After a lovely and relaxing couple of weeks at the house on the St. Lawrence, we said goodbye to Brenda, Dave, Rebekka, and the two sweet kitties: Nash&Ville, and headed back to Ottawa.
We only had a few days to spend with Mom and Kathy, but we made the most of it by fitting in as much birthday abuse as we could. My baby sister had just turned 50!!! We missed the actual day, but shared our love in the kindest and most understated way.
After extinguishing the blazing flames from all those birthday candles, we headed off to our main winter home down in south western Ontario, at a small farm near Chatham. This marks our second sit at Jane & Phil’s place, so it felt a bit like a homecoming as we drove up to the house.
We were welcomed with big smiles, dog howls, and brays from the horses. The cats … they just ignored us, as you’d expect. Yes, Phil & Jane’s farm is a busy place, but all the people are amazing and the animals are so sweet — they all have their own unique personalities, which you just gotta love.
We arrived a day early to get reacquainted with all the critters, and learn the winter routines. We were first here the previous spring when it was warm, and not snowy. This time it would be a winter sit, so we needed to learn how to manage in the colder weather. We also wanted time so the animals could get comfortable with us once again. Most of them are easy going, but Tilly is quite wary, especially of men, and Noah is delicate and fussy. He’s a bit like a pre-teen brat who talks a big talk, but really needs a lot of gentle care.
As it turns out, Tilly took to Ann after about 24 hrs, and Noah seemed OK with me. It’s a good thing, because Noah was/is suffering from health problems. It’s a bit of a mystery. He’s been eating poorly, and has lost a lot of weight. By the time of our arrival he seemed to have turned the corner, but was still too skinny. Our task was to keep him eating, and moving in the right health direction. This basically meant administering daily meds (two to three a day, orally), and getting as much food into him as he would take. It also involved weekly vet visits in the later part of our stay. He didn’t like the needle, but under the guidance of his doctor, Shayla, we managed fine.
Our days largely revolved around the animals. Ann led the dog pack, while I tended to most of the barn animal duties. As Jane & Phil described it, Ann became the dog whisperer and I the zoo keeper. It worked well, although a week into our stay Ann, and then I, came down with a cold. It was never debilitating, but lingered for weeks in the case of Ann. I got it later and kicked it sooner, but it even took me a couple of weeks to fully recover. Through it all we were able to keep everyone happy, basically just keeping up with the dog walks, and the pooper-scooping.
When we first arrived at our southwestern farm the weather was quite nice; warm and dry. But winter soon found us, with temperatures plummeting and snows building. This made barn yard work, and dog walking tougher, but on the plus side, it gave me an excuse to run the little tractor.
Ann had been looking forward to lots of swim days at the nearby pool in Blenheim, but the persistent cold drowned her plans. She lost over a month to the bug, only getting back to it in the last few weeks of our stay. This left her feeling rather sluggish. But the constant barn and horse work had the opposite effect for me. I’m feeling farmer-John fit, which is kinda opposite of where we usually end up over the winter.
Days on the farm kinda meld, one to the other. There’s a routine that the animals demand, so we settled into our patterns. The winter has been a bit colder, and perhaps snowier, than is normal for this area. These cold, snowy days were interspersed with the occasional rain/freezing rain period. At times, the driveway and fields turned to a skating rink!
But the place really is lovely, and whenever the sun came out, the birds would start singing and the horses and doggies would start romping. And even when it was cold and snowy, the house is so cozy. In other words, it’s a wonderful place to spend the winter.
It’s hard to believe, but our time here is almost at an end. The two months have flown past, and it’s sad to think we must leave soon. That’s one aspect of this life which is difficult — the leaving. But at least we know we’ll be back. We’ve already agreed to farm sit here next winter, so it will only be a temporary “goodbye” when we bid farewell in about a week.
