We heard from our guy who knows a guy and his guy did in fact have the part we need for our engine. We have a 300 hp engine and we need to replace the gear box. This new one has a heavy-duty gear ratio. It is more than we need. But it should do us well.. The part is going to be shipped down from the Charlotte’s and we should be able to pick it up when we are in Vancouver at the end of the month. We will bring it back to the island and take it to the shop where the Tinman is sitting out of the water waiting for repair…. It is an expensive ordeal but will ultimately cost half what a new part would have cost…  My New Years resolution is to learn to walk on water.

Two of our three kids came to visit this week. They were here for three nights. Our very generous, kind, wonderful and sweet neighbours (they read this blog) offered to let the kids stay in their spare rooms. We have a very small cabin and the family home was occupied. With our neighbours offer we were able to house the kids next door in comfort and warmth. They really appreciated it and it worked out perfectly.

Tuesday we worked on our upper lot. Burning dead wood on our neighbours burn pile we were able to get rid of their debris and clear out our upper lot. We had a lot of ladders (dead branches on trees) and debris in the area around the water tanks which we wanted to clear out. It is safer (less fuel for forest fires) and looks so much nicer..No one ever walks around up there but the deer. I am sure they will appreciate the tidiness. We aren’t finished but made a good start with the help of the two strong  twenty somethings…

The next day we went down to the family home and our son ran the chainsaw on the wood at the side of the house.. My daughter and I piled leaves in the compost.. The weather was gorgeous and we got a lot done in a short period of time.

It was great the kids were able to come for a few days and help out. We didn’t work them the whole time. There was still lots of time for eating and reading..

Unfortunately the dolphins and whales from the week before didn’t make an appearance for the kids. One morning while they were still asleep, a seal put on a great show in front of the living room window. ( I told you 7 am is the time to be looking out the window) 

He leapt up into the air with a fish in his mouth..He was huge and having a grand old-time showing off with his breakfast.

That afternoon a baby Virginia Creeper  hit the front window and fell to the ground. I checked him out and held him for ten minutes. He flew away happy after gathering his wits about him.

I was talking to my friend here on the island about newsletter business and I mentioned the kids were coming.. She wrote back  “lucky you that you have two kids home”.  It was true. We were lucky to have them here but it struck me as really true for the first time… here is home.