Hot hats

You don't have to go all the way to London to see the changing of the guard, you can get a great look at the traditional ceremony right in Ottawa! The guard is only ceremonial here in Canada, but it was fun to see the spectacle and hear the marching band. I bet their heads get hot in those fur hats though, especially as we've been having a very hot and dry summer. For more red, take a look at Ruby Tuesday.

Welcome!

I loved Ottawa! The people there were certainly welcoming and I had a great time there. More looks at the city to come. Until then, you can see more murals at Mural Mondays.

Confidential to my husband: it's been a great five years. Hope we have many more!!!

Notre Dame d'Ottawa

My MiL flew back to Germany today. I'll miss her company, but it was great having her here. We spent a few days in Canada's capitol city, Ottawa. It's a great place to visit with lots to see and do, including Notre Dame basilica. I've got plenty of shots coming up soon of all the things we did together, both in Toronto and Ottawa, so stay tuned!

Future wine

Here's a look at some grapes growing in the Niagara region. I guess by the end of the season, they'll be on their way to becoming wine!

Dramatic skies

A Niagara wine tour is always a good idea for guests who are of age! My MiL seemed to enjoy the tour, we visited a couple of places, tasted some wines and had a nice lunch. These menacing clouds didn't bring much rain though, but they certainly made for an exciting sky pic. If you'd like to see more skies, take a look at Skywatch.

Play me!

The Distillery District is always a good place to show to out-of-town guests. We were lucky enough to get an impromptu concert by this young man. Toronto has a piano project out this summer in honor of the upcoming Pan Am games that will be hosted in Canada. There are 41 pianos around town (one for each of the nations that will be participating) that people can just sit down and play. Although each piano has a unique decoration, they all have a sign saying "Play Me, I'm Yours". I think it's a great idea to bring people together! If you'd like to see more signs, take a look at Signs, Signs.

PS: I feel that I have to explain yesterday's post in a bit more detail. I don't usually take house guests to cemeteries! We actually wanted to visit Dundern Castle which is right across the street from the cemetery. Unfortunately, I didn't check the opening hours before we left and we arrived to find the castle closed on Mondays. Since we had driven an hour to Hamilton, we decided to at least take a look at the cemetery. This is actually the second time I've been to Dundern Castle without being able to visit. Hopefully the third time will be the charm.

Memorial benches

My MiL is in town visiting from Germany, so I've been out and about and getting lots of good shots for my blog. This one comes to you from the Hamilton Cemetery. As you can see behind this lovely memorial area, the grass is totally brown and dry. We need some rain here in the GTA! I was hoping my MiL would bring some from Europe, but so far no luck. If you'd like to see more cemeteries from around the world, take a look at Tapophile Tragics.

Christmas in July

When I first moved to Canada, my husband and I visited the Saint Lawrence Market quite often. However, once we found a weekend market closer to home, we stopped going. A couple of weekends ago, we thought we'd stop by again to see how things were. Not much had changed since the last time we were there, even the Christmas window mural is still up! I guess I can understand why the operators wouldn't want to wash it off and paint it new every year, but... 

If you're interested in seeing more murals, take a look at Monday Murals.

Bridge in the background

A railway bridge runs behind one of the golf courses I like to play. Luckily, the trains don't run too often on the weekends! The scene looked beautiful a few weeks ago when all the fescue was in bloom. I am having a great, although golf-free weekend and I hope you are too!

If you'd like to see more bridges, visit Sunday Bridges.

Bench and basket

If you haven't figured this out by now, I'm crazy for flowers baskets and boxes! I also found this model at Niagara Falls to be quite lovely. I could imagine sitting on that bench and admiring the flowers and the passers-by. There are worse ways to spend a Sunday afternoon, I'm sure!

Brimming box

I have yet to master the art of creating flower boxes like this one that I found in Saint Jacobs. If you look closely, you'll see there was a visitor enjoying the nectar one one of the blooms. Perhaps I can use this photo as a guide for my flower boxes next year. If you'd like to see more blooms, take a look at Floral Fridays.

Pink beauties

These beautiful pink lilies have just started to open in my garden. They are one of the few flowers that came with the house that I actually enjoy, although I am thinking of moving them to another spot. But I think I'll wait until the Master Gardener (my MiL) is here next week to make a decision.

Holly!

My mother-in-law planted this hollyhock for me last year. It has grown beautifully and put out some lovely blooms this year. Hope you are enjoying this little tour of my garden.

Impatient

I don't really know where the name imapatiens comes from, but mine always seem impatient to bloom! I bought two baskets brimming with pink blossoms to decorate my front porch. They seem to be doing well as attested by this bright bud. This week is going to be all flowers, hope you enjoy!

Happy days!!!

My computer is back in business! It's going to take awhile to get caught up on blogging and commenting though as I've got to set everything back up, but it sure is good to be back. And I'm now running a fancy new version of Windows 7. Until then, enjoy these wonderful daisies fresh from my garden.

Technical difficulties

Hi friends. Unfortunately, I am having some technical difficulties with my computer at the moment and I won't be able to post for awhile. I will try to take a look at your blogs during my work hours, but as you can imagine, that's not always easy. Hope I will find a solution soon because it's no fun being without a computer!

General store

I had to take a quick trip back to Mennonite country. Everything is so quaint in Saint Jacobs, it really is like you've stepped back in time to the days of Little House on the Prairie. I was surprised these benches weren't in use, they look so inviting under those trees. 

I hope everyone is having a great weekend. It looks like we're going to get some much-needed rain today. That will be good for my garden and my blogs!

Full moon

We happened to have a full moon on Canada Day night. Luckily it didn't interfere with the fireworks show and it also made for a romantic ambiance that night. A wonderful evening altogether! 

It's finally Friday! Hope you have a good weekend lined up. If you'd like to see more skies, visit Skywatch.

The falls

Niagara Falls is the one tourist attraction in the area I don't mind going to see again and again. I find the rush of water and the power of nature remarkable. I really could probably just stand at the rails for hours watching (and photographing) it. Our guests seemed to enjoy it to when we took them there this past Monday. Just a few more days and I'll be back to regular blogging and commenting, but it's been fun and I've gotten loads of new shots to share.

Independence Day!

Luckily I can get a double usage from my Canada Day fireworks shots as they also work nicely for Independence Day. Hope all my American friends are having a safe and fun holiday. And hopefully you'll have a fireworks show that was as fantastic as this one to see tonight.

Fireworks

Sorry that I am a little late on my promise, but between the Canada Day holiday and the guests, I couldn't find the time to post anything yesterday. I hope you'll enjoy this sampling from the fireworks show. It was pretty spectacular! Every time I thought I had seen the most beautiful display, another more beautiful one came just behind it. I'm glad I caught some good images to remember it with.

July theme day: Chimneys

I've shown you this fire station a couple of times before, but here it is again! The chimney fits well for today's theme day and the (almost) furled flag is a great symbol for Canada Day. I hope all of my Canadian friends are having a fun and safe long weekend. And to everyone else, happy July!

To see more chimneys, take a look here.

PS: I've got visitors in from Germany this week, so my blogging may be sporadic. But not to worry, I haven't forgotten about my virtual friends! And I hope to have some fireworks shots for you tomorrow.