jenny kotulak photos: Foto Friday - Shakespeare Conservation Area - Shakespeare, Ontario - 09/23/11 08:06 AM
Shakespeare Conservation Area is a quiet little spot great for picnics, hikes in the forest, fishing, or just reading and watching the geese and great blue heron. 
It is located just north of Shakespeare, also known as one of Ontario's antique hot spots between Kitchener-Waterloo & Stratford. 
If you haven't heard of Shakespeare, I'm sure it's neighbour to the west, Stratford is more of a household name.  Perhaps due to the famous Stratford Shakespeare Festival, or perhaps for being the home of one Justin Bieber.
But getting back to the Conservation Area, on a recent visit I noticed that all of … (14 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Stratford Heritage Weekend - June 3 - 5, 2011 - 05/29/11 05:02 PM
The City of Stratford, Ontario will be hosting their annual Heritage Weekend on June 3rd - 5th.  I have already checked off the events that I'm interested in attending. 
I am a history nut so that's part of the reason that so many of the weekend events appeal to me.  Here is how the www.welcometostratford.com  website describes the weekend festiviities.
"Come celebrate the rich heritage of Stratford, St. Marys and Shakespeare on June 3-5 at the Stratford Spring Heritage Weekend with an antiques fair; special guided walks of antique shops and carriage tours of Stratford's heritage district; St. Marys "Once Upon … (6 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Wordless Wednesday - So Are You Still Liking It? - 05/25/11 04:53 PM
I've been living the rural life for 4 months now and people are always asking me if I'm still enjoying it.  I have to tell them that I still pinch myself (well not literally) when I'm driving down the backroads into town.
No matter what the weather there is always something amazing to see.  Whether it's the sky, birds, fields, ponds or just the quiet roads. 
Do I miss the traffic and pollution from the city?  Hmm let me think on that one.
Here is a field just down the road from my house.  I love taking photos of it.
… (11 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Take A Hike - To Hullett Marsh - 05/22/11 04:31 PM
A few weeks ago I took my dog Lola for a hike to Hullett Marsh.  This incredible property of over 5400 acres was a delight to see.  Lola and I enjoyed our walk so much that I told my husband I'd like him to see it on his day off last week.
Hullett Marsh is so large that there are many different entrance points and trails.  We followed a dead end road, parked and headed onto the trail.  We passed by swampy areas and a point where canoes can enter into the water, before coming to an old iron bridge where there must … (5 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: The Shakespearean Gardens - Stratford, Ontario - 05/20/11 03:18 PM
Hidden almost out of sight, just off the Huron Street bridge in downtown Stratford, Ontario lies the Shakespearean Gardens.  This well manicured English garden offers a formal setting with boxwood hedges,stone walkways, benches and gazebo yet comes alive with the brilliant colour of an amazing array of flowers, herbs, shrubs and trees.
The views from the garden are just as impressive with the historic Perth County Courthouse to one side and the gently flowing Avon River on the other side.  Stone steps and a pathway along the Avon River lead you underneath the old Huron Street bridge and towards the Shakespeare Festival.
The tulips were brilliant on my recent visit and I'm … (12 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: I Am A Patient Person - I AM A Patient Person - I AM A PATIENT PERSON - 05/19/11 04:46 PM
I am a patient person.  Does it look like I'm a patient person from the title of this post or does it look like I'm yelling?
I'm not yelling and actually I think I am a fairly patient person, although email and blogging etiquette would have you believe that I am yelling since I've used capital letters.
I'm trying hard to be patient while waiting for the yard in our new home to be graded and sodded.  This is all part and parcel of buying a newly built home.  When buyers are looking for homes and trying to decide whether to … (11 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Speechless Sunday - At The Aberfoyle Mill - 05/15/11 04:35 PM
I enjoy visiting and photographing historic old mills in Ontario.  On my way home from a meeting in Toronto last week I decided to stop by the Aberfoyle Mill near Guelph, Ontario.  This old mill is now a well known restaurant and although I didn't have time to eat, I took a stroll around the property and snapped a few photos.

The Aberfoyle Mill was built approximately 1859

There was a large pond with gazebo and this waterfall right beside the Mill.  It was a dull, drizzly day but this would be a beautiful spot to sit and relax after a … (15 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: What Happened In Vegas Must Be Shared On Active Rain - 05/14/11 02:59 PM
This past March I had the opportunity to attend the RE/MAX Convention in Las Vegas.  I had been to Las Vegas a few years ago for the NAR Convention but this was my first time attending an international RE/MAX conference.  There were agents there from 50 countries and I'd never attended seminars before with 3 -4 thousand agents in one room.  A little overwhelming to say the least.
The awards ceremony was very exciting as I was presented my RE/MAX Hall of Fame award from CEO Margaret Kelly.
My colleagues and I found our way to the Outlet Mall a few times … (11 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Friday's Fotos - Meet Miss Casey - 05/13/11 04:31 PM
There are lots of cat lovers on Active Rain.  I know that well as I've seen lots of great feline fotos over the past three years.  Some of you have met my dog Lola as she has been featured in an occasional post accompanying me on a hike or out exploring backroads Ontario.
We have never had a cat as my husband suffers from allergies and his eyes usually water and he begins sniffing shortly after coming in contact with the little critters.
Recently our 20 year old daughter became the proud owner of a kitten.  She is at College in a different city so isn't … (11 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Historic Ontario Mills - Harrington Grist Mill - 05/12/11 04:16 PM
I love searching out and photographing old historic mills in Ontario.  Before I moved to Tavistock, Ontario a few months ago, I went online to check out old mills in the area. 
About 15 minutes from my house, down Maplewood Sideroad lays the quaint village of Harrington, Ontario.  It's hard to miss the Harrington Pond and the old Grist Mill but on my first visit I ended up driving right by.  It was the middle of winter and as I turned around to go back my right side wheels went into the ditch.
I now know that the snowplows here push the … (12 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Backroads Ontario - Shakespeare Conservation Area - 05/10/11 04:07 PM
Shakespeare, Ontario is well known for its antique stores, quilt and home decor shops, pie and bakeshop, and stop off spot for tourists on their way to Stratford to see a play at the Stratford Shakespeare Festival.
Just a mile or so north of the only stoplight in Shakespeare you will find the Shakespeare Conservation Area.  This is one of my new favourite spots to take Lola for a walk.  You can walk all around the pond which is bordered by farmer's fields.  The large trees are home to many varieties of birds.
Shakespeare Conservation Area is a day use only park … (7 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Budget Minded Decorating - What's In Your Idea Files? - 05/09/11 04:29 PM
I love home decorating magazines.  I used to subscribe to a couple and I always looked for new ideas for my own home.  Unfortunately I found that many of the items in the magazines were out of my price range. 
I used to cut out the pages of rooms or items that I really liked and put them in an idea file.  Like designer clothing, it's possible to get the look for less money if you look around and are thrifty.  Ever heard of Ikea?
My magazine subscriptions have ended as I've found a great site on the internet that allows me … (9 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: The Blogstar & The Rockstar - It's All In The Name - 05/08/11 03:53 PM
There's a blogger here at Active Rain that I have to give a shout out to today because he seems to be everywhere these days.  Rob Thomas comments on a lot of blog posts of the people that I also follow.
He spends a lot of time leaving comments and in return Rob receives a lot of comments on his posts.  I've read some of Rob's recent posts and he seems to regularly garner 20 - 40 comments.  I've noticed lately that comments are way down, especially for featured posts.
In the past it was common for features to receive 100 … (8 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Friday's Fotos - Avon Calling - 05/06/11 03:45 PM
The title of this blog post is probably dating me.  I don't  know if that term Avon Calling is even used anymore but it came to me as I was thinking of a title.
I think it stems back to the days when Avon products were sold door to door.  Does anyone remember the Fuller Brush Man?  These door knocking salespeople would make great REALTORS® today.
The Avon that I am referring to in this post is the Avon River.  The Avon flows through Stratford from one end to the other and mostly enjoyed in the downtown area where part of it … (17 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Motivational Monday - Become A Modern Day Explorer - 05/02/11 05:29 AM
First came blogging, then came photography, then came hiking.  When I first started blogging it soon became apparent that I should add photos to my posts to create some additional interest.  With all the copyright issues I knew I wasn't supposed to "borrow" photos from other sources without permission.
So I decided I'd have to create my own photos.  I had never had an interest in photography before but I purchased a half decent digital camera and went to work in my community snapping photos of anything relevant for my upcoming posts.
Who knew that being forced to supply my own work would … (8 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Las Vegas - Lots To Love - But Two Thumbs Down To Starbucks & McDonalds - 03/10/11 05:57 PM
Viva Las Vegas - what a city.  I've just spent the last 5 days here attending a RE/MAX convention at Mandalay Bay Hotel with 5000 other RE/MAX REALTORS® from 50 countries.  Canada was represented by about 500 agents who by the looks of it all had a great time.
We couldn't have asked for better weather which apparently is unseasonably warm in the mid 70's. I enjoyed listening to Joe Theismann and Gary Vaynerchuk both with their own distinct messages.   I left a few dollars in the slot machines.
I met up with a fellow AR member and will do a separate post … (17 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Sunday Drive - Oxford County, Ontario - 02/20/11 10:06 AM
It's been three weeks since we moved to Tavistock in Oxford County. We are fairly well settled in and it was a relatively balmy - 1 degrees C. so I figured it was a great day for a Sunday drive.  I checked out a few places that I wanted to visit, put my dog Lola in the back seat and hit the road.
Our first stop was at the  Embro Pond Conservation Trail.  Unfortunately the snow was still pretty deep and I'd go a few steps before I would end up knee deep with one leg.  It was also pretty noisy as for some … (18 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Speechless Sunday - On The Waterfront - 01/23/11 04:52 AM


It was really, really cold by Lake Ontario yesterday.  The temperature was  minus 10 C. and that wasn't taking the wind chill into consideration.  I love taking long walks with my dog but this was the first day I was practically running back to the car after about 5 minutes of being exposed to the elements along the lakeshore. 
I was surprised that there were quite a few people ice skating on a rink beside where we were walking.   They were very brave souls. Here in Oakville we are not used to these frigid temperatures.
Today my computer tells me … (15 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: I Need Some Pep In My Step - Only 5 More Sleeps Til Christmas - 12/20/10 04:12 PM
I was out for a walk today with my dog Lola and I have to admit I was dragging my heels a bit.  I felt fine physically, and I was dressed nice and warm against the elements but I just felt a little sluggish.
It was Monday afternoon, and the countdown was on with only a few more days until Christmas.  My head was full of thoughts of the groceries I had to get, the last minute gifts, preparations to move next month, extra commotion in the house with the kids home from school for Christmas break and getting prepared to … (27 comments)

jenny kotulak photos: Window Shopping In Downtown Oakville - Me, My Dog & My Camera - 12/15/10 07:24 AM
It's that time of year again.  The windows of downtown Oakville's shops and boutiques are decorated in anticipation of shoppers on the hunt for that perfect holiday gift for their loved ones (or maybe even themselves).
As my dog Lola gave me "the look" last night I decided that instead of just walking the neighbourhood we would head downtown and take photos of the decorated store windows.  Oakville has a very vibrant downtown core with lots of unique boutiques and great restaurants.
Many of the stores have gone to great length to fill their windows with glitz and glam and others … (13 comments)