Home at Last! (The Final Installment)

Okay! Flash back with me one more time to Aug 21.10 as the MV Caribou approaches the rocky shores of Port aux Basques Newfoundland. There's nothing like knowing that in a few short minutes, your feet will be touching the sacred soil of HOME!

.

We had a little less than a 3 hour drive before we could be with our loved ones. Driving in Newfoundland must be done with extreme care. All along the highways are signs like this one: .

If you hit a moose while driving, the chances are that you and your vehicle will not survive. They are huge, rock-solid creatures, so you have to be constantly scanning the horizon for them. We encountered one on the drive back to the ferry to NS; but we recognized him from a distance, slowed down, and were able to watch him for a few minutes before he ran across the road and into the woods. They are so majestic! (And delicious when cooked slowly with lots of onions and served with rice! Yum yum!)

.

Finally! I've reached George's Lake and the cottage property that my folks have called home for the last 18 years. They'll both be 80 this fall; so I'm here to help them move out of their beloved cottage home and back into the city. Bittersweet!

.
After the slow 2 km drive over the dirt road (where you must still scan for moose), I'm HOME!

.
I saw lots of bunnies and toads on the drive in, but didn't encounter a moose until I was turning into the lefthand driveway. Then I noticed a young 2 yr old bull moose standing in the righthand drive; he ran across the drives, and by the time I reached the entrance, he was running up the left side of the house and back into the woods. Nature at your back door here!

.
In between mornings spent packing boxes for my Mom and evenings spent playing SkipBo, eating potato chips and drinking my Dad's home-made Cranberry wine, I visited my immediate family in Corner Brook. Corner Brook is a small city of hills which all overlook the beautiful Bay of Islands and the mouth of the Humber River. Here's my own panoramic view of a small portion of the Bay and the fiord that leads to the ocean. You can drive either side in about 2 hours return, lovely meandering roads with magnificant coastal scenery! .
And if you continue north past Corner Brook, you come to Marble Mountain, the best sking this side of the Rockies, and on to Gros Morne National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. But these are not the sights I took in on this trip. This was a mostly working vacation. And when you're working hard, you need to refuel often! Correct?

.

So, there was this visit to Brewed on Bernard where I met eldest daughter, Cindy, and where we fortified ourselves with this:

.
And after my overnight visit with Cindy, there was a quick stop here to stock up on NL "lassy buns" (molasses baking soda biscuits), raisin bread, cinnamon twists and date squares. A girl needs to keep up her strength!

.

About a week later, Libby flew into Deer Lake, just outside Corner Brook. My Mom and I went to visit her youngest sister, Mable -- my favorite Aunt! I have many, many wonderful memories of weekends spent with my Grandma here. And look at that view from the house! Across the bay is the pretty little village of Meadows..
And then we all drove to Deer Lake for supper at the Big Stop -- home of delicious fish 'n' chips and fantastic coconut cream pie -- the latter being the reason that Aunt Mable and Mom are smiling so broadly - before we picked up Libby..
The days after I picked up my baby girl were a whirl-wind! I continued to spend my mornings packing boxes; but my afternoons were now spent moving Libby into nursing residence and treking around every Dollar Store in town for "necessary" do-dads and thingie-gummies for her room. And although I cried like a baby to leave her there, I sure was a proud mama..
Judy and I left our loved ones and drove back to Nova Scotia on August 31st. There was much moaning, gnashing of teeth and tearing of hair as we left the island and drove back to our day-to-day reality. You know, 9-5 work, taxes, mortgage payments and responsibility!

.

.

Waaaa! I want my Mommy!

.

PS - I sure miss Newfoundland. There's no place like it.