It's summer!

Hope your summer is as great as ours.

Stephen & I went strawberry picking this week.  It is an event that marks the beginning of summer.

We went out to a local fruit farm (about 10 minutes from this city.  This farm grows raspberries and strawberries.

The public comes in and "picks their own" berries at harvest time.  We did this with the kids when they were small.  The kids usually put more berries in their mouth than in the bucket.

Actor chasing people through maze on Halloween

This farm also grows hay and corn.  In the Autumn (at Halloween), these fields are cut into mazes.

The mazes are set up as a labyrinth (迷宫,迷津). People (usually teenagers) pay to travel through the maze at Halloween.

Actors pop out from everywhere to scare you.  My children have done this but Stephen and I have not yet. As you can see from the left picture - it is very realistic and too terrifying for little children.


The day was hot but there was a nice breeze coming from the lake.  Tractors drive back and forth from the parking lot to the various picking sites.  Stephen and I managed to pick 8 quarts of strawberries.  It cost us about $18 total for two baskets.  It the store it would have probably cost the same or less, but the experience and the sweetness of fresh picked berries is worth it.

Someday we will be coming here with our grand children.  That day will not be tomorrow because we don't have grand children YET, but it will be sure to happen someday and we look forward it.

Hope you are all having a wonderful summer also.  I miss you all and think of you every day!

Take care & hugs to all,
Jo

Woodland Creatures

A couple of small Canadian animals to show you.  This is a great picture of a wild bunny rabbit.  Staring right at the camera!

Here are a couple of squirrels in love.  I took this picture at the cottage.  The weather has been really warm these days.

We have many turtles that love to sun on a log in the water in front of our cottage. These fellows were like passengers on a bus in China :-)

Unfortunately we had to go to a funeral recently.  My Aunt Elsie (my father's sister) died at the age of 85.  I met up with many of my relatives and family.  This is a picture of my cousins (the children of my father's brothers and sisters).  It was taken at my cousin's house where we gathered to remember times when we were children.  As you can see, we're getting pretty old - I'm the younger one in the front :-)

Well, my friends, I am missing you all and I hope you are well and enjoying the summer.  Please take care and know that I think of you often!

Jo-Anne