Happy Thanksgiving 2021!

Warm fall weather is in the air, and leaves carpet the ground.

As Betty & I contemplate the next leg of our overlandish odyssey, we can’t help but be outrageously thankful for the many blessings we experience in this life. 

Charlie enjoys the fall sunshine, while sitting on our lawn among the fallen leaves. He’s freshly groomed & checked by the vet: Ready to go!

Our four grown children, their partners, and our three grandchildren are a pleasure to connect with as they and we share our common and unique adventures. We are so fortunate to maintain strong lines of truthful communication, fostering love and respect for each other! Eternal thanks for all the mutual compassion and caring we experience.

Georgia hams it up during her birthday celebrations.
October born Luke, Lisa, Georgia, and Andrew share a birthday cake, while Isabella, James and Adam look on.

As with large swaths of North America, summer and fall (so far) in Manitoba brought much warmer temperatures, with not a lot of rainfall.  With the help of recent showers, summer drought has given way to green grass, ripening fields, and restored rivers and lakes. The little garden at our campsite has done well, with the black-eyed susans reaching the top of the trellis, and tomatoes continuing to ripen well on the vines. We are thankful for a plentiful harvest.

The barn quilt on our shed and vines in front of our woodpile are ready for winter.

In preparation for our travels, we took our motorhome in for service at Stylings RV, and our Smart to Lone Star Motors, the Mercedes dealership from whence it came. While the Smart was in the shop, we were forced to drive a new Mercedes Benz, as a free courtesy car. It was tough trying to figure out all those bells and whistles (lol). Fortunately, the Smart needed very little maintenance, so we were thankful to get our little toad back at a low cost.

We had to slum it with a new Mercedes Benz while our Smart car was in the shop.

This fall I experimented with epoxy for the first time. As noted in previous posts, our campsite sign was heavily damaged by moisture and insects last winter on Vancouver Island. It’s not perfect, but I poured epoxy on both sides, and hope that it is sufficiently sealed to weather the coming winter. If not, I have another identical, unused slab of wood in storage, and will start the signage from scratch next year. I’m thankful for the opportunity to putter with this craft project.

A generous coating of epoxy now covers both sides of our sign. Hope it works!
I coated our cracked bathroom sink with some extra epoxy, tinted blue – a tricky proposition since the epoxy was self-levelling, and the sink basin is far from level!

Of course, the highlight of this thanksgiving season was the family gathering at our son, Andrew’s home. He cooked a fabulous turkey, with everyone else bringing sides and desserts. 

A “before” pic of Andrew’s dining table, set for 13. Napkins and place settings courtesy of James.
Around the table from left: Andrew’s hands, Annie, Aurora, Mom, Georgia, Valerie, Kevin, Isabella, James, Luke, Adam & Lisa’s hands, Dad’s dinner (lol). Btw, the tablecloth re-appears at all family gatherings, with new sayings and artwork added to commemorate the occasions. The orange pumpkin place names went into a bag, to be drawn for Christmas presents.

Our blog cover photo can now be updated, and we can share a few more pics from our fall festivities.

The clan: Front row- Georgia, Nana, Valerie, Luke. Second row – James, Isabella, Jersey, Kevin. Back row – Dad, Andrew, Adam & Lisa.
Ok, here’s right to left: Lisa, Adam, Luke, James, Isabella & Kevin.
Now for the other side (need a better wide-angle lens. lol): Andrew, Annie, Aurora, Mom, Georgia, Valerie’s shoulder.

Last night was another warm evening in southern Manitoba, and we were able to share some time together with our neighbours, around a very pleasant campfire.

Our kind neighbour, Henny, enjoys the warmth of the campfire, a conversation with Betty (and Charlie), and a quilt, made especially for her by Betty.

Betty and I are reminded that, whatever pitfalls may come our way, there is much to be thankful for. Hoping you can also take some time to count your blessings and enjoy your own adventures in living!

Caught a pic of Bet while testing out the camera settings.
And a self-pic, using the camera’s interval timer setting.

Cheers!

One Reply to “Happy Thanksgiving 2021!”

  1. finally made it to your bloc good to see all the pics of you and your and wonderful family. We miss you and hope everything is going well Love you both,.

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