Happy birthday Mr. British Maple! Gone are the days when we would celebrate Mr. BM’s birthday in the pub garden. Instead, we spent the morning at the Toronto Botanical Garden and Edward Gardens (I have to admit, I’m not quite sure where one ends and the other one starts!)
After a horrendous few days (weeks) of no sleep it took all the effort we could muster to trudge out but it was well worth it.
My Welsh friends will be jealous of these beauties
Not only is the another FREE gem in Toronto, the café (which is only open during the summer) does amazing homemade treats! We had to make do with British Maple-made cookies and soda crackers this time, but we survived.
This is a really great time of year to visit. The juxtaposition (oooh…big word!) of new flowers blooming through the remnants of dead, winter leaves is a nice reminder that sunshine is on the way soon.
The first burst of colour of the year
All my boys love the ‘spiral mound’ (no idea what its formal name is!) They race up, shout from the top and look down on the rest of the botanical gardens.
Kings of the hill
As you make your way through the Botanical Gardens you come to Edward Gardens which follows the banks of a shallow creek (Wilket Creek, I think?!). I remember coming here a couple of years ago when the Lord was a nipper and feeling nervous about being close to the water. This time round, I have first-hand experience of how long the General can be under water for (bath times are quite an event in our house!)
The magic floating hat
The gardens are home to lots of wildlife too. Each time we come, we see groundhogs, the ocassional chipmunk and lots of fish.
Now you see him…
Overall, the gardens are a great place to spend a few hours. There’s lots of places to explore and open areas to run around in. We will defnitely be back soon.
Toronto Botanical Gardens, 777 Lawrence Avenue East
The British Maple 