Redwood Retro

 

Birdhouses seen along the many trails in Lambton County, Ontario.  Lorne Henderson, Canatara, Marthaville , Wawanosh, Bridgeview are just a few of the trails in Southwestern Ontario where you will spot birdhouses of all shapes and sizes.  Bridgeview Park Petrolia Duck House

One of my favourite places in Sarnia to go walking, is Canatara Park and beach.  They also have a cool little petting farm that I haven't been to in a few years so I stopped in yesterday to say hi to some of the residents.  Not too many were outside but the Donkeys were happy to see us. The Geese were mating very loudy and non stop so spring must be in the air. I'm undecided if this sign at the Children's Farm is too phallic lol 

My backyard in Southwestern Ontario is now home to a family of Northern Flying Squirrels. Now they could be Southern or a hybrid of the two species and from what I have read so far, the two kinds are almost impossible to tell apart without a DNA test. This is my first time experiencing them in the wild. I have only seen a flying squirrel in a zoo.  We have a fire pit in the back of our yard and occasionally a raccoon will come down and say hello but it has been months since I've seen one. We also have a good-sized bat population and when I first saw the squirrels spread out on the bark I mistook them for a strange fuzzy bat. They didn't appear too afraid of us and seemed more annoyed than frightened at the cell phone shining in their wee faces.  They have been coming down the tree every night for a while now eating the bird feeder leftovers including the handful of blueberries left specifically for them :) Staking out the feeder at night is becoming a new hobby! 

Bridgeview Park Petrolia - Photo by Redwoodretro  During the pandemic, the Town of Petrolia in Lambton County, Ontario, collected local recipes and put together this cool little online cookbook. Recipes like Easy Quarantine Pizza, dill pickle dip and lots and lots of desserts (because it seems a large percentage of us rediscovered baking during quarantine :) Check it out! Petrolia 2020 Coronavirus Pandemic cookbook

Found these notes in an old binder from when I was researching the Tobermory area. I believe these are from Manitoulin Church Records

Free Canadian Genealogy Links -  Ontario  *I haven't posted about genealogy for a while and noticed many of the research links I use are now outdated or no longer exist. So I am starting from scratch with a new list of sites. If you know of a free / or own a genealogy site not listed please let me know and I will add it.  I try to stick to the free stuff and  FYI...a good percentage of the records on the "Paid" sites are available for free in other places..you just have to do a little digging. I do use the paid subscription sites now and then, especially if I have a tree to do in a hurry. Paid sites like ancestry make it super easy to find information, but for my own trees, I prefer to take my time and research the old fashioned way.  Genealogy is like a puzzle and to me, it is not very fun if you are given all the answers right away. *This list of links is an ongoing Work In Progress so please check back often for updates :) Toronto City Directories