Turtles and Peepers and Geese Oh My!

The weather has been glorious these last couple days, so Anna-Lee and I have been out on our friendly neighbourhood yellow brick path walking, and for Anna-Lee biking. 

Anna-Lee on her bike on the new forest trail near our house

Our newest trail leads us to the "hidden lake," and if you know where to look, to turtles sunning themselves on a log. 

Every year the turtles come back to the same log

The sun was undecided yesterday afternoon and every time the sun went behind a cloud the peepers started. As soon as the sun came back out they became silent once again

Probably around 60 - 70 geese in our little hidden lake

.
Flocks of geese honking non stop sun or cloud, swimming in the lake, chipmunks sassing,woodpeckers pecking and most of all the humans!

These guys are out in full force right now. So cute.

Humans humans and more humans! Out in full force enjoying the spring weather after months of cold.
And we were definitely two of them!

A New Experience

If you have read the blog post of the poem Gumption and Gusto to go through the Goo, you'll know we have had to push Moncia's wheelchair through snow and slush. Lately it has been much more often though.
Apparenlty, the cold winter has destroyed the ability of the battery to hold a charge. We had to call our friendly neighborhood volunteer firefighter down the street one day to go fetch her when neither Dave nor I were home and we've had our next door neighbour who often walks with Monica while she walks the dog push her back from a block or so away, and we've often been called to pick her up from somewhere in the neighbourhood when the battery dies.
We finally were able to get her a whole new battery so hopefully that part of the goo will be gone for a while.

But, don't' relax!

Last evening, around 8:30 p.m., as Dave, Anna-Lee and I were bopping down Carp Road on our way home from ballet we get a call from Monica. 
" Where are you! I'm stuck in the basement - the elevator got me down but it stops after about 6 inches and I can't back get up!"

We got home, and sure enough, no go. So, Anna-Lee brought up the manual chair, Dave carried  Monica up the stairs, but that left the small detail of getting her chair up the stairs. Her 400 pound chair! Do we call the firefighters again? - read Monica's blog! 

Instead, Dave called our friend who put in the elevator (he's become a friend over the years as he also does work on our wheelchair van) - he'll be by later this afternoon to put in a new battery, but of course that doesn't help Monica have her power chair for this morning. Next on the list was calling another friend a few minutes drive away, who we thought might have a battery charger that could give it an immediate boost. Indeed he did. Dave went to get it and got it all set up. It seemed that the battery was completely dead as it wouldn't take the charge. Dave notched it up a bit wondering if he would have to take the car battery out and rig something up. However, he got a quick charge, zipped the elevator with the chair up, and then the battery once again lost it's charge. Phew!

It surely takes our whole community to keep Monica going!