Hi Mama Susan -
Bet you thought we fallen off the face of the earth! First, we hope you, Mike and the gang are all well. We have had such a very busy year. What a joy our puppy has been!
She has a beautiful disposition and loves everybody. Healthy as a horse, eats well, settles down at night perfectly, loves her walks and above all her parents! We go up to Collingwood frequently, and she just romps with Sherry & Doug's two cockers. She knows where she is the minute we come off the hightway to their subdivision. Their vet and best friend thinks she's a real gem! He E-mailed Doug at school one day and asked if Stu & Kay got their puppy from a "Susan Martin" in Amherst, NY. One of his clients apparently got a puppy from you. He named your vet as well. However, we could not find out who! Shawn & Kelly were off on a cruise at the time.
We took Chelsea to handling classes at Pet Smart here in Belleville and had a picnic with her. They train them in a section and teach them to sit, stop and stay right in the aisles with people meandering thru. She graduated in 6 weeks (one night per week). The gal we had has 5 big dogs at home that she rescued - 2 are Bull Mastiffs and one little pug! She brought one to class and it just sat in the corner and let all the other dogs climb all over it.
Our next door neighbor got a large dog because he drives a transport and she works and one of her daughters is alone a lot. His name is Dexter and what a beautiful disposition he has - he comes near the fence and Chelsea retrieves back a bit but lets out little woofs and whimpers and her bum goes up in the air and her paws down.
My family gave me the greatest 75th birthday surprise. (I'm 2 1/2 years older than Stu) This was to have taken place on Easter weekend, but Taylor was writing final term exams on Easter Monday. On the Saturday, March 30th, the day after my birthday, we all hopped in the Van and drove to Hamilton to pick up Taylor. Meanwhile, Grandma was bursting to know what was happening.. They took me to Toronto, my old hoetown and we had English tea at a very posh restaurant called the Old Mill. From there we got back in the Van and just drove and things started looking familiar to me and we pulled up in front of my childhood home (which I left at marriage 50 years ago)! Did I choke up! Then on to my elementary school, my High School, The Church where we were Married which is gone! All the others have expanded into hue buildings.
Then we went to the University of Toronto, where #2 Grandson will be going in September. He got a Letter from U of T advising that they were going by his mid-term marks and will be giving him one of a very few Presidents Scholarships. He is going to do International Studies and will speak 6 languages fluently at the end of four years.
Well, Chelsea is downstairs having her birthday brush! She is so good and very intelligent. She sleeps with Stu as I started sleeping in the guest room after I had both knees replaced and we found we both sleep better. I get up with her at 7:20 each morning and spend a half hour playing ball with her outside.
On the 27th, we will go up for Liam's High School Graduation - he has been chosen Valedictorian. In April he was in Florida with the school band at Disney World. In May he took courses in how to run a "Relay for Life" campaign sponsored by the Canadian Red Cross.
One of his music teachers was diagnosed with cancer and they were sending him to the Mayo Clinic. Tis man has been his mentor all thru High School. Well, that kid went out into the highways and by-ways and with the help of a student committee, he got fantastic entertainment. Everything was set up around the track includin a stage they had scrounged from some business in town. Walking and running began at noon and went thru till midnight. Water tables were set in frequent spots and BBQ's all around the grounds. Sherry said the Luminiere finale was absolutely beautiful. All te kdis lined up around the track with their Lanterns along with teachers and towns people and sang for half an hour. It was the hottest day of the year at 30 Celsius (about the same in Farenheight). Their goal was $25,000.00 and they made over $55,000.00!
Last weekend we stayed glued to the TV watching the Queens Jubilee celebrations - it was pouring rain all weekend - so we did not feel guilty. We still have strong British ties being first generation Canadians. Both sets of parens from Scotland. When I was a kid, we were a British Colony and lived under the British Flag in Canada and I had a passport to go over to Buffalo (wastime) to visit relatives. Under my picture, it read British Subject by Birth! Occupation School Girl! Guess they had not used the term student in those days. Wish my parents had kept it.
MUST GO - BUT BELIEVE ME, WE ARE THE HAPPIEST COUPLE IN THE WORLD NOW and can't believe how depressed we became after Penny died. Of course, the trip to Australia whacked us out and the accident after we came home. Althought we thank God for saving our lives and without injuries. I still get flashbacks, but it reminds me of our favorite hymn, "How Great Thou Art".
Lots of woofs and licks and God bless you folks across the pond!
Kay, Stu and CHELSEA!
Hello Susan,
We've been sending you E-mails and assuming that you were receiving them. I was using a program called Corel Word Perfect and never was advised by the Server that they were not getting through. It's the programme that's popular in Canada and is very "user friendly" but I don't think that you got any of them. I should have sent them using Micro Soft Word which you know and is universal.
In any case that's why I'm using the mail this time - I did not want you to miss the news about Chelsea's first birthday. She's priceless and we love her dearly.
With kindest regards,
Kay and Stu
Note from Sue:
I apologize to Kay and Stu for not getting this on the blog sooner. Snail mail from Canada to the "states" is notoriously slow...and couple that with the fact that I had to find time re-type this, I am a great many weeks late. But better late than never! God bless Kay, Stu and Chelsea!
