road trip . . .

 During the hot spell last week we took a wee road trip.  We ended up in a village called Kelwood and what a treat it was.  This community is so well cared for - everyone seems to take pride in their homes and yards.  In the centre of town is a beautiful park!  Many folks had huge gardens - I haven't seen gardens this big since I was a kid - just like then the gardens are totally weedless and picture perfect.  There was one that was all garlic - I'm hoping some of the garlic will be at the farmers' market in the fall.  There is a place there called the Kelwood Barn that is a convenience store (Mountain General)  and gas bar.  At the back there is a restaurant (Farmer's Daughter) that is very inviting as is the outdoor patio.  Unfortunately, in our neck of the woods we cannot dine in or on the patio yet.  Since take out was available we chose a burger  - oh my, these were huge and homemade - homemade buns and patties . . . they were absolutely delicious!!!  We haven't bought a burger this good for many years and we were reminded that when we were younger this was what a restaurant burger tasted like.  Needless to say we'll be visiting here again.  The photos of the park do not do it justice.  

These were taken at the cemetery which was well cared for  - the storage shed is a unique design.

happiness is an inside job

odds 'n sods ....

It finally rained albeit not much - the moisture was desperately needed!  The dandelions finally bloomed providing a feast for the bees - people were immediately killing off the dandelions.

This was an interesting cloud seen at the cabin ...

A yellow headed blackbird joined the red wings for a sunflower seed feast ...

This is a favourite gathering place for the pelicans -  on the way to the cabin where a bridge crosses the Mossey River and the pelicans gather on both sides and quite a distance up the river - the photo was taken before the rain - it's a little greener now -  we always stop to watch them ...

I  enjoyed  this book ...

and this one was quite entertaining ... 

And here's cottage cat ...

i took a walk in the woods

and came out taller than the trees

the cabin

We made two trips to the cabin this past weekend - it's so nice to be only an hour's drive away.  The snow is quickly disappearing - the wind that blew for 2 days in early March left behind some hefty snowbanks that have disappeared to the point that we had no problem walking in. We were hoping to see the ice go out but that happened overnight last night. 

Nigel the resident squirrel was on the deck to welcome us.....

We had a visit with cottage neighbour and good friend E - 

 discovered some pussy willows that were alongside the road that didn't require rubber boots to access them - 

 made me a happy camper ......

I've been sampling daffodil patterns ....

I like the size of the bottom one and the design of the one on the right -

 I'm working with the yarn that I have on hand.

i've seen it all done -

can't remember most of it

taking advantage .....

We took advantage of the unseasonably mild weather this month and one of the places we visited more than once was Lake Manitoba Narrows which is commonly referred to as the narrows.  The views of this big lake are awesome.  These photos were taken at the marina although everything has been put away for the winter.  The best view is from the causeway but there's no room to stop.

 the purpose of life is to live it

exploring ......

Alas, this is the first time in 12 years that we've had to deal with time change since we've been living in those parts of Canada that don't have DST ... I really wish the entire country would stay on standard time year around.

Since we're having beautiful warm and dry (yes, dry) weather we've been exploring our new surroundings .....

one of the quirky oaks at Dauphin Lake

Turtle River flowing into Dauphin Lake - the river is very  high for this time of the year and would you believe that all this water will eventually flow past our cabin

Turtle River Cemetery

beautiful poplars

 Makinak - you can see the foundation of the old school on the left

also at Makinac - possibly an Anglican Church

a lovely view 

these horses called out to me when I was taking pix across the road but when I approached the white one was bashful

a beauty in it's day and still is 

these are jackpine

if only it could talk ...

makes one wonder about the family that lived here or was it actually a small barn

 at the cabin

where the calendulas (and sweet peas) are still blooming
 

 Dauphin Lake 

 Makinac United Church est. 1910

beach combing on Dauphin Lake

 this is the Manitoba Escarpment, locally referred to as 'the mountain' - 

beautiful Riding Mountain National Park is found here .

keep smiling .... it makes people wonder what you're up to

out and about ...

Just a few photos taken in cottage country  - enjoy .......

The spots in the middle photos surprised me - it wasn't raining but the humidity was high ... kind of amazing what the camera picks up.

live your life and forget your age

early morning ....

One morning last week I was wide awake very early and  had no idea why until I looked out the window and saw this gorgeous sunrise!   Aren't those clouds awesome?

Needless to say we're keeping busy these days sorting and packing.  Some items are going to the cabin and others will go to our new place while others will find new homes.  Here's the skinny on our plans ..... since our condo isn't ready just yet we're renting an apt. in a four-plex - it's ultra modern and we're quite pleased although it's on the small side.  On our way home from the cabin the other day we stopped in our new community to set up the utilities, etc. and service was so friendly that it was quite a treat!

everything comes to you at the right moment ... be patient 

cottage country pix

July has seen a mixed bag of weather from hot and humid to a haze (sometimes thick) of smoke from the northern forest fires.  Then the rain began and it has the poor manners of not knowing when it's time to leave.  :(

I assume Blogger has been making changes again since there are several blogs that I can no longer leave comments on - this began when I tried leaving comments using the laptop and I assumed it was something to do with that but the same thing is happening with the desktop now.  I've checked and re-checked settings and mine are the same as they've been since I started blogging.  So, if I'm not commenting on your blog post - that's the reason;  I assure you that I'm still reading your posts.

We have a resident tree frog who resides on the inside of the door of one of the sheds.  Most days it's the colour of the shed door but I was lucky enough to catch it in full colour - a beautiful shade of green!  There is also a baby tree frog who is a bright green but it's not around when I have the camera out.

One morning there was a flotilla of geese (Canada Goose) and we counted 45 goslings!  Soon they'll be learning to fly and that's always very entertaining since there is much squawking and flapping of wings to begin with.

What we saw ......

Reflection of the smoke haze pink-orange sun.

River mist.

A carp (fish).

Red sky at night sailors' delight
 Red sky in the morning sailors' take warning

a moody Manitoba morning ....

We're just back from spending 10 days at our cabin in Manitoba.  I was up very early one morning and this was the scene that greeted me .....

 

At this time of year it's very quiet and peaceful there often with just the birds and wildlife for company.  On the way home we stopped at Beautiful Lake in the Duck Mountain Provincial Park .  This pair (and a spare) of mergansers were sunning themselves on the dock .....

I spotted this doorway at the bottom of a tree - it looks like the entrance to a fairy home ....

 and this one was just in the process of being carved out ...