2023 Highlights

Merry 2023 Christmas everyone!

This year we thought it would be fun to post a series of photos that highlights what we did in 2023. We had a good start to the year in Arizona and returned home in the middle of March. Our first project was the removal of the large Siberian elm tree from our backyard.

 We hired a company to do the falling and clean up.

 Well, they felled the tree but it didn't go exactly as planned and destroyed 3 sections of fence.

That's okay, they reduced the total price and we rebuilt the section of fence ourselves. An additional spring project!

The fabric top on our small gazebo kept ripping in the wind so we replaced the whole thing with a hard topped gazebo that can handle a snow load. Another fun project, sometimes a challenge to follow the limited instructions.

We moved the frame of the old gazebo onto the main deck and made a pergola top for it using painted PVC pipe. It provides some shade and we will put a rectangular shade sail over it for the summer.

After 20 years of ownership and some wonderful riding memories, we sold the motorcycle.

It was a good year for gardening and fun to see the seeds in the greenhouse turn into beautiful lush plants. I had 3 garden areas: the main one in the fenced area

 also a section by the shop for cucumbers and cantaloupes

 and also one on the west side of the house for squashes and watermelons. 

Here are samples of the harvest:

We golfed about twice a week this summer at Christina Lake golf course and also took a trip for a 2 night stay and golf at Kokanee Springs Golf Resort. It is still a gorgeous course, very challenging. The food at the restaurant was good, nice to stay at the lodge where you can walk to everything. The view from the first tee is always lovely.

We took the boat out on the lake a few times, even caught a trout for supper. A peaceful sunny day on the water.

Late this summer, we bought kayaks as a new adventure and went out on Christina Lake and Wilgress Lake to try them out. They are fun, looking forward to more kayaking next year.

As usual, we returned to Arizona in late October and got right into some projects that we've had planned for a while. The first was installing artificial turf in the open area of our lot and setting the gazebo and furniture over it. We did all the work ourselves, and were able to purchase the turf at a wholesale store and take it home in the back of our Santa Fe. 

The hardest part was scraping away the landscaping rocks and leveling the ground.

We had been collecting pavers for 2 years and put a border around the turf.

We have also been collecting aluminum sun shade louvres and had enough for 2 projects. Our neighbours wanted a shade section on the side of their carport as they live there year round. We pieced together the best pieces and I painted them before installation.

Before: 

During:

After:

The project on our lot was more challenging. We put an angled set of louvres from the edge of the 14 foot metal roof. The structure is 24 feet long. 

Before:

It involved lots of planning, more painting and climbing tall ladders multiple times to get it done.

During

After:

The last project this year is a rebuild of the tool area under the shed stairs.

Before:

During:

After:

Final event for the year was the purchase of a new (to us) golf cart. It is a 2014 Yamaha and we've fitted it out with an enclosure and seat covers.

Our old 2000 GEM is still for sale. Hopefully, we get a buyer in the new year.

Those are some of the highlights of our year. There are many more that we haven't mentioned. It's been a good year, full of blessings.

We wish all of you a Merry Christmas, peace, prosperity and good health in 2024.

Linda and Stuart