Meet Buffy

Hi I’m Buffy, a miniature buffalo and my parents (Mr. Maxx’s sister and brother-in-law) adopted me when they made a trip to Los Algodones Mexico last November while visiting my aunt and uncle at their winter home.

The other day aunty and uncle were outside doing chores and not really watching me closely so I went for a little walk to check out some flowers.  It wasn’t long before aunty saw me and took my picture.

My parents had to leave me with aunty and uncle when they flew home because, even as a baby, I was to heavy for their suitcase … but I was okay with that because I didn’t want to go back to the cold damp lower mainland area of British Columbia when I could stay in the sunny south! Anyway after taking my picture aunty told me I had to go back to my usual resting place as they live in the non-pet section of the park and I need to lay low so they don’t get kicked out.

I know I look sad going back but I’m really not 🙂

This is my usual resting place and I really like it here.

Aunty wasn’t happy with this picture but I had had enough pictures and wouldn’t pose for anymore.

It’s close to the table so I get to visit with people when they come for happy hours and aunty and uncle spend a lot of time out here with me in the afternoons playing Mexican Train when they aren’t visiting.

Also they often take me on outings … like the time in November when they went to Oceanside, CA for a week.

Oh boy that was a big jump to get into the backseat but I managed … with some help from uncle.

It was the longest drive I have ever been on but uncle says they have been on much longer drives and that this was an easy one. I was so excited to sit in the middle of the backseat and watch the scenery. When we arrived at Oceanside I even got to stay inside Maxx with aunty and uncle because aunty was afraid someone would steal me if they left me outside at night … she says I am to cute for people to resist 🙂

But during the day I was able to roam around outside as long as I stayed in their sight.

I was even able to go on a short walk with them one day!

But the best day of all was US Thanksgiving when we all went over to mom and uncle’s first cousin once removed (aunty had to explain that term to me, it’s a mouthful!) site to hang out and eat Thanksgiving dinner. I had so much fun, but it was hard not to eat the Tri-tip that was roasting on the fire.

I kept an eye on the fire as they prepped it for the Tri-tip.

It just smelt so good and I got close to getting a bite when nobody was watching.

Of course aunty had to take a picture before uncle pulled me away and told me it was to hot and dangerous for me to climb on the fire 😦 Aunty said I could sit on a chair with them around the fire but that was as close as I could get.

I just couldn’t help myself and when they weren’t looking I made another attempt but they caught me again.

Then they all decided that I should come and sit at the table with them while they played some games and that wasn’t bad cause I was able to try something when they got caught up in the game 😀

I was also allowed to sit on the table while they ate Thanksgiving dinner.

And aunty even let me have a little of her wine … I don’t think she knew I snuck the beer earlier!

I had a fun time in Oceanside with everyone but by the end of the day I was tired and ready to go home and sleep.

I also had fun at Christmas and when aunty and uncle flew home to visit my cousins I was left to keep an watchful eye on the Christmas decorations. Don’t tell aunty and uncle … or the neighbours who were looking out for Maxx and I … but I did sneak around at night and visit with the decorations.

Now the decorations are all put away but I still snoop around a little at night when nobody is watching but I always make sure I am home before anyone catches me 😀

Today is my mom’s birthday so I asked aunty to help me write this blog so I could show mom and dad what I have been up to and let them know I am having a lot of fun.

Happy birthday mom, I miss you and dad and will be home soon … and aunty says she will try and share more of my adventures in the future.

Until next time …

A Bike Ride And New Bike Items

It sure has not been our normal January weather here in Yuma. I’m sure this will get a laugh from people at home but it has been COLD here! Cold as in we have been waking up to temps around 4C/39F every morning for at least the last two weeks, and our highs rarely hit 20C/68F and that is without the wind and most days we have had some light winds. And the weather doesn’t appear to be improving in the next week or so 😦 At least it has been sunny 🙂

Last Tuesday we were getting cabin fever and despite it being cool and breezy we decided we were going to bundle up and go for a bike ride. I received two new items for my bike at Christmas and I really wanted to try them out.

Heading down a road in the pet section of the park

Just outside the park entrance

Note: If you want more information on any of these items click on the word Amazon and it will take you to the right page. Also, I don’t make any money on the promotion of these items I just wanted to share them in case they are of benefit to you.

The first item I will tell you about is my new cell phone holder. I love to take pictures and when we are riding it means stopping and pulling my cell phone out of it’s old holder to get a pictures and that of course has me peddling to catch up or making others stop and wait. After some searching on Amazon we found a holder that looked like it would allow me to take pictures without stopping.

This holder, which can be found on Amazon, holds my phone straight up in landscape mode and all I have to do is click the photo button. It works great and all of the bike ride picture where taken without stopping and removing my phone.

We rode along the road for a short bit which isn’t bad because there is very little traffic.

We like to go on long bike rides and I have tried several bike seats but none of them have been comfortable after many miles. This new one, which can be found on Amazon, seems to work well.

We rode for about three hours and it was much more comfortable than any other seat I have tried.

Before long we were on bike trails

The last item, and the one we both like the most, are headsets that allow us to be in communication while we ride. We purchased these when we were home last summer and have used them a lot! They can be found on Amazon.

We did add a foam sock, which can also be found on Amazon, to the microphone and that made all the difference since it cuts out all background and wind noise.

We enjoyed a nice lunch in Historic downtown Yuma before heading home.

Despite the cooler weather we had a great ride since the wind was at our back … I actually had to take off a layer because I was getting warm. Unfortunately after lunch as we headed home we were riding straight into the wind and that was COLD 😦

So it was a quick ride home … but it was still sunny and pretty 🙂

Hopefully the weather will improve soon and we will be able to get back out on our bikes.

Until next time …

Back To Warmer Weather

We have been home for a week now and even though I enjoyed the snow at home for Christmas …

I was happy to arrive back to warmer sunnier weather 😀

Our last week has been busy. We watched the final games of the World Junior’s Hockey Games and were very happy to cheer Canada onto another Gold Medal!

I saw this at a restaurant when we were home for Christmas and thought it was pretty cool … it’s made out of hockey pucks.

Along with happy hours and dinners with friends we have restocked our fridge and run other necessary errands. I saw these two signs at some businesses we visited and thought they were good.

Posted in the washroom at WinCo in the Palm Desert area.

An old train station sign … I like it and wish we still had this law.

Monday night we went to the Cocopah Downs, our local horse races, and had a great time.

And that’s about it, just another week in a warm sunny winter … we lead a good life 🙂

Until next time …

Goodbye 2022, Hello 2023

We wish you all a very Happy Safe New Year and all the best for 2023. We are sending out 2022 the way we usually send out a year, watching the World Junior’s hockey game … tonight is Canada versus Sweden and halfway through the third period things are looking good for Canada 4-1, but I never count a win until the game is over because you just never know what will happen.

Tomorrow we will do laundry, clean the condo, and head over to our daughter’s for dinner. We will spend the night at her house because we have to be at the airport early … and then if all goes well we will be back in Palm Springs tomorrow afternoon. Although hubby and I are hoping we will be delayed in Vancouver and then we will be able to see our oldest son and daughter-in-law and hubby’s mother … fingers crossed 🙂

Until next time …

Back To The Airport

We are so grateful that our son and daughter-in-law took us in for Christmas. I think it was around 9:00 a.m. last Thursday when I told our son we couldn’t get home for Christmas and would it be okay with them if we flew to Calgary and spent three days with them before we could fly into Kelowna. It took him less than a second to respond and say of course they would love to have us and, with no notice or time to prep for two more people, they made us feel like we were expected all along 🙂

Our daughter-in-law made festive Sangria on Christmas Eve and it was yummy.

Now we are off on our next adventure, our trip from Calgary to Kelowna, and it didn’t start off well. For some reason we were unable to do online check in. We could see that we had been assigned seats but could not get our boarding passes. Fortunately our flight didn’t leave until 3:00 pm so we didn’t have to leave the house in the early hours. We headed to the airport around 11:00 and we’re are able to get our boarding passes at the WestJet counter with no problems.

With our Nexus cards we were able to quickly pass through security and found a place to have lunch and kill some time.

A window seat at lunch helped kill some time, it is actually very warm in Calgary I didn’t even zip up my coat between the house and the airport.

We had to take a flight to Edmonton and then board another plane for Kelowna and we did have delays in both Calgary and Edmonton but we finally arrived in Kelowna … we were only five days late … but unlike many unfortunate travelers we were able to spend Christmas with family even if it was not the ones we had planned to spend Christmas with 😄

I did have a good laugh when I talked to our oldest son on Christmas Day. At one point we thought we may be spending Christmas with them if we had got into Vancouver but couldn’t connect to Kelowna. On our phone call he asked if we made it home and I said no we were at his bother’s but would be heading home on Boxing Day. I told him we had to go through Edmonton and I hoped we didn’t get stuck there because none of our kids live there anymore, but he told me not to worry their renters had moved out a few weeks ago so we could stay at their condo if we needed to … boy it’s nice to have children to look after you! And who knows we may still get to see them if our return flight gets stuck in Vancouver.

I know it sounds like a lot of frustration to come home for Christmas but we look at it as an adventure and the added bonus of spending time with children we didn’t think we would see this Christmas. Life is all about how you look at it 🙂

Until next time …

Merry Christmas

We wish you all a very Merry Christmas.  Where ever and how ever you are spending it we hope it is happy and full of love.

We Made It :-)

Before we left the house we had a half hour delay in departing Palm Springs, shortly after we cleared security we had another half hour delay, as we were enjoying a great visit with a couple from Seattle we got another hour delay … our son did some research and found out our plane was delayed leaving Toronto this morning due to deicing and then again in Calgary for deicing. Fortunately once it finally arrived in Palm Springs it didn’t need any deicing and we were finally able to board and had an uneventful trip until we arrived in Calgary where we were further delayed for half an hour on the runway because there was not enough staff to get us into the gate. We finally got off the plane and put our feet down in Canada 😀 After quickly clearing customs in Calgary, thanks to our Nexus cards, we picked up our suitcase and made a quick run from the warmth of the terminal to the warmth of our son’s truck … it is very cold in Calgary!

We were able to get a few hours sleep before we heard the patter of little feet on the floor above us so of course we ran upstairs to get warm snuggly hugs. Our grandkids didn’t seem the least surprised to see us when we came into the kitchen, it was like we were there everyday but they were happy to give us hugs and kisses.

We made a quick trip to the liquor store … is was blizzardy and very cold -25C/-13F without the wind chill so the rest of the day was spent inside enjoying family time.

Until next time …

Well the Jello Was Sliding Off The Plate Last Night!

I think when you read this blog we will be sound asleep back in Canada, well as I write this that is what it appears, and what we are praying, will happen.

We arrived in Palm Springs around 3:00 p.m. on Wednesday, checked in for our flight, got our boarding passes, and looked forward to an evening catching up with hubby’s relatives. And things went well until 7:30 p.m. when I happen to go into the WestJet app and saw that our flight had been cancelled … WHAT? No warning and if I hadn’t looked we wouldn’t have known until we received an email this morning. But check I did and that led me to get on the phone to WestJet to try and rebook our flights, at first I received voice mails saying they were too busy to talk to me and they hung up on me. Finally I was able to get through, around 8:00 p.m. Wednesday evening, and I was kept on hold for 6:15:22 hours until 2:09 a.m. when an agent answered the phone.

During my time on hold hubby found an article saying international flights were not allowed to land at Vancouver International Airport. The reason was they needed time to clear stranded planes off the runway and they were giving priority to flights within Canada.

So when the agent answered the phone I asked if we could fly through Calgary instead and yes that was an option but he could not get us a connecting flight to Kelowna. That’s okay I replied we were happy to spend time with our youngest son and his family and carry on to Kelowna when a flight became available. Before he looked at routing us that way he said he wanted to check other airlines to see if he could get us into Kelowna before Christmas. Well two hours on hold, with him checking back in twice to say he was still working on it, and it was now after 4:00 a.m., I had been on the phone for 7:59:03 hours when I heard that dreaded click and I was cut off. But that was okay because I had given the agent my number in case that happen and of course he would immediately call me back … Not! So hubby and I both dialed back and got on hold again, 3:16:57 hours later I was once again disconnected but hubby was still in the queue and after several tries I was able to get back in the queue.

We had pretty much resigned ourselves to heading back and spending Christmas in Yuma. From what we could see there were no flights to Calgary left and nothing to Kelowna until well after Christmas, but we weren’t ready to hang up yet. So through breakfast, coffee, chatting, and getting texts from our son saying he could see flights from Palm Springs to Calgary, we listened for someone to answer our call. Let me tell you thirteen hours of WestJet hold music is painful and we had spent the entire night awake listening to it!

I told hubby he would probably get through at the 6 hour mark but he was luckier than me and at 5:30:25 hours an agent answered the phone. The first thing hubby asked was did she have our number and would she promise to call us back if we got cut off and yes she said she would. Unlike the agent in the middle of the night she immediately put a hold on two seats to Calgary Thursday evening. Once she had done that she put us on hold and went to work trying to get us the best flights. I think it was another hour and lots of work and back and forth but after 14.5 hours we had flights to Calgary and flights to Kelowna on December 26^th … we are happy we get to spend Christmas with our two youngest grandchildren and we will still get to see the rest of the family after Christmas. This was our year for Christmas with our daughter and her family but it just didn’t work out … hopefully next year … but in the meantime our son and daughter-in-law are very excited to have us spend Christmas with them. Our daughter-in-law said they were not going to tell our grandchildren we are coming, she wants to surprise them in the morning but it’s probably a good idea because at this point who knows if this will all work out and we will arrive after they are in bed anyways …but if, as this blog started, we are snuggled in bed sleeping in Calgary there will be some happy little people and happy old people enjoying snuggles this morning 🙂

Until next time …

We Are Still At … Will We Stay or Can We Go?

Well we are one step closer to flying home for Christmas, we are in Palm Desert with hubby’s cousins. That’s the good news, the bad news is flights are still a mess in Vancouver, BC where we have to fly into to catch our connecting flight to Kelowna. And things in Kelowna are a mess as well so we have no idea if we will make it home tomorrow or at the very least make it to Vancouver.

So for now we will enjoy family time in Palm Desert and worry about our flights tomorrow.

Oh and by the way Santa took a day off from the North Pole and played a round of golf at our RV park in Yuma 😀

Until next time …

Will We Stay or Can We Go?

Yes I know the real words to the song are Should I Stay, Or Should I Go, but my lyrics are more fitting so what is going on in our life right now.

We will be heading to Palm Springs tomorrow to spend the night with hubby’s cousins but what we are unsure of is flying home on Thursday :frown: We fly from Palm Springs to Vancouver and then Vancouver to Kelowna. Today the Vancouver International Airport is shut down because of a snow storm. Flights in and out of Kelowna are also cancelled or delayed.

I checked the weather in Vancouver and as of today it appears the snow will end and tomorrow and Thursday look clear and sunny, so we are praying, crossing our fingers and toes, and hoping that our flight will take off.

Our hope is to make it to Kelowna on Thursday but if we can at least make it to Vancouver we will be happy because our son and daughter-in-law are there and hubby’s family are there, so at least we would still be spending Christmas with family.

But for today we are continuing with our holiday tradition, on the day before we begin our trip home for Christmas, a margarita out in the sun amongst the palm trees 😀 I always like my children to know what I’m giving up to go back to the cold snowy weather!

But honestly it’s me that wants to spend Christmas with my family and I love cold snowy weather at Christmas … especially because I can leave it behind at the start of the new year and go back to sun, warm weather, and palm trees. Please don’t hate me friends at home 🙂

Until next time …