My Viking.

Our little guy needed to take in to his school

something that was a representation of his 

heritage. So we took a picture of grampa's

arm, and printed it off. His tattoo shows his

Viking connection in our family. Right back

 to Erik the Red and his son Leif Erikson.

Not good Vikings, though Leif did discover

North America before Christopher Columbus

did. We'll hold on to that one. Something to

be curious about. An interesting family link.

Celebrating Women.

At our local book shop Indigo on the

weekend here in our quiet hamlet. I

want to be part of this display one day.

Such a dream to be considered strong!

Buds and Floods.

Late afternoon walks and we finally

found some buds on our willow trees.

These will grow a bit more and then

we'll harvest some for our preschool.

Water in areas where water normally

does not go. So much snow this year ....

.... which has resulted in flooding in

different regions in our Province.

We've been okay so far but some areas

are devastated by the enormous amounts

of water. Hoping the warm temperatures

will dry up all the extra water. Hoping.

Season of Grief.

 

Our little guy B and I were driving to school on Friday morning, listening to our favorite tunes and looking at all the houses that have hockey sticks on the front porch. It's been part of our routine now each morning for the last week and a half when this movement began to show support for those who died in the bus crash on April 6th.

And then a tiny voice from the back of the car put that anxious feeling back in to my gut .... "Gramma, when will we all put our hockey sticks away?"

I wanted to say to him "never" but I know in time, one by one, the sticks will eventually go back into the garage, the shed, wherever families across Canada store their sticks when hockey season is over. Tucked away, out of sight, safe and secure. But this isn't a hockey season. It's a season of showing our love, respect and compassion in the midst of an incredibly difficult and very public grief experience, and there is no time frame for this kind of mourning. The loss of a child is unnatural and inconceivable. A grief that no one can plan for and the healing, the moving forward is an exhausting path that never ends. So I answered him as best I could, on the cusp of the 2 week anniversary of the bus crash.

"Some people will put their sticks away soon, some may keep them out longer and some of us might leave them there forever. Right now, we're all showing the families how much we care that they have had such big losses. I think and hope they see the pictures of the hockey sticks or see them in their own community and know that they are not alone in their grief journey. It makes me proud to see so many sticks every day."

And then I asked him a question .... "B, when do you think we should put our sticks away?"

A big pause and then that tiny voice, straight from the heart of an innocent 7.5 year old boy, who is now just a bit more aware that people can die ....

"Not until after everyone else has put theirs away. If we put our sticks away at the same time, the families will feel sad that no one is thinking about them anymore. I think we'll have to leave them outside forever so they know that we still care."

And then we pulled up to the school, parked, walked to the crosswalk, said our goodbyes and he ran off to play with his friends before the morning bell. 

So for now, at our house, our hockey sticks will stay out, until B is ready, when he fully understands and is comfortable with the idea that the grieving families and the injured players will know that we are still thinking of them during their season of grief, even if our hockey sticks are no longer visible. 

Pub Food.

Each place we travel, we end up with

a favorite place to experience local food.

On our last day, we headed out to Sydney

by the Sea for a bit of shopping and dinner.

I had this scrumptious chicken sandwich

with a salad. It was so good. I can't always

eat everything on my plate but this day,

there wasn't a crumb left! Great pub food!

Breakfast Tea.

One of the perks we received from

staying at the B & B was breakfast.

The menu of tea choices was amazing.

We chose a rose inspired flavor. Lovely!

The setting was so cozy. Lots of pictures to

show the incredible history of the mansion.

Linens and high ceilings and pretty

window coverings and wood furniture.

A small but bright enclosed porch for

extra seating and stained glass windows.

We put a few of these light plates in our new

house and I loved seeing them in the B & B.

Our view included glimpses of the

harbor and the windy and choppy sea.

Breakfast served like afternoon tea. It

included quiche, scones, turkey, salmon,

french toast, butter, maple syrup and a

bit of fruit. I already at that before the shot.

Pineapple with cream cheese and an

edible flower. So good to start our meal.

A picture at the end, when we were full but not

in any rush to leave our table and our view.

Loved our waiter Carlos, who has the

most incredible story of coming to

America from Italy. He even worked

on the Disney Cruise Line. Great man!

Victoria at Night.

On our last night on the coast, we took

 a late night walk to capture the lights.

The Parliament Buildings have at least

a million lights surrounding the structure.

I can't imagine being the guy who has

to climb up and change out every bulb.

The lit fountain is a colorful touch and

a popular spot for tourist photos.

A side view of dh trying to snap just

the right shot with just the right light.

Our B & B for the night also is lit up and it's so

pretty to see it as we walked down the street.

The front veranda has different colored lights then the

rest of the building. Bright yet cozy and welcoming.

Something I Cherish.

I started this Link Party with the idea of

connecting some of my readers. But the

"free" part of it has run out so I'm now

trying to find either another tool or see

if I pay for this one if it's worth the cost.

I will keep you in the loop with what I

decide to do. I'm hoping to continue on

so that I can see how much fun it would be

if I can get it to take off and be a very popular

Sunday night gathering for all who participate.

The Empress.

 The Empress Hotel in Victoria is an

amazing piece of architecture. 

And the horse drawn carriage rides make

it even more impressive as landmark.

I do however miss the moss and the vines

that used to climb up the building. It

feels a bit too bare now. I'm sure there

was a good reason but still, it lacks a bit.

Dh always loves coming to walk around

the pretty grounds and take a peek inside. 

Right in the heart of town and looking

across the harbor, a beautiful spot to visit.

Victorian B & B.

 On the last weekend of our recent holiday,

we had the privilege of staying in this house.

It used to be a restaurant called "The

Captain's Palace" but now it's a B & B.

Nothing has changed ~ the fixtures and

decor are all original and so beautiful.

The hallway outside our door even had

an amazing and very large chandelier.

These paintings were originals and so neat

to look at each time we went to our room.

Our door to our room. Very regal and

elegant, matching the house and the time.

Little sitting area to relax and watch tv

or read. We used this when we skypped.

Mini bar. The real reason for this shot was to

show the old but comfortable claw foot tub.

The bookcase full of old books. We had

fun looking through these and even read one.

Windows that overlooked the very lush, 

green and blooming Spring garden.

Cozy bed. Not too big but comfortable

welcoming after our little walking tour.

The veranda, looking in on the breakfast

porch. A sunny spot to eat and relax.

We loved staying here and despite missing

the restaurant, it was a brilliant plan to turn

it in to a B & B. We plan to come back when

we venture out again to our little island.

Afternoon Sun.

The last few days have been so gloomy

but this happened today. So very worth the

wait and the warmth was very welcomed.

Temperatures are rising and the melt is on.

Twelve Hours.

Today we went from a snowy blizzard to ....

.... the warm sun melting in just 12 short hours.

Sprinter ....

.... what everyone is beginning to call our

so called Spring around here. A combo.

I'm not going to complain. I know it

will happen and soon it will be Summer!

Outside My Window.

 

Yesterday, as predicted, the rain began

to fall. The wind picked up and within

the hour, the rain had turned to snow.

All night it continued. Welcome Spring!

Cherish Link Party #2.

It's Sunday night, time for our 2nd week of our link party. If you'd like to join in and share with us something that you cherish, a person, a place, a thing, something you love, just click on the link below and begin your post. It's right under my pictures at the bottom.

For my contribution, I'd like to share something that I cherish but can't have right now .... the exquisite fragrance of freshly cut flowers. As we still have snow on the ground and more is expected over the next two days, I am personally craving the greenery of flowers and the amazing scent that is so invigorating. When we stayed at the B & B in Victoria a couple of weeks ago, the front entrance had this little desk with a beautiful bouquet to greet us each time we went out and then came back in. I wish I could truly describe the scent but you'll just have to trust me .... amazing! I can't wait for our garden to start to emerge from the frozen tundra, to show us it's little buds and bloom into sweet gifts to enjoy all Summer ~ hoping we'll get Summer after this long and cold Winter. 

Aren't these pretty? The colors are a blend of my three favorite shades of ivory, green and lavender. It's inspired me to figure out which plants and which colors we will plant this year for our big pots for the veranda and the back deck. While the snow swirls around us, I can at least gaze at these pictures often and dream about what we hope our gardens and our plant pots will look like soon. 

Will you join in for our second link party?

We'd love to learn what you cherish this week.