Tiny break

With summer finally in full swing, we're going to take a couple of weeks off to recharge our batteries. We'll be back in August with some new adventures!

New Pony!

Our neighbours bought a new pony a few months back, and she finally arrived last Saturday morning. Her name is Kate, and she is 8 years old. They got her to teach their young daughter how to ride. (The still have Zara, the grey mare. She is in the shelter... you can kind of see her legs in this picture.)

Silver, the pony they had last year, was too nervous and they were worried that he might throw their daughter if something happened to startle him. He was sold to an equestrian centre, where they will work with him to get him more used to being around people. Eventually, he will also be able to teach new young riders how to ride.

Cats go Free!

After unsuccessfully trying to keep our cats within our "enclosure" (i.e., our deck) David decided it was time to let them run free in our yard. So far, we'd only had 2 cats who came and went as they pleased. Today, that number is up to seven!

Cleo exploring

 What's really cute about it, is that several of them like to stay together as they explore the yard.

Kali, Cleo, and Pepper, intrigued by the garage...

If either one of us goes out with them, they have a tendency to lay down near us and, usually, roll around.

Caesar and Cleo, taking a break

Holiday Weekend Recovery

I have been spending the last few days finally enjoying my vacation. After the craziness of garden work leading up to our Canada Day BBQ on the weekend (my "deadline" to have the gardens done), I felt I needed a few days to truly recuperate.

We did have a pretty busy weekend... on Friday we went to Ottawa to see the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge. We only got to see Kate on the big screen as they arrived at Parliament Hill, but did manage a glimpse of Prince William as they sped by in their car, leaving Parliament Hill. We had a great time!

Saturday morning came early as we started to prep for our BBQ that afternoon. It was an afternoon & evening affair, ending with a bonfire and marshmallow roasting. We had a great turn out, 24 for of us in all!

Since then, we've been relaxing, watching some movies, and enjoying the sun!

For those of you in the States, I wish you a, albeit late, Happy 4th of July!

Happy Canada Day!

Finally DONE!!!

I am absolutely thrilled this morning! Last night we finished our last two flower gardens! First of all, the shade garden was only missing a few annuals on the front side, so it only took a few minutes to finish it off.

Front of the Shade Garden                         Back of the Shade Garden

While I was working on the shade garden, David started to tackle our last garden overhaul. We had already removed the stones, and David started by removing the top 4-6 inches of soil and "sod" (mostly weeds).

Once the sod closest to rock border was removed, I rolled the rocks back into place.

By the time we were ready to plant, the mosquitoes were out in full force... and by that I mean swarms of them! We finally finished the garden just after 9pm... I give you our finished garden!

A North Bay Weekend

This past weekend we decided to head to North Bay to visit David's parents. Despite the weekend of rain, we had a great time with them. 

The last time we were there, we went to a Mexican restaurant and David had a "burrito as big as your head," and was disappointed that he couldn't finish it. This time, he was determined to finish it!

Burrito as "Big as your head"

With a fork, for scale

Almost done!

I'm sad to say, that David only almost made it - he only left one bite. It was either that or he would have spent the rest of the evening sleeping off his incredibly large meal!