brought the firepit onto the deck and have used it a couple of times already…
on Monday we sat around it before and after our dinner… even the dog enjoyed it…
Tuesday, my regular group sat around it in the afternoon as we met on the deck… we also had blankets if required as the temperature was around plus 10 Celsius… but it warmed us up a little and made us feel cozy… I enjoyed it as I awaited their arrival…
I’ve left it on the deck and think I might use it more there… will see how it goes when the rain stops, lol…
what a special place… it is already stunning and I can’t imagine how great it will be as everything grows into the space…
I was so happy to see that a portion of the allée is still there… for years I would walk around it to get my steps in and I thought it had been removed… the trees are just beautiful…
after we crossed it, we moved into the various gardens… they were all distinctly different…
the Indigenous People’s Garden is an enclosed circle of amazing artwork depicting spring to winter, with a fire pit in the centre and seating for numbers of people… I could envision sitting in this quiet space and meditating…
the Kitchen Garden was filled with fruit trees and the most amazing sunflower plants, as well as herbs, flowers and vegetables…
again, nice benches with morning glories growing behind them for sitting…
the Performance Garden is set up as an amphitheatre and reminded me of wonderful times when we camped and attended numerous events at such locations…
part of the Sensory Garden were these great steps up and down some hills… great fun, although going up was better than coming down, lol…
enjoyed all of the critters in the Gardens… I think the butterflies were my favourite…
it was windy and all the grasses were rippling… lovely…
although there are a few ways to enter the gardens, I was very enamoured with this one…
the Water section had the coolest spheres…
all in all, a great place for a contemplative walk or a walking tour with a friend…
well, I must say I am tired… but what a delightful day it has been…
got up early and set about preparing for the day… moved 14 bags of mulch, a wheelbarrow and compost can, used the leaf blower to clean the garage floor, set up a table with a tablecloth in case it was too windy to sit outside, put out cushions and rearranged lawn furniture, prepped some fruit and whipped cream… cleaned leaves out of the pond, set out dishes, made coffee and sun tea, wrapped a gift and wrote two cards…
sat and read in the garden for half an hour and then welcomed four of the most wonderful women into the space…
visited, ate some delicious food from Feast Bistro, enjoyed the nature around us, laughed, shared stories and celebrated one another with some delicious options…
nearly lost one umbrella to the gusts of wind, but the weather was quite amazing for early October…
when they left, I finished tidying up and got ready for dinner with another wonderful woman…
when she arrived we had fish and chips (which I love), more stories and laughter… what a great visit…
it is dark now and I just finished a bowl of strawberry shortcake with whipped cream as I sit on the deck (quite comfortable in shorts and a sleeveless shirt) and reminisce about all the great parts of the day…
next I made coffee and had a few moments to read while I waited for my friends to arrive…
we decided not long ago to meet in the afternoon when it is warmer, as we continue to meet outdoors…
one had something else on, another connected by phone… the rest of us gathered in person…
it was a beautiful day and we sat close to the pond… both pumps were turned off to make it easier to hear one another, lol…
there were lots of visitors while we were meeting… a variety of sparrows, blue jays, squirrels, a cat and we even spotted a mouse racing through the grass… the fish swam around where we could see them as well…
strange to have such warm weather, but we certainly enjoyed it…
I’ve been thinking about the opportunities I’ve had to visit and spend time with family and friends…
one of the things I always do is wash up after meals… it started when I would visit my daughter wherever she lived… she has never liked doing dishes so it was a simple thing to do in appreciation for my time there…
whenever I have been camping with the kids, particularly when the boys were little, I would wash and have one of them dry… it was a great way to have one-on-one time and also get the job done quickly…
now, if I am visiting with friends at their cottages, it is one thing that I can do to be helpful…
one of my grandsons took this photo while we were camping this summer;-)…
learned something new as I went onto Facebook Marketplace and sold a coffee table…
was nervous about the whole process, but after talking with a few people and getting some pointers I jumped in…
I had ordered a lift top table so needed to make room for it…
after I put the table up, many people wanted to buy it… the first two ended up not able to come and get it but the third person offered more than I had asked for and came and picked it up in the evening… others made offers for less and some seemed rude just wanting to pick it up…
the person who arrived was lovely and had been watching for just this type of table…
it had belonged to my parents and has been used in our house until I took it outside for her to check it over…
happy that it has gone to someone who appreciates it;-)…
recently home, following a two day vacation, which easily felt like four days…
drove up to the cottage with a friend one morning and returned home the next evening…
we had a wonderful time… we sat on the beach for a while, spent time walking and beachcombing, spotted numerous mushrooms, watched a wonderful display of pelicans and cormorants, ate great food, relaxed, and talked by the fire…
had a lovely in-person gathering with my BS buddies…
Monday evening is our usual time to gather, and we’ve been doing that for many years…
since the lockdown we’ve been connecting via Skype, but for the last number of weeks we’ve been meeting on the deck in the garden, unless the weather doesn’t cooperate…
it is wonderful to be together again… we sit apart, but are able to enjoy each other with a cup of tea or coffee…
Sunday, a friend, her husband and daughter came over for lunch… the garden looked beautiful and we had a lovely visit…
lunch was a delightful collection of goodies from Pho Hoang… everything was tasty…
on Monday morning I had an early meeting in the garden and the rain held off just long enough for us to finish…
Tuesday morning, when I woke up after the storm in the night, I discovered that the hibiscus and dahlia planters were both tipped over from the strong wind… when I looked at the neighbour’s yard I discovered a large branch had fallen right next to their house… thankfully, nothing was damaged…
Wednesday morning a friend stopped by and we had a great catch-up…
in the evening my grandson came for his birthday dinner… delicious steak, lobster, mushrooms and twice-stuffed potatoes were on the menu…
once again, great timing… as we were cleaning up the sky turned very dark… we just got all the cushions inside when the wind and rain arrived…
herbiggirlpants 