Mother's Day, 2011

We've had a couple of eventful days this week!

On Thursday, Paul  made cookies. Yes. Paul. Made. Cookies. He brought some into work for sharing. The rest stayed home in multiple bellies and bowls.

Oatmeal, raisin, flax, sunflower, coconut cookies. 

The boys took me out on Friday for Mother's Day dinner and 5-pin bowling! It was pretty fun. We took Paul along, rather than forcing him to sit at home by himself. He kicked our asses at bowling. Such style, such grace. He didn't land on his face... This time. :D

Paul and I did the East Coast Trail custodial trail hike from Flatrock to Torbay on Saturday. 2 1/2 hours of walking through varying conditions of trail and with a light misting rain. The point of the exercise (hahaha) is to assess the condition of the trail for maintenance and safety issues. Since the ECTA had just done a massive overhaul of that section last year, there really wasn't much to report. Some mud, but that's to be expected. It's spring in Newfoundland... helloooo... 

Muddy patch

Lots of moose tracks. Big moose. I'm very grateful that we didn't bump into any of them!

Moose

Another moose

Lord tunderin' jaysus! Another moose!

We took food. I'm glad we took food. I needed it! You know me... I forget to eat. Well, I had a slice of cheese toast before leaving the house, but it wasn't enough. Half an hour into the hike I found myself huffing and puffing, getting all shaky and feeling abused by the gruelling pace set by the Hike Nazi. (Heil, Paul!!) We stopped for a sandwich and a rest. The food energy kicked in fast, and within 10 minutes I was hustling along, cheeky and opinionated again. It was GREAT! 

Shortly after our lunch break we paused to enjoy the view from Whale Cove. Right on cue, a gigantic bald eagle drifted by just below our feet. Only moments later, he drifted back the other way, a little quicker, pursued by a quick crow. No picture. Mouth gaping. Busy being Zen.

Surprisingly, (or maybe not, given the grey skies), we only saw one other hiker on the trail. A bird-watcher and her dog, PJ. We paused for a quick photo and dog greeting and moved along.

Suddenly, through a thin layer of scrubby pines, we heard rustling. Cow rustling. (sorry... couldn't resist.) As if drawn by some irresistible force, the black and white cows drifted towards the fence, keeping a sharp eye on little cow-coloured Igor. Greetings were in order. Igor wasn't thrilled, but the cows were enthralled. 

Tapper's Cove continues to be an attraction for photo shoots. Just as we got to the stairs, a car zipped to the wharf and unloaded a prom-clad couple and their skater-esque photographer. He was wearing a white pimp-daddy suit and she wore a confection of pink fluff. Too cute.

The cookies came in handy for a quick burst of energy at the end of the trail. Thanks for baking, Paul! You're welcome to try making a batch of banana bread anytime you like. :D

Pause for cookie break

Nearly home. 2 1/2 hour trek. This is where we ate the last of the cookies.

The dogs got a much-needed shower and collapsed in their respective blankies for a nap. They're still looking a bit bagged today.

Matt D., an adventurer/sailor who's been living in Iqaluit for the last 6 months,  arrived in St. John's last night just before midnight. We visited with beers and Mike's Hard Lemonades until the wee hours of the morning. The hot tub made prunes of all of us, but it was so nice relaxing and gabbing. Matt had some tales to tell of his life. Kangaroos and sled dogs. I'll never think the same way about either of them! We finally crashed around 2:30 am. Sadly, my internal clock woke me up for coffee at 6 am.

Matt will be in Whiteway for the next couple of weeks, getting a crab boat rigged up as a research vessel for northern waters. He'll then take the boat to Greenland where it will be used to observe the narwhal breeding habits! He's getting off the boat and heading back to Manitoba to work on another project. His brother, Chris, the lawyer, will be staying on the water. I'll have to get more info from Matt, but it's a project funded by one of the big family-run organizations. All I remember about the name is "Pew" ... family name. Kind of like Ducks Unltd, but not.

Mother's Day has been pretty quiet. I got a bit tied up with odds and ends in the morning, and the afternoon stretched long and languorously into evening with a nap followed by a short hike down to the beach. Paul cooked dinner. Grilled Arctic Char (Matt brought 2 pieces) a scoop of yummy grains (thanks Paul!), a bowl of Cream of Leek soup, and a glass of wine. Okay, okay! A bottle of wine. Blueberry. My favourite.

It's 9:30 pm and Paul and I are relaxing in the living room in front of the fireplace. The dogs are snuggling. I think it's time to finish the wine and end the day with an early bedtime. That brief nap didn't really help all that much. Or is it the wine?