Tag Archives: Sarilia photography

Sarilia lifestyle Q&A with Shayna & Sheldon

June 18, 2018 Julie Barnes Leave a comment

Shayna and Sheldon both originally hail from Hudson Bay, Sask. Like many of our residents, they relocated to Sarilia from Saskatoon to rediscover the small-community lifestyle in which they were raised.

They settled into our river valley community last July with their two young daughters: Gemma is four and Daisy is 13-months. Sheldon works in Saskatoon, and Shayna is a stay-at-home mom who runs a part-time daycare from their new home base.

We chatted with them to learn more about their decision to move to Sarilia, and how they envision their family’s lifestyle here—this summer and beyond.

What was it about Sarilia that made you decide to build a home here?
Shayna: The natural landscaping. For close to a year we drove around Saskatoon and looked at several different estate developments and when we drove out here… just the views, like when you come down the road into Sarilia, you can see all the rolling hills and you can see right down to the river. We drove around and Sheldon knew he was in trouble—I fell in love with it.

My heart had made a decision already, but we didn’t make a final decision for a little while. We obviously talked about it and we met with Gwen, but I knew pretty instantly that I wanted to move here and Sheldon knew quickly that he was going to have to figure out if we could do that!

Was there an urge to get out of the city?
Sheldon: We’re both from a small town, so the city was not really for us.
Shayna: We had done the city thing. We both grew up in a tiny town and thought that we wanted the exciting city life and we enjoyed it for a couple of years when we were first married and we didn’t have any kids.

Eventually, we realized it wasn’t quite for us. Especially after Gemma was born, we started feeling that calling to have more space and be more connected to outdoors and have a smaller community feel.

Now that you’ve been here almost a year, how has your lifestyle changed?
Shayna: It’s just a little bit quieter. It’s easier to enjoy the outside time.

In the city, to enjoy nature, to see the river you go down Spadina, or you go for a walk or go to a park, but that was really the only way to get that nice, quiet outside time.

And even then, it’s still busier, whereas here, we just go out onto one of our many decks or go into the yard or walk down by the river. You don’t need to drive anywhere to get that peace, it’s right here. Outside of that, we’re homebody-type people so our lifestyle didn’t change a whole lot.

Where do you work?
Sheldon: I work in Saskatoon.
Shayna: I’m a stay-at-home mom but I do have a part-time daycare. I’ve got a few different families who bring their kids out part-time, so usually three days a week I’m open.

So, you’ve already spent one summer here at Sarilia?
Shayna: We did, but we didn’t. We had a baby the previous May so when we first moved out here she was still quite fresh and delicate so there was still a lot of working around her naps and feedings. We couldn’t go outside for too long, so this summer is going to be kind of a first.

What are your plans for your this summer now that you’ll have more flexibility?
Shayna: Just going for walks down by the river and those basic things—just spending some time outside as a family without having to go anywhere. We don’t have to pack up the kids; we don’t have to pack up all the things and go. We just put on our shoes and our hats and go outside.

As your kids get older, what kinds of activities do you want to do with them at Sarilia?
Shayna: We’re going to be putting in a garden this year. We both love getting our hands dirty and Gemma’s looking forward to being able to put in a much bigger garden this year.

Last year we missed the opportunity because when people were planting in May, I was 40-weeks pregnant and couldn’t touch the ground! This year we’re excited to put in a larger garden.

When the kids get older we’ve talked about canoeing and other activities, but some of those things right now—the safety and logistics of doing it—we’re not quite there yet. But as they get bigger, being able to explore the river is definitely high up on the list.

What do friends say when they come to visit?
Sheldon: Shayna has a friend from Ireland who just loves it out here because it reminds her of home.
Shayna: Yes, with the rolling hills and everything.

How did you come across Sarilia?
Sheldon: We went to Dalmeny, Delisle and Dundurn…
Shayna: We went every direction outside the city. We visited Warman and Martensville too—some of their development areas…
Sheldon: And I came across Sarilia on Google…
Shayna: In one of our many searches, Sheldon found Sarilia online and on one of our weekend drives of exploring, we came out here and the rest is history as they say!

Sarilia lifestyle Q & A with Al & Annette

March 28, 2018 Julie Barnes Leave a comment

Al and Annette are two of Sarilia’s longest residents, having moved to the river valley community over seven years ago to experience what Al calls “pre-retirement.” We chatted with them to get a glimpse of what that lifestyle transition looks like.

What made you decide to move from Dalmeny to Sarilia?
Annette: The beauty of the river valley and the new community that was being developed here.

Al: I thought we should try to experience pre-retirement.

What pre-retirement looks like: Al & Annette enjoying a glass of wine and a Sarilia sunset

How does living at Sarilia contrast with city living?
Annette: We really like the socializing and being able to know our neighbours. People look out for one another: they watch out for your property, and do nice things for each other here.

What would both of you say are your favourite aspects of living at Sarilia?
Al: My favourite aspect is just being near the outdoors without having to go far—compared to the city.

Annette: You don’t have to drive anywhere to go to a park—it’s right outside your door. You’re surrounded by nature and wildlife.

Al: The other aspect I like about Sarilia is, some years ago when we were looking at recreational properties elsewhere, prices were starting to skyrocket. We couldn’t justify spending a lot of money on a property at the lake, maintaining that, and maintaining another house. But here, it’s kind of like being at the lake. It’s the same sort of environment but without the expense and the driving and all the rest that comes along with lake property.

Annette snowshoeing at Sarilia

What are your favourite winter activities at Sarilia?
Al: We like to go cross-country skiing and snowshoeing. When we have decent snow, our neighbour Dale cuts ski trails down to the river.

Annette: There are nice trails down by the river and we hike them a lot. It’s fun to see all the changes that are happening all the time—the change of the colours with the seasons, the migration of the birds.

What are you favourite summer activities?
Annette: Gardening in the summertime is fun. We always see some of our neighbours at the garden—we chat and play music. There’s a nice social aspect to it that I really enjoy.

We also like watching the skyline at night—we can still see a faint light on the horizon in the evening and the stars shine brighter. Al has a telescope and he likes to gaze at the sky—picking out different clusters and planets.

Al: We also try to get out in the canoe a couple of times in the summer.

Annette: Canoeing from Borden Bridge to Sarilia is a lot of fun. It takes 2-3 hours usually—more if you want to sit and have a picnic on the side of the river.

Al enjoying Sarilia on two wheels

Al: I try to get out on my bike. Once you get down in the river valley you can bike the trails that are down around the river easily enough.

Annette: Biking down a country road is kind of fun—there’s not a lot of traffic that you have to worry about.

Can you tell me about curling in Langham?
Annette: Al’s been curling in Langham a little bit longer than I have, but the last couple of years we’ve both been curling.

Al: They’ve got a new rink, and a pretty good club there.

Annette: It’s a really nice facility. Al and I curl there in the mixed league, and when we can, we’ll take in a bonspiel. Even for those who don’t curl, if they like watching curling there’s an opportunity for people just to come and have a beer and watch curling because they have a nice little bar. We’ve enjoyed socializing with people from Langham at the rink.

Blue bird captured by Annette at Sarilia

You both take a lot of beautiful photos around Sarilia. What inspires you?
Annette: It’s just the natural greenery and the colours out here that we really enjoy. Especially in the springtime, the leaves are starting to pop out of the trees and the blue birds are coming back.

Al: Because we’re at the river, you get migratory birds. You see them coming and going all the time. Here we might see a few more unusual birds because there are less people than in the city. In our book, we write down every spring and fall what we see, and I can go look in my book and I can say, “yeah, we saw that last year, and the year before.” It’s almost always within plus or minus a week.

Annette: And there’s a lot of deer around here as well, so we know where they are and what time of day to watch out for them.

Annette’s Sarilia photography

The cows come home to Sarilia

November 22, 2017 Julie Barnes Leave a comment

Michael Pollan, a food writer and journalist, only eats meat about once a week. When he does eat it, he’s careful to purchase it from farmers who raise their animals humanely. “But it’s delicious, it’s nutritious and I think there is a place for farms where animals get to live a good life and, as the farmers like to say, have one bad day,” he says.

Sarilia is home to several cows. They graze freely among 120 acres of natural grasslands and drink from a natural spring. Overall, they have a great life, and when the time comes, they too have just “one bad day.”

The cows are co-owned between three Sarilia residents: Jordan, Joe and Gwen. We recently chatted with Jordan, to learn what it’s like to raise cattle in our river valley community.

How did you get involved in cattle raising?

I was born and raised on a cattle/grain farm. I’ve always enjoyed the cow side of farming so it was kind of nice to have a little bit of agriculture at Sarilia.

How would you describe the pasture to someone who hasn’t seen it?

It’s really quite pretty down in the coulees and the natural spring that runs through. It’s really a great place for a picnic actually. It’s just peaceful. I take my boys out and they feed the cows. It’s just kind of nice. There’s no cell service so it’s quiet.

What kinds of cows have you been raising at Sarilia?

This year we had four black heifers and two black angus cows, one speckled park cross cow and one Charolais cross cow. We also had a bull, temporarily, that we borrowed from a friend.

How old are your boys and what do they feed the cows?

Jaxon is five and Nash is one. We take oats to them once and awhile. They like to do that. I wish they were a little more scared of the cows (laughs), but they like it.

What do the cows eat?

It’s just natural grasses, and a block of salt for them. I give them oats probably once every two weeks. Just to get them used to (people) coming up and keeping them calm.

Do you name the cows?

Jaxon likes to name them. The black and white cow (the speckled park) he calls “Chocolate Chip.” We actually had three calves out there this year so he called one calf “Joey” and the other one “Georgie.” We wanted to name it George, but it’s a girl so we named it Georgie. Gwen named our red cow “Emily.”

What is it like to co-own the cows with two other Sarilia residents?

It’s a lot of fun. We’re all partners. It works out really well. That way, if something happens to one animal, someone’s not out a whole animal, we’re all out a little bit. But that hasn’t happened. I’ve gotten to know Joe and Gwen really well through it.

What do you end up doing with the meat?

We make roasts, steak, ground beef and sausage. Joe likes liver so he takes the liver.

What have been the benefits of raising the cows here?

It’s good camaraderie with your neighbours. It’s good bonding with my boys, to take them out. It’s fun to watch the cows grow and how they really get used to you and learn to trust you. I really enjoyed checking on them in the summer and taking them oats. Just kind of watching their progress.

It’s probably nice to know where your food is coming from.

Exactly. And we know they range free all summer and they’re grass fed, so the meat is pretty lean. It’s nice to have control over your food.

What are your plans for next year?

We’re going to do a few fundraiser cows, with all the proceeds going back into Sarilia—whether it’s boardwalks or building warm up shacks for ice rinks down on the river.

Q&A with Annette: How does your (community) garden grow?

October 3, 2016 Julie Barnes Leave a comment

Sarilia’s community garden is a favourite spot for many residents to socialize, tend to their flowers, veggies and fruits, and learn from one another. We sat down with Sarilia resident, Annette Horvath, to learn what she—and others—grew this year, what flourished, what didn’t, and what she’s learned from her fellow green thumbs.

What did you plant in the community garden this year?
I planted lots of flowers—mostly zinnias—and lots of vegetables too: lots of carrots because they can keep for a long time, peas, potatoes, beans, corn, onions, garlic, the usual.

Garlic and dill in the community garden

Garlic is always such a nice treat in the garden because it keeps for a long time. It takes a little longer to grow. You plant it the season before (at the end of the season) so it’s always amazing to see what comes out and it’s so much better to have fresh garlic from your garden than buying it from the store. The texture is so creamy and the flavour is so much better.

When you have a vegetable soup from your garden, it’s just amazing how much flavour is in the vegetables—it’s so good. I also planted a whole row of beets. We had a few issues with some chipmunks—they are really fat in our garden because we feed them very well. They stole all my beets! (laughs) Just mine. Other people didn’t have problems with that.

A well-fed Sarilia chipmunk

Raspberries were a big thing. My raspberries did very well this year because of the rain. It was really nice to have fruit in the garden. Pretty much everything did quite well. Everybody had a good harvest of peas, beans, carrots, onions, beets, and all the things they planted.

One of our neighbours always plants sunflowers and they’re such a nice addition to the garden too. They’re just such a happy flower and they do so well.

Sunflowers in bloom in Sarilia’s community garden

What are some of the benefits of community gardening?
One of the benefits is that a lot of sharing takes place. One of our neighbours had grown an abundant amount of kale. I didn’t know this, but when you pick kale, it grows back. You don’t pick it from the root, so it keeps on giving back, week after week. She had so much more than she could use, and luckily the chipmunks didn’t like the kale, so they stayed away. We tried making so many different things—like salads and kale chips, and I juiced a lot and now I’ve frozen it to use it for smoothies.

We also have some extra room in the garden that nobody has claimed yet, so we grow pumpkins and potatoes, and we share them with our neighbours if there’s extra. And of course zucchini. There’s always more zucchini than we need, but that’s kind of nice.

Have you learned any lessons from your neighbours who you garden alongside?
Always. You’re always learning, because nothing is ever the same. It’s always different from year to year and it’s so interesting to find out what other people are growing that’s working for them.

One of our neighbours plants a lot of garlic, tomatoes, and hot peppers. It’s always interesting to see the different coloured peppers in his garden—from green, orange, yellow, red and even a very dark aubergine colour. I imagine a lot of them are really hot. He’s even grown habaneros (not in our community garden, but at his house). So it’s like a salsa garden where you grow all the ingredients yourself to make an amazing tomato sauce or salsa.

My garden is such a small part of it because it’s such a community effort. I really like wandering through other people’s gardens and enjoying what they’re growing. The sharing of the harvest is always kind of special—when somebody says, “here, I grew this, you gotta try it.” Just seeing what they grow and thinking, “well, I can do that next year.”

Have you planted anything new this year that you’d never tried before?

Jerusalem artichoke potatoes

We planted Jerusalem artichoke potatoes, which we’ve never had before. It’s like a gourmet potato. They don’t look like a traditional potato plant. They grow into this beautiful, tall flower that looks similar to a sunflower, but they’re small flowers. They grow over six-feet tall. The idea is to harvest the tubers after the frost, so that they’re a little bit easier to digest. It must bring out the sugars in the tuber. We haven’t tried them yet, because we haven’t had very many frosts yet, but we’re going to try them soon. You can roast and cook them like a potato, so we’re looking forward to trying those.

Zinnias in bloom

I talked one of my neighbours into growing zinnias. She tried out different varieties than I did. They’re very hardy flowers and they’re beautiful. To me, they’re a little bit like a gerber daisy, but they have vibrant colours and come in different varieties. Some are really big, some are like pom-poms, and they flower all summer long—so that’s a really nice flower for the garden. And the bees really are attracted to them.

Do you have any favourite recipes for your garden veggies?
A lot of times, if I’m making a vegetable soup, I make it up as I go. I know some people really like recipes because they get consistency and they make the same thing over and over again, but a lot of the time I just clean up a whole bunch of vegetables, throw them in a pot, and see what comes out! For pumpkin pie I usually find a recipe, and I don’t normally use the same one all the time. I check my old church parish books—I’ve got a lot of of old ones—because those are tried and true.

One of Annette’s favourite pumpkin pie recipes

Sarilia from a bird’s-eye view

November 23, 2015 Julie Barnes Leave a comment

One of the best parts of my job is the opportunity to meet new people and give them a tour of our river valley community. By the time we’ve walked to the river, strolled through the community garden, and looked at the available lots, I’ve had a chance to get to know them one-on-one. Often, they’ll make a second trip with a few extra family members in tow. That’s what happened last month. I gave a tour to a wonderful family and they returned the next day with a few members of their extended family. One of them ended up taking some aerial photos and videos and they generously shared them with us.

Despite knowing the land like the back of my hand, these videos offer a fresh perspective of Sarilia. It’s one thing to drive along the roads and walk the river trails, but it’s another thing to see the whole community from a bird’s-eye view. Seeing the sunshine sparkling on the water and the way the homes nestle right into nature from a new point of view is really interesting.

I’m happy to share the photos here as a tour you can take without leaving home. Still, nothing beats seeing Sarilia for yourself, so don’t hesitate to contact me for a ground-level tour. 🙂

– Gwen Lepage

Checking in with our new neighbours

September 22, 2015 Julie Barnes Leave a comment

Matt and Amber moved into their new home at Sarilia last May. Now that they’ve had a chance to settle in, we thought we’d follow up with Amber to see how their lives have changed since moving here, and how they feel about life in the river valley. Our beautiful photos were taken at Sarilia by Julie Schappert Photography.

What makes life so different at Sarilia?
Number one is the sense of calm and peace that I feel being surrounded by nature. It may seem cliché, but moving out to the country has really transformed our lives. It seems like we take more time to sit and enjoy our surroundings and each other. Taking care of our home and the surrounding area has a little bit more pride and joy than it did in the city, probably because there are so many more possibilities with the space we have. There’s also the fact that when you’re home, you’re home. The distance may seem limiting to some, but I really enjoy the fact that when I’m here I’m not pulled to do some errand, I can just enjoy my home and my family without thinking that there’s some place else to be.

Were there any lessons learned during your home building process?
The main thing I learned was that it was helpful to have a clear vision of what we wanted our home to feel like, and then communicate that often. Our build was truly custom and we chose every single detail, but it’s good advice for whatever type of build you’re doing. Salespeople and sub-contractors are so much more helpful when you’re able to say, “my house is such-and-such style and we want it to feel ‘X’” (warm, quaint, modern, clean, rustic, etc.).

Also, I learned to stick to my guns and never be afraid to ask. As a woman making the vast majority of decisions I was lucky to have a very patient builder who would take the time to explain the process. I was able to make informed decisions and not back down when someone wanted to change my mind. Not everyone values the same things as you when they’re giving you advice about your home.

Aesthetics are important — so is functionality but I would remind myself that we are the ones who are living here so we had to prioritize what we wanted. A perfect example was the manufactured wood beams in our kitchen. They were an expensive custom touch and some people questioned me about them but I knew they would do so much to create that “feel” that we wanted. Now everyone remarks about how much they love them when they walk in!

What kinds of activities do you do at Sarilia?
I’ve been up at the community garden often, weeding a lot as I’m still learning the ropes! We walk the dogs and go down to the beach. We’ve also taken a couple of bike rides to explore the area. Matthew went on a canoe trip down the river to Petrofka Bridge with some other community members. I’m looking forward to getting back into a regular running schedule now that the busyness of the move and summer is winding down.

Day to day, we’ve been working on our deck and our yard which we both enjoy. Now we can eat dinner outside or just sit out and enjoy a glass of wine. I’ve found that my free time is a little more “quality.” We watch less TV, and spend more time outside.

What is it like to be part of the Sarilia community?
I’m so happy and excited to be part of this community. Summer is tough to get out and meet people as most people are busy or away on weekends, but recently we’ve had the chance to meet some of the families that live here at a community get-together and we had an amazing time! I’m so excited to get to know the other residents. Dinners with friends, bonfires on the beach, our kids growing up together…I’m so looking forward to this at Sarilia.

What do your family and friends say when they visit?
I feel like when our family and friends visit, they get it. They get why we decided to move to the country when we’ve always been city people. The other day my mom was sitting on our deck and she said, “it’s just like being at the lake,” which is a big deal because our cabin at the lake is definitely the family “happy place.” They’ve also remarked on the sense of privacy that our well-treed lot provides. We have the best of both worlds — we can be out mingling with our neighbours while at the garden or on a walk, but we also have our little nook in our backyard which means that we’re not bothering anyone when we have company over. The number one phrase I hear when we have company is, “it’s beautiful.” I have to say, I agree!

Birds of Sarilia

June 16, 2015 Julie Barnes Leave a comment

We love being surrounded by nature at Sarilia, and our diversity of feathered visitors is always a delight. Sarilia resident, Annette Horvath, took these gorgeous photos of blue birds, a swallow, a yellow-headed blackbird and a bald eagle recently. They’re so beautiful you’d think they’re stock photos, but they’re 100% original, taken right here in our river valley community. Thanks Annette!

Swallow

Bluebird

Female Bluebird

Lunchtime

Yellow-headed Blackbird

Bald Eagle

Planting trees and putting down roots

May 22, 2015 Julie Barnes Leave a comment

There’s an old Chinese proverb that says, “The best time to plant a tree was 20 years ago. The next best time is today.” At Sarilia, we happen to agree with that, so on the Victoria Day long weekend several of us got together and planted 17 fruit trees near our community garden.

Leanne, Gwen, Nancy, Kathleen & Annette at Dieter Martin Greenhouses

We kicked off the day with a visit to Dieter Martin Greenhouse. The owner, Nancy Martin, told us that Sarilia is located in Zone 2b for plant hardiness and advised us on the types of trees that flourish in this particular zone. She also gave us tips on how to plant the trees and what types of soil to use. Together, we selected a variety of apple, cherry and plum trees. Some of them are already bearing fruit, and the rest should bear fruit this summer.

Two of our trees are “combination apple” trees — something we hadn’t heard of before. Essentially, it’s one tree grafted with several different varieties. One of our combination apple trees will grow three varieties and the other will grow six, including Harcourt and Honey Crisp.

Al & Kathleen

We brought our trees back to Sarilia, where we had a 150-foot long trench waiting for us. We spent several hours together digging in the dirt and we were joined by a few more families from the community who were happy to lend a hand. A couple of Sarilia kids planted their first tree and a family who just joined our community came out and planted a tree with their young daughter. Watching them literally put down roots at Sarilia was heart warming and reminds me of another saying: “To plant a tree is to believe in tomorrow.”

At the end of the day, we were all caked in dirt. It was on our clothes and in our ears. It was physically exhausting, but incredibly worthwhile. I can already smell the apple crisp baking.

If you happen to live in plant hardiness Zone 2b (Saskatoon, Warman and Martensville are all in this zone) and are interested in what types of fruit trees will thrive in your yard, here’s a list of the trees we planted. They’re all appropriate for Zone 2b climates.

Hardi Mac Apple
Red Sparkle Apple
Romeo Cherry
Cupid Cherry
Combination Apple (Hardi Mac Apple, Harcourt Apple, Parkland Apple)
Red Plum
Pembina Plum
Honey Crisp Apple with Red lake Currant and Western Sand Cherry
Brook Gold Plum
Combination Apple (Heyer #12 Apple, Harlston Apple,Parkland Apple, Harcourt Apple, Hardi Mac Apple, Honey Crisp Apple)
Crimson Passion Cherry
Juliet Cherry
Dolgo Crab
Rescue Crab
Battleford Apple
Goodland Apple

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