Happy Place at the Cottage: Our Favourite Book Club Weekend

Some book club meetings are fun.

Some are memorable.

And then there are the ones that become legendary.

Our Happy Place weekend at the cottage, hosted by my sister and I, is still — to this day — everyone’s favourite book club gathering. We loved the book, of course, but there was also something else in the air that weekend… something truly special. It felt like the kind of weekend you wish you could bottle up and keep forever.

It was a perfectly organized cottage stay (of course!) where everyone pitched in. Each person was responsible for a meal, and cleanup duties were shared, which made everything feel easy, relaxed, and so full of teamwork and laughter.

Over the course of the weekend, we did all the best cottage things:

• A beautiful waterfall hike

• Paddle boarding on the lake (and absolutely waking it up with our laughter)

• Painting wine glasses together

• Playing games late into the night

• Eating and drinking incredibly well

But even with all of that, the highlight was …

The Dock Dinner

Dock dinners are one of my favourite cottage traditions, and this one truly takes the cake.

We set up a full table and chairs right on the dock and created the most beautiful little dinner space on the water. It was the perfect spot to talk about the book, soak in the weekend, and just enjoy being together.

We had Bridgerton-themed music playing softly in the background, which somehow made the whole evening feel even more romantic and magical. We talked and laughed until the sun went down, surrounded by golden light and the calm of the lake.

The Most Special Touch

For the table, I painted each person a small canvas landscape to use as their place setting, something inspired by the book, and just a little special touch to make the night feel even more meaningful.

Everyone loved them. Most of us still have ours to this day.

It was one of those weekends where everything felt aligned: the book, the setting, the friendships, the laughter, the effort everyone put in, and the quiet moments in between.

A true Happy Place.

And a book club meeting I’ll carry with me forever.