Christmas Vacation in St-Adolphe

We are spending a quiet few days at GPPL's (GPPL = Grand-papa Luc) in Saint-Adolphe-de-Howard (QC). Wow, there is actually snow up here!! It took a while to get dressed to go outside. It is also one of the first real cold days. Which is also another reason the multiple layers of clothes, the extra neck-warmers and scarves, the heavy duty mitts, gloves and boots!

On our way up last night, Kyra commented that she knew we were getting close because "Il y a seulement une route." (There's only one road) I guess she noticed that we mostly drive on 2 and 3 lane highways but when we get closer we get to the cottage, the highway goes down to a 1-lane highway. Good observation skills!

We started walking around the lake. The sun was shining on the frozen trees, giving them their sparkle. Alia felt she couldn't keep going on so I took her back with me and we went into Ste.-Agathe for some shopping. Kyra kept going on with the others all the way around the lake. She probably walked more than the adults for while the adults walked on the road in a relatively straight line, she climbed up and down the snowbanks along the side of the road!! (No wonder there was no complaints when I said it was time for an afternoon nap!!)

Alia and I went into Ste-Agathe. I wanted to stop by the dollar store and pick up birthday card and Valentine's Day card for classmates. It is very hard to find french cards in Toronto. It was my chance to stock up. And you may laugh, but yes, it is Dec. 29th and the Valentine's Day chocolates and decorations are on the shelves!! (I actually saw the chocolate hearts on the store shelves before Christmas back in Toronto - can't they wait until one holiday is over before the overlap begins?!)

We also found some really great books in french. Sponge Bob, Fraisinette, Barnyardigans picture and beginner chapter books. Perfect for teacher gifts, birthday gifts, or just reading ourselves. How could I say no?

Earlier this week, I also did the same at Costco with Eric, Alia and my mom. I found a really nice book with stories from Quebec. We haven't read it yet but I thought it made a great addition to our Franco-Ontario library. Alia loves Martine books, so I picked up a 5 story album for $15. Couldn't go wrong. Costco has great prices on books. Not a fantastic selection but great for the popular titles. Again, Costco in the Toronto area (we have 3 near our house) don't carry books in french, except for the school exercise "Learning French as a Second Language" -type books.

Gee, the girls must have really fallen asleep since it is very quiet in the house! Maybe it is time for a snooze myself.

Christmas Shopping Adventure

Alia has been asking us to take her to the store so that she could buy a gift for Kyra for Christmas. We finally went to Toys R Us this morning. I thought the security guard was going to arrest the three of us. Crazy scenarios were going through my head.

It all started with the fact that both girls were with me and how to solve the challenge of keeping their choices a secret. I had my shopping bags with me so as we went through the store, I figured we could just drop the item in the bag then carry them to the cash in secret.

Kyra and I found something for Alia. She had gone around the corner and we were half way getting it into the bag when Alia came back around. We quickly told her to go back and we finished stuffing the item in the black shopping bag.

As we continued looking for Kyra's gift with Alia, I noticed a strange man standing next to me and it then hit me, "Oh my gosh. That might be one of those plain clothes security guard. Guess what Kyra and I did looked kind of suspicious." Every time someone passed us, my thoughts turned to "Oh my, they are tag teaming us each time we go from section to section".

Alia finally found what she was looking for. I covered Kyra's eyes and she put her choice in her bag.

"Quick girls. Let's get to the cash. We have to pay now."

We stood in line for a long time while the lady ahead of Alia completed her purchases. Alia paid the lady with her own money. I stood a few feet away, covering Kyra's eyes while the cashier explained to Alia what a gift receipt was!!!

We made Alia stand facing the wall while we paid for our purchases! Both girls were happy with their choices. I was happy to leave the store with everything accounted for and receipts for everything! Maybe I could have chosen a better to way to do Secret Santa Shopping. I only meant to keep the magic of the Christmas surprise.

I think it will be a while before I brave walking into Toys R Us again.

The girls wrapped their gifts in secret and they are hidden away until Christmas!

Christmas Concert

The girls' school put on their annual Christmas concert last week. Very cute. We arrived early to get good seats. We had seats in the middle (better than some, who had to stand in the back of the gym). I guess next year, we will have to arrive even earlier to get seats closer to the front!

Alia's class were dressed as angels and sang Sainte Nuit with the grade 6 class. Alia was in the second row. Doubled-up classes means double the parents trying to squeeze to the front to get a picture!

Kyra's class sang Mon beau sapin. They were dressed as Christmas trees. Before starting a new job, I offered my assistance to the classroom teacher to help out if she needed help with the concert preparations. I was presented with the bags and paint to make 19 Christmas tree costumes. Eric stepped in and helped out with the painting of the trees (with a star painted on the back). We made 10 and the kids painted the rest in class during art time. The effect was cute. I hope the teacher keeps the trees for another year.

Our visit with Santa Claus

On Friday evening, we went over to Fairview Mall for a visit with Santa. It has been years since the girls had their picture taken with St. Nick. We finally convinced them to go this year. I was happy to see no line up. We quickly got our pictures taken and went to window shop while we waited for our order to be processed.

Merry Christmas! Joyeux Noël!

YAMATO Concert

Just back from the YAMATO concert at Massey Hall, here in Toronto. It was a great show. The tickets were a birthday surprise and well worth the wait. The performers all demonstrated so much energy and skill. The speed was just incredible. Their spirit is something very special.

Loved the chappa piece (they made it look so easy and fun but I know how difficult it was to play and can only imagine how many hours of practice went into honing that skill). The final piece was spectacular. The funny one was back with his same antics (for those who have seen Yamato in concert before you probably know who I am referring to). The final piece had miya stands that lit up. Very nice touch.

Massey Hall is smaller than we expected. Last time I saw Yamato in concert was in Montreal at Place des Arts (Salle-Wilfred-Pelletier)! But the smaller venue made for an intimate show. Great audience participation.

We had a crazy time trying to get to the concert. First thing that doesn't help: it's raining tonight. Rain in Toronto means traffic! We finally got downtown and missed our turn. We took the next street and made our way back, only to find the streets closed off and fire trucks parked in front of the concert hall!!! I guess there was an emergency somewhere in the area. We finally parked the car in our backup location and had 40 minutes to buy some earplugs and a coffee before the show.

Walking downtown in the pouring rain is no fun. Would snow be better? Not sure.

Calvacade of Lights 2009

It is once again the Christmas season. We decided to take in some of the sights and sounds of the holidays here in Toronto. A couple of weeks ago, we went to our first Calvacade of Lights. Every year, the city of Toronto puts on a big show with the lighting of the Christmas tree at Nathan Philips Square (in front of city hall). The skating rink is all lit up and there is a free concert and fireworks show. We decided to take the girls downtown for supper and soak in some Christmas spirit.

We stopped by Dundas Square for the end of another winterfest. We caught the raptors show. (and no, not the basketball team). We saw a red hawk, a bald eagle, a great horned owl, a barn owl and another small bird of prey. It was very interesting but the girls were getting a little tired of standing around and having big kids butt in front of them so they couldn't see.

We went for a walk in the Eaton Centre and had supper at the food court. The place was packed! As we headed out on Queen St. to walk over to Nathan Philips Sq., we noticed a crowd of people over by the display windows of the Bay.

We continued on to Nathan Philips Square and found a spot behind the media baracade. We were there for the lighting of the Christmas tree, the concert and of course, the fireworks! The girls were tired after but we all had a great time.

check out the posted comment to a video link of the fireworks

Alia Loves Joke Books

We have a steady stream of jokebooks coming through the house thanks to Alia. Often she is telling us 'les devinettes'. This was last night's highlight!

Qu’est qu’il est en dessous l’eau, est vert et a des abeilles autour?

Un chou-marin ruche!

Words of Wisdom

Kyra helped me pull together the lunches this morning. Today on the menu: Fèves aux lards et saucisses. As I was filling the thermoses with hot lunch, Kyra was packing the other items I had laid out on the table.

Kyra: (referring to the edamame) 'Oh, j'aime ces haricots. Ils sont verts. Les fèves aux lards sont fait avec les haricots au chocolat.'

Maman: 'Les fèves aux lards sont fait avec les haricots au chocolat? Pourquoi tu dis ça?'

Kyra: 'Parce que les fèves aux lards sont bruns et délicieux, alors c'est au chocolat. Ces haricots (edamame) sont faits avec les haricots verts.'

Christmas is coming

This weekend we put up our Christmas lights outside. It was the perfect weather to do so. Definitely more pleasant than trying to string lights when it's -10. But don't worry. We won't turn them on officially until Dec. 1. Even I think Christmas lights in November is a little early. We are planning to put up our tree next weekend. Perfect timing for the beginning of Advent.

I can't believe how nice the weather has been this month. Usually I complain and complain all through November. I don't know if there have been records broken but the weather has been perfect. Not too cold. Just enough sun to keep one going. Only a handful of cloudy days.

Yesterday, the girls and I went shopping for winter boots. We are now officially ready for winter. Winter attire for family of 4 fits (for now)! Winter tires on the car. Sleds and shovels in garden shed for easy access. Extra gallon of windshield washer fluid in trunk of car. I hear that we might get flurries on Friday.

Crazy Forts -the best toy around

The girls this morning (along with papa) built a house, shower and cupboard included, using their Crazy Forts. Crazy forts is a fabulous toy. Santa delivered it last Christmas and the girls have fun building houses with them. I just realised we haven't taken them out since we moved in April.

Each kit comes with green sticks and purple plastic ball connectors. You then put them together anyway you like. All you add are sheets and covers from home and voilà! You have a fort. You can take it down and rebuild it in any shape you want. Both girls got a set last Christmas which helps make a bigger fort, perfect for a day of play for two (plus a Barbie or two)! They have already told me that they want to nap this afternoon in their house. Alia asked if they could have lunch in their house... I haven't decided yet if I will say yes.

If you are looking for a great toy that is battery-free and requires imagination and obvious assembly (!), Crazy Forts is awesome.

A Broken T.V.: A Curse or A Blessing?

Our t.v. is broken. I wonder how long I can keep it that way? The kids could use a break from Teletoon, YTV and Treehouse. (although I would like to watch this week's episode of NCIS.)

Maybe we will find some forgotten toys at the bottom of the cupboard this weekend!! Or maybe this will be a good weekend to clear out some toys from the house before Christmas!

'Low Fat Blueberry'

I would like to think that we are encouraging the girls to be curious about the world around them. We want them to explore their surroundings and ask questions. It is really interesting to watch them use their reading and reasoning skills as we go through our daily routine. Reading is not just for school or what one does with books. Reading is something we do everyday, whether we realise it or not. The girls are practicing their reading skills in the car, in the store, on the subway and on the cereal boxes (just to name a few).

This past summer, Alia was practicing her reading by reading all the subway stop names. She knows which stops to get off on the subway. (Not that I would test my theory anytime soon, but I think she could make it to Eric's work - nearest subway station - on her own!) She is also really good at reading street signs and directions. She has a natural built-in GPS and can often tell you which street we turned down to go to a friend's birthday party last spring!

Last week, the girls had their annual check-up (all's fine). On our way back to school, we stopped at Tim Horton's for a muffin snack to eat/take to school for recess snack. While I was standing in line, the girls were at the snack window deciding which muffin they were going to choose. Kyra sounded out and read for herself 'low fat blueberry'! Well, I was very impressed! She proudly announced that was the one she wanted. Not that she needs 'low fat' anything. I wasn't about to argue! You can read the label - you can have a low fat blueberry muffin.

All this to say, reading is fun! I am looking forward to our next wonder-full moment.

Where's My Coffee?

The girls have gymnastics on Mondays after school. Yesterday, after picking them up at school, I realised that I was missing some tortilla chips for the chili supper that evening. Figuring I had at least 20 extra minutes, we stopped at Longo's for a few items. Since they have a Starbucks in the grocery store, I figured this would also save me a trip to stop for coffee as well.

The lineup at the check out was a little longer than I had expected and so we were in a hurry leaving the store. I told the girls to quickly get into the car because we were going to be late for gymnastics. I had to wait to back out of the parking spot. Finally there was a break in the traffic and I pulled out. The driver waiting kept honking the horn.

"Look dude. I am backing out as fast as I can. Please be a little patient"

He kept honking.

"I saw you there. I didn't hit you or anything else. Ugh. Fool."

The crazy part of me started thinking what would happen if I had hit something and not stopped. I now had silly thoughts about the police showing up at the door accusing me of something I had not done. Whatever.

As we got closer to the gymnastics club, I felt around for my coffee.

Shoot.

"Girls, I think I lost my coffee. Alia, Kyra, is there liquid on the back windows?"

"Yeah! Maman!"

"Oh, Maman did a silly thing. I left the coffee on the roof of the car!"

There went my $5 Grande Espresso Chocolate Truffle light whip!

No wonder the driver in the parking lot was honking! Who's the fool now?

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Christmas is just around the corner. Yesterday, we all went down to see the Santa Claus parade make its way through the streets of Toronto. We were glad to arrive early enough to find a spot to plant the chairs we had brought with us. We were very surprised with the number of people already lining the sidewalks. It was a beautiful afternoon (cloudy but warm for November). We waited about an hour for the parade to start. Floats, clowns, marching bands, candy, horses (mounted police) and of course Santa himself!

Viva Las Vegas!

Eric and I are back from our weekend in Las Vegas. What a place! Today we are a little bleary-eyed and slow moving (they don't call it the red-eye for nothing)!! We had a great time sightseeing and people watching. We saw the Cirque du Soleil show 'O'. It was fabulous! It was just amazing to see not only the talent and skill but the technical genius of the show. Half the show was done in a pool with swimmers. The stage floor would rise and fall magically revealing the pool below, deep enough for the performers to dive, spin and twirl from the ceiling. Simply spectacular!

We were staying at the Bellagio. Eric had been attending a business conference at the hotel and extended his stay for our weekend.

We got to see the famous fountains during the day and at night several times. It was also nice to stay on the Strip since everything was walking distance (some sites involving more walking the others). During our three nights, we managed to walk the entire Strip, dodging the guys (and gals) handing out x-rated business cards. We visited all the main casinos and resorts and took lots of pictures. I now have 459 photos to sift through!!

The Bellagio also has a famous conservatory. We took a walk through and of course, took some pictures too!

During our second night, we timed our walk to coincide with the eruption of the volcano at the Mirage. There was plenty to see in LV.

Thanks Mom and Dad for taking care of Alia and Kyra this weekend! We love you! Thanks a million!

Halloween 2009

Happy Halloween!

We filled our day with pumpkin carving, toasting pumpkin seeds and making caramel apples!

After supper, we got ready to go trick-or-treating!

We started out as two cowgirls. Yiihaa! However, Kyra discovered that her hat kept blowing off and managing a lootbag and reigns were just too much. Since we were only three houses into our adventure, we decided to come home and make a quick costume change. Et voilà! Supergirl!!

Here we are checking and counting our loot! Yum!! Dentist appointment is in two weeks! Brush girls, brush!! ;)

Happy Halloween!

We are keeping our fingers crossed that the light drizzle this morning will taper off this afternoon and stop before trick-or-treating hour arrives. The girls are very excited. We are planning to carve our pumpkin this morning and probably eat some of the pumpkin shaped cookies we made yesterday afternoon.

The girls brought me breakfast in bed this morning. Yogurt and milk. Thank you Alia. Thank you Kyra. Breakfast came with a couple of handmade glitter glue cards. Only drawback was that they took it literally when I said not to get up before 8 a.m. (we went to bed a little late last night). Breakfast was at my bedside at 8:02!! Not really the end of the world since I was awake anyways. Didn't sleep as well as could be... a kink in the neck will do that to a person! I need a back massage!!

Happy Halloween everyone! Trick or Treat!!

Whistle While You Work

The stars must have been aligned this week and chores got done this week with a smile.

Here are the girls washing the evening dishes on Tuesday night. On rare occasions I miss the dishwasher (mainly to hide dirty dishes and keep the counter cleared off). But for most of time, it is time to talk and it actually is relaxing. This evening, we only lost one glass!

Halloween Prep

Decorating the house for Halloween has been an on-going project for the last couple of weeks. Not that our decorations are elaborate (definitely not like the ones you see on tv during Halloween specials) but simple, kid oriented and fun. I've tried to control myself at the dollar store and most of the decorations were made by Alia and Kyra.

This year is the first year we are celebrating Halloween in Toronto. I guess we will see how are neighbourhood celebrates the gathering of sweets! I actually flagged down a neighbour and asked how busy our street was on Halloween night. According to her, things are quiet on our end of the street. Which is fine by me because we will be leaving a bowl of treats on the porch for trick or treaters. (Chips are the treat of choice this year) Can't be in two places at once and the girls and I would obviously prefer being out collecting treats!

The girls' school is having a Halloween celebration this Friday. Other than the costume parade in the gym, I think things are going to be kept simple. I noticed a lot of Halloween themed artwork hanging in the hallways. I am going into Kyra's class Wednesday morning to help with more artwork.

This week after school, we will be filling those decoration bags full of leaves and decorating the front lawn.

Les Crêpes de Papa

On Saturday, Eric left on a two week business trip. Before leaving, he spent Saturday morning making a triple batch of his famous crêpes for breakfast. We already knew that a single batch was breakfast and even a double batch barely left some for freezing the weekday breakfasts. Hence the need for a triple batch.

Saturday is my sleep-in day so I missed most of the mixing and cooking. I was up for coffee and eating! ;) Alia and Kyra received personalized crêpes!

Taiko Repair Day

Yesterday, the girls and I had the opportunity to help reskin a taiko drum. Here is a picture of the poor drum with large hole! I am currently an apprentice with Yakudo here in Toronto. This was first time I have had an opportunity to see how they put a skin on a drum and be part of the experience.

The skin started soaking in the morning as it takes about 5 hrs to it to soften.

The next step was taking the old tacks off and filling in the holes, sanding down the edges and setting up the drum to attach the skin. Alia and Kyra were very keen on helping too!

We then positioned the skin on the drum and started roping the drum to stretch it.

Then the fun started. I can now say that I have walked on a taiko drum! Reskinning a taiko is definitely a lot of fun, a lot of work and a truly awesome experience!

We had to leave before they started tacking as it was getting late and I had to get the girls ready for bed and school the next day. I'm glad we got to be part of it.

Canada's Wonderland in the Fall!

Last Saturday we took the girls to Canada’s Wonderland. It was our last visit for this year. The park closes in two weekends and with Halloween coming up and Eric going away to two conferences, this was it.

The weather was nice. Cool in the shade but the sun was nice. I definitely could have used a hat and gloves. Luckily the girls had their hats and mitts. The wind is cold this time of year on roller coasters. The nice thing is that there were no lineups! We justwalked onto rides. It was perfect. There was a small scavenger hunt set up for the kids. It had a pirate theme and the girls visited each of the 5 stations were they collected pirate treasure, bandanas, eye patches, coins and of course, candy. They also had a spooky barn set up. Alia’s didn’t really think it was that spooky, just a maze with decorations.

Some of the park was closed off for the Halloween Haunt. Canada’s Wonderland puts on this grand production each year and of course, admission is not included in gate price (that is – you need to buy another $25 ticket!). It is only open at night and not for the faint of heart. Definitely not for children! They have a mini taste of the attraction decorating the front courtyard and it confirmed that this attraction is not for kids like Alia and Kyra. It was a very elaborate graveyard scene that seemed to come directly from MJ’s Thriller video! I’ll give them thumbs up on the detail but would rather see it in the daylight!

One concession stand was offering pumpkin decorating and for $2 a pumpkin (decorations included), perfect! Alia had been asking to go to the store because she wanted to buy a small pumpkin for the house. This was a great solution and perfect souvenir. Although we could have glued on the decorations there, we chose to bring them home. It’s cold sitting on a picnic bench in October.

Kyra's favourite ride this year is the Jokey Jalopies. She loves driving us around in a Ford Model T car through the woods and over the bridge. It is always her first choice of ride after the mountain rollercoaster (Thunder Run). Alia wanted to go on the Wild Beast but it was too far out of our way. She and Eric did do the Fly and the Bat (this one goes upside down and backwards, just like the Boomerang at La Ronde). While Eric went to get his extra jacket at the car, the girls and I went on Thunder Run (one of the two larger roller coasters that Kyra can get on).

We also sat through the show involving fairy tales. Three characters, one of which included the witch of the equator, hosted the show! Of course in all these types of shows, volunteers are needed up on stage. Both girls were too shy to get up on stage to be one of three little pigs but were extremely keen to volunteer their papa. Yes, Eric became the brick house in the story of the Three Little Pigs.

Not bad for a couple of hours on a Saturday morning.

Child's Play

Today, Kyra is home with a little cold. Nothing serious but could probably benefit from a quiet day and an good nap this afternoon. This morning, we played with the Barbies. The storyline went something like this...

Once upon a time, Barbie and Prince Eric (as in The Little Mermaid Ariel's Prince Eric) went out on unicorns to hunt down a dinosaur. Barbie lassoed T-Rex while Prince Eric built the firepit. Together they roasted the dinosaur and had a lovely lunch of T-Rex steaks (I guess you would call those the original T-bone steaks!!!) After lunch, they decided to get married, dance and live happily ever after!

Let's just say that by the end of the day, Kyra is back to her old self and definitely well enough to go to school tomorrow!!

Tourtière Update

I can't believe it. While trying to take the aluminum foil off the pie edges, the tray with two pies on it feel out of the oven. I couldn't believe it! Noooooooo!! I managed to shove the smooshed tourtières back into the plates and back into the oven. I will admit that we ate them anyway and squished tourtière fits better in a thermos (the girls' lunches). 'Smooshed' tourtières are an interesting way of demonstrating what the Earth's continental plates look like after colliding with each other. The Eurasian and Indo-Australian plates collided to form the Himalayas. This event just produced supper with folds of top pastry and meat-filling under the bottom and double layers of pastry forming random patterns.

I must say that the taste was not affected by the cosmic/stove collision. They tasted great! Especially with mom's homemade relish. Delicious!! I had never added vegetables in my tourtières before but lately I am grating carrots, mushrooms and any other vegetable to cut the quantity of meat. This time I mashed the potatoes and a carrot together and minced carrot, onion and celery went into the pork mixture. Cinnamon, cloves and freshly ground nutmeg added the 'oh, that smells delicious' reaction.

I know what I am having for lunch today! ;)

p.s. (only one tourtière made it to the freezer - heaven for another day)

Cold Weather and Tourtière

It may be cold outside but one of the great things about cooler weather is tourtière! Yum! We are having one for supper tonight and I will freeze the other two for another time.

Baking tip of the day: Mark tourtières with a 'T' and apple pies with an 'A' and so on. Life experience has taught me that although apple pie might be delicious for supper, it doesn't go very well with mash potatoes, gravy and vegetables!

Fun at the Farm

Forsythe Farm is a 20 minute drive north from our house. It is a great place to spend a weekend morning. You can visit the animals at the petting farm. They have sheep, goats, rabbits and a calf or two that visitors are allowed to feed. They also have pigs, cows and chickens (which I would recommend you don't feed!) There are obstacle courses and mazes the kids can play in. If you have the time, hop on the tractor ride to the enchanted forest. It's a 15-20 walk through the forest where you will find Jack, the giant and the beanstalk, Snow White and the homes of the three little pigs. Of course, no day at the farm would be complete without a walk through the market at the end to pick up fresh vegetables and butter tarts!

The girls and I went this summer. During the weekday, the tractor ride is not running but we still had a great time with the animals and running races in the play area. This September, when my parents were in town, we went back. The corn maze was open and we had fun

going through it to find the five markers. We went on the forest walk and found BoPeep's lost sheep. We also came home with fresh corn, apples and butter tarts.