One For The Bucket List

So you just never know how or when an opportunity is going to come along for you to do something that you've longed to do for many years...the things we keep on our bucket list. Sometimes we're not even aware of our bucket list. I wasn't.

This past month I had the amazing privelege of salmon fishing in the Fraser River!!! It was everything I had hoped for and more! I realized after the fact how much I had really wanted to do this as I recalled how over the past, I don't remember how many years I had shamlessly begged everyone who said they fished to take me along...no one ever did until my sweet husband Randy did this past month.

I had to wait for him to retire and for his brother, Uncle KK, who also just retired, to teach Randy the best sockey fishing practices.

They both decided that they needed to take part in the 2010 Historical Sockeye Run. This year will surely go down as one of the greatest of all time and I....yes, little ole me, Lorri was priveleged to be part of it with the five ...yup, five beautiful sockeye salmon (not all on the same day, of course) that I caught - that's not counting the ones that I hooked and at the last moment got free!!


Sharon and Charley Beth came down to the river to hang with us and enjoy the great outdoors. She got some amazing pictures too. She's a girl after my own heart! Next year, Sharon, it's you n me with our own rods maybe? What do you say?

Now I can check this one off of my bucket list. Makes me wonder what else I have on that list :)

We had so much fun the first time that we went back with Frank. And he caught fish too...Randy you're a good teacher.

Thanks to the great teaching from Uncle KK, Randy found a new love as he has turned into the great fisherman of 2010!

What a blast! And what a feast!!

                                                                          We all caught fish!! Yippee!
It was truly an amazing experience and one I won't forget!!













Ollie, soon you'll be big enough to catch your own fish!

It Must Be Fall Already

Forward about this blog: One of my favourite entries on Nate's blog 'countenence levity' was the one he did when he first started blogging. it was on food...building the perfect sandwich in particular. It was really fun. So, though not nearly as entertaining, here is my 'food entry' no. 1.

Wow...summer turned to fall in a very quick way and I realized it when I found myself hankerin for a nice pot of borscht. Perhaps it was the Annual MCC Relief Sale that typically has a fantastic food fair with all the traditional wonderful Mennonite dishes that got me to thinking about borscht. Anyway, I went to work on Saturday and cooked...I made homemade buns to go with the soup and a raisin cake too. As the borscht was cooking I thought that an apple pie would top the meal off perfectly...I could save the rasin cake for Franks, Randy's and my lunches. So I pulled out the pie dough (I make that 5 pie recipe and freeze the dough in individual pie portions). Alas, I didn't have enough apples.

It didn't matter though becasue Randy and Kerry came home from their little two day excusion to Seattle to watch a Mariners game. When they came in the door they told me that we were going to Mom's (Grandma's) for turkey dinner...they had forgotten to let me know before they went that Uncle Victor and Auntie Vikky were down visiting and we were to join them for supper. I took some of my buns...(yeah, who'd guessed that I would be taking Grandma The Bun Queen some of mine? Sheesh!

We had a great visit and the turkey dinner was wonderful. I am so amazed that Grandma has the health and stamina to cook a big meal like that! She is truely amazing. After dinner, Grandma, Dad and I taught Auntie Vikky how to play sequence. I think she may be hooked!

So this morning I decided to stop by the Abbotsford Flea Market after church to see if there were any good deals on some apples as I still had that apple pie in the back of my mind.

I think I visit the flea market once every two years or so. I usually forget it is even going on. Anyway, I did indeed find some lovely Okanagan fresh gala apples and a whole bunch of other fruit and veggies for great prices...including some late peaches. When I saw the peaches, my mind changed immediately to a peach pie as I know this is just the start of the apple pie season. We will celebrate the changing of the seasons, from summer into fall with a taste of summer in the peach pie and a taste of autumn with the left over borscht. YUM! Anyone care to join us? ....oh, did I forget to mention the weather? It absolutely poured today...like when you turn on the washing machine on rinse cycle! Poor Kassie was freaked out with the thunder! But the day started out with beautiful sunshine...how typical of changing seasons.

So, I hope this find this wets your appitite for my blog. I hope you come back soon!

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Will I Really Have Time For This??

I am not sure exactly how I figure I'll have time for blogging...personal blogging that is. I spend so much of my life already on the computer for work! But since my family is so spread out and this year I was blessed with an additional three grandchildren to make my quiver nearly full at no. six, I figured that perhaps there is still a central role to the family for me to play - especially as I spend time with each family.

It was my visit to Redondo Beach in LA to visit sweet baby Liam, Donnie and Rachel when I realized how fortunate I was to have the time to bond with Liam and I was able to take lots of pictures to share with the family.

I have become a fan of Smilebox because it does most of the work for me and I get to create really cute little scrapbooks and videos to send to those I love.  As I was posting the smilebox that I made of Liam's pictures to facebook so other family members could view it, I  realized that all my friends (some close and some not so close) were now subjected to my 'brag books'. Many of them already have their own beautiful grandchildren and they may not have the time to look at mine - but so they won't dissapoint me, they kindly take the time to view and comment on the pictures. - I mean really, how could they resist?? I really do appreicate their kind comments and encouragements, but really,  I don't want to over do my Facebook postings and some of the things I may want to share with my family may just not be that interesting for the world to see on Facebook...know what I mean?

So it occured to me that there may be a better way to share my pictures and my experiences with just my family and friends by posting them to a blog. Here it is then....I hope this can be a way that my family can keep updated on the latest pictures of their family and some of the things that are going on in Grammy Lorri's life!

I'll start with posting some of the Smile boxes and pictures that I've already shared - just because I love them so much. I hope you do to and I certainly do welcome all my family and my dear close friends to my blog!!  Please feel free to share your thoughts!!