At the end of March we had our furthest-flung visitor yet. My pal Monica came for a weekend with her adorable 3 month-old, Emma, from Newfoundland. So honoured that she'd come all this way (and it made me wish we lived much closer). We had a marvellous blip of sunny weather, squeezed in amid the otherwise icy early spring. Monica really took to the city. Emma was very patient about being dragged all over the place (Most of the pix were on print film but here's the little doll):
For Easter we went to Manitoulin Island to visit Mom & Ken. Took advantage of the holiday to make an extra-long weekend for the 2000km+ round trip. So much fun in our rented Nissan Versa: went for a hike in Gatineau Park, through the jaw-dropping Ottawa River valley north of Algonquin, and generally loved being free to roam (a rarer event since Azul's passing, sniff).
Lake Kagawong, Manitoulin
The ice was still on the lake, so it was a peaceful and gorgeous time to be there (no tourists). Rob & I were noticing that we felt super relaxed with the quiet pace of life: no computer, no phone calls, just living in the moment =)
There have been lots of inquiries about how the folks are doing... see for yourself, here they are looking happy just before our amazing Easter dinner. It was so wonderful to be able to spend a holiday meal together like that, and for Rob to meet some of my family (they all got along famously: card games, movies, dog walks, laughs, it was awesome). Ken is doing really well through his cancer treatments, and we're looking forward to getting back for another visit as soon as possible.
Two weeks later I had to make a business trip to Edmonton. Rob decided to come too, so that we could take a break afterward to visit Derek in Wainwright. More family meetings! We hung out for the weekend at Derek's (gorgeous!) new house, with he and his girlfriend Jen. The guys got along great which made me happy.
Right after that Laura came up by train for Kingston for her annual Quebec City spring shopping trip (ha ha, that's what her husband calls it, I think). We had such a blast: strolling the old city, shopping, girls' lunch with white wine, and then an afternoon outing to Ile d'Orléans, where neither she nor Rob had been. Rolling agricultural land with "ancestral" Québecois homes, plunked right in the middle of the fleuve St. Laurent.
Finally, spring means strolls through the nooks and crannies and alleyways of this beautiful town, with lighter jackets, and fresh perspectives on all the incredible sights. I feel fortunate to be here!
ps. Just took a look at last spring's posts. Around that time Laura came to visit, I went to Newfoundland for Monica's wedding, and then visited Derek in Edmonton. Eerie! Or, at least I'm consistent ;)
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