This weekend was the annual Jamie and Sue weekend, where Jamie and I spend time catching up, sharing good food and wine and when we're lucky basking in the sun. This year it was a relaxing (lazy) weekend where our most energetic outing was a boat ride around he lake. Thanks Jamie for another great annual weekend!
Ok so his name is really Trigger, but I have an island full of holes that says otherwise! This was one busy little dog.
The weather over the last few weekends has been nothing short of spectacular and Sunday was a perfect day to spend some time relaxing on the dock. Jamie and I both went home with burns - the Rigby's were much more reasonable only arriving on the dock later in the afternoon and sitting in the shade.
And the ant was the winner. Even those both of these creatures were tiny, the bright green of the inchworm caught my eye right away. I watched the ant for over 5 minutes as it struggled to carry the inchworm away, but if finally proved to heavy and the ant went home without it.
All things great and small came together for a wonderful weekend with our friends from Montreal. This is a big blog because it was a full weekend as Daphne, Tim, Lianne and her two boys Kaiden and Kerrsen joined us at the cottage. The boys quickly discovered the joys of kayaking and enjoyed some independence exploring their surroundings.
My favorite quote from the weekend came from Kaiden, who plucked a lily from the water, raised it to his nose, inhaled deeply, and exclaimed “Mom, this lily smells like everything good in the world!” I realized that in all the years we have had all those lilies right next to our dock I had never actually smelled one. And Kaiden was right - they smell pretty good.
Lianne demonstrated some of her yoga practice for us, beginning by sharing a meditation with Kerrsen. A series of impressive moves followed, topped off by this headstand. Somehow yoga strikes me as a natural for a new dock activity!
I have never seen anything like it. Neither Kerrsen or Kaiden had ever fished before, but they decided to try off the front of our dock. Talk about beginner’s luck! Together in just one afternoon they reeled in FIFTEEN fish. Hooks went in the water and fish just kept coming out. When Kaiden pulled out his first fish he told us excitedly “I’ve been waiting to catch a fish my whole life!!!!
There was time for long swims in the lake and a quiet read on the poop deck for Daphne.
As the sun went down, Tim worked with charcoal in one hand and a flashlight in the other to capture the silhouettes of trees and the cottage in the evening light.
The next day Lianne, Kersen, Kaiden and I went for a boat ride into White’s Lake so that Kerrsen could explore a campsite and Kaiden could try a new fishing location. What is it that is so neat about dragging your hands against the water when riding in a motorboat anyway?
Fortunately for us, the White’s Rock campsite was empty so we parked the boat and checked out the rocks on the back of the site. Kerrsen and Lianne had a great swim.
The same shelf of rocks that makes for great swimming is also a pretty good fishing hole, so lines were baited and hung over the water.
Kaiden concentrated on making sure his worm looked appetizing on the hook and was rewarded with a really good sized bass - easily 11 inches long and a pound and a half. While he was seriously tempted to take his bass home and eat it, spaghetti and tomato sauce won out and the bass was returned to the lake.
We felt so fortunate to celebrate our 5th anniversary with our friends and family. Barb, Rick, Heather, Patrick and Patty joined us and our Balconville friends for drinks and nibblies on the dock. Carolyn is wearing her skirt from our wedding and I have my wedding shoes on!
We all gathered for drinks on the dock and Richard presented us with a toilet seat made from a tree burl (only on loan - don’t ask) and a beaver cutting inscribed “5 years of bliss” for our “wood” anniversary.
Our final morning we did a full out breakfast with bacon and eggs. Tim volunteered for bacon duty while I made scrambled eggs and Carolyn took care of the toast. Our final meal together of the weekend ensured everyone went off with a full stomach!
This year Godchildren Amy and Izzy decided they were old enough for an overnight camping trip and Marnie and Andrew bravely agreed to let us take them "into the wild" for a night. The girls were bursting to explore new territory and to try something new, so we loaded the canoe with gear and food and off we paddled to White’s Lake for our big adventure.
The tent was plenty big enough for the four of us and after a brief inspection Amy and Isabelle pronounced it a suitable home away from home.
Marnie and Andrew joined us once sleeping bags had been laid out, clothes put away and our outdoor kitchen organized, and there was a full afternoon of activities. A nice little beach at our campsite and very warm water meant lots of time wading, swimming and splashing.
Dinner featured the classic wieners roasted on sticks accompanied by hot bubbling beans.
Marnie and Andrew headed back to the cottage after dinner and dessert and it was teeth brushing time before we settled in front of the fire to watch the setting sun and the emerging stars.
Our adventurous day concluded with a bedtime story before closing our eyes to the sound of the loons gently calling goodnight.
After a good solid sleep we slowly woke in the morning, taking the time to laze in our sleeping bags and chat for awhile before it was time to get up and build another fire for coffee and breakfast.
While Carolyn stayed behind to organize our campsite in preparation for leaving, the girls and I set out in the canoe to explore distant shorelines.
After a final swim, taking down the tent and packing the canoe, it was time to douse our fire and go back to the cottage to tell the stories of our grand adventure!
This great big snapping turtle was moseying around behind our dock this weekend. I was out on the lake but my sister-in-law Catherine did some snapping of her own and sent me this picture. The shadow in the picture is Catherine's head, so that should give you an idea of the size!!!
This weekend my brother and family made a whistle stop for an overnight visit at the cottage. In less than 24 hours we managed to pack in lots of activities, food and fun. Behold the kingsley hats - in order of appearance - mine, Peter's, Benton's and Nicole's.
Carolyn took this fantastic picture of Nicole, Benton and I jumping into the lake.
Just before departure we took time for a family photo on the dock. It was a short but very successful visit!
