Christmas Extravaganza

Family Christmas at Nan & Jons...

There were those who didn't want to be seen, those who wished they hadn't been seen, and those who couldn't care either way! Of course, a constant was the Yorkie who LOVES watching TV, Video or anything else on a monitor- sometimes even when there is nothing on!!

Christmas is a time for family get togethers, and we managed this in a grand way, with sons, daughters, their spouses, grand kids and of course a house full of dogs! More than enough food for all with Nan and Jon's special touch allowed everyone to have their fill.

Watch out for that DARN CAMERA!!

Long Lost Cousin

Recently through a genealogy post, Geof discovered a long lost cousin who has the same great grandfather as he does. It got very interesting after sending a family picture taken around 1910 specifically showing the great grandfather George Edward Woodford, and his children and their children. My cousin Donald and I had both our grandfathers represented and I had my father in the picture as well as a young child. My cousin's grandfather travelled to South Africa where they have lived since. My father went to Canada and eventually British Columbia where we live.



Herbert Kelsall Woodford b 1872 d 1946. Donald's Grandfather

In 2002, while travelling in England, we visited Chester and Ruabon where the family's roots originated. In the process we connected with a whole lot of cousins at a reunion near Ruabon, and even got a picture of the gravestone marking George Edward Woodford's burial spot.

Even more bizarre, we found at our church another long lost cousin who descended from the Caldecott family line which George Edward Woodford's own grandfather married into. This created a connection to the famous illustrator, Randolph Caldecott, who was a cousin of George Edward Woodford. What a small world and how interesting the ties!

Yellowstone and the Bisons

A slight detour returning to Canada after taking in the Xango Convention at Salt Lake took us to Yellowstone National Park where we encountered some really big Bison. and go to see Ol' Faithful spout off only minutes after arriving!

With so few visitors at that time of year early September, we had no difficulty circling around the park and seeing most of the sights and not a few wild life.

The Entrepreneurs Club at Breckenridge

On the way back through Colorado, we made arrangements to stay at the lodge with the Entrepreneurs Club in Breckenridge in the Rockies. Actually, over 11,000 feet in altitude which created a few challenges in breathing!

Quite an unusual experience arriving at night and entering what seemed like an empty house! Ascertaining we were at the right house we picked a room and quickly fell asleep after a long day on the road.

The resort had multiple rooms, a huge foyer with a deluxe kitchen, hot tub, games room and media room. And we had it virtually to ourselves for a few days until an Australian bloke stumbled along in the third day.

The host was a gal who worked in the town during the day, so after giving us a tour she left us alone to explore the various areas and then spending some time visiting in the village, the ski lifts and surrounding mountain vistas. Jean did find an expert on Nikons who gave her some hints about her new Nikon DX80. He also happened to have a wider angle lens which came in handy on the remainder of the trip.

The Dream Home in Santa Fe, New Mexico

One interesting stop on our trip last year was to the Dream Home in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Jody Feyas and his wife Cara Leigh were the builder and designer team. It took them 5 years to design, and as they has started construction, they heard about the Envirocoatings product from a local Dunn-Edwards rep. As soon as he saw the product, Jody knew he had found something extraordinary, and specified it for the exterior walls and the roof. (See www.thedreamhome.info) You can see more information on the product on the supplier list on the right, and also at the company website at: www.envirocoatings.com where you can Geof's picture as part of the team there. The home won awards at the Hacienda Parade of Homes including the Gold Merit Award for Excellence in Green Building and the

Judges Award for Outstanding Innovation and Technology.


Jody Feyas and Cara Leigh


Geof and Jean at the Dream Home. This home so dazzled the judges at the Hacienda Parade of Homes that they felt they couldn't enter it in the regular competition since it was so advanced in innovation and technology that it would not have been fair to the other competing homes!! Quite a feat. Jody's background as a commercial painter and his commitment to quality makes his choice of Envirocoatings even more notable.

The Gunslingers and the Grand Canyon

Catching up on the Highlights over the past year means recalling our trip to the Grand Canyon, Yellowstone Park, the Dream Home in Santa Fe and Breckenridge Lodge. We'll start at Highway 66 where we ran into some gunslingers - a fearsome bunch! Not so fearsome with us in the picture!


The Grand Canyon was.. what shall we say? BIG, just as I recall from previous visits. It's size is only realized when you see, as I did on a previous visit, a plane going out of sight into one of the canyons gorges only to appear 5 or 10 minutes later! That gives some better understanding of the scope of this historic national park.

Finally, the Stars of the Show- Xango and Lucy!

The two Yorkies, Xango and Luci love to ride in style!

Five days on the High Seas in 55 foot Schooner

The end of August and early September, Geof and Jean got invited to sail the high seas (well, the inside straits would you believe..) in a 55 foot Schooner, the Porpoise. At the helm was Captian Highliner - er that is John Clark. The trip took us up Jervis Inlet to Malibu, Princess Louisa Inlet and Chtterbox Falls. Clams, oyster and a catch of Ling Cod allowed for a sea food dinner fit for kings and queens, after which a steam sauna completed the third day. Our hosts were Doug and Lorraine Gibson and their nephew Paul completed the crew. Truly a trip of a life time!

The Tall Ships in Battle

The summer of 2008 saw Geof boarding a tall ship in Blaine and doing battle on the high seas. Pirates, cannons- the whole works! The two ships maneuvered for position, powered only by the wind, each trying to blow the other out of the water with their cannons.

Xango and her antics

Xango, our Yorkie, seems to have a variety of talents. One you wouldn't believe is her driving- so I had to take a picture to prove it!! Of course she is very patriotic as well, holding the Canadian flag honourably.. Naturally, she prefers to be transported in the manner to which she is accustomed!

The Xango Vacation to Maui in May of 2007.

Here is some pics from our trip to the Grand Walea Resort on Maui hosted by Xango. It is one of the top resorts world wide, and our rooms were paid for by Xango- not bad! Inside the resort there was an open area with statues and water giving an open airy feeling.


The water park at the resort was spectacular! Then at night it took on a whole different look. We took a picture from our room which shows the inside court.

The evenings were filled with banquets and Hawaiian dancers. The couple shown are Gary and Beverly Hollister. Beverly is the one responsible for the launch of the revolutionary skin care product- Glimpse. This just was released in November of 2008.

Geof and Jean's Blog

We live in western Canada near the US border close to Vancouver with our two Yorkies, Xango and Lucy. Since our three girls and two boys have grown up and moved out, they are now our kids, more specifically, our 'girls'. Geof enjoys computers, networking, flying and reading while Jean loves to make banners, take pictures and work with Photoshop CS3. We both enjoy walking and travelling. Grab a coffee and come by to see what we have been up to- You are a welcome guest!