Back Home in the Rockies

Sunshine Meadows on the 24th Sept 2010

The intrepid Marg and Wilma dreaming of sking - well not quite me
I was feeling a little intimdated that winter had come so early.




Still our autumn and winter in one was beautiful.

These three photos are the following day up on Wind Ridge that lived
up to its name. Still it was t-shirt weather and snow rapidly departed.
All part of living in the mountains.



Home of Famous Scottish Writer Walter Scott



The house is situated in the country by the side of the River Tweed.



Theo in a meditative mood in the garden.

The gardens at Melrose Abbey. This is a dried flower garden.

Harvest time.

Pardon me - the order is a little mixed up and too change it is too difficult! Pardon me - the order is a little mixed up and to change it will be to challenging.




It was here the muse visited him and he wrote is novels.
The Waverley Novels, as Scott’s 26 novels came to be called
were the world’s first real historical novels and the world’s first best-sellers.
They paved the way for the great popular novels of the Victorian age,
influenced Puskin and Tolstoy as well as George Elliot and Dickens,
and earned him the money to buy land, to plant trees and to build Abbotsford.



These are the beautiful bay windows in his library,
overlooking his beloved Tweed River.

A Short Walk in the Scottish Hills

Fred, Alison and Tony enjoy slogging up all sizes of hills.

Black faced sheep the true owners of the Scottish Hills
That's Ben Alder in the background. I climbed that when
I was 18 and met my Clive that weekend oh so many
years ago as we sang:
"Will you still need me,
Will you still feed me,
When I'm 64...."

Our second summit was like walking around inside a kettle.
Still Fred, Alison and I seem to like the damp rain on our faces.



After the damp hills I encouraged the others to become
tourists and walk up the falls of Bruar.
We only saw 2 other people. All the other tourists
were trapped in the extensive shopping mall
at the entrance. It should have a sign saying
"Tourist Beware - don't you know there is
a big recession on. Ha Ha"



The wild life back at the car.

I Love Edinburgh

The Castle dominates the Edinburgh skyline

The new Scottish Parliament Building

Endless Scottish Gifts

Imagine all Nations with Storytelling Centres



This is a detail on the old Scottish Patriach John Knox's House.



I lived in an appartment here when I was ten.

Then we moved to this town house in Scone Gardens.
My bedroom was on the top right.
Pretty nice I remember .

I spent my teen years here.

Welcome to our Families Little Ones

We all welcome Kirsten Anna Macdonald - my first great neice.
The first grand neice after 3 grand nephews.
Ain't she perfection itself?

Proud Daddy Ross MacDonald with his daughter Kirsten Anna

Proud mum and her beautiful baby, Kirsten Anna sister to 2 year old
Daniel who can talk up a storm.

My beautiful neices, Emma and Jane with their handsome husbands
Steward on the left and Graham on the right.

Jane and Ethan on the heather covered moors near their home.

Ethan, Jane and Grahams busy son.

Daniel Macdonald in his back yard

Scottish Garden Tours

Chinese Garden in the Edinburgh Botanic Garden, so loved by Theo.
"The Chinese, along with the British are great gardeners," he told me.

Botanic Garden in Dwyck had a selection from Nepal.



Speaks for itself.



A wonderful walled garden with colourful
herbaceous beds.



The trees grow big in Scotland- it's all the rain.



Theo at 93 loves gardens, plants and going to the gym!

Wild Scottish Weather

OK I am just a bit behind in posting stuff on my blog. These photos were taken on the 6th September in Scotland.  Interesting none the less.

My intrepid brother in law Des Rubens dressed for Sept in Scotland.

Scumptious free food along the way.
 I found out they have little bugs with a very long name that bite.

The wild seas and the Bass Rock covered in bird shit from a gazillion
gannets that swope over the water in great style.

This happened minutes before we arrived back in the car park -
just to show you how windy it was. Fortunately it was not our car.

Firework concert in Edinburgh

Grand Finale of the Edinburgh Festival
A great welcome back to the land of my birth.

Clive's Dad Theo at 93 enjoys the picnic

What a setting.

Music and Fireworks a fantastic combination

Amy's Family

Amy, Daniel, Ross and new baby in the glass box!

Baby girl nearly 12 hours old.

Daniel holds his sister



Daniel with Amy the morning after she gave birth



baby comes home