Before the summer started, Sara and I actually got organized for a change (might have helped that I wasn't constantly traveling!) and reserved some camping weekends. One of the weekends/campgrounds we reserved was at Samuel de Champlain, the girls were going to be camping with their grandparents and cousins for the week, and we would go up and spend the weekend with them (and yes, the week at home alone was nice). Samuel de Champlain is a very nice campground, covered it last year so won't go into too many details other than to say - it's great one of the better ones, but at just over 3 hours away - it's not great for a weekend getaway. The girls loved being able to camp with grandpa and grandma though and they called in the middle of the week to say they had seen umpteen turtles, loads of frogs, a loon and her baby, river otters, great blue herons... on one canoe trip! Was a nice weekend for us - other than all the rain, but that's the way it's been this summer.

Just a little late for a Canada Day wrap-up, but it's been a busy few weeks...

We had the Westboro Community Sale this past Saturday, and I had reserved a table to get our new line of Tshirts out into the public for the first time. This was more than a little nerve racking - putting yourself and your ideas right into the public view like that - looking, hoping for their approval, but with the obvious questions 'what if they hate it'?!?! There have been some great comments from some of my readers on the brand and the Ts - and that gave me a good measure of confidence to get out there - so thanks to you for that!

Relatively high hopes
I had some dillusions of having a good day. I was well prepared, the table was setup nicely with well printed signage and holders, free colouring books to handout, a good display of the shirts, I even brought a pile of change to make it easier for people to pull out their $20's. But it wasn't quite the success I had hoped for...

I was thinking that it would make such a great story that I had gone out with my wares (old school like a fishmonger or something...) sold well, and made enough money to buy supper for the family and go forward from there.

Didn't quite happen. I didn't make enough for lunch, I didn't make enough to buy myself a beer... not one sale. Boo.

Not all bad!
While I had hoped to make a few sales, I had to remind myself that the real reason I was out there was to expose the brand to the public and gauge their interest. In that area, it went very well. I had lots of people taking long looks, smiling at the design/text - lots of 'cutes' and 'adorables' - I think the spread showed quite nicely in that way to attract attention. A number of people read the 'About Us' that I had put up and really like the idea, the theme, etc - even had a fellow former expat come up to me and discuss the same problems I had faced in trying to find something nice and Canadian for the girls to wear. She was among a number of people who said they would be back later - but also took cards and colouring books so they could get to the site. Coming back later never happened, but I did leave a little early (I was getting burned to a crisp!!) - and there was lots of other things happening at the Westboro Community Centre that day.

Not quite the right environment...
First off - it was a garage sale, and most kids were more interested in all the old toys that were strewn about... and for others rummaging around, I don't think the mindset was right for what I was proposing. And I mentioned it before, but there lots of other things there to keep the kids busy - a band, activities...etc

I had also hoped to have my chief sales associates (my girls) with me to help bring in the customers. They had a few dance sessions that day, and there was so many people/cars at the event, that it made it impossible for them to get back and forth. If I get into the Carp Farmers Market - I'll be sure to have them there with me!

I'm being tested
Like I said, it was somewhat dissapointing - but I view it as a test. I was rejected - do I have the guts to keep pushing forward? Yes. There were good points to draw from the experience, and I need to build off those. If everyone who has ever tried something new and crazy quit after their first failure - we'd be without a lot of really cool stuff...

Next Up?
I'm going to be heading downtown today, to the Ottawa Store in the Byward Market. I'm hoping to partner up with them, have them be the flagship of sorts for our line. Makes sense - it has lots of Canadian touristy types things, so I'm hoping they see it the same way. With them being right down in the market should have lots of exposure for the brand - keep your fingers crossed for me, I'll let you know how it goes!

BTW - went with Meghan's class to Bonnechere Caves yesterday, will post on that later too!

I've never been one to sit around and wait for things to happen. Being 'unemployed' for the first time...ever...has given me more time than ever before to look at new opportunities. And really, with the current economic climate, you have to look at anything and everything. I've always wanted to own and operate my own business, and recently I've been wanting to try something a little different that the IT world that I've worked in my whole life. I've also wanted to expand on my comfort zone - work on marketing, branding, accounting, business management, sales, design...etc and I want to produce something that I can touch and feel...more than just 1's and 0's for a change.

October is a terrible month for us... We love the weather, but rarely get the chance to enjoy it. Meghan and Emma have their birthdays, I'm usually travelling, we have our wedding anniversary and Hallowe'en gets in there too.

It's our second fall back home, and wanted to take advantage of the nice weather we had been having... We found an afternoon between birthdays and decided to head downtown to take a boat tour on the Ottawa River. We had heard some really good things about the trip, especially in the fall with a all trees turning colour.
It was a beautiful day - 20C, sunny and we figured there would be plenty of others wanting to do the same, so we went down early bought our tickets and walked around the canal for a little while.
The Canal was built after the war of 1812, to provide a path other than the St.Lawrence River between Montreal, Ottawa and Kingston. There were no boats moving through on this day, but the girls have seen the locks in action before, further up the canal (it runs for 200km!). In the winter, we'll come back and enjoy the worlds longest skating rink!




We finally boarded, and got some nice seats on the side so the kids could have a good view. In the video footage, you can hear the tour guide of course speaking in English and French - attempting the same bad jokes in both official languages. We started up river for a nice wide look at the Parliament Buildings, the Chateau Laurier and the National Gallery. Not too far upriver before we had to swing around to head back down on the Quebec side. We passed the Museum of Civilization on the way to mouth of the Gatineau River. At this part of Gatineau it looked like a little riverside town, with an old school church, small marina and an eclectic mix of homes.
As we entered into the open waters of the Ottawa River, the boat stopped for a few minutes to allow us to look around before heading back up the Ottawa side. The colours on all the trees - the red, the orange, the yellow, the browns lined the hills. It was really nice to see. Too bad it only lasts a week or two... We turned back right around Rockcliffe Park, and for those who don't know Ottawa, Rockcliffe houses many historic homes and foreign embassies, not to mention the Prime Minister and the Governor General. Up on the hill overlooking the river, you can see the Prime Ministers house. Not too shabby...
Heading back to the dock, we got a great look up at the Ottawa Canal locks. Looks like a series of steps heading up into the downtown. As it was approaching 6, and the sun was heading down, the girls were happy to see that it was coming to an end - it was a little cool in the open air deck without the sun to warm them up.



We finished the evening with a walk in the market, and dinner downtown.
Pretty good day for us in October!

My girls have always loved to go camping. There's just something about camping and being in the great outdoors that keeps people back. I love the smell of the air, the sounds of the trees, the picturesque lakes and being able to leave it all behind and just relax.
Even when we were living in the U.S - where it was hot and muggy - we tried to go camping. That experience was a bit of a disaster. Emma was just a baby and Meghan at 2, it wasn't easy, but the heat was unbearable. We spent more time in the air conditioned van than anywhere else. Worst of all must have been those deafening cricket sounds at night. After that experience, we gave up on camping in Virginia - and went back home to camp in the summers.

Fitzroy Provincial Park
This summer we went camping a few times. Our first trip was to Fitzroy Provincial Park, about 30 mins from Ottawa. The whole family went, but it was a bit of a short trip. This summer was not the best in June and July - raining soooo much, and this week wasn't any different. We were tenting, and everything got soaked. Not only was it wet, but it was muggy and when the afternoon's rolled-around the bugs came a calling... We found out there was supposed to be huge storm rolling in later that day - so we decided to pack it in, better luck next time.

Samuel de Champlain Provincial Park
The following weekend, I took Meghan and Emma to go camping with Grandpa and Grandma at Samuel de Champlain Provincial Park. I stayed for the weekend, and they got to stay out for the week. It wasn't a long stay for me with them, but we packed in the activities.
We had a great site, one we've stayed at before - nice and close to the beach and a playground. And it's a great beach. Water is nice and warm for swimming, and the beach is great for making sandcastles. Just off to the side of the beach there are some marshes, and the girls will wander around - hoping to find some frogs to catch!

Tents vs Trailers
The girls got to stay in the trailer, while I tented. Tents are for the purists - but not the most comfortable or dry - especially if it gets wet outside. Trailers are kind of like a mobile cottage, they have many comforts of home, but you get to live out in the forest. It all depends what you like, and what you can afford ;-)

Campfires
At night, the girls are always hoping for a campfire. There's nothing quite like watching a fire. The flames flickering and dancing - I guess that's why people keep putting fireplaces in their homes. The girls get into their PJ's (to cover up from the bugs!) and cozy up to a nice fire, and then wait for the marshmallows! They like them roasted with a nice and golden brown outside, so you have to wait for the fire to burn down to get those red hot coals, perfect for marshmallows. Another campfire treat is pie iron pizza's. They're basically iron skillets on sticks that you put right down in the coals to cook. You put a piece of bread on either side, and whatever you want inside, then close it up and into the fire it goes. It toasts up so nice and hot - it's the original pizza pocket! mmmm...Tasty.

Rafting
The next day was going to get really hot, so we decided to go rafting down the river. The Mattawa River at the campground has a great set of rapids to run down, and with all the rain we had had, the river was running high and fast - perfect conditions for rafting. My parents had bought a couple of rubber dingy's for that very purpose, so we got them all blown up, put on our lifejackets and headed out. Grandpa and Emma started down the river, Meghan and I tried to follow - but ran into a big rock right off the bat! The dingy popped and we quickly sank into the river. Luckily, it was only meters from our start point, so we headed back to the car to get the air mattress - and it was great for shooting the rapids. The river was warm, and the sun was hot as we slowly glided down the river. It was so relaxing between the rapids, I could have napped. The rapids were fast and high, splashing and bouncing us all over the place, but we managed to stay on. At the end, we jumped out of the river and ran back part way to do it all over again. Meghan and Emma absolutely loved it.
Canoeing
No camping trip is complete without going canoeing. I pratically grew up in a canoe while camping, and it was the highlight for me to go out and catch frogs. We didn't have any luck finding frogs this trip, but got up close and personal with some turtles and had a unparalleled experience with a mother loon and her baby.
Paddling in the marshes and through the fallen waterlogged trees, we saw a number of turtles out sunning themselves. We were able to sneak in and get a better look at a few, but they'd dive in as we got closer. One though, decided that he didn't want to get out of the sun and Emma decided that she wanted to try to touch his shell. We got up against the edge of the tree, she reached way out and was able to pet him a few times. Of course, he got tired of it after a bit and jumped back in the water starttling Emma a bit - but she was happy to have been able to get that close.



Following that encounter, we saw a few loons out in the middle of the lake and decided to go in for a close-up. Loons are a water bird with an , and rarely can you get very close to them with scaring them off. This trip however, a mother bird was out with her baby, and couldn't exactly take off. We were able to get within a meter of them - with the video camera on! She called out with that haunting loon voice as we approached, to ward us off. I was a little worried when we got so close that the mother would attack us. We finally gave way, and veered off - but it's something I'll never forget and hope the girls will always remember.


It's something no Canadian, or visitor to Canada should ever miss the opportunity to try. Camping has even caught on with the new Canadians, who seemed to have embraced it. I was almost surprised to see so many multi-cultural campers, but I suppose it's very different - the great outdoors, from the busy, bustling cities of where they came from... I know - I've been to some of those places, where the people are shoulder to shoulder, loud and pushy - it's no wonder they like it!