It is a boy!

On Christmas Eve a cake brought the surprise news that Hilary is pregnant with a boy! An original way to let the family know about the gender of the baby. April will be around the corner even though Hilary might argue differently....

Christmas together in BC

Sue, Ralph and Fiona came over to stay with us in the Crooked Tree apartment for a few days before Christmas. Mark and Carly also came and stayed in the condo of Hilary & Shayd. Marcy, Joe and Wil came a few days later and went straight to Revelstoke to spend the days with all of us during Chirstmas. In Penticton the gang went skiing on Mount Apex and we enjoyed a floating sauna with polar dip.

Revelstoke is one of the prime ski resorts in the Canadian Rockies. The gang had good fun with lots of fresh snow to ski and snowboard. A wonderful way to spend this Christmas together....

Arrived at the 7th floor

My 70th birthday has come and gone. Somebody in Niagara told me: "Now you have arrived at the 7th floor"; one way to look at it. Hilary and Mary baked me a nice carrot birthday cake, and we went out for a lovely dinner. Afterwards hang out at the rental place of Shayd and Hilary. A nice day during which Mary and I also explored a beautiful walking trail along Okanagen Lake amidst various vineyards.

Almost every day we walk a short up and down circuit near our rental place on the mountain. The views from there never tire. Two more weeks and we will be back in Niagara and will miss this walk and the views over the lake. Life is good to us....

Winter wonderland

Winter weather has arrived here in the mountains surrounding Okanagen Lake. It is a beautiful sight from up here around 1 km above sea level. Yesterday a few local deer were wandering past the place where we stay these two months.

Mark send me this photo of him working in his home office with their puppy Macy being comfortable on the couch. Mark and Carly love their little but fast growing pet. Back in Holland my university friends gathered for our 51st annual reunion dinner. I hope to see some or all of them again when I go to Holland in late January - early February around the Feb 1 birthday of one of my sisters....

Okanagen Lake views

The best view over the length of the lake we have here from the firepit near our apartment. I can sit here with a coffee and meditating about life. Easy. Of course it is not the best time of year to sit here. Better during warmer days and during summer evenings. 

The three apartments of the "Crooked Tree". In March we stayed with Hilary and Shayd in the middle one. This time Mary and I are in the far left one (Hilary and Shayd now rent a place in Penticton town). The bottom level of this structure is where the owners live. It is built on a slope, so the apartments' ground floor entries are at the back with a second floor where I love to hang out. Also a bit more sun at the smaller balcony of the second floor during this time of the year. 

Mary and I do a daily walk of about two kilometers. A good workout because it goes up and down. Today Hilary and Poncho kept Mary company during the walk.

This photo does not show it well, but from the walk we can see the city of Penticton below along the south end of the lakeshore. There are a few newly buit houses with amazing views...

Back in Penticton

We are back in the "Crooked Tree" apartment in Penticton, BC, enjoying every day this beautiful view over part of Lake Okanagen. This time we rented the place for two months to spend some good time near Hilary and Shayd. Having this view every day is a real treat!

The older owners of a local apple orchard are not able to harvest this fall, so they let anybody pick for free. Hilary and Mary did some picking for the local food bank. My back is hurting so I am out for that action. The weather so far has been nice....

Shayd had to go for a week of work in Dawson in the north, where Canada had one of their big gold rushes in the past. It grew then to a town of 70,000 but now it is back to just 2,000. He saw some of the "northern lights" and send us this photo.

Updates all over

My nephew Berry in Holland was yesterday with his son, daughters and wife at a soccer game of the Dutch national mens team. Lots of orange among the spectators during a qualification game for the 2026 World Cup to be hosted in the US, Mexico and Canada. Flashback to about ten years ago with Hilary, Fiona and Parker also in orange (probably during a previous World Cup tournament)...

The past week Mary and I have been busy setting up a fence in the backyard. Mark and Carly got themselves a puppy dog who will likely stay with us regularly given their busy schedules. So after 30 years in this house we finally having to put up a fence in the back so that the puppy can roam around freely in our backyard during her visits. Macy is a rescue dog from the Humane Society and she appears to have a nice character. Two weeks ago I looked after her two days in Stoney Creek when Carly and Mark were both busy with work...

Mary had some bad luck the past weeks with first shingles and then a pancreas infection, which kept her in the hospital for three days. But she is always a trooper and now has adopted a very strict diet. Hilary in the meantime had her three month check up on the pregnancy and the due date has been confirmed for the middle on April. A whole new phase in our family life again...

Spencer, 10 years younger than Hilary, joined his brother Parker for an adventure in Australia, aiming to be there for a year or so, similar to what Hilary did 8-9 years ago in Australia. With their youngest son Wil possibly taking off to northern BC for a year of work, Marcy & Joe will then be empty nesters, at least for a while. And one of my old high school friends send this photo of living the retired life at a olive farm near Florence, Italy, where he has a long term lease and spends time 4-5 time a year. One of our other school friends recently visited him there.