Mother’s Day brunch at Barrie Hill Farms

Belgium waffles, with blueberry and strawberry sauce straight from the farm.

Topped with a great scoop of whipped cream. Yum!

This is one of my all-time favourite places.

My summer doesn’t properly begin until I have picked a heaping basket of sweet, red, luscious strawberries. I have started my summers this way for the past forty or so years.

A tradition I plan to continue for many more years.

The wagon rides through the fields, though, have changed in the past forty years.

There are rules now. Please remain seated, and definitely NO jumping of the wagon

The jumping off, running to get back on, jumping off, running to get back on, jumping off, running to get back on, jumping off…….days are over!

Udder nonsense.

Udderly ridiculous.

Udderly strange.

Udderly different.

Udderly familiar.

NO moo…………RE!!!!!

A vendor find! A positive in a world that needs more positives!

Happy Mother’s Day, from our home to yours!

Dandelion Honey

Separate two bouquets of brilliant, yellow dandelions from their grooved leaf funnels.

Remove the stems, and the green pieces.

Add equal parts, sugar, and water.

Then, reduce, reduce, reduce

Just a little bit more! I totally agree with Winnie the Pooh.

Dandelion, honey!

Smooth as honey.

Sticky as toffee.

Sweet as ever!

With a little hint of lemon.

If you don’t like this multi-purpose, beneficial little plant, stop making wishes.

Every time you breathe upon that little ball of fluff, you are sending anywhere from 55 to 175 seeds into the air.

And somewhere, at some time, someone will be harvesting this overlooked and mistreated bright yellow flower!!!!

Down by the River

I wanted to walk to the river today,
Just a little over two kilometers away. 

But I could not take that first step.
My shoe, it would not move.

Somehow, over the years,
I have lost my groove. 

As the tears rolled down my face,
I silently cried.

Like ketchup on a plate 
Of old French fries. 

I know the day will come 
When into the river
My toes,
Will drum.

Until then
I will contemplate 
How I ended up
In this ridiculous 
STATE!!!!

Happy Earth Day

The stump upon which my little grandson sits has 135 rings old.

This stump is all the remains from a once majestic ash tree.

The 135 rings would have numbered many more, if not for that tiny, emerald green, ash borer.

The stump of an old ash tree
that died prematurely.

Rebirth on the forest floor. Room for conifers, deciduous, and many more.

The earth, left on it’s own will flourish.

Grow where the squirrels have planted you!

Happy Earth Day!!!!!

Signs, Signs….

On a country sign.
Beside art, and ice creams.
Read it, if you can!

The Phelpston Tract….

Long logs of red pine grace the forest floor

Having lived alongside the Simcoe County Forest for the past 40-plus years, we have had the privilege of watching the forest transform from a purely red pine forest to one with a mixture of tall, straight pine trees and a healthy young deciduous undergrowth.

A beautiful bouquet, gifted to us from a tall straight pine tree.

Years ago, our children and their cousins ran freely through this forest. Their pathes uninterrupted by saplings and undergrowth. Their steps treading lightly upon the thick blanket of pine needles that covered the forest floor.

The pine trees have been in the minority for, at least, the last decade. This week, their numbers have decreased again.

What is the answer? If a tree falls in the forest, does it make a sound? Yes, it does. But not as loud as one might think.

This spring, as the sun shines through the newly formed openings, a new canvas will be created.

Saplings, once struggling to reach the sky, will now bathe in warmth and sunshine.

Leaves unfurling, trunks stretching, and canopies exploding, sheltering the mosses, grasses, fungi, and flowers that now cover the forest floor.

A new canvas is about to be painted.

The Three Sisters Legend

The Three Sisters Legend, as presented at the Three Sisters exhibit at the Sweatwater Harvest Festival, held this past weekend at Sainte-Marie Among the Hurons and the Wye Marsh.

Corn, beans, and squash were always planted together. The Indigenous people believed that their spirits were loving sisters who liked to stay beside one another. When the seeds were planted, the Indigenous people prayed to the Thunder Spirit not to burn the earth and to give the sisters all the water they needed.

Late in the summer, when the crops were ripe, the people celebrated because the sisters had grown up. At the next moon, they danced in honour of the harvest. The life cycle was complete. On that day, the women sang. ‘The three sisters are happy because they are home again from their summer in the fields.

A squash seed, a bean, and a kernel of corn.

T-Bears Maple Syrup Party

The sugar shack….where friends and nieghbours meet.

If you ask any of our children to give an example of a favourite childhood memory, all three of them will tell you about Brown’s annual Sugarbush party. It’s always been near or at the top of their list.

The stream which left our kids soaked but happy. I was often barefoot in my boots, having given one of my children my dry socks.

Celebrating springs arrival with snow, rain, and sleet, and sometimes lots of mud brought with it the freedom to run through the forests and the streams.

They will share how they trampled through the snow with golf clubs in hopes of winning the coveted T-Bear trophy for snow golf.

The warmth of an open fire. These open flames dried many pairs of mittens, socks and snowpants.

Added to the experience were the hotdogs and marshmallows roasted over an open fire.

Our host, being an avid hunter, allowed our children and us to experience the culinary delights of bear, venison, and moose sausage.

Sampling maple sap and maple syrup, sometimes with a spoon, sometimes with a dip in the bucket.

Not everyone wanted to use it, but it was there!

There is store bought maple syrup, and then, there is the real thing.

Can’t wait to bring the grandkids.

Wasaga Beach Sand Dunes

Where the bay, the beach, and the river meet the sky.

I went on a wonderful walk with a great friend today, along the boardwalk at Wasaga Beach, to where the Nottawasaga River enters Georgian Bay.

Native plants help maintain a delicate balance as our feet leave footprints on the sandblown boardwalk.

Coastal sanddunes, one of Canada’s most fragile ecosystems, are being restored along the shores of Georgian Bay.

A large piece of driftwood doing what comes natural.

Stretching 14k, Wasaga Beach is the world’s longest fresh water beach.

Marram grasses swayed with the breeze as a light drizzle began to dampen the air.

Life is everywhere.

Resting spots, room for everyone and everything.

Wasaga Beach, along the shores of Georgian Bay, is just a short drive away from the place I call home.

This beautiful country of ours has so much to offer, so much to explore, and beautiful people to discover it with!

Winter Time, and the Livin’ is Easy

Winter time,
and the wind
it is a blowin'.

Everyime 
you turn around, 
it is a snowin'.

Except for this year, 
with
El nino,
You never know
which way
it is a goin'.