Spring Break

It's amazing what just a few degrees latitude can bring you.  It's March break for us here so we visited my parents up at Lake Muskoka this weekend.  On Friday when we left Whitby, it was freezing with a windchill making it feel like -20°C.  Not far along the highway we were met with snowsqualls, highwinds and overall not fun driving conditions. Although Muskoka  had less snow than it normally does it was a bit of a shock to us as we haven't had any significant snow on the ground for a while.  While only a two hour drive north of us it was definitely still winter at my parents.

Spring was definitely in the air on Sunday.  It was bright and sunny and the temperature climbed to 10°C.

There were definite signs of spring.

 With Muskoka being such a big and busy lake you rarely can see reflections in the water.

 This was my view of the sky while lying on the dock. The sun on my face felt like summer.

Back in Whitby it was 16°C and we were greeted by these at our front doorstep.

Spring is definitely coming!

Happy New Year!

I'm slowly returning from holiday mode.  My sister and her family left yesterday for the last of our holiday visits.  It was a good holiday with time just for the four of us, as well as hosting Christmas dinner for Alan's family, visiting with my family up at my parent's cottage and sharing some time with friends.  A little bit of everything and a little bit of every kind of food!

I'm just easing back into it though.  The girls aren't going back to school until next week so I'm going to hang out with them for the next few days.  I'm hoping to spend some time with my new camera as well. (So exciting!)  There's a lot for me to learn but I'm really enjoying it.

Here are some pictures I took near my parent's house in Muskoka.  It was so amazing to see snow as we had an unusual green Christmas this year. It was especially nice how the snow stayed on the branches making every turn of our walk look like a winter wonderland.

So this year I hope will be filled with joy, good health, family visits, hugs, laughs, excitement, friends, a couple of adventures thrown in for good measure and time to enjoy.  I hope to see and appreciate the little things.  Read more books. Go for more walks.  Take more pictures.

I can't wait to start working with my beads again and that's a great feeling.  So although our holidays included few moments to rest I have landed in the new year rejuvenated and ready to go.

Muskoka Arts and Crafts Summer Show

Our first showing at this beautiful show was a success! The 48th annual show this past weekend featured over 200 vendors and it was an absolute pleasure to be included among these quality artists. A really beautiful park setting alongside the Muskoka River helped to bring a small breeze through the intense heat and humidity. Whew! It was a hot one for sure!

I was lucky enough to have both my daughters help me prepare for the show, set up and work in the booth. I really couldn't have done it without them!




By the third day we had it down to an art!








I was really happy with the displays. They worked well for showing off the jewellery and for withstanding the occasional gusts of wind.








For three days this 10' x 10' space became our home sweet home. Thanks to all that came to visit! It was a pleasure to meet you.

Happy Thanksgiving

Gorgeous crimson red, pumpkin orange and golden graced the scenery in every direction. The last burst of colour before the November winds strip the trees of their coloured jewels.

My favourite time of year and such perfect weather. Warm sunshine kissed our cheeks as we kicked the leaves underneath our feet. Calm waters reflected a stunning array of colours. An absolutley beautiful weekend up in Muskoka with my family .

My Mom prepared our dinner that was equally beautiful and shared the colours of the forest with cranberry red, sweet potato orange and golden turkey. Everything was delicious. A perfect Thanksgiving weekend. Something to really be thankful for.






A beautiful hike through the woods. The orange leaves against the blue sky was breathtaking.












Our dog Mabel was in heaven as we unhooked her leash and let her run free through the forest.