An Fun Outing

Brandon was coming to stay overnight and hubby went and got him early so he could mow the lawn while it was still cool this morning.

He did a great job. I need to reseed a couple of patches. There's a few places that are burning out from the heat.

After the lawn was mowed, Brandon and hubby played Mar*io Base*ball. They had some fun and then Brandon and I had to run an errand.

About 4pm, we headed off to Port Dover. It's on the shores of Lake Erie and is a tourist destination. Many people rent cottages here. However, we love to go there to have a burger or footlong hotdog. The Arbor has been a big part of Port Dover since I can remember.

Here is a photo of the Arbor's sign. It was established in the early 1900s and has remained much the same. In 2006, they added a patio.

A pretty spot just across the street at the mini golf course. We've only played mini golf here once before when the boys were young, so we decided to take in a round.

Here is Brandon being silly. I was trying to get a photo of the sign and he thought I was taking a picture of him.

There's lots of water and decorative grasses and flowers at the mini golf course and it has a nautical theme.

This is the third hole. Brandon is watching hubby play with the ships wheel.

The water lilies were in bud. I would have loved to have seen them blooming. These ponds are full of koi, which make them even more pretty.

A beautiful place to sit and listen to the tranquil sound of water while you're waiting for your turn.

Running water and more koi. It's very pleasant here.

More water lilies and koi. You can see the buds in this photo. We had a lot of fun here. Brandon got a hole-in-one and hubby got two. I was leading at the halfway point, but the second half put me in last place. Brandon was thrilled to have one less point than Grandpa.

After we left the mini golf, we went for an ice cream and then headed down toward the beach and the pier. Walking along the pier was pleasant and a nice breeze was coming off the water.

I did get photos of that part of the day and will post them tomorrow. Hope all of my readers had a pleasant Saturday.

A Nice Memory

Michelle and Barry gave Brandon a very nice picture frame for a graduation gift. It had a wide mat around it especially for signatures. On Thursday I picked Brandon up and we went to the school so he could get the signatures of some of his teachers.

We were able to get every teacher that taught Brandon while he went to his current school, except for two that have moved on. We got his principal and vice principal and the school secretaries to sign it as well. This will be a nice memory for him in future years. He will be able to look back and remember all of the people who helped him through his elementary school years.

Gully Washer

This morning I picked Brandon up about 11 am and we headed out to do an errand he had to do. As we drove up the street, we saw the sky had turned black. We talked about the storm that was coming. When I looked to the west, I told him it looked like there was a tornado somewhere and sure enough, on the six 0' clock news, a tornado did hit a small town to the west.

Just as we were getting out of the van to run his errand, torrential rains hit. Yes, as Dad used to say, a Gully Washer. It rained so hard we could barely see the buildings on the far side of the street. As we left our errand and headed home, we had to go through the underpass beneath the train tracks. I was expecting it to be full of water and so slowed down considerably and stopped. I took a look and figured I could get through it. The water was up to the bumper of the van. Brandon couldn't believe it. He said he had never seen anything like that before.

By the time we got home, the rain had stopped as quickly as it had begun. It cooled off a little and then it began to get really hot and humid. We picked Jordan up from school because he had been caught in the rain and was dripping wet and shivering. Why? Because the school's air conditioner is working today. LOL


I came home and just as hubby and I was sitting down to dinner, the torrential rains hit again. Lots of thunder, lightning and rain.

Looking up the street, we could see the drain overflowing. It was raining so hard the water couldn't all get into the drain. I hope these photos will enlarge so you can get a better look.

And the place where we put the new stepping stones in and the ground cover. Enlarge if you can and see the water pouring out the downspout.

This has been an interesting day. I certainly don't have to water any flowers or vegetables tonight. Hope everyone is safe. We heard on the news that places in the US were also hit by severe thunderstorms and tornadoes.

More Graduation Photos

I had a lot of photos I didn't post on Tuesday because they showed too much information. However, Michelle got hers uploaded and I borrowed a few of them to show you.

Here is Brandon relaxing before heading out to graduation. He had never worn a white shirt and tie before. He's trying to stop me from taking his photo and Michelle got one from the side.

This is Brandon's Learning Resource Teacher (female) and Brandon's teacher from this year. Both of these people should be commended. They did their best to ensure that Brandon had a successful year.

Brandon and his friend in the library waiting for the ceremonies to begin.

As soon as the ceremonies were over, Jordan was quick to grab a cold drink and a snack.

Brandon and I outside the school after graduation. He is a little worn out. It was hot in the auditorium and he had three events within a week. That is a lot for Brandon. On Wednesday, the last school trip was to Canada's Wonderland and on Saturday his father's workplace had their company picnic at Marineland in Niagara Falls. He was quite the social butterfly last week.

It was HOT here today. 87 F, but felt like 96 F with the humidity. Tomorrow it's not to be so hot. Toronto opened their cooling stations today for those who don't have access to a cool place.

Looking forward to tomorrow when things will be a little cooler. Hope the humidity stays down as well. Stay cool or warm, depending on where you are in the world.

Brandon's Graduation

Tonight was a big night for Brandon. It was his grade 8 graduation. He decided this afternoon that he didn't want to go. Mom told him he had to and I explained that all the graduates were having a case of nerves, just as he was.

Here he is all spruced up in his shirt and tie waiting to go. Mom is chuckling because he didn't want his picture taken and Jordan is looking on in amusement because Brandon had to dress up. Jordan forgets that in two years he will be doing the exact same thing.

I've deliberately cropped this photo of Brandon making his entrance to remove the name of his school.

This one is of him with diploma in hand...also cropped to remove the school name. Look at that smile. It wasn't as bad as he thought and he's quite proud of himself.

The proud parents in the hall outside the gym just before the ceremony started.

The gym was very hot. Wouldn't you know that the air conditioner would quit working and since a part had to be ordered, the gym was as hot as blazes.

I had other photos posted, but realized Brandon's diploma showed the school name, so removed them. Can't be too careful about protecting our youth.

Back home. Mom has her shoes off and you can see Brandon heading for the house. He enjoyed it, I know, but since he's not a really social person, he was glad it was over. He also can't take the heat. He did a great job and everyone was very proud of him. He's a young man now and will be heading to high school in the fall. Another milestone passed. Where does the time go?

As the Garden Grows

Things are changing in the garden each day. The last week we've had quite a bit of rain and warmer temperatures. The days when the sun was out have promoted a lot of growth.

The clematis that we had to dig up earlier this year when the plumber dug up the flower bed is doing very well. There are lots of flowers on it and many buds. I was afraid we might lose it after it being here the past seventeen years, but a bit of Mirac*le Grow in the hole before we replaced it did the trick.

I have tried growing hollyhocks several times, to no avail. I think they are so pretty and this year I was successful. Just goes to show you practice makes perfect. They look very pretty beside the fountain.

And the vegetable garden that the boys helped me plant is doing very well. Each of the boys have had some of the lettuce and I'll give them some to take home this week. I have also given some to Mom and the neighbor. There's a lot there and we will never eat it all on our own.

The poppies are done for the year and the seed pods are drying. It will soon be time to harvest them.

Cabbage, carrots, tomatoes and onions are doing very well. We've already pulled some of the onions. The tomatoes have blossoms and a couple have baby tomatoes. I can hardly wait for them to grow and ripen.

I pulled more rhubarb today and cooked it up. It was delicious. I'm hoping to get enough for a rhubarb pie before it's done for the year.

Even though it seems like it's done nothing but rain the entire spring, it sure has brought us some pretty flowers and some good eating, as well as more to come.

After it cooled off tonight, I went out with the clippers and took all of the spent flowers off my peonies and iris. This allows all of the nutrients to go to the bulbs so we will have more spring beauties next year.

I hope everyone had a great Father's Day weekend.