I’m Back and Excited to Share My Journey

Posted on July 22, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….I’ve finally returned from my trip of a lifetime to Italy

We stepped through our front door on Tuesday evening after being on an airplane for 9 hours, at the baggage carousel for at least an hour and then two hours in a car. We ended up driving to Hamilton first to drop off our daughter and Winnie. We stayed for a bit and had a much needed cup of coffee and a bite to eat. Then we packed up our dog, Frances and headed back to Toronto. By the time we got to bed we had been up for about 21 hours.

Luckily for me I managed to sleep through the night but my husband was up at 4:00 and Winnie was definitely on European time, getting up at 2:00 and 4:00 and then again at 7:00. Not only did she wake up but she stayed awake for an hour or two each time.

When I checked my emails I had over 1000. Needless to say that checking and replying to each one is next to impossible. I apologize in advance to my followers whose emails I had to delete. Even deleting emails takes time and I’m now down to 300. I’m hoping to read most of them.

I’ve managed to upload about half of my photos to my laptop. I’ve asked my family members to send me more shots, especially with ones of me in them. At the family wedding I didn’t have one photo of me in either of my cameras. Luckily my brother-in-law and nephew took lots and they promised to send me some.

So for the next couple of weeks I’ll definitely share some of my adventures and certainly many of my photos from Italy. For now I leave you with a small sampling of my 17 days in Venice, Florence, Bologna, Lucca, Assisi and Rome. Enjoy!

Share Your World 2016 – Week 19

Posted on May 9, 2016 by Mama Cormier

….thank you Cee for some very unusual questions this week

You win a pet monkey but this isn’t just any old monkey. It can do one trick for you whenever you want from getting a pop out of the fridge to washing your hair. What would be the trick?

When I saw this question I couldn’t help but think about the Ikea monkey and all the grief the owner went through for owning a monkey. Washing my hair? Never! I’ll think I’ll pass on this question. I could never own a monkey regardless of the talent it may have.
What caring thing are you going to do for yourself today?

Today I went to see a chiropractor. In the last two weeks I’ve had chronic pain in my upper thigh and the side of my hip. It all started on the day that I walked 18 000 steps. I thought it would go away on it’s own but the pain persisted. I discovered that I have bursitis in my hip as a direct result of that long walk. I was tugged at, pushed and pulled. It hurt! The good news is that it felt better when I was done. My homework is to do some exercises, apply ice and not start any new exercise program. No running or long walks. With a few more visits my hip should be ‘all cleaned up’ before I go to Italy in July.
What color do you feel most comfortable wearing?

Believe it or not I love wearing bright colours like royal blue and red. I also like white, peach and periwinkle.
Complete this sentence: When I travel I love to….

….check out quaint little shops, markets and art galleries. I love outdoor cafes and restaurants that the locals eat at.
Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful for a wonderful Mother’s Day weekend. I drove to the finish line for the Sporting Life 10k Run that my oldest daughter, her partner and her brother-in-law participated in. All three finished in great times.

We then drove to Hamilton where we met up with my husband and our youngest daughter and her little family. We had a great time playing with the baby and enjoyed a wonderful meal together.

It’s been a great week at school. The children did really well at the West Conference track and field meet and many of them are moving on to the city finals. All the plans for our Forest of Reading book club celebration are now in place and the silent auction contributions from the classes have been completed by the students and are ready to be fired. Here is the platter that my grade 3 class designed and painted. I did the black lines. I can’t wait to see what it looks like after it’s been fired.

The other thing that I’m grateful for was the amazing lunch that the parents put on for the staff for ‘Teacher Appreciation Day’. They really go all out. They used the library and came in the night before to set it up and decorate it. The food was over the top and there was so much left over that we had a second meal the next day. I also appreciated the fact that there were lots of things that I could eat and still stay on my ‘diet’.

I’m looking forward to a great day on Friday when the students who earned their 12 reading credits come to our Forest of Reading Celebration. We have an author coming to talk to the students, a drama workshop and a hands on journal making workshop plus a pizza lunch for the successful students and the staff who participated as expert readers.

I’m also looking forward to creating more paintings. I’ll write more about that in another post in the next few days.

Cheers!

Share Your World 2015 – Week 40

Posted on October 8, 2015 by Mama Cormier

If you have been to a foreign country name those you have been too?

I haven’t travelled extensively but I’ve been to a few places: USA, Germany, The Netherlands, Austria, and Ireland.

Is the glass half empty or half full? What type of glass is it and what is in the glass?

The glass is half full. It’s a wine glass and it contains a hardy red wine or a crisp white wine.

If you could have an endless supply of any food, what would you get?

I have to agree with Cee and say cheese. I love cheese.

List: List at least five places worth shopping.

Winners, Marshalls, Ikea, Costco, Curry’s, Chapters, Home Sense, Apple,

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful for a very special birthday weekend for my husband. I took him out for dinner on Friday night and on Saturday we drove to Hamilton with the girls to celebrate with my very pregnant daughter and her husband. The food all weekend was exceptional. The only thing that could have made it better would have been the arrival of our first grandchild but it wasn’t to be.

So again I’m looking forward to the birth of our daughter’s little girl. Hopefully I won’t be saying this again next week.

Cheers!

Thanks again to Cee for hosting Share Your World.

Share Your World – 2014 Week 21

Posted on May 27, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….these are the toughest questions yet

If you could make a 15 second speech to the entire world, what would you say?

This is the only world we have. Love it, look after it and keep it safe for the next generation. Love yourself and your fellow man. Be generous with your time and share your knowledge to create a better world. Use your words to solve problems, not weapons. There is no place for hate in this world. Be kind.

If you could take a photograph, paint a picture or write a story of any place in the world, what and where would it be?

I have no idea. There are so many great photographers and travel writers and subsequent photographs and stories of magnificent places in the world that the work has already been done for me. Maybe a better question would be what would I like to see first hand. Even this question is difficult for me because there is so much I haven’t seen. Off the top of my head I’d like to see Machu Picchu, the Pyramids of Giza, the Coliseum in Rome, Stonehenge and the canals of Venice.

If you had to spend one weekend alone in a single store but could remove nothing, which store would you pick?

I thought this question would be fun to answer and then I read that I couldn’t remove anything. Does that include gourmet goodies and bakery delights. I am spending the weekend there after all and one does need to eat. Seeing that I have to sleep there I’m thinking about a department store that sells beds, comfy chairs so that I can curl up and read and exercise equipment so that I can get in a bit of a workout.

I would want to try on shoes to my heart’s content and pull designer clothes from the racks to see if they suit me and are comfortable to wear. Of course I would return everything to its rightful place and leave everything no worse for wear. In Canada I would choose Holt Renfrew and in the U.S., Saks Fifth Avenue.

If you were given a boat or yacht today, what would you name it? (You can always sell the yacht later)

Owning a boat is not high on my priority list so I haven’t given much thought to naming one. How about ‘Get Me Home Safely’ or ‘Slow and Steady Wins the Race’. As you can see I’m a bit of a nervous Nelly when it comes to riding in a boat, especially at high speeds. I’ve always been amazed at how much time and money it takes just to get a boat onto the water and then again when one returns (more fuel, repairs, docking fees, on going maintenance, etc.). Maybe a good name would be ‘This is Where My Money Goes’ or ‘Four Hours of Prep for One Hour of Enjoyment’. To all boat lovers I apologize for my sarcastic response.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful that the girls won all four of their games at the soccer tournament last week. I’m also grateful that the weather was so warm this weekend that the flowers actually started to bloom and I was able to really clean up the front garden.

I’m really pleased that my rhododendron survived the winter and blessed us with some blooms this spring. My Dad’s aren’t nearly as bountiful.

This week I’m looking forward to finishing up the art projects for the silent auction. It’s being held this Saturday at the Fun Fair. Also Jump Rope for Heart is this Friday and so is the playoffs for Girls’ Soccer. It’s going to be a busy week.

For more great posts of Share Your World check out Cee’s Photography.

Share Your World 2014 – Week 19

Posted on May 12, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….this week’s answers are sweet and short

Do you prefer shopping or going to a park?

I guess it depends on the park. I do like to shop but going to the park is definitely more relaxing and easier on the pocketbook.

What is the highest score you’ve ever made in bowling? Actual or virtually played.

It’s been awhile since I’ve gone bowling and five pin and ten pin bowling scores would also be different. Sorry, I just don’t recall how I scored. I just know that I’m not the best or the worst.

Name the foreign countries you’ve been to.

The U.S.A., Ireland, Germany, Austria and the Netherlands. I need to get out in the world more. Next on the list? Iceland and Italy.

Describe your own outlook on life in seven words or less.

Laugh, love, learn, share, explore, play.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

I’m grateful for spending time with my family, in person and over the airwaves. This week I’m looking forward to going to the Blue Jays game with the school choir. They were chosen to sing the national anthems at Wednesday’s game.

For more Share Your World posts check out Cee’s Photography.

From a Blast of Winter to Sunny Skies and Warm Temperatures in Four Hours

Posted on March 13, 2014 by Mama Cormier

…from Toronto to Calgary

Who knew that travelling west to Calgary could be the equivalent of going south in search of warmer weather. Well that might be a bit of a stretch but the temperature in Toronto went down to -30 celsius with the wind chill and the visibility was close to zero as I sat on the tarmac waiting for our plane to be de-iced.

When we arrived in Calgary most of the snow had melted, the sun shone brightly and the temperature was sitting at 14 degrees celsius. When I got to my sister’s place I had to change my clothes because I was literally too uncomfortable in my fleece lined pants and sweater.

It is only 7:00 am here in Calgary but my internal clock can’t seem to adjust to the time change. I’ve only had six hours of sleep and I’m wide awake so I’ve decided to post a few pictures of yesterday’s plane trip. Enjoy!

Sitting on the tarmac waiting to be de-iced

A welcome sight. It’s all about safety.

The de-icing truck doing its thing

Blue skies above the snowy clouds. I thought we’d never get through those clouds.

: Over frozen Lake Michigan

: Across the snow covered Praires

: Approaching Calgary

: Way off in the distance you can see the mountains

: Calgary suburbs

: Calgary industrial neighbourhood

: Downtown in the distance

Howth…..pronounced Ho ht

Posted on July 31, 2013 by Mama Cormier

….with the emphasis on the ‘t’

When we came back from our trip to Howth and said we had been to How-th, K’s Dublin cousin laughed and told us that we were mispronouncing the name.

Regardless of the pronunciation, Howth was one of our sightseeing highlights while in Dublin. It is located north of the city centre, on the coastline and is accessible with the city bus. Our son had been there a couple of days before with his girlfriend but was happy to do the trek again with his parents.

We were actually glad that B knew about the terrain and ensured us that the walk was very doable for us. Of course the first half of the walk was all on an incline but the scenery was breathtaking. The only downside was that when we got to the top I needed a bathroom and there isn’t one on the trail. I’m not adverse to finding a secluded area and doing what I need to do but in this case we ended up at a busy parking lot. Apparently you can drive to the top of the cliffs.

Luckily for me, I’m not shy and I informed a couple of tourists who were looking at the information board with me that I needed to find a toilet. They told me that down the road (off the path) at the bottom of the hill there was a pub. What a godsend.

We found the pub easily, used the facilities, and continued back up the road to finish our hike along the trail. This part of the trail was on higher ground, with wider paths and a slight decline. Along the way we saw a few grandiose homes and as we got closer to the bottom we entered a subdivision of more beautiful homes. Eventually as we got closer to the beach area we passed some quaint stores and pubs and we decided it was time for some liquid refreshment.

As with all pubs in Ireland the atmosphere was relaxed and welcoming. After their pint of beer and my half pint of cider we continued towards the beach and made our way to our bus stop for the half hour trip back into Dublin. In total the walk measured 7k.

All in all, a great way to spend our last day with our son. The next morning he would be flying back to the Netherlands, where he works and lives. Hopefully we’ll see him and his girlfriend again at Christmas. But in the meantime good luck B with your job interview in London, England. What a great reason to plan another trip overseas.

Westport – The Tidiest Town in Ireland

Posted on July 29, 2013 by Mama Cormier

….2 days away from the hustle and bustle of Dublin

Heuston Station in Dublin. We decided to catch the early train to Westport so that we would have some time to explore when we arrived.

On Thursday, July 18th we booked out of our hotel in Dublin and took a cab to Heuston Station to catch our train to Westport. The train was fantastic. The seats were comfortable and we had a table between us where we could rest our electronic devices, books, magazines and drawing pads. The best part was that we had access to WiFi on the train, so that we could check our emails and write to our family back in Canada.

When we arrived in Westport, 3 1/2 hours later, we walked from the train station into town. Along the way, downhill (thank goodness), we walked past a huge stone wall and growing in between the stones we noticed these lovely flowering plants.

We found our bed and breakfast easily and even thought we were too early for check in, the owners kindly let us drop off our bags so that we could explore the town and get some lunch.

Westport is very much like Niagara on the Lake in Ontario. It’s very touristy and the streets are lined with numerous pubs, restaurants, cafes, and gift shops. All the shops are decked out with flowers and the streets are very clean. It literally did win the Tidiest Town award.

A beautiful small river runs through the town and on the south side, next to the large Catholic church a cozy pub, called the West Pub, advertised their prize winning chowder. Not only did it win once but two years in a row. It sounded like the perfect lunch to me. I wasn’t disappointed. K had a bowl of mussels and he raved about them; said they were the best mussels he’s ever eaten. High praise coming from someone who is very particular about his mussels.

After lunch we checked into our room. It was very small but they had managed to squeeze a king size bed, a dresser. wardrobe and two night tables into this tight space. It also had a self contained bathroom with a toilet, sink and toilet. It was beautifully finished in tile from floor to ceiling. With the windows closed the room was absolutely sound proof from the street below but because there was no air conditioning we had to open our window. This wasn’t a problem the first night but on the second night (Friday) we were entertained by the sounds coming from the pub across the street.

We spent the rest of the day checking out all the stores. K purchased a new over the shoulder bag to carry his camera and our lunch and water for the hike we had planned for the next day. I bought myself a cap to keep the sun off my head. It never occurred to me that Ireland would be so warm and sunny when we were packing our bags for this trip. Luckily the cap was only 4 Euro but I could easily have spent 40.

We were in a bit of a quandary as to what to do for dinner. We didn’t want a big fancy meal and we didn’t want fast food or junk food. We came across a small cafe that advertised a cheese board and wine. Perfect! Well almost perfect. Two things that we were really missing on this trip were fruits and vegetables. After our meal we stopped in the local grocery stored and picked up some veggies and dip and a couple of apples.

Our first night in Westport was quiet and relatively uneventful, outside of losing our package of ham from the window sill. To be continued……..

Trinity College and the Library

Posted on July 22, 2013 by Mama Cormier

……how can a librarian go to Dublin and NOT see the library at Trinity College?

One of the first places our son, B, wanted to see was Trinity College and its famous library. I took a tour of the place the last time we were in Ireland but I was happy to visit it again.

I’ve quickly learned on this trip that B isn’t interested in waiting in line or paying to see historical sites. In this regard he is very much like his father; in fact K didn’t even come with us to the college.

When we walked through the archway that leads to the campus grounds we recognized that the place was very busy and there was a huge line-up to get into the library. We settled for the gift shop, where we could walk right in and in one corner, if you looked up you could get a pretty good feel for the size of the library.

After purchasing a couple of books we made our way back onto the grounds and viewed the numerous statues and the interesting architecture. We discovered the outdoor track that was situated in the middle of an idyllic park setting. . We made ourselves comfortable on one of the many park benches and watched the runners, young and old make their way around the track. As my son said ‘ it was surprisingly relaxing watching other people run’.

The iPad or my Laptop?

Posted on June 28, 2013 by Mama Cormier

…… which do I take with me on my trip?

Some of you may have noticed that there were a few days where I didn’t post anything. One reason for this was that I misplaced my power cord for the laptop. I thought this would be the perfect opportunity to practise on the iPad. Unfortunately I experienced a few glitches.

One of the difficulties that I had occurred when I tried to tried to put photos into my post. I had a lot of photos to choose from but for some reason many of the photos had changed when they went through the ‘cloud’. Multitudes of them only showed an enlarged area of concrete or the corner of a building. I really didn’t know what I was looking at.

The other problem that occurred was that the photos that appeared to be okay just wouldn’t let me place them where I wanted them or they changed sizes on me. Sometimes the text feature would freeze and I couldn’t type anything. Are these problems related to WordPress. Heaven forbid!

I’m not sure that I want to use the iPad as my main photographic device but I don’t know how to get my photos from my camera onto the iPad without putting them into my laptop first. I really don’t want to take both my laptop and the iPad. I think I may be able to use the camera’s cable to upload photos but I haven’t tried that yet.

Does anyone have experience with an iPad? Have you ever had any of these problems? I would really appreciate some input from my followers. I’ll keep playing with it. It would certainly weigh less than my laptop and be much easier to carry on the plane. If all else fails I can try making an appointment at the Genius Bar at Apple.

So that’s why I hadn’t written in a few days. I tried but to no avail. The last few days have been hectic and when I’d get home in the evenings, I was exhausted. I actually started this post last night but fell asleep near the beginning of it. I can finally say “SCHOOL’S OUT“.