Balcony Mint Garden

Dontello and I have a good-sized balcony that becomes another room for our small apartment in the summer months. We have a barbecue and a white plastic patio set and regularly use the balcony to entertain. I was really excited to have plants when we first moved in, after having lived in a windowless cabin on […]

Cooper’s CSA Farm

Cooper's CSA Farm

Over the weekend, we visited Cooper’s CSA Farm in Zephyr, Ontario. For the past three years, we’ve been a member of their CSA (community-supported agriculture) and had shares in their vegetable, egg, chicken, and pork bounty. At the start of the season, the farm hosts an open house where they provide tours of the farm and explain […]

The Year in Books: June with the Life-Changing Magic Art of Tidying Up

I openly admit that I hate tidying up and am a borderline hoarder. Mix those qualities into a tiny downtown apartment and the result is a disastrously messy home. It drives Donatello, a naturally neat person, nuts. I heard about The Life-Changing Magic of Tidying Up: The Japanese Art of Decluttering and Organizing and the title immediately caught my attention. Since it […]

Wildflowers of the Utah Desert

Prickly Pear Cactus, Utah Desert Wildflowers

Earlier in May, my parents and I returned to Utah for another hiking trip. We went to Zion and Bryce National Parks back in October, so this time we visited Arches, Canyonlands, and Capitol Reef National Parks. I love learning to identify things: animals (easy), birds (harder), trees (harder still), and wildflowers. When I worked […]

Hanami and a Baby Reindeer

One of our new favourite traditions in Toronto is going for hanami. For the second year, we’ve trekked to the packed but beautiful High Park for hanami, or cherry blossom viewing. This year was much hotter and the crowds seemed bigger but hanami has definitely become a symbol that spring in the city is really […]