LIVING THE GOOD LIFE

Today was such a beautiful day - the sun was shining brightly and we were not working. Brian and I decided to make the most of it. We went on a great bike ride this morning, returning home to bask in the sunshine. Brian was able to just relax with a book he wanted to read. I, however, am tied to my geology textbook until my exam next week.
A few of my friends have been boasting about how the Pampered Chef pizza stones were amazing. So, I decided this was definitely worth a try. I bought myself a couple and tonight made pizza. I must say, the crust cooked up fantastically. It wasn't soggy at all like it is on my regular pans. The bottom cooked nicely without scorching the top. I'm sold. The pizza was fantastic!

APPARENTLY IT'S SPRING

I think spring has arrived rather suddenly in the north. Yesterday Brian, Josh and I spent a few hours soaking up the rays on our deck. There is still quite a lot of snow around, but the sun has been shining brightly. Later in the evening I looked in the mirror and realized that I am sporting a new sunburn. Oops! Time to find the sun screen.

BACK IN THE SADDLE AGAIN

Oh, the joys of being through the winter. Brian and I brought our bikes out of storage today. We cleaned them up - scraped off all the twigs and stuff we'd accumulated last year, oiled the chain, and put air in the tires. We had arranged to have a day off from being on call for ambulance. So we hopped on for a great ride out to the turnoff and back. We'd been planning this all week. Yesterday was so windy here we weren't sure we would be able to ride today. But even though there was wind today we decided it wasn't enough to keep us from riding. So away we went. We made it up the first big hill going out of town. I always think that if you can make it up that one you can go anywhere you want - it is such a killer of a hill. We had jelly-legs at the top, but we made it. Around the next corner and we were into the wind. It was more wind than we had expected, but we soldiered on. By the third big hill the wind was almost pushing us back down. We kept going though because we knew that on the way back the wind would be pushing us home instead.
We ended up biking about 25 km. I had been preparing at the gym, using the stationary bike, but Brian hasn't exercised much in the last couple months, so one of us found it a little easier than the other. LOL. I'm preparing him for doing the circle - out to the turnoff, down the Campbell highway and back up the shortcut. A distance of about 40 km. The shortcut on the way back is really tough - lots of steep hills. I love being able to exercise outside. I went for my first outside run a couple weeks ago. Maybe I'm just addicted to exercise. There are worse things.

MOUTH-WATERING GOODNESS

Cinnamon buns are one of those items that I usually one bake once a year. They are just so irresistible. I only make them for special occasions. This is one of those occasions. The girls are coming home for Easter with Cory and Ben. What better way to welcome them than with Cinnabon Cinnamon rolls.
I'll post the recipe if anyone wants it - but keep it mind they are about 3000 calories each and are insanely delicious.

MY TALE OF WOE

I can't believe that a week has passed and I am only now getting to writing this blog post. I guess that's just how hectic my life has been lately. Quite surprising considering we live in such a small place.
Last Thursday I took Josh and a couple friends into Whitehorse. Skills Canada was hosting a Skills Competition. Our boys weren't competing, but our school put a booth up to display some of the great things our students have accomplished. We choose these boys to go because the video they made won first prize in the safety video contest. They were so excited. They received $1000 to share and the school also got $1000. They are already planning a sequel for next year's competition.
Anyway, on with the tale of woe. We got into town and did some running around. Then the boys went their own way with the plan that I would pick up some kids from the dorms and meet them at Boston Pizza. I had an appointment to get my hair cut at 4:30. When I showed up the hairdresser couldn't do my hair then because her daughter had been in emergency the night before and she had to get her to the doctor by 4:45. So, I arranged to go back the next day. Then I drove to the hotel and went to my room for 1/2 an hour. All excited to take the kids to dinner, I went to the truck. However, when I turned the key there was no response. The lights came on, but it wouldn't turn over. Back to the room I went and reluctantly phoned the kids at the dorms to tell them I couldn't make it. Then I tromped back to the truck. Lucky for me the people parked next to me were just leaving and agreed to give me a boost. Unlucky for me the boost didn't work. Still nothing. Since we were all unequipped with cell phones, I hiked over to BP and met the boys for dinner. After dinner, and the hike back to the hotel, I phoned Brian and cried out my frustration.
It wasn't until the next morning that I was able to do anything constructive. Auto shops started opening at 8:00 and I started phoning. I was able to get it into the shop we usually go to, but had to get it towed the 2 blocks. Then I loaded the boys into the taxi and went to the competition. Part way through the morning I phoned the shop only to discover that the problem was the shifting cable had broken. So even though it said it was in Park, it wasn't, hence I couldn't start the truck. The biggest problem though, was no one in Whitehorse had a spare part. They ordered one, but it wouldn't be there until Monday afternoon. Here was the bright part of my day: My boss was there at the time, so I asked him to watch the boys while I went to rent myself a vehicle so I could get home. Right away he said, "you don't need to rent anything, I'll get you a government fleet car." Then he promptly walked over to the minister of education, borrowed his cell phone and called to reserve me a car. Then he drove me down to pick it up. I didn't have to pay anything and it even came with a gas card. Sweet!
So, I was able to get home safe and sound. Brian left this morning in the van to pick up the girls for Easter. He will exchange vehicles while there and hopefully that will be the end of our vehicle woes for a while.