I was so excited! I love these girls dearly, having spent several years working with them while teaching/working the CS booth at the shows.
Not to mention the Swedish Berry shooters, after all is said and done. :)
I spent all of last week preparing for this crop (I'll share my packing tips later this month). My scrappy supplies were all packed by Wednesday night, which is unheard of for me - I'm usually throwing everything but the kitchen sink into bags at 1:00 am on the night before!
It was a blessing, too, since we found out that we were supposed to be hit with a huge storm throughout the night on Thursday, and into Friday morning. On Thursday, Gary said that if I didn't go up Thursday, I wouldn't be going at all, so I decided last minute to drive into Erin on Thursday night to stay with Gary's dad. This meant that I would only be 30 minutes from Younique and could gauge the weather better on Friday morning.
My drive was uneventful with no snow or rain, until I turned off onto Hwy 6 into Guelph with slippery, snow-covered streets. I stopped at Shoppers for contact solution and almost got stuck at the lights! I slowly made my way to Erin and unpacked the basics (toiletries, clothes, glue... :)).
By Friday morning, there was about a foot of snow. I watched the neighbour snow blow out Dad's driveway, and by the time he had finished, it was snow covered again. I decided to have a leisurely breakfast and wait to see if it would die down.
The girls and I were in contact via email/text and they had already set on course, since they were traveling further than I. Roads were snow covered but not bad if you drove accordingly. I decided to head out around noon and promised my FIL that I would turn around if the roads were too bad.
Well, the 30 minute drive turned into a terrifying 90 minutes! While the roads were covered still, I was able to get through town okay and headed on to Hwy 124. Luckily, I was behind a snowplough.
Or so I thought.
Turns out that while the roads are clear behind a snow plough, there is also very little visibility because of the blowing snow. So I stayed back about 100 feet and it was better. But then he turned off and I was now on my own! Hwy 124 has many open areas and the drifting snow and lack of ploughing made many of the areas very treacherous. At one point, I couldn't even see 10 feet in front of me!! It was all completely white and all I could hope for was to go slowly and hope that I was on the right side of the road!
Luckily, my guardian angel was with me and I made it into Guelph, where the visibility was better but the ploughs were having trouble keeping up with the snow. Thanks for my FIL's directions, I made my way back to Hwy 6 and headed north to Younique.
Here's a peek at what it was like:
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I just want to add that whoever was in charge of naming the roads, north of Guelph, must have been drinking because there were several times when I thought to turn back, only I couldn't find a driveway that was cleared! In looking for Wellington Road 22, I passed Wellington Roads 31, 38 and 7... in that order! WTH? Anyhow, just as I was about to turn around, I saw the road.
The only other downfall is that the driveway to the retreat wasn't ploughed (or it had been but had been covered again) so I had to make three trips to the van through a foot of snow to get all my gear into the house!
But it was worth it! Had a fabulous time, created some great layouts and ate the most delicious food! Heather and her team were great - very welcoming and courteous - and the well stocked store and scrap room were an added bonus! I would recommend heading there with your friends for a weekend!
Sadly, most of my projects completely were for DT commitments so I can't share them yet - but I will add some sneak peeks this week! :)
Cheers,
P/S: Don't forget about the following challenges on my blog for a chance to win:
Leave Your Legacy: What You Fear Most (deadline: Feb 28/12)
It was a blessing, too, since we found out that we were supposed to be hit with a huge storm throughout the night on Thursday, and into Friday morning. On Thursday, Gary said that if I didn't go up Thursday, I wouldn't be going at all, so I decided last minute to drive into Erin on Thursday night to stay with Gary's dad. This meant that I would only be 30 minutes from Younique and could gauge the weather better on Friday morning.
My drive was uneventful with no snow or rain, until I turned off onto Hwy 6 into Guelph with slippery, snow-covered streets. I stopped at Shoppers for contact solution and almost got stuck at the lights! I slowly made my way to Erin and unpacked the basics (toiletries, clothes, glue... :)).
By Friday morning, there was about a foot of snow. I watched the neighbour snow blow out Dad's driveway, and by the time he had finished, it was snow covered again. I decided to have a leisurely breakfast and wait to see if it would die down.
The girls and I were in contact via email/text and they had already set on course, since they were traveling further than I. Roads were snow covered but not bad if you drove accordingly. I decided to head out around noon and promised my FIL that I would turn around if the roads were too bad.
Well, the 30 minute drive turned into a terrifying 90 minutes! While the roads were covered still, I was able to get through town okay and headed on to Hwy 124. Luckily, I was behind a snowplough.
Or so I thought.
Turns out that while the roads are clear behind a snow plough, there is also very little visibility because of the blowing snow. So I stayed back about 100 feet and it was better. But then he turned off and I was now on my own! Hwy 124 has many open areas and the drifting snow and lack of ploughing made many of the areas very treacherous. At one point, I couldn't even see 10 feet in front of me!! It was all completely white and all I could hope for was to go slowly and hope that I was on the right side of the road!
Luckily, my guardian angel was with me and I made it into Guelph, where the visibility was better but the ploughs were having trouble keeping up with the snow. Thanks for my FIL's directions, I made my way back to Hwy 6 and headed north to Younique.
Here's a peek at what it was like:
Corner of Willow and Silvercreek, Guelph ON (photo by Shawn)
I just want to add that whoever was in charge of naming the roads, north of Guelph, must have been drinking because there were several times when I thought to turn back, only I couldn't find a driveway that was cleared! In looking for Wellington Road 22, I passed Wellington Roads 31, 38 and 7... in that order! WTH? Anyhow, just as I was about to turn around, I saw the road.
The only other downfall is that the driveway to the retreat wasn't ploughed (or it had been but had been covered again) so I had to make three trips to the van through a foot of snow to get all my gear into the house!
But it was worth it! Had a fabulous time, created some great layouts and ate the most delicious food! Heather and her team were great - very welcoming and courteous - and the well stocked store and scrap room were an added bonus! I would recommend heading there with your friends for a weekend!
Sadly, most of my projects completely were for DT commitments so I can't share them yet - but I will add some sneak peeks this week! :)
Cheers,
P/S: Don't forget about the following challenges on my blog for a chance to win:
Leave Your Legacy: What You Fear Most (deadline: Feb 28/12)
Glad you made it safe and sound Sue. Guelph are can be pretty nasty. Can't wait to see your projects!
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