Disclaimer: travelling with young children. Key attractions may have been missed due to tantrums, lack of snacks, and bad timing.

Adjusting to winter in Ontario

I always knew winter in Canada would be an adjustment, but I never considered what the cold temperatures and snow would mean for the mornings: my attempts at the school run have been nothing short of laughable. Trying to dress three kids in at least three layers each, before bundling them out the door has never made me sweat so profusely in my life. But on a serious note, the introduction to snow so far has been quite simply majestic. I’ve caught myself just staring out the window watching the huge snowflakes drift down, gasped at opening my curtains to quite literally a winter wonderland, and enjoyed stopping with Grace while out hiking to stand and catch snow on our tongues! If you need a second guess at who's experiencing proper snow for the first time, just keep an eye out for the kids that will randomly throw themselves down in the street to make snow angels, because the sight of the bright, white powder just overwhelms their senses! 

Thanks for the dry run Canada – now that we know how to layer properly, and the extra time needed to get out the door, we’re ready to fully embrace your winter in all its glory.


Date nights and tour guides – another London restaurant and tourist spots

Before the snow hit, we had the joy of a family visit from Ireland recently: Paul’s parents came to stay with us and got a taste of life here. The girls were so excited to spend quality time with grandparents, and we were delirious for our first date night in over six months! A double date to Los Lobos Mexican restaurant was just what the doctor ordered (no pun intended): nachos with the most delicious salsa, and the best choice in tacos, washed down with a spicy Margarita never tasted so good. We also managed an extremely late-night cinema showing to see James Bond in action! 

We didn’t venture too far with my in-laws, but were able to show them some of London’s beauty in Kains Woods, Ross Park, and a leisurely browse at Covent Garden Market. Sad to see them go but we look forward to any other Irish tourists that may descend upon us in the coming months. 


Recent hikes and walks: Hilton Falls, Fanshawe Conservation Area, Ivey Park/Harris Park & Blackfriars Bridge, Wildwood Conservation Area

It’s safe to say there’s been a lot of hiking and exploring done recently. Below are some of the highlights: 

- Hilton Falls: If you’ve been following my Instagram you’ll know that I recently took part in my first ever 25k trail race. I’ll soon be documenting my trail running escapades on a separate blog, but I wanted to mention the short spurts of beauty I managed to take in during the run. Hilton Falls is located in what is known as ‘Escarpement Country’, a large area of beauty centred round the town of Milton, about a 1.5 hour drive from us in London (Ontario, not England, remember). Part of the trail is dotted with rocks and boulders - a delight on the legs – while other sections are wide, flat and lined with pine trees as far as the eye can see. I had views over a cliff face down onto a railroad and reservoir, which on a crisp, sunny afternoon were really spectacular. My route back to the finish was supposed to take in the waterfalls – the main attraction if you will – but a wrong turn meant we missed them completely! I see that as an excuse to return for a more leisurely hike in the future…

- Fanshawe Conservation Area: located within London, this is one of the most stunning conservation areas around, with its huge lake, colossal dam, and meandering trails. I’ve ran it, walked it, and taken the girls trekking through some of it, and each time found a different way to enjoy it! Most recently, it’s been in the snow, and I was shocked by how different it looked to when I ran it a few weeks back, when leaves were still turning colour and the air still warm. Now with trees bare, and a mix between icy and slushy paths depending on the temperature, it looked like a totally different place. The girls managed about a 3km hike round trip from near the golf course, a quick stop to pick up some pine cones, and then back to the car. 

- Ivey park/Harris Park: Ada and I stumbled upon this beautiful walkway on one the few occasions that we managed to escape on our own for a peaceful stroll. Located right downtown and beside Labatt park – the world’s oldest baseball field – you can walk a loop under the bridge, across the park, up over Blackfriar’s Bridge (North America’s oldest wrought iron bridge) and back, with the Thames River flowing beside you and London’s skyscrapers ahead of you. I think this might be one of the most tranquil Autumn walks in the heart of the city!

- Wildwood Conservation Area: with my never-ending wanderlust pushing Paul to explore new territory each weekend, we took a very snowy drive to Wildwood conservation area. This was attempt number two at the journey, with the car breaking down on us the previous day as we attempted to leave London! The Conservation Area, which takes in Wildwood dam and reservoir, is a popular camping and hiking spot during the spring and summer months. But as we set off on a short trek from the entrance to head round to the lake and boat house, there wasn’t another soul in sight! The running stroller made it through the snow with Aoife and Ada on board, while Grace and I trundled along behind, stopping every now and again to see if we could spot any wildlife (nothing apart from a couple of squirrels). The quaint town of St Marys is a five minute drive away, so we passed through to grab some coffees and hot chocolates to warm us on the journey home.


Cutting your own Christmas Tree - Tree Lane Farms

Tree Lane Farms, located in Ilderton, (a ten-minute drive from London), was a well organised, drive in, go cut your tree, and head off into the sunset kind of place, with super friendly, efficient staff making the process that bit easier for tree cutting novices such as ourselves. When we got there, I was glad of our last-minute decision to put the wellies and snow boots on…it was MUDDY. The kind of mud that you can’t really control yourself slipping on, the kind where you see a child go down in slow motion before you manage to grab them by the hood and swing them back into an upright position. Looking out across the field full of beautiful White Spruce trees (yes, I did get this from the website and am not an expert in varieties of tree), it felt like a strange parallel with the apple picking we had done in September. With the icy wind cutting deep as Paul meandered through the different tree sizes, I was urging him on to “just pick a bloody tree”, while the girls slipped and moaned their way behind us. When he finally decided on ‘The One’, he quickly got to work sawing it down as we watched on, waiting for it to fall to our mercy. The best part was hauling it back through the field on a strange, tree carrying contraption - insert correct apparatus name here – to then see it being given a good shake and swiftly tied and wrapped, ready for transportation home. I wasn’t quite sure what I had envisioned for this trip, but it definitely looked like National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation watching Paul strapping that big ‘ole tree to our rusty wagon! The best part was when I got to go into the gift shop ON MY OWN to pay; what a magnificent sight of sparkling, tasteful Christmas decorations and ornaments awaited me! 




I can’t believe there’s only three weeks until Christmas, and more importantly, three weeks remaining of 2021. We’ve spent almost half a year in Canada, and we feel like we’re just getting started here! Time to plan another Canadian adventure I think…



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