has set up a room for him so he can broadcast from there.

I did eventually get up but just hung around all morning. When the rain stopped Gordon went to get photos of raindrops on the tulips and I finally got to have my walk. This steam engine sits on the lot of Drummond Fuels which is right next door to the campground. In fact, they own the campground.


Here's a photo of our lot taken from the Hospital Linen Supply cleaning plant directly behind us. You can see it's quite a good size.



And here's the passenger train going by.

The rest of the day I spent reading and surfing the internet as well as doing jigsaw puzzles on jigzone.com.

That about completes my day!

I want to wish my friends, Laura and Steve a Happy 1st Anniversary tomorrow! I can't believe it's been a year already!