You know I love to troll Airbnb for unique vacation rental properties. Check out these two I recently stumbled upon… a breathtaking modern ski chalet in Golden, British Columbia and a private island (that’s not insanely priced!) in Belize.  Which one would you choose?

(not that you have to choose between them at all… it’s just a fun game to play)

There’s a seismic monitoring station in Ecuador known as Casa del Arbo (“The Treehouse”). It has a rickety swing hanging from one of the tree branches, and it swings over a 100 foot drop. No harness, no net, or any other safety feature. The swing is commonly known as “the swing at the edge of the world.”

Would you swing on it? I don’t know if I would!

via Atlas Obscura. Top photo by David Silo, bottom left photo unknown credit, bottom right photo by Adam Rifkin.

I cannot wait until the Drake Devonshire Inn opens later this month (it’s a hotel in Prince Edward County, by the same people who made the Drake Hotel in Toronto). They released some sneak peek photos of the new hotel, and it looks fantastic. See all 32 sneak peek photos here.

Their website isn’t set up for reservations yet, but you can call and book by phone for anytime after September 15.

Here are two vacation rental properties (link one and link two) I found on Airbnb recently during one of my semi-regular wanderlust-induced browsing sessions. These are both in Muir Beach, California, which is only about 15 miles from San Francisco. Could you imagine relaxing on the deck of one of these places and looking at that view?!? Dreamy.

[first 2 photos from this rental property; last 3 photos from this rental property]

Before Clara was born, Ian and I loved to go camping at different provincial parks in Ontario. We’re not hardcore into backwoods camping or anything – we do “car camping”, where you pull your car up to your reserved spot so it’s much easier to pack and unload. We have a massive tent that fits our queen-size air mattress, and I have even been known to bring a duvet and feather pillows (way more cozy than sleeping bags… hey… don’t judge).

We have camped with our dogs (that’s our old dog, Robby, in the photo above) but haven’t tried camping with our kid. I think this summer it’s finally time. Clara is 3 now, potty trained, eats regular food, and sleeps somewhat regularly.  She’d probably love to explore and play in the woods, and splash in the water on a shallow beach. I think there would be enough new stuff to see and do to keep her entertained. And if the whole thing is a total gong show, we can always just pack up and drive home, right?

Have you gone camping with small children? Any tips?

Ian and I are kicking around the idea of going to England late this summer or this fall. We’d spend a few days in London, and then get outside the city a bit to explore. While researching places to go and places to stay, I read about the Landmark Trust – a charity that “rescues buildings that would otherwise be lost” and turns them into places you can stay overnight. We’re talking castles, literary landmarks, and unusual spots (like prisons, rectories, mine towers, and gatehouses). The properties are in England, Wales, Scotland, France and Italy, and the best part is… they’re totally inexpensive.  There’s a 4-night stay minimum, and some properties are as low as £90 for all 4 nights. That’s crazy.

The website is pretty great – you can read about the history of each property, its features, get a floor plan, and learn about the local area. We’re totally going to book one… now we just have to decide which.

[images above of the Holiday at Crownhill Fort in Plymouth, where you stay in the Officer’s Quarters and have free run of the fort once the gates close in the evening. SO COOL.]

Yes, it’s totally disgusting outside today in Toronto.  Don’t you wish you were here instead? It’s a gorgeous villa rental in San Miguel de Allende, Mexico. Take a 5-minute (imaginary) holiday and picture yourself lounging by that pool.  Drool.

This winter has been cruel, cruel, cruel. Ian and I had a brief respite earlier this month, when we went to Mazatlan, Mexico for a holiday. I’m sorry to rub it in for you Canadian readers, but it was really lovely to get away from the snow and ice for a while.  We went to this gorgeous resort, where everything was top-notch.  Days were spent reading and napping by the pool, swimming, and sipping margaritas.  In the evenings we’d go to the lobby bar and play Scrabble against each other on my iPad.  So much fun… exactly what we needed.

PS – I made it halfway through this amazing book. Have you read it?

I haven’t blogged for a couple weeks, which to be honest, has been kinda nice.  But now I’m back, and I have lots of fun, random stuff to share!

First up… a list of 5 Amazing Transit Hotels (hotels that are in train stations or airports). I would love to go to Hotel La Ferme, in the Charlevoix region Quebec. I would eat cheese and Ian would drink beer all day.

Next up… I can’t wait to check out a new coffeehouse in my neighbourhood, Brickyard Grounds. They’ve had  great writeups in blogTO and Toronto Life, and those Belgian waffles are totally calling my name.

And finally… Clara (who is almost 3!) has started little ballet lessons at our amazing new local play centre, Sprouts. She has proper ballet slippers and everything. It’s so cute I can hardly stand it. Little girls really are the best.

[picture of Clara in her ballet class, above]

Ian and I have a dream of one day owning a shack in the woods. Some place we can escape to in order to get away from the city. We both LOVE the idea of a prefab, modular, modern building – one that is simple and features a lot of windows, so as to not compete with the nature around it. I was playing around on Alchemy Architects’ weeHouse website, and noticed that there are TWO weeHouses that are for rent within an easy drive of Toronto. (!!!) One is on Georgian Bay, and one is on Seneca Lake (which is where we visited around this time last year, on our upstate New York / Finger Lakes getaway). I’m bookmarking both of these for summertime rentals. The hard part is… which one to choose?  =)

[images of Georgian Bay/Cawaja Beach weeHouse Modern Cottage via their rental listing]