About Me

June 30, 2020

Goodbye June.



It's the night before Canada Day
and we're saying goodbye to a
very rainy month. It's pouring
outside in the moment. Hoping
for a very sunny July! With all
we've been going thru, we need it!

~ Chy

Gardening Goals.



Aside from my art as a stress reliever, I have discovered how much working in the garden has helped when life is tough. It's been especially great this year with Covid. We have had a ton of rain (again today!) and I'm starting to worry we'll have another water logged year like last year. Maybe it will change. For now, when it isn't raining, I dig my hands in the cool dirt, feeling connected to the Earth again. I weed. I move plants. I dream of what it will look like one day. I dream of an English garden/Cottage garden concept. Slowly I'm getting there. Slowly but surely, almost there!



Above on the left, raindrops on the Bleeding Heart bush.
Top right, the Hydrangea bush is coming along nicely,
Bottom left, the Hosta looked like it wasn't alive but
here it is! And bottom right, Munstead Lavender ....

This last week was a bit of a break from work for me and I had hoped to get more done than I actually did but the rain would NOT stop. I did learn that pulling weeds and planting and even moving plants in the wet weather is actually a bit easier. It's just very messy! But working in the dirt is so good for the soul and if I have to do it in the mud, than that will be the plan for the rest of the Summer. Whatever I have to do to reach my gardening goals and to keep my spirits alive and well during this crazy time, I will do it!

Do you have gardening goals?
How is your garden doing this year?

~ Chy

Relieving Stress.


Since Thursday, some stress has entered
our life and it's been a tough few days.


Last night, a bit of a break and what do
I do to relax when I'm stressed? Art! I
am creating a little mixed media box
and this is just the beginning ~ paint,
then some printed paper, a few odds
and ends to add texture, then a bunch
of embellishments. I'll post once I have
it completed. Happy to have my art!

~ Chy

June 28, 2020

Sunday Task.


Our living room is small and cozy but still needs
some work. I have been sewing curtains to go with
the lace and am almost done. I had to buy new rods
as a double was required. You know what this means!


The view from the front door. At the moment though,
this room and our dining room are turned upside down.


Yup, it's time to paint again! Taking down
the single curtain rods to put up the doubles
meant I had to fill the holes, so then that
transpired in to painting the rooms again.


Yesterday was prep day and today, because it's
raining again all day today is painting day. Until
our Board Meeting later today. Which means I'll
shower before that, have the meeting, drive in to
town quick for a pick up and then back to put
everything back in it's place if all goes well this
morning. I love freshly painted walls and though
we've lived here 5 years, this is the 2nd time I've
painted the house. Same color, just a refresh! I
did the art studio last week and this week is the
two rooms in the front, then the family room,
kitchen and laundry room, the back mudroom, 
down the hall then upstairs to tackle the upper
hall, our bedroom and our bathroom. Then we
should be good for another couple of years. All
this because I needed to switch out the single
curtain rods for doubles! I love painting so this
is a good thing. It's my "therapy" and cheaper!!

~ Chy

Father's Day 2020.









Last week, we celebrated Father's Day
at our home this year. No visiting. But
still a special day. As you can see by
the photos, dh was spoiled once again.
But he is that guy who deserves it for
all he does for us. We love him to pieces!

~ Chy

Community Spirit.


I have personally loved all the ways
that businesses and organizations have
incorporated community spirit in to
their messaging/branding during Covid.


From heartfelt commercials, to art
and music. As a visual artist, I'm in
love with the windows at our local
grocery store that were painted last
month. We will get through this and
the reminders due help to keep our
spirits high as we spend each day
coping, living, stressing and waiting
for a healthy World once again. In
the end, HOPE is free and present.

~ Chy

Happy Sunday.


Wishing you and yours an amazing
day of love, sun and new memories!

~ Chy

June 27, 2020

Getting Groceries.


I'm sure everyone around the World
is so feeling the burden of grocery
shopping each week. It has become
quite the chore and one I don't enjoy
anymore. I used to love to browse
the aisles and chat with the staff or
community members who happened
to be shopping at the same time. But
now, on the odd occasion we venture
in to the store to get our groceries
vs. ordering them online and pick up,
I feel like I'm holding my breath the
entire time we're in the store. I can't
wait to get back to the car and then
get safely home. Once there, we do
spend time washing down our food
and put everything away, hoping we
didn't pick up the virus in any of the
transaction. I know that once this is
all done, we'll still be truly extremely
careful when food shopping. Germs
won't have a chance in this house! I
envy those in the picture above. A
simpler time, without worry and the
stress we are all encountering at this
time in our lives. I would love to be
carefree again and can't wait to be
there again one day. Until then, we
work hard, keep positive and recall
the days of less worry. One day! :)

~ Chy

June 26, 2020

Topsy Turvy.


This is how the World feels today.
Turned upside down, topsy turvy!

~ Chy

Future Balcony.



If we get a chance to build again in the
future, I would love to add a balcony
to our Master Bedroom. It would sit
right over the back porch and provide
a lovely view of the gardens. It wasn't
in the first budget, but as this house
gains equity, who knows, maybe we
can fit it in next time! Until then, we
will love the back porch and decks for
eating and the front veranda for quiet
times of reading, or chatting, visiting
and remembering. All are amazing!

~ Chy

This Guy ....



You see that guy beside me in the middle? I often
refer to him as "lovey", "Bear" (long story behind
that one) or "the daddy guy." To our kids, he started
out as "da da", then became "daddy" and is now
called "dad." To our sweet grand babies, he is also
affectionately know as "papa" though sometimes
our gs still calls him "baba" as he couldn't quite say
his "p's" for a while when he was quite young and
that nickname kind of stuck. This guy lives for us
and we are all so grateful for his love and hard work,
his VERY BAD dad jokes, and his very incredible
patience with all of us as we find our way. Really,
there are no adequate words so we'll just say LOVE.
This is how we honored this guy on Father's Day!

~ Chy

June 25, 2020

Greenhouse Saga.


All we wanted was a sweet little greenhouse
for our garden. We ordered in April, in the
middle of the Pandemic. It took a number of
weeks, more than double the usual time but
we were patient and understanding. Then the
first piece (1 of 2) finally arrived. We tucked
it away in the garage to wait for the 2nd piece.
Which never arrived. So we had to cancel the
order. And then, out of the blue, the other day,
we went out the door to the car to get some
groceries and there was the 2nd piece against
the garage door. We had been working in the
garden the day before so it must have arrived
at some point after that. No notice. No call.
Thankfully now, our order is restored and we
can start to put it all together. So very excited!

~ Chy

June 24, 2020

Sibling Wishes.


Our dd had her birthday in May, during
Covid, which meant that we stayed home
and made the best of her special day. I
felt bad for her but she had a great day!


The best part was the surprise group
video chat from her out of town sibs.


And their families, including our little
granddaughter. It did actually feel like
we were all together, even though we
are currently so far apart. Loved this!


Her birthday brownies with a sweet
little bunting I made for one of my
dollhouses. I borrowed it for this very
special day. It's back in its place now.

Have you had any birthdays during Covid?
If so, how did you celebrate during this time?

~ Chy

June 20, 2020

Saturday Night Sun.

I love the sun that streams in through
our lace curtains at the end of the day.


It filters and flits about the rooms on
our main level. Starting in the turret,
then moving around to the living room,
the hall, then ending in the dining room.


It hits the dining room, then comes
 the doorway and the butler's pantry.


By the time it starts to move further in
to the kitchen, it is setting behind the
trees that are to the West of us. This
bit of light is just for a short time before
the sun is gone for the day. The moon
comes out and off to our bed we head.


So many things I love about our little
cottage in the big woods. But when
the sun hits the walls in the morning
and then moves around the house for
the day, those are the moments I love
to capture. I hope you love this too!

~ Chy

Baby Fawn.

These will not be the best pictures
but look what we spotted by the
potting shed last night! A tiny baby
fawn, sneaking a drink from mama!


We have had many deer families over
the time we've lived at the cottage.


But this is the first time we've spot such a
new and tiny fawn. Often we don't see any
babies until mama and sometimes papa are
out for a little walk with their bigger babies. 


They spotted us and started to tip toe back
to the forest. Quietly and peeking back at us.


The meadow is so tall at the edge of the forest
so we lost sight of the baby fawn. Such a treat
though. All day today while we worked inside
and out, we'd stop to look to see if mama and
baby would be back to visit. I'm sure she's so
protective but we hope in time they'll visit again.

~ Chy

June 19, 2020

Intricate Sink.


No we haven't moved and don't intend to
for a long time. BUT when we do move
again, down the road, kids are gone and
it's just the two of us, we'll build again,
a tinier English~styled cottage, and I so
would LOVE this sink! We already have
a white farmhouse sink. But this one is
amazing. I love the detail and know it
would be a perfect fit for the next cottage.
Wouldn't you agree? I sure hope so ....

~ Chy

June 18, 2020

The Love of Reading.


Reading has been a love of mine since I was a young child, even before I could read! One of my aunties worked as a book publisher for a large firm here in Canada and every Christmas, we get books. My cousins who were older and younger would sometimes complain .... "Books? But we wanted toys!!" But me, I was in Heaven! I feel like some people read a book and I devour a book. I'm thankful to have married a man who also loves to read and collect books. Not what attracted me to him, in fact, it was something we discovered when we bought our first home and we're moving in. He had boxes and boxes and when I asked what was inside, his words "my books" intrigued me. And here I thought I knew everything about him! In time, we have filled bookshelves, and corners, and we both often have a little stack beside the bed. I love to read in a warm, soapy tub, or curled up in bed on a rainy night. A favorite memory has always been introducing reading to our babies, whom we read to in utero. When they each learned to read themselves, that was a big moment in our tiny house. Each Christmas, as the reader became stronger, they were gifted the right to read "Twas the Night Before Christmas" and everyone would cheer the new reader on. Now our grand kids read and it makes our hearts sing. There is nothing more precious in the World then curling up in a comfy chair, with a small child, who asks you to read them a story. Especially in front of a warm and cozy fire. I love that this tradition is carrying thru with our kids. Books are often an extra gift under the tree or in a birthday basket. I'm thrilled that instead of hearing the words "Books? But we wanted toys!" we hear "Yes, more books!" When they were small, and even now, as adults, a favorite spot to visit if we were out and about shopping would be our local book store. We'd ask "Where should we go today" and always we would get "Can we stop at the bookstore?" I can't imagine the investment we've made in books over the years. Some are bought at full price (not many!), some are thrifted, some are gifts but all are cherished. The love of reading is strong here.

Do you love to read?
Are you a book collector?

~ Chy

June 17, 2020

Protected from the Rain.


We had a super big storm on the weekend.
Thankfully there was no damage here but
a number of communities in the south end
of our Province were hit hard. Lucky for us.


As we watched the storm track during
the day on Saturday, we started to put
things away and tucked out of danger.
My plants on the front veranda got cozy.


See those dark skies with the storm?
Those were actually light compared
what came next. We had just bought
our new deck furniture two weeks ago
and I was worried about the rain, so
we bought (on sale!) these cover ups.


I'm so happy to report that despite the
downpour of rain, not a drop touched
the cushions. It was lovely to take the
covers off later and sit on the deck in
the bright, warm sun again. This also
saves us so much time and space as
we don't have to take all the cushions
off and store them in the kitchen if it
rains. We'll watch the forecasts and if
it looks like rain, the covers go on. We
had rain predicted for today so last
night, we put them on all the chairs
and the sofa and today, they are nice
and dry again. Supposed to rain all day
after a few days of hot sun, but now I
have no worries about our new deck set.

Do you cover up your deck furniture from the rain?
Have you had some great weather or lots of rain?

~ Chy

Food Pictures.


A silly post to start the day.  I take a lot
of photos and sometimes, at the end of
the day, I scroll through and have to laugh
at what I capture. Case in point: the 4
eggs above. I shot this to later ask the
the question online of anyone who would 
take the time to read it .... "do you wash
you eggs when you bring them home?"


The next shot is so we can all remember
the very day that our dd ordered a jar of
parmesan cheese. She so thought it was
going to be a regular size one but knew
it wouldn't be as large as the one in the
shot, which we buy for ourselves from
Costco. So it was a big surprise to see
what she pulled out of the bag from her
online order yesterday. Yup, she chose
the smallest version without looking at
the sizing .... life lesson learned! But
to be fair, this is the kid who ordered
fruit, but forgot to put in a quantity of
each. Opened her bag to find a single
pear and a single peach. Yes, I do have
that picture saved in my files for future!


Finally, my amazing dinner from last
night. The family had lasagna, which
would literally kill me as I have a
deadly allergy to tomatoes. So this is
my version of that dish. It is cheesy
chicken broccoli cauliflower rice. So
good and easy for me to swallow. At
least once a week I get to enjoy this!

All my food pics for now.
Do you ever take food shots?

~ Chy