I'm hoping everyone is having a grand weekend so far and That Your Being Kind to One Another.

It doesn't take much to pop in on someone to drop in some cheer or bring a smile to someone's face to make them feel good about themselmes or even bring a few tears of joy....it only takes time but time that will be rewarded back to you two-fold....in making you feel good about yourself....what a beautiful circle of human kindness.

Some beauty for you to sit and ponder on.

And I would like to share with you some of the beauty I see every single day, that makes me glad to be alive.

 Much Love & happiness to every single one of my friends out there....Janice xxxxxx

Smiles are worth a million frowns & a happy heart is good for the soul!

 

Hope this works, wanted to share me Magic with you.

Starting as always, with my daily hug!

  The next 4 days. Two Little Yellow Duckies & The Cottage! It had been raining off & on all day but we needed to go for a walk. Marg donned us both out in yellow wet weather gear & no sooner had we got to her kerb it decided to bucket down! Not to be dissuaded we set off around the block, looking at the beautiful houses & gardens filled with every imaginable flower in a rainbow of colours. On our home ward turn of the block you would have sworn that there were two little yellow duckies floating down the kerbs. Sorry no photo’s of this little episode , but it still brings a giant smile to my face when ever I think about it…plus our men folk thought we were crazy….haha!!!! The Trilliums Despite the cold and wet, Marg and Dan took us for a drive out into the country and a walk through the forest to see the native flora. It was the right time of the year to see the Trillium, the emblem and official flower of Ontario and Marg was so excited for us to see one in full bloom. Shortly after entering the forest ( and getting some protection from the icy wind ! ) Marg let out a cry of joy ! She had found a Trillium !   It is a delicate white flower, much like an orchid but with a very short flowering season making it important to be at the right place at the right time ! And we were ! Later in the day we saw a flock of Canada geese with their newly hatched young, Canadian Geese and were then introduced to the delights of that other Ontario tradition – coffee and doughnuts at “Tim Hortons.” We had found the local coffee to be too strong and bitter and had resorted to carrying round with us a jar of instant Nescafe ! ( much to the horror of Dan who thought this was an affront to his barristic skills ! However, we enjoyed the coffee and thereafter had to stop at the nearest Tim Hortons for our caffeine fix.    Just another hug....how I loved my hugs! Tuesday 20th May.  Today was the day we headed for the cottage which was about a 2 hour drive to the north. Dan & I decided that supplies were needed & we set off to the local supermarket. I was flabergasted on walking into their so called supermarket which was more like a warehouse, just huge, enormous. These Canadians love everything cold. First Dan took me into a huge room that had no doors and was freezing and as I was just wearing a T-Shirt, my teeth were chattering and I made my legs get me out of there fast. Dan wanted to get some prawns so he could do us some prawns on the Barbie ( real aussie style). So next I found him with head in another freezer, so I wandered off to have a look around this massive store. When I returned, Dan was still in the freezer, oh gee, wandered off once more to only find him still in the same position….haha! Eventually we loaded up and returned home to pack the van & away to the cottage! The drive took 1 & ½ hours, through spectactular country side of wide open fields, that were lush and green. Poor Avro was not at all impressed with the ride to the cottage as Marg & I had taken his seat and by the time we arrived he was looking a bit tallow under the gills from travel sickness. On arriving, we found that the “Cottage” was a beautiful country home, set in the most breathtaking and peaceful location. The Cottage It was everything I had imagined from Marg’s stories. The surrounding forest was just so beautiful and  the cottage itself over looks a lake which creates an atmosphere of such peace and tranquillity. You can feel your inner self being sweep away by it all, such a   feeling of beauty & serenity. What a Lake Me taking in all the beauty! The next 4 days spent in this beautiful oasis, were filled with many a nature walk, with my dearest friend Marg, just as we had talked about for so long. Relaxing for hours just taking in everything that lay before us. Steve, I'm here! We watched the chipmunks emerge from their winter hibernation and walked quietly through the forest, hoping to catch a glimpse of a deer, or maybe a bear ! Find the Chipmunk???? Outside the picture window Marg had hung a Hummingbird feeder and we sat for hours watching these tiny birds hovering over it to take in the nectar. Hummingbird.  Later, it was time to relax in the hot spa whilst being totally spoilt with Marg re-filling Steve’s glass with Ice Wine, and Dan cooking yet another of his scrumptous meals ! Dan, you can come and live here anytime. My friend Dan. Steve getting totally spoilt by Marg By now, Avro had accepted us as one of the family- Marg and Dan has stopped stressing about him and we all had a most relaxing and memorable few days.  Be kind to one another, much love Janice & Steve xxxx P.S. Marg, thought you might like to do a piece on "The Gut" and my gut rock, haha!    

 

Annie, & Who Else?????

Two weeks ago Steve & I went to Sydney to attend the wedding of Kasie & Tony.....Kasie is the daughter of my dearest friend Annie, whom you all have heard me talk about, many a time.

Sylvia, Me???, Annie & MM

I have known Kasie since she was born, actually before she was born, I watched her grow the whole nine months before she was born....so I hold her dear to my heart and as much as Steve and I both hate going to Sydney these days...I wouldn't have missed it for the world.

Kasie & Bridesmaids.

Bridal Party.

Aunty JJ getting a hug from Kasie.

As mother of the bride my dear friend Annie was busy making sure that everything was running smoothly.....we found some precious moments to spend together, which is always lovely.

Kasie organised everything  for her wedding and I feel she did a wonderful job. As a thankyou gift for all the guests, she had boiled lollies made with "Kasie Loves Tony" written on them & done up  in a jar, with ribbon saying "I married my best friend today"

The Wishing Well idea I loved as they were already living together, they could do without recieving 4 toasters, haha!....so she had a Wishing Well for guests  who wanted to leave money instead of gifts.

And the cake was magnificent as well as yummy!

During the night I asked Kasie how she was feeling....I loved her response....everyone is stressing around me but why should I be stressing when I know it was the right thing to do.

 

 

 Jasper to Toronto- “The Magical Meet”     This blog has been a long time coming for a couple of reasons. 1) I wanted to first send Jess a disk of all of the photos we       took, and  2) The main reason is that I will find this blog very        emotional to write . Plus I wanted this to be a three way       blog as this magical meet was not just about me, but Marg      & Jess also…so with a bit of luck and some organising        there will be three blogs to read, with three different        versions of   the Magical Meet.      I’ve kept you all in suspense way to long, so here goes.   This part of our journey started at Jasper railway station as we boarded “the Canadian” - the flagship of the Canadian rail network which links the two ends of this great continent, from Vancouver to Toronto. The gleaming stainless steel coaches containing sleeping cars, a restaurant and domed observation cars, would take us on this 3700kms trans continental journey to Toronto and then, the short trip to Oshawa, where Marg and Dan live.   Leaving the Rockies behind, we headed east on this 3 day journey through Alberta, across the great prairies of Saskatchewan and Manitoba and onwards to Ontario and its capital , Toronto.    On board the food and service was excellent and our little day cabin was transformed at night into a double bunk, with no heart shaped spa !!   The journey was punctuated by frequent stops to allow endlessly long freight trains to thunder by and soon we realised that these stops would make it impossible for us to arrive in Toronto on schedule We were to arrive at Toronto Railway Station at 8pm on the 16th of May, Steve’s birthday, and Jess had generously agreed to drive down from Montreal, a 6 hour drive, and  pick us up from Toronto Union station and take us to Marg’s We were told around 6pm that the train would not be getting into Toronto till around 11.00pm,and having no signal on our  mobile phone, we were wondering how we would get to let Jess know of our predicament. When we were told that the train would be stopping for a 15 minute stop. Steve made a mad dash to a station phone to let Jess know of the delay and to tell her that we could not possibly arrive at Margs house at such an unearthly hour, so we would stay in Toronto overnight and come out to her the following morning ! Well, neither Jess nor Marg were not having any of this and we were instructed to proceed as planned ! Well 11.00pm came & went and we were still two hours out of Toronto. With mobile coverage back Steve rang with the news that we wouldn’t arrive till 1 am and that we definitely could not expect Jess to pick us up at that hour and for her & Marg to go to bed and we would catch up with them in the morning. They wouldn’t hear of it - how many people do you know that would pick up two total strangers (whom you have never met) at 1 am. All day on the train, knowing I was finally going to be meeting Marg & Jess the tummy butterflies were doing more than flip flops I can assure you. After eventually disembarking from the train we found our way out of Toronto Union Station, to a barrage of taxi’s and hordes of people everywhere, gee at 1.30am and expected to find one little Jess in a white Jaguar in amongst all this bedlam. We caught a glimpse of a white Jag disappearing around the corner. With a quick text, Jess pulled up jumped out of her Jag and we hugging each other like life time friends, with her car doubled parked, taxi’s trying to move out with passengers, surprising to Steve & I no-one beeped horns or yelled out their window. Within minutes we were on our way to Marg’s -a 45 minute drive. The three of us were talking like we had known each other for years, weird hey? Not sure who was more excited about the meet with Marg and Jess kept giving me a countdown to how many minutes till we get there ( the butterflies were doing summersaults now). Next I knew Jess was pulling up outside Marg’s at 2.15am….NO SOONER THE CAR STOPPED, THIS BEAUTIFUL FIGURE CAME RUNNING OUTSIDE OF THE HOUSE, BARE FOOT ( IT WAS FREEZING) AND ARMS A SWINGING…I fell into her loving embrace with tears a flowing and a inner feeling of I am home, how sweet it was. It didn’t matter that Jess & Steve were standing there shivering or that Marg was bare foot, in shorts & T shirt, I wanted to hang on that moment for as long as I could. Once inside and oh yeah Steve did get a cuddle also, hehe!, a coffee was in order and Steve was shown the bedroom and was gone ! Marg’s hubby, Dan, had already given up on us, and was in bed, where all good people should be at 2.30am. Well we ladies sat and talked or should I say Jess talked, hahaha! ( sorry Jess), it felt just right, so at ease, so comfortable like a pair of old shoes We gave in around 4.45am, thinking it was time for a few hours sleep. We woke around 9.00am and all met in the kitchen and finally got to meet Dan, who was already cooking us a hot breakfast of bacon & eggs…smelt so good. Jess was looking at me rather strangely, then the penny dropped, VEGEMITE, especially with breakfast. The problem was soon fixed and she had a smile on her face as she tucked into toast & Vegemite. I forgot to mention as yet we haven’t meet Avro the grouchy dog. He was in the basement in his cage, yet we heard his barking, as if saying |”get out of my home” ( more on Avro soon). The talking started again and I’m not sure where the day went, it seemed to fly by and soon it was night again. The men folk left us once again and I think we headed to bed around 3am. The morning came too soon, as Jess was to leave to go home ( a 6 hour drive to Montreal . We stretched the morning out as far as it would go, eventually letting Jess drive away at 1pm with tears and very sad feelings our way - it was dead quiet for ever so long! Jess is an ever loving person, genuine, down to earth, ( talkative, hehe!) & someone who you feel that you have known for ages & such a zest for life with the most gorgeous smile that just draws you in.   Now getting back to Avro, who by now was locked out in the garden, but could see us through the sliding glass door. He was  letting us know that he was not at all happy with the fact that we were there. As most of you know how much I love animals, and since we were there for two weeks and would be going to the cottage with Avro in tow, and understanding already how stressed Marg & Dan were feeling about this situation, I knew Avro and I had to become friends. Firstly let me say who ever had this poor dog before Marg & Dan, had abused him and he only trusted Marg & Dan ! He was not a friendly dog to anyone else. So I decided I had to start somewhere, lying down on the carpet, with Avro the other side of the glass sliding door ( thank goodness it was thick glass), growling and barking his head off, I just kept calling his name, talking to him in quiet tones for most of the afternoon and into the night. The next morning I continued the same thing. By this time his growling and barking had gotten quieter and he was daring me to take his ball, which no way I was going to without a glass door between us ! Marg went outside to have a play with him, which did’nt interest him while I was still around, so it was time for me to brave the elements and get eaten by a dog ! haha!...so stepping outside very gingerly and Marg grabbing hold of his collar, I kept calling his name while he was still growling at me. Once he had quietened down I told Marg to let him go,   which, very hesitantly she did ! Avro  headed straight for me with his ball in his mouth, then ran around their swimming pool & sat at the other end. On calling his name, he repeated the same dash around the pool and sat at the other end. We kept this up for a good half an hour with him getting closer to me every time he passed me, and  eventually he came and sat down right beside me, growling and daring me to take his ball. Dan couldn’t believe this had happened and just kept shaking his head in disbelief. Next was Steve’s turn. He ventured outside and Avro went and sat right beside him - how about that! I did all the work and Avro & Steve were instant friends, oh gee whiz! Dan and Steve hit it off like they were old friends, they took Avro for his morning walks and Dan found someone he could have great debates with on every conceivable subject, with Marg being a referee at times, haha! Now for Marg. Her heart is as warm as an open fire and as big as the Grand Canyon. She has the most enchanting voice I’ve ever heard which calms you down just listening to her, with the warmest of personalities exuding such warmth and love. Forgot to mention the most beautiful hugs I have ever felt ( sorry Steve), which I received all day long and ending the day with my bedtime hug.          Days of Our Lives  have nothing on me, Part 2 Our stay with Marg coming up! Be kind to each other....much Love Janice xxxx
 

 My son is coming home for a flying visit next month....YIPEE, HOORAY !!!!!

Jamie's fiancee, Juyla is flying home for her sisters wedding at the end of September.

Juyla will be coming home for a couple of weeks, but with Jamie just starting a new job with Lloyds Bank (I'm so proud of him, couldn't you tell,hehe!) can only get one week off, shame!

So he is flying into Sydney,   on the 21st of September, stepping off one plane after a 24 hour flight & hopping on another plane to come to us.....fantastic....

I Know he will sleep for  most of the day, but he will be here and that's what matter's...... for just 36  hours before flying back to Sydney " a flying visit"...

Those 36 hours will be crammed with catching up on all  his news and what has been happening, many a hug & alot of loving....to be sure.

I'm so looking forward to his visit.

Be kind to one another....much love janice xxxxx

 

"Niagara Falls: "Our Honeymoon"

How sneaky am I  ! ! ! ! ! - missing  " The Blog of The Magical Meet" how naughty of me, hehe !

Thought I would keep you all in suspense  " Just One More Time ".

Ten days into our stay with Dear Marg, Hubby & Avro, we decided to give them a break from spoiling us rotten & head off to "Niagara Falls" for the honeymoon we never had.

We hadn't made any arrangements for accommodation..... Stopping at the Information Centre, to our delight the lady was so very helpful & found us a deal we could not pass up.

On checking into " The Oaks Hotel " & riding the elevator to the  12th floor, upon opening the  door to our room 1227.... " you could have knocked me down with a feather " Looking down from the big picture window, right in front of our eyes, was the awesome sight of the "Horseshoe Falls" so close that it seemed that we could reach out and touch them.

I sat in total amazement and thought that if I looked away for a split second, the view before me would disappear.

To the left was the American falls with the "Bridal Veil Falls" & the spray and mist rising high above them. It was simply breathtaking.

Turning away at last from the window we were in for another treat ! Our room had another romantic surprise for us in  the form of a heart shaped spa with white  heart shaped towels ! ! Oh what will lay before us tonight....OOPS didn't say that !

All I wanted to do was sit by the window and stare at the view, but we finally ventured outside to see the falls at close quarters !.There were millions of litres per second pouring over the falls and we could stand right on the edge and listen to the thunder  and get soaked in the spray !

The Following Day.

We went  "Under the falls" for another soaking and then on the "Maid of the Mist" a tourist boat with big diesel engines which take you right up to the base of the falls ! The engines strained to hold the boat in position as we all took photo's and the spray & mist covered our blue protective coats.

After our drenching we visited the butterfly farm, where the butterflies are as big as dinner plates ( supper plates in Canadian, hehe !)

A Indian Trading Post ( I was in my element there ! )

Then back to hotel for a spa ! and......????? Keep it clean ladies ! !

Late in the afternoon, we sat in our picture window and watched a rainbow form right over the falls.

Then after dinner, we watched the lights come on to illuminate the falls at night.

This photo will have to do, till I can get mine to work, oh gee!

It was the perfect ending for a perfect segment of our dream holiday !

Be kind to one another,

Much Love Janice & Steve

xxxx

 

 

 Thank you”  is probably not enough   After taking a few days break from Minti, during which I have received so many messages of encouragement and support, it is time for me to confess that Minti is still a really important part of my life. I simply want to thank you all for being there for me when I was feeling down, even though that seems somewhat inadequate. It is time for me to move on – and so I will. I will try to respond to all of your messages, but it may take time. Please be patient, but understand that your expressions of friendship were very precious to me.       Kindest Regards Janice

 

I have just finished reading the childish and hurtful comments on several Groups by people I had previously thought to be my friends. I accepted invitations to join these groups in good faith, although I have never really been actively involved in them. I have never been into the bitchiness business – it is not me . and now I know why !   I have made some very dear friends on Minti, and it seems I have also made some serious errors in judgement with reading the characters’ of others. I have offered the hand of friendship to members who have now publicly accused me of disloyalty. I am more hurt that any of you can imagine.   But this has been a learning experience for me, and an opportunity to re-evaluate who are my real friends. I can now answer this question and they will also know who they are !   I have no wish to be associated in any way with any groups, be they public or private. I value too highly my genuine Minti friendships to be publicly castigated by small minded individuals  in group discussions.   Please delete me immediately from these groups. I have no wish to be associated with any of you. .       

 

Banff to Jasper and the magic of my winter wonderland     The 230km long Icefields Parkway, connecting Banff with Jasper must surely be the most beautiful road in the world. Built specifically for tourists, it lies within the Banff and Jasper National Parks. No commercial vehicles are allowed and nothing can distract you from the sheer majesty of the scenery. “The Canadian Rockies” what words could possibility describe them? You’re in total awe of what your eyes are taking in…..these mountains before you in all their splendour, stretching endlessly skywards to embrace the clouds. Covered in soft cotton snow inviting you to come closer. When you think the scene before you can not get any more spectacular, a second later the next scene surpasses the scene before. The Rockies are over 1000kms and we only saw 230kms of them -how can you capture that? We started the day with a side trip to see Canmore and the Bow river in the snow which is where we took this first photo of so many spectacular lakes   In all of our travels we tried to see as much of the local wildlife as possible and had already seen a couple of black bears from the train, but to our delight, just outside of Banff, a beautiful grey wolf ran across the road in front of us and stopped to check us out before disappearing into the forest.   When all of your expectations are continually surpassed, disappointments are particularly hard to bear! But on a trip like this, you have to expect a few !. So when we arrived at Lake Louise, it was a cold and dreary day. The lake was frozen over and the Chateau looked bleak and uninviting – nothing like the picture postcards we have all seen. It was of course, early Spring and many of the lakes were still frozen or just slowly thawing. We had intended staying here overnight ( not at the Chateau at $500 a night ) but we decided to keep going.     We passed Bow lake and Peyto lake, both of which were frozen, but the snow capped mountains were all around us as we drove into the Crossroads, a motel and fuel stop about halfway to Jasper.         The next morning we continued north through the Sunwapta pass towards the Icefields Centre and the Colombia Icefields and glacier. As we climbed higher it got colder and colder, so we took a quick photo and returned to the warmth of the car !                     And so, we drove on, past frozen lakes and breathtaking mountains, gushing waterfalls from the thawing snow, and glaciers on the high passes as we made our way, still on the wrong side of the road, but with increasing confidence to Jasper.     We had not pre-booked accommodation in Jasper, so drove around until we found the Alpine Village on the banks of the Athabasca river.   A timber cabin close to the river was perfect, so we booked it for 3 nights.     It even had a hot spa, which was a great spot for gazing at the snow covered peaks.     The township of Jasper was just as I had imagined, alpine architecture and quaint shops which had not quite got into the full swing of the tourist season. We spent our time out walking, and hoping to find some bears, but a family of Caribou and an Elk came to visit us outside our lodge.       I had promised myself that I would conquer my fear of heights, and take a trip with Steve on the Jasper tramway. Don’t know why they call it a tramway, as it goes almost vertically up in the air on a swinging rope ! You’ve got to be kidding ! so another opportunity came and went !   As usually happens on holiday, the three days flashed by, and soon it was time to make our way to Jasper railway station to board the Canadian Pacific ( for some reason best known to the Canadians now called the VIA train ) to Toronto and my much anticipated meeting with Marg. 

  Leaving Each & Everyone of You, with Much Love and Wishes for  A Fantastic Week. Janice & Steve xxxxx