The Lake.
Bill's father bought the cottage while on leave from the war during the summer of '44. When he bought it, it was one of a very few cottages on the lake. Now our well kept secret is out and there has been considerable development. I'm sure that Bill can give you all of the particulars in the comment section. He's the details man. I'm more of a big picture sort of gal. In any case, it was basically a hunting/fishing cabin that was..... well, lets call it rustic. Over the years there have been many many improvements. Now it is definitely a home away from home. Only smaller. The footprint of the cottage is about 24' x24'. A bit of a tight squeeze when everyone (9 of us) is in residence.
There are beautiful views. Even when the weather is less than wonderful.
Plenty of time for lots of cuddles because there is only so much that you need to do. I love this part. My to do list if so short. Those pesky cupboard don't need to be cleaned out. That pile of papers can't be sorted. They are 100 km away!
There are lots of critters that come around. Like Chippy the chipmunk. There are also a variety of red squirrels, frogs and toads, fish and crayfish (the later being a very rare find), and hummingbirds and dragonflies by the thousands. There are woods to explore. And for a few sweet weeks, an Uncle Sandy for the kids to explore with. He can pack a years worth of love and attention into those few weeks. Thank you.
There are kids for my kids to play with. Here are Nicole and a M. from a few cottages down fishing off the end of the dock. I can't tell you the hours of pleasure that those girls got from the toy fishing rods. Quiet pleasure. Did you note the "quiet" part. With everyone being a bit older, there was less stress around keeping an eye on every child. Which meant that I could spend some time sitting on the swing on the porch with a book or some hand work without being interrupted every thirty seconds. Happiness indeed.
Here are all the kids from various cottages around us celebrating Simon's and Liam's birthday. They run in a pack for the weeks that everyone is in residence and everyone gets separated into their various cottages at dark. And best of all, I like everyone of these kids.It is just about time to say goodbye to the lake for the winter. Maybe we will make it up later in the fall. It is always nice to do because it is so quiet and peaceful. Not to mention that the fire in the stove feels really nice.
Note: All photo's are credited to the fabulous Uncle Sandy
He's the one in the middle. Thanks!
8 comments:
Oh my... I don't know how you are able to leave such a place! It sounds like, well, Heaven :) I don't think I've had more than 2 minutes of peace and quiet in over ten years... what's your address? LOL :)
Sigh....
Well written, Jackie.
Well, Jackie has covered the important things very well. Of course there are lots of less interesting details, and a lot of funny stories. But she's got the flavour of it. It's a great place to go, and we all love being there.
Maybe I can tell one funny thing about the camp history. When my father returned from the war, he and a few of the young men he hung out with were down there in the fall on a hunting trip, and sometime in the night he was awakened from his sleep by the noise of a mouse scurrying on the wood. He shone the flashlight on the mouse, and without getting out of the bed he grabbed the 22 rifle and shot the mouse which was sitting on a tiny shelf in the corner of the room. We dealt with a lot of mice in the cottage when I was a small boy, but none were ever as ruthlessly dispatched as that rodent. My father had long since quit hunting and would not have done such a thing with family around.
Eventually we mouse-proofed the cottage and I've not seen one in the cottage since sometime back in the early 70s.
One last thing. I want to echo one thing Jackie already said. The pack of neighbour kids that our four kids play with when we are at the cottage are really nice. All of them. It's a great thing to not have to worry about who your children are playing with. We just need to round them up at night when it's time for bed. Otherwise they can run wild quite safely.
DH
Birthday cake with freshly ground coffee and tomatoes, yum! *lol* Wonderful photos and post.
awesome photos, jackie!!!
what a fabulous post - it brings back memories of many of my own summers on a lake.
that photo of the cuddles is worth a million bucks
excellent: hope all is well out your way! --XO
What a wonderful place to be! And the two faces with your Uncle Sandy are ADORABLE.
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