Labour Day Weekend

Labour Day is celebrated over the weekend 4-6 September in North America but we started the previous week by having Donna and Michael Gallant over for Sunday lunch. They had been on holidays the day that Canada Day was celebrated so this opportunity to have lunch together gave us time to catch up since we spent a lovely evening with them at their home earlier this year. Donna is a Registered Nurse who works in the Nursing Faculty at the University of New Brunswick where Nursng Degrees are undertaken in this Province. Michael is an optical professional who is involved with contact lens requirements. Michael comes from an Acadian background and he and Donna introduced us to some delicious Acadian food when we were at there home previously.

So fast forward to Sunday 5 Sep when we were invited to Jacqueline and John's home which is about a 20 minute drive from where we live. Jacqueline and John have a couple of statues of dogs in their yard and as you can see from the photo below Murphy had to check the statues out to see if they were real. So after a good sniff she moved on.

The day before we went to Jacqueline and John's Hurricane Earle had arrived from the USA. Fortunately as we are about a 3 hour drive from the coast all Fredericton received was some much needed rain and by Sunday the weather was perfect which allowed us to enjoy time sitting out on the deck.
Jacqueline and John have a loverly home and from their back deck one gets a great view of the St John River which becomes solid ice in the winter months.

Still out on the deck Chef John prepares to cook the largest steaks we had seen for sometime. So Texas is not the only place in North America where one gets the opportunity to eat a great steak.


The day was spent with lovely friends and was full of fun, laughter, good food and wine.

Labour Day itself was on the Monday and our socialising continued and this time it was with our 'dodgy neighbours' Debbie and George who joined us for a late breakfast. We had grapefruit from theUSA to start. This was followed by Eggs Benedict with home made Hollindaise sauce. It took the 3 of us to make sure the sauce turned out well.

Following the eggs we had individual fruit platters which featured rockmellon (cantalope) from Nova Scotia, kiwi fruit from New Zealand, mango from Mexico, star fruit and passionfruit from Peru and strawberries from California. It all tasted great except the star fruit which was for decoration purposes only.

Well from all of us here have a great day and stay happy safe and well.

Love Bev and Ross.

Lake Magaguadavic

Hello again, we have just returned from a great 24 hour visit with our great friend Jacqueline at Lake Magaguadavic (pronounced mack-uh-day-vick) which is about a 1 hour drive south west of where we live. Like certain parts of Tasmania, weekend or summer cottages are very popular here and we had the opportunity to stay in one of these with Jacqueline. This is the second year that Jacqueline has booked this cottage which holds a special place in her heart as her much loved mother passed away last year after spending a pleasant few days there with Jacqueline so we were privileged to be invited to the cottage just after what would have been her mother's birthday.

As you can see Murphy really enjoyed the freedom to roam.





It was also an opportunity to flex out, enjoy good wine, food and conversation. We spent a lot of time outside .

We have commmented on many occassions about the friendliness of the Canadians and this weekend was no different as you can see from the photo below where the girls from a cottage nearby came over for a chat.

Ross doned on his miner light to prepare our evenining meal as the lightbulb had blown in the kitchen so it was a bit difficult to see the curried prawns we were going to have for supper. Happy to say the curried prawns and rice were delicious - Thank you Ross.

Barb,Kim and Kerry the girls who came over for a visit in the afternoon invited us back to their cottage after supper for apple pie. So we all went to their cottage for apple pie. This turned out not to be a dessert but a drink which was served in a shot glass. Yes, it did taste like apple pie. So this was an opportunity to go back to Jacqueline's cottage and bring back for the group the lemon yogurt dessert Bev had made.

These ladies are an amazing group of 9 plus Michael. This is the 9 th year they have booked their cottage and their daughters, female cousins etc cannot be part of this group until they turn 19 years of age. They celebrate their womanhood in the most positive way and they were proud to show us their photo albums which documents for their female generations to come the joy and love they have for each other. The last night of their time together they put on an ABBA concert and had a great time.

In the photos below you can get a sense of the ages from grandmother to granddaughter.

We had a fun time with lovely people who are happy and find joy in being together. It was thanks to Jacqueline that we had the opportunity to see this very pretty part of the country. We plan to spend a few days there in future.

Today in Fredericton the temperature is 33 C and is expected to be 34C tomorrow. It is dry and humid and the pond in the back of the property is now 2 ft down.

Until our next update stay happy. safe and well.

Love Bev, Ross and Murphy

P.S. Beautiful Canadian scenery and great Australian red - it doesn't get much better.

Ottawa & Quebec City

Hello again, we recently returned from our first trip to Ottawa, the capital of Canada and the distance from Fredericton to Ottawa is about the same distance from where we live in Australia to Brisbane a distance of some 1.000 kms.

Ottawa is located in Ontario and is a very lovely city. In their capital sits their seat of Parliment. We had the opportunity to have a tour of this magnificant building which was rebuilt after a horrific fire around 1865, it was further rebuilt in 1922. The only part of the building which was saved was the library which is spectular and as you can see from the photo below the whole buiding is most impressive.

Parliment has many services guarding it inclusive of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police who always look spectacular in their uniforms.

There is lots to see in Ottawa and below is a photo of their War Memorial where the unknown soldier lies and this day he was guarded by Navy.

Looking down from the Memorial is some of the city of Ottawa and one can get some sense of the city and its layout.

Looking up from the Memorial is the amazing lock system which marks the start of the Rideau Canal that runs for 202km to Kingston on the shores of Lake Ontario. It was built in the early 1800's to provide a secure resupply route in case of further invasions of Canada by the USA.

The reason for our visit to Ottawa was to visit with our lovely friends Dennis and Pat Hearn. Dennis is a LTCOL in the Canadian Army and we have know each other since 1993 when we met at Fort Sam Houston, San Antonio, Texas. Bev and Dennis where International students at the time and we have stayed in contact over these many years . We last saw Dennis in 2004 in Edmonton when we attended the celebrations for the centenary of the Canadian Health Services.

Dennis had started construction of a new deck prior to our arrival so on one of the days we were visiting Ross and Dennis took on the roles of Bob the Builder and you will see from the photo below the professional job they were doing. So much so we were able to sit out their of an evening and enjoy a pre dinner drink accompanied by the delicious appetisers made by Pat.

Over all of the years of knowing Dennis and hearing about his family this was the first time we had ever met Pat, their daughter Kate and grandaughter Carlie who is an adorable 2 year old.

Pat a loverly lady and a fantastic cook and we hit it off so well. We just felt like we were at home and we all had the opportunty to relax and chat. Murphy had the run of the house however, unfortunately she and Sox their 14 year old cat did not see eye to eye.

The morning we were leaving was photo time and below is a photo of Dennis, Pat, Ross and Murphy on the deck.

On the way home we made a return trip to old Quebec City. The city never disappoints and provides the traveller with a variety of things to see and do.

We had a wonderful visit with Pat and Dennis who made us feel so welcome and we are hopeful they will come over to our part of the country for a visit before we leave Canada.

We have now lived in Canada for 20 months and continue to enjoy the hospitality and friendship of the lovely people here.

Ross recommences university 9 September and is looking forward to this so our travelling will start to slow down, however, we are looking forward to relatives and friends who will becoming to visit with us later in the year.

May you all stay, happy, safe and well.

Love Bev and Ross

New Brunswick Day 2010

Just as we were about to publish this post five Canada geese landed in our pond, going on past experiences they will stay with us for several days and then move on. The abundance of wildlife here never ceases to amaze us.

Monday 2 August was New Brunswick Day and as it was a public holiday it was great opportunity to celebrate this day with our good friends. It was also an opportunity for Bev to wear her Mambo shirt.

We had a very simple BBQ but we had so much fun as our Canadian friends who all have great senses of humour. The weather was perfect for the day so we ate out in the sunroom and in the photo below you will see our friends Jacqueline, John, George & Debbie.

Jacqueline brought along desset which was a very large Dairy Queen (DQ) ice cream cake which reads 'Good Times Good Friends'. You will see the large beer stein on it as decoration. The cake was delicious.

We take every opportunity to spend time with our friends who have made us so welcome and continue to make our life here happy and joyful.

Best wishes to all.

Love Bev and Ross

Bar Harbour, Maine

Hi again,

Prior to our return trip to Bangor and Bar Harbour Ross wanted to take a picture of his corn crop just in case the Bandicoots decided to feast on his crop while we were away. As you can see the corn is in good condition and remains so. So this is a snap below which fulfills the saying " you build it and they will come" Well as you can see it worked as Bev and Murphy enjoyed a frolick in the corn before we departed on our trip.

While in Maine we purchased a new 46 inch Sanyo Digital HDTV which cost us US$650.00 which when converted to Australian was $ 711.00. Just shows how inexpensive some things are here.

After our shopping trip was completed we returned to Bar Harbour for the day with the intension of having lunch there . We had stayed in Bar Harbour during last winter so we wanted to take the opportunity to see what it looked like in the summer. Bar Harbour is a favourite holiday destination for many at this time of the year including President Obama and his family who had been visiting this area just a few days before our arrival. The town was very crowded so it was difficult to find a parking spot, eventually we travelled back up the highway for lunch and stopped at the lobster restaurant (pound) in the photo below. As you will see the lobsters are cooked in the outside pots.

We enjoyed the best lobster rolls we had ever eaten and you will see what we are saying from the photo below. The restaurant is directly across the road from the Airfield and as we were leaving the restaurant we saw several Lear Jets arrive and shortly thereafter we saw two civilan pilots followed by two Marine pilots who had walked from the airfied to enjoy a lobster lunch.

We will be returning to Bangor later this month on our return from Ottawa.

Love Bev and Ross

Summer in Beaver Dam

Well summer is in full swing which means frequent lawn mowing and as there are about 4 acres of grass to cut the ride on mower is a great way to do this. Murphy is always keen to be involved with all we do so this day she kept Ross company.

Also at this time of the year large quanties of locally grown berries are readily available. Some of our friends go and pick their own berries and Debbie and George who are keen fruit pickers gave us several punnets of the sweetest strawberries and bluberries. Next were the rasberries which have a pleasant tarteness about them. With all the strawberries we had it was time to do some cooking so you will see Bev in the kitchen after a days baking and in the process of bagging and freeezing her 120 strawberry muffins.

Summertime is also a good time to make the recipes we had been promising to do all year so a couple of weeks ago we made Paella for the very first time. Of course dessert is always a welcome addition to any meal and below is another of Debbie's great creations. A fresh fruit flan made from the delicious seasonal fruits of this area. Needless to say a good Australian red was required to accompany it.

As we did not have a Paella pan we had to improvise with a large saucepan. The flavours were great and we will certainly be making this dish again.

Summertime has also provided the opportunity to spend time with our lovely friends and below is a photo of Suzanne at the Baby Shower we had a home last week. Suzanne and James will welcome their first baby in early September. While the ladies of the area got together with Suzanne, Ross and the boys took James to the local pub for dinner. Following which the boys returned home so we continued on with the good times.

Spirited on by our Paella effort we made some Pho last weekend and it turned out very well. As we had been speaking about this recipe ever since we arrived in Canada to Debbie and George, we invited them over to sample this dish. It was enjoyed by all.

Well this may provide you with a sample of what is like here at this time of the year. There is lots to do and see. It is also a great time to enjoy the outdoors and to spend fun time with good friends.

On Wednesday we are travelling to Bangor, Maine for a few days and in August we are planning a trip to Ottawa.

So until our next update stay happy safe and well.

Love Bev and Ross

Canada Day 2010

The time is just flying by and on 1 July we celebrated our second Canada Day since our arrival. Again it was spent with our lovely friends and this year it was our opportunity to have our friends at our place for the event. In the spirit of the day Murphy dressed for the occasion as you can see from her neck scarf. She was so anxious to get the party started she only had eyes for the door and was so excited to see everyone arrive.




Fortunately it was a sunny day so we enjoyed our time together sitting in the sun room. Looking from the left of the photo below is Doug and Cathy Pyne, Suzanne Cooper, George and Debbie Proctor and Ross.



Bev and Murphy feature in the photo below. We decided to have a very easy lunch so we tried a new burger recipe known as Argentinean burgers with Chimichurri sauce. These burgers are served with sliced avocado, red onion and tomatoes. Yes, they were both tasty and spicy and we all enjoyed a different burger. We also had sausages and hot dogs. This was followed by a fruit platter with a cinnamon/maple dip. This is Bev's cousin Jill's recipe and was accompanied by a carrot and walnut cake.

We flew the Canadian flag from the back deck and before our friends left for their homes we took the opportunity to capture a moment in the day. As you will see from the following 2 photos below we are still all smiling.

Canada is now in its 143 rd year and we feel very privileged to be in this lovely country and to have such nice friends who have made us feel so welcome.

Best wishes to all and come for a visit if you get the opportunity as our time is Canada is going so quickly.

Love Bev and Ross