December 19 - 20th - Early Christmas in Toronto...

We arrived in Toronto in the late afternoon. Tiiu and Peter had a beautiful dinner already underway.
Peter's brother, Andy, arrived a little while later to join in on the celebration. We all got dressed in our Christmas rags and the festivities began. We enjoyed a first course of traditional Estonian fare with a Tiiu/Peter flair. We then moved to the living room where Santa's helper, AKA Rein, passed out the gifts. We then went back to the dining room table where we enjoyed a delicious roast and all the trimmings. Our stomachs were groaning when we retired to the living room once again. We greatly missed not having Lembit and Asta, Mark and Juta there. Tom and I were lucky to have a wonderful visit with Lembit and Asta the next day at their condo. We sat and savoured very special words and moments in front of the panoramic view of Lake Ontario that stretched out before us. The clear, shining, glorious day we took in reflected what we shared on the other side of the glass...

We wish all of our family and friends the most special of times during this holiday season.

December 19th - Skating Season is open!

Before leaving for Toronto for an early christmas with Vanaema, and Peter, we stepped out onto the ice. Tom did a couple of tests for ice thickness and it was already 6 inches thick! We have dug out our skates and will be gliding on Buck Lake over the holidays...

Rein's School Christmas Concert - December 16th

Rein and is class sang their own version of 'The Twelve Days of Christmas', and their song was wrapped up by a one-handed cartwheel by one of his classmates, Emma. We were impressed. You could hear Rein confidently sing the words he had practiced for the entire week before.
When Rein came on stage, Silka could not contain her excitement from seeing her brother up there. she belted out a 'Hi, Rein!' that everyone in the gymnasium could hear before they started singing.

December 11th - First Ski of the Year

It was a beautiful, wintery Sunday afternoon....
We drove to an entrance to the Cataraqui Trail (old railway bed) not far from our house. We strapped on our skis, Silka included, and headed off on snowmobile tracks that already marked the way. We skied a lot longer than Tom and I expected. We stopped for a snack along a cliff wall and then headed back. Rein skied almost the whole way and Silka stuck with us either on skis, on foot or riding the sled pulled by her dad.

December 6th, 2009 - It's a winter wonderland at Buck Lake!

Tom Graduates! October 3oth, 2009

It was grand! It was a packed house! There were speeches of inspiration made by some big Canadian names, David Dodge and Paul Volcker (former chief of the U.S. Federal Reserve).
We proudly watched as Tom was hooded on Grant Hall's stage. Later, there were celebrations at the Dean's luncheon and a dinner at Le Chien Noir.
Congratulations, Thomas!!

Halloween 2009 - StormTroopers and Princess Bunnies

StormTroopers and cute little princess bunnies invaded our home on Saturday night. We went to Sydenham (a small town 10 minutes down the road) where we ate pizza at the local diner and then they led us into the dark night.....

We met up with Pebbles and BamBam (Ruby and Neko) and we visited each pumpkin lit home in town where we were met at the door by ghoulish creatures of every sort. As soon as our cute bunny and menacing storm trooper received a treat from one house they shot off ahead of us to the next. We parents could barely keep up!

When we arrived home, the kids sorted their candy, enjoyed a couple of treats and fell into bed exhausted. A fun night!

Trees of Fire on Buck Lake - October 2009

One morning during the last week of October, the kids and I were sitting at the table eating breakfast....
I looked out across the lake and this is what I saw! I grabbed the camera and ran down to the dock to take a picture. The trees were lit up like orange paint brushes for just a few moments but it was spectacular....

Battersea Pumpkin Festival - October 17th

There was candy apples, a dancing pumpkin man, a corn maze, hay rides, live bands, hula dancing, and lots of pumpkins!
Here are just a few pics of the fun we had.

Thanksgiving 2009 - Meanwhile back on Buck Lake.....

While I was playing out in Vancouver, Tom was busy with the kids and guests. Tiiu and Peter and his brother, Andy, came up to celebrate Thanks- giving on Buck Lake. Tom cooked the Turkey and Tiiu made some fantastic dressing and squash (I had some leftovers when I got back - Yum!) They raked leaves, went on one of Tom's "Get Lost" walks on the Rideau Trail. Andy brought the kids the immense lollipops pictured above which they are still working on 3 weeks later......

When Tom and the kids picked me up at the airport, Rein and Silka looked like they had grown an inch while I was away!

Thanksgiving 2009 - Leslie in Vancouver

Mom joined me in Toronto and we flew out to see Steven. It was wonderful to spend some time with him and get a snapshot into his life out there. We met all his grade 5/6 class and spent the day with them at the downtown library. We also met some of his good friends, Mrs. Robinson and her husband, Adriene and Peters and their beautiful dog, Rubix, and then went up to the Sunshine Coast to see Jay and Sherry and their new baby, Min Su. Jay and Steve cooked Thanksgiving dinner with all the trimmings - it was delicious. We also just relaxed, read and watched movies together when we weren't busy visiting. Before we knew it Mom and I were getting on the plane back to Ontario and Steve was on the way to the bus to teach for another day. We look forward to seeing him at Christmas when he comes and stays with us from December 22nd to the 28th.

Rein's First Day at School - Grade One!

He's only six and in grade 1 and I have to sneak kisses and hugs goodbye in the car already!

Chopper R.I.P.

I picked up Chopper's ashes a few days ago. I still have moments when tears wet my eyes when I think about him. Most of all, I miss his constant presence. He was always there lying or sitting close by. Each time we brush by his collar that now hangs on the railing surrounding the stairs to the basement, it jingles and I instantly look for him. I miss resting my hand on his pointy head and running my fingers through his soft fur. I especially miss our runs together - he would trot beside me with his nose to the ground taking in all the early morning smells. I miss his spirit, his energy, his love.

He was a fantastic dog.

This photo is from this summer on our last day of canoe trip. He had just come out of the water after swimming with Tom and the kids.

It's been a while.....

Since Easter, a lot of things have happened....

We enjoyed a summer of music festivals, family visits, soccer, swimming and another wonderful canoe trip. We lost our furry friend, brother, son - Chopper - and Tom defended his thesis and passed with flying colours. Rein has started Grade one and Silka has discovered a passion for fashion. I continue to wait for part-time hours at work so that I may spend more time at home with the kids and start painting again. Life continues to move forward at a determined pace...

Easter 2009 - Vanaema's 60th and Rein's 6th Birthday!

Well, it was a very busy, fun-filled weekend.....

Tiiu and Rein celebrated their birthdays and Peter Rabbit visited again.
We hunted for easter eggs, had a fabulous Easter Brunch, and visited with Vana Vanad and Juta.

Massassuaga Creek - April 9, 2009

We finally explored the creek on the north end of Buck Lake this year. There's a very narrow window in the spring when the paddling is ideal.
We had a lovely day paddling in the sunshine. We stopped for a picnic along the winding creek and then spent some time at the dam where there is a beautiful waterfall. We saw two green herons that day - a sight only seen in the early spring....

Family Get Lost Walk - 03/07/09

It was a beautiful day...
Snow and ice still on te ground but warm enough for us to shed our jackets. As you can see we discovered some beautiful frozen waterfalls.

Spring is just around the corner.....

Leslie's Ladies Weekend - 02/27 - 03/01/09

We talked, we laughed, we slept in, we read, we ate good food, we skated, we played shinny, we imbibed in red wine and gin & tonics........
Ahhhh, it was heaven.

The Ladies: Leslie, Meredith, Kristin, and Tanya

Our weekend in Godfrey, cont'd - it was for the birds.....

Shawn and Julia have their birds trained well. We are still working on ours.....

Here's Rein feeding a chickadee....

none of them were bold enough to take any of the seeds on Rein's head.

February 21 - 22, Weekend at Shawn and Julia's

We went out to Godfrey and spent the afternoon skating, skiing and tobogganing at our friends, Shawn and Julia's place. We ate some of Julia's homemade Chili and played music into the night. We ended the evening with a game of Settlers of Catan. We had a grand ol' time......

Winterlude 2009 - Family Day Weekend

Well, despite the rain the week before, Winterlude activities were still on. We skated some of the canal, slid down the many slides at the winter park and even shared a couple of sugary, sticky beavertails. We met up with Jessica and Nicholas - saw our little cousin for the first time since last summer. He has grown a lot! He will be one year old one day before Silka turns three years old.
We also visited with our Gatineau friends - stayed with Andrew and Tanya and joined the Henry-Jefferies clan at their Birthday Brunch on Sunday.

Another successful winterlude weekend!!