From Toronto to Calgary in Three Days

If someone told me a month ago that I will find myself on the road driving across the country, I would not have though it possible. But it did happen and I am so grateful and appreciative for the opportunity. A friend of mine that I have met through work many years ago has decided to move home to Alberta. Since she has just purchased a car, the only way to get there was on wheels, and who wants to drive alone. It really did not take long to convince me to join in for the fun and before I knew it the plans were confirmed and the return flight from Calgary booked. We left Toronto on a rainy Wednesday morning right on time to get stuck in the rush-hour traffic. Normally, this traffic situation would be stressing me out, but since were were already giddy and laughing hard, the time went by quickly, and one and a half hour later we found ourselves on the open road headed North.

The plan was to reach Thunder Bay before nightfall as, as soon as the sun goes down, the roads belong to the wild life and there is the danger of running into a deer or a moose. Needless to say, that plan was a bit ambitions and with sunset we landed in Wawa, which meant even more hours spent in the car the next day. We set out from Wawa at around 6:45 the next day with the goal of reaching Winnipeg. The road led us past beautiful lakes, forests and through Indian reserves with souvenir shops and trading posts at each major intersection. At one of those we acquired the little hedgehog trinket for the dashboard and named him Lil' Chief Algoma after the region where the trading post was located.

We reached Winnipeg at around 9PM, completely exhausted and dreading the next day's drive which was to take us through Manitoba and Saskatchewan since everyone kept warning us about the boring drive through the Prairies. Granted, it was flat and long, but beautiful nevertheless and worth every minute of the 11 hours that it took us to reach Alberta at sunset.

Our final destination was Canmore, just one hour West of Calgary. As soon as we entered Tara's new apartment, we were ready for bed. When we left the condo the next morning to go for breakfast and a hike in the Banff area I could not have expected better views. This was nature at its best for sure, lakes were reflecting snow covered peaks of the mountains surrounding us. The air was fresh and crisp and Elks were mingling with people at street intersections.

One last thing before my departure on Sunday was to check out the turquoise waters of Lake Louise. It was early morning and it had just started snowing so, unfortunately, turquoise was not meant to be. What was there instead was a beautifully calm lake with fog that has just started lifting revealing the steep cliffs of the Rockies

Back in Toronto, sitting in front of my computer, I can't but think of the natural wealth this county has to offer and am thankful to my dear friend that I got to share it with.

New Poppies

...and here they are, weeks in the making but finally here. All have been added to my Etsy shop. There are a few more unfinished items sitting in my basement awaiting their turn to be transformed. Hopefully I will get to it in the next couple of weeks.
Hope you like what you see.

Some thoughts to live by

I have been browsing the net for some inspirational photos and stumbled upon the Peccadillo Collection website. Let me tell you,on this site, the inspiration found me. And not just that, I found these quotes that we should all try to incorporate in our lives, the words that will make any rainy day a bit brighter.
Tomorrow, I will post the "afters" to some of the "befores" that I shared with you a few weeks back.
Cheers

Black & White Fall 2011 collection by Mod Pieces

Black & White Collection Fall 2011 from Lia Fagan on Vimeo.

Lia Fagan is the creative mind behind Mod Peices and a decor blogger extraordinaire. Her work is not that much different from what I do and while I focus on larger furniture pieces, Lia has directed her attention to lighting. Her Black & White 20011 Fall collection is a true testament to her talent and creativity. You will also be able to read Lia's tips on how to work random discoveries into your decor in the Sytle at Home blog where she just joined as the newest guest blogger. Congratulations Lia!