The cottage is a comfortable little place on Bras D’Or Lake in Cape Breton, owned by Mama’s parents. They routinely make the mistake of inviting us back every year, Those Johnston Kids and all. Despite the racket and mess created by energetic kids, Bobby and Granfa are most genial hosts, and so we return as often as we can. Most summers we’ve been there, it’s been hot and humid, relieved by swims in the cold, briny water of the Bras D’Or.
This summer has been unusually cold and wet however, as we witnessed first hand. The kids swam on the first day there, but not again. On Tuesday, staring out the windows at a steady rain, I realised that we would have to make our own gravy. I compiled a list of projects that we might undertake with the limited tools, time, and resources available to us. It became a sort of shopping list that led to a trip to Sydney and stops at Home Depot, Walmart, and Michael’s. We came back with a small pile of cool stuff.
Most of the ideas came from Howtoons, an engineering and art graphic work collaboration that inspires kids (and me) to learn about and make things. Throw a bucket of small hand tools and a Howtoons graphic novel at your precocious pre-teen and you won’t see her again until she has something to show you or she needs a bandage. I wish these had been around when I was short. I’d have even more tools than I have already.
We didn’t have time to work on everything that made our short list of neatest projects, but we did make stilts from 2x2s and bolts, and designed our own stuffed toys. I did the most intricate bits, but Those Johnston Kids took sewing needle in hand as well to complete a cute and cuddly owl, as well the beautiful and deadly vampire squid. Shame on those that mistook the (sort of) anatomically correct squid for an octopus. Everybody knows squid have 10 arms, including the 2 long feeding arms. I mean, duh.
One of our favourite makes was fresh ice cream! We couldn’t agree on the flavour, so we made two batches: fresh fruit strawberry and caramel pecan cranberry. That stuff was good. I’m not even a big fan of ice cream, but my mouth cried a little when it was all gone. I tried to save some for you, honest.
Still on our project to-do list: a fart maker (why? 7 years old, that’s why), an air cannon, and Tyvek kites. Oh, and jack up the single-storey cottage, dig out a basement, and pour a foundation. I’m going to need a lot of rainy days next summer.