My Strange Connection with Rodents.

Well, here I sit waiting patiently for a little chipmunk friend to come out of hiding, follow the trail of peanuts to the open basement window and exit without the use of poisonous gas or banging pots (Mummy's idea). 

This morning the backdoor was left open and in waltzed a little chipmunk. So cute. Bobo alerted us to his presence and the little creature immediately took off running downstairs. Conveniently, the floors are being redone upstairs and the contents of 3 bedrooms are currently strewn across the basement, making it near impossible to catch this little fella. After an hour of watching him prance around my bedroom, my mother screaming every time he made an appearance,  and I, net (lacy curtain) in hand, made no progress. So now I am sitting in the basement, watching for this little guy to come and follow a trail of peanuts (Hansel and Gretel-style) to the window, praying he will make an exit soon because if there is one thing I hate, it is knowing that a chipmunk will be river dancing across my forehead tonight as he tries to make his escape through my bedroom window!!!

Dramatics aside, I shall update you on the past few week's events. Monika, Marsha, Carmen and I traveled to Florida for a week of relaxation and overall fun. We didn't really have a plan but managed to fit in shopping, hanging out at the beach, poolside relaxing, pampering and great meals. If you don't know this already I will inform you that Florida is probably one of the hottest places on the entire planet. Not only was it hot, it was humid!!! I didn't even bother to bring my blow dryer and straightener knowing there was seriously no point. I embraced my Afro and rocked the bun pretty much all day. It was rainy on and off but we definitely had more sunshine than rain and we made the most of it! 

We spent a day in Naples which was gorgeous and after an intense thunderstorm, we managed to get a lovely spot on the beach complete with rented beach chairs and a sweet umbrella I picked up for a bargain! We enjoyed a delish meal at the famous Cheesecake Factory and then a night out on the town on 5th Avenue where the only bar we could find to escape a gentleman following us around showing off his fancy bra was filled with pumped up cougars and terrible drinks!!! The adventure made for some laughs and we ended up having a good time. I have come to realize that it doesn't really matter where you are or what you are doing so long as you are with great company, and I was!! 

Since I have come back to Ontario I have been very busy with helping Mummy clean out her house of unwanted junk and lots of old furniture. I have also helped my Auntie Traci move houses (across the street from Granddad's old house luckily) and generally keeping busy with shopping and socializing and keeping busy getting ready to go back home to Wemindji. 

I will be traveling alone this trip as Carmen is no longer working at MES and our convoy is down to just me now! My Auntie Melanie generously bought me The Spot (a satellite tracking device with build in rescue beacon should I need emergency help in the 600km of no cell service traveling zone) as an early birthday present so at least I won't be traveling all alone!!

Anyways I am still here waiting for my little crafty friend to make an appearance and vamoosh but no luck. I'll keep you posted. 

Beautiful Bachelorette

Yesterday I had the pleasure of celebrating my amazing friend Katherine's first of two bachelorette celebrations thrown by yours truly. It took place in gorgeous Blue Mountain which is about 2 hours north of Toronto.  

First we went to the incredible Scandinave Spa. It was an experience! A group of 5 of us booked hour-long Swedish massages and had access to all the marvelous baths of various hot and FREEZING temperatures. Until this point I had never had a massage before and lets just say I was....nervous. Never having been touched by a complete stranger essentially naked was something that, believe it or not, was not really up my alley!! However, I knew it would be the perfect classy bachelorette celebration for my classy friend and threw caution to the wind and said "What the heck!"  

So I spent the week beforehand doing some "preshaving" aka readying my legs for the ultimate shave. Maxi skirts and dresses have been my outfit du summer which allow me to lazily neglect my hairy stilts. Lets just say I'm going to need a new razor HA!  

Back to the massage. I was greeted by my petite masseuse who welcomed me into a dimly lit room and gave me my instructions, remove all clothing, undies optional. I of course opted for as much clothing as possible so I kept the undies. I lay on the table, took a deep breath and went to my happy place. 

The massage began as calming Solitudes music played quietly in the background. For the next hour I was kneaded like a ball of dough, leaving me in deep PAIN. I feel like I have lifted 14533 pound weights with my upper back only on the surface of the sun (skin feels like it has received a 3rd degree burn).  So I would call this massage successful??? After said massage I stumbled out, asking friends if I was bleeding. 

Anyways once it was all over my friends and I got changed into our swimsuits and headed for the famous baths. There were a number of hot and cold pools to bounce around in. We were given some instructions about hopping in cold baths (ranging from 13-16 degrees) and then the hot ones (90 something to 104 degrees). I tried to do the cold ones but HOLY they were cold so I mostly stuck to the hot ones. They were glorious and relaxing and just what I needed after an hour of pummeling. There was also a sauna and a eucalyptus steam room that definitely cleared my sinuses that's for sure. 

Perhaps the most interesting and challenging part of the day was the part where the entire spa was SILENT. Now, if you can gauge my love for talking and my gift for gab by how much I write here on a weekly basis, then you can probably figure out that I love to talk. A lot. So to "respect the quiet" as I was frequently reminded to do by signs EVERYWHERE was difficult!! I practiced my "hushed whisper" voice all week and definitely developed some new vocal chord capabilities as a result. Nevertheless I maitained a somewhat quiet speech for the day and managed not to get kicked out of the spa for chit chat! A success!

Anyways we spent a couple of hours in the different outdoor baths and then headed to the village of Blue Mountain for dinner. We settled on Oliver and Bonacini by the pond and ate delicious meals! It was a perfect day with gorgeous weather and perfect company. We talked non-stop the whole day and got a chance to catch up on each other's lives and hear some of Katherine's exciting wedding plans!  Overall it was a fantastic day and a very cool experience that I will definitely try again.

Tonight I lie in bed in an awkward position as to not anger the beast that is my upper back and shoulders. Tomorrow I will be packing, running errands and exchanging my CDN dollars for US and heading for Buffalo for the night before flying out to Florida on Tuesday morning!! I am SUPER excited to spend some quality time with my best Wemindji girls in the extreme humidity of the south. I am not bringing my straightener. What is the point. 

See you soon!

Happy surprise birthday to Monika!

Oh and Carmen met ADAM BEACH at Wemindji's 55th birthday celebrations! I am insanely jealous and will not recover. 

Sweet Summer

Well, I have just finished up week 3 of my summer break and am really looking forward to the next couple of weeks coming up! 

Since I last wrote I attended and helped out at my best friend Katherine's bridal shower last Sunday.  It was an EVENT let’s just put it that way!  No expense or detail was spared and you could tell the mothers of the bride and groom spent months planning and went all out to create a beautiful day for their kids.  It was held at the Canadiana restaurant and hall in Toronto and once the hall downstairs was dressed up, it looked gorgeous.  There were tons of fun games, delicious food and they let me get to the microphone a few times which was a mistake on their part HA! Anyways it was a long but very exciting day and I loved spending it with Katherine and a handful of her and my closest friends and family.

Eryl my sister has also been coming over to teach me and my friends yoga! Eryl recently completed Power Yoga teacher training and is working on becoming certified, which requires her - among other things, to teach free yoga classes!! I'm in!  I knew I was a little rusty and more than a little inflexible but this was actually astounding.  Eryl has her work cut out for her.  Trying to remain ZEN, I did as many poses to their closest resemblance as I could manage but I still wound up looking like a stuffed pretzel.  So I'm going to continue to work on it ahah!! Either way it makes for a great time, she is a fabulous teacher. Here is her blog http://twofeetheartbeat.wordpress.com/

This week I also received my first Oakville parking ticket.  I was literally stalked by the parking guy until he saw me make a parking mistake (the back of my van hung over the edge of a sidewalk resulting in my receiving a $35 ticket.) at my Granddad’s house.  My aunties, mom and I have been slowly working on emptying his house for the past couple of weeks of his keepsakes, valuables and some not-so-valuable items.  It has been hot, dusty but also really nice to see some of his old books and things he kept from the past.  I have managed to salvage some really cool items and books from his collections and little things that will go in my home and serve as little glimpses into our past.  I miss him but am also glad to be able to help my family start a new chapter in their lives.

Other than hanging out with friends and family I haven't been too busy which really suits me.  I am enjoying the (still too hot) beautiful weather and spending some quality time with Bobo.  My mother and I went to Niagara-on-the-Lake for a great meal and some shopping.  Last night I caught up with some more friends at a delish backyard BBQ and yesterday and today I have been babysitting the house as my mom had to go to a wedding and the floors are being redone upstairs.  The house is a disaster so it will be really nice when everything can be returned to the rooms and life can resume. 

Many of you will be proud to know that I have finally booked my G driving test.  I was a late bloomer in the driving department, only getting my learner's permit (G1) at age 21.  Being a seasoned public transit-taker and never needing a car, I relied on the generosity of others and busses, trains, streetcars and subways until ultimately it was deemed very necessary to get my own car (commuting from Mississauga to Hamilton and Brantford for placement and teacher's college).  Anyways the time has come for me to complete the last part of my driver's qualifications and I am just a little scared ha!  I have also signed up for a refresher 1 hour course in-car so I can review all the rules and hopefully erase the bad habits I have learned along the way.  Wish me luck!

This week coming up I have more social dates and getting ready for FLORIDA! I am so excited for Florida and can't wait to hop on the plane next Tuesday! Before Florida though is Katherine's bachelorette spa retreat at the Scandinave Spa in Blue Mountain! It is going to be a lovely afternoon of pampering and hanging out.  We have arranged for hour-long massages which I am both looking forward to and terrified for.  I am hoping the lights will be dimmed and I am given a tranquilizer.  I may also need to invest in a heavy-duty razor because let’s just say I like the single life and the single life likes me!

Summer boy

Bridal shower!

Beautiful bride!

Sweet thrift shop find!

Mummy and me in downtown Niagara-on-the-Lake

Precious boy

Housewarming gift for Katherine and Mike

Eryl vs. Me yoga stylz

Strike a pose

My new remote control for maintaining some sort of classroom control next year ha.

Me and my Daddy

:|

My new mug!

Eryl

Summer break update

Well guys let me catch you up on what I have been doing one week into my sacred summer vacation. 

Nothing. 

Sweet, unadulterated nothing. It feels great! I have finally caught up on my sleep, spent some quality time with Bobo, caught up with some friends and family, started to catch up on some shows, relaxed in my glorious backyard (complete with blow up pool) and helped out with some preparations for tomorrow's bridal shower for my best friend Katherine. 

The weather has been by most people's standards, gorgeous. I, as you may know, am an expert in finding the negative in everything so the humidity is really killing me at the moment. The great thing about Wemindji is the lack of humidity in the "summer months".  Sure you have swarms of bloodthirsty bugs shadowing your every step but nothing beats a beautiful sunshiny day with smooth hair and no sweats. If there is one thing I hate it is to sweat. I am currently sitting on a deck chair only moving 2 thumbs to type this and am dripping. Luckily I have a handy blow up pool to cool me off at my convenience! Oh life is good!

I've decided to leave my shopping for up north until the end of my break. It is actually one of my favorite things to do but I know I've got to pace myself both financially and mentally. I've got 5 more weeks to go and plenty of time to empty out Dollarama. Anyways this afternoon I am joining the mother of the bride in setting up and doing some last minute preparations for Katherine's bridal shower tomorrow and I am super excited! 

Sorry this was so boring. I promise ill try to go skydiving or something this week. 

I think I hit one of these on the drive down. 

I hate bugs!

Cutest ever!!