Look Up, Look Down Challenge – Week 36

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….I’ve wanted to try this challenge for awhile

Kitesurfing Heaven

Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge – Shadow

Posted on April 27, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….. I wanted to post something new and during today’s walk in High Park I found it

http://ceenphotography.com/2014/04/21/cees-fun-foto-challenge-shadows/

I love how the shadows from the chain link fence criss cross over the emu’s face and body.

Spending Family Day With the Dogs

Posted on February 17, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….and my daughter and son-in-law

Today was another sunny but cold day in Toronto and it is Family Day. It is an official holiday in Ontario, Alberta, Saskatchewan and British Columbia. As the name implies it is a day to celebrate families.

Yesterday my husband and I went to the AGO (Art Gallery of Ontario) with out oldest daughter, A and her partner, J and saw the show, The Great Upheaval: Masterpieces from the Guggenheim Collection, 1910 – 1918. I loved it. It’s not a huge show but it featured some amazing artists from the past, such as, Picasso, Kandinsky, Matisse, Chagall, Franz Marc, Kupka and Miro. There must have been at least 30 different artists whose works were on display. It was fascinating to see how this era of new technologies ( film, photography, planes, telephones, electricity, etc.) and the presence of World War I affected the art world. If you’re in Toronto the show goes till March 6, 2014. Unfortunately cameras were not allowed at this show so I don’t have any original photos to show you. The Great Upheaval.

After seeing the show we browsed through some of the other galleries at the AGO, where you are allowed to take photographs. Here are a few highlights of our morning.

: View from a small balcony above the gallery

: Lauren Harris

: Jean Riopelle

: Peterson Ewen

: New addition: The Italian Gallery

: View of the upper beams

Today, my husband, Frances and I arranged to meet our youngest daughter and her husband and Lucy at High Park. We took both dogs to the off leash area. We’ve had so much snow that all the paths are packed solid with snow and ice. Luckily K brought his cleats for his boots and our walk was relatively uneventful, falling that is. We did see a few people wipe out but no serious injuries happened.

Frances and Lucy had a great time, running and wrestling with each other. We got a good walk, as well, probably close to 4k. The humans got tired just watching those two dogs darting back and forth.

After looking at all this snow it’s hard to imagine that another storm is approaching us tonight and we’re expecting another 10 cm to fall. Sigh!

Cheers! Hope everyone had a great Family Day!

Cherry Blossoms in High Park

Posted on May 3, 2013 by Mama Cormier

… every year in late April or early May the Sakura trees blossom and 1000s of people visit the park to take in these beautiful flowers.

The first Japanese Cherry Tree was planted here in 1959. On April 1, 1959, Japanese ambassador to Canada, Toru-Hagiwara, presented 2000 Japanese Somei-Yoshino Sakurathe on behalf of the citizens of Tokyo, Japan as a gift to the citizens of Toronto for their support of Japanese-Canadian refugees after the Second World War.

Today my husband rode his bicycle to his hospital appointment and on his way home he made a side trip to High Park. According to reports, 80% of the trees have bloomed. Here are a few pictures that he took.

I’m hoping that I can make a trip to the park tomorrow and see the blossoms for myself. Apparently the crowds are quite something and taking your car to the park is highly discouraged. I’m planning on riding my bike. It looks like another beautiful weekend.

Cheers!

Dogs’ Nirvana

Posted on March 9, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…. took the dogs to High Park off leash area today

It was a beautiful day and our youngest daughter came over with her basset hound, Lucy. There was a bit of a nip in the air but the sun was shining and when you were in the sun it felt warm.

We decided to take the dogs to a great park we have in here in Toronto called High Park. The park sits on 161 hectares (400 acres) and was gifted to the city of Toronto in 1876 by John Howard. One third of the park is still in a natural state and there is a large fenced-in off leash area for dogs. I like this area because there are lots of options for dog owners. You can stay in a large area where dogs can socialize or you can opt to take some of the trails where dog owners can also get some exercise. We chose the latter option.

As you can see from the photos, winter is starting to leave us but sections of trail are still snow covered and pretty icy. Where the snow has melted it has been replaced with lots of mud and puddles. I’m glad I wore my rubber boots.

The dogs loved it for the most part. Lucy doesn’t like water but mud didn’t seem to bother her. Frances on the other hand loves the puddles. Doggy heaven!