Neighborhood Chipmunks

I haven't seen a lot of chipmunks in our yard. We have lots of black and grey squirrels - and some smaller, aggressive red ones.

But my neighbor Mary has seen chipmunks in her yard.

These photos were taken by her daughter Kim...

Is this one an adult?

And here, sitting on the top left patio stone are two more... The same family?

I have no idea whether the paler one is younger or simply a different color...

They may have been lured by nuts - a good photography strategy!

St. Albert Cheese... and Burgers...

Recently coming back from a day trip, Terry headed for the village of St. Albert - to buy some fresh curd cheese.

It's always nice to buy fresh cheese packaged that same day.

While we were there, we decided to try their burgers, too. This one had bacon  and cheese on it.

Delicious!

It's a busy place - a lot of people know it's here, way out in the country.

I always like to eat locally produced food, if possible - even if it means  driving into the country a little ways...

Beautiful Leaves

It's the season of leaves changing color in our eastern Ontario community...

Arguably the most beautiful time of the year!

As I admire the different trees - and vines - in the neighborhood, I realize that they need sunlight shining on them to look spectacular...

Why?!

They can look lovely on a cloudy day...

Are they transparent - like stained glass, that lets the light through?!

How is it that they simply GLOW in the sunlight?!

New Art... in Our Garden

This fall, we added a garden statue to our yard...

My older son brought it over... It was a gift from a friend, whose parents are moving into a condo - and no longer wanted it.

I think it makes an interesting addition to our yard. It's visible from several windows... but not overpowering under the pine trees.

My daughter thinks it looks like a ghost because it's all white. I prefer to think of it as a "thinker" - looking down and reflecting ...

A Busy Toronto Shopping Mall

My daughter has always liked fashion... (something I am less interested in the older I get!)

But I'm always up for visiting new places. So when she commented that she was looking for a certain clothing item, I suggested  we go to the premium outlet mall - between Toronto and Guelph - that we had driven past numerous times but never gone into.

Two surprises: We had no idea that it would be such a busy place, especially on the weekend!!

It was hard to find parking - and later, just as hard to exit... The vehicles just kept coming...

Second, some of the stores were very expensive... Gucci, Prada... But that didn't seem to be a deterrent. Those stores were especially full!

I don't think I'll head back again soon -  I like calmer, less busy places to shop in... (though it may be more peaceful mid-week.)

I'm also not much for expensive fashion...

But once we left the mall, when we googled restaurants, our GPS led us to an interesting British-style pub that served a delicious chicken pot pie...

Every table had its own TV tuned in to British soccer.

There was also a dart-board nearby!

A pleasant place to end our shopping trip!

Lovely Guelph Church

On our last trip to Guelph, Terry and I walked through an old neighborhood - made even more beautiful by the autumn leaves...

We were en route to a service at a lovely old Anglican Church...

...the Church of the Apostles.

I love these beautiful old buildings!

The service was lovely - and the people were friendly...

I especially loved the organ music... Here are the wonderful old pipes that made the sound!

Road Trip in Autumn Leaves

Terry and I make frequent trips to Toronto and Guelph while the weather is nice...

On our last trip, leaves were bright red, orange and yellow...

It made the trip so beautiful!

I took a lot of photos while we were driving, so many didn't come out that well...

But I'm thankful for those that are nice enough to share...

On our way home, back to Ottawa, a road sign indicated that we were coming up on a half-hour traffic delay...

A perfect reason to get off the highway and head towards Ottawa using country roads - and our GPS map!

I now have a NEW favorite road home - through Norwood!

We might never have gone there if there hadn't been a delay!

Thankful also for our GPS!

Life ... and traveling ... are very different now with cell phones and GPS technology.