Happy Halloween!

How fortunate that Halloween falls a week after my birthday, which just happened to be costume-related this year! I don't usually recycle costumes, but I figured I should get a second wear out of my Medieval Queen outfit! Here I am with Devin, my hilarious Special Needs student. Jeff was so jealous of Devin's costume! If only they made it in adult sizes!My teaching partner, Nikki, and I planned centres for the kids to do in the morning and they got to enjoy a dance in the afternoon. I figured I would need help running the centres, so I brought in some reinforcements...
Creepy, I know, but I figured the Grade 7 kids would love it! Jeff did the models for the crafts and then gave the kids tips on the tricky parts. It must be nice to be soooo talented!

Jeff took a break from being Mr. Arts & Crafts to help Devin with some word searches. They also played Uno and Devin was the champion... as usual!On Halloween night, we visited the O'Connell family post-trick-or-treating to check out their loot. And I thought the kids in my class were wired!

The Big 3-0!

Who says entering the Dirty 30 Club has to last one day only????

After Parent-Teacher Interviews on Thursday, I came home to find this gorgeous jewellery armoir waiting for me.
Thanks Mom, Shi, Tess, Aunty Leigh and Aunty Gaye!

I started filling it with the lovely necklace Jeff got me. Thanks dear!


What would a birthday be without Angel Food Cake?!?! Mom and Jeff even remembered my comment about purple icing and sprinkles!

What will I wish for???

We were so lucky to have Auntie Grace and Uncle Ronnie from Winnipeg visiting some friends in Summerland (two little towns over), so we hopped in the car to go see them. Their friends have a gorgeous view in the mountainous area that is Summerland!

Robyn was set on us having something big to do, so she found the Medieval Feast put on at the German restaurant, The Gasthaus, in Peachland. The only condition is that you have to wear a costume!

We managed to convince 11 of our friends to do just that and join us for a feast! From left: Joe, Andrea, Robyn, Steve, Jeff, Ash, Tara, Kristy, Dave, Carley, Jenny.
Jeff was ready to carve the roast beast but Helmut and Fritz beat him to it. Only the head was left. Or the boar must have taken the bus from Winnipeg to get there... too soon?

Dave, the Court Jester!
Pretty in pink princesses!
Our feast began with homemade bread... the size of your head!
Next up, ham and black bean soup... warmed in the huge fireplace right behind us! Very medieval. The spoons, however, were not!

It took both of these strapping German lads to carry out the skillet-o-meat. The sparklers were a lovely touch and so was the "trumpety" music they played as they walked out! People from around the restaurant came to see what all the commotion was about, too!

The Queen was served first. (She gets hungry in her old age...) I had a lovely German exchange with the chef. Danke! Bitte! (Car asks: "You speak German?!?!?!" I swear I have known her since I was a year old!)
Car stares longingly at the boar, as Jenny waits for her vegetarian cabbage roll.
Here is the giant dish AFTER 11 people had eaten!!!! Not to worry, they don't waste it. The staff "goes on a rampage" after their shifts. This is what our "Medieval Wench", Daniella told us!
With a bit of room left, we enjoyed homemade apple fritters, served with WHipped and ice cream. "Say whip... now say Cool Whip..."

I am looking forward to using the generous g cert I got from the gang for an aromatherapy massage. Thanks, guys!

We finished the weekend off with a Family Ladies' Brunch at Moxie's on Sunday.

Like I hadn't eaten enough the night before, I still managed to enjoy the French Toast! Built for a Queen!

Here's to a new decade!!! Thanks again for all the lovely birthday wishes!

Adventure around our new town

Mom, Jeff and I went for a drive this Thanksgiving Monday to check out our new surroundings. We headed up Dilworth Mountain and checked out the amazing vistas. Jeff used his incredible photography skills to capture these gorgeous shots.

The Kelowna Golf & Country Club (where we got married!) is in the foreground and Okanagan Lake is in the background: It's a slippery slope, my friend! Mom and I stand in front of the ever-developing North Glenmore area.

We are lucky to live in such a beautiful city!

Happy Turkey Day!

We are thankful for...

• Tess arriving in town on Thursday night to spend the weekend with us! She and Jeff came to school on Friday for our double block of P.E. and it was hilarious! When they entered the room, I asked the kids who they thought these people were. Great answers! "Professional athletes from the Olympics?" Yep! "People with degrees in break dancing?" How about break-your-back-dancing! They finally figured it out and we hit the gym for DODGEBALL! "If you can dodge a wrench, you can dodge a ball!" Tess kinda forgot the 5Ds of Dodgeball (dodge, dip, duck, dive and... dodge!) and got hit in the face twice! We had quite a few laughs and a very enjoyable Friday afternoon with the kids.

• Grandma and Grandpa coming over for dinner! Jeff went and picked them up (thank you, Jeeves!) so that they could join us Sunday night for a lovely feast (which we are thankful for in the next bullet!). We love listening to the stories and the songs. How lucky we are to have them in our lives!

• Chef Mommé trying out her turkey legs again! The bird, the stuffing, the broccoli casserole, the long-awaited fruit salad... everything was delicious!


• Being married to Mr. Clean! As usual, Jeff couldn't relax on Holiday Monday, so he got out the tools and product and attacked the windows and sliding glass door. Flo sure taught him well!!! Thank you, Flo!!!!! We miss you!
  

• Having a job! I am getting used to my little Grade 7 class and how different they are from Grade 2 and Grade 3! I am so lucky to have another awesome teaching partner, Nikki; she and I plan everything together, so the workload is way less! My Principal is amazing too. Fingers crossed that I get to cover the Grade 1/2 French Immersion mat leave that is coming up in April!!!

Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!

Pumpkin Patch and Hockey... A Perfect Combination!

While Jeff waited out the two-hour frost delay to golf with Dad and Derek, I joined the O'Connell/Larson/Sandvolt crew (Robyn, Dave and Presley; Kristine, Gracey, Wesston and Ty; Jenny and Bailey) to visit Davison Pumpkin Patch in Vernon. (http://www.davisonorchards.ca/)


What a fun place! There was a petting zoo (goats, donkeys, sheep and bunnies), a maze, a sandbox with a tractor in it, a corn teepee, a hay barn and a pretend cow to milk! We walked around and watched the kids lose their minds with all of these fun activities.


We stopped at the cute restaurant for lunch (delicious grilled cheese on homemade bread with peppers, tomatoes and ham) and picked up dessert for Jeff (homemade caramel fudge brownie - no nuts!).


We rode the tractor train up the hill to the patch, where we got to choose our own pumpkin. What ever you could carry! On our way back down the hill, we were entertained by all the pumpkinhead people throughout the field: some were running on treadmills, some were lifting weights (pumpkins for dumbells!), some were hanging from the trees, and one had a slingshot aimed right at our train! Very cute.


Back at the main area, we checked out the little shops. They had homemade apple and pumpkin pies, fresh apple juice, caramel apples, pumpkin potpourri... anything you could make out of apples or pumpkins!


After a long day, we made our way back home. Jeff and I just had time to get changed and freshened up before running back out to meet Robyn and Dave at The Keg for a lovely dinner. It was so lovely, that we missed the first period and a half of the Rockets game! We managed to find our seats (right behind the goal!) and watch them beat Prince George 7-1.


All in all, it was a fabulous day... fabulous weather and fabulous friends!

Run for the Cure

Robyn picked us up nice and early to attend the Run for the Cure downtown this morning. We walked the 5K with Robyn and Presley; her sister Kristine and two of her kids, Gracey and Ty; and Jenny and her Mom (a breast cancer survivor!). As a city, we raised almost $270,000! Way to go K-town!

Over 2000 people did the run, including their dogs!We enjoyed some spectacular views along the way.

It was a sunny morning, but a bit chilly. We warmed up by the end.

"The Dolphins", a lovely sculpture done by the same artist as "The Sails", was our last stop. A nice way to finish!