The End Of Summer - Part Two

At least it didn't take me another 6 weeks to finish the second half of this post...

Day 2: The CNE!  It has been over 7 years since we've been to the EX.  M3 has never been so it's probably closer to 8 or 9 years.  First we went to a neighbourhood diner for some breakfast and then hopped on the streetcar - something M2 & M3 have never done!  For me the EX seemed smaller than I remembered - maybe it's just me getting older?  The kids enjoyed the carnival rides and games and then of course more food!  However, we aren't the daring type of family who'll try all the latest novelty items - pretty much stuck to the corn dogs, fried onion blooms, pulled pork sandwiches, and slushies.  We didn't stay to dark and just picked up some sandwiches on the way back to the hotel.  Why?  Because M1 just HAD to make it back to the hotel to watch SYTYCD.

Day 3: We headed down to the St Lawrence Market first thing in the morning (well, it was actually closer to 11:00 but hey we're on vacation!) for some freshly baked goods, lobster rolls, and fancy crepes.  The afternoon was spent shopping as we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner.  Our evening ended with a "fancy" dinner at the CN Tower restaurant (http://www.cntower.ca/en-ca/360-restaurant/overview.html).

I know my children would love to vacation in exotic countries, fancy resorts, or luxury cruise ships (who wouldn't?) like many of their friends or cousins.  Unfortunately it isn't possible right now.  But I also know my children understand that it's not about how much money we spend travelling or whether we take a plane or a ship to make wonderful memories.  Besides, I've always said the best thing about a vacation is coming home!

Y.C.

The End Of The Summer - Part One

I have a (bad) habit of starting blogs but not finishing them right away.  At any given time I may have 3 or 4 unfinished pieces I’ll be working on and sometimes it’ll be days or even weeks before I’m ready to “publish” a post.  In the case of the next two blogs it’s actually been almost 3 months since I first started writing them.  Better late than never, I guess...

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It's September & the end of the year is creeping towards us - it'll be here sooner than we can believe. I wanted to post more blogs this year, I really do have a lot I want to share, but sometimes it's still hard finding the right words, the right tone, the right time to let it all out.

I'll  start this blog with the end of our summer holidays!

This year we decided on a true "staycation".  The Big Oh & I grew up in one of the best cities in the world.  A city that many around the world make it a point of coming to for their own vacation.  There is culture, amazing food, word-class entertainment & sporting facilities, and lots of family activities & attractions.  As a 'local' we can take for granted what our city has to offer and now that we live just a short drive outside of it we don't even think of it as a place where we may want to take our children to visit.  The traffic, the parking costs, the line-ups - there can be so many reasons to avoid going 'downtown'!  So what did we do?  We checked ourselves into a hotel right in the heart of downtown & spent 3 days exploring with our kids!

Day 1: We checked into a hotel in the afternoon and spent the rest of the day taking the streetcar to enjoy the sights & foods of some of the places we often see in instagram posts (we took a few pics ourselves).  We had ice cream & delicious baked goods in The Distillery District, then off to Chinatown to show our kids where we spent our weekends while growing up.  A short walk away was Kensington Market where we took in the sights and sounds of street performers and musicians.  Dinner and dessert were these two fantastic little finds: Valens  and  Artic Bites - Italian food & ice cream - two of our favs.


To Be Continued....

Y.C.

My Everything

There is this piece from The New York Times I have had saved for a while now (You May Want To Marry My Husband) and although I knew what the gist of the article was about, I was afraid to read it.  Today I read it.  And before I lose my nerve I am going to write my own take on it.  It may help to read the article first.

This is my Big Oh

First the basics.  He's 5 foot 8.  I wouldn't say he's good looking, but not ugly either.  Actually, a lot of old Chinese ladies (think grandmas - including mine) have said he's very handsome - a geriatric chick-magnet.  He always seems to have a haircut that's just not quite right (I guess he's gotta stop going to those $8 cuts at Chinese strip plazas).  And in photographs his head always tilts slightly to the left.  To me, he is perfect.

When he is not at work his wardrobe consists mostly of t-shirts and sweats decorated with Superheroes, Star Wars, or hockey logos   - some older than I care to share.   He owns one pair of jeans that fit properly.  He only goes shopping for work shirts and dress pants if one gets stained or ripped.  But I love his casualness - we go well together as I'm a yoga pants/sweatpants, T-shirt kind of girl at home.   And my "going-out" clothes?  Well let's just say he has commented that I dress like my grandmother (not a compliment).

He loves Canto-pop music from the 70's and 80's (and so do I).  He knows almost all the lyrics from Air Supply's Greatest Hits album.  Currently his music repertoire consists of anything his daughters are dancing or listening to.  Did I mention yet what an amazing father he is?

He is blessed with 3 daughters so instead of being a hockey-dad he's a dance-dad.  A role he has embraced and is not embarrassed to show - just ask his daughters when he starts coaching them on their dance routines or busting out some dance moves (cue eye rolls here).

Other awesome attributes?  He is funny (and I don't mean looking) & witty - he makes people laugh sometimes at his own expense (but usually at others).  His friendship is loyal and generous - you know he's got your back, and when he does something for you it'll never be because he's thinking "what's in it for me".  He is passionate - just get him talking about hockey, politics, or his family and you'll know what I mean.

Of course I can't talk about The Big Oh without mentioning his family.   Yes, it comes with the package but I like to think of them as a bonus.

If you read The New York Times piece above you'll know how the article ends.  I'm not sure how to end my blog today; I'm not sure I even want to write an ending... Except to say to The Big Oh: I love you and thank you for being my everything.

Y.C.