Just An East Coast Girl

Anxiously waiting…

Oh the anticipation…

It’s been 5 years. FIVE years since I’ve seen this beauty in bloom and it looks like it’s gonna pop any day.

It’s a rainy day here along the South Shore and surprisingly, I’m not minding it. We have been landscaping and gardening, I bought a few flowers yesterday and potted them and this morning in the rain, everything looks so beautiful, so vibrant and rich in color. Even our poor excuse for a lawn right now looks lush and green.

Back to my crab tree. I love trees that bud and blossom. I have two types of crab trees on my front lawn that I’ve always enjoyed especially during the blooming period in late May. BUT, the last time I saw them bloom was the Spring of 2010 before we went on Expat Assignment. So…I am anxiously waiting for them to pop!

WELL…Isn’t that what this first long weekend is for?

David is back to work this holiday Monday. It’s not a holiday at Michelin but he did take a vacation day tomorrow so we will be back hard it. It’s kinda good he’s working so I can have a break because we’ve been busy. AND…we both just aren’t used to it. Our muscles aren’t used to it after 4 years of not having a home to look after. But when he got home this afternoon, he wanted to get back at it!

So what have we been doing? Why, gardening of course! We, like many people in Canada use the May long weekend as the weekend to get their gardens in shape. Flower gardens and landscaping as well as vegetable gardens and even potting flowers. Usually by the middle of May the risk of frost is gone…usually…so it’s safe to plant. I think this year however, I will wait just a little longer for my flowers.

This year’s project, take back our lawn and gardens!!! OUTSIDE projects and lots of them, Being away is not helpful to lawns but then I don’t feel really bad because our neighbours’ lawns aren’t much better. Between a ban in chemicals that are allowed on lawns and a certain weed that has overtaken all the lawns in our area, our once beautiful lush green lawn is a hill of weeds so…

Get rid of the lawn, get rid of the mature overgrown shrubs, make bigger gardens, rock the hill and then concentrate on growing lush green grass in the spaces that are left…smaller spaces that are left. This weekend we got started!

First thing, take out the shrubs!

GONE!

Get some new mulch for the gardens as we cut them bigger!

Plants for the gardens are gonna have to wait…I can’t make up my mind what I want. The bark is all in though and we started on the hill.

Abby’s loving these outside days.

Border blocks from our friends at Bergman’s Concrete arrived.

Oh…and we did get time to enjoy a BBQ! Yum, after working really hard, a BBQ tastes soo…wonderful!

And back at it tomorrow!

How did you spend your long weekend? Gardening, travel? Hope you enjoyed it.

In Search of Nova Scotia’s BEST Fish & Chips!

TODAY is Friday and the start of the first long weekend of the season. It’s gonna be a nice one too…bring it on!

This weekend also kicks off the second edition of my quest to find the BEST fish & chips places in Nova Scotia. Last summer we did this and there were just so many places we didn’t get chance to try that I decided we need to do a little more investigating.

Fish & Chips is a staple food along the South Shore of Nova Scotia. We LOVE our fresh haddock and we can be pretty picky about it. There are so many great spots along the coast where it is a feature on the menu. So once again this summer starting this weekend ( from the May long weekend until Thanksgiving weekend) we are on our search for “THE BEST” in Nova Scotia. Some places we went to last year may have to be re-visited just in case there was a change, but we are hoping to try some new spots too.

…BUT you’ll have to wait until October for the RESULTS!!

Have a great Victoria Day weekend!

What do I see?

“David, what’s that?! We have to go back!!” That’s what I said the other day when we were driving along the river to go to a market to pick up some meat to BBQ. I wanted a closer look, I had never seen these birds here before. At least I don’t think so…not up in a tree like that and so many of them.

And yesterday…Looking out the window what do I see?

This little guy pecking away at anything and everything. It was fun to watch him. First he was on the telephone pole ( I wasn’t quick enough to grab my camera) and then he flew down to the crab apple tree and was dancing all over the place pecking away and then he was on the ground. Just a little guy… a newbie…I think he was getting used to the whole idea and what and how he should do it. 😀

Spring is such a wonderful time of year! It’s gonna be a nice few days…gotta get out and enjoy it!

Proud to be an East coaster!

Once an East coaster…. ALWAYS an East coaster!

Many of you have heard of the brand East Coast Lifestyle. It is a nautical lifestyle brand focused on promoting the lifestyle we live here on the East Coast and was created by Acadia University student Alex MacLean. An idea…from his home…and just 30 hoodies.

Tonight on the Live at 5 news there was a segment about Alex and his brand going to Washington, DC. East Coaster Alex Maclean was chosen to represent Canada at the Global Student Entrepreneur Awards. This is an international award for students who own and run businesses while attending college or university, and gives visibility to student business owners who are innovative, profitable, and socially responsible. In his own words, Alex wants to put Nova Scotia on the map!

Alex sold those initial 30 hoodies and actually sold 250,000 hoodies in the first year of business. How cool is that?

I love the brand and this East Coast girl wears hers proudly!

A beautiful day to ride…

So my husband bought a bike last August. He had a few months of fun and then he had to store it for winter. It came out of storage a few weeks ago and ever since he’s been wanting me to go for a ride.

Well today was a beautiful day to ride…

And we had fun. It brought back a few memories…

If today was an indication, I can see us exploring some roads along our coast this summer. Hope you had a great weekend!

Just An East Coast Canadian Girl!

Okay so I can’t stay away from blogging! After a little more thought I decided to continue but with a different approach. A new blog… and a new name…It will be more about things to see and do in Nova Scotia and along Canada’s beautiful East Coast. The food, festivals, events, little hideaways and gems we come across in our travels… after all, I tell everyone how wonderful Canada is and especially Nova Scotia.

I may not post as regularly, certainly not everyday, and posts may just be a picture or two, but it will give me a space to share with readers and those who stumble across my blog, a little taste of the East Coast!

So here’s to a fresh start!