Back to Normal

After our lovely visit with Munchie's family, life began to return to normal.   Appointments and errands abounded.  Poppa and Kev-Inn took some time out from the whirlwind to attend to spring chores.  Here they are getting a start on Great-Grandma Grace's big backyard flower bed.

It's quite an undertaking.  This is what it looked like after they had spent some time planning.....

.....and then a lot of time toiling with forks and pulling weeds and quack grass by hand (notice the work gloves)......

.....and when the afternoon was waning into evening, they had taken out a lot of weeds and remnants of last year's growth.....

....yessir, yessir - six bags full!  Poppa will be returning to straighten up the rows and make the edges nice and crisp again.....but for that day they were finished and we all went out for supper.

Later that evening we got a phone call from Mommie...she was having babysitting problems and wondered if she could bring Munchie to our house.........hmmmm.......let me think about that!  Whaddya think we said?

I finished some socks for Auntie Denise from the yarn she chose when she was visiting us in Florida.  They looked like this.

And, as usual, I will close with the picture of the day!  I am pleased to share this addition to the abandoned series with you.  As you all know, I love this series and without further ado, here is our newest example!

And this is Auntie Colleen's commentary:
"Weeeeeeeee! I love this new shot for the Abandoned Series. We never set up the shots. We take 'em as we find 'em and this is exactly how Shaun found these four cups. And yes, he moved carefully and made sure not to breathe too heavily. "

Our First Saturday

We returned from Munchie's house with the knowledge that Daddie, Mommie and Munchie would all be arriving for a visit at our house the next day.  Mommie and Daddie were bringing some information I needed, and Munchie wanted to get re-acquainted with the toys at our house - the ones he hadn't seen for three months.  When he arrived he hurried into the parlour - that's where his toys live at our house - and contemplated which toy to play with first.

He checked them all out thoroughly and then realized he hadn't had a ride on Pooh yet, so he grabbed the stuffed Pooh and went for a ride.  He did this by himself - we did not help.  Too cute!

Then he made a tour of the house with that noisy popcorn-maker that Auntie Denise had sent over for him....I think I should send him over to her house with it!  *smile*

After all this activity, he needed a rest and decided to climb into a chair and join in the general conversation.   He wasn't quite tall enough to do this at Christmas time, and was quite proud of himself!

Shortly after supper, our little Munchie began to exhibit signs of being worn out from all this activity and Mommie whisked him upstairs to get ready for bed.  He reappeared shortly clad in his pyjamas, to give us all a goodnight hug and kiss.

The new day dawned bright and early.  Munchie woke up about the same time I did, and then he went in to wake up Poppa.  We snuck downstairs and let Mommie and Daddie have a sleep-in.  When they got up we all went out for breakfast.  I forgot to take my camera with me - rats! 

After an afternoon nap, Poppa put Munchie's jacket on and the two of them headed outside to do some work out there.  The chosen project was to clean the cover on the hot tub.  Oops!  Where is Munchie - I know he went outside with Poppa.

Oh I see him!  He must have been cleaning at the back of the hot tub!  So, Poppa brushed and Munchie wiped.

Then Munchie brushed and Poppa wiped.

And eventually they turned that dull, weathered leather surface into a lovely shining hot tub cover again!  Didn't they do a great job?

Next thing we knew supper was finished, and Mommie, Daddie and Munchie were in the car heading for home.

Knitting?  Of course I am.  Here is the latest piece of blue lace. 

It is called English Lace and doesn't really show up to its best in this photo, but it is quite pretty.  My knitting time is not so plentiful at home - there are other things I need to do - but I have managed to finish Auntie Denise's socks.  They look like this.

And...when Squeegie determined that I was writing a blog post, he insisted that it was about time he got a new picture on the blog.....so I quickly snapped this one, while he was sitting with Poppa and Taffy watching TV.

And now - for the picture of the day along with Auntie Colleen's commentary regarding this shot taken by Uncle Shaun.

The quote: "love the shadow and light on this trillium, who managed to escape the marauding dinosaur from yesterday."

Our First Friday

Whew - life has been a whirlwind since we got back.  The only leisure time we've had has been after supper each evening - and Poppa even worked some of those!  So - I have a couple of minutes this morning and I'll tell you about that first Friday - when we took a day off from our errands and appointments to go visit Munchie.   Poppa was more excited than anyone, and as I posted before, he found Munchie in the tubby having a bath.  It was all Mommie could do, to keep Munchie in the tub long enough to grab a towel and get to Poppa.  In other words, they both seemed excited and happy to see each other.  We didn't have a lot of time to spend there, since we wanted to get out of "the city" before rush hour.  Poppa helped Mommie get Munchie dressed and then they took a few minutes to have a chat and catch up on what had happened during their three months without seeing each other.

While they were chatting busily, I took a couple of minutes to chat with Mommie and to snap this shot of her with Munchie's little brother.  She looks pretty good and  very happy!

Munchie couldn't wait to show Poppa how he loads all the little people into his bus and then takes them for a ride.  It is hard to believe that he can already play "make-believe" but here is the proof.  First he takes all the little people out, then puts them back in with a change in the seating arrangements.

When all the passengers were properly seated and behaving in good fashion, it was time to take them for a tour of the environs - this was even cuter than it looks in the picture.

Our little guy was happy and healthy, and it was good to see him.  He is taller than when we left and a lot more verbal.  He chatters almost non-stop and has added a lot of new words to the ones that we can understand.....Poppa seems to be one of his favourites, at least when Poppa is around!

I think he wanted to go outside - he brought his hat to Poppa for a little assistance in getting it on, and of course Poppa was happy to oblige.

Poppa and Munchie played for a little while longer and soon it was time for Munchie to have his nap.  We stayed and visited with Mommie for a little while and then we headed homeward.  It was a wonderful visit and we all enjoyed it.

Finally - the picture of the day from Auntie Colleen - taken, I believe, by Uncle Shaun.

Auntie Colleen's description (this one made me giggle!):

"And the giant dinosaur with the scaly moss covered legs thrashes furiously through the woods, stomping spring trilliums that are about to bloom as he goes."

The Last Day

Here's a few shots from our time in Niagara.  There is a new ride called the SkyWheel - it's a gigantic ferris wheel with closed-in cars that take you up high enough to see the Falls and get a picture.

We arrived at our hotel just about supper time and walked down Clifton Hill to have supper at a Chinese Restaurant - where the food was very good.  Then we wandered over to the SkyWheel and decided to go for a ride once they turned the coloured lights on at the Falls.  And then, Poppa took some pictures from the top.

Those are the Horseshoe Falls on the Canadian side.  And here are the Rainbow Falls on the American side.  Both these shots were taken at the apex of the SkyWheel.  It was a beautiful ride - not just because of the Falls, but also the bright, coloured lights all over the area around us.

The next morning we were up and ready to go in good time.  We once again walked down Clifton Hill, only this time we stopped at a Tim Horton's - it had been a long time since we'd had Timmie's.  After a coffee and a donut, we were ready to hit the road again.  Since we were in Canada a day earlier than usual, and closer to home than usual, Poppa decided to take a drive through Niagara-on-the Lake.  The drive there was lovely.  The road winds along the river.

We drove past the hydroelectric plant where there is a huge dam.  They offered tours and Poppa was really wanting to go on a tour, but decided to save that for a summer trip.  Once again, we found a spot to pull off the road for some scenic pictures.

When we arrived at Niagara-on-the-Lake we saw fields and fields of grapevines...and some of the fields also had those new-fangled windmills strategically placed amoung the vines.

And eventually, we decided that our vacation was over and it was time to head home.  We arrived in due time and found that Kev-Inn had been taking excellent care of the flower while we were gone and they were in bloom to welcome us home.

We spent the rest of the week unpacking, arranging, putting away, checking appointments, running errands and cleaning up behind us.  Then on Friday, it turned out that Mommie had a day off work, so, of course, Poppa decided to go and visit Munchie.  Poppa found Munchie in the tubby.

Meanwhile, Uncle Shaun was still out looking for treasures that other people would overlook and Auntie Colleen was busily writing descriptions and supplying information regarding the photo.

Here is Auntie Colleen's description:

"Shaun found this dilapidated old building covered in great and fun art in Hillsdale. A sign on the building led to some research to discover it is what remains of Hillsdale Simcoe House, a hotel built in 1882. Now this website http://www.hillsdalesimcoehouse.com/ would indicate that attempts are being made to raise enough money to restore the building. I'm guessing the colourful posters are evidence of that. Judging by the neglect of the building and the website, I would say chances of succeeding are not good. Pity, as it was a lovely building and their diagram of the future restoration dream is fabulous."

Still on the Road, Still Winding

As you all know from my "on-the-road" post we spent the first night in North Carolina.  Our second day was spent travelling through West Virginia, Pennsylvania, New York and finally into Ontario, Canada.  Along the way, we encountered more bridges that caught our imagination.

Like this one.  And a few miles up and down the road we found another one.

I was trying to imagine being on the road over the highway and wondering exactly where those roads went to....since on either side was more mountains.  As we drove along congratulating ourselves for taking this new way home, while mentioning that we wouldn't want to be driving there in nasty winter weather, we noticed a sign that said Scenic Overview - 1/4 Mile.

  Hmmm... that sounds good... so we decided to stop.  There was a handy little parking area perched at the edge of a mountain.

Wow - it was so deep that we were nervous going too close to the edge!  But - at the same time - absolutely beautiful.  Just imagine what it would look like here when the fall colours are at their best.  I snapped pictures from all sorts of angles - even across the road.

See our car perched on the edge there?  Hee!  It looks so small there, but it lends perspective.  That high rock face on the right side of the photo is on the opposite side of the highway from the parking area.  After a few minutes, when I was finished taking pictures, Poppa said it was time to head back to the car.  He started out walking along the edge of the slope.

But, after he almost slid off the gravel edge and had to grab the post to regain his balance, he decided to  use a more sensible route.  You can see that the hill is quite steep along this edge.  Fortunately, we made it safely back to the car and hit the road again.  Just before entering Pennsylvania we discovered our last mountain-bound bridge.

Oh yes...one last scenic shot before we reach our destination for that night.  I took this one for Uncle Shaun since he seems to have a predeliction for barns.  I thought this was a very nice speciman.

And finally, much sooner than we expected, we were at our planned stop for the second night on the road.  We actually weren't sure we would get all the way to Niagara Falls on our second night, and were happy to be in Canada again so soon.

While we were travelling towards home, it was Easter for most of the world.  Auntie Colleen and Uncle Shaun were celebrating at their house.  I received this picture of their cake.  Please notice Auntie Colleen's lovely decorations as well!

And, I'll leave you with a clue as to what we did during the weekend just past.

The Long and Winding Road

This year we decided to take a new route home.  When the TomTom asked if we wanted to avoid toll roads, we said "No" - let's take what the TomTom deemed to be the fastest route.  We had no idea where this might take us - but we were so glad we decided to try it.  Usually we take I-75 south from Windsor, Ontario on the way down to Florida and re-trace our route on the way home.   Once we tried taking I-95 north up the east coast (on the way home), and entered Canada near Kingston, Ontario.  That route seemed long and not very exciting.  Well, as it turned out we were heading to Niagara Falls,  Ontario this year.  This meant that once entering Georgia, instead of heading to Atlanta, we veered off towards Savannah and quickly drove into mountains.

The rest of the drive, at least into Pennsylvania, was absolutely gorgeous.  I took a ton of pictures, but I've tried to pick the best ones to show you.   Of course, the pictures don't do the scenery justice, but hopefully you get some insight into just how beautiful it is driving through those mountains.  In some areas there appear to be huge steps carved into the mountains - these were made by the blasting crews as they carved out a road into the rock.

Even the bridges contributed to the scenery - they caused us both to comment on their appearance, since the construction and engineering seemed different from the bridges we usually encounter.  Here is an example.

This one is in South Carolina and once we drove under the bridge we were heading downhill, into a gulley or pass or gulch depending on who you are and what mountain range you live in.

You really have to click on this picture to see it larger in order to appreciate the depth of the downhill road.  This seemed to be the last little settlement before we drove into North Carolina.  Believe it or not, the scenery seemed to get even more beautiful in that state.  We saw cows grazing on the side of a hill which looked too steep for them to graze, but they managed it.

As we were driving down one particularly steep downslope I mentioned to Poppa that it looked like we were heading directly into a mountain..........and............as it turned out.........I was right!

Yep - a large tunnel going right under a huge mountain.  The mountain was much higher than it looks in this picture because it is somewhat obscured by the tunnel entrance - so just trust me - it was high.  Once again, we marvelled at the engineering and work required to build a tunnel right through a mountain.  Once inside it appeared quite tidy and there was no idication of the tons of rock around us.

And after what seemed like a fairly long interval we could finally see the light at the end of the tunnel.

It was an interesting experience, but we both breathed a sigh of relief to be out from under that mountain.  The scenery continued to be beautiful and interesting - but - our final experience in North Carolina turned out to be another tunnel - and this one had a name.

Shortly after leaving this tunnel we entered West Virginia.  The scenery continued to be beautiful and it wasn't until we arrived home that we heard about those poor miners in that mining accident in West Virginia.... I couldn't help but remember being under those mountains - or the lovely country surrounding them.  But, enough for this post - more tomorrow.

And just because I know Auntie Colleen is wondering....here is some blue lace for her to check out.

I didn't take the time to make it look pretty or straighten it out...I just quickly snapped a shot before I downloaded the pictures from the camera........it will be prettier when it is finished and pressed.