Category Archives: Alpahbe-Thursday

Trail, British Columbia

The weather on Friday November 1st looked promising albeit cold and we decided it was a good day to drive to Trail B.C. to enjoy some Persian food. Since we’ve been in Colville it has been difficult for us to find good Persian food. Kootenay Kabab in Trail looked promising and it is only a 50 mile drive for us from our Country Bungalow. We asked Vera to pack her passport so we were all ready with passports in hand and headed north at 10am. The border crossing was simple and we reached our destination by 11:30. We found out that parking would be a problem for us since we did not have any Canadian coinage. Oops. No credit card parking kiosks in Trail.

We found a place to park by the Columbia River Skywalk and enjoyed the walk across and back building up our appetite.

This was the first time we’ve ever been able to walk across the Columbia River!

Lots of reminders of the country we were visiting.

After our brisk walk we stopped in a bank parking lot and I went inside to see about getting some coinage. With coins in hand we found a spot close to Kootenay Kabab and fed the meter.

Kootenay Kabab in Trail B.C. was worth the trip across the border. Dear and my sister Vera had the Koobideh Kabab and I enjoyed the Lamb Shank. We had the Shirazi salad, too. They are the first Persian restaurant in the Kootenays and the closest Persian restaurant to us. We enjoyed the food and will return next year after the winter snows have melted. This part of the Kootenays is known for their winter sports which means lots of snow. Our border crossing back into the USA was easy including a pleasant conversation with the Border Agent.

Home again along the Columbia River from Canada to the USA. “Roll On Columbia roll on”

Our piroshky baking day was a success but I did not get all the photos I was planning on. Baking is different when you have 2 little grands helping. I’ll share the photos I did get plus the recipe soon.

Little White Church

There’s a little white church in the valley
That stands in my memory each day
And it seems I can hear the bells now ringing
Though I am many miles away

And many times in church on Sunday morning
That whole countryside would gather there
They would all kneel down by the altar
As they lifted up their voice in prayer

   Oh the church in the valley that little white church
Is the place I love so well
Now I’m sad and lonely yes I’m sad and lonely
For that little white church in the dell

They would sing the old song Rock of Ages
Oh Christ let me hide myself in thee
And I know some of them are now waiting
Just o’er the dark and stormy sea

I know that troubles all are ended
And happy forever they will be
They are waiting and watching up yonder
For the coming home of you and me

I’m linking up with Teacher Jenny for Alphabe-Thursday. We are on the Letter W.

L is for Love!

It’s time for Teacher Jenny’s Alphabe-Thursday. I’ve been delinquent the last couple of weeks and was really trying hard to come up with something for the letter L and there it was staring me in the face. L-O-V-E….Love. Love is in the kitchen and I can see it from different angles…

Matthew 22:37-39 

Jesus replied: “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’  This is the first and greatest commandment.  And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’

Ephesians 2:4-7 ~But because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy,  made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions—it is by grace you have been saved.  And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,  in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.

1 Peter 4:8 ~ Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.

1 John 4:8 ~ Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Jude 1:2 ~ Mercy, peace and love be yours in abundance.

Valentine’s Day in Elementary School  is a fun memory for me. I so looked forward to exchanging Valentine’s Day cards at school and getting special treats on this day. These days I don’t put pressure on Dear to make Valentine’s day special. I want to find joy in our everyday…

Honoring Our Heritage…

…and since we are on the letter H this week for Alphabe-Thursday I decided to share. Thank you Miss Jenny for keeping us on track.

It’s hard to take a photo of photos especially when they are framed under glass. This grouping of happy photos makes me smile. It was one of those gifts that came together so well. When I saw the photo of my mother and me (photo on top) I remembered I had a similar photo with our daughter Katie (middle photo). Then I remembered I had a similar photo of Dear with his mother (bottom photo). I set out to find the right frame so I could have them all together in one grouping. A family heritage gift for Katie. Hope you are all have a harbor full of  happy thoughts today. I’ll come to hover over your H posts soon…

G is for Grumpy!

It’s time for the letter G and time for me to remind myself not to be grumpy and not to grumble. Head on over to Miss Jenny’s to join in with Alphabe-Thursday.

John 6:43 ~  ”Stop grumbling among yourselves,” Jesus answered.

I Corinthians 10:10 ~ “And do not grumble, as some of them did – and were killed by the destroying angel.”

James 5:9 ~ “Don’t grumble against each other brothers, or you will be judged. The Judge is standing at the door.”

I Peter 4:9 ~ “Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling.”

Maybe I’ll think ahead to next week and the letter H and be inspired by another Dwarf…Happy! Since we are still on G this week I’m going to concentrate on being grateful instead of grumpy.

B is for Borsch!

It’s time for Alphabe-Thursday with our dedicated teacher Miss Jenny. We are at the very beginning …a very good place to start. Today is the letter B! I’m going back to my humble food beginnings.

When tempted to buy a head of cabbage it must be time for borsch. This is a soup I grew up on and only learned to love from my high school years on. When I was little I can remember having to sit in front of a bowl of borsch until I finished it. Left alone at the table I’d dump the bowl back in the pot and then get in double trouble. My mom would be very upset that I spoiled the whole pot with my bread laden bowl of soup. I would dunk as much bread in the soup as possible hoping the soup would disappear…

The broth for this soup is made with a 7 bone beef roast. While the vegetables are cooking I season the roast and put it in the oven for additional cooking. Pieces of the roast can be added to the soup to make it a heartier soup.

Borsch is also served with a nice dollop of Sour cream and good bread. Here’s a recipe for borsch!

A is for Appetizers…

I really enjoy appetizers. It’s nice to have a variety of taste bites when dining. When we go out to dinner we sometimes eat appetizers instead of a big plate of food. If we are out during Happy Hour it’s tempting to eat too many appetizers when they are half priced. We like to find restaurants with Happy Hour foods that are not all fried food. We have found many good spots with great options. Do you eat appetizers instead of main dishes when you go out?

Teacher Jenny is starting up Alphabe-Thursday this week again and we are at the beginning with the letter A. This would be a good time for you to join in if you want. Thank you Teacher Jenny!

Y oh Y is for Yarrow Bay…

Time for Alphabe-Thursday with our great “teach” Jenny. We are on the letter Y. I happened to be at Yarrow Bay in Kirkland last week killing enjoying time while my daughter was at an appointment. Thankfully I had my camera with me and it wasn’t raining…

 

 

 

Yarrow Bay and Yellow Kayaks. Two for the price of one!

 

 

 

 

 

I even managed a shot of daughter after her appointment. Our daughter is going to be moving away across the country to North Carolina soon. Every now and then we look at her and moan a quote from My Big Fat Greek Wedding… Why Y you want to leave me???

Any of you have kids that have moved far far away from you? I’ll be around soon to see your Y’s!!

At Times Like These…

…it’s O.K. to take liberties!

After all here we are at the letter X in Alphabe-Thursday. I’m sure teacher Jenny would eXcuse us if we stray a bit on this letter.

For my offering this week I went to Yarrow Bay, oh lookie a Y word for next week. I was hoping to find a huge X marks the spot.

 

This looked promising, an alphabet marina.

 

This was the only X that was to be found on my stroll through the Marina.

Sorry but the X photo is missing through the Photobucket piracy that occurred after 2011. Here are some photos I’ll use for the letter Y.

 

Next week I’ll show the rest of my water shots from Yarrow Bay on Lake Washington in Kirkland, Washington. Yes…that’s the same Kirkland that the Costco Kirkland products are named after.

I’ll be around to see what liberties you all took with the letter X!

Signs of My Summer…

It’s that time of the week again when I scramble to find photos that will fit the Alphabet letter of the week. This week we are up to the letter S. I know it’s Wednesday and not Thursday yet but I’ve got something special to post tomorrow…

Jenny keeps us all on track with Alphabe-Thursday so click on over to join in the fun.

Signs are my choice for the letter S!

Sisters by marriage at Julienne.

I was happy to even find some signs in my archives that had words that began with the letter S.

This is the original Starbucks in Downtown Seattle across from Pike Place Market.

This next sign is from a couple summers ago from Central California. It just made me chuckle.

Summer made a slow appearance here in Western Washington but these last weeks of August have been very nice. Even though Fall is one of my favorites I’m happy that the sun and warmer temperatures finally blessed our region. Next week Dear is off and we are going to head to the Oregon Coast and then inland to Bonneville Hot Springs. I probably won’t have a chance to participate with the letter T. Hope you all are still enjoying your summer…