6 posts tagged “summer”
... Two cottages in one summer. We're shameless.
This time, it was the annual Muskoka visit. It was a shorter stay this year, since we're saving our vacation days. We didn't take extra time off work this year. But it was a long weekend all the same and we got to spend quality time with 7 of our closest friends. We had a blast. And more importantly, we had nice weather.
In this worst-of-all-summers, to have actually had three sunny days in a row was more than we could have hoped for. But through sheer force of will (thanks Greg and Krista, for clearing those clouds with your minds) the only rain came overnight on Saturday. Otherwise, the weather was perfect for swimming all day - provided you had a little body fat, of course. We even got to do a little night skinny dipping. What could be better?
The only trouble we had was on the drive back home. We hit serious traffic when we got to Renfrew. The 417 was backed up and pretty much at a standstill. Thankfully we had a GPS and we found a country road that led us through Arnprior, allowing us to sidestep gridlock. We lost about 30 minutes, but judging by the delay on the 417, it probably would have been a lot worse if we had stayed put. Oh well. All's well that ends well.
Big thanks to Steve for sharing this little piece of paradise. It's a highlight for both Junkii and I every year. For those who haven't been to the cottage, here's a little video from the top of the boat house to show off the surroundings
We’re finally rid of them all, ha HA!
Seriously though, my entire family was in town for the past two weeks – my sister, brother-in-law, two nephews, as well as my Dad and step Mom. We had a wonderful visit with everyone and played non-stop with the kids. We're pooped, but we wouldn't trade it for the world.
Dad was in town for a little more than a week, and much of that time was spent at a cottage that he rents from time to time on Big Rideau lake near Perth. It turned out to be an awesome place to bring the kids – lots of grass to run on, shallow water to splash in, and sand to build castles with – and the whole gang of us had a bang-up time, as you can see by the photos.
We were definitely lucky, in this worst-of-all-summers-ever, to have had sun for the cottage. Thanks, Dad and Louise, for setting up a great vacation spot!
Saturday afternoon was beautiful in Ottawa and, after a morning spent looking at the work of local artists in the Glebe at Art in the Park, Junkii and I got it in our heads that patio season was upon us. We wanted to relax on the deck with our books and some beer.
With a few drinks in the fridge, we decided to put out an open call to anyone who wanted to join us for a little social time on the lanai.
We cast our net through Facebook and Email and, not counting the people who wanted to come but were not in town, we snagged 4 people. Not a bad catch for an impromptu event.
We shared some cheese and crackers, some beers, and some conversation and, once our numbers dwindled, the remaining guests all chipped in for a round of Indian food. A perfect cap to the afternoon.
This weekend we discovered a new lazy-afternoon activity (or inactivity if you prefer).
Given that we're steps away from the Rideau Canal and the Ottawa bike paths, Junkii had the brilliant idea to just grab our books and our ipods and just wander over there to find some shade, to read, and to people-watch.
We don't have our own lawn at home, so it was nice to find a shaded patch of green where we could just laze around and take it easy. The only thing that would have made it nicer is a tall cool drink. But boozing on public property is still frowned upon in Ottawa, so we contented ourselves with what we had.
Definitely a nice way to spend a summer Sunday.
Now that the deck is sanded and painted (thanks Ron!), we are finally able to take advantage of the little oasis.
Ron and I are on a Mojito bend lately. It seems that we’re always running out of lime and mint leaves. So we decided to start growing some herbs on our deck for our own use. We went to the Byward Market and got some mint, sweet basil, and cilantro. We think that’s a good start for a couple of guys who have never planted anything edible.
Oh did I mention Mojitos? Well I don’t know why, but this weekend I had an inspiration to add a little something to the already wonderful Mojito. So I added some peach schnapps and boy oh boy was it good. So I named it “mo-peach-to”. It adds a hint of sweetness to the fresh and tarty mojito. Summer is only getting better!
Mo-peach-to
recipe:
In a
highball glass add
- 1 tsp Sugar
- A few mint leaves, torn
- 1 lime wedge, squeezed
- A splash of soda water
Muddle that together and then add ice, about 2 tbsp fresh lime juice (from the rest of the lime), 1 ½ oz white rum, 1 oz peach schnapps. Top with soda water and gently stir. Makes one cocktail.
Yup, summer's almost over. It's been getting colder for the past few weeks and I've been relegated to wearing a sweater to bike to work in the morning. soon I'll have to put on winter gloves too.
Well, we had a respite this weekend. The sun shone and we could emerge from our pre-hibernation state for a few hours wearing short-sleeves and shorts. (It's really the light-weight clothing I miss most when summer heads south). And you better believe we took advantage of the situation.
We marched right down to the Byward market and plunked ourselves down on the nearest patio to people-watch and down a few pints of ale (and some deep fried snacks, I'm ashamed to say). What a wonderfuly lazy way to spend an afternoon with chums. It's sad to think that the snow will be flying soon, and we'll have to wait another 8 months before we get to hang out in the open air again and watch the cuties.
I feel lucky that we got this last chance at summer 2006. Now where's my parka?
