BIRTHDAY WEEKEND in PEI! Attending Estate Auction of LMM's Grandfather's Home!

This past weekend was the BIRTHDAY WEEKEND...the BIG 4-0...and for me, what a way to knock out the thirties and welcome the forties(kinda...still not comfortable with seeing that number) by going to Prince Edward Island! It was a whirlwind weekend...with three objectives...go to an Auction in Park Corner(LMM's Grandfather's home), visit with an University pal and of course eat some yummy food! It was all SUCCESSFUL!!

I've never been to an auction before and I didn't know what to expect!! My card number was 39!! I knew right away that it was my lucky day!! It was meant to be!! We saw people camped out, sitting in chairs with no bidding numbers! They were there for the day! Who does that?? We also met some fun guys! We also realized that you don't raise a hand or itch your face!! Cause you will accidentally bid on something that YOU do not want! Arms are meant to be by your side! Which is hard to do when a certain bug kept flying into my cheek. I wanted to desperately swat it away! We spent 6 hours there!!! Our legs and backs were sore!! We also realized that we should have bidded on chairs/stools...at least we would have had something to sit on! It was also exciting to watch two Ladies...in a bidding war, for the set of the Rosebud Tea(any LMM fan would know about these dishes!)!!


In the end I won 3 bids! A cute set of mini dogs, replicas of the famous..."Gog" and "Magog", which now sit with the LMM BOOKS that I have acquired throughout the years! I also won a sugar tin! And the last item that I won, makes me happy and it will be framed...a sermon, written in 1912 and I knew that my 10yo Son would love it! He knows it is not meant to be read/touched.....and it will be admired!! I won "A Tragedy of Speed", a Sermon on the Wreck of the Titanic, by Reverend William D. Moss. Dated April 21, 1912. My Son was and is ecstatic that I found something THAT old and on the Titanic, at the auction!

In the end...I kept starring at the windows, watching and looking at the lace curtains...was LMM watching and shaking her head disapprovingly? It was quite sad...seeing all the items being auctioned off. An end of an era. I just hope that those who won the items, will cherish them.... as I will cherish mine!

End of my 30's is days away......how will I mark it??

As you know already...I am closing a chapter on my life, my 30's are coming to an end! I am sooo not ready for the new decade! I have already received BIRTHDAY cards with 40 written on it. I stare at that number, 40...that's not for me, its for my mom!! She WAS just 40! I hosted two parties for her!! I can recall it as if it were yesterday!! 40 is not me!! It's my Mom!! Not me!!

The 30's were awesome!! I became a MOM!! 3 times!! Then married.....just once!! So far it's going along quite well!! Bought a house! And became nicely settled in a new town! Found my creative juices and am feeding them daily! Life is good!! And now...as the final days approach, how should I end this decade!? I don't really want a HUGE party! Signs on the lawn! Or notices in the newspapers! Instead...by pressure of close friends and Hubby....I am going for it, to live with no regrets!


I am flying to my beloved island(home away from home), Prince Edward Island! For the weekend!! To attend an estate auction at Lucy Maud Montgomery's (Paternal)Grandfather's home. The home was turned into a Museum and has recently been sold! Items within the homestead are being auctioned off! And I am going! I might not win anything, but it will be momentous for me to attend! To be part of it! I'm also considering looking at a house for sale! You never know where life will lead you! I'll be spending time with a University chum! I will sink my toes into the sand and feel the ocean breeze on my face! Eat some yummy food! Drink some wine and just to be thankful for where I am! I am closing the 30's in a special way! I am living my dreams! Taking that chance....cause you never know! Live with no regrets.....! Don't be afraid! Take a chance.....

I just hope it doesn't rain...!!

BIRTHDAY at the TORONTO BLUE JAYS GAME!!

This past weekend was my Daughter's 8th Birthday!! We decided to head to TORONTO and take in a BLUE JAY GAME! Their FIRST game!! Kids were excited! We were excited! We got tickets in the 100 level! I wanted to be close enough for the kids to see it all!! Didn't realize that the kids would be melting during the hottest weekend of the year!! Roof was open!! I was glad that we had sunblock and they all had baseball hats!! I swear, as Hubby put it, "we were wearing smog screen"...a combination of smog and sun screen! We made the decision to leave at the 6th inning, and head to a local AIR CONDITIONED restaurant for LIBATIONS and some food! BUT the kids LOVED IT!! Didn't care for the cost of the BEER! Or for the cost of the slice of PIZZA! But then I'm sure the man in front of us didn't care for the splash of cold water on his back!! Kids will be kids!! BUT we loved all the action that the city had to offer!!

I gotta say....there are some great people out there!! It was the weekend of paying it forward! We know this gentleman will probably never read this blog, but we are sending a HUGE THANK YOU to him!! We took the GO Train into the city...just to avoid the hassle of traffic and PAN AM GAMES!! While waiting to get tickets...a man approached Hubby and started to talk about these tickets to the PAN AM GAMES...in my mind I'm thinking, "I don't think so Buddy, keep moving!!" Turns out, he wanted to give us the tickets to save on the price of the train ride! He has raised a young family and knows how hard it is do these special occasions. The expense of it all!! We never saw him again! BUT we will definitely pay it forward!!

On the Sunday, while at our favourite coffee spot...OK, Tim Horton's...again, it was pay it forward!! SO Hubby paid for the coffee behind him!! It's amazing...in today's society how cruel one human can be to another. And then, a random act of kindness, restores your faith in humanity. There are good people out there, and there are more and more everyday, doing acts of goodness! Can you imagine if we all did one kind act a day....what an impact it would have, here on earth!

PS. To the person who mailed me a movie, Philomena....you made me question myself and my sanity! Did I order this movie and forget about it!? But I didn't!! I'm pretty sure I didn't!! LOL!
So THANK YOU very much! Paying it forward will live on.....

Did it like a BOSS! Well...for my first attempt at building a DECK!

I truly enjoyed the movie "The Other Woman" and thought the star of the film was Leslie Mann!! She is my new woman crush!! I have a few....Nigella Lawson(for food), Gail Vaz-Oxlade(money smarts), Julia Roberts(cause deep down I want to be like her..) and now Leslie Mann(for her humour). During the scene where Cameron Diaz says "Martha Stewart handled prison like a BOSS", came to mind as I measured, nailed and used the reciprocating saw(just looked up that word on Google, went by the pictures...had no idea what it's name was)....to make a mini deck for our new shed!

This year...the back yard was fixed up...new fence, shed, storage bench, donated a wooden playhouse(that was a chore in itself...but saw a cute dude strip on the street to help in the process of moving the house) and try to make an area for the BBQ(I call it the BBQ STATION!)....and it's only the beginning of July!

The Doghouse..err SHED!
Complete with a mini-deck!

Once the shed was completed, we had extra room from where the old shed sat. So I thought, "lets build a mini deck there..!" And we did! I could see what I wanted in my mind...and I tried to explain it all to Hubby! Finally it all came together!! I felt proud!! I am WOMAN...I can build a deck!! I might not know the terms of the tools...but I know what I wanted to use, the thingy...you know what I mean!!?

Using the saw, I had my Daughter sit on the wood, for weight!! She told me that her bum got a massage! We spent time together...building a deck!! I am showing my Daughter and my Sons for that matter....that anyone can do anything! Regardless of gender or race! If you think it...you can do it...or at least try to do it!! I know I messed up along the way in the building the deck, but those experiences better us!! We try, we learn, we mess up and try again...!! It's the fun part of life!! When I completed the deck...I turned to my Daughter and with much enthusiasm said, "Momma built the deck like a BOSS!!"

Now to build an outdoor kitchen island for my, errr... OUR..... BBQ Station!!

Time for STRAWBERRIES!! Barrie Hill Farms & Spud's Finest in Ontario!

We made these plans a few weeks ago....actually, my 5yo who has an addiction to STRAWBERRIES, has been bugging me for a good month now!! "When can we pick strawberries?" A daily question! My answer was the same everytime..."when school is finished!" Finally school is finished...and the strawberries are ready at our local farm...Barrie Hill Farms! Actually...when they opened for the Season, their market to be exact...we started going every Saturday and buying local vegetables/fruit and the odd baked good or two...and some local, kettled made chips!! YUM!! I know, we need to be eating healthy...but if you want to support your local vendors/farmers...you have to try Spud's Finest Kettle Chips!! It has become our weekly treat!

This past Saturday, with my BFF from Public School and the whole Family...we went to the farm!! The rain held off and we filled 4 baskets of beautiful, ruby red berries. The field was thick with the seduction of strawberry...what Summer is all about(at least to me). Kids had a blast!! Clothes, fingers, toes, legs and lips were stained red! Kids also enjoyed a wagon ride to the field and back again! We saw other crops growing...getting ready for us to pick! It is a must....parents need to take their children to the farm...to see where their food comes from! To have an appreciation for it! Too much food now a days is processed..full of crap! We need to get back to basics!! I strongly believe this! We need to support our local farmers!!

With our 4 baskets of plump, juicy berries and other local vegetables and treats...we went home for a feast! I have made jam! Which by the way.....while making the jam...the kitchen was heavy with the thick, sweet aroma of strawberry...it was fabulous! Strawberry shortcakes were devoured! Pancakes with strawberry maple syrup were inhaled! And I have perfected my Strawberry Smoothie!! Plus....a slightly different version for the adults....with a little RUM!

I keep thinking of a quote from Shakespeare's The Merchant of Venice....and I think of this as we consume these Berries...."If you prick us do we not bleed"....strawberry?

Fathers Day Tradition.....a little bonus for Mommy!!

This past Father's Day we did what we have been doing for the past 4 or 5 yrs...one can't keep track...we just started doing it and it has become a ritual! We escape the expected from Fathers and Family and focus on our wee family! We travel north to a friend's cottage, which we have adopted, and hide out in the tranquillity of Six Mile Lake! Us...the Fish, the Loons and NOW the Chipmunks and two Geese that call the dock their home! AND the mosquitoes...how can we forget them!! BLOOD SUCKERS!

Like some Family members...but that's another blog!


Father's Day is around Hubby's Birthday!! So he gets the WHOLE weekend!! And all he wants to do is FISH! To be with nature!! I'm all for that!! See....when we go to the cottage, the kids want to fish with Daddy...and all four of them will be on the dock...fishing....and I will be on the deck, umbrella up, wine glass filled, book in hand and enjoying the peace!! No one wants to sit and read with Mommy....they want to fish and tickle their toes in the water!! And they did!! No pics of the fish(sorry)...but Katie, in her purple party dress(her choice) caught the biggest fish!! A 3 pound Bass! The boys all caught mini sunfish, bass and one catfish!! We do the catch and release here in Watton Land!!

Hubby had a blast!! Fishing and spending time with his kids!! To him it was perfect!!

To me...... it was perfect!! I had alone time!! He had his kids!!
Perfect Father's Day Weekend....right!!?

SCHOOLS OUT FOR SUMMER.....

As of 5:30 this morning...day one of SUMMER HOLIDAYS...I have done one load of laundry, consumed 3 mugs of coffee and fed dear Princess, who if I didn't, would have woken everyone up! Her MEOWS are desperate when she hasn't been fed!!
Not sure who is worse...the nagging 5yo, or the HUNGRY cat who sits by my pillow, waiting....!?

I am sitting by the computer thinking that I will make the most out of this Summer...get into a writing routine...most of it done early in the AM, before the kids wake!! So far...this is all I have done for writing!! But at least the kids have clean undies!! Right!?! And I have been fuelled with COFFEE!!

Yesterday....I counted the HOURS of SILENCE! I know, I should have been writing and doing all the little things that I can't do, once the kids are home, BUT I did nothing!! I did vacuum...the last good VACUUM of the Season...till the kids go back to school! But other than that...I did nothing! I sat in the house with nothing on...and listened to the silence and pureness that the house has to offer!!
I thought, "Sherry...listen to this, remember this...soon it will be over...kids everywhere...noise, mess, fights....just listen and remember!"

Did anyone else do this? LOL!

I feel as if this will be a BIG SUMMER....Birthdays(some milestones), changes, meeting Family that I haven't seen since I was 6, playing more with the kids....and just trying to appreciate the SEASON!! Cause soon the kids will be grown and doing their own thing!! And will only NEED me for a DRIVE or for the CASH!

What are your plans this Summer??

First day of school and LAST day of school!
Some......OK, just the girl, is sad that school is over!