Summertime

     Ah, the summertime. My favourite time of year, and that's what Stasha wants us to talk about this week, summer memories.

1 Being the son and grandson of farm folk, the one thing summer meant was..... Hay. Thousands of bales of hay. First cut, second cut maybe even a third in September. Good times.

Click to enlarge the pictures

Katey, Dad and Cathy out of the loft, waiting for the next wagon

I was at the bottom unloading, in shorts and sandals

2 Horses. Summer was/is the time for riding. Lazy trail rides, playing tag in the "sallies" or real cowboys. (Or chasing cattle all over hell's half acre.)

Mom training

Mom and Dad taking Katie and Julie out for a ride

Mom trick riding

Even a little bull riding LOL

My uncle Bob on Magician

3 Hand in hand with the horses, country fairs and horse shows. My grandfather carted us all over Eastern Ontario and Western Quebec.

My grandfather showing buggies

My cousin Lindsay, proudly displaying her ribbon

4 Reunions. Both sides of the family try and get together at least once over the summer.

The Fisher clan

Some of the Craigs and Dowsetts

5 Weddings. I love going to weddings. Family, friends, all good, just not mine LOL

My aunt Janice with her husband Ken

My favourite picture of the two of them

My aunt Donna with her husband Pat

And my cousins Jason and Darren

My aunt Rita (Rorybore's mom) and her husband Frank

We even have horses at our weddings

My grandfather driving the carriage for my aunt Karen's wedding

My friends, Monica and Llijah, the Pearces

6 Watching thunderstorms. I've been fascinated with thunderstorms since I was little. Now, I love watching them roll into Toronto from over Lake Ontario. Awesome.

7 Water.The beach, the pool, a cottage. Summer on the water is the best.

Rita with a bunch of us at Marlyn and Donny's cottage

Same cottage, my uncle Gordon and his wife Sue

Tried, Tested and True Mommy's parents

Another favourite picture

Aunt Jean and my Mom relaxing at either Silver Lake or Sandy Beach

Uncle Leonard coming in from water skiing

Water = Fishing

Grandpa Craig and my uncle Ken

8 Hanging out. Patios, BBQs, corn roasts, pig roasts, tailgate parties, bonfires and fireworks.

One particular memory that makes me laugh, the look of horror on my cousin Adam's friends as Ferd went on to describe, in great detail, a traditional Filipino recipe for the pig's head. Priceless.

Our hiking/canoeing day trip

Hitting the patios with Andrew after work

Mu uncle Donny BBQing

He makes the best burgers ever

Parties mean casualties

And because I live with the Nerd Herd,

FanExpo, or any comic book convention really

9 No surprise, gardening. After all, I started this, didn't I? I can't lie, summers spent weeding our or either of my grandparents gardens as a kid were not the most joyous of memories. Acres, by hand. Now however, I enjoy  gardening on my little 1/100 of an acre. As I type, pies are cooling on my counter made from rhubarb and strawberries just out of my garden. Being able to walk outside and snip some herbs, grab some beans, cucumbers, tomatoes or salad greens, incredible.

All kinds of flowers

My winter onions putting up next year's  seed sets

Peas sprouting up

I'm pretty sure this is what is happening in my garden when I'm not looking

The swath of destruction they have caused, now explained.

10 Very closely tied to the last one, picking berries. As kids, we roamed all over picking wild raspberries, strawberries, blueberries and blackberries. We'd get home with stained hands and faces with our haul and ... nothing beats wild blackberry pie. Wild raspberry for my cousin Sherry.

     When my grandmother was ill, she was telling my aunt Barb she wouldn't be able to make Sherry's favourite, raspberry squares. My aunt said she was pretty sure she could make them to which my grandmother replied, but will they be wild raspberries.

I don't have to work quite so hard any more

My thornless blackberry bushes are putting up an amazing bounty this year

     One final thought, being the musical kind that I am, a favourite tune. Have an amazing summer.