Moved to Morrisburg, Ontario

Our site at Upper Canada Campground, Morrisburg, ON

We left Ottawa Municipal Campground this morning around 8:40 a.m. and headed to Vos Trailer Sales in Stittsville where we purchased our fifth wheel. Our bathroom sink had finally arrived and we had made arrangements a couple of weeks ago to have it installed today. Finally I get my bathroom back!

It was installed without incident and we were on the road again by 10:40 a.m. arriving at Upper Canada Campground near Morrisburg, Ontario at about 12:10 p.m. We were set up in our site by around 1:30 p.m. It was hot and humid so I turned the air on as soon as we were plugged into electric. This campground, like Ottawa Municipal, does not have sewer on site but does have a dump station as well as a pump out. I haven’t looked into that yet as I don’t think we’ll need it as we’re only here for a week. The campground is full of kids and makes me long for the 55+ campgrounds in the south. Not that I don’t like kids, but I do like peace and quiet when I’m sitting out in my lawnchair reading or pondering the meaning of life (Yeah, right!) The good thing about it is it’s only about 5 km to Upper Canada Village where Gordon has a pass to take photos. So, no sooner were we set up than he was on his way to the Village and got back about 2 hours later having taken 243 photos. No doubt they will be appearing on his pbase site at some point.

There had been a forecast of rain for this morning but luckily we didn’t see any of it and were able to pack up, drive where we needed to go and get set up without getting wet (other than sweating).

For those of you that don't know me, I was born and raised in this area and attended all my high school years in Morrisburg and lived there for a while in the late 60's and early 70's. I also worked at Caldwell Linen Mills at Iroquois (a short distance from Morrisburg), the Bank of Nova Scotia and Mutual Products during that time.

Back to today - I took Bib for a walk around the park, tried to muzzle him as there are so many kids around and he doesn’t like kids but he wouldn’t walk with it on, just kept trying to get it off. Luckily no kids approached him so I didn’t have to tell them that he would bite.

I sat outside in my lawnchair and for a while used the fan as it was so humid, read my book and just enjoyed the time. I also went on a little walk around to find the washrooms and the laundry room and to get familiar with the campground. They have two pools here and I had thought of going for a dip but didn’t get around to it. The pool was also loaded with kids. Needless to say, I’m glad we’re only here for a week!

Our Last Day at Ottawa Municipal Campground

Since today is our last day here at the Ottawa Municipal Campground for a while and we’ll be heading to Morrisburg, I decided to stock up on groceries as they are overpriced in Morrisburg as it’s considered a tourist area due to Upper Canada Village and the river. I got back around 1:30 p.m. and then sat outside and read for a while.

It was hot and humid today. We had a thunderstorm around 6:00 p.m. We’ve had a really lousy summer as far as weather is concerned.

Late this afternoon, Gordon and I went back to Zellers and got him a couple of golf shirts. One of his favourite shirts that he bought in Grenada years ago when we went on a cruise every winter bit the dust this week. I’ve been trying to convince him that golf shirts are easier to wash and don’t need to be ironed so now we’re going in the right direction for replacements for his shirts.

We started to pack things up late this afternoon so we won’t have so much to do tomorrow morning. The weather is supposed to be iffy tomorrow so it’s better to get things done ahead of time that can be while it’s not raining!

I didn’t take any photos today so borrowed one from Gordon that he took of a dragonfly at Morris Island on Sunday.

A Very Windy Day!

I took this photo in the park this morning when I was on my morning walk. Unfortunately my little camera doesn't do sun rays very well.

Today was mostly sunny but with some cloudy periods but very windy. Luckily we have the awning well strapped down but it was still doing a lot of flapping! I sat out all morning and most of the afternoon and finished reading my book. I will have to take two back to the library unread as we’re leaving town on Tuesday however my sister brought me some books so I have lots to read.

Some links on the sidebar on my blog weren’t working so I fixed those today.

Late this afternoon we took my books back to the library and picked up some Pepsi that was on sale at Pharma Plus. Bib got a ride in the truck for a change. We also stopped at a trail just a little way from the campground and Gordon took a few photos.

Not much happening here today!

Happy Canada Day!

Here I am at Morris Island Conservation Area on the Causeway

This is the first time I’ve seen this campground full since we arrived here nearly a month ago. This morning when I walked there were five RVs lined up in the driveway. I guess they didn’t have room for them last night so let them park there overnight.

We had to dump the tanks again today so again had to pack up, go dump and put everything back together again, another two hours. We’re leaving Tuesday to go to Upper Canada Campground. Too bad it couldn’t have waited but our black tank has shown full on the gauge for the last two days.

I was sitting outside reading when Gordon came out and said he was trying to decide if he was going to the fireworks tonight or not. Then he thought he’d like to go and have a look at the Morris Island Conservation Area at Fitzroy Harbour. We left poor little Bib behind as I didn’t think he would be allowed at a Conservation Area but there was someone there walking their dog. It would be nice if they let you know on their websites if dogs are allowed or not. We walked a short way on the causeway and saw lots of dragonflies and wildflowers. It’s a very pretty area. While we were out in that part of the county, we drove through places I hadn’t been before like Galetta, MacDonald’s Corners, Kilmaurs and Dirleton. I had never heard of Dirleton or Kilmaurs. Mind you, as towns go there’s not much to them. MacDonald’s Corners is a pretty little place, kind of like a small Constance Bay. We drove to the ferry at Fitzroy as I hadn’t been there before but didn’t go on it. We arrived home about 4:45 p.m. to a hungry, happy little dog.

With the campground full it means lots of kids. Consequently Bib doesn’t want to go outside. He doesn’t like kids, bicycles and bouncing balls and there’s a lot of that going around this weekend.

Tonight we’ve decided to stay at home. We’ve been having sprinkles of rain on and off so home is the best place to be!

End of the Month

Today we didn’t do much. Gordon went to his friend, Leroy’s this morning for a while. Leroy is his supplier of Macintosh products.

This afternoon I went to Bayshore to refill prescriptions, get one of Gordon’s shoes repaired and do some other miscellaneous shopping. Other than that, it was a thoroughly boring day.

Here are our expenses for the month of June:

Campground Fees - $665.26
Groceries - $333.68
Laundry - $28.00
Wine/Spirits - $10.95
Entertainment - $31.01
Snacks - $11.72
Eating Out - $96.75
Fuel for truck - $265.45
Propane - $0.00
Dog Food/Vet etc - $0.00
Repairs RV/Truck - $0.00
Misc - $674.08
Insurance - $323.59
Internet - $195.24
Phone - $110.94
Medical/Dental - $74.67
Gifts - $180.00
Total for month - $3001.34

We ate out more this month because we had company from Ohio. Also for internet there is a yearly fee to be paid of $75.00. We paid our Emergency Road Service for the year this month so our insurance costs are higher than usual. We also had some gifts to buy for various occasions. Our misc. expenses are also higher as I bought a few items of clothing and Gordon upgraded the memory in his computer, our gold card fee comes due in June and we also paid for our internet domain for two years. So, we went over our $3000.00 per month by $1.34. Not bad!

Since I didn’t take any photos today, I borrowed one from Gordon. Can anyone guess what it is?

A Slow Thursday

Today we had an appointment with our financial advisor to sign some more papers and to go over some things. After that we stopped and picked up a few groceries, filled up with fuel, stopped at Bulk Barn so Gordon could stock up on candy, stopped at Henry’s to look at camera bags and then at WalMart where Gordon got a camera bag for about 1/10 of what they cost at Henry’s.

The weather today has been cloudy, humid, rainy with thunderstorms, sunny – the full gamit!

When we got back after lunch, I lay down on the couch, read and had a brief nap, then did some surfing. I have three books to read over the weekend as I'll have to return them to the library on Monday since we'll be leaving town.

Not much happening here today!

Today's photo is of the wildflowers in the park.

Happy Graduation Day, Danica!

Danica with her parents, Margie (my sister) & John
There's something about a cap and gown that makes you look so grown up!

Roses are red,
Violets are blue,
That flat, funny hat,
Looks awesome on you!

Another very humid day. We did have some sun this afternoon though! The power had been off and on three times this morning before I got up. We can tell when it goes down as our power surge protector for the computers beeps and drives the dog crazy.

We had to meet my sisters and my sister’s husband at Lansdowne Park for 12:30 p.m. for our niece’s high school graduation from Merivale High School. The actual commencement started about 1:10 p.m. and ended around 4:15 p.m. There were a lot of graduates!

Danica graduated with a Fine Arts Music Certificate, French Immersion Certificate, highest mark in Merivale High School for the National Biology Competition, Ontario Scholar and OCDSB Silver Medal Award for 90% or over average, the Academic Achievement Award for highest mark for band, music and exercise science (anatomy and physiology) and the Faculty Award for Music. Wow! We are all extremely proud of her.

We left Lansdowne Park and came home to feed Bib and let him out and then back to the DeJong’s for a celebratory dinner.

Nicholas wasn’t working so he was there for dinner too. It seems that Nick is either working or sleeping and we don’t see him that often but have been lucky enough to be able to spend some time with him over the past few days. Only 30 days left till his big day!

Hot, Humid & Rainy!

Today has been a hot, humid, very rainy day! I had been invited by my sister, Betty to go for lunch with her friend, Linda and herself but I declined as I needed to get some things done around the house. So this morning I got the laundry done, had a nap and did some reading and then this afternoon, I got the dress that I purchased yesterday for the wedding altered, bought my waterproof mascara also for the wedding, I have a feeling I’ll need it and then got some groceries.

It wasn’t raining when I went into the grocery store but when I came out it was pouring and didn’t show signs of stopping any time soon. A bunch of us waited outside for a while to see if it would let up but when it didn’t, I put up my umbrella, luckily I had taken it into the store with me, picked up the groceries and made a run for it. Water in the parking lot was about 3 inches deep so even with the umbrella by the time I got the groceries in the truck and myself in, I was wet from head to foot. It was still raining when I got to the RV so I only brought in the things that needed to be refrigerated and left the other things until the rain let up a bit.

Pictured above are my new, updated personal cards that we waiting for me on the table when I got home last night.

Happy Prom Night, Danica!

L to R - Larisa, Danica and Wendy

This morning I spent reading both inside and out and getting ready to go dress shopping this afternoon. Gordon dropped me at my sister, Margie’s for 12:30 p.m. My older sister, Betty was the chauffeur. Also this evening was Danica’s prom so we had to get her ready for that.

We went to Carlingwood Shopping Centre and after trying on about 20 dresses at Sears, it came down to two. I couldn’t decide which I wanted so bought them both although I’m pretty sure I know which one I’ll wear to the wedding. It was great to have feedback and I had lots of it with three females giving their opinions. At the last minute Danica decided to go with us. Margie also bought a power suit. It would be nice to be a size 2. She got it at an excellent price!

We got back to the house around 3:30 p.m., had something to eat and then Betty and Margie did Danica’s makeup. She had refused to have any at first (she never wears makeup) but she finally agreed. She looked absolutely beautiful! Betty had also bought her a corsage and the sweetheart roses really matched well with the dress. It is of note that the dress she wore was my matron of honour’s dress for her mother and father’s wedding 28 years ago. It looked great on her, a perfect colour for her complexion.

Danica, her parents, Betty and I all went down to the Westin Hotel where their graduation dinner was being held. The parents and whoever else wanted to attend were invited to come between 6:00 and 7:00 p.m. to take photos. The kids all looked so great. It’s fun to see them all dressed up.

The three girls in the photo above - Danica, Larisa and Wendy have all been together since grade one. They are now going their separate ways – Danica to University of Ottawa, Larisa to Queens and Wendy to McMaster.

We left the Westin around 7:00 p.m. and returned to my sister’s house where we chatted for a bit and then Betty drove me back to the RV.

Gordon wasn’t able to go to the photo shoot for the grads tonight as he had been invited to speak on his ‘travel photography’ at the local Mac group meeting at the Sportsplex.

Happy 21st Birthday, Nick!

Mel and Janice left this morning about 8:30 a.m. to head to the Lake George, NY area.

Later this morning I called my sister’s place to see what they were up to. I had forgotten to pick up my mail when I was there yesterday and there was a letter from the medical insurance people about my claim from when I was in the hospital in the U.S. I asked her to open the letter to see what it said but it didn’t make much sense to her so I told her I’d stop by today to pick up the mail.

I also wanted to get something so that it would be easier to hook up our hose for flushing our black water tank. Trying to hook up a hose at some of the dump sites is an exercise in futility. You often wind up with skinned knuckles from the handle of the tap being so close to the tap as is the case here at Ottawa Municipal. I went to the Canadian Tire in Bells Corners and as I drove into the parking lot I saw an SUV with a Jay Feather trailer attached. Hmmm, Mel and Janice’s rig looks just like that one. So I got out of the truck and went to look and it did have Ohio plates so I went in to the Service Department and there they were. The had a flat tire just as they were getting onto the Hwy 417 ramp at Moodie Drive so not far from the campground. Their Good Sam Emergency Road Service had come and changed the tire and then showed them the way to Canadian Tire to see if their tire could be repaired. There Service tech said it could be repaired so I waited with them and saw them off on their way to Lake George again.

I didn’t get anything for our tap problem thinking that our two way faucet attachment might work.

Continued on to my sister’s, checked out the letter and it didn’t make much sense to me either but they did enclose a cheque for me to pay for the prescription I got. I called them but had to leave a message for them to call me back tomorrow. I stayed and chatted for a while and we were invited to come back for dinner. So, I left and went to a couple of stores on Merivale Road looking for a dress for my nephew’s wedding on July 28th but didn’t find anything so came home.

Today is my nephew and godson’s 21st birthday so dinner at his parent’s house was in honour of Nick’s birthday. Photo above is of Nick with the candle in his ice cream. He didn’t want a cake. It was a nice family get together as my sister, Betty from Toronto was down and Becky, Nick's fiancee was there as well. We were only missing Betty's husband, Garth.

Surprise Wedding Shower and More Sightseeing

Becky models her hat made of the bows from her gifts

Becky arrives at the shower. Was it a surprise?

This morning I spent reading outside and getting ready to go to a wedding shower. I haven’t said anything about the shower in my blog other than alluding to it over the last few days as it was a surprise shower for my nephew, Nick’s fiancée, Becky. It was held at her sister’s place, who is her matron of honour. We had a beautiful day for it and it was held outside in her sister’s back yard. Becky and Nick got tons of presents. I don’t think I’ve ever seen so much stuff at a shower. They are well set for their kitchen and bathroom.

I got home around 5:30 p.m. and Mel and Janice, Gordon and I went to Swiss Chalet in Kanata for dinner and then we took them on a tour of the Gatineau Parkway and points between the campground and Old Chelsea.

It’s been a long day!

Photos above were taken at the shower.

Hospital and Sequence

A little humour (considering you can't get anywhere in Ottawa these days without being tied up with construction)

Today was sunny but seemed quite cool in the shade.

This morning was spent reading and this afternoon Gordon had to go back to the Ottawa General Hospital so the doctor could check his lip. It has healed and all is okay there. Bib and I went with him and as there wasn’t any parking on Lynda Lane across from the hospital, we dropped Gordon at the hospital and then I went in search of a place to wait. I ended up spending part of the time at the high school on Dauphin Street near the hospital, some time parked on a nearby street and then at Rotel on the hospital grounds. It took about 50 minutes by the time we arrived to the time I picked him up.

We headed home arriving around 3:15 p.m.

After dinner, Mel and Janice came over with their game of ‘Sequence’. Janice and I won over Mel and Gordon three games to one!

Museum of Civilization

View of Parliament Buildings from Museum of Civilization

Totem Pole Exhibit at Museum of Civilization

This morning after walks, I vacuumed the RV and then sat outside and read. Around noon, Janice came over and helped me to wrap a gift for an event that’s upcoming. Then while Gordon and Mel went to get Gordon’s computer memory upgraded, Janice and I sat and talked for a while.

After lunch I read while sitting outside again, then got ready for our trip to the Museum of Civilization. It’s free after 4 p.m. on Thursday nights. Unfortunately they still get you big time for parking. It was interesting but I’m not really into history. The Imax show on Greece was good and Janice enjoyed the History of Nursing as she is a retired nurse.

After the museum we went to Feleena’s for dinner. Yum Yum!

Another Nice Day!

Today was bright and sunny but cooler, no humidity.

I went to Barrhaven to finish up some shopping that I had started and pick up some groceries. I’m trying not to buy so much at once so I have to go to the grocery store more often. My cupboard shelves are starting to bow from too much weight!

This afternoon I spent getting some gifts I had purchased together and wrapped for some events going on over the next week or so. Other than that I sat outside and read as it was a really beautiful afternoon.

At 4:00 p.m. our guests returned from their sightseeing trip downtown and we headed out to the barbecue that was held by our financial group, Canada Retirement Centre held at the Hellenic Centre. It was excellent, lots of food and even Chateau Neuf du Pape! Gordon was impressed with the wine. They had Gail Gavin as entertainer. We left there around 6:00 p.m. and drove to Dollarama in Kanata as I had a few things to pick up to complete my gift wrapping.

Then back to the RV where I sat outside and read again for a while. Early to bed tonight, we’re all tired!

Today's photo is of Michelle's family without Michelle who has obviously taken the photo. In order - Grace, Faith and Eric holding Luke.

Sightseeing

Janice and Mel taken at the Museum of Science and Technology in front of a train engine. Look at the size of the wheels!

Photo taken by Gordon - This is of me at the Museum of Science and Technology in a 1931 Austin American

We had a lot of rain during the night and a few showers this morning but we got ready to take Mel and Janice to the Museum of Science and Technology and arrived there around 9:30 a.m. We were there for a couple of hours and saw pretty much all there was to see. From there we headed to Summerhays at Woodroffe and Baseline for lunch and then went back to the RV to pick up the dog.

From there we took them downtown on the Ottawa River Parkway, through the Market area, down Sussex and the Rockliffe Parkway, into Rockliffe to show them Michael Cowpland’s house, then back to the King Edward Bridge and across to Quebec to show them where the Museum of Science and Technology is located, then back to Ottawa on the Alexandra Bridge and down Elgin to the Queen Elizabeth Driveway, showed them the Arboretum, the Ornamental Gardens and the Experimental Farm. Then off to Hogs Back and Rideau Heights Campground and from there back home.

Then Janice and I went to Carlingwood for a couple of hours and did some looking around and actually bought a couple of items.

The weather cleared up this afternoon and was very nice although a bit cool but thank goodness the humidity is gone!

Just Hangin' Around

Granddaughter, Faith holding grandson, Luke

Granddaughter, Grace holding grandson, Luke

Tonight's rainbow

Very cloudy this morning and humid. It eventually started to rain and cool off.

We hung around the RV today with Mel and Janice and Janice and I got some laundry done. Gordon and Mel did computer stuff. Mel was using our wifi. Late in the afternoon, Janice and I took off to do some grocery shopping. I took her to see our former house and we hit a few stores as well. We got back just as a thunderstorm started with lots of rain. The power went off a couple of times and we had a really nice rainbow, photo above.

Above also are more photos of the grandchildren sent by stepdaughter, Michelle.

Hot, Humid & Windy

Pretty purple groundcover that I found here in the park

Happy Father’s Day to all the fathers out there reading my blog!

Today we hung around the RV. When I walked this morning I saw someone else with a DirecWay Dish. Turns out this guy is from New Jersey and will be here for a couple of weeks. So now we know there are other spots here that we can park in and still reach the satellite.

It was quite hot and humid today, more like Ohio weather than Ottawa. If it wasn’t for the wind it would be pretty much unbearable.

Our friends, Mel and Janice from Ohio arrived around 6:15 p.m. They had booked the site beside us but decided they would rather be surrounded by trees so moved to a site about four sites down from us. They had a long drive from Niagara Falls today.

Happy Anniversary Margie & John!

Gordon took this photo in England when we were there iin 2000 and then made art out of it. (This is the art.) We had a large print of this hanging above our sofa when we had the house. It's one of my favourites.

Happy 28th Anniversary to my sister, Margie and her husband, John!

It poured rain during the night last night and woke up to cloudy skies and humidity. The humidity got worse during the day but we did have some sunny breaks late in the afternoon.

We’ve been at Ottawa Municipal for 12 days and we had to go and dump the tanks today. By the time we disconnected, hooked up, dumped, returned to the site and got everything set up again, it took 2 hours but the good news is, we’ll probably only have to do it once more while we’re here.

The rest of the day was taken up with sitting outside and reading. While I was doing this, Gordon was working on his new website or photographs. We went for a walk in the campground and he took some photos of the wild flowers so he would have a 'photo of the day' for his pbase site.

I did talk to my older sister for a while today. She will be coming to Ottawa this weekend for a few days.

Not much else happening today!

Another Really Beautiful Day!

It was really beautiful this morning when I went out for my walk. The sun was shining and there was a breeze, my kind of day!

Gordon went to his friend, Leroy’s this morning to use his wifi to upload his files from his old website to his new one. It would have taken forever with our satellite internet.

I only have 1½ books left to read from the run to the library earlier this week so thought I would go to the library today and return the ones I had read and pick up some more as 1½ probably won’t last me through the weekend. I went to the library in Kanata this time. I’d never been there before in recent memory anyway. Before the city consolidated it wasn’t affiliated with the Nepean Library that I belonged to. Now all the libraries in Ottawa are part of the Ottawa Public Library. The Kanata Library is smaller and doesn’t have as many books but I managed to come home with quite a few.

After that I stopped at WalMart and Loblaws with a final stop at Food Basics on my way back to the RV.

When I got back I sat outside and read. It was quite warm this morning. I wasn’t getting much breeze sitting under the awning but that changed this afternoon. There was a beautiful breeze so I sat there for about 1 ½ hrs.

Today, my stepdaughter, Michelle sent us some new photos. The photo above shows Grace with a very proud look on her face holding her little brother, Luke and sister, Faith also obviously excited about the whole thing.

As the evening unfolds, it's becoming cloudy. I've heard we are supposed to get some rain tonight.

An Afternoon of Shopping

Today was a fairly quiet day. We had some sunshine, some cloud and a little bit of rain.

This morning we went to our financial advisor’s office to sign some papers. This afternoon I went out to Carlingwood and Hazeldean Malls to do some shopping. When I got back to the RV I sat outside with Bib for a while and finished another book.

Gordon now has email set up through his new website so anyone who right now emails me on smerrf@newsguy.com should change my email address to sandra@gordonwolford.com. Both email addresses will work for as long as we keep up with newsguy but just in case we don’t, please make the changes. My Yahoo email address remains the same – smerrikin@yahoo.ca.

As you can see from the photo above, we have little animals in the park that like to knock over the garbage cans. On my walks in the morning I usually see at least two that are on their side.

New Website

Last night after dinner we drove over to Andrew Hayden Park to take some photos. Our resident groundhog was out with one of his offspring. A man and his son came by and gave the groundhog some carrots and bread. They were so cute sitting there eating their carrots. Photo above.

There was also some sort of sports car event at the park although not very large. There was a Morgan, an MG, an XKE and an Austin Healey, also pictured above.

As of this morning, Gordon’s new website is being created at http://gordonwolford.com/. His other website will remain where it is on Newguy but won’t be updated from now on so change your bookmarks! I didn’t realize that it would be done that quickly!

This morning I was still tired so after walks and breakfast, I had a nap while watching TV. A big waste of a sunny day! Then I noticed that we had tracked in a lot of stuff so I vacuumed and wiped up the floors. I finally convinced Gordon to put the mat outside the door so we wouldn’t be tracking so much gravel and dirt in. We haven’t used it all winter and it needed to be dried out.

This afternoon I sat outside and read for a couple of hours. The sun came and went and it was a bit cool if the sun wasn’t out. The dog was driving me crazy today, when he was out he wanted to go in and when he was in he wanted to go out. I know he’s bored and what he really wants to do is hit the road!

Tonight was TV as usual!

A Visit to My Former Office

Today I got ready and headed out to visit the folks where I used to work at BreconRidge. It was great to see the people again. I didn’t see everyone I would have liked to see so that will have to happen another time. As it was, I was there for 3 ½ hours. Definitely some nostalgia. I’m not completely over the not working thing. I stopped at WalMart and Food Basics on my way home to pick up a few items.

When I came back, I signed us up for a week at Ottawa Municipal Campground in September as Gordon has some tests and a doctor’s appointment. This is a very convenient campground to the west end of the city even if it is more expensive than Rideau Heights and so more convenient to most of our medical practitioners. There is not as much traffic here as at Rideau Heights. I also like it as there are more places to walk and its prettier.

I sat outside and read a bit when I got home but that’s about it for my day. I took today’s photo when sitting outside as I had a comment at the office today about our site looking like it was remote. Here you can see we have a neighbour that arrived today.

Gordon used the time to process some photos taken during the winter and to research setting up his own domain again and setting up payment options so that he can sell his photos. He’s had a lot of requests but has only sold ones in Canada where people could direct deposit. He has also run out of space on newsguy for his webpage so it will be moving sometime in the next few weeks to his own domain. Will let you know the URL when it’s happening.

Another Trip to the Dentist

Cloudy again when I got up this morning. I had a dentist appointment to fix a tooth that had lost a filling so got that overwith. She didn’t give me any freezing and said it wouldn’t hurt and it didn’t. This dentist has really come through for me several times!

After that I wanted to go to Dollarama so thought the one in Kanata would be my best bet. NOT! The parking lot was nearly full and any spots available would not fit a 1 ton truck! So, I came home. I guess Carlingwood will have to be it for Dollarama until they get the one opened on Merivale Road.

Bib and I sat outside as it was starting to turn quite nice this afternoon. I read and Bib just looked around and sniffed. Then had a nap and did some surfing.

Photo today is the view from my lawnchair.

Slow Sunday

Another cloudy day but no rain since last night. It was really cold when we walked this morning though. Felt like winter with the wind. I actually slept till 8:00 a.m. today. The girls must have tired me out yesterday! Today was the only day until Wednesday that I could get the laundry done so got that together and was done by around noon. It’s more expensive here to do laundry than anywhere we’ve been - $2.00 to wash and $2.00 to dry.

After lunch I was really tired so lay down to read and fell asleep for a couple of hours. The sun came out late in the day. Sure is nice to see it.

Photo today is of Bib relaxing on the couch.

Visits - Emergency & Old Friends

More rain again last night until early this morning but again it wasn’t raining when I got up so we were able to get our walks without getting soaked.

By the way, here’s the link to photos of Nick’s graduation on Gordon’s pbase site:
http://www.pbase.com/merriwolf/nicks_graduation.

Here’s the link to Danica’s band concert photos also on Gordon’s pbase site:
http://www.pbase.com/merriwolf/danicas_band_concert

When I got up Gordon said that his lip was red and swollen and he had been told if that happened to go to Emergency so we got ready and went back to the General and got there for 8:30 a.m. Lucky for us we got there when we did as no one was there and it started to fill up after we checked in. He was given a prescription for antibiotics and we were out of there by 9:10 a.m. We stopped at Bayshore to fill the prescription and had a coffee while waiting for it to be filled.

We got home around 10:30 a.m. and I proceeded to get ready for my afternoon with the girls.

This afternoon I met my friends, Nancy and Sandy at Nancy’s place in Stittsville. We had a good chat and a few laughs and I got home about 6:30 p.m. Both Sandy and Nancy are still part of the workforce so we can only get together on the weekend. It’s interesting to hear them talk about their trials and tribulations at work and it’s always great to hear Sandy’s stories. She has a way of telling stories that’s a real hoot.

After dinner, I think both of us fell asleep watching TV so enough of that, time for bed!

Rain, Lots and Lots of Rain!

Danica, taken last night at her High School Band Concert

Yuk! I woke up to rain on the roof this morning but luckily when I got up to walk Bib it had stopped so I got Bib’s walk and my walk without getting wet however the ground is very muddy! It’s impossible to keep the RV clean!

This morning Gordon had his appointment at the Ottawa General Hospital to get the growth on the inside of his lip removed. I went along for moral support. It required one stitch and he has to go back on June 23^rd to have it looked at and stitches removed if they haven’t dissolved by then. He actually broke down this evening and took a Tylenol #3 so it must hurt!

After lunch, I went over to Bayshore to do some errands and then to Food Basics in Kanata to pick up some groceries. I came back, unloaded and put groceries away, read a bit, and did some internet surfing.

It’s been pouring rain since shortly after I got home this afternoon. I took Bib out for a walk around 8:00 p.m. and he got soaked!

Graduation, Dinner and Concert Band

Nick and Becky after Nick's graduation ceremonies

This morning was mostly cloudy but we did see a few hints of sun. We had to pick up our nephew, Nick and his fiancée, Becky at 12:30 p.m. so other than checking out some things on the internet and getting showered and prettied up, we didn’t do much. I did sit outside with Bib for a while and read while waiting for my hair to dry. It started to get almost cold when I was sitting out as there was a good strong breeze.

We picked Nick and Becky up at 12:30 for Nick's graduation from Algonquin College as a paramedic and headed for Scotiabank Place (formerly the Corel Centre) as Nick had to be there for 1:00 p.m. to get into his gown and get lined up. There sure were a lot of graduates today! The graduation ceremonies ended around 4:00 p.m. and we waited for Nick to come out so I got a photo of Nick and Becky. Unfortunately my camera is not good enough to get photos of Nick receiving his diploma. Maybe I can steal one from Gordon when he gets his processed.

We then headed home to feed and walk Bib and were to meet Nick, Becky, Nick’s parents and Becky’s parents at Swiss Chalet for 5:30 p.m. We didn’t arrive till about 5:45 p.m. due to traffic but Becky’s parents came in right behind us. It was nice to finally meet them. Nick and Becky have been together now for nearly two years. They actually started dating after high school graduation.

After dinner we headed with Nick’s parents, my sister, Margie and her husband, John to Merivale High School where their daughter, Danica was performing with the high school band. All the bands were very good but of course, the Senior Concert Band was the best. Danica even had some solo parts. She also played in the Jazz Band and the Intermediate Concert Band. I had the same problem with taking photos of Danica on stage with my camera!

It’s been a very long day!

By the way, blogspot is giving me difficulty with uploading a photo of Danica so I'll save that for another day.

Ah! Sitting Under a Tree

Another photo of our site at Ottawa Municipal Campground

Today was another bright, sunny day but all that is supposed to change. The forecast is for cloudy conditions this afternoon and rain for the next three days but the weather forecasters are rarely right so hope they’re not right this time too.

This campground is much more conducive to walking that Rideau Heights was so I had a nice long walk around this morning. Gordon had a doctor’s appointment this morning so we went out for that and while we were out had a coffee at Bayshore Shopping Centre.

This afternoon we were torn as to what to do. Gordon talked about going to Morris Island Conservation Area at Fitzroy Harbour but it was quite hot, too hot to take the dog and leave him in the truck and also I didn’t want to put on long pants and a long sleeved shirt to keep the mosquitoes away, so I decided to stay here and sit outside and read. So out I went with Bib, but he wouldn’t stop rooting in the grass so had to put him inside. Gordon also decided he wasn’t going to go either so that was the end of that.

I did sit outside for a lot of the afternoon and it was beautiful under the tree. Bib and I went for a walk and he got to sniff around, his favourite pastime. I also realized about that time that I had either lost a filling or part of a tooth so on the phone to the dentist and set up an appointment for Monday.

After dinner, I vacuumed out the truck and cleaned the windows and seats as we’re picking up my nephew, Nick and his fiancée, Becky for Nick’s graduation tomorrow afternoon. The truck badly needed it!

Moving Day

Our site at Ottawa Municipal Campground

Gordon setting up the internet satellite

Today again dawned bright and sunny and quite warm but we were just glad that the rain originally forecast for today is bothering someone else. We took our time packing up, we had to be out of Rideau Heights by 11:00 a.m. and I think we were pretty close to that by the time we left. After saying goodbye to Roger and Anne, our neighbours for this past month we headed west to the Ottawa Municipal Campground arriving at about 11:30 a.m.

The guy who had occupied our site had just left so we were able to drive in and set up right away. Check out time here is 1:00 p.m. I vacuumed which was badly needed and then we relaxed for a while.

I got my second wind and decided to go and exchange my books at the library and pick up some groceries. That done, I returned home and had a nice shower at the shower house. We have no sewer connection here so we’ll be using their shower house instead of our own. Then sat outside for a while and enjoyed the scenery and read my book.

Photos above are of our campsite.

A Trip to Morrisburg

House mover takes up both lanes of Hwy 31

Morrisburg dock on the St. Lawrence River

Path runs along St. Lawrence River at Morrisburg

Gordon White Sands Gallery slid to #3 today! He had an 8 day run as #1 so he's gotten more than his 15 minutes of fame!

Yeah! Sun! I woke up this morning to bright sun shining through the blinds in the bedroom. Seems like a long time but I guess it’s only been a couple of days.

I had planned to go out and do errands today but since most of my errands are in the west end and we’re moving to the Ottawa Municipal Campground on Corkstown Road tomorrow, I decided not to bother.

I’ve finished the 7 books that I got at the library just over two weeks ago, actually I finished 6, one I had already read so the library will definitely be one of my first stops after we’re set up tomorrow. From Wednesday on, we have a fairly busy week. Gordon has a doctor’s appointment on Wednesday and then the hospital on Friday to have his lip surgery. Thursday is my nephew’s graduation from Algonquin, then out for dinner with he and his fiancée and his parents and then my niece is playing in a concert at her school on Thursday evening. On the weekend, I’m meeting up with friends, Nancy and Sandy for our get together. Next week is fairly low key. The only thing planned is a visit to my former employer on Tuesday to see all the folks. Past that, we’ll have to see!

Late this morning I asked Gordon if he wanted me to book a campsite at the Upper Canada Campground at Morrisburg. He has a pass for Upper Canada Village and he wants to do some photography there. He said we should go look at it so we jumped in the truck and headed to Morrisburg.

For those of you that don’t know, Morrisburg is my home area, not my home town as I lived all of my young years just west of Williamsburg but all my high school years were spent at Morrisburg High School. I also lived for a while after graduating high school in Morrisburg but that was another lifetime. So, the area is quite familiar to me even though I’ve been gone for some 35 or so years. My mother also lived there up until she passed away in 2002 so we were often in that area.

We first drove west of Morrisburg to Caravan Camp. It had been built years ago but I didn’t know if they accepted short term stays or not. We got there and it looks like a trailer park. The road in was so rutted and unkept that we just left and from there drove down to the Morrisburg dock as it’s quite pretty overlooking the St. Lawrence River. Then east where we stopped at a provincial campground at Riverside Heights. No one was in the booth but we drove around and it was very wet so on to Upper Canada Campground. I had emailed them last week and was told that they had a site for us with a clear view of the southern sky so we checked it out and it should work so we booked it for arrival on the 4th of July to stay for a week.

We returned to Morrisburg and drove down to the dock again and we able to pick up the Verizon signal so we could update our cell phones. When we’re in Canada most of the time we get only Extended Network so all of our calls go onto our 500 minutes during the week or 1000 evenings and weekends. When we’re in a Verizon area you can call another Verizon customer for free. So Gordon called his daughter to see how they all were and how the new baby is doing. Everything there was fine so we headed home arriving in Ottawa around 4:30 p.m.

On our way back all of a sudden vehicles were pulling off onto the shoulder of the road. No wonder! They were moving a house and it was taking up both lanes of Highway 31 – photo above. That’s the first time I’ve seen that in some years. You often see half of a modular home on a truck but that only takes up one travel lane. This was quite something!

Back to Mer Bleue

Mer Bleue Boardwalk

Evergreen tree with reddish blooms

Two turtles on a log

Marsh

Since we got some sunshine today, we decided to go back to Mer Bleue and walk the boardwalk. So shortly after lunch, away we went although there was some cloud in the sky. We took the dog as it was cooler today and decided we could leave him in the truck. I put the windshield protector up so the sun wouldn’t come in. He wasn’t happy about being left and started to howl. I said that when we came back the Humane Society would probably be there and take us away for leaving him in the truck however on we went!

The first part takes you through the marshes and eventually you wind up in the forested area. That’s where you get attacked – by mosquitoes! Needless to say when we reached that part, it didn’t take us long to get out of there. I had sprayed with Off before we left and they don’t usually bother me too much anyway but they really like Gordon’s blood! All in all, the one kilometer walk only took about half an hour complete with photography. Other than some red winged blackbirds, we saw a couple of little turtles, photo above but no other wildlife to speak of.

We did see some interesting evergreen trees with what looked like little buds on them. I don’t know if they are some sort of cone but some trees had reddish ones and others were more pinkish brown. A photo is above of the ones with the red buds. There were also lots of white birch and the smell of peat especially in the forested area.

On our way back, we stopped at Shoppers Drug Mart to pick up some Sprite which was on sale today only but they didn’t have any and Gordon didn’t want to try another store so we came home.

Not much else happening today!

More Rain!

Raindrops on my window

Today was a very lazy day. Having had back problems all week, I’ve resorted to taking ¼ muscle relaxant at night making me groggy in the morning so I read and slept till about 1:00 p.m.

Then while having lunch I turned on the TV to find “The Man With One Red Shoe” with Tom Hanks so we watched that while surfing the internet. Then we watched “Ghost” with Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and Whoopi Goldberg. Definitely a TV day!

I’m also reading the blog of a family with two kids who have a website called “Away We Go”. They bought a motorhome in July 2005 and are home schooling their two boys. Each state they go to they visit the capital for a history lesson. It’s an interesting blog complete with lots of photos. If anyone is interested, here’s the link: http://www.awaywego.us

I did my walk this morning despite the rain but was pretty wet when I got back!

Mer Bleue

Boardwalk at Mer Bleue

Mer Bleue

Gordon on the Mer Bleue pathway

Not much happening today. This afternoon we did take a drive to the Mer Bleue Conservation Area which is off Anderson Road in the southeast end of the city. We took Bib with us as he was itching for a change of scenery. When we got there, no dogs were allowed. Sure wish they had posted that on their website. I walked him around the parking area while Gordon went to take some photos. Then I put him in the truck and took a quick trip down to the boardwalk to see what I could see. I didn’t go far as I didn’t want to leave him in the truck although it was parked in the shade.

Mer Bleue is a major element of the Capital’s Greenbelt. It is first and foremost a huge acidic peat bog but it is also a series of marshes and sand ridges that provide a habitat for many aquatic birds, so the National Capital Commission out of concern for the survival of the fragile ecosystem has designated it as the Mer Bleue Conservation Area.

We didn’t stay long as it was cloudy and not a really nice day for photography.

Photos above were taken at the Mer Bleue Conservation Area. The boardwalk is one kilometer long. I would like to go back and check it out but will have to leave poor Bib at home!

Oh, and Gordon's White Sands Gallery is still #1 on pbase!

Visiting

Today was humid but not as hot so we didn’t use the air conditioner, just the fantastic fan and our two fans so it was quite pleasant in the RV.

I went out for groceries this morning and had to have my glasses adjusted so went to WalMart in Barrhaven. They have also opened a Food Basics there so got my groceries.

I was back home around 2:00 p.m. My afternoon then consisted of reading and napping.

Tonight we were invited to our former neighbour’s house, Bridget and Jim. We hadn’t seen them since we moved out of the house in 2004. They are getting ready to pack up and move back to British Columbia for the end of June. They’ve been in Ottawa for three years and don’t really like it here so when their landlord told them they had to find a new place as their son wanted to move into the house they decided now was the time to pack up and go back to the west coast.

Just as a note, Gordon is still #1!

That’s it for today. No photos again.

Last Day of May

Photo today is of a hand made thank you card that Gordon’s daughter, Michelle made for us. It’s a very pretty card. She showed us some that she had made when we were in Ohio and she’s doing a good job. She also does scrapbooking and this ties in with it. Don't know where she finds the time with three kids!

Today was another hot, humid day. I decided to get the laundry done anyway. The laundry room in the campground is located at one end of a concrete shed. It’s very small holding two washers and one very large gas dryer and a folding table. There’s little room to even sit in there so I sat outside in a lawn chair. It was quite pleasant as there was a breeze so it wasn’t too bad until you start unloading the dryer. That done, I actually set up some towels on the counter in the RV and did some ironing. I must be nuts! We do have the air conditioner on and it makes a lot of difference. It was 23C (73F) in the RV at about 5:30 p.m. and it was very cool. In the house that would have still felt warm.

This afternoon, after my ironing, I lay down on the couch to read and fell asleep for a while, then worked on the computer getting May expenses updated, then sat outside and read for a while till I started to hear thunder. Our thunderstorms here in Ontario are nothing like the one we had in Branson, MO. Thank goodness! That kept me awake most of the night. Usually I sleep through the thunder storms we have here.

May Expenses

Campground Fees - $528.40
Groceries - $400.22
Laundry - $83.55
Wine - $31.95
Entertainment - $0.00
Snacks - $7.83
Eating Out - $92.21
Fuel – Truck - $293.00
Propane - $36.91 (includes buying 3 bottles of propane for BBQ)
Dog Food/Vet etc - $212.00
Repairs RV/Truck - $0.00
Misc. - $443.67 – includes safety deposit box rental & 17” flat panel monitor
Insurance - $153.74
Internet - $114.99
Cell Phones - $112.06
Medical/Dental - $445.83 (over and above what extended health care pays)
Gifts - $30.00
Total - $2951.96

We did okay for the month of May but June and July will be a total washout with a birthday, a wedding etc. and also our campground for June is more expensive.

Another Hot Day!

Today was very hot and humid but there was a slight breeze so it wasn’t too bad.

I left around 10:30 a.m. to go to the periodontist. My appointment was for 2:30 p.m. but thought I would look around some before my appointment. I went to Bayshore and picked up a prescription and then to Carlingwood and looked around there before heading to Westgate which is right beside the periodontist’s office.

I actually had my teeth cleaned by the man himself as his hygienist is on disability. He suggested that while we’re away I should consider having my teeth cleaned as having it done twice a year instead of four times a year which I had been doing prior to our nomad lifestyle apparently isn’t cutting it.

On my way home, I stopped at my sister’s to pick up our mail and have a chat.

When I got home I found out that Gordon had lunch out with the guys. They came and picked him up and went to the Greek Souvlaki House at Baseline and Prince of Wales.

For the third day in a row, Gordon's White Sands Gallery is #1 on pbase!

That about covers today. Again, no photos.

Hot!

It was very hot today. Even when I went out to walk this morning, it was showing signs of being a hot one. So, I took advantage of it by sitting outside under the awning and reading my book. Late in the morning we went to Superior Propane to get our propane tanks filled. They wouldn’t fill the small one that we use with our BBQ as it had a broken weld on the collar and they wanted $90+ to replace it so we decided against replacing it. Instead we went to Canadian Tire and got some propane bottles. They are easier to carry around. We also stopped at the post office and the bank and then came home. Back out to my lawn chair.

We did turn on the air conditioner today before we went out and it did a pretty good job but at 30 amp service we’re just borderline on being able to run it and anything else at the same time.

We got our reservations at Tranquil Acres firmed up for a month beginning July 11th.

Gordon is still #1 on pbase. He’s very proud of that!

No photos for today.

Gordon is #1

Faith and Grammie taken April 06 by Grandpa

As far as I’m concerned, he’s always Number 1 but his White Sands Gallery is now #1 on pbase (that's worldwide)!

Link below to his White Sands Gallery:

http://www.pbase.com/galleries?view=popular

Happy 3rd Birthday Faith! Photo of Grammy and Faith doing kissie face when we were at her house in April.

We spent a lot of this morning trying to decide our itinerary for the rest of the summer and I think we’ve got it down now to the beginning of September. Most of the time will be spent here in Ottawa but we plan to spend a week in the Upper Canada Village area, a month at Tranquil Acres near Carleton Place and a month in Lindsay, ON and from there probably go to Pt Pelee area for a while before coming back to Ottawa to get things ready to head south again the last week of October.

Sat outside, read, tried to get through all the magazines that we got over winter. We don’t have them mailed to us because of the cost. Sure wish these RV clubs would put all their magazines on line instead of sending them to us!

When I finished with the magazines, I took some over to the laundry room and was talking to a lady from Houston, TX. They have been in the park for a couple of weeks in their Class B. They call themselves ‘sunbirds’ as they follow the sun but their purpose is to get away from Texas’ summer heat. They plan to spend July and August in Nova Scotia.

That’s about it for today!