What to get dad? A new tie, maybe a wacky one? A new golf shirt? Movie tickets? All super ideas. We used to take my dad out for supper for Father's Day. We would choose an upscale restaurant as we felt he deserved the best and we also wanted to give mamma a break. After dining on his favourite steak, the bill would come and no matter how much ...

Mothers have been romanticized in poetry, songs and movies. That romanticism can get in the way of reality. Well, it did for me. Nothing prepared me for motherhood other than the example my mother was to me. How lucky was I to have a woman who dedicated herself to her family in every way? She tended to us the way she tended to everything; she was l...

The fresh air inspires us in so many ways. We are easing into the spring with a childish giggle and energetic vigor at WIN. I suppose that's what makes the post-winter season unique. It gives us a bounce that propels us to dream, to create, to work. It is time to get out and get your hands dirty. Roll up your sleeves, get the tools out, get winter ...

At the start of a new year, part of the celebration involves embracing the notion of a clean slate, a new beginning. We hit the re-start button. We get to start fresh, to enthusiastically begin again. We will now get fit, stop smoking, be better. Basically, do all the right things we have in the past intended to do, but did not get around to actual...

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Flowerbeds prepped – check.Flowers planted – check.Mulch down – check.Flower pots cleaned and filled – check.Your garden is in shape. It's looking good, if you do say so yourself. The view from your back deck while having coffee in the morning puts a smile on your face. And the thought crosses your mind: What if I added a little statue to that flow...

In conversation with Teresa Amorosa, co-owner of West Island Nursery, during a recent downpour – just one of the latest/constant/never-ending rainfalls we have been experiencing – she said: "You can't fight the weather."That rational and philosophically optimistic statement was delivered with an 'oh-the-sun-will-eventually-come-out' inferred tone. ...

Have you thought about mulch much?Mulch is like that person who quietly does his job, like the guy who washes the windows at the strip mall. You never think about who keeps the grime off those huge plate-glass panes until you spot him doing it. You look while you walk by, and then it drops from your mind. The thought of what the windows would look ...

Stop! Just stop.Take a few seconds. One, two, three, four. Take a breath. Breathe in. Breathe out. OK, now you can go again.Do you feel a little calmer?It's the power of the pause – that momentary stall when you just stop. We don't do it often enough. Yet, popular wisdom tells us to all the time: "Stop and smell the roses." "Take the time to enjoy ...

Remember when spring was characterized by "April showers?"This year, it feels like that is all we've had: April showers, May showers, floods, more showers. Enough!But don't despair. The sun is going to shine again. It really is. Warm temperatures will soon push the thermometer to seasonable heights. The puddles will dry – even those in the middle o...

Here's a suggestion: This Mother's Day don't buy your mother anything. Instead, honour her, and her legacy, by planting something that returns every spring, that buds every May, that reminds you every year about the woman who …….. and fill in that blank.Ask anyone – and this includes people who live far away from their mothers, or around the corner...

What can you get for $5 these days? A quick lunch at a fast-food joint no longer falls into that bracket. Although, you can still get a coffee and a toasted bagel at Timmy's for less than that price. So deals do exist. But they are not as common as they used to be.In fact, there is actually a website: fivedollarfinds.com. It lists all sorts of thin...

Do you ever wonder whether you are on the right path? Everyone does, at some time or the other. Paths hold great symbolic significance. What path are you on? Do you want to change paths? Who accompanies you on your path? What do you see along the way? Where are you really heading? As you prepare to open your garden for another season, consider addi...