Embrace Life

anticipation | autumn

Bring it!

Cooler weather - low temperature and humidity. Rain is welcome!
Knit and structured fabrics in the heavier clothes.
Comfort food and the constant use of my crock pot.

I am NOT a warm weather girl. Not by any stretch. I never have been. Born in the waning days of summer, I'd love it if I could live there - in the comfort of jeans and a sweater - all year long! Even better when I add boots, a scarf and some gloves.

* * * * *

My favourite go-to recipe for autumn and winter is chili! Now that I've found out my food allergies do not (as suspected) include cheddar cheese, I'm excited to bring out the crock pot and make some soon!

CROCK POT CHILI

2 pounds (1Kg) lean ground beef (sometimes replaced or split with turkey)

1 large or 2 medium yellow cooking onions, diced

4 cloves garlic, chopped

2 packages McCormick® Chili Seasoning Mix, Original (I actually use a little less because we're not big fans of too much heat in our food - except Caden and he uses hot sauce to heat his up!)

2 cans (14.5 oz/410g) diced tomatoes, undrained

1 can (16 oz/454g) kidney beans, undrained

3 cups frozen corn

Brown meat in large skillet, with diced onions and garlic, on medium-high heat. With slotted spoon to drain fat, transfer into crock pot. Add in Seasoning Mix, tomatoes, beans and corn. Set crock pot to low and cook, covered, for 6-7 hours.

Serve with sour cream, guacamole, shredded cheddar and/or tortilla chips.

* * * * *

Now that our days are filled with lots of study, volleyball and voice lessons, I have no doubt this recipe will be in regular rotation in our house with our many evening obligations. The best part is that since it tastes so good the next day, it'll be a great just-home-from-school snack on those days our timing is really tight!

Autumn is my favourite season made even better with plenty of comfort food. What is your favourite go-to meal?

real right now | heat + humidity

I haven't been absent on purpose. I find the "dog days" of summer arrived early this year and it has sapped me of all my strength! I woke up this morning surprised to realize it is Thursday. The temperatures have been in the mid-30s and feels in the mid-40s. Not ideal.

• Chloé was delivered to OELC in Orillia for her week of Athletics. She was nervous but I think she'll be fabulous and make some wonderful friends. I hope she's not melting!
• I went for a long walk and talk with a friend on Monday.
• I got Cole all packed up and shipped out to his almost-month in Northern British Columbia where he, the lone Canadian, and 11 kids will be clearing trails and volunteering in a cannery while absorbing the culture of people indigineous to the area.
• Claire came home (finally) from her felt-like-forever-away trip to Ottawa with friends. She is desperately allergic to just about everything she was exposed to but managed to come home in one piece. Kinda.
• I went for a lovely lunch with a friend on Tuesday and caught up on all of her most recent entrepreneurial adventures. She's amazing.
• Another lunch was enjoyed with another friend on Wednesday. I love being with someone so like me and so not like me all in the same breath. Looking forward to many, many lunches in the years ahead.
• Love my osteopath and my foot is remarkably better - and so is my hip! I look forward to our appointments.
• Today takes me off to the dentist for a few hours. Not my favourite place to be, but I enjoy my dentist and the ladies at her practice. I'm looking forward to hearing their happy chatter and insights while all of my mercury fillings are removed and replaced.
• Caden, not to be forgotten, has a week off of baseball and is not happy about it. The irony of this break is that it has fallen on a dry week in a season of rain-outs. He's learning a ton at volleyball camp as that is his winter sport of choice now that he's not at a rink.
• Claire woke me at 1:30AM to let me know that the JT & Jay-Z concert last night in Toronto was fantastic. She had such a great time and very much enjoyed her grad gift from her Grampy.
• I cleared out THOUSANDS of photos and uploaded my favourites to 500px. I even set up a store!
• I'm enjoying having the British Open playing on TSN in the background. Golf is such a great game. I plan to imagine myself transported to the windy and overcast days forecast for Muirfield Golf Links in Scotland!
• Tomorrow will be spent figuring out my next big project. I think paint will be involved - the wall kind, not the canvas kind.

So, I've cranked up the AC and playing catch up on line!

What have you been up to lately?

anticipation | spring break

Taken March 30, 2012. There is hope!

Most of us here in Oakville are happy to live in our bubble - a place where the weather is ranked #1 in Canada. Because of our proximity to Lake Ontario we rarely get snow in the winter and it is quite cool in the summer - well, in comparison with many other places. This winter? It's been a winter, a real, honest-to-goodness snow- and wind-filled miserable few months. We've had snow. A lot of it. We've had wind. Huge winds have come to make my morning walks icy or wet followed by gobs of heavy snow to make everything pretty but treacherous.

Spring break will bring with it a much welcome escape! I believe I've mentioned a bagillion times over the last few months that I'm so happy my boys are no longer playing hockey and this year is the first one where we are able to enjoy time away as we have no coach-voiced edicts to stay over the break. This year we have plans to head toward the sun. Yay!

Well, that will take up one week of our break - a crazy long break. For reasons I have yet to understand, our school will be closed from March 8 - 24 and then again March 28 - April 1 for Easter. Essentially that means the kids get a whopping eight school days in the whole month of March. Most of the parents I know are even taking the days between leaving only four school days in March for their kids. GREAT for the overseas boaders, but really? I have no idea what we're going to do with the extra time except SLEEP.

Relax. Refresh. Renew. That's the plan.

Hopefully by the time April rolls around we'll have some buds on the trees, some sun in the sky and a brighter outlook on things.

This has been a very long and very dreary winter.

One Frame at a Time | Stormy Days

I have sat down to type this post for way too long.

The only thing I've got right is the photo!

A storm drain. 

What a wild few days!

The weather, as seen on the television and via internet, was tragic and frightening. Though the effects of the Frankenstorm was not felt here to the same degree as in the States. Every autumn it is so sad to see the news from various places, big and small, as they suffer the punishment of the storms. We did lose some power for a time. We did have a lot of blustery wind - more of the Winnie the Pooh variety than anything considered violent. The rain has arrived in fits and starts. It is really no different than most tropical storms that come north - they often defines our autumn weather. Always the tail end of something terrible.

It gives me pause. A pause created by a society collectively holding it's breath in anticipation of something awful.

As a result, I'm so incredibly grateful for having healthy kids, a roof over my head, a vehicle (albeit a tiny little Matrix rental) and always something to keep me busy.

Life is good.

Photo Walk | Appleby College

I am really enjoying my occasional photo walks. This time around I was joined by my friend Kelly who met me mid-morning at Appleby College, an almost 50 acre campus located right on the shore of Lake Ontario. I continue to play with my new Sigma 70-200/f2.8 and I wanted to see how it did outside. I'm very pleased! This is just a small sampling of the over 300 photos taken:

 

It took us about an hour and a half to walk the perimeter of the property. We started out in bright sunshine and ended on a rather dreary note, but the contrast of the gorgeous fall colours against the dreary gray background of the water and sky was stunning.

I'm looking forward to heading back, but it won't be for a while. Kelly has suggested Bronte Park where we can take shots of the animals. This could be interesting!

Winter: Last Gasp

Oh, please let this be the last gasp. The first week of March and we've barely had a break from the snow covering everything.

I know I mentioned that Enviroment Canada announced we should expect three more months of winter, but holy smokes, I can't handle any more snow. I'm so tired of the white turning to black ground and the accompanying gray days. This is not normal for our particular area of the country.

Though, it has been fun to find photo opportunitites. These are the most recent photos from my memory card:

FOUND IN MY FRONT YARD

FOUND AT CORONATION PARK

I stopped by the park on my way from collecting Claire from timekeeping - she has been at the coldest rink in Oakville from 7AM to 11AM every Sunday since October - I'm learning to bring my camera as Coronation Park has some beautiful and often unexpected sights:

I have to say, as far as winters go, I'm happy we're prepared for the "bad" weather. I've spent the last few months seeing crazy weather - hail, ice and snow - in places like Texas and Florida where no one has snow tires or shovels and it has been more dangerous than simply inconvenient. It is startling to see full size vehicles play bumper cars on the evening news.

I'm ready to see the tail end of this inconvenience and have some warmth seep into my cold and damp old bones!

Team Up Thursday: Sign

I enjoy these Team Up Thursday challenges and it has been great fun to join my friend and wonderful photographer, Shirley LeMay each week combining our interpretation of a theme. I'm always delighted to open my mail to see the final diptych. Check out many more on the Flickr group: Team Up Thursday.

This week the theme was SIGN and this his how we both captured it:

My SIGN: Caden snuck into my bed at some point during the night. This is usually a sign that he is coming down with something or he needs to talk. This particular morning my little boy simply wanted a bit of mama time. Thank goodness it wasn't followed up with a cold - worse, it was the flu!

Shirley's SIGN: Frost on the inside of the windows definitely signals that it is cold as the dickens outside. When I took the picture, it was 0 degF or -18 degC. That was on Monday and it hasn't warmed up much since. Another "good sign" from the picture - it's no longer dark when I get downstairs to the kitchen at 6:45. The days are getting longer, so warmer days will be here soon.

I have to agree with Shirley. I am greatly enjoying the longer days. For me the realization came at the other end of the day. Claire and Cole are usually collected from school around 5PM and I realized yesterday that I was driving in daylight. Warmer days! Oh, I'm so looking forward to their inevitable arrival. I hope it is sooner rather than later. This year I feel chilled to the bone.

the simple things | 10

glow

it has been dingy and gray around here for what feels like weeks on end. we were given about a half hour of sunlight, just before dusk, as dinner was being planned, and didn't have the heart to complain that it was shining in my eyes. my lovely claire went over to the window to block it for me and it was then i realized how she glowed in the light.

the most beautiful part? not only was it a play on light, but glow is part of her generous teenage personality, most of the time. for that i am always grateful.

the simple things | 09

warm

this past weekend much of my time was spent driving back and forth from stratford to oakville - normally the trip takes about 100 minutes, each way. we were there for a hockey tournament in what turned out to be the coldest rinks i have ever experienced. the one part i forgot was that stratford happens to be in what is referred to as the "snow belt" and boy did that ever prove to be true! not only that, but two of those trips were made in blizzard conditions with either snow falling or blowing at a frightening rate making those trips even longer than planned.

i appreciated the warmth of not only the volunteers who were running the tournament, but the lobby which provided a much appreciated respite from the weather outside.

SOOC Saturday: Raindrop

Another "blast from the past" meme that I miss doing. I can't believe I have not shared a SOOC Saturday since June!

It's been wet and blustery - sunny and windy - here in southern Ontario with the temperature all over the place. When you leave the house you never know what to bring: an umbrella or sunscreen! There was a break in some wet weather for a few minutes mid-week and I noticed that my lilac tree was glowing in tiny raindrops. The effect was brilliant and I could not capture it - or, at least, I could not do it justice. I did manage to get some nice droplet shots, though.

What is your favourite SOOC (Straight Out Of Camera) shot today? You can join in: here!

Shake My Head

Earlier today I was putting my plans for the week together. This includes checking the weather forecast. It's this kind of thing that makes me smile, in dismay:

Current: Showers. Huh? I took a glance to my left and realized it was ... wrong. This is what I found outside my back door:

The best part of it all? The Weather Network is located IN OAKVILLE. You'd think they could just look out the window and get it right.

*Sigh*

Shake my head.

No doubt it will rain. Just not current: showers.

My Best Shot Monday: Water Drops

Our weather has been typical of autumn - breezy, gray and wet one minute and bright and sunny the next. The skies are always changing and the leaves have just started giving way from green to the more brilliant red and yellow. We've had to pack sweaters and raincoats and t-shirts just to keep up with the temperature changes.

What is your best shot this Monday? Do you have a photo to showcase? Be sure to join in My Best Shot Monday, go here for details :)

Water & Teenagers

Claire had been looking forward to her party for weeks. Her mother had finally relented and she was able to invite a bunch of friends over. Unfortunately for her, many of the other parents had other plans and a number of her friends were out of town. Bummer.

Then sandwiched in between days of glorious weather, by set-up time things looked like this:

Was it ever wet! Double bummer.

No matter. By the end, Louis and the kids had set up the slip-n-slides, the volleyball net, the lounge chairs and Claire had found every extra towel we have in the house. Ready for whoever showed up.

Seven kids + Sibs. Not bad. The best part? Mama is "cool" because it was never cancelled ;)

A bit wet! The girls had a great time, especially when the sun finally made it's appearance. Better late than never, eh?

I don't think anyone actually used the slip-n-slides but everyone had a great time. The boys played full-on tackle football and managed to attach the squirter on the end of the hose. Shrieks and delight ensued. Now it's just a big wet and muddy mess!

Four large pizzas, four boxes of Kool Aid jammers and two dozen cupcakes later it was time to go home. 

I love saying yes.

Shh, don't tell her.

Creativity Boot Camp: Day 4

I was a little less than enthused when I woke to the assignment for today: go out into nature and seek inspiration. Ugh. It's windy and rainy. Maybe great for photos but not great for me or my equipment! I do know the best photos are those with depth - rain adds depth, wind adds depth, fog adds depth, monochromatic colours (to me) adds depth. So, with a swift mental kick in the pants, I put on my gardening boots and went outside:

I love the grays and greens, all of the muted wet tones that holler "spring". Many of the perennials around our home have already spent their flowers, but I was happy to capture some of the late-spring blooms.

JOURNAL PROMPT

Now I’d like you to look at your photos. There’s no need to print them…looking at them on the computer will work fine. Think about what specifically motivated you to take certain pictures. Was it something small and unique about your subject? Was it the color? Was it how certain elements came together and played off of one another?  Get detailed. Think about it a lot…as if you were trying to tell a child what made that beautiful. If you were to go back and attempt to re-take the pictures, capturing only the elements that you were drawn to, how would you frame the shot?

From Upper Left to Lower Right, by row, L-R:

1. I love rainy days, I really do. When I'm inside. This is the look at the drips on the window before I got on my boots and headed outside. If I were to re-take I'd focus less on the drops so you could see more of the tree and kayaks.

2. My pots have been doing pretty well with their white and purple petunias. One pot is doing better than the other so that's a project for better weather, must figure out why. Love the colors: purple, white, green. If I were to re-take I'd bend my knees and be more at the same level as the lip of the pot.

3. Grr. Bike left out in the rain, which means it was left outside all night! If I were to re-take I'd focus more on the chain and gears.

4. A potential "heavy metal" shot. The big truck, the only way I can get my whole crew, and their stuff, to where we're going. If I were to retake I don't think I'd change this shot - well, maybe I'd move the hockey sticks leaning against the house.

5. Wet leaves covering the chain link fence between us and one of our neighbours. If I were to re-take I'd probably get closer to the wet, more detail of the leaves. Or find and show some of the hidden (read: hideous) chain link.

6. I love how the edges of the dogwood blooms are starting to take on their pink colour. I won't have to re-take since I managed about 40 photos of various flowers with dripping water at every angle! I got distracted and forgot about the assignment :)

7. It looks like we won't be eating our barbeque at the outdoor table tonight! If I were to re-take I'd probably adjust the depth of field, it's a bit wonky.

8. Wet rhododendron leaves - I believe this plant will never bloom! It mocks me with it's beautiful big leaves and no blooms. If I were to re-take I'd wait for the big lavender coloured blossoms I've been waiting for, it's only been two years!

9. The kayaks were flipped over to not catch the rain. We just got them for the kids and they are so thrilled with the idea of going on the lake and exploring. If I were to re-take I'd turn over the kayaks to reveal their bright red colour.

10. Along the other side of the house there is a great green canopy of leaves and branches over a stone walkway. If I were to re-take I'd take a vertical shot of the actual walkway. Plus, the rain was starting again and pointing the lens upward was awkward.

11. I'm a sucker for white flowers. This bush is almost done for the season and I wanted to get a photo or ten of it's delicate flowers before they hit the ground with the force of the rain. The flowers are so delicate they couldn't even handle the weight of the droplets. No reason to re-take.

12. The holly berries which are so bright and red in the winter start as a multitude of small green balls. It was so windy it was hard to get a decent shot. If I were to re-take I'd probably shoot looking straight down at the berries.

13. The water droplet on the blue spruce needles just happened to be there, until a huge gust of wind knocked it away. If I were to re-take, I'd not have to!

14. The smoke tree is blooming with it's pretty pink pom-pom flowers. I think they're lovely. A really happy plant, totally unwieldy where it is located, but lovely just the same. If I were to re-take I'd focus on a cluster of pom-poms, not just the one.

15. I love the periwinkle that grows as ground cover in the front garden. It blooms in the shade from early spring through late summer with it's delicate purple petals. If I were to re-take I'd get down on the ground, when it is dry, and take a photo parallel to the rock wall. 

16. The cold metal of our ancient, but wonderful BBQ, belies how hot this sucker gets when it's on a roll! If I were to re-take I'd flip to horizontal and take it ... for my heavy metal shot below :)

CREATIVITY PROMPT

The prompt today was "heavy metal" which immediately means, to me, the weights over at BTNL. As it turns out, though Cole did go, I did not accompany him and was unable to capture the shot. An idea for another day. I considered the truck. I considered the cast iron skillet. I settled on the wet BBQ:

Alas, I had to stray from the vertical.

MESSAGE BOARD CONVERSATIONS

Day 4 is all about inspiration. The question today was: What inspires you?  My response on the message board:

I am inspired by the talent of others. Whether I'm in a rut or not, I enjoy going through my google reader and flickr photo streams in the mornings. It fills me up with all kinds of delicious visual goodness. Especially on dreary and wet days like today! There are so many gorgeous sites and blogs online you don't have to click long before running into something brilliant.

I also love watching my kids, listening to them talk and watch them play. It becomes even more fun the older they get. Taking a photo walk with them is really interesting now. I love how they see the world.

The responses are all so though provoking. I think I might consider a few of the ideas presented. Who knows what goodness can come from: walking through my local greenhouse was my favourite idea! What do you think? What inspires you?

I can't wait to wake up to the next assignments.

It's blasted HOT!

Mother Nature did not get the memo this year that summer actually starts in JUNE! We've had a heat alert for the past few days and it feels like mid-August. Hot and steamy with no relief in sight.

Except for watermelon.

We eat a remarkable amount over the course of the summer and we've already devoured two huge whole watermelons. It is the most cooling and refreshing part of the day! A wonderful treat.

Normally we cut up half the melon at a time. Quarter it and eat the big triangular slices. The other day I came across this video which just might be the way we serve watermelon through the summer. 

How do you find relief for you and your kids? What makes crazy high temperatures and humidity tolerable where you are?

SOOC Saturday: Snow

While most of the mid-Atlantic and New England States get hammered - as well as the Canadian Maritimes - we've avoided much of the nasty weather this winter. I ran outside before dark arrived on Friday to get a few quick shots. Evidence that we had a few fat white flakes this winter! I hope it sticks around this time.

What is your favourite SOOC (Straight Out Of Camera) shot today? You can join in: here! 

Winter Solstice: Only lighter from here!

Image found here.

As a proud Canadian, I admit I am obsessed with weather. The Weather Network is represented here on the blog, I get text updates 365 days a year, I know what to expect short- and long-term. Weather watching is one of the great past-times of my people.

The days leading up to December 21st each year have to be the hardest. From the first day of autumn through today, each day gets shorter and more dismal. Officially the winter solstice occurs at 12:47PM today. This is a day to be celebrated, the darkness is done. We are about to gain light again! It may get overcast and grey, but it won't get dark.

Sunrise: 7:48AM

Sunset:  4:44PM

Hours of Daylight: 8:55

and that's the worst it can get, it only gets lighter from here

I'm sure there are some kind of ancient rituals or traditions I should read up on and integrate into my joy on this day. THIS is my winter day of celebration. Over the years I'm becoming far more a "naturalist" as it sets well with my Buddhist-leaning beliefs, and far less a participant in the obligatory-guilt-infused practices of Christmas. (Shh, I do my very best to keep that to myself and make every effort to not mar my children and will continue to do so until the big guy in red no longer makes his annual visit.) 

It's a big week or two of light for me: the light of the birth of my first child, the light of the winter solstice, the light of Christmas, the light of hockey tournaments and the light of New Year's. Whew!

Do you have any time of year that rings most true to you? A day or time that makes you feel all settled,  quiet and complete? Share with me!