Welcome back to our monthly “how you doin’?” And we apologize for being late this month, darn online school has us behind! (We will try not to let it happen again). If you’re finding it in your inbox it’s because at some point you’ve trusted us with your email address. Our plan is to make it worth your while to have a read through because we know that most of you, like us, are feeling email fatigue.

We hope you love it as much as we do and share it with your friends and family! But if it isn’t your thing no hard feelings, just click unsubscribe at the bottom and you can come back anytime by subscribing through our website HERE.

Middle of May?! How can that be?! We are feeling so grateful for the summer like weather and sunshine that is helping the flowers bloom and our moods improve.

The last few weeks we have been planning our garden additions and just yesterday we begun planting. We aren’t super gardeners so mostly perennials like hostas and grasses, peonies and hydrangeas were added last year. At Eising’s we decided to bring home some colourful annuals and black mulch with a few replacement sedum. And by the way, when I say “we” I mean Keith because he is our official Gardener, aka the one who is willing to get his fingernails dirty.

School continues to be online and at home and we are doing our best to think waaaay back to grade 7 math while working on grade 3 spelling. In high school we are learning grade 9 English and grade 10 Math as we attempt to be the house chef, laundry engineer and Guidance Counsellor. It’s been interesting to say the least!

We are happy to share that we have also had some really great real estate successes with some of our first time homebuyers! After multiple offers and competition each time we did help find “Home” for some awesome people this past month. If you are in this boat and still searching, hang in there with us and we’ll get there together <3

As for our home sellers, it continues to be a strong market but the challenge lies in co-ordinating a purchase at the same time which is where we come in.

We’ll see you next month but in the meantime remember that we’re here for you if you need us!

~ Melissa

• We have very exciting news! This month we have a new sales representative joining our Brokerage. We are so thrilled to introduce you to Shannon Vaughan-Krist. Shannon is a former client, turned friend who has worked extremely hard to get her designation while also being mom to three young children. Not an easy feat! We are so proud of her and happy to welcome her aboard.

• We write a weekly blog (most Mondays!) about the Market in one way or another. It may be helpful tips, suggestions or experiences we’ve had as well as cold, hard numbers (stats). The one thing we promise is that you’ll at least pick up one thing you didn’t know before reading it. This month we take a look back at When Selling is Sad. Sometimes the loss of a relationship, a family member, or a job is a difficult time emotionally and financially, which is why you have us to work through the real estate part.

• This summer looks to be another one where we spend a lot of staycation time in Puerto Backyarda so we thought it might be interesting to see how many homes with pools are available to purchase. Not many actually! In all of Haldimand-Norfolk there are 15 though 5 already have a conditionally accepted offer. The available pools come with a house priced between $699,900 and $2,849,000 in case you’re curious ;)

Here is where you will find our gold star list for the month. People and pets we love; books and quotes that touch and inspire us; television shows and movies we can’t stop watching; songs we won’t stop humming; clothing and accessories we own and covet; and all the other stuff we love and think maybe you just might love too. 

Calling all Superhero fans! I was recently persuaded by my 14 year old son (Abby here!) to try watching The Flash. We are big Marvel Comic movie watchers at our house but haven’t ventured down the DC Comic trail as of yet. He is loving it and loving that his dad and I are watching as well so we can “discuss” after watching.

We continue to support local restaurants by ordering in once a week. This week we tried something new and have to say that 4280 Pho and Gourmet Takeout is absolutely delicious! Located in Port Dover and it was super easy to order by messaging them and receiving a pick-up time. Get the Pad Thai…you will not be disappointed!

There isn’t much more that can make my heart flutter more than travel and reading. The perfect book for both of these things is Paris Letters by Janice MacLeod. Janice is a true artist in every sense of the word, painting pictures of Paris in words and sketches in the magical way that only she can. I am currently reading her second book A Paris Year and her latest, Dear Paris is on my to-be-read list.

While we still cannot get into the stores for non-essential shopping, many establishments have created online experiences to get us through. One of my favourite things to do on the weekend is pour a cup of coffee and tune into @waterfordantiquemarket to watch their live stories. The owner takes us on a mini-tour each week and items are posted on their website for curbside pickup.

I love walking. I could walk all day and never get tired of it. We are so lucky to live where there is access to beautiful trails and gorgeous beach walking. Lately while I walk alone, I have been listening to one of my favourite author Glennon Doyle’s new podcast We Can Do Hard Things. She is so gifted at articulating lots of complicated feelings that many of us have. Give it a listen!

Art with Heart is one of the biggest community supporters we have the pleasure of knowing and they have something new that you may not know about happening now, the Get Cre8ive Scholarship. Families with financial need or other barriers can now apply for their Get Cre8ive Scholarships online, and if selected, they will grant their young artist(s) into their choice of one of their many visual, musical and dramatic arts programs. “In a chaotic time where seemingly everything has barriers, by engaging and empowering youth creatively we are giving them the gift of adaptability in a world that is constantly changing. They are gaining confidence in their unique vision and decision making with every brushstroke. We want to make sure that every single child has access to that paintbrush, and all the many beautiful possibilities that come with it.”

Zee’s Shoes and Apparel is one of the newest additions to our downtown Port Dover. Located right in the heart of the town, this sweet little boutique is exactly the shop we didn’t even know we needed! Cristina Zanella offers stellar curbside service and quality footwear and apparel. I picked up a pair of stylish, comfy Keds about a month ago and have rarely taken them off since.

Sophie is taking the Signing for Teens-Level 1 at Fanshawe College in Simcoe (via Zoom) starting June 23rd because she is considering becoming an Interpreter. You can sign your child up here if you think that they are interested in learning a new way to communicate. “Designed for 12-17 year olds, this 20 hour introductory signing class will teach kids the basics of American Sign Language. You will learn ASL and how to use facial expressions and body language to convey meaning. The alphabet, numbers, fingerspelling, introductions, greetings, and names will be taught so that you can introduce yourself and have a conversation. The fundamentals of grammar, structure, and rules to ensure that you have a good base for learning and speaking ASL. You will learn about Deaf Culture and the Deaf community along with proper etiquette. You will walk away with an understanding of deaf etiquette, so that you can approach any situation as politely and appropriately as possible”. If you are interested in lessons for yourself, they offer a beginner credit course for adults with a variety of start dates, check it out!

We recognize there are not a lot of events for us to safely enjoy happening right now. In the meantime, we do our best to scour all the local channels available to us to fill our our Events calendar to present you with a well-rounded list of options each month. Check it out and see if there is something there for you! (We encourage you to check in with the organizer of the event to ensure that the event is still running)