Home after the holidays

I've just returned from one of the best holidays I've had in a long, long time.
My family toured Upper and Lower Canada during the summer. The area we travelled to includes Toronto, Montreal, Quebec City and Ottawa.
It was a very stress-less time and we really enjoyed ourselves.
I'd never been to either Ottawa and Quebec City and I wonder why I'd never thought to visit them before. Both cities were unique in their own way and I plan to go back in the future to explore them further.
Old Quebec City had wonderful charm that captivated us during our stay there. It didn't matter that it rained on us, since that really added to the atmosphere of the place. I'd say that walking down the rain-soaked cobblestone streets to visit the many old buildings and cathedrals in the old part of town was the highlight of our entire trip.
I love the province of Quebec and we also enjoyed our stay in Montreal. I even had the chance to meet up with an online friend while we were there!
I had been to Quebec years ago when I was younger, and at the time I wasn't impressed with the province or the people there. Something about my visit and the feeling of stuffy superiority made me vow not to return there. I am so glad that I changed my views and that we made the trip. Words aren't enough to show how much I enjoyed it.
Photos may help however. Here are some photos from our stay in Quebec city.

Taking a break

I've finally gotten a break from work. Last year was a busy year it seems. I had started working at a new place, and was unable to take many holidays due to work shortages and the fact that most holiday times were already taken by those more senior than me. I accumulated lots of overtime as well that I banked through the year. My boss told me that I should use them up as they don't carry them over from year to year. I could have chosen to get paid out, but opted for some time off. I'm now off this week and really loving it! Although I'm not getting a chance to sleep in because I'm driving my daughter to school, and my wife to work each morning. I'm surprised that they didn't get me a cap and a T-shirt that had 'Chauffeur' written on it this Christmas. However, after dropping them off, the rest of the day is ALL mine.
So far, I haven't done much of anything. Everyone should take a do-nothing holiday once in a while!
I've put all the Christmas things back in storage and now it seems like there's a big gaping hole where the tree was. I'd love to rearrange the room, but I'm on holidays right now.
We have a high definition TV and I've watched a couple of movies. I've caught up on emails and surfed the net. I'm currently planning a wood project that I'm creating for my daughter. I'm only in the design stages for now. I was going to head down to Home Depot to buy some materials, but never made it. Details of this project will probably show up in a future post...if it turns out, and I'm not ashamed to post the final outcome. I'm not that skilled with woodworking, so this will be a real experiment on my part.
I practiced a bit on the guitar as well today. I'm self taught on the guitar and I've also self taught my ears not to criticize what they hear. My ears are on holidays too..I didn't want to torture them too much, so I didn't play for long.