Our House

We have a large home that was created by joining two attached houses together. By combining them we created a five-bedroom home for our four children and ourselves. The reason we took the trouble to join the two houses was that they were situated next to the Rideau River, a beautiful, picturesque river that runs through Ottawa. The house is also across from a park and is therefore surrounded by green space.

Chelsea

Our children have grown up and moved out and we now share the house with our dog Chelsea. We have eight beautiful grandchildren who often visit.

Two of the bedrooms have been turned into an office for Peggy who is a writer. We therefore now have a three-bedroom house, which has two full bathrooms plus two bathrooms with a toilet and sink. One of the bathrooms has a Jacuzzi tub. Two of the bedrooms have queen sized beds, the other smaller bedroom has a sofa that pulls out into a double bed.

The house also has two full kitchens. The second kitchen comes in very handy when we have big parties. Most of the time the grandchildren use it as a craft room. Its many cupboards provide lots of storage space.

Jo's office on the ground floor is very large and has a gas fireplace and sofa and armchair sitting area. Jo's desk is built into a bay window and looks out onto a view of the garden and river. To provide Internet service to our two offices we have a high-speed wireless network.

Our grandchildren plus a few extras on one of the decks in our garden

Most of the living in our house happens on the second floor. The fully equipped kitchen has a large central island and serves as the center of the house. The kitchen leads onto a large second floor deck that connects to a patio and deck on the ground level by a set of stairs that wind around an enormous 100-year-old oak tree. We have a large garden that extends down to the river. It is watered automatically by a sprinkler system that takes water from the river so it is always green.

Beyond the kitchen is a living area with two sofas and dining area with a table that opens to sit 12 persons. The living-dining area has a stereo with a CD and tape machine. On the second floor there is also a large family room with a 50+ inch TV, DVD player and VCR.

Our cleaning person, Maria Brito, comes every second Saturday year round. If she comes when you are staying in our house, it'll be a treat.

Our Neighborhood

We live in one of the oldest regions of Ottawa. It is called Old Ottawa South and was created early in this century as Ottawa expanded beyond its borders. We are very close to downtown - 20 minutes by bike or bus, or a 5 minute car ride. You can walk to neighbourhood stores and a mall across the river. Carleton University, one of Ottawa's two universities, is about 5 minutes walk from our house along the river. The Rideau Canal, which forms the longest skating rink in the world during the winter, is also a 5 minute walk from our house and is bordered by parkland. The National Arboretum on the banks of Dow's Lake, a lake formed within the Canal, is also a short walk from our house.

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