we weren't going fast enough to die

My birthday was on Friday.  Because I had the Farmer's Market Friday night, we celebrated on Saturday instead.  We brought the pups to my mom's Saturday morning then hopped on the bike and set out to Gimli... the scenic route to Gimli. I don't think I had ever been to Gimli before.  It was so beautiful... I couldn't believe we were in Manitoba.  I'm sure it is usually much more bustling in other years when we aren't in the middle of a pandemic... but there were a lot of people there.  The harbour was breathtaking.  I can't wait to go back again next year. We stayed in Gimli for the night, then headed back home Sunday, the scenic route again.  It was a fun trip, but we were both happy to be home.  

Mike upgraded his motorcycle this summer.  He finally got the "bike of his dreams".  It's a 2018 Harley Davidson 115th Anniversary Street Glide.   We've been doing a lot of day trips.  We pack a little snack, some water and we hit the road.  I think we put on 1000 km the first week he had the bike. We started doing a Manitoba motorcycle scavenger hunt type thingy where you travel to towns and take a photo by a certain monument or sign.  It's a really neat way to learn some Manitoba history. On August 20th, we made a tour through Manitou, Darlingford and Morden.  There was a church monument down 240 south that we needed to find.  When we got to the intersection, I noticed it was gravel.  Mike went down the road anyway, saying it wasn't too far.  It was 4 miles down a y winding loose gravel road.  I have since named it "240 south... the gravel road of death".   We met a few trucks on ...

This is a spring and summer not many will forget. Our new normal is to always remember the sanitizer and mask when leaving the house, shaking hands by bumping elbows and being confined to our international border... and at times our provincial borders too. For the most part, we have been so fortunate. I haven't been working since mid February but Mike hasn't been laid off. The kids have all kept their jobs with the exception of Tyler who was laid off in mid March. Gratefully, our family and extended family have all stayed healthy. The hardest part is not being able to see family and friends. I miss my Roseau family like crazy! It must be even harder for them. We try to have family chats every Sunday and we play trivia games together, reminisce together by going through memory boxes or old photos together... or give tours of the work we've been doing in our yards or homes.  We weren't able to visit Mémère for the longest ti...