LONG WEEKEND

Alan and his three "girls"
Nancy, Holly and Elaine

A long weekend doesn't mean much to retired folks or farmers but it enabled us to have company from Calgary, which was great! Alan's daughter Nancy and granddaughter Holly arrived on Friday evening and were here until Sunday afternoon.

On Saturday Nancy, Holly and I went to Crosby, ND for a quick shopping trip.  We made it to three stores and we all came home with some "goodies".  Holly found balloons with lights in them that glow in the dark!  When the Canadian custom officer handed our passports back he wished Holly a Happy Birthday! He had noticed that her birthday is August 8, when she turns fourteen.  One of her birthday gifts is a trip to Disneyland with her dad.  They are leaving today so she is a busy traveller!  She was very fond of one of our cats and would have liked to take Cassy home with her. The poor cat didn't even have a name so Holly took care of that.

Holly and Cassy

On Sunday was our annual worship service at Salem Lutheran Church, just two miles north of our farm. (I wore my "Salem dress", the one I bought for Kirk and Shauna's wedding at Salem in 2000!) This year the service coincided with the Durr cousin reunion.  All 18 members of the Lawrence Jr.(Larry) Tannas family were here for the reunion.(His parents, Lawrence and Jessie Durr Tannas, are laid to rest in Salem Cemetery.)  The license plates on vehicles beside the church show how far family members came for this reunion.  Several also flew from California! (Thanks for the pictures, Tracey!)

After the service, led by Pastor Danny Krauss, reunion members went to the Jay Durr farm for brunch while the rest of us had our picnic lunch just north of the building.  It was a perfect day with a light breeze, not too hot even when sitting in the sun.

This was the first time that none of the Johnson "kids" were here for the Salem service.  All had plans for the long weekend.  I was thankful for Alan's help in getting the church ready!  He even painted the railing and the front door as well as helping to mop the floor!  On Sunday morning he picked wild sunflowers across the road, arranged them in vases to place at the bottom of the altar railings at Salem.  Salem congregation was organized in 1906 so next year will mark the 110th anniversary.

On Sunday afternoon we enjoyed visiting at Nancy and Graham Shirleys in Estevan and had a delicious supper with them. She sent us home with cucumbers from the garden and two tasty salads. Thanks Nancy!

Last Thursday we also got to visit with Alan's son Derek, his wife Jackie and sons JJ and Ben.  They were on their way home to Calgary after visiting family in Oakville, Ont.  We met them at the Holiday Inn in Regina and spent the night there.  The boys enjoyed the pool and waterslide. (and I didn't get a picture!)

Today I am cooking up chokecherries that grow here and there in the yard. Making syrup will be the next step.

Clare is back from their weekend with the Kots at their cabin so holidays are over and it's time to get ready for harvest.  On our way to Estevan we saw fields of peas that had been combined as well as canola that was swathed.

Tomorrow we are looking forward to company from Boise, Idaho - cousins Myrna and Ernie Damm.  They spend six months in Yuma, AZ from October to March so sometime we'll have to pay them a visit in the sunny south!  I was there for two weeks in 2013.

Have a great rest of the week!  Happy 48th Anniversary to my brother Merv and Jan tomorrow.