Ted 2019


Ted / Dad
I know... What's with the beard....?? It's probably just a winter thing....	What a year. I am sorry that my message is so long winded, but once I started, I wasn't able to stop - and now I just am not sure what I could cut out. Feel free to skim or skip it, or just look at the photos… Louise is now fully retired, so we are doing more things together - primarily cycling and traveling. I still haven't been able to get to the list of things I wanted to do when I retired, and not sure when I will - if things don't slow down… After a very nice Christmas - split between home, St. Albert, and the Farm, we headed to Las Brisas, in Huatulco, Mexico. We have been going for about 10 years. It is always wonderful to see friends (both annual visitors who we have come to know and the people who work in the resort), as well as always meeting new friends. Our friend Wilf joined us again this year. He has taken up pickleball in a big way, so gets up early to join a group there who play.
I managed to get up early one day, but when I got down to the courts, no one was there. They told me it was the one day they had decided to take off…. I wonder if they really play, or just sleep in and say they do. I never really did get confirmation one way or the other. You can read more about our trip here... When we got back, my work took me down to Cypress County, near Medicine Hat for a project. I was able to fit in a nice visit with Micky and Darcy and meet their new granddaughter. (Kit and Justin's daughter, Paislee.) I also got to see their house in Medicine Hat. While we did have cold weather and snow last winter, we also had some unusual warm stretches - so the snow didn't stay. Louise and I did get out on our snowmobiles once or twice, and we also went skiing to Sunshine once.	Ted and Paislee
It was becoming increasingly evident to everyone, except maybe Dad, that my folks were having difficulty maintaining their independent living in their condo. Both were losing strength, and the ambulance had to be called a few times, because dad had fallen and couldn't get up, and mom wasn't able to help him. On Valentine's day Louise and I arranged a tour of a very nice "independent living lodge in St. Albert" - River Ridge. Dad was adamant that it wasn't time, but Mom really wanted to move. After the tour, and some tough negotiations with Dad, we managed to convince him to take the suite at River Ridge. We had them moved in by March 1st, and were able to celebrate Mom's 92nd birthday together at River Ridge - in a special guest dining area.
Mom at 92
Mom loved living at River Ridge and got used to it right away, but it took Dad a while to start getting used to it. Note to self: (I am sure Laura and Spencer will be reminding me) make the move when you are capable of making your own decisions, and have the health and ability to enjoy all the benefits of assisted living. It would have been so much easier for mom if they had moved five years earlier, and it would have provided some social connections for Dad, which he just didn't have at the Condo. Brian, Patty, Micky and I, along with our spouses spent many hours at the condo over the next six weeks cleaning it out and getting it ready for sale. Another note to self: deal with all your stuff while you can. We had the Condo on the market by the end of May. It was a bit slow to sell, but we finally got an offer in July which was finalized in August.
Dad decided to grow a beard while in Grandview He was quite proud of it...	Unfortunately, just as Dad seemed to be starting to get used to the suite at River Ridge, he fell and broke his hip. He spent three weeks in the U of A and then another four in the Grandview Rehabilitation Centre. During this period, he continued to decline both physically and mentally, to the point that when he was discharged, he was no longer able to live with Mom in the "independent living suite", and had to be moved to a different suite where he could receive 24-hour care. This was very difficult for him, and to this day he doesn't understand why Mom abandoned him, which of course she did NOT.
We took Bernie and Carmen down to Rosebud in May to watch Laura's perfomrance in the "Bright Star", and later in May went to Calgary to attend our niece (and Goddaughter), Taylor's Graduation Ceremony. Our spring and summer were generally wet and cold. I put in the pier and boat, but we didn't use it much until later in the summer. Even though the summer was mostly wet and cold, we did have some very nice days with Laura and friends out on the boat. Spencer is still in recovery mode with his knee - so no wake surfing for him this year :(	Our boat and dock.
In June Louise and I went down to Hood River Oregon where we stayed at our friend Ross's condo. We had a wonderful time cycling, wine tasting and doing a bit of windsurfing. Louise then flew home, and I spent another ten days with my windsurfing and kiting buddies on our annual spring trip. While I was there, Mark Sudal and his dad came through on a Motorcycle tour. I know Mark from our years of summer holidays at Nitinat lake on Vancouver Island. It was great to see him and to meet his dad. You can read my trip blog here. July and August were a blur. Mom and Dad continued to have health issues, so I spent a lot of time driving back and forth to visit - as did Brian and Patty. Micky also made some trips up and stayed for longer periods to help out. I don't know how one person could do it - and of course Patty takes the brunt of it, being so close.
Dad at the St. Albert Flying Field	I was able to take Dad out to the St. Albert RC Model Flying Field for their "Fun Days". Dad was a big hit. I think he enjoyed himself - being surrounded by his flying buddies, who all took a turn sitting with him and chatting. I am pretty sure it will be his last visit. I also managed to attend two different flying events at Alberta's Littlest Airport in Bawlf. I enjoyed flying at the events, talking to the other pilots, many of whom know Dad, as well as taking photos, which everyone seemed to appreciate. Links to my photos of the 40th Anniversary Fly-In are here, and the 2019 Corn Roast and Fly-In are here.
On our trip home from Cypress County in July, I stopped in Delia to take some photos for Mom. I found the house where she grew up, and was invited in by the owner for a tour. It was very interesting and brought back more than a few memories. The owner is a bit of a historian for the hamlet, and asked me to send him any old photos of the town from when I was young - which I was able to do. He said that any of our family are welcome to visit him any time.
In mid August, Louise and I took a week to visit Pierre and Lynn at their condo in Vernon. We spent a lot of time out on the water, and also enjoyed many great meals. A condition of our visit was that we cook at least some of the time. We really enjoy their company, and they seem to like being on the water as much as we do! You can read more about our trip here…. In September, I went to Hood River again for our annual fall Windsurfing Trip. Once again I had an amazing time with great friends.	Mom's old house in Delia
Ted - Wind Foiling at Home	In addition to windsurfing (or kiting), most of us have started to learn windsurf foiling, which has really changed the sport. Now instead of having four or five non-windsurfing days because of light wind, we can get out almost every day. Foiling is hard to describe, but a lot of fun. You are sailing along above the water, with no noise, and it is totally smooth because the board is not in the water, you are just flying on the foil. You can do it in a lot less wind than windsurfing, which means you can get out more, and on smaller sails. There are a bunch of us that are really hooked on this new variation of the sport. A link to my blog of the trip is here, or seel all my photos from the trip here.
When I got home from the Gorge, I only had two days to get ready for our trip to Italy. Louise and I had an amazing adventure with our friends Scott and Carolyn, who we know from our Nitinat Windsurfing Days. We spent two weeks with them cycling in Italy. Louise and I also spent a few days in Rome before the cycling, and then a few day in San Marino, and then Venice after the cycling. Italy is an amazing country, with great food and unbelievable scenery. You can read all about our trip here…..	Ted and Louise - cycling in Italy ..somewhere between Pisa and Florence..
We got home in mid October. On October 24th Louise and I celebrated our 32nd Anniversary. Wow time flies - but it just keeps getting better!! Louise and I had a very busy six weeks after Italy - between several consulting projects and trying to support Mom and Dad. Both Mom and Dad had multiple visits to the hospital for various reasons. In mid November, Mom started to become more and more confused, and we were all becoming more concerned about her. She went back into the hospital, primarily because of other health issues, and was there for a few weeks.
Ted Kiting in Cuba	We toyed with the idea of cancelling our annual Cuba trip, but In spite of everything going on with Mom and Dad, Louise and I left for Cuba November 29th, and enjoyed two weeks with a large group of kitesurfers, mostly from Southern Alberta. They are a great group of friends. This is my fourth time going with them, and Louise's second. Our Grande Prairie friends, Bernd and Angela, were able to join us for the first week - it was so nice to re-connect with them. Louise and Angela are so similar both in how they look and how they think that they got mistaken for sisters more than a few times. You can read all about it here.
When we got home, things were a whirlwind. There was less than two weeks before Christmas. Mom and Dad's health issues were continuing and both were still in the hospital. Mom at the Sturgeon and Dad at the U of A. I needed to give Patty Micky and Brian a bit of a break as they had been covering for me while I was enjoying myself in Cuba, but, I had caught some sort of flu bug in Cuba so couldn't go and visit until my coughing subsided. Then Dad was moved into a long-term high level care facility (fortunately in St. Albert), because River Ridge couldn't provide the additional care that he needed. A week or so before Christmas, it was determined that Mom would not be able to go back to River Ridge either, and would also have to be placed in a long term care facility with 24-hour care. As I write this we are waiting for a placement, but it looks like she will still be in the hospital over Christmas.
We have plans for an early Christmas in Calgary, on December 23 - with Laura, Frances and Spencer - because none of them could be with us at Christmas. We arranged to purchase a complete Christmas Meal package from the Urban Butcher in Calgary. It should make everything so much easier - and with paper plates, even easier! I will bring my own home-made Cranberry sauce and will make our own potatoes (we don't know how good "root vegetables" will be). It will be so nice to be together with the kids, even if it is not at Christmas. It is so hard to get everyone together. For the first time since we have been together, Louise and I did not set up a real tree. A small fake one will have to do this year! We just won't be spending much time at home, so we will enjoy everyone else's decorations this year!	Sunset from our Deck
Patty has invited Louise and I for Christmas Dinner, and from there, we plan to head to Louise's parents' farm near Westlock. Then on December 27, we will celebrate Carmen's 80th birthday (Louise's mom)...a bit early. We have no plans for New Year's yet - maybe just sleep. I am not sure what 2020 will bring, but I hope that overall it is a calmer year. I wish you all the very best for 2020! Merry Christmas! Ted
Biking with Louise in Oregon	Biking with Louise in Oregon
Skiing with Louise, Harold and Al at Sunshine!	Flying my Sukhoi at Bawlf's Littlest Airport
Rescuing Chloe after she jumped off the boat!	SUP with Louise and our neighbours' dog, Chloe
Ted and his Fun Cub RC Plane	Flying the Fun Cub at home
Biking with Louise at home!	Carving this years Pumpkin... but no kids showed up so Louise had to eat all the candy......
Surfing the boat wave on my Foil!	Sailing in high winds at Moiser, Oregon.


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