around here

Yukking it up on a hike around Penhorn Lake

This morning, I am writing to the sound of a symphony of fog horns, and placing myself directly under the humidity-dispersing ceiling fan in our sun room.  I am also breathing in air from our wide-open windows that can, I think, best be described as "ocean-fresh": sweet, and laced with salt. It is the kind of air that reminds me to breathe deeply. I know from experience that these are all aspects of Maritime living that will soon become so routine that they will fade quietly into the background of our everyday lives.  But for now they are still novel, and new, and lovely.

This is also true of our new surroundings. This past week, I took it upon myself to spend each day exploring our more immediate neighbourhood on foot, to try and get a sense of where we are situated, how it all fits together, and the best/easiest ways to get in a good dose of nature. That often means, I discovered, finding paths around one of the many, many lakes in and around Dartmouth.  Or, if there is the time and means to go just a little bit further, there is the option of Shubie Park, which I am quickly growing to love.  This weekend, it also meant a slightly more involved trip to Crowbar Lake with Will and the twins (though Linden and I stayed home due to a bit of classic headache/congestion/fatigue on Linden's part). Awesome trails may not be available right out of our doorstep, but they are here!  And there is quite a bit a bit to discover, even, in our very own backyard.  And with that, I'll leave you with some pictures from the week.  Enjoy!

Carefully trying to avoid a rather large patch of poison ivy

Linden opted to go nowhere near the leaves - a very smart decision, I'd say!

Lake scenes

The joys of an old, bizarrely-located  walking bridge over the Circumferential Highway

Face painting and fish-and-chips at the Alderny Market

Harvesting "hay", and wearing what can only be described as a cacophony of different patterns

"Mom! Mom!  Look what I found growing by the side of the house!"

Looks like we've got a pretty good harvest of grapes! Who knew?

Crowbar lake hike with Sylvie and Eva

Some serious hiking! (photo credit: Will)