Saskson and Thompatoon

Perhaps those names are altered, but it's all a blur as we spent time this past week in Saskatoon and Thompson.  In Saskatoon we saw two Shakespeare on the Saskatchewan performances

 and attended two parties.  One party was for Rob's 31st and one was for Glenda's 60th.  Rob had a 50 foot slip-and-slide which adults and kids enjoyed.

 

Glenda' party was at the Refinery and it was the perfect venue for the number of people.  It was fun to meet so many people whom I heard about through the decades.  It looked like Glenda's "Coronation Street" pals were going to be the liveliest party-ers.

 

Bob photobombed at the last minute.

 

From Saskatoon we headed to Thompson where we ate delicious meals, played mega-Scrabble and generally had a wonderful time.  My sister Jocelyn and I played fourteen games of Scrabble and stayed friends as we each won seven.  One morning Jocelyn couldn't figure out why her back was sore.  I'm sure it's because we hunched over the board for hours.

Here are the brothers-in-law who have been related for 35 years.  In those 35 years, this is only the second photo of them together.

 

My nephew Mark is my rock picker when we visit.  I always come home with a few new rocks for my garden.  Mark, you and I are getting older as we definitely picked smaller ones this year.

 

Unfortunately we missed visiting with my niece and her husband as they were still in PEI.  However, we did play with their cats Kenny and Lola.

 

I never visit Thompson in the summer without seeing Cliff Colter's amazing garden.  His neighbor came across and said she thinks of it as the Butchart Garden of Thomspon.  That's true except that Butchart Garden has many gardeners and this is all created by one man. I told him his yard must drive up real estate values in the neighborhood.

 

 

 

That's my sister Jocelyn.  You'll see her better in a minute.

Here she is again!

This lily is ten inches across.  Ten inches!

 

Cliff placed 49 crocheted flowers in his garden; each one represents a life lost in the Orlando massacre at Pulse Nightclub.

I wish you could smell the next two pictures.  The fragrance of the sweet peas is unbelievable.

 

Cliff's yard backs onto the bush and is a haven for bees, butterflies, and birds.

Back in Jocelyn's neighborhood, I enjoy the leafiness (needleness?) of the tamaracks.

 

Jocelyn also has a great garden.  She may not forgive me for putting pictures of it after pictures of Cliff's.

 

Jocelyn is an amazing cook and baker so we indulged:

flapper pie ...

...zucchini & cheese ...

...shrimp dip ...

... and other foods such as lettuce and radish salad exactly like our grandma used to make, turkey, and so much more...

...and when we weren't eating delicious food at their place we were going to the iconic Popeye's down by the river.  Their burgers and fries are consistently mouthwatering.
 
Luckily the Rotary Park has some exercise equipment.  Bob, I don't think your three minutes on this machine used up all the calories.

The Rotary Park has a really cool spray park.

All of you know how much I love Saskatoon.  I've got to tell you that I am a big fan of Thompson too.

When we got home, it was time to look at my garden.  I tried calling an oceanographer because of the beached whales I found.  A closer look at the behemoths proved them to be zucchini.  Note to self:  never go away for a week while leaving two zucchini plants unattended.