I am SO envious. We still have had no snow (although rumor has it we're getting some tomorrow. And the day after that.). Looks like you had wonderful fun -- and with the whole family to boot!

What a wonderful weekend! And you even found time to knit?
Thanks for sharing the fun of skating!

It's enough to make me miss snow down here in Florida. I don't miss the cold, but I love the fluffy stuff and spend winters wishing we lived somewhere that allows snow skiing and ice skating! (But without the cold, of course!)

Beaut trip, eh?
Ottawa is so beautiful in the winter. Can't abide the cold though... although I might be persuaded to risk it for a short while for a beaver tail. Yum!
So glad you had such a fun time. You almost make me want to go outside. Almost.

What a wonderful weekend! And you even found time to knit?
Thanks for sharing the fun of skating!

It's enough to make me miss snow down here in Florida. I don't miss the cold, but I love the fluffy stuff and spend winters wishing we lived somewhere that allows snow skiing and ice skating! (But without the cold, of course!)

No, it doesn't get more Canadian that that. I feel a rousing version of Oh Canada rising right now.

By the way, most places make the gravy with mushrooms and onions not meat. Cheaper.

makes me want to be canadian, or at least live farther north, for a little while. :) how fun.

Just looking at all the ice makes me freeze! The maple candy tho - YUM!

WOW! Looks like fun :)

Beavertails? Cinnamon or lemon? Mittens or no? No link to explain? BEAVERTAILS?

Just left the Nation's Capital for more western (and colder) climes and miss the skating. Miss the Beaver Tails (Killaloo Sunrise for me), miss Yarn Forward, miss .... enough said. Hard to believe that said Nation's Capital had a green Christmas and for a while it looked as if the canal wouldn't open at all. Oh we of little faith. Oh, well, one good thing about moving to colder climes with even less daylight - more time to knit in the morning waiting for the sun to come out to walk the dogs. Stephanie, don't know how you did it, but I think I'm homesick for Ottawa.

Mmmmmm... poutine..... My freshly vegetarian son insists that the gravy is so far remooved (intentional) from the idea of beef that it doesn't count as eating meet.

I've got to say that suggesting your teens go for a walk **while you're on a drive in the Canadian winter** can be a good idea. At least, it'll be a refreshing one for the adults (and hopefully a sobering one for the teens!) :)

Sounds like a fab weekend!

Sounds like a perfect weekend. One in which I had participated. Instead I spent my weekend having my appendix removed. And knitting. Today, without the benefit of pain relievers, I am tinking the rows I had ever-so-lovingly put in while in the hospital. Ah well. Perhaps next year I'll get to Ottawa.

How cool - or coooold! Have you noticed that all three of your girls have your nose in profile? Lovely little things, those nosies.

Sounds like a fun Canadian time. Much better than the 8-14 inches of snow expected in the next 36 hours in Indiana (with 20-30 mph winds).

Ahhhh poutine. My friends in Québec and Montréal scarf that stuff down. I never could work up the courage, as you said it looks like a coronary on a plate. But NOW I understand. Oh lovely maple taffy in the snow. And super lovely for a thin-blooded Southerner to see what you tougher folk do in that abominably cold weather. OK, I do ski, but cringe on the colder days. Ice Blocks, never would have thought of it. And crystalline ice sculptures. And families skating and skating, looking like relatives of the Michelin man, eating beaver tails. Truly thank you for a delightful post.

Oh, I am just so frigging jealous! My parents always vacationed somewhere in the Rideau area when I was a kid (now they own a cottage on Sharbot Lake) and I loved going to visit the canal and locks! The more I learn about Canada, the more I wish I'd been born Canadian (I'm American).

It looks lovely and very Canadian and I have to admit I'd love to partake in all the icy and snowy activities for maybe a day then, being a wimpy Southwest US resident, scoot home posthaste. Today's high is forecasted to be 70 F, low 48. And I can and do still drink copious amounts of beer, too... outside on my patio.
Thanks for sharing another great tale.
PS- You can get me back in the summer when it's 115 and you're enjoying temps in the 70s.

You can't do this to me! I'm still trying to fend off my husbands attempts to lure me to Canada (we are a mixed marriage). I was winning when you were complaining of lettuce being frozen before you got home. :(

Evil Yarn Harlot!

Longtime reader, first-time commenter: I had to delurk to comment on the awesomeness that is those Dark Side of the Moon pants.

Thanks for the delightful Canadian travelogue!

I never, ever post here because by the time I get here there are already a million comments! So I thought I'd take advantage and say, hi Stephanie! Love your blog and your family!

I'm with the poster above, if I weren't American, I'd be Canadian! Admittedly, I've never been but I hope to remedy that some day. Beautiful pics! I love looking at pictures of snow although we don't see much of it here in Texas.

Sigh. That sounds like heaven! I'm a cold weather girl myself.

Hmm...If you bought the poutine from a Mountie riding a moose? THAT might be a little more Canadian. God I miss Beavertails... I used to know the inventor!

I wish I had known you were in town! I would have brought you a basket of yarn and cookies!

My husband and I went for a skate Saturday. It was lovely.

I go for the maple butter Beaver Tails. For those who are wondering what they are, they're like a flat donut pastry with various toppings. They're yummy.

Sounds like a wonderful time was had by all! Sometimes you just gotta get out there and do it.

I wait, most impatiently, to see what you did with almost 300 comments worth of advice on the Bohus. (Although the weekend pictures are great, the picture of the sunshiney sweater in progress wouldn't load onto my screen. Ah, well.)

Cheers!

Poutine! Oh how I miss poutine! My Canuck friend introduced me to it when I visited two years ago (seems like a dozen years now) and I fell in love with it. Poutine and perogies, that is...

Ohhh, now I have such winterlust!
I haven't been down to Otttawa in 2 winters, and I know there has been a lack of BeaverTails in my diet lately. Not so much a lack of poutine, though, thanks to the roadside chip trucks. Good for you for skating the whole canal!

Ah, but it's that last picture that makes my heart go pitter-patter. I must not be Canadian.

Spinneret -- beavertails are essentially hot doughnuts or fritters in the shape, of, well, I'm sure you can guess (and you saw the picture). They are a treat in Ottawa, especially enjoyable in the winter festivals. You can get them with all kinds of sweet fruity toppings or cinnamon sugar, etc.

Stephanie, thanks for bringing back lovely memories of Ottawa!

I totally freaked my husband out by eating sugar on snow when we were in Montreal a couple of years ago. Coming from a sugaring family, we always made it the first big snow. I miss the maple, not the snow.

I remember driving up to Ottawa from the south side of the St. Lawrenece for Winterlude! It was always a blast while growing up (a trip to the big city!), but 10 years in NYC has made me such a wimp that I can't imagine spending that much time outside in February now. But real poutine would be quite an incentive! Thanks for reminding me of Winterlude!

Oh yeah! Poutine and perogies!

Ah, outdoor skating. I'm jealous. Growing up in the northern US, I first learned to skate on a pond. Now, living in Texas, my only option is to skate indoors at the mall. In my opinion, that is merely a very poor substitute for skating outdoors. And, if the maple candy you had is anything like the stuff I had years ago, you are one lucky woman. But really, I'm shocked - no WIPs in any of the (outdoor) pictures!

Awesome weekend. Was that 4.5 hours of knitting time each way? Great knitting plan.

I went skating yesterday but I doubt if it was that cold. At least my hands were warm without my mittens.

You're a braver girl than I am, Gunga Steph!

The very thought of that much skating leaves my ankles screaming in outrage, not to mention the cold. Beavertails, though... yum! Especially with a nice cup of hot chocolate alongside.

The knitting, as always, looks gorgeous.

One trip we took, driving from Massachusetts to Michigan, and to Niagra Falls, my daughter still remembers the BEST part of the whole trip was a stretch on the highway when we were signing old folk songs (protest songs, union songs, rounds, etc). Makes me feel like SUCH a good mom!

We hold out for no video in the car, except in EXTREME circumstances...and those usually involve trips of more than 8 hours...

A way to deal with this is to have multiple copies of Rise Up Signing, so everyone can get at the more obscure words. If your family doesn't have at least 3 copies of this book, go out and buy it! It has virtally all the folk songs, kids' songs (American) patriot songs, rounds, songs from musicals, spirituals, hebrew folks songs...you name it...there is a "Rise up Signing" phenomenon when someone looks through it for the first time, saying, "oh, they have this....and this, OH THAT!!!!"

Awesome weekend. Was that 4.5 hours of knitting time each way? Great knitting plan.

I went skating yesterday but I doubt if it was that cold. At least my hands were warm without my mittens.

Awesome weekend. Was that 4.5 hours of knitting time each way? Great knitting plan.

I went skating yesterday but I doubt if it was that cold. At least my hands were warm without my mittens.

Are you still having problems with your site host?

Will my passport be taken away if I confess to never skating on the Canal?

And if you buy Poutine at the chip truck just outside of Moonbeam Ontario (yes, really) the gravy, just like the french fries, is home made.

I have a rather high opinion of chip trucks in French Canada--I'm suspicious of any poutine that is made in a mega-fast food outlet.

Will my passport be taken away if I confess to never skating on the Canal?

And if you buy Poutine at the chip truck just outside of Moonbeam Ontario (yes, really) the gravy, just like the french fries, is home made.

I have a rather high opinion of chip trucks in French Canada--I'm suspicious of any poutine that is made in a mega-fast food outlet.

That sounds like a fun weekend! While it's been cold here, it hasn't been cold enough long enough to make the river freeze. I might have to finagle a way to spend some time in Canada in the winter. By the way, the picture of the beavertail didn't display. I'm hoping a beavertail is something akin to a funnel cake.

Am I perpetuating a stereotype of Canada when I see that the men all--fittingly--had hockey skates on? As someone who was taught to skate with boys, I never did get used to the toe pick. I'm exceeding jealous of your wintery adventures, our winter has been lame. The sweater still looks amazing and I'm considering making poutine at home. Looks delicious!! Any tips?

Awesome weekend. Was that 4.5 hours of knitting time each way? Great knitting plan.

I went skating yesterday but I doubt if it was that cold. At least my hands were warm without my mittens.

Are you still having problems with your site host?

This post reminds me of the song "You Make Lovin' Fun," to which my reaction was always "um... isn't it *supposed* to be?" I don't know if you, Stephanie, actually make winter fun, but you at least make it *look* like a hoot 'n' a holler, no mean feat.

Today's blog is almost enough to make me emigrate from Texas. Almost.

I think it's time to move back home to the Frozen North.

That looks and sounds positively glorious. I wish i were a better skater!

Beaver Tails are explained here: http://www.billcasselman.com/canadian_food_words/cfw_five.htm#beavertail

You and I must have skated right past each other's groups on the Rideau this weekend. We opted for mittens on, when it came to beavertails (Killalou Sunrise-style, as well!) and of course made the obligatory stop for maple taffy on snow. My teeth were hurting by the end of the day... I thought it was just the sweetness of the taffy, but reading your post, it may well have been the ludicrously high Canadian content. Sorry to have missed you on the canal! :)

Gonna have to make me some poutine and beavertails, now. Maybe further north I can find the recipes? I'm only as far north as pastys, pierogies, ponczas, and deep-fried cheese curds....a little South of you.

Mea, no skates for you, dear!

What is this "snow" of which you speak?

oh what fun it all looks!

Ok, beavers tails are?
bread?
pastry? (like puff pastry?)
cookies?
quick bread(something like pan cakes or waffles?)
fried (like donuts?)
something else entirely?

I'd go for the cinnomon ones too..
--actually, knowing me,i'd want one of each!

What fun! Here in Atlanta GA I've been wishing for even just a little snow (or even freezing rain) to make it look a little wintery. Your weekend sounds lovely and if I'm ever in/near Toronto in the winter (in-laws live in Rochester NY so it is a possibility), I will definitely seek out the Rideau skating and eating experience. Thanks for sharing.

And all I did was clean my oven! Sounds like you had a better weekend!

Awesome weekend. Was that 4.5 hours of knitting time each way? Great knitting plan.

I went skating yesterday but I doubt if it was that cold. At least my hands were warm without my mittens.

Are you still having problems with your site host?

I know some folks in my family will groan and snigger in disbelief, but that sounded just wonderful. Not being Canadian, I could manage about 20 meters of skating before giving out. I'm seriously out of shape for skating (stop sniggering back there). And I've lived away from snow for entirely too many years (37) so I may have grown soft. But I'll die with a smile on my face rather than show weakness to certain members of my family. With. A. Smile. On. My. Face. And, even at death's door, I'll bet I'd still be enjoying the blessèd snow.

I've wanted to make maple taffy cured in the snow since I was about 6 and first heard of it. I'm so envious I could explode. It's one of those precious memories from long past.

I hope you had so much fun that there's a little left over for me to have, vicariously. ::sigh::

I'm homesick! Thanks, I needed that. Now I'm off to check my Laura Secord cookbook for a recipe for butter tarts... Yummy!

De-lurking here....Beavertails bear a mighty suspicious resemblance to a popular American street fair food (using the term loosely) called Elephant Ears....they're yummy! Since it's mainly a "fair" food here, there's no stress over the mitten issue!

Sounds like a fabulous time was had by all. My feet got cold just looking at the pictures. That sweater is going to be spectacular.

Boiling maple syrup poured onto new snow to make it crack into candy--one of the things I miss about New Hampshire. Skating on the frozen canal--did that in Maryland growing up, a few times. You're making me miss old places. I think I'll go admire my daffodils blooming now.

There really is nothing better than poutine on the Canal! No matter where else I've had it I always think back to how good it tasted after all that skating, and in the cold air. This clearly must be why they invented fingerless gloves, to help one eat one's Beaver Tail. Thanks for the cheery pics!

I really hope "beavertails" are "elephant ears". Either that or you have to send me a recipe.

I spent the weekend at something similiar up here. We had Winter Carnival 2007, with snow statues, SWEkabobs (Society of Women Engineers makes shishkabobs as a fund raiser), hot chocolate and hot cider by the gallon, deep friend Twinkies and Snickers (surprisingly good), and hours of below 0F fun. No skating, but my son is insisting he's going to be in the Torchlight Parade down the ski hill next year.
http://www.mtu.edu/carnival/2007/statue/completedOne/

I really hope "beavertails" are "elephant ears". Either that or you have to send me a recipe.

I spent the weekend at something similiar up here. We had Winter Carnival 2007, with snow statues, SWEkabobs (Society of Women Engineers makes shishkabobs as a fund raiser), hot chocolate and hot cider by the gallon, deep friend Twinkies and Snickers (surprisingly good), and hours of below 0F fun. No skating, but my son is insisting he's going to be in the Torchlight Parade down the ski hill next year.
http://www.mtu.edu/carnival/2007/statue/completedOne/

Stephanie, I swear I scrolled all the way through the post looking for a picture of the Beavertail! I think Ottawa is even more beautiful in the winter than it was when I was there in September and went ga-ga.

Sounds like you had a great time!

That looks like SO much fun!

So my lettuce greens don't feeze on my walk back from the grocery store - big deal! That fact is just not enough to offset my envy of you being able to take a jaunt up to Ottawa for a skate on the Rideau! *sigh*

I'd forgotten all about Winterlude. I still have an old button in my button box. I get to skate here in MN, but it's not the same as wandering down the canal. at night. Thanks for bringing up those memories!

Sounds like a rockin' good time! Wow. That is a lot of skating.

Not all the photos loaded just now, but I'm looking forward to seeing the rest later!

If you were really knitting the whole time, including while skating, I'm going to feel really inadequate and clumsy over here.

Hi,

Where were they making the maple taffy? We will be doing Winterlude next weekend...

Kate

Is your child really wearing Pink Floyd pants??? That is SO SO cool! Where does that fabric come from? I need some.

I love Canada.

That sounds splendid! I'd love to have been there.

Oh, you've actually made me homesick for Ottawa :(
We lived there for four years, and Winterlude was always a major highlight. Poutine, beavertails, ice sculptures... heaven.
Found beavertails, made by an Ontario couple in a new kiosk, at our local ski hill the other week. Had a Killaloe Sunrise, of course. It was awesome.

Wow, what a perfectly wonderful day!

Great job on the Bohus!

Skate (and Knit) on!!

Oh. Sugar-on-snow. I used to make it with my kids every winter. **Sigh**

Oh gosh! Just got hit with childhood memories. I had completely forgotten about making maple taffy in the snow!

Mea, you would find that a lot of the women are wearing hockey skates, too! The ice can get rough, and skates without picks become a good idea for both sexes. We also play a pretty good game of women's hockey up here, too, eh?

Judith, who has reached the advanced age at which she can put her hockey skates away and refuse to entertain this idiotic notion of "skating".

That looks like a beaver tail of a time. Makes me miss hanging out with my family, though when I go to visit, it's in Arizona, and we go for cactus hikes and eat prickly pear candy.

Looks like lotsa fun, sans, you know, frozen port-a-potty seats (the cottage cheese with gravy thing is a little iffy too.) What really caught my eye though were those crazy Pink Floyd pants. Where did they come from? What are they?! Special rockin' snow pants? I never knew such a creature existed.

Sounds like a lovely time. I'm a western Canadian - no Rideau, no beavertails, no chip trucks (you can buy poutine at various fast food outlets). Such is the land of Saudi Alberta....

Gobsmacked by the Bohus glory.

Thought I was going to write envious things about the canal to skate on, but oh, the sweater.

Whoa.

You somehow manage to make it look so warm and inviting. It makes me want to go to Ottawa and freeze my tush off.

I don't ice skate, but I did spend two years in Toronto (late 60's) at UofT. I do remember butter tarts, hadn't thought of them for years. Thanks for sharing a lovely weekend, and for a nostalgia moment. Those were good times in Toronto.

Bravo for a post that made me wish I was there. We have had great weather for ice here in Massachusetts (meaning cold and next to no snow!). It seems like every other yard around here has a homemade ice rink - many of them in the front of the house. I can't imagine having the chance to do that much skating without having to turn a corner!

And the sweater! I had no idea it was going to have that dramatic dark body to it - all I can say is Wow!

At the risk of disappointing all my fellow knitters, I'll point out that furs are actually significantly warmer than any fibre or clothing product produced by people -- and that includes lovely thick wool sweaters (which I love to live in down here in less-cold Seattle/Tacoma). Caribou fur in particular is, as far as I've heard, the most perfect insulator ever tested -- keeps the wearer warm, yet not sweaty even during vigorous exercise. No amount of polarfleece or sheep wool can even come close. (That said, I'll go back to craving a Bohus of my own!)

What great fun - I'd love to skate on that canal. I gotta plan a trip to Canada----I'm passing on that french fry poutine stuff though. In my part of the world we put salsa on the french fries and beavertails are cactus. Are your beavertails a type of fried dough? Maybe similar to the American Southwest Navaho fry bread?

Those beaver tails look an awful lot like the American Elephant's Ear, a creature carrying enough grease to give you a heart attack just walking by the stand. If you at those AND poutine, the skate was the bare minimum necessary to avert death. Which is what would happen to Joe if he sloshed hot chocolate on any Latvian mitten's =I'd= made!!!! You are an intrepid crew. (There's a gas leak at Notre Dame just now -- instead of Domers we could become Craterers.)

I'd be burning with jealousy and homesickness at the sight of all that winter and all those things Canada, were it not for being totally blindsided by those hilarious trousers your middle daughter is wearing. Holy toledo, those are crazy.

Wow! That does sound awesomely Canadian :D I would love to have gone with you ;) It is still VERY cold up here in Southern Manitoba/Northwestern Ontario, and although I could go skating at The Forks in Winnipeg it's just too cold at the moment. I also don't skate unless I have those charcoal toe warmer things, because otherwise I mumble, then whine, then snivel,then cry because my toes hurt.

I LOVE beavertails! You can get them at the forks and they're the most amazingly tasty thing ever, although I've never tried the lemon-sugar thing. That goes on my list for when we go skating at the Forks next week when it's supposed to warm up!

Crazy in an awesome way, I mean ;)

I'm sort of in love with Canada and Toronto from your blog, visiting there for the International Bowl, and reading about it in guidebooks. Sounds like a wonderful time :)

(Some of the pictures aren't showing up...don't know if it's only me who has the problem, but wanted to point it out)

I would love to go skating on the Rideau Canal. You make it look like so much fun. I'm going to bein Ottawa for a family wedding next month but I doubt I'll have time for much site-seeing.

Ok, totaly green with envy ! no snow on Fair Isle as yet & its almost half way into Feb !! I am not used to winters that arnt spent at -10 with 6ft of snow where we lived before moving here in august. Its so wierd, head doesnt really belive that its winter, esp as im picking dafodils in the garden too !

Enjoy it for me !

Angela

Yo, you guys are crazy.

Can you hear that in the background?
(WE WANT HANK. WE WANT HANK. WE WANT HANK.)

That's the crowd expressing their feeling that your blog is great, but really, we come here for little Hank stories. Hasn't he come to mess with your ballwinder recently???

:) Love, Fans of Hank

Wow, that's the kind of Canadian moment I've only read about in books, or seen on tv. Though I have experienced both poutine and beaver tails. Our version of winter here on the west (wet) coast could never come close. Thanks for sharing.

BeaverTails look like what we call Elephant Ears at the fairs and carnivals in US. Never had the lemon-sugar option tho. Now I want to fly "home" to Anchorage for Fur Rondy this month. All Outdoors, All Fun! The Sweater is like a ray of sun in the winter darkness,very cheery.

I am so jealous! I used to ice skate every day after school (I grew up in Alaska). Every winter, even though I now live in Southern US, I start craving rich, high calorie foods like the lovely poutines. We had those at diners in upstate NY where I went to college. So you don't have to justify eating them to me! Down here, I also ponder how hard it will be for any kids that I will have to play hockey. :P How far will mommy have to drive to find an ice rink for practice?

My Canadian heart weeps with homesickness! It sounds so cold and yet it warms me to remember home.

It always makes me so happy, and a little homesick to see people blog about the city I was born and raised in. I'm in Sudbury now, and while it is nice in the summer with tons of lakes and outdoor activities, it's dreadful in the winter. I can see you had a blast in my hometown. Thanks for posting lots of photos.

Pink Floyd pants, my 12 year old son insists on wearing Queen pants. Is retro cool again? or am I just unbelievably old?

Ottawa is great, my best friend lives there & hopefully we'll do Canada Day this year with the boys.

What fun! Last Thursday I had cravings for french fries and gravy. Luckily a nearby lunch cafe/diner had meatloaf that day, so they had gravy.

I'm sure I'm not the only geek who saw "0.0" km and thought of eyes...

What a great way to spend a weekend!

Yay for
1. Skating
2. Hot chocolate
3. Maple anything
4. Beavertails (although I am a cinnamon-er myself)

Nay for
1. Cold toilet seats
2. Poutine, the mere though of it makes me shudder

The bohus is looking lovely, looking forward to hearing the verdict on the seams.

Oh I'm jealous!

I've been wanting to skate the Ottawa Canal ever since I read something about it in the National Geographic when I was a little girl.

The ice sculptures are amazing! (We have sandcastle contests here instead.) I'm not worried about the Poutine being veg, but I'm picturing some poor little Beaver running around without a tail . . .

What an awesome trip! It makes me feel homesick too. We've had a really dry winter in Rhode Island this year.

While we don't do a lot of ice-skating - we do go ice boating (just got the boats on the water and it looks like this storm coming will be stopping us in the next couple of days- boo) - but that sure sounded like fun.

What a perfect day! Thanks for letting us live it with you.

I almost choked on my coffee when you said you'd be skating the whole length of the Rideau Canal, which actually stretches from Ottawa to Kingston. I am aware of this little-known fact because I spent a summer on the Kingston end of the canal doing historical interpretation. Yes, that means I was wearing 19th-century costume in the heat of August. Most of the time I had to wear a ridiculously heavy dress, but sometimes I got to dress up like a soldier and shoot my musket. That was definitely the only job perk. I've never been to Ottawa in the winter, but I've always wanted to go skating on the canal.

Another interesting, little-known fact: while the canal was being built, many of the workers became ill with malaria. Yup, malaria. In Ontario.

You sure know how to make a person homesick! I went to Teacher's College in Ottawa and used to skate to school in the winter. And poutine... my heart started to pound when I saw the picture. Whenever I go back to Canada (next time will be in August) I always go to New York Fries for a LARGE order of poutine. My mouth is watering at the thought of beaver tails. The only thing that would have made it more Canadian would have been a coffee stop at Tim Horton's.

Thanks for the the mind trip. Come on August!!

Oh what a great day! I'm glad you enjoyed yourselves so much. Thank you for sharing it.

You have me sold. Thanks to you I am now putting "skate the entire Rideau Canal" on the list of things I want to do before I die.

P.S. Did you make the mittens that Joe is wearing?

Bravo! You get the wife & mother of the year award for sure! I would have feigned upset something or other and waited in a nice warm indoor area and knit! Hats off to you Dear Harlot!! Your bohus is looking wonderfully tempting. I'm so undecided on the gray or pink?!?
hmmmmmmmmmm...

Dark Side of the Moon PANTS?
I must have Dark Side of the Moon pants!!!!!!!

Poutine.... YUM! I wish I could get it in VA... but I have to wait until we go up to Nova Scotia every summer.

And those of us who live here avoid skating on it on the weekends in winterlude because there are too many people. We'll probably skate to violin lessons on Wednesday (start at Dow's Lake; get off at Bank Street; walk to Folklore Centre which has a Starbucks across the road where they understand kid's hot chocolate has a temperature as well as a size)

Oh, that looks like so much more fun than just skating around the rink! And food too!

Sounds great! And you got to knit in the car, the men in my life would make me drive.

You were HERE this weekend!!! Ah man! I was at my guild silent auction in Ottawa. Too bad you didn't drop in. Poutine Rocks. Hope to see you next time you visit. Maybe at the yarn store???

Sounds like a fabulous time! I am an unabashed fan of winter, although I think my husband wouldn't mind moving to California or Florida. All the food sounds wonderful. My husband was in Quebec City a few years ago and I asked him when he returned if he tried poutine. When he said no and I told him what it is, he made the most horrible face. I guess if we make a trip to Canada, I will be the only one to try the poutine...

Are beavertails not off-limits for vegetarians? If not, we'll have to go get some bear claws....

What a wonderful time and I'm glad you all got to do it, and eat all that fair-food and work it off. Now I'm homesick for when my daughters were home and we did things like this and caught them having a good time against all odds, but I am not homesick for winter yet.

Did you see the sculpture "Knitting with Poems". The pictures look pretty cool. Knitting IS taking over the world...

Ahh buttertarts! Were they any good? I am the keeper of the buttertart receipe passed down from my great grandmother. When I was growing up my Mum would make us buttertarts when we excelled at something, when we were feeling blue, when she needed to work off some steam. When I moved to the U.S for several years the first thing I always asked for when I came homefor a visit was buttertarts. The second was something called lemon snow. Umm, Harlot how are your thighs feeling after a 15k skate?

Now I am soooo homesick....skating on the Rideau Canal is something that I frequently describe to my Florida students who have never seen snow, let alone skated on a river! What a wonderful weekend for you and your family!

If I crank up my air-conditioning to really, really cold do you think I can get away with eating fried cake and chips too?

I almost choked on my coffee when you said you'd be skating the whole length of the Rideau Canal, which actually stretches from Ottawa to Kingston. I am aware of this little-known fact because I spent a summer on the Kingston end of the canal doing historical interpretation. Yes, that means I was wearing 19th-century costume in the heat of August. Most of the time I had to wear a ridiculously heavy dress, but sometimes I got to dress up like a soldier and shoot my musket. That was definitely the only job perk. I've never been to Ottawa in the winter, but I've always wanted to go skating on the canal.

Another interesting, little-known fact: while the canal was being built, many of the workers became ill with malaria. Yup, malaria. In Ontario.

I partook of the other Canadian winter tradition this weekend - staying warm inside with a nice big drink, a couple of small furry animals and my knitting. It was good. One day when the boychild's older I'd like to take him on that skate though.

Thank you for this post. It made me miss home (London, Ontario), even the snowy bits!

It just looks freakin' cold. Or maybe it is because I just got in from my run and am waiting my turn for the shower.

Nah, freakin' cold. Fun, but brrrr....

aww... you just made me NEED to eat a beaver tail.

What Fun. Everything just looks and sounds like such a ripping good time. Even the skating and I have NEVER been on ice skates in my life. I'm too old to start now. Beaver Tails do look and sound a lot like what they call Elephant Ears here in the Pacific Northwest.
I want your daughters pants! Where did she find them?
We spent the weekend in Canada....Nelson, in British Columbia. We had a absolutely wonderful time. Traveled to the hotsprings in Nakusp, ate Perogies and Borscht. Well, I did...any way.

Somehow a couple of beautiful skeins of yarn fell into my hands when I wandered into the Maple Rose in Nelson. I had to adopt them and bring them home to Idaho. It made the fact that I ended up frogging out 12 rows of Leaves of Grass somehow easier to bear. How did I start with 110 stitches and end up with 106 without noticing???
The sweater is beautiful Steph. Looks like a summer sunrise.

Don't forget, you also got lost! :D

When your daughter was looking for you on the canal, she came to the Lost Persons tent where I volunteer. Usually 18 years is our cutoff, so when I asked her your name I nearly did a double take! I saw your talk in November and was knitting on my sock when she came in looking for you.

Glad you all got reunited, and that you guys had an awesome time. :D

That's what my daughter's Grade 8 class is doing this week!!! Looks awesome. I love skating the canal. No corners. I'm not good at corners....

Ok that's it, where I live sucks and we are moving to Canada. I don't even care if it is really cold. My weekend was packed full of sick kids being sick. It was a blast! They get to be sick till tomorrow (24 hrs on the RX for the strep) then back to school. This has cut into my knitting. the sweater looks great!

oh my goodness --- memories of winter years gone by for me. Cross country skiing all the way across a lake , going to groomed ski trails in Mattawa etc etc etc. You and team Harlot have made some more very precious memories to last for a very long time .Good for you,. thank you for the posting it made me smile thinking about the good times we had during the winter months in Canada.

Color me envious. Can't skate a lick. Freeze easily, but I have always wanted to see major ice sculptures and have maple taffy on snow. Just asked my IT guy (from Toronto) if he ever skated the Rideau Canal. His comment "Yes, it was wonderful. Worth the freezing cold any day." Will have to visit from brother in Rochester, NY, in the middle of the winter and make a detour to Ottawa.

Heh- I initially read "buttertarts" as "butt tarts" and wondered how a "butt tart" would taste!
Looks like you had fun!

Looks like a most excellent weekend... and I bet you got to knit socks in the car!!!!

It looks like you guys had a great time! It took a couple of minutes before I could see some of the pictures, but they're all there now. It's so nice to see Canadians embracing real Canadian winter activities, instead of doing warmer-climate, American stuff. (Of course, there's nothing wrong with that either.) Those beavertails look really good, and so does the steaming poutine. I'm sure you more than burned off the calories. Did a sock-in-progress go along for the trip?

you are SO lucky to have a family to share all that fun with—good for you!
and that bohus took my breath away; what a great ending to the post.

I wish my family took trips such as those. I've always known I was born 500+ miles too far south of where I was supposed to be and this post proves it!
my perfect day consists of numbers 2,4,13,16 and of course 17... everything else is just icing on the cake.

Beavertails, poutine and maple taffy?! I am so jealous.

They don't even have decent cheese curds in California. I went to the farmer's market and all they had was gouda! When I came back home (Toronto) to visit a couple weeks ago, I went out and bought the biggest bag of cheese curds I could find. Mmmmm.

And this is exactly what I can't explain to anyone who has not lived where there is real winter - people who do really ENJOY and appreciate all the seasons. I miss that.

LOVE IT!! I feel while reading of your adventures, as though I have gained another family (a lot nicer than my real relatives!) And what a cool thing to do. I think I would learn to ice skate just to do the canal
Mary

The last time I went skating was [coughcough] million years ago and then, I took out my right knee. So, I admire your fortitude. And, while I live in Texas so I don't know from cold, I did live for 7 years in an apartment without central heat or air, so 114F in the summer with a tiny window unit does give me a reasonable perspective on climactic extremes.

And dude, they have something very similar to poutine in Louisiana only they just use melted cheese instead of curds. But the gravy has seen real meat.

Honey chile, you had me all the way to the poutine, and then I had to get off. Of course, I grew up in a house where raw ground lamb with cracked wheat and olive oil was a specialité de la maison, so what do I know?

I love the ethnographic account - complete with wikipedia entries and in-the-wild photos! It was thoroughly informative and Canadian. The knitting justifies the trip or the trip justifies the knitting, which way should it go?

Oh my, I keep thinking that moving a bit further north into Canada would be wonderful...butter tarts, beavertails and poutine are all good reasons to move! Although I would have to learn to skate again, wouldn't I?

MMMmmm Butter tarts. Beavertails- if still hot- mittens off. If cooling too rapidly- mitterns back on. Bonus taste of sugar from mitten when you hold your mitten in your teeth so that you can try and jam the carkey into the frozen lock. Makes me miss Michigan.

OH STEPH! Poutine! As reenactors of the fur trade (solid citizens of New France, c. 1810, merci beaucoup) we love All Things Canadian. The bestest? Ah, ma chere, rappy pie. There's a plate of food for a cold night. Ugly - it's a pretty ugly plate of food, but we just LOVE it. I turned 64 last Friday and wonder if I can figure out a way to cadge a trip to that event next year.....Thank you for the text, thank you for the pictures, thank you for every line! Now, let me see...where's that toque? (PS: took the wonderhub-muggle to the LYS so he could select a "blue" for his friend's toque! Came out with $75 worth of yarn and HE WAS THERE! What a treat!)

Wow - I can't wait - I get to go next weekend with my niece and nephew! I hope I manage to get in all in like you did! If I get lost (it has been 20 years since I last skated, so there is a distinct possibility that I collapse) figure they can spot me by my handknit toque. Thanks for being so wonderful.

Ah, bien sur, mon chou! Brought back great memories for me. Thirty-five years ago (or so), I had a boyfriend at Carleton. I visited him on weekends from time to time and we and our friends would skate from Carleton U all the way downtown. We'd toddle over to the Lord Elgin Hotel to enjoy hot chocolate and steamed pudding with caramel sauce -- a winter specialty at Murray's Restaurant (no longer there)...and then skate back to Carleton. Holdin' hands, stealing toques, crackin' the whip...

Great stuff!

And here I was thinking how WARM it was this past weekend in Ottawa...As for the poutine, every vegetarian I know seems to make an exception for poutine gravy.

ahhh, the memories, eh? canada is magnificent. yet it isn't in our collective cultural nature to say so. i guess we just go about our business knowing it to be true.
anyhow, thanks for the pics. my youngest has wanted to do exactly what you just did for quite some time now. i guess it's time to cave in, pack up the car and head NE.

Thanks for the photos! Winterlude is one of the loveliest adventures ever. Thanks so much for sharing your trip and stirring fond memories. Many smiles.

hey lady, I have been trying to email you, to let you know I have a prize to donate to (for?) you, and I haven't heard from you ( i know you're busy) so I think you're not getting my email... could you email me, let me know, and I'll resend the pic and info if need be?
thanks... sorry to hijack the comments...
audrey

That sounds like a fun weekend! Okay. The maple taffy made in the snow looked a bit like pee-pee on a stick. I'm not sayin' we have that down here, that's just what I thought of when I saw it.

I used to live in Ottawa as a kid and seeing your pictures of the Rideau Canal brings back fond memories of Winterlude. I really miss beavertails and poutine.

Maple taffy on snow? My great-aunt called that "leather aprons".

I suppose the porta-potty people haven't learned yet about styrofoam toilet seats. My friend who lived in Alaska for years swears they warm up instantly.

The sweater is beautiful.

Mmmmmm, I'd be all about the beaver tails and maple taffy. The poutine? Well, it scares me a little. Oh, but the beer, though? Absolutely.

Now THAT looks like fun!

That looks like so much fun I am ready to defect.

Thank you for giving me a mean case of the cozies. :)

Wow! Crazy fun.

Steph, you know you can eat Beavertail with the mittens both on and off at the same time. Have you seen the Turtle Mitts? Check it out: http://www.tsocktsarina.com/blog/?p=40
I think it's all your fault actually, as she started messing with fingerless 'options' after your Alchemey Alpaca Pure 'pet yarn' project. Turtle Mitt was the end result and I've got a pair on the needles now for use during lambing here on the farm.
LOVE the ice sculpture pics!!

Ahh how Canadian. I love it.

Right now it actually seems cold enough that ice would freeze over and we could skate (I wouldn't attempt that first without checking conditions though, it's been a warm winter but we're in a cold snap right now.

I'm jealous of the poutine though, it's hard to find here in the land of Oil and Cows, at least a halfway decent one. Glad you had fun! I'll just hunker down with my knitting over here though.

We too discovered the joys of a DVD player on our Christmas drive from Yellowknife to Winterpeg, 4 days and 3 nights!!!! We had 2 girls, ages 11 and 16, and a 13 year old boy in the back!!!! They were marvelous and I think I only had to remind them to cool it once. I think I probably moaned more than they did. Unfortunately I can't knit in the car as I suffer from travel sickness if I do anything other than look out of the window - apart from navigate.
I'm very impressed to see a parka on your daughter - can't get mine to wear anything but thinnish ski jackets and runners even at -40C, and despite moving from Brazil 2 years ago! One of these days (hopefuly) they will realise that life is not one continuous fashion statement.
Janet MF in Yellowknife - land of 8 months winter and 4 months mosquitos

Wahh!!! Madame! You make me miss cananda!!! TT_TT

Wow, what a fun weekend! What wonderful memories you made for your children! Send some snow down to Tennessee, will you? We've had about one inch of snow this winter and it left as quickly as it arrived. Also, please send a recipe for beaver tails.

i wish i'd had family adventures like that when i was a kid...we went on very random day trips to the one theme park within driving distance for a day trip...we couldn't afford much else, but that's ok. you must've had so much fun!! makes me want to be in canada.

What great timing! I had my very first skating lesson today. And, Ooooooh, Beaver Tails! I miss those. Haven't had one in over a year! :0)

I escaped Waterloo at the beginning of January to spend the winter in Phoenix AZ. Reading your entry today was the first (and only) time I actually regretted not being up in the "frozen north". How nostalgic I felt, reading about the Rideau skate and eating beavertails! Okay, I'm over it now. (I love Joe's mitts, by the way.)

I've lived in warm, even hot places for a long time now and pretty much lost my New England hardiness - along with any desire for snow. But man, this post made me want to bundle up and go ice skating and find someone's children to play with ice blocks.

Wow, looks like you had a blast. I grew up in Michigan, but my dad is Canadian, so of course my siblings and I all know how to ice skate. Most of my friends in high school didn't, though (which is really kind of lame, lakes freeze in Michigan and we like hockey and stuff...but I digress). So, when I moved back to Canada, it was very gratifying to make friends who think skating in the park on Friday night is a wicked fun thing to do in the winter.

I've still never had a poutine, though.

I was so happy to see this entry! I felt like you came to visit me, ridiculous as it sounds.

Count me in with Krista Jo as another previous canal employee, although I worked on the locks, not in historical re-enactment. You should visit the canal in summer too!

I'm glad you had a good time in Ottawa. I'm fairly fond of it! Also, didn't you recently knit some fingerless gloves? They're clearly the beavertail answer!

It doesn't get much more Canadian than that.

Guld is gorgeous.

Book some extra time in June...

Okay,
That's it.
I'm moving to Canada.
Who knew a winter outing could be such fun?
Who knew ther was ANYWHERE to skate 7 km on a groomed ice surface w/ hot chocolate pit stops en route?
Can we camp at your place til we find jobs that will hire idiot yanks?

First picture: shown to husband, who sighs and says he will someday take me up there for Winterlude (it's only about an hour away).

Followed quickly by "OMG THOSE ARE MY PINK FLOYD PAJAMA PANTS!"

Two thumbs way up for the girl in the strawberry hat.

Canadian Food.

I clicked to see what a "buttertart" might be, then something clicked in my head. Looked again at "poutine". Looks like what we might call french fries, covered with - cottage cheese? - and gravy?

Again, I say, Canadian Food!

Down here in the open wilderness of the Great Plains, in Oklahoma, where Chicken Fried Steak and Fried Okra and Hush Puppies are revered, we truly enjoy foods of Other Ethnicity.
We have learned to love Italian Food, Chinese Food, Mexican Food (and its subset, Tex-Mex); we're warming up to such exotics as Greek and East Indian and Thai Food; but nowhere to be seen is a Canadian Food restaurant.

The only Canadian Food we have ever heard of is - (drumroll) - Canadian Bacon.

We have long awaited - unaware - an education in this great unknown called Canadian Food. Is it possible that our beloved Yarn Goddess, I mean Harlot, could enlighten her ignorant and humble neighbors to the south? This could be a major step in our evolution; perhaps - dare I say it? - the burgeoning of a new culinary industry!

So tell us, fair Stephanie, what DO y'all eat?

Oh, I'm so jealous! I grew up in Northern Michigan where winter was, well...winter: cold, snowy, fun, and long. I miss the skating and the ice fishing and the fires and the snowball fights for forts, the snowmobiling, the cross-country skiing...
It hardly ever snows in Virginia, and the summers are way too freakin' hot for this northerner. Time to move north, I say.

I'm glad you got out of the house and had so much fun! And the sweater is breathtaking...not as lacking in depth as you had thought.

Wow! How do I get to be a Canadian? Eh?

Oh. The. Bohus. Wonderfulness.

Beavertail looks a lot like what we call a bear's paw down here.

Thank you so much for the travelogue. I am beyond jealous.

Also diggin' the Pink Floyd pants.

Wonderful post, wonderful pix, Stephanie; thanks! And now I'm another American homesick for Canada. (Although frankly, I've been homesick for Canada ever since my first visit to Victoria when I was 12.)

And beavertails... Mmmmmm... Out here in the US PNW we call 'em elephant ears too, which I find totally illogical here in Oregon, since our state animal is the beaver. I mean, for god's sake, we had a Hudson's Bay post over in Vancouver (USA), and nearly ended up as part of Canada! I never manage to get any unless I make it down to Saturday Market. I've gotta find my old Grange recipe book for the Indian fry bread recipe. That's a great at-home substitute! (Yeah, like I need fried bread. It's a good thing I haven't gone looking for a poutine recipe. Come to think, I can just look online for Indian fry bread... Oh, dear.)

Thanks for the memories! A few years ago this California girl got to experience her first real winter in Ottawa visiting friends. The ice, snow, beavertails and everything was so much fun! Looks like you had a great time, too! :)

Jan

What a fabulous day! I am so jealous. I always hear about the fabulous outdoor skating you get out East - it looks like the best time. Judging by the teen response - it must be true.
Here on the WC they call those Elephant Ears - not too Canadian sounding - but I have never seen them made with lemon and sugar. Yum.
I love the ice blocks - what a great idea.
I couldn't be more envious - thanks for sharing.
Reminded me of when I used to make my own Little House on the Prairie candy when it snowed as a kid!

or...as a kid when it snowed!

...Could I feel any LESS Canadian right now? We have snow (sort of), hot chocolate + skating, poutine (again, sort of) and good local beer. Cheers from Victoria...

You know, I don't comment here very often. But this might be my favourite post, ever, up to and including "giant monkey king rutting with his armpits full of cheese". Skating the Rideau has always been one of my top five must-do-before-I-die activities.

It made me tear up, reading this post. For some reason I feel homesick. It makes me feel just like I do when I watch "Hockey Day in Canada". Pond hockey and the Rideau Canal -- both a part of my culture though I have never experienced either.

Thanks.

Shannon on Vancouver Island

Merci beaucoup pour le voyage. Very nice and fun post.
:)

That trip sounds fabulous. I would LOVE to do it. Unfortunately, I have been very sick for the last 4.5 years, so there is no way in hell I could do the trip. Which is why your photos and description were so wonderful to me. (I was quite outdoorsy until my illness changed my life to that of a shut-in.

Thanks again for the post!

Charli -- charliZeen AT yahoo DOT com

Wow. You Canadians with your proper winters and your proper summers and your crazy quasi-vegetarian foodstuffs. I want to be a Canadian. I'm jealous as hell.

I dunno.... Not a hockey stick in sight. You could be doing this: http://dis-n-dat.blogspot.com/2007_02_01_archive.html

Poutine. Yeah, definitely for cold weather.

Wow... I would just love to be a canadian. Over here (the Netherlands) they give of a weather alarm if it snows 2 to 4 inches a day...

Dear Harlot,

I always thought you were a really great person... until you reminded me once again that you have access to butter tarts and I don't! SIGH! Now all I have to do is find a recipe for butter tarts! Actually, reading your post today made me more than a little homesick. I grew up 30 miles from the Canadian border and spent tons of time in your lovely country. Your post today just sounds like February in my hometown when I was growing up. Right down to the driving home in the snow. I can't tell you how many hours I've spent ice skating while I was growing up. And sledding, and snowshoeing, and snowmobiling and icefishing, and all those other things you do when winter lasts for half the year. My grandmother used to make Sugar on Snow, yum! It was a really big treat. As for beavertails, I'm definitely a mittens off sort of girl, but if I have fingerless mittens on under my mittens, they get to stay on! I'm so glad that you guys had such a great weekend. My son when he was small and we would do fun things like that would say as we set off, "Let's go and make memories." Sounds like you guys definitely made the most of your opportunity. Now I just gotta find that recipe!

You make me wish I were Canadian.

And also...you make me REALLY miss snow!

Chips and Gravy! And here was I thinking that was a Lancastrian thing...

What a great weekend that sounds, we had snow last week, but not for long.

Oh I'm so jealous! Not only do we hardly ever get good snow here in the UK, but I live in the bit which gets less than anywhere else (North Lincolnshire, not on the Wolds, if you're curious). So I feel especially deprived, as I grew up where you did at least get SOME (Derbyshire, a high bit), although never a frozen body of water such as your canal. (Except in Enid Blyton books! I ADORE the Rat-a-Tat Mystery)
I have relatives in Canada and am always saying that if I go to visit, I want to go in winter. This just confirms it!

I must have been Candadian in a former life. My favorite doughnut is Maple Cream. And I love gravy over french fries. When I was a kid, my step-mother would make those frozen TV dinners-the family sized ones. My favorite was the turkey and gravy with french fries. I would DRENCH the fries. It was best when it all started to cool off just a bit and the gravy started to thicken ever so slightly.
They don't make TV dinners like they used to though. The actual meat content has always been questionable, but nowadays, that stuff is downright----well, dodgy as Steph would say.

Oh, what a great day! I can't imagine how cold it would be there - I've been skiing in a whiteout and it was minus something cos my hair froze.... As for the skating, can I just say I am obviously someone who did not grow up in a place with cold winters.
(I can send you something bright and cheerful and even project spectrumish against the dull days but I need an address....)

Looks like you and your family had a great time. I'm afraid that I'm the one that would have to be pried out of the house! Of course, during the normal day, I'm the one that is outside waiting for the bus and such every day, while the rest of them get in warm cars in warm garages to/from work/school.

My 20 year old daughter is cracking under the pressure of not having internet access since the beginning of December. She has to go to the local library (poor dear). Unfortunately, her physics class does require internet access so we are going to have to fold on that issue.

OMG, Steph, the Bohus is beautiful!! Beavertails! I am so jealous!! I think the best thing about all the pictures you shared, was seeing your family in things I know you handknit for them. That's just awesome!!

It looks like you had a really good time. I wish my husband skated as I would like to skate that canal, but not by myself. Would you call me next year if you are going to do it again? I wonder which of my friends I can arm twist into skating with me.
I went skiing yesterday and had a great time, but no knitting was accomplished. I did discover that the ski sweater my mom gave me when I was a teen still fits. It is definitely a hand knit, but I don't know if she knit it or not.

Wow I miss skating.

I think I may have passed you on the Canal...Lucky me, I live in the Byward Market!
See you next year?
Anneh

Oh, that is just SO COOL. But too dang cold for me.

Life could be a whole lot worse than extended car knitting, poutine, Beaver Tails and hot chocolate. Looks like a terrific road trip!

you make me so jealous. i grew up in southern ontario (hamilton) and left 12 years ago (i had to, my parents made me). your whole list of the Very Canadian Things you did makes me homesick and jealous. kind of like douglas coupland's "souvenirs of canada" books.

THAT looks like wicked-good fun. Not so sure about the poutine part, but otherwise, I'm all over it.

Ok, now I'm really homesick.

I want to be Canadian! Well except for the cold part. Glad to hear/see you all had a great weekend!

I can't believe how far you are on your Bohus. I decided to start mine about the same time you started yours and I only have the yarn rolled into balls so far. Mine will be done for compitition at the Minnesota State fair in 2008(I hope)

Ahhh. You made me change my mind about hating the Eastern Canadian Cold (my face froze walking across the parking lot this morning). And to remind me how much I love beaver tails. Skating in the downtown park (Fredericton, NB) and and fried goodness may be in order tonight!

What an awesome day! THanks for all the pictures - they made me remember when i was little and actually uesd to like playing in the snow!

I love Joe's mittens! Those are spectacular! But I really can't stop staring at the yoke on that sweater - it looks more like a painting than stranded colorwork to me, it looks like delicate brushwork. I think I may be in love with your sweater! Maybe it has a brother....

Gosh, that all looked like fun. THanks for the vicarious experience (I hate being cold, so this will remain vicarious).

Two questions: What is beaver tail? Please tell me it's some sort of dessert. And Poutine just looks like french fries, so why is there meat involved?

Ah! THERE's the sweater pic! Oh Stephanie, it's gorgeous! Now that I can see all the pictures (amazing what picking a quieter time of day to check in will do for one), I have to say, I really liked Joe's mitts. Oh, and that's a great photo of Hot Chocolate Man, too! He looks very warm and very happy wrapped in all of that wooly love.

I love ice skating. If I'm ever anywhere near there, I'll make sure to check it out. Sounds like you guys had fun :)

Do they not make the beavertails with garlic and cheese anymore?? They were my fav.

I went to Carleton more years ago than I intent to admit, and spent some quality time on the canal. 2 or 3 am is the best time to skate - when they've just flooded it and there are no crowds. But maybe it was the alcohol affecting my perception. Peppermint schnapps and hot chocolate... mmmmmmmm.

Poutine is not poutine unless it comes from a truck, and you just can't get that in TO. Probably a good thing.

Americans don't know what buttertarts are?????? Poor beasts.

Brilliant! It looks like you all had a wonderful time. So different from winter in Northern Illinois, where we just snarl about the weather and hunker down when a storm comes (and they've been coming with startling regularity). We don't seem to have any activities that celebrate winter. Sad.

And Beaver Tails resemble the Elephant Ears I used to get at the carnival or county fair when I was wee. Hooray!

I have GOT to try this!

http://www.rachaelrayshow.com/?q=recipes/poutine

I don't know what that beavertail thing is but it sure looks like a fried dough type thing. Am i right? If so, I'll take the whole darn "beaver."

Is Meg (or Sam, I can't tell, her face is covered with mittens) wearing dark side of the moon snowpants? Where did you find such a thing? That's pretty amazing.

So is the trip to the canal. I'm such a terrible skater I would have spent the better part of it on my bum, but then again I was raised in a place where there were no frozen bodies of water.

I wonder if I even remember how to skate, I live in WI but havent done it in say 10 years. Hmmmm. The kids arent quite ready yet.

By the way I love the pink floyd pants in the first pic, I have the same ones. My mom got them for me for xmas two years ago, she thought I would like the moons :D.

Wow. I am dating someone from Ottawa, it has been almost two years, and I am waiting on my papers to move up there. (See my blog). I got your blog address from a friend of mine who is a knitter and I must agree. You Canadians certainly do know how to make the best of Winter and Summer. There are always festivals of various types up there. I mean it seems like every time that I go something is about to start, going on, or ending. I live in Syracuse, NY now so I go up rather often but we dont celebrate Winter here... Then again, it is a bit difficult with some places that have over 3 metres of snow as I write this. Just thought that I would add my bit of information to here. See you on the Canal next year hopefully.

Wow. I am dating someone from Ottawa, it has been almost two years, and I am waiting on my papers to move up there. (See my blog). I got your blog address from a friend of mine who is a knitter and I must agree. You Canadians certainly do know how to make the best of Winter and Summer. There are always festivals of various types up there. I mean it seems like every time that I go something is about to start, going on, or ending. I live in Syracuse, NY now so I go up rather often but we dont celebrate Winter here... Then again, it is a bit difficult with some places that have over 3 metres of snow as I write this. Just thought that I would add my bit of information to here. See you on the Canal next year hopefully.

Go ahead! Call it poutine. That name certainly *sounds* better than its descriptive name (chips, gravy and curds ... mmm mmm).

Sounds like a fun day.

Go ahead! Call it poutine. That name certainly *sounds* better than its descriptive name (chips, gravy and curds ... mmm mmm).

Sounds like a fun day.

I feel at least 25% more Canadian just after reading that. So now I'm... um, about 26%.

Silly Harlot, the answer is obvious (mittens or no mittens) - what do you think fingerless mittens are for?! Moments just like this!

How lovely! Thanks for taking us along. I'm on the Gulf coast in South Texas where it is already way too warm for my taste.

YIPPPEEE My favourite city and my favourite thing to do in that city of all time!!! (Bad sentence)
I lived in Ottawa for 10 years and regularly skated the full length. It is a wondrous, glorious thing and I enjoyed your rendition so much. Thank you for letting me live vicariously through you and your wondeful family!

Great post! I'm so jealous - I love maple taffy. I was in Ottawa for Winterlude last year - but it was cancelled because the canal wasn't frozen. No danger of that this year. It's just as cold in New Brunswick. I'd rather have snow (gasp!) than frigid temps and wind.

YIPPPEEE My favourite city and my favourite thing to do in that city of all time!!! (Bad sentence)
I lived in Ottawa for 10 years and regularly skated the full length. It is a wondrous, glorious thing and I enjoyed your rendition so much. Thank you for letting me live vicariously through you and your wondeful family!

Great post! I'm so jealous - I love maple taffy. I was in Ottawa for Winterlude last year - but it was cancelled because the canal wasn't frozen. No danger of that this year. It's just as cold in New Brunswick. I'd rather have snow (gasp!) than frigid temps and wind.

Mmmmm.......butter tarts!!! My mom makes the BEST butter tarts this side of the GTA. Thanks for reminding me I have to make some! Skating, tarts, beaver tails, poutine and the Byward Market. Haven't been there in a loooong time.

One would think that some sort of battery operated seat warmer device for outdoor potties might be a seriously good thing in your environs. Sort of like the cars with seat warmers(or as my sib calls them, bun warmers).

What fun! this is exactly what we will be doing this weekend. Although somehow I don't see myself skating the entire length. It's been at least 10 years since I've been on skates.

Porta-potties in the cold? In Alaska our out house had a styrofoam seat. Never feels cold...and you don't freeze to it. lol

I'm just really excited to be part of this Canadian winter culture and regardless of the cold...beaver tails...no mitts! lol

Thanks for sharing.

I live in Connecticut and what you call Beaver Tails we call Fried Dough. I love my with cinnamon and sugar, but you can get it here with pizza sauce and parm. cheese on it.

What a wonderful way to embrace winter. We are getting snow today, finally. Winter had a late debut here however ice is on it's way. Snow? I like snow. Ice? Not on your life. Although it is a beautiful site.

I like beavertails with lemon, sugar And cinnamon. So what does that make me?

Sounds like a lot of fun. I'm getting a little stir crazy myself. Looks like you had a good weekend to go. Many of our winter carnival events were cancelled a weekend or two ago, due to the dangerously low temps. In the summer the saying around here (Minnesota) is; it's not the heat that gets to you, it's the humidity. In the winter it's just the opposite; it's not the snow that get's to you, it's the cold. Although, with the New England states getting two and three feet of snow, I'm not sure if I would prefer the snow to the cold.

Thank you for sharing your neat trip. I loved all the pictures, and all the sidetrips along the way. The ice sculptures were really cool (pun not intended :) )

I grew up in Montana and I miss the snow, and sometimes miss venturing out in the snow and hearing it crunch underneath the boots.

But we have had very enjoyable weather here in northern California this winter, so I can't complain.....love the yoke of your sweater.

marianne

That looks like a great weekend. And the sweater is wonderful too.

I'm glad you had a fun time in our small town. I was out to see the sculptures on Sunday too - had the maple taffy for the first time yum-mee!

...and they were worried that people would have to in-line skate beside the canal for Winterlude this year!

steph that is fantastic!
must be neat to skate on a canal...;)
i just have ice skating rinks around here.

Cool!...or rather, COLD! But looks like lotsa fun :-) What???are beaver tails and poutine? They don't sound like anything one would want to eat. Just an observation: I've noticed a general thread of Canadian patriotism in many of your posts lately...um, do you not like Americans? Am I being overly sensitive? It's just that so much of the world seems to not like Americans, but I thought Canadians were not among that lot.

Your trip sounded like lots of family fun! You were only a stone's throw from my SIL's; she's 5.5km south of Dow's Lake on the river (Kimberwick Park). We were there for New Years and folks were wondering if the river would freeze hard enough to hold the festival.

Oh, poutine... food of my childhood. I've been wary of it since I went vegetarian, but there's a shop by my grandfather's (southern Quebec) that when I was little, had the best poutine. I might have to re-think it next time I go! ;) Reading through the comments, I just wanted to point out, it's *not* cottage cheese, it's cheese curds. Fresh, squeaky cheese curds. Mmm... It's also prounounced "poot-sin" (as my uncle would say "as in poutine your fork!") Oh, and skating out of doors. Miss that too.

Oh I love your very wintery day, it really looked like a lot of fun. I moved to SC PA from upstate NY this past spring....PA stinks in the winter, no snow, until today. I envy your day.

Hey, here in central Indiana I am thinking that you Canadians can take your snow and wind back. We have 15cm on the ground and 50 kph winds making 75 cm drifts in the back yard. Yuck! You can have it back.

OMG!!!

Maple taffy, butter tarts, poutine, beavertails...You are making me hungry. Did you have pea soup too? (is delicious vegetarian actually). I am practicing the other traditional Canadian Winter activity of hibernating in Toronto. That trip sounds amazing though..maybe I will try to drag my family there soon...

Amazing. I can't stand cold very long, but I'd brave it for that kind of fun. Woo!

I really, really [heart] Canada. If I move there, will you adopt me? And my husband and my three cats and my yarn stash? I'm from Michigan, so I'm nearly half-Canadian already....

Hmmmm... sounds like a plot to get 9 hours of knitting time in. Did Ken knit too?

While I would probably freeze myself stupid on such an outting, that looks like the coolest day ever! Thanks for posting. I loved living vicariously through you.

Looks like a fabulous day! If you'd happened to have little maple-leaf pins, or Cdn. flag patches sewn onto your bags, that might have made the whole experience TOO Canadian, but I think you managed to stay on the good side of things here.

I don't think jealousy is the best word to describe what I am feeling. I'm quite envious of such a wonderful sounding weekend. It sounds like bliss. Cold (freezing) or not!

I am so jealous. That looks like such a fabulous trip! If only the rest of my family skated.

Sounds like a wonderful winter trip. We're having an ice storm today!

I am curious about whether you are making any adjustments to the Bohus sweater pattern to update or customize the shape? I am on the verge of embarking on a Bohus sweater myself, and am worried that the body might be too loose. Thanks!

Sniff. That could be an amalgamation of all of the winters of my childhood in Buffalo. Although I don't think I've ever skated on natural ice. And I've never had poutine. But close enough!

How wonderful! I have such great memories of skating to classes at Carlton University on the canal from Patterson's Creek in the seventies. Thank you!

The eighteen year old not only had a good time she had a good time looking incredibly cool in those Dark side of the moon pants. Of course, what do I know - I am an old person. :) Those pants are awesome.

Glad everyone enjoyed the winter weather.

Oh god, you've made me miss winter. A lot. Glad you had such a wonderful time!

Fantastic!

You've made me temporarily proud of the city I'm stuck in. Sadly, the mayor claiming that it's not a good idea to fund the arts made me lose that pride again!

Thank you for the lovely pictures, as a winter-hating Ottawan, I've never really gotten much into winterlude, but living 5 minutes walking away from the scupltures is nice, and having beavertails locations all around the city now year-round has also been a lovely development! (I'm all about the cinnamon, but sometimes the cinnamon and lemon is nice too.. Kilaloe sunrise or something along those lines

Happy Valentines day from us in the USA.
I'd send chocolate and yarn but....
well you get the idea!

Thank you for sharing this wonderful day with us!

and did you hear that the "People's Choice Award" went to an ice carving team from Alberta with "Knit Together" as the theme??? Caught it on the news but it was a short entry and it was something about Knit Together for Peace, life and so on...wonderful stuff. Wish I had a better picture to explain it all.

Winter vacations are *so* nice! Speaking as a Canadian neighbor just to the south, I think I would really miss winter if I were to move to someplace very warm year round.

As it's Random Acts of Kindness Week, I was hoping that maybe you could visit my blog and pump out a hat for a 3-year-old girl going through chemo for leukemia...I know, a shot in the dark, but I had to try!

wow! what fun! i'm here in California drenched in fog and some possible sunshine. not sure i'm up for a trade but you'd be welcome to visit anytime!
happy snow days to you and your family!
I love that first photo of your almost 18 year old covering her face :)

anie

I too look the other way and order poutine in southern Ontario even though I know it's not vegetarian. However while on vacation I discovered that Vancouver has vegetarian poutine. Ah, for a life on the west coast.

Ah, the sketchy truck stop, the bastion of Canadian highways. You know that ad where people go cross-country stopping at Tim Horton's the whole way? I'd like to do that with truck stops. If you ever have the chance, stop at the 5th Wheel just off the 401 at Milton. Best pancakes ever.

wow! Stephanie, what a fanastic day!
In contrast, it's summertime here in Melbourne, Australia ... 38celcius, with approaching storms creating high humidity. Not suitable for wintersports, knitting, or winterfoods ... & yet I crave ALL those delicious Canadian foods. mmm maple, hot choc, YUM! Thanks to all who posted foodie links, too. I'd love to try poutine, & beaver tail.
Thank goodness for icy airconditioning - so we can satisfy the knitting urge, at least. Winter foods may have to wait a few months. :-D

I might just have to go visit sometime. You make it sound so nice. The parts about being cold didn't escape notice. Being from Colorado, I'm used to being 'aware' of the different levels of cold your body is experiencing. Thank you for the virtual trip. Very nice.

Thanks so much for sharing your day on the canal. I always love your photo tours.

Homesick, homesick. What am I doing in California?

wow... looks like a great time. My memories of the Rideau are all fishing related. In a former life I spent a month there in the summer. It was the best part of that time of my life. Of course I also trained for the triathalon by swimming at Whitefish Lake while my DH (at that time) fished. I remember one time swimming breatstroke liesurely lifting my head to breathe and up popped a loon in front of my face. I don't know who was more surprised! So many memories.. thanks for the trip!

That looks like such fun! Down here in Virginia we have only had a dusting of snow and it is never cold enough to have ice like that, it looks like a lot of fun. I would have to learn to skate, though.

That looks like such fun! Down here in Virginia we have only had a dusting of snow and it is never cold enough to have ice like that, it looks like a lot of fun. I would have to learn to skate, though.

sounds fabulous! you're feet must have hurt after all of that skating, no?

Hey!

The weather was SOOOO nice today that we enjoyed the canal and all it's glory today! All of the "purdy" statues are in the Downtown area ( at the 0.0km mark) This the is last weekend for Winterlude and the weather is gonna be great! so O.town peeps, get out and enjoy the snow!

Sounds and looks like a most excellent day!

You have to tell them too that we have knocked servers down! When we started the Niebling Lyra Knit Along we knocked down the yahoo server three times in less than a week :D

That reminds me of when I used to live in the Laurentians and the kids were small. I miss that sometimes, of course I don't really miss the shoveling and scraping the car windows in the morning nor do I miss the really cold days, although I have been known to go skiing at -40, there is something to say about being just about the only one on the snow slopes and not having to wait in line for the chair lift. hmmmm Ottawa is the Capital of Canada (not the capitol which is a building), I know, I know, I can't help it, last weekend during my birthday party, I was half drunk but still had to prove a point by searching in the dictionary because my friend told me that the plural of shrimp was not shrimps but shrimp and I was insisting on having the "s" at the end, turns out we were both right, but what a pair of geeks huh? I need a life.....

That reminds me of when I used to live in the Laurentians and the kids were small. I miss that sometimes, of course I don't really miss the shoveling and scraping the car windows in the morning nor do I miss the really cold days, although I have been known to go skiing at -40, there is something to say about being just about the only one on the snow slopes and not having to wait in line for the chair lift. hmmmm Ottawa is the Capital of Canada (not the capitol which is a building), I know, I know, I can't help it, last weekend during my birthday party, I was half drunk but still had to prove a point by searching in the dictionary because my friend told me that the plural of shrimp was not shrimps but shrimp and I was insisting on having the "s" at the end, turns out we were both right, but what a pair of geeks huh? I need a life.....

That reminds me of when I used to live in the Laurentians and the kids were small. I miss that sometimes, of course I don't really miss the shoveling and scraping the car windows in the morning nor do I miss the really cold days, although I have been known to go skiing at -40, there is something to say about being just about the only one on the snow slopes and not having to wait in line for the chair lift. hmmmm Ottawa is the Capital of Canada (not the capitol which is a building), I know, I know, I can't help it, last weekend during my birthday party, I was half drunk but still had to prove a point by searching in the dictionary because my friend told me that the plural of shrimp was not shrimps but shrimp and I was insisting on having the "s" at the end, turns out we were both right, but what a pair of geeks huh? I need a life.....

That reminds me of when I used to live in the Laurentians and the kids were small. I miss that sometimes, of course I don't really miss the shoveling and scraping the car windows in the morning nor do I miss the really cold days, although I have been known to go skiing at -40, there is something to say about being just about the only one on the snow slopes and not having to wait in line for the chair lift. hmmmm Ottawa is the Capital of Canada (not the capitol which is a building), I know, I know, I can't help it, last weekend during my birthday party, I was half drunk but still had to prove a point by searching in the dictionary because my friend told me that the plural of shrimp was not shrimps but shrimp and I was insisting on having the "s" at the end, turns out we were both right, but what a pair of geeks huh? I need a life.....

That reminds me of when I used to live in the Laurentians and the kids were small. I miss that sometimes, of course I don't really miss the shoveling and scraping the car windows in the morning nor do I miss the really cold days, although I have been known to go skiing at -40, there is something to say about being just about the only one on the snow slopes and not having to wait in line for the chair lift. hmmmm Ottawa is the Capital of Canada (not the capitol which is a building), I know, I know, I can't help it, last weekend during my birthday party, I was half drunk but still had to prove a point by searching in the dictionary because my friend told me that the plural of shrimp was not shrimps but shrimp and I was insisting on having the "s" at the end, turns out we were both right, but what a pair of geeks huh? I need a life.....

That reminds me of when I used to live in the Laurentians and the kids were small. I miss that sometimes, of course I don't really miss the shoveling and scraping the car windows in the morning nor do I miss the really cold days, although I have been known to go skiing at -40, there is something to say about being just about the only one on the snow slopes and not having to wait in line for the chair lift. hmmmm Ottawa is the Capital of Canada (not the capitol which is a building), I know, I know, I can't help it, last weekend during my birthday party, I was half drunk but still had to prove a point by searching in the dictionary because my friend told me that the plural of shrimp was not shrimps but shrimp and I was insisting on having the "s" at the end, turns out we were both right, but what a pair of geeks huh? I need a life.....

Huh ok, I didn't post that many times, I kept getting a server error message... sorry about that, can you delete the extra posts?

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