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.