Gardening 101

Anyone who knows me, knows that I like to keep my fingers manicured and polished. But they would also know that when it comes to gardening, my thumb is definitely brown. Give me a plant and I’ll figure out a way to kill it!! Water? Oh, that seems like so much work. And fertilizer? Are you kidding me?! All my neighbours can attest that my yard is relatively flower free. In fact (as in this photo) those hanging ferns were a huge commitment. They were a gift from my gardener friend, Marie Bunting and were selected by her after careful assessment of my gardening skills. (Apparently, they’re very tough to kill and don’t need to be watered all that often!!) So, when I set out to devote one of Krisztina’s One Minute Home Tips videos to the garden, I called Marie. (I’m no fool – I may be somewhat of an expert on a fair amount of topics, but I knew this one was out of my league!) And to my astonishment, 1 gardening video turned into 4. “Gardens on a Budget” has been extremely popular (and who can’t devote a minute of their time to watch it!). So I’m following up with “Gardens for Beginners”, “Building Your Garden” and “DIY Landscaping”. I invite you to my YouTube channel, NorthOakvilleAgent to take a look. I hope you enjoy them all. For my part, I actually learned a lot about gardening as Marie toured me through both her shade gardens and sun gardens on her gorgeous Caledon East property. I walked away feeling I could almost garden myself. ‘Almost’, I say, because history has taught me better. When it’s not your forte, hire an expert or ask a friend. That’s the motto I’ll stick to when it comes to gardening!! And keep watching this summer as I’ll be rolling out One Minute Home Tip videos twice weekly through Labour Day. You can look forward to such topics as “Creating Your Outdoor Room”, “Small Backyard Suggestions”, “Sprucing Up Outdoors on a Budget”, “Outdoor Lighting”, “Pool Do’s and Don’ts”, “Resale of Homes with Pools”, “Creating Outdoor Privacy” and “Patio Materials”. Come the Fall, I’ll be moving onto indoor décor and contracting topics as well as tackling subjects related to Buying, Selling and Real Estate Trends. And in the meantime, enjoy your time in your outdoor ‘rooms’ and happy gardening!!

Relax…It’s Summertime

THE VIEW FROM OAK PARK

The Official Krisztina Blogsite

The heat is on as we roll through mid-July and for the first time in many years, I’m kicking back and enjoying the downtime. For so many years I’ve weathered the real estate summer slowdown (this happens in Oakville real estate and elsewhere!)  badly. I panicked. I whined. I sweated (and not because of the heat!). Even though my head always knows our business slows down in the summer, my heart simply could not sit back, appreciate the slower days and know that it will pick up again. Well, meet the new me. Now, it’s not without the occasional panic outburst, but for the most part, I’m making a concerted effort to – as the song says – not worry and be happy. More time with my husband, friends and family. More road trip time. More cottage time. More patio time. More margarita time. And even (gasp!) more summer dress and sandal shopping time. The trick now is to actually enjoy it. And I think I am. And also, in a strange way, it makes me appreciate the times when I’m overwhelmingly busy. This business is cyclical with constant ups and downs, busy times and dry times. It just took me this long to accept it!! So now that I’m enjoying the summer (yes, I’m a little tanner than usual, and yes, I’m out in my new convertible just because I can be!!), it brings me back to my summers growing up in Hungary. They always started around my birthday (June 5th) – even in public school. So we had a full 3 months for trips to Lake Balaton where vendors wander the beach selling sausage and beer and boiled corn on the cob and ‘langos’ (a fried bread/pizza type Hungarian delicacy). And oh, the fruit in Hungary. Niagara is good, but I’ve yet to find the same mouth-watering yummy sensations that Hungarian peaches and strawberries evoke. The taste is completely different. And every time I think I’m idealizing it, I go back, taste it and am reminded once again just how good it is! And while I’m reminiscing, oh how I loved my Grandmother’s jams. Summer in a jar! But as much as my Mother loved Hungary, I must share with all of you how impressed she was with Northern Ontario and Cottage Country. She loved the rock formations and the lakes and the shorelines and the foliage and the evergreens. And she particularly enjoyed the water with a windy storm brewing. All the waves and whitecaps. There is something very special about Cottage Country that is unique to this part of the world. Now if only they’d have beer and food vendors walking the beaches, it might just be perfect!