Just a story out of my life

I started writing this post a while ago and got side-tracked by packing up our apartment in Edmonton. But the story is still great.


Leaving Edmonton my husband and I both agreed that we will most miss our "hillbilly" friends H&J from the farm. The ones without running water in the house, and without electricity until recently when they installed solar panels to power their radio and lights around the home. The ones that heat with a wood stove, cook on a gas stove, carry water in for their every-day use from a pump outside the house.

On a weekend in August we visited them and they took us to a German couple that came out to Alberta 13 years ago in the search of more space and privacy. We had a BBQ with vegetables from their garden and organic beef. They don't trust the supermarket meat either. We had a heck of a great time, like-minded as we were, talking about our values, food, life, raising kids. While I was roaming the yard with my outdoor-loving daughter he made me a compliment. Women like me were hard to find. No surprise I often feel like an alien! The looks I got for CYCLING across Edmonton with a trailer (up to 4 times a week working at a school). The 3-month-trip I took on my own to Europe with my 1 1/2-year-old. The way I raise her: it's not perfect but it's much appreciated that I "know" when to say no to her. And obviously I'm not on the prudish side.


We stopped at Pembina river provincial park on a hot day. There were lots of people out, the whole car park full, most of them floating on rafts on the river. Since this was an unplanned stop we had no bathing suits with us. I only waded in the river although I was dying to dive in but thought it would be too offensive if I did so naked. But we stripped the toddler naked to play in the river. When a raft with people came by we heard them say "Look, there's a nudist in training". Children walked along the river and shouted something like, oh no, a naked baby, don't look! -- Excuse me?? Talking to other foreign mums I know it has not only happened to us. Apparently, we don't have enough shame to keep our kids covered up. Ah! But imagine all the fabric we saved if I did not need a new bathing suit every year (they wear out way too fast), and if everybody else did not wear one either?

Did I mention I got my skinny dip in a beaver pond of our friends's neighbour's acreage. The neighbour was out in her inflatable canoe when H and I rode past. We joined her and dived off the canoe into the pond. So good!