Afternoons at Riverwood

While mornings at Riverwood are a treat, afternoons at Riverwood are pretty special too.  I would often make a steaming cup of after-lunch-tea, put it in my thermal mug, grab my bag of books, and head on down to the Playner-Mill for a few hours. 

When we got home from the farm this week, I could feel all the things on my to-do list starting to cram into my head and demand attention.  The absence of a to-do list at the farm is what makes it so relaxing for me.  When I am there I only have to think about what book to read, where to have my morning coffee, and what forest path we should walk along. Such a change of pace, and oh so relaxing.

Letting some steam escape before putting the lid on my mug for the trek to the Playner-Mill with my after lunch cup of tea.

One day, while walking down to the Playner-Mill,  we noticed these amazing lines in the sky.  I thought a plane had made them, but AC thought it was natural clouds.  Hmmmm, what do you think?

Comfy seats await us in the Playner-Mill

What a perfect spot for afternoon tea.

On cool rainy days we snuggled down inside the farmhouse and would  read the day away. 

Memories of our Riverwood trip Autumn 2013 - Mornings

We are home from our Autumn holiday at Riverwood, and now I have the joy of sifting through the memories of a mostly fun and fabulous holiday.  It ended on a rather traumatic note, but I'll get to that later.  First let me dwell on the fun and fabulous part.

Mornings at Riverwood are fabulous indeed.  Below is a pic of where we sipped our coffee on warm sunny mornings.

The chairs are just outside the back door of the farmhouse so we don't have far to walk with our coffee.

From this view, you can see our tent, the old barn and the Playner-Mill off in the distance.

A closer view

What I see from my sleeping bag inside the tent first thing in the morning. This window is at the foot of the "bed"

This window is beside me, and the squirrels sometimes throw stuff from the tree down on the tent in the early morning.  They sure are chatty little critters at times.

Although the view is great in the daytime, it is more than terrific on a starry night.   The skies are ablaze with stars and I don't want to close my eyes because of the show they put on for us on a clear night.   Constellations appear in the windows, and shooting stars happen by from time to time. 

On cooler mornings I have my coffee inside the farmhouse, but usually out on the front porch. 

I have lots of good reading material at hand but...

...I usually just gaze out the window instead of reading. 

We had warm sunny days with temps in the 20's, but with the clear crisp nights, the temps went down to 5, and the mornings were a tad more than chilly.   AC braved the front porch on this morning, but he was struggling to warm up.

AC was always in from the tent before me in the mornings, and this is usually how I found him when I walked in the door.  I called him the white monk!   We didn't want to turn the furnace on if we could help it, because the day soon warmed up, so we braved the cold morning air and made warm memories of cool mornings at the farm.   Total fun.

Lots more pics to come.  Stay tuned....

Helping with my decorations

We had the kids over for a little visit the other day, and they were both quite taken with the decorations I had in the front porch.  I have a teddy bear that sits out on the porch year round, and  I dress her up in different outfits as the seasons come and go.  The kids think this is just grand, and the teddy bear gets invited to join them for tea and cookies quite often.

JJ was pleased to discover that his shirt matched the bear's outfit, and happily posed for a picture.  

Danica thought she should try the hat on.   Cute Huh?

Actually the bear's outfit was Danica's first Halloween costume and the hat fit her perfectly way back when.  Take a look here.   First Halloween             

Sensitive soul - a re-post

Well, I am all out of pictures of the munchkins, so no update on the kids today.  Sigh!  However, the blog I posted yesterday did spark a memory of Danica's caring soul, and I thought it was worth a second look, so here is a link to it.  Sensitive Soul  

We are still fighting cough and cold germs here at our house this week, but they are on the run, so we should be ready to roam next week.  Yahoo.  Looking forward to a fall colour tour through the hills and dales of Ontario, and a stay at Riverwood.  The colour should be spectacular by then.  I am sure we will both have lots of pictures to post when we get home. 

Talk to you again when we get home.

A caring sister

The night before JJ's first day at school, Mommy wondered if JJ would be too excited to settle down and go to sleep. She was pleased to discover that it was no problem at all, and he went right to sleep almost as soon as his head hit the pillow.

His sister on the other hand, was very concerned, and had a hard time settling down and going to sleep.  She was worried that she wouldn't be able to keep her little brother safe at school because she was in the "Big Kids" play yard, and he wasn't.  Or he might get on the wrong bus, and she wouldn't be able to help him find the right one.  What a caring, sweet soul she is.

Here she is giving him a hug of encouragement before she lined up for the bus on her first day. 

She is such a good big sister. 

JJ's off to school

I know that AC has already posted most of these pictures, but I have them in my file, so here they are again.  It has been an absolute delight, and, an absolute challenge to provide daycare for two munchkins for the past six years.  So, I waved JJ off to school last week with mostly joy but a tinge of sorrow was mixed in with the joy when I realized how fast the time was flying by and the kids were growing up and away from us faster than the speed of light.        

We had lots of fun with the little guy especially this past year when we had him on his own.  

He is such a unique child, and helped us see the world through his eyes many times this past year, and it was a very special world.  Oh the memories we have stored up to bring us smiles  during the years to come. 

He has an invisible friend called KK, who sits under the table at lunch time, and plays tricks on us.  KK was a rascal at times, and I am sure I will look for him under the table whenever JJ visits in the future.

He is the most observant child I have ever known.  When we are out driving he sees animals in the clouds, figures in electrical towers, super heroes in other cars, dragon footprints in the mud beside the sidewalk when we are out for a walk, and remembers all these things long after he first saw them. 

He is a great little shopper, and actually helps me in my hunt for things in the store. Most children run a bit wild in stores and want to touch everything and get into things.  Not JJ, he shopped with me and helped me find what I was looking for.  I would tell him if I was looking for a red top, or sparkly one; a big purse, or little one; a silver box or gold one etc.  He would take the challenge and enjoy the hunt in each and every store.  I will miss my little shopper.

He can act the clown with his sister...

...but be an obedient little kid when out with Amma and Buppa.

Thanks for the fun times JJ.  We hope you have a spectacular year at school.

Buppa's Birthday Breakfast

We gave Buppa the choice, going out for breakfast, or having a big breakfast at home for his BD. He chose to stay at home and even help cook.  

The whole family got involved, and everyone was happy to help.  Mommy and the kids kept Buppa on task in the kitchen, while Daddy cooked bacon out on the BBQ.  Of course Amma manned the camera.

Happy little helper did a good job with the eggs.

Danica took time out to take a picture of Amma helping JJ set the table.

Time for snuggles on the deck while the finishing touches were being added to the breakfast.

Still enough room on my lap for this growing girl. She sure is getting tall.

MMMMM, time for cake and ice cream.  Danica was the only one ready for the camera here, and she looks so cute I just had to use this pic.

That's better of Buppa and the girl

JJ was being a rascal, and got his fingers in the icing many times before we could stop him

Waiting for lunch

I think this is it for pictures left over from our last week of babysitting.  The chip truck isn't the most elegant place to dine, but the kids love running free, and climbing on everything in sight while we wait for our fries to be ready.

Let's see what tricks we can do on this old wooden bench.

Time to pose!

Big smiles for the camera.

More fun in the park

While JJ was keeping Buppa busy on the climbing equipment, look who was swinging in a tree.

I wonder how far I can stretch out on this branch?

Just a bit further, just a bit further.....and she was swinging free.  I guess a tree is much more fun than a dumb old jungle gym.

Of course, time in the park had to include pails, shovels and sand.

I just love this picture of the two of them playing together.   

Father Goose

Yes, that is the name that always came to mind when I saw Buppa, aka Father Goose, shepherding the kids on any adventure.  He was always close by when the kids needed a helping hand.  I would sit in the shade with the camera, and he would be out in the blazing sun pushing a swing, or lifting them onto a piece of equipment. 

Take me over there Buppa.

See, this one.  Can you lift me up there so I can swing on those chains?  They got a boost up, but neither of them could hold on long enough for me to get a good pic.. 

They soon moved over to the easier climbing equipment, but JJ wanted Buppa to keep a close eye on him.

Then it was off to see if he could conquer another climber.  This was a common sight.  Kids leading on, with Buppa following close behind.  Father Goose on the job.

JJ was lifted up, hung free for a few seconds...

Tried a different position...

And felt quite pleased with himself...that he could do it with just a little help from Buppa.

Last picnic of the summer

I found more pictures from our last picnic of the summer. It was a hot, sticky, buggy afternoon, but that didn't deter the kids at all,  They were off and running as soon as lunch was done. I sat in the shade and swatted bugs while they cavorted from one play structure to the next.

Danica does love the climbing equipment, and JJ is all for following big sister into any adventure but he wants Buppa there when he does the climbing just in case he gets stuck.

Wow, she made it to the top, and she gave me a few gray hairs when she leaned over a bit too far.  Oh my poor heart!

JJ soon left the climber area, and opted for a spin on the swings. 

Danica just moved on to the next climber...

while JJ continued to swing and spin.

The monkey continued to climb.

And I sat sipping my coffee, swatting the bugs, and keeping a close eye on the munchkins with my camera at the ready.   All in all a great last picnic of the summer.

Another chapter ends....and that means another exciting one begins.

Yes, we have come to the end of this busy/exciting; tiring/energizing; demanding/rewarding; challenging/mind boggling chapter in our lives.  Some days I didn't think I would make it until dinner time, and on those days AC would send me home early, or take the kids to the park to help them get rid of the end of the day energy, and I would pause and re-group in quiet, glorious, refreshing solitude.

As hard as it was to make it through some days, the pros far out-numbered the cons in this adventure, and I am glad that we had this very special time with the kids.  

From snuggles in the rocking chair with my favorite girl...

...to picnics in the park with my favorite boy.  (Well, AC was there too, so I should say favorite boys!)

We are now on holiday until after Thanksgiving.  Yahoo!  We were all set to head off to visit my brother and s-i-l for a few days, but Danica brought a cold home from school on Friday, and the damnable germ latched onto me.  Groan.  So I am down for the count for a few days, and have to postpone our visit for a week or two. 

We won't have the kids everyday, so the pictures will be few and far between from now on, but I will post some left-over pictures from the summer this week.  You can rest assured that the camera will always be close at hand, and when I have pics I'll send them your way.