Weekend getaway...and flowers in The Humble Bungalow Garden

Last weekend we were invited to visit long time friends who retired to Thetis Island.

They built their dream home on the water's edge in Telegraph Harbour.

Other long time friends made the trek across the big pond from the Lower Mainland and we had a reunion of sorts...

we were celebrating Mr. HB's birthday.

I found a wee bit of time to work on the Miriam sweater...

the view was a bit distracting as

there were so many gorgeous yachts cruising past 

that I had to keep looking up from the knitting!

Just knitting the garter stitch front border, it will be finished soon!

Enjoying the newly purchased Tonka and Oud candle 

from a wee shop in Chemainus near the ferry dock.

The scent is woodsy and rich.

A lovely fragrant rose at the Telegraph Harbour Marina...

an old rose scent with soft apricot petals.

When I posted the picture on Instagram of the unknown rose...

several readers identified it as Just Joey.

Thank you :-))

Pulled out the stack of my TBR books

had a wee gander...

there are far more than I remembered.

Now my dilemma is to decide which one to read next?

What are you reading?

Our hydrangeas are the current stars in The Humble Bungalow Garden.

This hydrangea was a gift from my husband's architectural firm 

when my dad passed away years ago...

it has grown and never disappoints with its variety of blooms.

These limelight hydrangeas are just one of the dozen or so that we have planted over the years.

Their shade of chartreuse green glows

it lights up and illuminates the perennial borders.

Lots to keep us busy in the garden at this time of year.

I plan to go out and pick some of the various hydrangea blooms 

with hopes of drying them to bring indoors for the Fall and Winter months.

The weather is still very hot but i know that it will change as the summer wanes.

I'll be wearing boots and carrying my brolly before too long!

(I need to buy new rubber boots too!)

Well I must close and make lunch for us...

How are things going with you?

If you have a moment or two

please leave a comment and share your thoughts...

I always appreciate hearing from readers.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Wardrobe ~ Classic and Funky

Last weekend I accompanied our son and the grandchildren on a getaway.

We stayed at The Ocean Promenade Hotel in White Rock across from the beach.

Our suite was large with panoramic views

and

 had a kitchen which was handy for our morning coffee and breakfasts.

There were train tracks along the seafront and the trains passed by several times to the delight of our youngest granddaughter...

We took the kids to the Splash Water Park in Tsawwassen.

It was fun filled hours of water play, slipping and sliding, screams and splashes.

I hung out with our youngest who was too short to go on the really scary slides.

We had fun in the pools and she ran up and down to the junior slides...

I cannot believe how MUCH energy these kiddos had!

By the time almost 3 hours in the pool had passed I was knackered...

we went off to Milestones for dinner and then headed back to White Rock to get in our PJ's and get cozy.

I was in bed asleep by 10:00!

We did some back to school shopping at Tsawwassen Mills Mall.

On Sunday, we drove to the shopping mecca on South Granville. 

At Indigo, the girls perused The American Girl Doll collections...

Grammy shopped at Eileen Fisher...

(pure bliss)

I haven't been since Covid.

What a treat!

I found a LBD for Fall and winter.

LBD

Nice weight jersey, pockets, zipper detail.

Zip can be adjusted to your taste...

I added the classic Hermes scarf.

I could wear the big pearl necklace for a bigger WOW impact.

I also have a white top with 3/4 sleeves which will be great underneath.

The black lined walking coat was on sale but my size wasn't in stock at the shop 

so the clerk found one in a Toronto Eileen Fisher Store.

The service at this location is unbeatable!

I recently found a funky Tee...

at Marshalls in Hillside Mall.

Karl Lagerfeld

I wore this with some Eileen Fisher jeans.

I have red ballet flats and a fabulous red lipstick from Milan...

when I am feeling a wee bit daring I will wear them together!

William Shakespeare Rose 

a David Austin stalwart in The Humble Bungalow Garden.

In other news...

Blogger no longer sends alerts to readers 

when a new post is published...

I will mention new posts on my Instagram page.

Please bookmark the link to my blog and check back every week.

I usually write a post each week.

It is frustrating that the service from Blogger is disappearing...

I suppose there is no monetary incentive for them to maintain the service.

Blogging may be going the way of the dodo bird!

Instagram You Tube and Tik Tok definitely are the current faves.

Thank you for popping by...

I appreciate your comments and newsy emails.

Please stay in touch.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Weekend snippets...

I meant to post this earlier in the week but I have been preoccupied with other things...

Last weekend we had oodles of fun.
The highlights featured a garden wedding, lunch out with friends, pottering about in the garden tending to the roses, some leisure reading, and we went to see a matinee ~ Yesterday by Richard Curtis.

 It is a delightful story with the music of The Beatles playing throughout the film
Starring...
Himesh Patel, Lily James, Ed Sheeran, Kate MacKinnin, James Corden.

We thoroughly enjoyed it from start to finish.

a bucket full of roses from our garden for the wedding

Definitely deer food

half a hosta munched

Pink carpet of rose petals...

The wedding was set in the glorious garden of our dear friends.

You can see the Salish Sea just beyond the wedding arbour.

This arbour has been used several times for weddings.

It was reinforced with rope and new driftwood logs for this weekends' nuptials.

Beautiful bee balm co-mingling with yellow roses.

A gorgeous Monarda bloom

(aka Bee Balm)

A Family Affair...

Salmon caught by one of the cousins, 

smoked by the groom and served by my BFF

The theme for the wedding was birds as the couple are "birders"

The groom made these stunning bird sculptures.

I'd like to commission him to make us some too!

I wore a polka dot dress by a Vancouver company called Gilmour.

Flip Flops with some sparkle by Amanda Bleu.

My current read Windfallen by the exceptional author JoJo Moyes.

Marigold The Mouse is making an appearance on the blog.

She's been hiding snug in her mouse hole

as the ongoing noise from the construction has made her a wee bit jumpy.

The bedroom is getting a much needed makeover...

it is unbelievable that it has taken us so many years to have this done.

I am looking forward to purchasing new sheets and a dust ruffle.

Pillows are on my wish list too.

I must close for now and attend to some of the domestic chores that are waiting.

Thank you for stopping by The Humble Bungalow Blog.

Feel free to leave a comment

 tell us what you have been doing this week

or

what you are reading.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Vancouver weekend

We recently spent a weekend in Vancouver...
attended the AGM for the cottage strata, shopped, walked, enjoyed lunches and dinners out.
We also met up with friends we knew when my husband attended school over there...
we have kept in touch...over 40 years!

The view from our hotel.

A wee bit of snow on Grouse Mountain.

We did not stop for tea...

We opted for a Chinese dinner at a small restaurant on Robson Street 

after our afternoon walk and shopping.

The food was delicious and obviously a popular spot with the locals 

as there was a steady line up outside the door.

A fresh new candle...

and a few goodies in the bags.

Some loose tea...

A refill for my Hermes fragrance.

Mr. HB bought his Hermes scent as well.

We dined at an Italian restaurant called Cin Cin and the food was amazing!

Grilled lettuce with pancetta...

a WOW moment for this Hostess!

It was actually more like a "Meg Ryan" moment.

(the scene from When Harry Met Sally!)

Mr. HB enjoyed Osso Bucco

and I opted for the lamb chops with lentils.

NOM NOM NOM

A single bloom in the bathroom packed a powerful pop of colour.

We enjoyed our weekend getaway in the big city!

We will be busy getting ready for Christmas here in The Humble Bungalow.

The wreath has been hung on the front door 

inspired by the Country Living Christmas issue there will be more festive touches coming soon.

Hope that you are enjoying your week.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

Renewal: refreshed, recharged, re-energized and "retail-ed!"

The past weekend was full to the brim with simple joys and bright moments which have left me feeling energized.
I have come out of a dark mood and into the light...

My morning cafe creme routine starts with counting my blessings,
I sit quietly reflecting on all the good things in life embracing and adopting the attitude of gratitude to set the tone for the day. I have found this to be very powerful and it changes the way that I see and interpret life events.

Mr HB and I walked in Chinatown...through Fan Tan Alley.

Victoria's Fan Tan Alley

My husband took me out for lunch at The Fan Tan Cafe, a popular Chinese food restaurant in our city's historic chinatown. It was busy, the service was great and we sipped our tea and chatted while we waited for our food. The food was not "totally WW friendly" (noodles were involved!) but the seafood chow mien was chock full of veggies which were so lightly cooked that they were still rich in colour, crisp and delicious.

Here's my fortune cookie and the fortune inside...

I did a wee bit of shopping at the Fan Tan Home Decor and Style shop.

A black dress by Angela Mara made in Italy.

Soft, cozy and the fabric is heavy enough that it does not cling but skims the body which is just the way I like a dress to fit.

It feels like a warm hug.

It was 50% off so I pounced on it and I said YES to the dress!

I plan to keep my eye on this shop as they have quite a few styles that I like.

I wore it out to dinner on Saturday evening when we dined with friends.

This lovely bouquet was a thoughtful gift from my nearest and dearest friend.

She bought it from those darling gals who run Thorn and Thistle Flowers.

They carry such pretty flowers and their plants are amazing...

our Christmas Amaryllis is an indication of their high quality plants.

They sell other things too and now offer coffee and treats

and they now located are in my old neighbourhood.

Sunday I cleaned house and went for my walk.

I opened a new bar of fragrant Verbena soap 

 it is currently scenting our main bathroom.

This soap was from my Mom's condo...

she loved the Verbena scent but she never used it as she loved her Pears soap.

While on the topic of fragrance and scents...

It was time to open a new scented candle.

This one was in the box from 

My Stylish French Box.

I am busy trying to finish my latest knitting project so that I can start my new one!

Have you got a project on the go?

Hope that your week ahead is positive

and filled with 

 lightness and cheer.

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~

The Views from Here...

We have been away on the boat over the Labour Day Weekend and Mr. HB has returned home and I am at Quarter Deck Cottage with my sister.

Our cozy cottage has a lovely view over the Salish Sea towards Vancouver Island you can see part of Salt Spring Island on the right in this snapshot.

There is a smokey haze over the region due to forest fires in BC and Washington State...the sun looks like a big red fireball.

Binoculars are placed on the table so that we are ready to grab them.

Boats, eagles, seals and Orcas are frequent "visitors" off the deck in the distance.

Reading on the deck is punctuated by the passing of the boats...

from large yachts to the tiny crafts that ply the waterway

they capture our attention.

We cannot sit all day so we venture out walking.

We make time to explore the country roads.

This Old Manse is located in the historic Hope Bay area of the island.

There are some lovely heritage homes in this small bay.

At the end there is a small dock, an art gallery, a restaurant and a real estate office.

We spied a chocolate shop undergoing renovations and will soon be open for business!

Sheep farming seems to be a popular vocation on the island.

We hear the sheep as we walk and this curious fellow came to greet us through the fence.

Farm stands and fresh egg stands pop up along the roads.

This morning at Raven Rock there was a large offering of fresh veggies.

I could not resist the large oak leaf lettuce and the basket of cherry tomatoes.

Then the posy of cheerful dahlias just begged to be bought!

I've already planned my meals revolving around fresh eggs and the produce.

The no alcohol regime has become routine and I am not missing it at all.

Thought that I would but the "faux wines" are keeping me satisfied.

There is no scale here at the cottage to accurately monitor my weight 

but my clothes are feeling looser which is encouraging...

the daily laps in the pool and the walks are definitely helping.

 I am way behind reading all the blogs that I follow

holidaying at the cottage is not really conducive to computer time.

Will try to catch up over the course of the week.

Thank you for stopping by The Humble Bungalow Blog.

XO

~ Be Well and Be Kind ~