I did my run and JW workout even though my leg was hurting. Sorry Lotty but it has to be done and a bit of pain never killed anyone did it?
Did the usual boring stuff and then started looking into cars. My Mum wants her car back in a few weeks so we need to get on with it as I'll definitely need some transport. I went through every make of car and put a list together for Rob to have a look through. Hopefully have something sorted soon. 🤞
I've been debating booking a holiday so spent a good bit of time looking today. I found 4 places that would be good and sent the links to Rob. By the time I checked back this evening, one has already gone. Need to be quick!
I don't know what I am thinking, but I'm trying to get the boys to do some school work in the morning. I thought some Maths, English and one other subject on BBC bitesize wouldn't be too difficult. Oscar smashed it and just got it done, Leo, not so much. We got there in the end as I'm way more stubborn than he is. 😂
Ellis went out with friends, Leo went to the scooter park with Louie and Oscar went on screens and chilled with me which was nice. Then Leo and Louie came back and they were all in the pool for ages having tons of fun.
Ellis had fun too and came home dirty and buzzing with excitement as they had explored some woods on their bikes and got rather muddy.
Ellis cooked another meal tonight. Well he tried anyway. He was supposed to just cut up half a chilli but did two, took the seeds out and sliced them all lovely, popped one in his mouth and then proceeded to touch his face, and then his eyes. He started by saying his lips were fizzing and it very quickly escalated to him crying in pain with a red face and streaming eyes! I gave him milk, yogurt and a paper towel covered in milk for his eyes. I must admit I did laugh at him before he was crying in pain, but he really was hurting. 😓 It did take a while but he calmed down quickly and started laughing too. His face took a lot longer to calm down.
The meal turned out good though. 👍
I found Google Scan today which literally takes pictures of your pictures and puts them in digital form. I love it! It does take a while but would be worth it.
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| Need to do this one again |
Where they to? 10th August Toronto
This will be quite a short entry as most of today was spent planning the next fortnight and enjoying the comfortable surroundings before we hit the road again.
The weather has been good to us all trip, so far, so we were due a storm and, this morning, we got that storm. We sat with Pam and Bentley in the back garden, underneath the porch, and watched the storm pass. Sailboats whose skippers were caught short could be seen making a bee-line for the marina fearing that their masts might attract the lightning and the flocks of geese that had earlier been flying to-and-fro across the lake had, long since, taken refuge.
We were hopeful that the storm would freshen the air and reduce the humidity but I don't think it passed close enough as it was still a little sticky through to the evening.
Our next 2 stops are Quebec City and Montreal. Both of these historic cities are in the predominantly French-speaking province of Quebec so I had to psyche myself up before phoning to book the rooms as I'd not spoken any French for about 7 years and we'd been told that the Quebecois, in particular, were likely to give us the cold shoulder if we didn't, at least, try to speak French.
Quebec City was the first to deal with as we are going there first and staying in Montreal on the way back through. To my surprise, the phone calls to Quebec City went fairly smoothly and, if my French has served me well, we have a combination of YWCA and Student Hall accommodation booked. Student halls often have space over the summer holidays and, as such, make cheap places to stay for tourists. We'll see when we get there if that means cheap and cheerful or cheap and nasty. We'll also soon see if I have actually reserved 1 room for 2 people for 6 nights or if I have ordered a tall mushroom for 2 large fathers for Easter.
Then came Montreal. Montreal, being near the border with Ontario, is considered more bilingual so, in theory, the hardest bit was done. Not so. All of the hostels were fully booked and, by the time we get there, the students are back in their halls. I tried the ever-reliable YWCA to see what they could offer despite the book warning that their prices are a bit steep. The call went on for an agonising 3 or 4 minutes of what, for me, was pretty hardcore French. Just as we completed the booking and I'd given my card details to reserve the room, the girl the other end took great delight in telling me, through barely stifled giggles, that she is English. Cow.
This evening, we had another barbecue, this time with Wes too. Unfortunately, Ash couldn't make it due to work commitments which was a disappointment for Mush, in particular, who was enjoying discussing Wes and Ash's wedding plans. Weddings in Canada don't need to be conducted on licensed premises which seems like a much better system. It means you aren't forced into paying over the odds for a venue and, if you have the space, you can have a wedding wherever you please. Only months ago, Wes' sister had her wedding in the very garden where we were sitting with the ceremony conducted beneath an archway near the cliff's edge and the dinner/party taking place inside a marquee towards the house. It must've been a very intimate occasion and I'd like to see the law opened up back in England to allow this kind of wedding to happen there too. Mush had mentioned in passing to Pam at some point earlier that one of her favourite foods is frozen peas so the barbecue had a bit of a twist this evening. Barbecued pork and chicken, tossed salad, boiled red potatoes and... frozen peas. Mush and I both went back for seconds. I had another chicken breast and some more potatoes. Mush had a great big mound of frozen peas smothered in salad cream. You can take the girl out of Bristol but...
We repacked our bags this evening so that we only had enough to last us a fortnight as we'll be back here before we go off canoeing. They now only weigh roughly the equivalent of about 4 buffalo and a couple of goats; we'll barely even notice they are there.
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Today has vanished! I feel like I've been sat on my ass in front of a screen for most of it and my legs are swollen to prove it. Ah well, don't tell the boys just yet but we managed to book a little holiday. 🤫 Just need to sort out a car now. 🤞 Won't be telling the boys until nearer the time as Leo doesn't like having too long to think about it.
Plans for tomorrow, Ellis is out with a friend from lunchtime, Kelly with the Pug is popping in for a cuppa in the morning and I'll be writing lists and trying to get organised.
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