Home Sweet Home

I can't believe it's been three years since I moved in to my little house. (nope, it's not on the prairie)

I remember how I felt the first time I walked through it - like it was already mine. It took a bit of back & forth, a few offers, and a deal that fell apart just so I could make another offer and make it mine.

I love the Old East Village, my street and my neighbours. I can walk to work and the Farmer's Market on Saturday. There's a community centre and a library around the corner and did I mention how great my neighbours are? In the summer, people cut my grass. In the winter, they help shovel my snow. Yep. It's good.

My favourite thing about my little house is the front porch. I just love curling up in my Muskoka chair with a book and watching the rain come down. It's also a pretty great place to have coffee with a friend.

There weren't really any major projects that needed to be done when I moved in, but it's been fun to work on smaller ones. My dad has been my go-to guy for most of these ventures. He's helped me with my eaves troughs, painting my porch and assembling & hanging countless items. He just always seems to know how to do "stuff".

As I reflect on how I felt three years ago, not much has changed. Still lovin' it here in the Old East Village!

I should point out the 2011 is an MLS picture. I would never have such a hideous couch!

Dad's Big Day

Fed Up

Last night I watched the documentary Fed Up. I'm convinced every family needs to watch this movie.

Have you paused to consider why people are exercising at an incredible pace yet obesity rates are on the rise? Think about it. Gym memberships, zumba classes and marathon runners are everywhere, yet waistlines just keep getting bigger.

This film explores the food industry and more specifically how much sugar is being added to processed food. It follows several young teens and their struggle with their weight. It's shocking to see what is being served up in high school cafeterias and some of the politics behind it.

Did you know this generation is the first expected to lead shorter lives than their parents? Did you know that by 2050, 1 in 3 Americans will have Diabetes? If we think our health care systems are in trouble now, imagine what it will be like when the children that are already obese become adults. Consider what health issues come with that.

When you walk through the aisles at the grocery store, don't be fooled by labels like "25% less sodium" and "fat free". These are crappy products that are marketing the fact that they are slightly less crappy. Instead of purchasing something that comes in a box, bag, bottle or can, visit your farmer's market and purchase REAL food. Cut it, slice it, cook it and enjoy it.

Take a look for yourself and when it comes to Netflix, be sure to watch it.

The Family Project

I have found that as the years go past, demands on your time increase. Unfortunately, everything has to be scheduled to make it a reality. For this reason, I came up with an idea for my birthday this year that involved spending time with my favourite people.

It's a twist on my idea of spending a special day with my nieces & nephews for their birthday. On my birthday, I gave each of my siblings and my parents a card with a personalized note of gratitude for their influence on making me who I am today. I also introduced the idea of spending one day/month with one of them as a way of keeping up connection. Unfortunately, months can pass and I haven't had a conversation with one of my sisters as they've been headed to piano lessons, soccer practice, etc.

My first sibling date was with my sister Jo-Anne. We checked out a local chocolate shop that serves up fondue in their cafe. It was a nice evening for us to relax and catch up on life without the interruption of little boys. The chocolate was pretty tasty as well!

This weekend I spent Monday fishing with my brother John. Josh and Kaelyn also came along for what turned out to be a fruitless exercise. However, it was not the number of fish caught that was important, but rather the time spent together. John & I share a love for nostalgia so there was lots of story-telling and remembering as we drove the back roads to Erieau.

Next up is my sister Connie and then maybe I'll have all three (and spouses!) over. So far I'm really enjoying this Family Project.

When Spring Springs

Each year it seems to go from dreary gray/brown empty branches to green bursting forth over night. Perhaps not literally over night but more or less!

Although this happens each year, I'm still amazed when I witness it happen. That moment when Spring springs! 

So happy to leave that LONG winter behind us. Bring on the flowers and sunshine.

Bring DNTO to London!

Sometimes the most incredible things fall into place randomly. And sometimes social media helps the process along.

For example, one day I was simply retweeting some great songs by an artist I love and he sent a song out just for me! And that led to a friendship and a campaign to bring him to London. A year later, it worked. Reid, Carolyn and John came to London and played at the East Village Coffeehouse.

Similarily, we (LdnOnt) brought CBC Q and Jian Ghomeshi to London through the power of social media.

So, it should come as no surprise to me that the following story unfolded as the result of a few tweets.

Last week CBC's Definitely Not The Opera asked their twitter followers to tweet photos of themselves with celebrities. Well, anyone that knows me, knows that I have plenty of those! I chose a select few and sent them out into the twitterverse. Immediately they were favourited and retweeted by DNTO. And a few minutes later, they replied to say if there's a good story behind my pics, please contact their producer.

I sent a message off to let them know that I'm not completely crazy or a stalker, but just something Lisa & I do once a year.

Well, we've had a few back and forth emails and it turns out I just might convince DNTO to take the show on the road and come to London! I mean, if it worked for Jian and Q, why not for SookYin and DNTO? How fun is that? Well, for a CBC fan like myself, it's a hoot.

And, as a side note, David Spade (the REAL David Spade) favourited my tweet that included my pic with him. It's always fun when you get feedback from a celebrity!

So stay tuned as this story unfolds. Can't wait to see what's in store!

Initiated Into The Club

I can remember following my brother around when I was a little girl, intrigued by all the things he knew about. He had seven years on me, so he was a wealth of information - particularly about things related to nature.

Countless times we would walk across the road and go fishing in the ditch. As we sat on the culvert, our neighbour Don Simpson would come over with a big smile on his face and ask in a most serious tone "are you catching anything today?" John would give him the report and I would just sit there swinging my legs.

I cherish those memories with John and was always happy to tag along.

This year (as I blogged about here) I joined John and his kids Josh and Kaelyn for an afternoon of ice fishing. It was my first time and I had a hoot. When buying my license, I decided to pay the extra $10 and be covered for a full year rather than just one day. We didn't get the opportunity to go out on the ice again, but plan to join John & co. on some of their fishing excursions this spring/summer.

This weekend, I was presented with my very first fishing rod. I felt like I was officially "in the club" and this was my initiation.

Can't wait to do some fishing this summer! Thanks John & Josh.

Memory Lane

It's funny how, despite our expectations to the contrary, time does not stand still. When you're a teenager or even in your 20's you're living in the moment, life is good and getting older seems like a lifetime away.

I've been feeling nostalgic lately with subtle reminders of the passing of time and this weekend was a great example. We gathered yesterday for an awesome Easter dinner, egg hunt for the kids and some family time. After dinner John had the idea to watch an old VHS tape of a fishing trip he took with Dad and his friend Joel over 20 years ago.

The men and some of the kids watched the video while the rest of us chatted or played a game. I occasionally looked up to catch a glimpse of a lake, a forest or the highway. When that video was over, we started rummaging in the drawer under the TV to see what else was in there. We found Mom & Dad's 25th anniversary party, Christmas 1991 and one that contained Connie carrying the Olympic torch in 1988.

As we put those in the VCR, everyone seemed to stop what they were doing and gathered around to watch. What fun to see how we looked 20 years ago! There were lots of other family and friends that popped up and the room would burst into laughter, exclaim "look at her hair" or let out a collective "awww".

I must admit, I got a little teary when Grandad came on the screen and especially when I heard his voice.

It was great fun to relive some memories from the past and it was such a reminder of how time moves on. John remarked that he is now the same age as Dad was in one of the videos and I pointed out the same to Abby.

Can't wait until next time we get together. I have a great tape in my basement I'm going to bring :)

Yolkswagen

I love breakfast food. Really. It's my favourite meal as far as selection goes. Bacon. Eggs. Pancakes. Waffles. Fruit. Coffee. Juice. What's not to love about ALL of those things?

I also love VW's Beetle. I think that is obvious. It has been my favourite car since I was a wee girl and I've been driving a Beetle for 12 years now.

This photo popped up in my twitter feed today and I had to share. How cute?

#NoMakeUpSelfie

This week I've noticed a trend on social media. Women are posting pictures of "selfies" with no makeup. Supposedly, this act will promote cancer awareness. This does not sit well with me.

We are all aware of cancer. We do not need to be more aware of cancer. What we need to be more aware of is how to prevent cancer in the first place. Or at the very least, support someone we know that is going through such a horrible challenge in their life.

Perhaps I'm missing a major piece of the puzzle, but the way I see this trend is: an increasingly self-absorbed society pretending to do something good for others. From what I gather, the original (British) campaign #DareToBare solicited funds from a beauty retailer each time the hashtag was used. This newest (N. American) trend does not have a sponsor and is not raising money for anyone.

As someone that has been touched by this disease more often than I'd like to acknowledge, this #NoMakeUpSelfie trend has really riled me up. At first I just chalked it up to another social media trend but while discussing it with a friend tonight, I realized just how annoyed I was by it.

This weekend a friend of my family lost his battle with cancer. If you really want to make a difference in the fight against cancer, find someone that is going through it. Offer to help them in some way. It could be as simple as making a meal, driving them to an appointment, paying for a parking pass at the hospital or a pre-paid gas card. When you're battling the toughest challenge of your life, it speaks volumes when someone comes along side you and offers a helping hand.

Please think about this before posting your NoMakeUpSelfie online.

Long Live Cheer Bear!

When I look back on my birthdays-past, there is one that stands out as particularly memorable.

When I turned seven, Care Bears were riding a pretty big wave of popularity. More than anything, I wanted the pink bear with a rainbow on its tummy. Cheer Bear. Well, for my birthday that year everything I opened was pink with a rainbow on it. A jewellery box, a necklace, colouring book, puzzle, etc. My cake was a 3D care bear (ya, my mom ROCKs) and my sister Jo-Anne even dressed up as Cheer Bear for the party. (Thanks to Mom turning a pair of pink pajamas into a costume. She's pretty handy in case you haven't picked up on that)

Of course the best part was opening my Cheer Bear. My mom had, once again, come through! She MADE me a Care Bear. It was awesome. So awesome that thirty years later, it is one my treasured items from childhood that I still hold dear.

The funny thing is, as I approached my birthday this year, there were so many things that reminded me of this special party.

• First, Mom had found the costume while sorting things in the laundry room. On one of my trips to the farm she asked if I would like it or should she get rid of it. Hello? Get rid of it? No way. I brought it home with me.
• Secondly, I found a journal I had in grade one. I enjoyed flipping through the pictures and the carefully printed letters... and then I reached the last page. Check out the picture!
• Thirdly, my friend Kim knows about Cheer Bear (Who's looking like he's 30 years old. Oh yes...that's right. My pink bear somehow has always been of the male gender. Ha ha) and got me this updated version for my birthday this year. How cute.

You've Got Mail

Who doesn't love going to the mailbox and finding a handwritten envelope? Proof that someone has taken the time to not only think of you, but sit down and put pen to paper. I have always loved sending and receiving mail.

Even as a kid, I would write letters and send stickers, etc. in the mail to various cousins, pen pals and friends. It was always a highlight when I looked out the window and the red flag was up on the mailbox. Although most days it was just an assortment of bills for my parents, occasionally there would be a coloured envelope with my name scrawled on the front.

Throughout my college years, I had a few friends that were fantastic at this whole postal mail thing. Email was in its beginning stages and was far more convenient. But getting a colourful packet in the mail containing not only a letter or card but photos, personalized crossword puzzle or a mixed tape was WAY more exciting than an email!

These types of letters slowly faded from my mailbox. As time passed, I was the one getting the bills. However, there would always be a flurry of coloured envelopes in December and for a week or so in mid-March. You could always count on Christmas cards and birthday cards.

Well, it seems that is not true anymore. My birthday is on Sunday and I have received two cards in the mail. One from my Grammie (old faithful!) and one from my insurance agent, of all people! Now, don't get me wrong. I get plenty of birthday wishes in the form of Facebook messages, tweets, texts and phone calls. I still feel the birthday love. But it's different. Years from now, I cannot pull out my rubbermaid tote and look through my birthday tweets. I can't run my fingers over the handwriting on my Facebook wall.

Time have changed. And though I'm all for new technology, I long for the time of good old fashioned mail.

Monster Jam

I absolutely love the tradition I have of celebrating my nieces' and nephews' birthdays with an experience rather than a gift in a box. Not only has it allowed me some special one-on-one time with them, but it has also led me to do things I never would have done otherwise.

This weekend was one of those times.

Jesse turned 8 last July and more than anything, he wanted to go to a monster truck show. Since there wasn't one happening in the area I told him he could choose something else or wait. He chose to wait.

This weekend his wish came true and we went to Monster Jam! (imagine those words in the bigger than life voice that comes with the territory) As you can imagine, this is not something I would have done without his urging, but it was a fun time spent together.

He showed up at my house on Friday night and could not wipe the smile off his face. He was super pumped. We decided to play a few board games - Yikers is always a favourite and I taught him how to play Pass the Pigs. Then we tried Sorry! Who knew it was so fun? Not me. Honestly, we had such a good time. Just when you thought you were going to win, you got bumped back to start. The game lasted almost an hour! Sorry! was such a hit that we played another game in the morning, while still in our jammies and before the pancakes! He won both games, but not without a fight.

We hit up the "Pit Party" before the show where he could get some pictures with the trucks/drivers. He was quite taken with the whole thing. I was quite taken with him. Together we had an awesome day and I look forward to many more.

Sting & Simon

We arrived at the Air Canada Centre precisely at 8pm. After receiving our ticket receipt (more on that later) we made our way to our section. I liked the view of the stage when we entered the stadium. We were stage left in the 300's but a nice spot. In fact, when the usher directed us to our seats, I was surprised to see our 2 seats were a row of their own. That meant not having to accommodate the constant stream of people leaving to get drinks, go to the bathroom, etc. Perfect! And we were only 3 rows up from the front of the balcony.

Just as we sat down, the lights dimmed and Sting and Paul Simon walked out on stage. Talk about perfect timing! They started the show together with Brand New Day followed by Boy In The Bubble and Fields of Gold. Great way to start the show!

Throughout the night, they took turns in the spotlight, occasionally singing together. I must say, Sting did a fantastic job on some classics like America and Bridge Over Troubled Water. 

One of the best parts of seeing your favourite artist live is hearing the different arrangements of those treasured songs. This show did not disappoint. The stage was filled with musicians - I couldn't even count them all! Trumpet, trombone, french horn, accordian, plenty of guitars, keyboards and at one point I tallied FIVE drummers playing on the same song.

Things wrapped up with a multi-song encore with the two of them paying tribute to the Everly Brothers' When Will I Be Loved. 

Old Friends

In less than two weeks, I'll be attending an epic concert. Paul Simon is teaming up with Sting for, what promises to be, a fantastic evening of solos, duets and song swapping.

I discovered Paul Simon during my high school days. More accurately, I discovered Simon and Garfunkel during my high school days. While browsing the Columbia House brochure (who remembers Columbia House?!?!) I decided to order Simon and Garfunkel's Greatest Hits on cassette. That's right folks! Cassette!

I fell in love with the beautiful harmonies and the poetic lyrics. In fact, I think I wore that tape out.

I stumbled upon Graceland and Rhythm Of The Saints at a second hand music shop, and discovered Paul Simon's solo collection. I realized that although I loved the sound of S&G, it was really the musical genius of Mr. Simon that I admired so much.

In 1999, I heard that Paul Simon was touring with Bob Dylan. I was convinced this would be my last chance to see my favourite artist in person. At the time, I thought he was aging and would probably not play many more live shows. (Oops. Naivety of youth I suppose.) This excerpt from my scrapbook sums up my first show.

Yesterday was the big day and let me tell you, I was EXCITED. Bob Dylan came out first...but let's face it, I wasn't there to see Bob Dylan. Then I heard "Ladies and Gentlemen, Paul Simon". I grew weak, I grew slack, like he captured the breath of my voice in a bottle and I can't get it back. (see what I did there? PS lyrics!)

Since then, I've had the privilege of seeing Paul sing with Art Garfunkle, Brian Wilson, and several solo shows. Can't wait to add the Sting & Paul show to the list!

Easy As Pie

Creating a pie from scratch is a lost art form. It is all too easy to walk into a grocery store or market and pick one up ...and it's "good enough". But, if you've had homemade pie, you'll know there is no comparing.

I'm fortunate to have inherited the pie-making gene from my Mom and Grammie. Growing up, exceptional homemade pie was commonplace at family gatherings. So, you can imagine how it goes over when served the grocery store variety. It just falls a little flat.

I made my first pie as a teenager. Both of my sisters seemed to have perfected the craft but I was being left in the dust. The pie baking contest at the Moore Reunion was the perfect opportunity to learn. Am I right? Nothing like a competition for your FIRST pie.

While flipping through a magazine, I found a recipe for Carmel Apple Pie. Wow, that sounded good. I decided that would be the one. While my sister Jo-Anne worked on one side of the kitchen, I worked on the other and my mom was between us "overseeing" the creation process. When I asked about how to do a lattice top, Mom replied "This is your first pie Janice, you're not going to try and do a lattice top. Use this cutter instead." And with that, she held up a plastic disc with squares cut out. I was NOT going to use that ugly topper for my pie. I insisted on cutting strips of dough and weaving the top to make a beautiful lattice. I must say, it did look impressive.

My scrapbook page from the event

When we arrived at the reunion, there was a bevy of pies vying for the top spot. I think, perhaps, I was not seriously considered to be a contender. However, once the judging started...my pie was getting top marks. As it turned out, I won for "Best Looking Pie" (thank goodness I didn't wimp out on the lattice top). That is not to say my pie didn't taste good too.

Then there was the time I shipped a pie to Halifax. No kidding. My friend Amy & I had worked together at Petrolia Discovery that summer and after hearing about my big win at the reunion, she wanted to try my pie. I made one for our end-of-summer party and all agreed, it was a great pie. So, when she headed back out to Dalhousie in the fall, I decided it would be fun to send her a pie. You know, like a care package. Her brother Scott just happened to be flying out for a visit, and he agreed to take the pie as his carry on. God bless him. What a surprise for her!

This weekend I had my parents over for lunch and decided pie would be the perfect dessert. (Do I know my Dad or what?) I had just inherited my Grammie's marble rolling pin and marble board for rolling and wanted to try it out. I used some rhubarb that I had stashed away in the freezer and it turned out perfect. Seriously, best pie I've had in a long time. Even my Dad, who does not throw around compliments loosely, said it was "excellent". Yay.

I'm glad I have learned from the best in this long-lost art form and when asked about my offering for the potluck, I can see "easy as pie".

A Fish Tale

To say John is an outdoor enthusiast is an understatement. For as long as I can remember, he has been passionate about the outdoors. He's an avid angler and hunter and is always trying to convince me to join him. Perhaps he's remembering the days when we were kids. I would be by his side as we went fishing in the ditch or exploring in the bush behind our house.

This weekend, I found myself beside him once again in an ice hut on Mitchell's Bay. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but thought I'd give it a try. So, I hopped in the truck with John, Josh and Kaelyn and set out for an adventure.

John has a 4 wheeler that he normally takes, but since we were only going for a few hours, we decided to save loading the ATV into the truck and take the "ice taxi" instead. Sounds pretty impressive, right? In reality, it's a tractor pulling a wagon with bench seating. And let me tell you, it was a wild ride! Lots of bumps along the way, but sure was better than pulling all of that gear.

We got off the ice taxi and that's when I realized, we still had to pull all of that gear! Shut the front door! We started off in the direction of the huts that dotted the horizon. Pulling the sled loaded with gear was not too bad in the beginning. But the longer we trudged along, the further I got from John & Josh and the more I questioned whether I would actually make it. Kaelyn, God bless her, stuck by my side. What a trooper.

We finally arrived to a suitable spot and the three of them set to work setting up our "camp". Clearly they had done this before. While Josh set up the hut, John drilled holes and Kaelyn scooped the slush off the top. Before I knew it, we were ready to get our rods in the water. And, that's when my phone (which was my camera for the day) powered down. Nice. Thanks a lot. I had 70+% battery so I have no idea if it was too cold or what. So disappointed. I have no photos of actually fishing.

I started in hut #1 with Josh. (yes, there were 2 huts) It was cozy. We had a heater and padded seats that flipped down from the side. I was impressed. Josh baited my hook and explained that I should "jig" the line occasionally. So, that's what I did. It was pretty cool to be able to look right down the hole and see the fish when they finally arrived!

After about 20 minutes of no bites, Josh went out to explore and John joined me. We waited patiently and then heard a ruckus in the next hut as Kaelyn caught the first fish! It wasn't long before I could see fish curiously checking out my minnow. Before I knew it... I had a fish! When I envisioned the day, I expected John would take the fish off my line and hook the bait. But, when I caught that first fish, there was no time for him to help me. He was busy catching fish! So, I grabbed the fish, unhooked it and re-set the bait with another minnow. It didn't take me long to catch on.

In total, we brought home 42 perch. John & Josh have a system when it comes to cleaning them and spent more time than I would have the patience for fileting the fish. I got to take enough home for a few dinners.

My favourite part about the day was not catching the fish, but watching John catching fish. The excitement that oozed from him was that of a seven year old boy. It made me so happy to join him for something he is so passionate about. Good thing I got a one year fishing license!

What's In A Number, Anyway?

Tonight I dialed my Grammie's phone number for the last time. She is moving into a retirement home tomorrow and will have a new number. Her first new phone number in over 60 years.

It occurred to me that she will no longer have that number. And THAT's when it hit me. I got all teared up because of a phone number.

Well, it's not really about the phone number. It's about moving on to the next phase. It's about less independence. It's about growing older. It makes me sad.

Grammie is one of my most favourite people and I treasure our relationship. I look forward to visiting her in her new digs and hope she settles in and makes it home in no time. I know we have many more story times over tea to enjoy together.

Photo Origami

I'm not sure where January went, but I blinked and now it's nearly over. I have a few blog-worthy topics but it's been challenging to actually sit down and put fingers to keyboard.

In the meantime, I was experimenting with a newly discovered feature of iPhoto and created this slideshow of 2013. There are a few tweaks I need to figure out - several pictures are cropped where I wouldn't have cropped them and it's longer than I would want. I need to figure out how to speed up the time between changes.

So, if you're up for an almost-feature-length film, settle in with popcorn and enjoy!

Pearly White

If Apple were to make a toothbrush, it would look like this.

My sister (who happens to be my dental hygienist) got me this ultra-lux toothbrush for Christmas.

It is a thing of beauty. Pristine white with its own case, charger and USB cord. Ya. that's right. I can charge it on my computer while traveling!

And the best part is, it feels like a party in my mouth when I use it. Devine.