I would like to introduce you to my little, Cherry-eating zombie boy who continues to inspire and amaze me every day.  He loves eating fresh cherries while walking along the Canal du Nord, in Northern France, while humming a merry tune – mostly the theme to Indiana Jones, Star Wars or Star Trek. Such life, energy, innocence…He has come to appreciate some of his mother’s odd ways and interests.  And at 6 1/2 years old he even understands the off-the-wall humour that comes along with those interests. 

After school one day, I started talking to him about a movie that was being shot in a nearby town with aliens and zombies.  I continued on to say how I would be a perfect cast member. “Why mommy?” he said. “Well, I’ll show you something honey”,I said, “but don’t get scared. It’s just mommy having fun with pictures”. “O.K. mom! Show me!”  So, I pulled out my iPod Touch, and showed him this… 

With eyes wide open and mouth agape… “WOW! Can I do one?” he asks. “Yeah! Of course you can, honey” I answer.  ”Let’s do one of you!!” Just call us Zombie family!

So, the other day, he comes home from school… “Mom, look at my picture.”  As you will see below, our son does amazing things with stick people – so much detail! 
This is what he showed us…

 A cemetery with Zombies… with scars, claw-like fingers, sharp teeth, bulging and misshapen eyes… I LOVE IT!! What’s more interesting is the ones in the background… zombies on wheels.  Movie makers didn’t think of that one. Of course, the movies would be much shorter since the action sequences are often based on the speed of the zombies – that’s where the suspense lies.  Though, I never did understand how the zombies managed to catch up so quickly to the people who were “running” for their lives… Ah, now I get it… the wheels!!

May-be the next sequel to Shaun of the Dead will be “Skateboard Zombies… coming to terrorize your town and your skate park…”

I didn’t realize until after the picture was taken that there was a spider on the buttercup. It was a beautiful surprise.  And, while I’m not fond of spiders on me, I appreciate the work they do, especially on a summer morning when their webs glisten with beads like diamonds.

Once stung by a bee while biking – I won’t mention where, I respect their space and watch them cautiously.  As long as they are on a flower, I know that the only instinct driving them is the need to pollinate. I love the brilliant black/yellow stripes against the solid colours of their favourite flowers, set against a backdrop of ocean, lake, sky, mountain…  what a canvas!!

When I look at this picture, I always wonder what prompted the butterfly to land on this fir tree – was it the warmth of the direct sunlight?  No matter the reason, I was honoured to get front-row seats to this one-butterfly show.

It stayed there long enough for me to snap a few pictures, but this was definitely my favourite.

My favourite subjects in this category are bees, butterflies and dragonflies.  This represents only a few from my list of photos.  You’ll see more as I branch out into the “4-P” themes – places, plants, people, and photo fun.

Hope you enjoy!

Cheers and happy snapping

It was a good summer though and we spent two wonderful weeks at my parents’ home.  It’s a lovely community called New Wes Valley, and their house is almost totally surrounded by water – it’s the one behind my son, to the left.  Yes, we are up pretty high here.

I grew up wondering why this large boulder that we climbed as kids was called Raspberry Hill – raspberries across the road, but none here.  It’s just rock and barren soil.  At the base, there is an abundance of blueberries which my son adores. In this pic, his container is now half empty.

One of my favourite youthful pass-times, and now my son’s, was rock jumping… As you can see the landscape lends itself to an endless supply of rocks, and when the water is low enough, we can actually jump to a small island across the way from the house. But, miss a rock, and fall into the darkest, muckiest, dirtiest mud you’ve ever seen – your shoes and clothes never come clean again.  I think if we dug around enough, we’d find a large supply of sneakers from the 70′s and onward. I’ve even lost a few there in my time.

I don’t know what it is, but there’s something about being near the water that calms me. Sometimes it’s just nice to sit and contemplate the meaning of life, surrounded by water and kelp.

When we’re not jumping rocks, we’re enjoying the sand and the sea at another community about 20 drive away, in Lumsden. The sand is fine and white, and the view is breathtaking.

You might also find us hanging out in some weirdly shaped trees – bent by the wind and snow mostly.  We call this one the elephant head tree.

Of course, you never know what you’ll find washed up at the base of New Wes Valley Falls… those two feet are a long way down.

- “What a great time mom! Can we do it again next year?”

- “Of course we can honey!”

I hope you’ve enjoyed my photo montage of particular highlights of our vacation this year.  Look for more highlights coming soon to a screen near you.

Don’t get me wrong, I’d probably live in the air if I had a choice… There’s just something about being in the clouds! Seeing the sun rise over Great Britain as you’re taking the “red eye” across the Atlantic is awe-inspiring.

So, my touch downs?

TOUCH DOWN #1: The beautiful city where I spend most of my work and play time… St. John’s, Newfoundland

http://www.stjohns.ca/visitors/index.jsp

TOUCH DOWN #2: The native city of my husband – where all his family still resides, and our main vacation destination… Cambrai, France

http://www.tourisme-cambrai.fr/

I’ve added tourism links for each location to give you some idea of what makes these places so special to us. I invite you to check them out… You may just be tempted to visit and experience the uniqueness and charm for yourself!

Happy Trails!!

So, my journey begins here… East coast of Canada, on a rock in the Atlantic that we like to call home! Let’s see where this journey will lead!