Sunday, July 28, 2013

I'm 39 and 2/3 today...

Wow! It is hard to believe that it's only 4 months until my 40th birthday! I have crossed a few more things off my '40 Things' list, so I thought an update was in order.

The '40 Things' List

1. Go snowshoeing.
2. Serve a meal in a soup kitchen.
3. Eat something I've never tried before.
4. Visit a town in Saskatchewan that I've never been to before.
5. Plan my dream 40th birthday trip.
6. Start running again.
7. Visit a US state I haven't been to before.
8. Read a classic novel.
9. Create and complete a scrapbook for one of the trips I've taken in my 30s.
10. Do up a will.
11. Complete one of my cross-stitch projects.
12. Go kayaking.
13. Get my website business off the ground.
14. Take a self-defense class/course.
15. Go horseback riding.
16. Visit a museum or historic site in Saskatchewan that I haven't been to before.
17. Give blood regularly.
18. Attend a Victorian Tea.
19. Ride my bike in the city.
20. Stop and smell the flowers at a garden I haven't been to before.
21. Try an activity that's new to me.
22. Walk a portion of the Trans Canada Trail that I haven't been on before.
23. Learn more about my family history.
24. Visit a park in Regina I haven't been to before.
25. Participate in a fundraiser that involves a physical activity.
26. Simplify some area of my life that needs simplifying.
27. Learn how to change a tire on a vehicle.
28. Explore Regina's backyard - see what's just outside the city limits.
29. Learn more about Canadian history.
30. Visit a natural site in Saskatchewan I haven't been to before.
31. Learn to play the guitar.
32. Visit a Canadian National Park I haven't been to before.
33. Climb Wascana Hill in Douglas Park and watch a sunset.
34. Visit the observatory at the Science Centre.
35. Attend Mosaic - a multicultural festival held annually.
36. Play my first solo concert on the bells.
37. Attend an outdoor movie event.
38. Go fly a kite!
39. Play a mini golf course I haven't been on before.
40. Go on dream 40th birthday trip!

Saturday, July 27, 2013

Item #32 - Visit a Canadian National Park I haven't been to before

My sister Susan and I finished our whirlwind Manitoba trip with a visit to Riding Mountain National Park (RMNP) and, in particular, Clear Lake.

It was a cool, windy day and the breeze off the lake made it feel even chillier... We walked out to the pier and tried a couple of the paths, but one was flooded and the other wasn't sheltered enough from the wind to make it enjoyable. So, when the going gets tough, the tough go shopping, right? Absolutely!

We visited the gift shops and clothing stores, sorted through all kinds of souvenirs, looked through an used book store, and tried a few of the local delicacies like fresh cinnamon buns, huge slices of pizza and hard ice cream, which was available in a lot of new and interesting flavours.

We only spent a few hours at Clear Lake, but it was enough time to decide that we need to come back some day. It's a beautiful place!

  

Friday, July 26, 2013

Item #20 - Stop and smell the flowers at a garden I haven't been to before

After touring Carberry, my sister Susan and I drove to Neepawa where we planned to stay the night. Surprisingly, Neepawa was the highlight of the trip - it's a beautiful town surrounded by rolling hills and full of historic buildings, green spaces and lots of lilies.

We came across numerous beautiful planters, flower beds, gardens and parks full of lilies in this 'Lily Capital', so I had my choice of places to stop and smell the flowers!



The annual Lily Festival had just taken place the weekend before we arrived in Neepawa, so there were hundreds (maybe thousands) of lilies in full bloom for us. This might have to become an annual trip!

Thursday, July 25, 2013

Item #23 - Learn more about my family history

Today my sister Susan and I drove to Carberry, Manitoba where our paternal grandfather was born. Neither of us had ever been here before, so we were eager to explore this town.


Tip #1: Make sure you know which time zone your destination is in.

We started out our day an hour later than we planned on, but by the time we arrived in Carberry we had lost another hour. Saskatchewan time doesn't change, but Manitoba time does! Ah well, we carried on...

Our first stop was the Carberry Museum which included a tour of the 'gingerbread house' - one of only three such styled houses in Canada. This was my favourite part of the town tour actually - it was so pretty and unique on the outside. We began our tour of the museum, but never did finish it as we had other places we wanted to see, such as the library. There we scoured through the history books of the area as quickly as we could, but no reference to the Laycock family was found.

Looking back at the records my dad's cousin Clarence had provided me with, we saw that my great grandparents had only lived in Carberry for eight years (1902-1910) before moving to Saskatoon. My grandpa was born in January 1910, so was only a few months old when the move occurred.

We realized we weren't going to learn very much, so we turned our attention to the historic main street of Carberry, which has stood for over 100 years. Between walking the street where my great grandparents would have walked and seeing a picture in the museum of how the main street looked in 1904, I felt we had gotten a good view of the little town of Carberry, Manitoba.

More information on Carberry can be found here: http://www.townofcarberry.ca/.

Tuesday, July 23, 2013

Item #30 - Visit a natural site in Saskatchewan I haven't been to before

Yesterday my sister Susan and I drove to Coronach, SK to do the Big Muddy Tour! The full day tour took us through the valley’s spectacular scenery to Castle Butte and onto the caves that were used as hideouts for horse thieves.

My favourite part was climbing Castle Butte! It definitely got the heart rate pounding and it was fun to make our way to the top and see views of the surrounding countryside. It was beautiful!



I highly recommend the day trip - you'll see a lot of sights and learn a great deal about the history of the area just a stone's throw from the US border. For more information, check out this link: http://www.townofcoronach.com/tours-badlands.html.


Thursday, July 11, 2013

Item #37 - Attend an Outdoor Movie Event

A few years ago, something previously unheard of started taking place in Regina - outdoor movie events. It was something I had only previously seen in the movies, and although I had a desire to go and watch a movie on a big screen outdoors, I never went... until last night.

My friend Debra and I went to see Despicable Me being shown outdoors in downtown Regina. It was such a fun movie and we had many opportunities to chuckle and laugh out loud. The hero of the story was an unsuccessful villain named Gru (pronounced 'grew'), and he learned that relationships are more important than achievements through the help of three orphan girls that just happened to need someone to love them too.

Here are some fun lines from Despicable Me:

  • Gru: It's like my heart is a tooth, and it's got a cavity that can only be filled with children. 
  • Edith: When we got adopted by a bald guy, I thought this would be more like Annie.
  • Gru: [reading the book he wrote] One big unicorn, strong and free, thought he was happy as he could be. Then three little kittens came around and turned his whole life upside down. They made him laugh, they made him cry. He never should have said goodbye. And now he knows he can never part from those three little kittens that changed his heart.

Actually, the movie reminds me of The Grinch Who Stole Christmas and how the Grinch's heart grew three sizes that day... And I highly recommend both!