Farm Life...

When you grow up across the road from a field like this, how can you not dream about life in the country?

This farm has a long, tree lined driveway, rolling hills/pastures, a hard wood forest lined with trails, ponds etc…it literally checks all the boxes. I remember that we’d spend Sunday mornings in the kitchen of the red brick farm house, enjoying warm muffins just out of the oven then we’d head back to the bush to cut wood for our woodstove to help us stay nice and cozy in the cold Huron County winters.

If I won the lottery tomorrow, I have a short list of farms I would drive up the laneway of, knock on the door and make them an offer they hopefully couldn’t refuse. I don’t need a big, lavish barn or a 4000 sqft farmhouse…I’d like a modest set up, ideally set in rolling hills with of trees lining the laneway/paddocks and trails to ride/hike on.

These are some of my photos of farms/country properties I admire and who knows, maybe one day I’ll have one of my own ;)

Always remember….

DREAM BIG!!

RR

Frosty!

It's a frosty Thanksgiving Monday at the Country House. After a wonderful dinner with family in the city last evening, to wake up to Mother Nature's crystal-like beauty this morning gave me even more reason to be thankful!

After a bit of a sleep in (7:15am... for someone who regularly gets up at 5am), Charlie and I headed out into the crisp country air for our walk. It felt like every step we took was a photo op...it was just stunning...especially with the sun just coming up over the trees.

I will admit...I'm a BIG fan of this cooler weather...and so is Charlie. He kept rolling and rolling on the cool, crisp grass.... He also had his nose to the ground with all the fresh 'smells' that the Fall weather brings.

The Muskoka chairs (thanks again Em) looked especially stunning as they were covered in sparkly brilliance....

I took some up close shots that captured the rustic beauty of the morning perfectly!

It really was the perfect way to start the day.....and I hope you all have a wonderful holiday Monday! Happy Thanksgiving!!

RR

In The Blink Of An Eye...

I'm lounging in bed listening to Ray LaMontagne's 'For the Summer' and it hits me just how quickly this Summer flew by! I know we say this every year, but this year it has literally gone by in a blink of an eye! 

The photo above was taken one early Summer evening at the country house and Charlie and I were both enjoying just lying in the freshly cut grass, taking in all that is country living (and he was also on high alert due to all the bunnies hopping around us). 

Charlie loves going to the lake just as much as I do. He spent an afternoon swimming in the waves and it was like my 10 year old was a puppy again. I practically had to drag him back to the truck...he didn't want to leave!

I seem to have spent a lot of time at the lake this Summer.... Port Elgin, Sauble Beach, Bayfield, Kincardine.....the shores of Lake Huron are one of the places I love to escape to whenever I can.

A friend and her family and I spent a day at MacGregor Point Provincial Park. We hiked along the shore line, waded in the water and had a nice relaxing evening by the fire.... It was time to put our feet up after walking 20,000 steps that day. We also watched the sunset and was it ever spectacular!...I've written about this before, but you will be hard pressed to find a more beautiful sunset then those you can watch along the shore of Lake Huron!

We also had our second annual Gals Week at the cottage in Sauble Beach. It was a week of amazing weather, lots of sunshine, sand between our toes, frosty beverages, some shopping and again, enjoying all the beauty that the shore of Lake Huron has to offer. It was such a great week and I can't wait till next year!

It was also a Summer of 'get togethers'....whether it was a potluck brunch at a neighbour's house up the street (isn't that a scrumptious looking spread above?) or a night with gal pals with pizza and taste testing some local craft beer, it was so good to be able to get together with those that matter most!

It was also a Summer that included a lot of gardening! The gardens at the Country House were expanded and we made many stops at local garden centres, such as Wild Things near Clifford Ontario, to help fill the space around the house..There's something almost therapeutic about getting your hands dirty, putting the plants in the ground, watching them grow over the Summer and seeing how the garden changes as the Summer extends into Fall.

And of course, it wouldn't be Summer without nights out on my back deck. I didn't spend as much time out there as I would have liked to this summer, but when I did, it was so relaxing and it allows me to forget that I live in the middle of a city.

I hope you had an amazing summer too....and cheers to the sweater and boots season that lies ahead!

RR