Tea time equals Tree time

For the past six monthes, I have been working on a charity event called Trees for Children. This event brings together local businesses with one goal - raising money for children's mental health programs in and around our community.

This event placed sixteen Christmas trees on display at Fulford Mansion for the months of November and December for the community to enjoy, leading up to the holiday season. During this timeline, Fulford Place holds their annual Edwardian Tea, where staff and volunteers dress in period costumes and hold a proper tea event at the mansion to emcompass the era of the Fulfords. This year, I was fortunate enough to attend this event and see first hand, the impression the Trees for Children Christmas trees had on tea goers.

I was recently joined by my Aunt, Grandmother and friend, Suzanne Dodge from Dodge Communications for an afternon of Edwardian tea and Christmas ambiance from days past at local historic site, Fulford House. Upon arrival, we were asked to gather in the traditional tea room, where fresh baked goods and raffle items were on sale. In this room, there was a tree on display sponsored by Dodge Communications as part of my brainchild, Trees for Children. Suzanne was my guest at the tea and was quite pleased with the way the Edwardian Tea brought the Christmas trees to light. We were then seated in the billiards room, which was beautifully decorated with garland, old-fasioned Christmas ornaments and of course a Christmas Tree sponsored and decorated by two local businesses- Set the Barr and First Avenue Interiors. While guests sat to listen to Brian Porter, who was dressed as historical character, a ship's captain and Fulford Helmsman, Julian 'Pont' Mallette, they enjoyed prepared sandwiches, tea and coffee and followed up with an array of desserts. After the tea, guests were allowed to tour the mansion and view the trees on display.

 

I took this opportunity to watch guests reactions to each tree and hear their thoughts on how it added to the usual Edwardian Christmas theme. I heard wonderful feedback from those in attendance, all  were pleased to see our local business owners come on board to support such a worthy cause and raise awareness for a cause close to many.

It is with great humbleness that I thank all those involved with Trees for Children. It is still surreal to me that something that was just a mere thought many monthes ago, has now come to life with the help of our community. I hope everyone has the opportunity to view the trees while they are on display and as always, I would love to hear your thoughts.

For tour dates and times, please visit:  www.heritagetrust.on.ca/fulfordplace

Haunted Halloween Road Trip - GUEST BLOGGER

Every now and then it is fun to have Guest-bloggers chime in with their adventures! Please enjoy this great post from Kendra, who works for Brockville and 1000 Islands Tourism:

 

One of the best things about working at Brockville and 1000 Islands Tourism is that I get to hear a lot about all of the great events and attractions that are going on throughout our region, and occasionally I get to go and check them out for myself!

 

Last Friday I decided to head out on a Halloween road trip with my partner and go to both the Haunted Hay Rides at Drummond’s Sugar Bush and Pumpkinferno at Upper Canada Village. I dug out my hiking boots, bundled up with a cozy hoodie and scarf, made a thermos full of hot chocolate and hit the road.

 

First stop was Drummond’s Sugar Bush in Spencerville for a Haunted Hay Ride. Driving out on County Road 21 in the dark we knew we were close when we saw a trail of head lights turning down a dirt road - a good sign that this was a popular event. We parked in the field beside the road and headed straight for the snack truck, the buttery smell of freshly popped popcorn too enticing to pass up. We bought out tickets, loaded up on popcorn and snacks, and headed towards the line up. We ate our popcorn and waited in anticipation as we heard the screams of those in the woods who had gone before us.

 

As we boarded our wagon with around 25 other brave souls, I was glad to see that there were a lot of children on board (I spook easily and generally avoid horror movies so this was a bit out of my comfort zone). As a few of the first ones on, we tried to figure out where the best place to sit would be: at the front? No, we didn’t want anything targeting us first; at the back? No, the tour guide was there, who knew what role he had to play. We settled on the middle, but in the end it wouldn’t have made any difference where we sat, it was equally terrifying everywhere.

 

Our ride started up and headed off into the dark woods. No cameras, recording devices, or cell phones were allowed, so I don’t have any evidence of my trip through the woods, and don’t want to give too much away, but I can tell you that we all screamed. A lot.

 

Throughout the woods were tableaus of various horrors taking place and lots of things hanging from the trees. Our hay ride was equipped with strobe lights which hid movement, making it very difficult to see what was approaching our ride. I was constantly on alert for something jumping out at me, but I was never fully prepared for what would come next. At one point I was off of my seat and crawling across to the other side of the wagon. I wasn’t the only one climbing my way to safety; most of my side of the wagon was there with me.

 

After the 35 minute ride was over I was left wondering who would pay to be psychologically tortured like that. Well I had and I’d had a great time. As we left there was a line full of people waiting for their turn to be scared, so I guess I wasn’t the only one. It was great to see so many people out enjoying this local event.

 

We hopped back in our car, poured some hot chocolate, and set off for Pumpkinferno. I’d heard great things about this event and had seen a lot of photos (check out Lindsay’s latest post!), but I hadn’t yet been out to see it for myself. Walking through Upper Canada Village and seeing it completely transformed to showcase installations of thousands of carved pumpkins, I was amazed at the vision and artistry that went into this project. The craftsmanship involved is truly spectacular and it’s difficult to imagine all of the work that has gone into this endeavor. You can look at all the photos you want, but it is something completely different when you visit in person. Everyone around us was blown away by the exhibits; it’s difficult to find a truly all-ages event but this is one.

 

 

 

After taking pictures all night at Pumpkinferno, I was very glad that we had thought to pack our hot chocolate; it was just the thing to warm up our hands for the drive home.

 

We had left the house at around 6:30 pm and we were home by 10:00 pm, having experienced two very different Halloween events (if you have little ones in tow you would probably want to go to these two events separately). It was a great start to the weekend and we couldn’t wait to tell our friends about it.

 

 

The Haunted Hay Rides are running every Friday and Saturday night in October from 7:00-10:00 pm

Pumpkinferno will be open October 24^th – November 2^nd from 6:30-10:00pm

A Spooktacular Event

The annual Pumpkinferno is on now at Upper Canada Village, located in Morrisburg, Ontario. This is a must-see for everyone!

 

Last year I was blown away by the creativity and concept of this event and this year was no different. With even more on display and immaculate detail in the art work - pictures do not do it justice. Make sure you catch this event before it ends!  

 

 

 

Entrance Sign

 

 

 

A Fun Hawaiian piece

 

 

 

 

My Favourite- The Dragon sponsored by The City of Brockville!

 

 

 

Paying homage to our First Nations People

 

 

Cousins enjoying the night :)

 

 

Brilliant detail

 

 

 

Under The Sea

 

 

My Zodiac Sign

You can find the event details online at http://www.uppercanadavillage/pumpkinferno

Up to mischief

Lately, my days are filled with a juggling act. Time spent with adorable wee ones at my daycare and then off to meetings with potential clients and firming up deals for things to come in the world of media. This past Thursday, I was happy to slow down a bit, get dressed up and hit the town to take in a play at the 1000 Islands Playhouse in Gananoque, On.

I had recently met Andrew Geekie, Outreach Officer at the Playhouse, while attending the annual Gananoque and Brockville Chamber networking event. Andrew discussed the current production of "No Great Mischief" and said it is a must-see.

Our family had recently toured the 1000 Islands Playhouse during Open Doors Gananoque, and I was impressed by the history of the theatre and the stunning ambiance provided by the balconies, wooden beams and the majestic St.Lawrence River view. When Nick and I returned for the production that evening and the theatre was lit up with the starry sky in the backdrop, romance filled the air and it was the perfect date-night.

The play began with a spotlight on the main actor, who began to tell the story of his life - one filled with great family love and loss. The play unfolds around the main character, Alexander MacDonald and his regular travels to visit his older dependent brother, living in Toronto. Together, they re-live stories of the past tragedies and fond memories of their childhood and upbringing. The play is filled with great highs and lows, accompanied by traditional Scottish music sang by the very talented cast.

Throughout the production, I found myself invested in the characters and really relating their story. The music was an important part, as it accompanied the storyline perfectly and brought out the emotions being portrayed by the characters. I was impressed by the talent, creative team and actors alike, that it took to put together this production. Adapted from the novel by Alister MacLeod - No Great Mischief was emotional and raw, a real local masterpiece

I can tell you that I will be returning to the playhouse in the not so distant future to take in another show. There is something so romantic and exciting about live theatre and I urge everyone to visit the 1000 Islands Playhouse and experience this local treasure for yourself .

Shutter and Snap

One day, I was looking through my Facebook feed and noticed that, a gal I grew up with had a new photography business and Facebook page. I clicked, expecting to glance through and see the same  shots typical of most new and up- and - coming photographers. Instead, I was captured by the simplicity, yet amazing eye and talent that she had.

I had been thinking of having pictures done for my daycare families as a special thank you for inviting me into their lives and allowing me to care for their children. I wanted to find someone who could capture all the childhood fun we have on a daily basis but hadn't come across that right person yet. That's why when I stumbled upon Julia Patrick's Photography page and was blown away, I decided to make it happen.

 I immediately contacted Julia and had a great chat. She was so warm and excited about the idea. Julia works with children in her full-time job and started her photography business as it has been a life-long passion. Once she started to take photos and show me the unedited images, it was clear she was able to hone in and capture that light that only children have. The pictures were beautiful and very moving.

 

 

 

 

Our family will be meeting up with Julia again in the late fall for more photos and I encourage anyone who is looking for a local photographer to check out Julia's portfolio and contact her. Not only is she immensely talented but an absolute lovely and hard-working gal! Please enjoy some of her work below and check out her page.

http://www.facebook.com/Juliapatrickphotography

A niblet from Cornfest 2013

For the last two years, my family and I have eagerly anticipated the annual Athens' Cornfest. I have been lucky enough to call some of the organizers my friends and they do a good job about getting the word out regarding the excitement to come each year.

We made sure to arrive at this year's Cornfest in the morning so we could take in all the vendors, music and of course, the food. After parking, the first place we came across was a giant board game made out of chalk on the closed-off road. It was a snakes and ladders type game where you roll the dice and try to make it to the end. My oldest, wasted no time introducing herself to the volunteer and starting the game. At the end, she was surprised with a musical prize (parents rejoice!) and walked away all smiles. This was a promising start to Cornfest 2013.

Next, we stopped to watch a professional sidewalk chalk artist hard at work and attempted to make our own masterpiece. This gave Nick and I a chance to chat with and get to know some of the volunteers. The kind lady who was working this project was telling us about her grandchildren and how she enjoys spending time with them. It was nice to take a moment and connect with other local residents. One of the greatest parts about attending small-town fairs is the kindness that can be found.

We continued to walk down the main stretch, stopping to listen to Tom Wilson on the main stage, visiting with friends we saw along the way and eventually making our way to the bouncy castle. This is a must for every fair and is always a favourite with our children.Nick and my oldest waited in line, as Baby R and I met with some more residents and chatted away. I was happy to meet the owner of the Dragonfly Kitchen, a lady who provides an in-home cooking service for busy working families. I grabbed her pamphlet and we had a great chat. I hope to connect again with her soon and learn more about her services.

Before I knew it, the morning had passed and it was noon - we had plans to go watch and meet Senator Hugh Segal, who was participating in the cook-off. My wonderful friend and Cornfest organizer, Douglas Quantz had invited us to come by and meet the Senator. Doug was in excellent spirits and had everything running smoothly with his amazing Cornfest team. We were introduced to the Senator, who was very gracious and took the time to speak with Nick and answer all his questions about political life. It was a great meeting and we are looking forward to connecting again soon.

After all the excitement, we were very hungry. When in Athens, we have a favourite spot to eat - The Peacock! Nanny Franny never disappoints and she was outside selling raffle tickets for a charitable cause and other goodies. We hurried in for a delish lunch and as always, had a fabulous time. My love for The Peacock is no secret, but if you still haven't been- rush- go now!

As the day drew near to an end, the lovely Brea Lawrenson was taking the stage. I had never heard of Brea before the hype of Cornfest, but after hearing her cover Tom Cochrane and Miranda Lambert, I realized what an incredible talent this gal is. We stayed and listened to her set and as my daughter is a huge country music fan, we went up to the stage to meet Brea after. I was blown away by how down- to-earth and friendly she was. So much so that she let my daughter keep her guitar pick, which you can imagine, only sent her over the moon! She has now been using it non-stop on her play guitar at home and continues to talk about her favorite musician- Miss Brea Lawrenson - a true class act!

To the village of Athens, its' residents and and everyone who takes time to organize and volunteer in the annual Cornfest - THANK YOU. This is truly a great festival and we look forward to it for years to come.

Automotion 2013

Congratulations to those involved in "Automotion Brockville 2013". This was a great event, attended by many and an overall success!

Our family headed downtown bright and early to take in the anticipated car show. With the threat of rain, we drove, not wanting to get caught in a downpour with the kids. As it turned out, the rain held off - and it seemed everyone (and their dog!) was flocking down to check out the cars and trucks. Please enjoy a few of my personal pictures from Automotion 2013:

 A look towards the crowd at Blockhouse Island

 One of Nick's Favourites - The Barracuda

 

 

Nice Gun-Metal Grey Camaro

 

 For you Rod lovers

 

 

 Loved this Mustang!

 

 

Last, but not least - my absolute Favourite - Camaro! I fell in love with this car.

 

 

Make sure you check out Brockvilletourism.com, Easternontarionetwork.com and SnapBrockville.com for more festivals and other upcoming attractions!