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Driving Miss Donna - what does this mean? Whenever I want to go somewhere, if Don is home he will usually drive. He always says he is driving miss Donna! This blog is for our travels, usually with our truck and fifth wheel trailer, but sometimes in our other wheels. When we are not vacationing check in for updates, although less frequent, about our life at home and our wonderful family:)

Thursday, September 2, 2010

Where did August Go?

It has been a month since I last posted:)  Sorry about that – I know I need to be more diligent.  We have had many adventures since August.
On August 6 we travelled to Saskatoon to attend a family wedding.  Kerie Colburn was getting married.  She is the daughter of Ron and Margie Colburn.  Margie is Don’s cousin.  The wedding was held in Delisle.  What a typical hot Saskatchewan summer day!  As in all weddings the bride and all attendants were beautiful and the groom and groomsmen were handsome.  The girls were in a gorgeous shade of pink.  So deep and rich.  We were pleased to be able to visit with Don’s Mom, as well as Ken and Brenda  (and a brief appearance by Brynn) and Karen and Darrell.  Of course there were tons of other family as well, but far too numerous to mention.  Thanks to the Colburns, they were generous hosts and the wedding was splendid.
We were planning on going to a wedding in North Battleford on August 14, but decided almost last minute that we would not go.  Although I wanted to see my mom, she was not too interested in attending the wedding and frankly neither were we.  Although the groom’s mom is my cousin, we had not seen each other for probably 20 years, and I had not met the groom.
Soooo  - at the last minute we planned a camping trip with Paul and Mary.  We went to William Switzer Park north of Hinton, and of course had a blast.  The guys spent Saturday fishing and Mary and I shopped in Hinton and visited with her sister Lorna.  I’ll tell you that family is a hoot!  So lucky to have each other:)  Paul and Mary went home on Sunday but Don did not work Monday so we stayed another night and travelled to Grand Cache.  It was just a short one and half hour trip, and what a beautiful town, nestled in the mountains.  I can totally understand living there may be challenging from a travel perspective though.
That takes us to August 21 weekend!  Lindsay came home on a quick trip, and we attended Nicole Ryckman’s bridal shower and supper.  Almost sad to see Lindsay and her friends grown up and married – it was hard enough to see Tracy and hers:)  That was a fun but brief visit with Linds.  Lindsay and Jeremy are in Greece on a belated honeymoon as I write this.  It has been fun getting her updated emails and catching some iPhone whatsapp? from her.  Whatsapp? is an iPhone app that allows 2 iPhones to talk to each other at no cost.
August 28 weekend now!  A very exciting time for grandparents!!  We got to participate in purchasing Blake’s first hockey equipment and skates.  We all travelled to United Cycle.  I have always appreciated this store, and they have outfitting the little ones down to a science.  They make it seamless and easy.  He looks like he is ready for anything now, and hockey registration is September 9.
Between all that we have had some other interesting times.  On August 11 I was put on stress/sick leave for a week, with a reassessment in one week.  At that point I was put on for another week, which made my return to work day August 26.  I have been struggling at work since the new manager came on board.  Between stress and dealing with my fibromyalgia this was a well needed break.
In the ten years I have worked at the Town, for the most part all employees at all levels have had above average work ethics.  The leadership of the town manager supported teamwork, and although you were not always rewarded in hours or pay, you always knew what you were doing was appreciated by all who were involved.  That made work a challenging and inviting place.  Having said that there has been a swing in that attitude lately, and I have observed the new staff were not as engaged in the community and making things happen, as in the past.  This could be for several reasons, one of them being I have too high of standards?  As I was attempting to find/develop a working relationship with my new supervisor, I questioned what would work best.  Now to make a long political statement story short – upon my return to work I was let go!  The devastating part of this for me is that I loved working there, and thrived in my various positions over the years.  BUT – all things happen for a reason:)
So starts a new chapter in life and brings us to September.  We had previously booked 2 weeks vacation at the end of the month, and Don extended his to be all of September.  We think this will give us time to discuss/replan/etc. where we are going in life.  Don’s possible retirement looms in October 2012, and he has already formed a consulting company.
So the next few weeks of postings you can follow us around Washington and Oregon!  And I will try to post more often.  Live Writer is fantastic as I am writing this as we travel down the Coquihala, and will post it as soon as we get WiFi!
Talk soon.

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