Pre Mexico chatter

Hi, all. I haven't updated in a while, sorry about that. You know how time gets away from us. I've been busy, as usual.

I couldn't get any Christmas photos of us up - mainly because there aren't any of me 'n M'Dooley! How sad is that?! The Blizzard Party photo will have to do for now...

We are headin' to Mexico for a much needed week in the sun, in just 16 short days! Yippee! We are going with my older sister, Ann and her husband Jim. You remember Jim? He's the one who has NO FEAR. He is the one who called his sister at 5:30 on Christmas morning, for some Sage to stuff our turkey! Not all men have the courage Jim has! Anyway, Ann and Jim have never been to Mexico (I can't imagine!) so M'Dooley and I are really looking forward to showing them our favorite spots...Pipi's - the best Margarita's we've ever tasted, and so large you could swim in 'em, the Malacon of course. The talent and work that goes into those sand sculptures...wow. Our Lady of Guadeloupe church...that is not to be missed. Liz Taylor and Richard Burton's former home, the Market...the whole she-bang. Of course, the little street cafe in Old Vallarta where we stopped for one of the most refreshing strawberry based drinks I have ever had! And non-alcoholic, to boot. That is where we forgot our back-pack, containing our camera, passports, my lipstick - well you can imagine...but get this - by the time we realized we had forgotten it we were all the way back to our Hotel. We made our way back - the back-pack was STILL THERE. Right where we left it! Nothing was missing. How terrific was THAT!

I look after My Angels for 2 days most weeks. Yesterday I had THE HAILEY for a few hours, then we picked up Katie from school at 3:30. Those girls crack me up....THE HAILEY loves food, even more than your typical 4 year old...she just needs fuel constantly. She is so BUSY...doesn't rest for a minute! Katie is totally opposite...you have to cajole her into having a snack after school. She loves to do her homework and sit quietly and read or play with her Polly Pockets. It's very strange...in one room I have total chaos and in another I have peace and serenity. But I love it and wouldn't change it for the world.

M'Dooley retires on June 21! Another YIPPEE! We have looked forward to that moment for so long...98 work days to go! I know that 98 days does not translate into June 21, but he works for a Crown Corp so there are many D.O's and other assorted holidays in there. He gave me his schedule yesterday and I laughed my head off. It stopped totally at June 22...I will try to scan it and get it up for you. Our immediate plans are pretty definite...we are heading out to B.C. in the MoHo , hopefully taking Deb, Steve and My Angels with us. We bought this MoHo last fall, specifically for our retirement. We won't be gone long because of course, the kids have to WORK, but only for the next 30 YEARS or so! THE HAILEY talks about it quite a bit but her biggest concern is whether she can take her Dora sleeping bag. The whole experience should be interesting, us, the kids, My Angels, My Other Angels (Lily, Mee - oops. I mean Sylvia) and Oreo in a 32' Southwind, cruisin' down the highway, headed to B.C. with stops in between. Lots of stops. Lots of noise. Lots of questions. Lots of toys and books laying all over any floorspace that Lily and Mee - err, Sylvia don't take up. Okay, maybe it's not such a great idea after all. Let's rethink this...hmmm.

Our long-term plans are a bit sketchy. We will eventually be moving to Creston, B.C. We have been looking for a house there. That's a tough job, house hunting via the Internet. But we will succeed. We MUST not spend too many more winters in Saskatchewan. See? I KNEW I could find a way to get back to the Great Saskatchewan pass time - talking about THE WEATHER!!

THE WEATHER has been frightfullllll. Last week it was -50 C, with the windchill. Of course, it was only -37 without the wind. This week, it has been -10, with no windchill. Go figger. And, of course, our lives would not be complete without the -50 FLAT TIRE. Yep, it had to happen. Thank goodness for CAA.

I think that's about all I have to say for this week. Today is going to be very, very busy for me. I take My Other Angels into the "beauty parlor" this morning, go see my Dad for a while, pick My Other Angels up at noon, come home, THE HAILEY will be here at 1:00, we pick Katie up from school at 3:30, then off to the Vet with Lily for her 4:30 appointment. (Poor old girl hasn't been feeling well lately.)

Question and Answer period: "Rafter" asked how far we are from Calgary...we are about 8 hours (7 hours if you don't stop to pee) east of Calgary, via Highway #1. Remember when we drove to Calgary and then flew to meet you in Las Vegas? Well, the return trip was HELL because we had to drive all the way back to Regina, in the middle of the night. Next time, we'll FLY to Calgary...