Raising Flowers and Skids

Rob’s 2021 Christmas Poem

Posted on December 31, 2021 by Leah

Christmas 2021

Clickity clack Covid don’t come back.

What a crazy year, on that point let’s be clear!

Birthdays and such started early in the year with Shannon, then

Josh, Leah, Zandra, Zach, Gabe and Sam too,

And half a century for you know who!!

Josh could vote and Sam could drive

The empty nest feeling we will learn to jive

Confined to be local as we locked down round by round

Despite the uncertainty we fought off the frown

Some big events happened even while the pandemic glitched

CDF middle ones made plans to get hitched!

Zandra at first living among the Hawaiian beauty

It was a young man on active duty

And then there’s Zach who was soon to be on his way back

From Lethbridge to Airdrie and Calgary too, he certainly left his mission with nothing left to do

Covid continued to play havoc with the year

The youngest two online but graduation for Josh was in the clear

Sam on to another grade, more whiskers on his face

He was now a rocking band member playing his bass

A drive to the big Apple

New start to grapple

On this smarty pants front,

Gabe and Shannon off to

Florida, the unjust and social media challenged to confront

Then there was Leah the true brave heart

Another business and big venture to play her power part

She branched out for her solo fable

Exciting new change and best of luck to Ms. Stable

But wait back to me the oldest in the crew

A big birthday bash downtown and a hotel night too!

Then a quick trip to drop off Zach and Rachael at school

We even hiked up to an emerald pool

And we made plans for a getaway Leah in a bikini!

We were off to Greece and Santorini

We made it back to the Great White North, PCR friendly to boot

And started to think of home comings and Christmas loot

A quick aside age as our nemesis

We even managed to go see Genesis

And now if you please pass the mayo

It’s the only thing that rhymes with Afla Romeo

But back to the ramp up to old Saint Nick

And there was another proposal to stick

With signs and a dash and planning from Zach’s marry me crew

Rachael said yes to make it engagement number 2!

And so with Josh in the woods all tired and in Jasper Park

I better get on with the end of this rambling before it gets too dark

So positive negative, we didn’t know where to go

But we made it here! Thanks Buffalo

So with a wink and cheer and snow afresh on the ground

Merry Christmas to all and let the love abound!

Christmas 2021

Posted on December 31, 2021 by Leah

We had a full house this Christmas! Everyone arrived home except for Josh – who stayed out in Jasper to work at the Fairmont Jasper Lodge.

Rob and I first went out to the “Winter Village” (aka The Toronto Christmas Market – they changed the name for some reason this year?!?!)

Gabe and Shannon arrive in early December. It was so nice to have them around for decorating and just doing everyday things.

Zandra and her fiancee Ilyah arrived next from Hawaii. We then had a nice Chritsmasy dinner and headed out to deliver Christmas cookies to friends:

Zach and Rachael has some drama getting home. They day after they got engaged – they got Covid. Although it felt more like a flu, it caused complications for getting home to Canada. There were time restrictions related to how long had to pass since they were diagnosed before they came through the border. We were able to get creative and re-route them to Buffalo where at least we could spend some time together while waiting for the tie to pass- or until they got a negative test. Miraculously, the day after they landed in Buffalo, their test came back negative! We were so happy to head home! But first, we spent some time in Niagara – on the US side. (I also had to do some work there and had to get creative for my zoom call!)

Meanwhile, back home, Rob and some of the kids went to the movies:

Everyone came home to get ready for Christmas:

We went out for Pho one the 24th and went to the Distillery to walk around a bit:

Christmas Eve we did our traditional program and nativity – a lot more participants. We missed Josh and my mom and sister:(

Gifts came next:

Missing this guy:

In the morning:

We had a chill couple of days and then did a “Family Fun Day” where we went for a nice walk in the ravine, played some games, ate some schwarma poutine and then followed the night up with some karaoke.

The fun starts when your brother in law helps you tuck your pants into you mother in law’s too big boots, lol:

Rob and I went out for dinner at Ki (squeezed it in before restaurants went in lockdown again!)

We had dinner with everyone on NYE – Danforth Dragon – everyone’s favourite Hakka Chinese food:

Everyone went their separate ways (except Gabe and Shannon stayed with us) and then Zach and Rachael came home just bore midnight to ring in the new year with us:

We went to church:

And then we got to go pick up Rachael’s wedding dress with her! She had shopped with her mom and sister and then decided on one so Shannon and I went to get it with her!

The kids engaged in some silliness:

And then we all headed to the airport to pick up Josh:

I snuck in to get him

He had lots of stories

We watched him open his Christmas gifts:

And then got the call two days later that all the staff from his department had Covid – so we tested him and guess what – he was either pregnant or positive:

So room service it was:

Then I took a test and it was pretty doubtful it meant I was pregnant…

So Covid started our Christmas holidays and ended it…

Overall though, we had a great Christmas:)

Good bye Mykonos

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Leah

After another amazing breakfast, a great beach day, we head back to our hotel terrace and soaked in the hot tub – I brought my kindle in and just spent some final hours enjoying reading!

We went to the beach for dinner again and had a really good final dinner. We admired the view from our terrace for the last time.

The next morning, we were off on our long journey home!

And we were off!

What an amazing vacation!!

It was so good to be out travelling again – hopefully the world can continue to get the help they need to open up!

Mykonos Beach Days

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Leah

We were in Mykonos for two full days and we decided to spend them on the beach.

We initially planned to tour the island – but the weather was gorgeous – we were finally unwinding and knowing that the end of our trip was coming so decided to just chill. We did head into the main town Chora one evening – but I will post about that separately. For now, I’ll just post a collage of pictures from our two beach days.

They started off with the incredible hotel buffet. I mean incredible (we stayed at the Myconian Ambassador) .

We then walked the 5 min to the beach (Playa Gialos), rented two sun chairs and umbrella (luckily low season meant they weren’t astronomical priced and they were available ) and parked ourselves there. We read, napped and even went in the water as it got really hot! We had lunch at the restaurant that rented the chairs both times and it was really quite good (we even went back there for dinner one night).

So here are the photos starting with breakfast at the hotel by the pool:

There are only so many photos of doing nothing I can take, lol.

They were some very chill, relaxing, amazing few days!

Heading to Mykonos

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Leah

We decided to wake up super early and go for a walk and go back to the restaurant where we had the great bunch… we were the first ones there when it open!

We headed to the port to catch a ferry to Mykonos. Not the most organized process – but we managed to get on the ferry and sailed to Mykonos.

Neither of us had every been to Myknonos and we stayed super close to the beach bcs we were looking for some great beach days.

Our hotel was pretty nice:)

We spent the rest of the day relaxing on our great terrace. We then headed to dinner right on the beach:)

Perissa Beach and Red Beach

Posted on November 1, 2021 by Leah

We decided to rent a car to head to some beaches,

But first – word of warning. You need an international drivers license in Greece (which we did not have – we have never needed one ! But luckily we found a couple of places that were willing to rent to us anyways (charging a ton extra in Crete but we had no choice since we needed the car for the week) but we just got a simple convertible smart car for exploring Santorini.

We mainly wanted to go to the beaches anyway.

We headed to Perissa beach (black sand beach ) – which I vividly remember spending time at ( and getting heat stroke at!) and we saw some backpackers there – so clearly it is the young place to go. LOL.

But since we are older, instead of spreading out our towels on the sand, we rented the chairs and umbrella and ordered drinks:) Sometimes it is rather nice to get older…

We had an ok lunch – we ordered the wrong things – but the place was cute:)

Here is a whole mix of lazy beach pictures:

Our cute little card wedged in:

After lunch , we decided to head to Red beach. We got a bit lost and went down some pretty scary roads (that we were worried about with our little smart car that if we leaned a little too far over we would tip lol)

But we got there and hiked to the beach and it was so pretty!!

We got back in time to sit on the terrace and take in the sunset again:

We found this amazing restaurant that was in the perfect location – right on the edge with incredible views – it was so romantic and delicious! It was a little chilly – and they had nice heaters and gave us blankets. It was a small restaurant with only a few tables so the service was also great. It was the perfect way to spend our last Santorini night!

Fira, Santorini (or Thira)

Posted on October 31, 2021 by Leah

So I didn’t realize but the island of Santorini is actually called Thira, but the main capital town is called Fira. I just thought they were the same thing lol.

We had a fantastic final breakfast – and the local cats enjoyed the leftovers lol.

We said good bye to our beautiful hotel and headed to Fira.

We had rented an airbnb there (a villa looking over the Caldera) but it wasn’t ready yet. We had a guy take our luggage to it though to store it. Yikes. I was very grateful. lol.

We wandered the alleys and paths and window shopped and then stopped for lunch. (We found this cute outdoor theatre that we meant to go back to one evening but we forgot – plus it actually got super chilly at night!)

We met the owner of the villa after lunch at an easy landmark – good think bcs we never would have found the door way to lead us to our villa.

While not super fancy compared to some places – it was super nice – with a gorgeous terrace up top and a hot tub – and then another jacuzzi inside! I am a bath person – so I loved having both indoor and outdoor to choose from (and she had tons of candles everywhere that you can light – so we bought a lighter – but I can’t help but think it is a fire hazard lol – but I loved lighting the candles at night!)

We spend the rest of the day lounging on the roof top (sounds so indulgent – and it was, lol) , watched another beautiful sunset, and then headed out to stroll some more before going to an Italian restaurant just outside the main areas.

I always say that if you want to be guaranteed a great meal in Europe it’s a sure bet to go Italian. However, when you live in Toronto – one of the most diverse cities in the world – where you can get every kind of food – it’s hard to be wowed. The place we went to was very good – I loved my Cacio and Pepe but Rob chhose Carbonara (it’s very big in Greece) and it was mediocre… but overall it was a good change from Greek (which had been really hit and miss – living in Greektown in Toronto – it is hard to beat!!)

I dont think I took any pictures of the actual dinner – or how cute our place looked at night with candles – but trust me, it was all good. Santorini is just a beautiful place – we were both happy to have come back to it with each other!

Hiking from Oia to Fira

Posted on October 31, 2021 by Leah

For Rob’s 40th birthday, we went to Italy and walked the “Walk of the Gods” in the Amalfi coast – and it was stunning!

We heard great things about the walk between Oia and Fira and decided to try it out. We heard that it is nicer and easier to do it the opposite way (bcs you get the views of Oia as you walk, and it is more downhill ) but the trail started right at our hotel so we just went…

But first, we started our day with an amazing breakfast overlooking Oia on our own little alcove balcony.

We then headed out on the stunning hike:

I have to admit it was a bit tiring! But really gorgeous!

The stray dogs seemed to like me, lol:

We found a super cute restaurant on the outskirts of Fira – and had a delicious brunch (even though we already had breakfast lol!)

We wandered around in Fira a bit and then caught a taxi to head back to Oia as we had massages booked!

Who ever thought we would have an outdoor massage overlooking the stunning view of Santorini!?

We then spent the rest of the day hanging by the pool – relaxing and reading.

We headed out to dinner to a super cute restaurant that had awesome views – but the food was meh.

Another beautiful day!

Heading to Santorini

Posted on October 25, 2021 by Leah

Unfortunately the ferry from Crete to Santorini was not working this time of year – so even though the islands are so close, we had to fly to Athens and then catch a flight to Santorini. A bit inconvenient, but we were not going to miss out on Santorini!

Both Rob and I had been before and loved it so we were happy to return and experience it together.

Together is always better:)

We arrived and went straight to our hotel – Ikies – that was right on the outskirts of Oia – a picturesque town right on the tip of the island.

Even though we had a smaller room – our little “balcony” was stunning and we had the perfect spot to watch the incredible sunsets overlooking Oia.

We headed into the town that was about a 10 minute walk. A 10 minute gorgeous walk I should say! I am glad we were on the outskirts!

We walked around and then saw the clouds roll in so took cover in one of the amazing restaurants overlooking the famous Caldera.

It was a really delicious lunch and once we finished eating, the sun was out again. Impeccable timing.

We continued exploring and then headed back to our hotel where we lounged around and then watched the INCREDIBLE sunset. I don’t think we could stop taking pictures!

We headed back into Oia for dinner and found a cute Italian place for some pizza and pasta. Italian food in Europe is always so yummy!

It was a great first day in Oia!

To my 21 year old self…

Posted on October 25, 2021 by Leah

28 years ago I first stepped onto the beautiful island of Santorini.

I always knew I’d be back.

I just had no idea what the 28 years in between would look like.

I’ve been thinking about what I would tell my young 21 year old self…

It’s not going to go as planned. Some things will fall into place. Some things will then fall out of place. Some things will never find a place. But don’t worry – trust the process. It is all better than you could ever have planned.

Life will be hard. Life will be beautiful. Embrace it all. There will be laughter and tears. Setbacks and growth. Sorrow and excitement. It will all shape who you become. You will get through.

You won’t regret your education. Build a solid career. You won’t regret travel. Make it a priority. You won’t regret taking chances on different business ventures. Take risks. You won’t regret investing in yourself. Keep learning. Keep growing. Teach. Be brave, ambitious and determined. Develop independence. Speak your mind. Don’t settle. You deserve to love and fully be loved. Be kind. Oh so kind – especially to yourself. It will take a while but work on developing self compassion. You don’t need to be perfect. You won’t please everyone. Some people won’t like you. They are simply crazy 😂(and you will learn you can’t fight crazy – so let them be!) Take care of all of you – body, heart, mind and soul. Have your own back. And heart.

And you will find love ❤️. It just won’t happen as you expect it. But it will be worth the wild, scary, lonely, beautiful fairy tale ride to find it. Hang in there. It continues to get better too.

Being a mother will be a beautiful, frustrating, rewarding, heartbreaking, sacred, hilarious adventure. You will learn to love as you never have. Oh, and you’ll embrace being a step mom too (woah that would have thrown 21year old Leah for a loop). The family you create will be such a gift. You will find the greatest joy here ❤️ You won’t regret any of the sacrifices you make – or how your family is your biggest priority… but at times it will be so very hard 🥺. Oh and get a cat and a dog – eventually. They will become part of your family too.

Invest in all your relationships – yourself, partner, family, friends, colleagues, clients, neighbours – even strangers who you’ll eventually meet “online” (don’t worry – you’ll learn what that means!) Surround yourself with those who challenge you to be the best you. Strengthen your faith – you will rely on it at times, and it will give you a foundation to stand on and become an anchor to you. Seek light. Seek wisdom. Seek understanding.

Finally, be in no rush. There is a season for it all. The days truly are long but the years are very short. Before you know it you’ll be back. So Savour. Document. Express gratitude. Have fun. Let your heart take pictures often. Look for thin places. Create thin moments (you’ll learn what those mean too 😉). Search for tender mercies – they will be everywhere.

You got this.

What would you tell your 21 year old self?