Potty Christmas

Last night, our friends from North Vancouver threw their annual Christmas Party. There were 30 adults and 20 kids and while they have a cozy home, it was a success. Our friends love throwing parties and we're so blessed to have met them almost as soon as we arrived in Vancouver. We've met a lot of people through them and know they can always be counted on for fun, a good meal and play date (they have 2 kids, ages 3 & 1). 

Anyway, lots of food, drink and desserts as usual. Polar Express was shown for the kids, which enabled the adults to be able to eat and talk in peace for awhile. They also had Santa come to distribute gifts for our kids exchange. It was a wonderful night. 

This morning, Julian and Amélie woke up to gifts under the tree from Santa, mommy/papi and Tita May. They played so nicely while Melvin made a pancake breakfast.

So why the Potty Christmas?  WELL, Amélie decided this past Wednesday that she wants to start peeing in the toilet. Therefore, today has been the first day since then that we've been home and able to encourage it. Personally, I'm not ready to potty train (she's only 20 months), but this girl has been taking her diapers off since our trip to Hawaii (picture Amélie commando in random Hawaiian food court).  Nevertheless, we don't want to discourage it and who ever said kids care about our schedule?

We had a breakthrough this morning! Amélie finally did #2 in the toilet. Whoo Hoo! The things that excite us these days.

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Tree Rentals

Before I get into the rentable Christmas Trees, I want to mention that Julian had a ski lesson on Sunday and did wonderfully. We were pretty surprised and impressed and he felt all cool doing a couple jumps in his skis. I think we've been watching too many skateboarders at the playground.

Anyway, onto the topic at hand...I've stated before that people are very "green" and environmentally friendly here. Today, I encountered a concept I have not heard of before and it's pretty interesting: Rentable Christmas Trees.

They are potted and delivered to your home. Once the season is over, they are picked up and re-planted. Ingenious! Too bad our building doesn't allow for real trees, but I do like that concept rather than the thought of all these poor trees being cut down to decorate one's home for a few weeks and then disposed of!  Don't get me wrong, our chemically filled fake tree isn't any better, but this is why I feel I had to share this concept.

Here is a company local to Vancouver, but surely this can be found elsewhere.

Evergrow Christmas Trees Co.

Night boardin'

Melvin and I are recovering from a night of snowboarding at Cypress Mountain. The local mountains, all located within 15-25 minutes from downtown Vancouver are Seymour, Cypress and Grouse. Grouse is the closest, and most tourist-friendly, so we've always gone there with the kids and our guests. All of them have night skiing, so we figured we'd heard great things about Cypress and checked it out finally. We snowboarded from 6:30 until 9:30pm last night, with a break for a burger and poutine in between. It was super fun! 

My goal this season is to figure out if I want to get ski or snowboarding gear. I found that skiing was really easy to pick up and I'm comfortable on skis and find it relaxing. Snowboarding has not been as easy for me and certainly NOT relaxing. I find myself falling way more, harder to get up and it's harder to get the technique down. After 4 runs last night, I was nowhere close to being "good" at it, but I definitely found it fun (finally) and I started to get more comfortable on the board (finally). I am going to give it a go one more time and I think at that point, I'll be ready to make a decision and get some gear. Stand by for updates...

Oink, Oink

As if all the eating we did in Hawaii was not enough, I had ordered 1/2 a pig from Gelderman Farms in Abbotsford, B.C. prior to our departure. It was ready for pick-up the day we landed! I've always wanted to buy part of a pig or a cow from a farm ever since I saw it on Jon & Kate plus 8, especially since I'm a big supporter of local farms, produce and vendors (no matter where I'm living). I've been buying pork chops (bone-in of course) from Gelderman Farms at the local farmer's markets when I figured, hey, why not? Our friends agreed to split 1/2 the pig (so we got 1/4 each) with us, since I was afraid it wouldn't fit in our freezer. 

Well, what does 1/2 a pig get you, one may ask?

3 rolled roasts (butt or shoulder) or 8 steaks

3 loin roasts or 27 chops

4 hams or 18 cutlets

7 lbs bacon

1 spare rib

12 lbs trim (sausages and/or ground)

Turns out our freezer could handle it just fine!! We'll likely have Pernil (Dominican Pork Shoulder) on Christmas Day and perhaps, Baked Ham on New Year's Day. Oink, Oink

To me, life without veal stock, pork fat, sausage, organ meat, demi-glace, or even stinky cheese is a life not worth living. ― Anthony Bourdain

We're Back...again

I know our trip to Dominican Republic was only a month ago, but we just returned from Hawaii for a friend's wedding. Occasions always seem to happen around the same time rather than spread out, so off we went on a flight to Honolulu 3 weeks after unpacking from Santo Domingo. Luckily, it was a hop, skip, jump from Vancouver and we did not have to endure an 11 hour flight from New York. We returned on a red-eye this morning and are already almost done with the laundry. Success!

We packed a lot (beach gear and toys takes up a lot of space) and as we get on the plane, I realize we forgot our suiter!! This was problematic, considering it held Melvin's suit AND 4 dresses (rehearsal lunch, wedding + 2 casual dresses) of mine. AHHH!! My mind was racing. Upon landing, I called our good 'ole friends, Robyn & Reggie (the ones that visited us in Aug) who were coincidentally in HI for ANOTHER wedding. Long story short, we wear the same sizes as them and we rocked their outfits at the wedding. PHEW. Crisis averted. It was also a good conversation starter at the wedding, according to Melvin: Hi, nice to meet you. We forgot our clothes at home and this is our friends' outfits. 

Our friends, Roland & Maeann (the ones that helped us find our apartment in Vancouver) are now newlyweds and had a fabulous wedding at Kathy Ireland's estate on the island of Oahu. It was literally picture perfect. 

VIEW FROM OUR TABLE

Aside from the wedding, we were able to meet up with friends from University, which was a great reunion. We went to a traditional luau at the Hilton Hawaiian Village and it was a really fun night, which the kids enjoyed so much. I feel like we went on a food tour of Oahu, which was no joke. Wailana Coffee House, Side Street Inn, Giovanni's Shrimp Truck, Leonard's Bakery, Papa Ole's...Sinfully delicious! My sister and her fiancé also met up with us there and we shared a condo together. It was beautiful watching them spend time with the kids and they took care of them during the wedding, which was perfect. We had plenty of beach and pool time, as well as visited the North Shore to see its amazing waves.

Banzai Pipeline during a surfing tournament

Living further has made us take more of a conscious effort to spend "quality" time with people when we see them. It has been so fun spending time with people in other states/countries. It is a great revelation.

Quality of Living Survey

Vancouver, B.C. made it to the Top 5 AGAIN!  It really feels good to know we are raising our kids here (for now). Link: Mercer Quality of Living Survey - Worldwide 2011
City Rankings

Mercer Quality of Living Survey - Worldwide Rankings, 2011
Rank	City	Country
1	Vienna	Austria
2	Zurich	Switzerland
3	Auckland	New Zealand
4	Munich	Germany
5	Düsseldorf	Germany
5	Vancouver	Canada
7	Frankfurt	Germany
8	Geneva	Switzerland
9	Bern	Switzerland
9	Copenhagen	Denmark
11	Sydney	Australia
12	Amsterdam	Netherlands
13	Wellington	New Zealand
14	Ottawa	Canada
15	Toronto	Canada
16	Hamburg	Germany
17	Berlin	Germany
18	Melbourne	Australia
19	Luxembourg	Luxembourg
20	Stockholm	Sweden
21	Perth	Australia
22	Brussels	Belgium
22	Montreal	Canada
24	Nurnberg	Germany
25	Singapore	Singapore
26	Canberra	Australia
26	Dublin	Ireland
28	Stuttgart	Germany
29	Honolulu, HI	United States
30	Adelaide	Australia
30	Paris	France
30	San Francisco, CA	United States
33	Calgary	Canada
33	Oslo	Norway
35	Helsinki	Finland
36	Boston, MA	United States
37	Brisbane	Australia
38	London	United Kingdom
39	Lyon	France
40	Barcelona	Spain
41	Lisbon	Portugal
42	Milan	Italy
43	Chicago, IL	United States
43	Madrid	Spain
43	Washington, DC	United States
46	Tokyo	Japan
47	New York City, NY	United States
48	Seattle, WA	United States
49	Kobe	Japan
49	Pittsburgh, PA	United States
49	Yokohama	Japan

Personal Safety Ranking, 2011*
Rank	City	Country
1	Luxembourg	Luxembourg
2	Bern	Switzerland
2	Helsinki	Finland
2	Zurich	Switzerland
5	Vienna	Austria
6	Geneva	Switzerland
6	Stockholm	Sweden
8	Singapore	Singapore
9	Auckland	New Zealand
9	Wellington	New Zealand
11	Copenhagen	Denmark
11	Düsseldorf	Germany
11	Frankfurt	Germany
11	Munich	Germany
11	Nurnberg	Germany
16	Dublin	Ireland
17	Amsterdam	Netherlands
17	Calgary	Canada
17	Montreal	Canada
17	Ottawa	Canada
17	Toronto	Canada
17	Vancouver	Canada
23	Abu Dhabi	United Arab Emirates
24	Oslo	Norway
25	Canberra	Australia
25	Melbourne	Australia
25	Perth	Australia
25	Sydney	Australia
29	Muscat	Oman
30	Ljubljana	Slovenia
31	Kobe	Japan
31	Nagoya	Japan
31	Osaka	Japan
31	Tokyo	Japan
31	Yokohama	Japan
36	Berlin	Germany
36	Hamburg	Germany
36	Hong Kong	Hong Kong
39	Dubai	United Arab Emirates
40	Brussels	Belgium
40	Pointe-à-Pitre	Guadeloupe
42	Leipzig	Germany
42	Stuttgart	Germany
44	Aberdeen	United Kingdom
44	Glasgow	United Kingdom
46	Limassol	Cyprus
47	Lisbon	Portugal
47	Prague	Czech Republic
49	Bratislava	Slovakia
50	Adelaide	Australia
50	Brisbane	Australia

Black Friday

One of the weird things about this week's American Thanksgiving is that I wasn't slaving away in the kitchen. It was weird...but nice! A set of our American friends here hosted us on Black Friday evening and it was great being able to have turkey again, and cranberry sauce again, and mashed potatoes again...I was quite proud of my contribution - Brie en Croute. 

It was a hit, if I do say so myself. I used some Peach & Vanilla Jam, straight from the Okanagan, which I was nervous about, but I will definitely be making this again. We also brought 2 dozen Krispy Kreme donuts, as I volunteered for my building's "Resident Appreciation Day & Fundraiser" (free donuts) that morning. Indulgence!

Back home in New York, my cousins and I had started a tradition of doing a Black Friday dinner. I think* this would've been our 6th or 7th year? It was typically at the Rojas' home and I made the turkey every year. It was a wonderful tradition, since we got to have a nice sit-down dinner and eat, chat, cook together during the day. Very fun. Well, I missed it again this year, but they skyped me in from my friend's house, which was quite a treat! I don't think they actually missed me (j/k), but I did question their motives when they kept asking me if their turducken (yes, they actually had a turducken - turkey, duck & chicken) looked cooked! Regardless, it was nice to be somewhat of a part of it, since that is probably the holiday/tradition I miss most.

Man, I can't believe I missed a turducken!!

How ironic...

...that it is Thanksgiving (in America) today and I am here in Canada doing a cleanse and taking a yoga class. It's something that would've never happened on Thanksgiving Day back in NY!


Gobble, Gobble

Julian Updates

Julian turned 4 years old a week from today and he cracks me up with some of the things he says! All of the below are literally just from the past week. 


- Mommy, I want Indian food for lunch! I LOVE Indian food! (and he does)
- Wow! This is AMAZING! (samples at Costco)
- This is so BEAUTIFUL! (upon entering Vancouver Art Gallery)
- I don't want to ski, I want to snowboard! 


He must be 4 going on 40...

Bon Voyage

Today, we're having a going away party for our friends...They (my friend with her husband and 2 kids, ages 3 & 1) are heading to London on Dec. 2nd for 10 months, so she can work on the London Olympics. They'll be back after Labour Day 2012.

We've met so many people that are so flexible and transient for these types of opportunities. I look back at how fearful we were before our move and now, we realize that so many people are willing to move around, see the world and seize opportunities. We've met one family that are from England that have moved to Dubai for 4 years and then Vancouver, another that went from Michigan to San Francisco to Vancouver, and another couple that spent their entire 6-month maternity/paternity leaves traveling Asia with their newborn.   It makes me realize how much of a bubble we were in as recently as last year. 

Some may feel this is crazy for our friends to pick up and move for 10 months, especially with 2 young kids. I think that if it's something they are willing and excited to do, why the heck not? 10 months is such a short amount of time when you look at one's lifespan. Before they know it, they will be back in Vancouver and living life as they were before.

It's times like this I wonder how long our Vancouver adventure will last. It is a strong reminder that it's so important for us to enjoy moment to moment because things can so easily change in life...

How old am I?

When Julian woke up on Tuesday morning, he said, Mommy, am I 4 yet?

It's so funny because this is the first year that he REALLY grasps his birthday and I think we just confused him by having a party in D.R. a week and half before his actual day. This morning, he woke up and said, Am I still 4? So funny!

I baked a banana cake with cream cheese frosting for his class in the morning and then did a small swimming play date prior to his 5:00pm lesson at the Vancouver Aquatic Centre. Nice and low key; however, dealing with 2 kids in a tot pool with a million toys? NOT EASY. Then, showering them and dressing them (and myself) afterwards in a locker room full of families? EVEN HARDER. 

Happy Birthday Buddy!

Chickenpox??

NO! It is not chickenpox!!

We've been home for 4 days now from the Dominican Republic and about 5 people (mind you, we haven't been outside THAT much) have asked us if our kids had chickenpox.

Instead of my typical retort: No, we were just in the Caribbean and they got bit up really badly.

I should respond with: Yes, actually, we wanted to infect everyone at the (playground, store, swim lesson, etc), why don't you bring your child closer...

One may wonder why Melvin and I aren't bit up as badly. Well, during our 2-day road trip, it rained overnight and since grandma doesn't have air conditioning, all the windows were wide open. Those little "buggers" (pun intended) must have smelled fresh blood and they went to town on our kids, particularly Julian's face. He has about 50 bug bites just on the right side of his face - not joking - and literally hundreds on both his arms. 

I can't even bare to take a picture because I feel so bad for him. Hopefully, they will clear up a little bit before his 4th birthday this week. 

Mission Accomplished

We returned from D.R. at 1:00am yesterday and we are so proud of our little ones!


Each way the endured the following: 
17 hour journey 
3 planes 
2 security lines
2 customs lines
2 immigration lines
1 red-eye
long connections, with a switch in terminals

They were rock stars and we couldn't believe it! All in all, the travel portion was painless and the only problems we encountered were the 100s of mosquito bites each kid got and Julian tripped over my luggage getting out of our cab at 1am and bit his lip open. Yes, he is not picture perfect right now between the bug bites and busted lip, so hoping child services is not going to come after us. :)

We had an amazing time. It was wonderful to see family and to see our kids meeting family for the first time. We had a birthday party for Julian and Melvin's dad's 70th separately, so plenty of Dominican Cake to go around! Melvin and I also took a 2-day road trip, leaving the kids with grandma, and explored the entire island with his dad, brother and 3 uncles. Hopefully it won't be too long before we go back. 

Coson Beach - Las Terranas, Samaná

Mission Impossible

...YVR --> LAS red-eye --> EWR --> SDQ (Dominican Republic)
...3 airports = 3 take-offs, 3 landings
...2 sick kids; 1 recovering from croup
...1 luggage full of donations, including 20 lbs worth of Costco products my husband picked up
...1 car seat
...50 degree weather to 91 degree weather
...2 grandparents that will no doubt overwhelm and fight over the 2 sick kids when they arrive


Prayers, miracles...we'll take it.


Santo Domingo, here we come!

When it rains it pours...

Last October, we were in NY for most of the month, so I was curious to see what the weather would be like this month. Well, sun has been in the forecast and we've been quite happy that the consecutive days of rain has not started just yet. We went out to Abbotsford, B.C. a couple weeks ago and went apple and corn picking...we went on a hayride and did the whole "Hudson Valley, NY experience" except in B.C. It was lovely. I really do love Autumn in New York though. 

When I referred to the "rain" in the subject matter, I meant "life"...things were super slow and steady in regards to my daily grind this summer and it was really pleasant. Out of the blue this week, I end up with a part-time job from home (which I'm anxious, but excited about) and had 2 local meetings I've been asked to work on. Also great, by why all the same time?

On top of this, we have Halloween, Kindergarten Registration and of course, our trip to the Dominican Republic next week! As I said, when it rains, it pours...I guess it all contributes to the rainbow afterward though. 

We're slowly packing and getting our donations for D.R. together, as well as praying for uneventful travel with the two kids and an unforgiving flight itinerary. I will surely send an update...before that, Halloween comes first!

The American Cheesesteak Co.

We've been waiting for months and months for this new place to open called The American Cheesesteak Co.  It will be opening a handful of blocks up the road from us on Davie Street. Melvin and I both went to university in Philadelphia, home of the cheesesteak, so we're both curious and skeptical about whether this place will live up to Philly's iconic, greasy, savoury and satisfying cheesesteak. 

There is no official website yet, however, I found this link chronicling the months prior to opening. While it was due to open this past summer, it seems like they've gotten their act together and we saw the staff-in-training today. 

The owner actually went to Philly to see "how a real cheesesteak is made." This was one of the spots he visited. I actually emailed the owner to see if they need us to taste test their product before they open!

Hmm, we'll see what the outcome is! Stay tuned!!

Sample Sales

I forgot to mention in prior posts that this is one of thing major things I miss about NYC-- sample sales! There's a lame website here called www.ilovesamplesales.com but it's really limited and it's geared mainly toward snowboarders!! UGGGHH. There has been maybe one acceptable sale I would've gone to, but it was located way out in Burnaby.

For those that have been missing out and don't know what a sample sale is (shame on you):

Sample sales are used by retail businesses in order to discard excess merchandise. Sometimes these samples have been used by agencies to sell products that they will distribute to local vendors. Sample sales are often associated with the fashion industry. These sales are an opportunity to get near perfect merchandise at a fraction of the price (sometimes up to 80% off). It is often difficult to have information on the date and time of sample sales.

Melvin scored an awesome deal on a snowboard, bindings, boots, the whole deal,  but I've had no luck whatsoever. I just went to a sale tonight looking for skis...all they had were snowboards and boarder type gear. I was quite irritated, came home and as I'm typing this, Melvin just ran out to catch the sale before it closes. See, there's a misunderstanding when people look at us. People assume I'm the shopper in the relationship when in actuality, it is Melvin. 

Trip to Woodbury Commons? Melvin = 5 bags, Coleen = 1, if lucky

Special Day

Today was a special day. While I realize that I will be one of those women that lie about their age, I didn't feel so bad about "aging" today. Perhaps it was the body wrap and deep tissue massage Melvin treated me to on Sunday? Who knows...Melvin worked from home and I spent the morning with Amélie. We all had lunch together and everyone sang that dreaded song and had cake pops from Starbucks (so good, by the way). 

Once Amélie was down for her nap, Julian and I went on a bike ride. The weather is glorious today - perfect Autumn weather with the sun shining, crisp air and various colored leaves on the ground. otally my favorite season - reminds me of my soccer days. As we were riding, I couldn't believe my eyes that 1) I have a 3 year old. 2) He is able to zip around on a bike without training wheels already. 3) We live in Vancouver, like, another country. 

We rode all the way to English Bay (his distance is getting greater and it's so fun) and I was so happy to be home and enjoy the moment. Moments like these, which I would not have enjoyed had I been stuck in an office or traveling for work. It's really nice to come to that realization over and over again, especially when there are times that I question whether it was the right decision. 

Well, enough of that...I'm very excited for dinner at our favorite French Bistro in the city - 

Café Salade de Fruits. Frog's Legs here I come!

Kindergarten

I can't believe I'm already doing this, but we're researching K options for Julian. Since he was born outside of Canada, our situation is a bit more complicated (ugh). We have to register him at this centre (which is not exactly close) BEFORE we can go to each individual school that we are interested in to register him. THEN, we are not guaranteed a spot, but rather in a "lottery" system, since we're in the city and classroom space is limited (like most cities). Luckily, the quality of schools in Canada are pretty similar across the board. Registering for a public 'inner city' school does not mean it has metal detectors at the door.

Here are our options:

Elsie Roy - our neighborhood school. It is 2 blocks away. Who could ask for more in terms of convenience? The view from the school library is outstanding and the locale provides walks to the central library, Vancouver Art Gallery, and boat rides to Granville Island. However, I met the principal and SHE DID NOT impress. Clearly, the school is overcrowded, being the most popular downtown, the teachers have been on strike since January and are teaching but not doing administrative tasks (testing, grading, report cards, etc). Normally, we would recognize all schools have issues, but we have so many other options, we're not sure what to do. 

Henry Hudson - this is a 2 minute drive over Burrard Bridge. Two issues: we have to get in a car to get there and it's full FRENCH IMMERSION. This concept was totally foreign to us. Apparently, the teachers speak french all day long, including all lessons. Melvin is not keen on this as he thinks it'll interfere with Spanish. I'm a bit torn. I think it could be healthy for our kids to learn a foreign tongue and would encourage them to speak Spanish more freely. I mean, when I go to a French restaurant, I can understand most of the menu because I can read Spanish...doesn't that mean the same thing? I am not sure. One thing that concerns us most is that we wouldn't be able to help with homework or would be limited to Google Translator. Since French Immersion is such a popular option here, the overflow school would be Strathcona, which is located on the "east side" (think Harlem, but whiter and trashier). I think I'd be okay with that if we chose to go French Immersion though because it's the same curriculum and Strathcona is getting amazing funding, plus it's important for our kids to see all walks of life in their surroundings.

Tyee Montessori - we are really loving the Montessori Method. Julian's preschool is Montessori and at first we were indifferent about it, but we've seen how positively he's responded to it. It's all about kid-led learning without a teacher in front of a classroom. Without going too much into the method, I think it really promotes independent learning (you know how when you were younger, if the teacher left the room, everyone would turn around and talk to their friends? Well, in a Montessori setting that doesn't happen and kids wouldn't even notice if they left the room. It goes to show how dependent we are on teachers to tell us what's next and what we're supposed to cover that day), teaches time management and self-awareness (the kids create a personal lesson plan with teachers at the start of each week), promotes compassion and respect, as well as responsibility. The kids are in mixed aged classrooms (no grade 1, 2, etc), there are no letter grades (instead, it's typically 'learned', 'mastered', etc) and the older kids are an example to younger kids, help teach each other, etc. They also cover "practical life", like setting the table, knowing when to wash hands, take a break, etc. Anyway, we love it and there is a public option here, BUT it's lottery AND it's a 12 minute drive away. In Vancouver, that translates to "far" and feels more like 45-minutes. I know it's a weird concept but we're not used to driving more than 5-minutes anymore.

THEN, there is Catholic School, St. Patrick's K-12. We never even considered it and are big public school supporters, but we've become parishioners of a church here that is predominantly Filipino and really like the neighborhood. It's about 5-minutes by car and in a really great neighborhood on the nicer part of the east side. Anyway, we had no idea Catholic Schools in B.C. are government subsidized (main reason for consideration)! Therefore, tuition is only $225 - $300 per month for parishioners. Apparently, this is one of the most expensive Catholic Schools too -  crazy cheap. So, it kind of bothers me that it's predominantly Filipino because, as I said, it's really important for the kids to be exposed to all walks of life, BUT we really like the sense of community there and Filipinos are not so bad :)  This will be our back-up.

Phew, so much to think about before NOVEMBER 1st! Yes, we have to register him on Nov. 1st and then when we get back from our trip to D.R., we have to go to each school to register. I think we're honestly going to register to all of them and just see what happens (since it's lottery). The kicker is that I found a SPANISH IMMERSION preschool that is opening Sept. 2012 (for Amélie) which would typically be a no-brainer. However, it's located in North Vancouver, which is a 25-minute drive (now that's far) and over a bridge away in the OPPOSITE direction of all of these schools. Can it get more complicated? Yes...we only have one car.

Also, I think I need to ask myself if I'm okay with sacrificing another 2 years trucking the kids around. I think I pictured in my head that once J is in K, that I can walk Amélie to his current preschool (5 min walk, starts at 8:30am) and then Julian (2 min walk, starts at 9:00am) and then have the morning to myself. Hmm, that would be lovely. Well, we'll know what our future holds by end of February. Updates on this topic to follow!

Happy Thanksgiving Weekend!

I wrote about this last year, while we were visiting New York, but now we're actually in Vancouver to enjoy our first Canadian Thanksgiving...in October! It feels SO weird to be at the start of Autumn, and far off from Christmas, to be planning a menu to cook on Thanksgiving. Oh, and on a Monday??

We didn't have a Thanksgiving at all last year because we were in NY in October and then in Vancouver for American Thanksgiving, so I'm REALLY looking forward to making my Maple Roast Turkey, which I have made every year (with the exception of last) since 2001. Traditionally, we (well, my sister and cousin) decorate our Christmas Tree on Thanksgiving. Well, I think October is way too early to be rockin' a tree, so we won't be doing that. There is also typically a football game on, as well, but that is not happenin' in Canada. I guess it's time to start new traditions. 

Initially, we were going to spend it alone as a family, but then my friend asked if we wanted to team up for a dinner. I was going to cook anyway, so the more the merrier. We'll be hosting another family at our place and will be cookin' up some Maple Roast Turkey, Cranberry Sauce, Mashed Potatoes, Stuffing, Green Bean Casserole and Pumpkin Pie! I also took a trip to Michael's and picked up some Autumn crafts for the kids. I love the taste of Thanksgiving:) 

In a way, we are extremely lucky to be able to celebrate two this year! Melvin is promising me some pernil for American Thanksgiving...hmm, we'll see if he comes through. I think he forgot he will have to work that day.

Salud! (Cheers in Spanish)

I love how my kids start the morning by sitting next to each other at the dining table, looking at each other with huge smiles on the faces and clinking their milk glasses, while Julian yells, "Cheers".

Thanks for this wonderful life lesson Tita Robyn!  LOL

We had a blast in Seattle, but just have been so busy to write about. Quick snapshot: we had a nice room at the W Hotel downtown, kids were wonderfully quiet and asleep for most of the car ride back and forth, we picked up packages and mail in our mailbox, we did a cheesy duck tour, but it satisfied Melvin's need to "know more" about the city. We even stopped off at Birch Bay in Washington to throw rocks in the water and look for crab shells. Our highlight was a trip to Trader Joe's and had wonderful meals at Wild Ginger, Le Panier, Athenian Inn, PF Chang's. Trader Joe's and PF Chang's do not exist in Canada. tsk tsk. Man, do we miss the world of consumerism. So bad, but it's really insane how there are SO many stores in the States and they go strong. It's probably the biggest difference we've noticed.

Okay, gotta get Julian to school, but wanted to write about the "Cheers" incident :) hah

Nexus Approved!

Cross often? Make it simple, use NEXUS.

NEXUS is designed to expedite the border clearance process for low-risk, pre-approved travellers into Canada and the United States.

I got the above quote from the Canadian Border Services Agency Website. They make it sound so darn easy! Well, it was technically TOO hard, but it was certainly a process.

1) I had to create separate log-in and passwords for all 4 of us.

2) Adults have a $50 application fee.

3) Each application (yes, 4) took FOREVER to complete and you have to list every country visited the past 5 years. This was a little tough with my elephant memory. I was so cross-eyed by the time I did the last application (Melvin's) that I accidentally entered Mozambique as one of his countries. We had to then send an email since you can't edit an application!

4) Then, we had to wait....and wait, and wait, and wait.

5) Finally, after about 4 weeks, Melvin & I got emails within a day of each other saying we were conditionally approved and we could make appointments for our "interview".

6) 4 weeks AFTER that, the kids got approved (weird), so we had to make their appointments, which at that point were booked for more than a month out after ours.

7) Interview Day: Melvin and I got interviews the same day. The Canadian officer was so mean, said we couldn't process the kids' cards and they had to wait like everyone else. The American officer was SUPER nice (big surprise) and said, "oh, I'll just do the kids too. It's just a formality". Hah. An iris eye scan and fingerprints later, we got approved.

8) Our cards arrived in the mail a week later.

We're heading to Seattle tonight to try them out! Let's see if they really do make a difference in the time it takes to cross the border....our fingers are crossed. We also have some items from Amazon waiting for us in our mailbox. Yay!

Next blog post will be about our Seattle weekend. It'll be my 2nd trip there and Melvin & the kids' first. I tend to think it's very similar to Vancouver, but Vancouver is cleaner and more beautiful, but let's see if I think differently after this weekend.

Until next time!

Earthquake Kit

Julian's school asked us to make an earthquake kit to keep at school. This is certainly not in my 'raised in NY' vocabulary, so needless to say, I was a bit flabbergasted by the task. 

Here is a list of things the requested in a Ziplock bag.


(2) Granola Bars
(1) Bottle of Water

(1) Extra change of clothes (t-shirt, pants, underwear, socks)

(1) Stuffed Toy / Item of Comfort

1-2 Photographs of Parents and Family

A letter from parents

Out-of-town Emergency Contact Details

My friend explained that it's really important to just think of it as worse case scenario. Like, if I was stuck on Granville Island and couldn't get across the water and Julian had to spend the night with his teachers and classmates. She said think of that as I'm prepping the bag and then just forget about it...yeah, that's real easy to do after you write a letter to your child "just in case"!

Feliz Cumpleaños

BUSY, BUSY WEEK hence the late post.

+ still recovering from cold

+ insane amounts of appointments and errands to run

+ decided to host a cocktail party for husband's birthday mid-week

If I did not have a toddler and pre-schooler hanging onto my leg 24/7, this would have been a seamless, enjoyable and easy task. However, this is not the case. Nevertheless, I put on my "party planner" hat and while I decided NOT to cook (good decision), I wanted to dress our apartment up a bit. No paper plates or plastic wine cups in this house, oh no. Casual china ALL the way! 

So...Thursday rolled around and after dropping Julian to school, I proceeded to run some errands before running back to pick him up! Then, proceeded to run more errands....

 - Whole Foods on Cambie - nuts, fresh bread and quiche (which they did not have)

 - Les Amis du FROMAGE - cheese, charcuterie, cheese cutlery; love this place

 - Pâtisserie Le Beau - mini spinach quiche

 - BC Liquor - luckily, this is across the street from my building, but DO picture me hauling 2 six-packs at a time with Amélie on my back in the Ergo Carrier across the street a couple times.

 - House of Empanadas - 3 dozen assorted empanadas por favor!

 - Dairy Queen - Yes, mortified to say, my 30-something husband requested a (gulp) blizzard cake, for his birthday.

 - Williams-Sonoma, Cookworks and finally, Pottery Barn - I found those wine charms I was looking for!

WINE CHARMS -  Amélie only broke 3

We had a ton of wine, so thank goodness that was already covered. This post is exhausting me, so long story short, party was a success and everyone left after midnight, kids slept right through it and we managed to store all the toys out of sight! Once a "party planner", always a party planner :) Happy Birthday Melvin!