About Me

Hi, I'm Tara. I grew up in southwestern Ontario, where I eventually abandoned a degree in English Literature to work as a barmaid in Dawson City, Yukon, for a summer. Like so many, I fell in love with the territory and this small town and its quirky, tight-knit community. A failed attempt to "stay the winter" led me back to my parents' house with my tail between my legs. But I am persistent, and the following Spring 2006 I made my way back up, and have lived here ever since.

Two years ago, I began dating P. We had a wonderful time getting together twice a week for dinner or drinks, or taking romantic weekend getaway trips to Whitehorse. It was simple and easy and after about 8 months, we had a conversation about how nice things were between us; we would never mess it up by moving in together or having kids.

Five days later, on vacation in Mexico, I found out I was pregnant.

We thought that this little person-in-the-making had beat some pretty tough odds to take hold, and so we decided to dive headfirst into a huge, life-altering adventure. We moved in together, and in September 2011, had a beautiful boy we call Aedan. Two years later, in October 2013, we had another little boy we named Colm.

We live on 5 mostly forested acres along the Dempster highway, about 40 kilometers south of Dawson City, with two crazy little dogs and the occasional bear, wolf or lynx that might wander through. We've begun to clear some of our land, and we're slowly building a vegetable garden. We generate our own power, heat our home with a woodstove, and haul our water in 5 gallon blue jugs.

While P runs the infamous Westminster Hotel and Bar in town, I have renounced the barmaid's life to raise our boys, plant a garden, pick berries, cook from scratch, knit, read, write, and walk the dogs.  This blog is a way for family and far-away friends to stay connected to our life lived way up the Dempster!

Please take a moment to say hello in the comments and let me know you're reading!