Our First Major Snow

Posted on January 19, 2019 by Mama Cormier

…..in week three of January

I thought we were never going to need the snow shovel this year but a big storm has moved into the northeast of the U.S. and southern Ontario. Here in Toronto it’s been snowing all day but very lightly. I did sweep the snow off the porch and did one pass with the snow shovel over the sidewalk this afternoon.

Forty kilometres west of here in Hamilton it’s been quite a different story. Lucy, our daughter’s dog, had to make a path through about 10 to 20 cm of snow to find a place to pee. This photo was taken about six hours ago. I’m sure the amount of snow has doubled since then.

Hopefully I can get out tomorrow and get some of my own ‘snow’ photos. They’ll be the first this season but Toronto often gets bypassed by the bigger storms.

Art at Montgomery’s Inn

Posted on January 19, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….the new art season at Montgomery’s Inn has begun

Now that the renovations at the inn are 95% complete they are able to host art exhibitions in the Briarly Room once more. Just over two weeks ago I helped curate and install the art work of Shannon McManus.

Shannon is an abstract painter who uses different mediums on Terraskin and Yupo papers. In her artist statement she describes her work thusly: My abstract paintings depict visions of a natural world largely untouched by humankind. They portray the alchemic reactions inherent in stone, water, and earth; in decay, germination, migration and transformation.

Ten days after the installation the inn hosted the opening reception for Shannon’s show. It was very well received and close to 100 people showed up.

Shannon is on the left side of the previous photo.

Last April, Shannon was invited to display her work in China.

If you’d like to see Shannon’s work first hand you can still catch it at Montgomery’s Inn until March. For more information about Shannon and her art go her website here.

Friendly Friday Photo Challenge – Pathways

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Mama Cormier

…..thanks to Amanda from Something to Ponder About for hosting the Friendly Friday Photo Challenge

The pathways here are from the neighbourhood, at Highgate Cemetery in London, Kensington Gardens in London, an autumn path along the Lakeshore, a path through the garden at Montgomery’s Inn, a path to a neighbour’s house on Hallowe’en and a path through the woods when we were ‘hunting’ for the perfect Christmas tree.

It’s Fishy Friday

Posted on January 18, 2019 by Mama Cormier

…every Friday my husband draws a fish to send to our granddaughter

Here is this week’s creation.

When I posted this Winnie hadn’t seen it yet so I can’t share her reaction but when she saw the following picture she declared it was an Owl Monster.

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge – Yellow and Blue

Posted on January 17, 2019 by Mama Cormier

…thanks to Cee for hosting the Fun Foto Challenge

I had lots of photos of yellow and lots of photos of blue but the two colours together proved challenging.

Looking Back to a Warm Autumn Day in Regent’s Park

Posted on January 15, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….another day in London

As the temperatures dip below freezing this week I long for the warm sunny days we had in London, England. On day seven we walked to Ottolenghi’s restaurant on Upper Street and purchased a picnic lunch for the four of us. Then we hopped onto a double decker bus and made our way to Regent’s Park.

Regent’s Park is one of the Royal Parks of London. It lies within north-west London. It is home to Queen Mary’s Gardens and the London Zoo. There are numerous facilities and amenities, including gardens; a lake with a heronry, waterfowl and a boating area; sports pitches; and children’s playgrounds.

One of the highlights for me was Queen Mary’s Gardens. I’ve posted numerous photos of the thousands of roses that have been cultivated her in previous posts. Here are some of the other lovely sites we enjoyed that day.

The park is also home to numerous events. When we were there we had a quick glimpse of the sculpture exhibit.

As you can see we were blessed with beautiful weather that day and every day up to this point of our trip. Unfortunately the next day the skies opened up and our trip to Brighton Beach was cancelled.

Weekly Photo Challenge – Under Cloudy Skies

Posted on January 14, 2019 by Mama Cormier

…thanks to Traveling at Wits End for this week’s photo challenge Under Cloudy Skies

It almost looked like the city was burning but the dark cloud over the waterfront just left a dusting of snow.

Number One of Eight

Posted on January 11, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….the first one is finished

I’m not sure I’ll get all eight done and that isn’t the goal anyway. This one just spoke to me more than the others. I started with the bird, added the music notes and went from there.

Collage Grid #1

Posted on January 10, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….the first assignment from Carla Sonheim’s Year of Collage

After dividing a page in my sketchbook into equal squares I took a handful of small bits of paper from magazines and my own art papers and thoughtfully placed them on the grid. Here is my finished piece.

The second part of this assignment is to take eight pages in my sketch book and glue one medium sized piece of paper on each page. Then we’re so suppose to go back and add some line and/or another piece of paper. We keep doing this to all eight pages until we feel we’re done. It’s okay to skip some pages and come back later. This is proving to be more challenging for me.

One More Christmas Celebration

Posted on January 9, 2019 by Mama Cormier

….just when I thought I was done

I mentioned in one of my recent posts about Christmas that a very good friend of ours who almost always spends Christmas Eve with us couldn’t come over this past year. My daughter arranged for the three of us to get together last week for lunch.

I packed up all the gifts that I had for her, put them in my car and then headed out for Montgomery’s Inn where I volunteered to help put up an art show. I’ve never done a professional exhibit before and I found it exciting helping the artist decide where and how to hang her work. The artist’s name is Sharon McManus and I will probably share more about her work after the official opening this Saturday.

When we finished hanging all the pieces I made my way to Arlene’s place. We met in her condo where she still had up all her Christmas decorations, including her white tree that she’s had since the 60s.

Andrea arrived soon after and we all went down the street to the local Sushi restaurant. We toasted in the New Year with a little saki and warmed our tummies with a bowl of ramen.

When we went back to the condo and Arlene opened her gifts. She loves Henkel Trocken and it’s become a tradition to place a bottle in her Christmas stocking.

Before we left she made us coffee and we shared a muffin and some cookies. Andrea also taught her how to use her camera on her phone so we played around posing for pictures.

I think this is pretty much the end of our Christmas season, although my niece and her husband celebrated Orthodox Christmas a couple of days ago.

There are still a few remnants of Christmas around the neighbourhoods and some of the lights will stay up well past Valentine’s Day but for the most part the decorations are starting to come down and the greenery is starting to whither. Some people are sad that the holiday season is now over. As for me I’m looking forward to some rest and returning to a more normal routine of eating. How about you?