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!

'Tis the Season

The fact that Amélie & I have a cold this week gives me some indication that the cold season is rearing its ugly head. I guess it didn't help that I rode my bike in the pouring rain to a 2-hour yoga class on Saturday and then attempted to ride my bike uphill for 21 blocks right after to meet the fam and some friends for dim sum. Whatever it was, I was out of commission today. 

I found an article called, "How to kick your cold out of your system quickly". One of the first suggestions was, "Call out sick." Yeah right!! That was not happening with the kids today. Of all days, Melvin had a 7am conference call too, so he was out of the house by 6:30am. After I got Julian to school, I ran home to throw in some laundry, make lunch, and then quickly ran out again to pick him up for his dentist appointment. He absolutely loves going to the dentist, which was the only reason that was a painless trip.

Luckily, my friend Christine called. She heard my voice and suggested she pick up Julian to take him to the beach. I felt terrible, mainly because she has a 4-year old and a 17-month old (who shares Amélie's birthday) to tend to AND she does not have a car. I felt so sick and weak, I quickly accepted her offer, thanked her and got Julian ready for sand play.

One may wonder how she managed all three boys with no car? Well, she put Julian and Finn (4-yr old) in a trailer behind her bike and Liam (17-mth old) in a front seat carrier. I said good-bye to Julian, he climbed in and off they went. LIFESAVER.

I laughed to myself as she rode away, as that would have never happened back home. Instead, a Honda Odyssey, where the doors open automatically, would've been the likely vehicle of choice. Nothing wrong with that, of course, but just SO different here in the left coast.

The Best of New York

Melvin and I were speaking in the car about how 90% of the people we've befriended here are business owners, most of them run their businesses as a couple, which is pretty amazing. We're not sure if it's just the circle of people we've met, but many say Vancouver, B.C. is one of the best places for small, private businesses to succeed. I speculate it's also more common in Canada, because people don't have to worry as much about having health benefits, especially those with kids, when starting something new. 

Anyway, it crossed my mind yesterday at a restaurant as the kids were eating Nathan's hot dogs for lunch,  that it'd be fun if someone opened a place where we could access all the things we miss about New York, or even the States. It'd be like a HUGE mall or something that has what the States has, that Canada doesn't, and without 12% HST added to all the products!!

Stores would include Target, Barney's, Carter's, Janie & Jack, Neiman Marcus, Bloomingdales, Saks and Barney's Co-op, plus many more I'm sure.

The food court would include Bagels (the good stuff), Nathan's Hot Dogs (natural casing of course), Fresco to Go, Pax and real NY pizza, preferably from that no-name pizza place on Dyckman Street in upper Manhattan.

Restaurants would include Blue Ribbon Bakery, Stanton Social, Son Cubano, Sushi of Gari, and I wouldn't mind Katsuhama, even though there are enough Asian places in Vancouver.

Ahh, Vancouver's food scene will never beat NYC's, that's for sure.

Luckily, we found a fun sports bar a block away where the kids can still enjoy a Nathan's Hot Dog every once in awhile! And yes, it has the natural casing, thank goodness!

Hmm, where do I start?

Never Forget

As my son and husband are biking the seawall in Vancouver, B.C. on this warm summer evening, I sit in our living room quietly (Amélie is asleep) reflecting on how things have changed from 10 years ago. Ten years from today, I was fresh out of Drexel, had started my first "real" job 2 months prior, returned from a company trip to St. Lucia the night prior, and experienced one of the most, if not the greatest, catastrophic event in U.S. and NYC history -- 9/11.

I'll never forget waking up that glorious sunny morning, after a wonderful long weekend in St. Lucia with co-workers (we often called it "the trip that never happened", as we never had a chance to exchange pictures, laugh about it, or even speak about it after returning to work on 9/11). I remember getting to work around 9:05am, or so, after a long wait for the most expensive omelet I've ever had at Fresco. I came in to work grumbling about how omelets should not cost $10, as if it were the biggest problem I ever encountered. Man, do I miss that place.

At the time, I sat in our company's "air department", since I was a newbie and there was no room for me in any of the offices. My ex-colleague goes, 'some guy accidentally crashed his plane into one of the towers' (I assumed it was a puddle-jumper, what the heck did I know, I was only 21). My retort: What an idiot. Can you believe this omelet cost me $10??

In hindsight, I reacted that way because the events of that day were just unfathomable. Long story short, I was relieved my dad had not made it to work just yet (he was on his way walking to the South Tower, where he worked and saw the first plane crash and then brought this woman to the hospital as she started having a heart attack) and Melvin was on a project in NJ (he worked in Two World Financial Center-the one with the dome). We quickly evacuated (1/2 to a colleague's apartment and the other half to our CEOs apartment on Park Ave). I joined the crew at the CEOs apartment, soon felt awkward, and started walking with the only other coworker that lived in NJ (I lived in Jersey City at the time). We walked and walked and walked...thank goodness, I was never one to be embarrassed to wear sneakers to work and change into heels there. It took me 7 hours to get home that day, 5 hours of it on line for the ferry to get to Jersey. I witnessed the collapse of Building 7 from that line on the West Side Highway. I also clearly remembered all these people giving blood in Hoboken, NJ....blood that was never used, as there were no survivors to give it to. I took a cab from there to my apartment and remember being so rude and angry at the Arab who was driving. Melvin was working with Canadians on his project and wasn't able to leave work immediately (I continue to believe people far from NYC just didn't get it), but came straight over as he wasn't able to cross any bridges or tunnels. He was stuck in NJ, which was fine with me...and yes, they made him come to work the next day. I remember my friend, Dianne and I sitting in a diner the next morning practically crying into our breakfast as the news on TV showed the towers over and over again....we spent the next week sleeping at each other's places, scared to be alone. 

The weirdest memory I have is Melvin and I had made plans to go to the top of the WTC that following Saturday, because I recently told him that I have never been up there. 

The events of 9/11, and following days, are so vivid in my mind, so I thought I'd just jot them down in this post. It took awhile, but I try not to relive those moments by way of emotion (anger, sadness, hate), regretful thoughts (what if I did this, what if that person were there, what if we were still in St. Lucia) or action (explode at Canadians that say it could have been avoided, mistreat Muslims, assume all Arabs are horrible, etc). Instead, I've found peace in recognizing that 9/11 happened and it's okay to remember it, but not let it consume me as it did the weeks following. 

And today, we were able to explain this part of history to our eldest child (Melvin was watching today's events in NYC and our inquisitive Julian had many questions), as matter-of-factly as possible. This is what happened and it is just that. 


After that conversation, we continued with our day and met another family on The Drive (Commercial Drive) for brunch at Little Nest. We spent most of the day in that neighborhood's new park/playground, explored the shops and had great sandwiches for lunch from La Grotta del Formaggio. It is amazing how things can change so drastically in 10 years. 

First West Coast Earthquake!

Today, there was a 6.4 magnitude earthquake on the Western Coast of Vancouver Island. The city of Vancouver is actually not on "the island", so that is a misconception. Anyway, it was quite far but around 12:45pm or so this afternoon, I started to see my computer screen sway.


Melvin was working from home and simultaneously, we asked each other:
Coleen: Are we shaking?
Melvin: Do you feel that?


Apparently, the quake was felt as far east as Nebraska and as far south as San Francisco. It was also felt in Kamloops, B.C. which is the interior. Thankfully, it was "minor" within the city and a lot of people didn't even feel it. However, we live on the lucky 13th floor, so we got a taste of it.


Hopefully, that'll be the end of this topic for as long as we live here. 

Camping

I like to travel and I love nice places to stay at, such as hotels, resorts, B&Bs, etc. It never occurred to me to try out sleeping on the hard surfaced outdoors, with only a flimsy tent that a bear could rip down with a tap, to protect me. 

Well, then we moved to B.C....where there is a crazy camping culture here and vehicles such as the below are seen at least every few minutes in the streets of urban Vancouver.

Our friends managed to secure a 4 family campsite at Alice Lake, which is an hour and 10 minutes north of our apartment close to the town of Squamish, B.C. They did it on January 2nd when Vancouver Parks Board posts all the campgrounds for reservation and it usually sells out for the major weekends within 3 minutes, so we got VERY lucky. With much convincing, thought and consideration, we agreed to go camping as a group. Our friends provided us with all the gear, so we figured this would be our only chance to have the courage to do it with the kids so young. They were going for 3 nights, but I was convinced I'd only survive 2, so that's what we did this past Labour Day Weekend from Saturday morning - Monday afternoon.

It was SO not what we imagined. It was actually very spacious, clean, outhouse was a 15 second walk from our site AND we paid extra for electricity. Each campsite was separated by trees and it was quite private with your own fire pit.The weather was wonderful, but we actually didn't pack enough layers (who would've thought it'd get so cold with trees covering the site after sunset?), but no worries, Wal-Mart was only 10 minutes away!

We were a 5 minute walk from the beautiful Alice Lake, which I was convinced would have a million mosquitoes, but it DIDN'T! Instead, it had 3 beaches, picnic tables and views of the snow-capped mountains. Long story short, we had a blast chatting by the fire every night and the kids had a blast in the wild outdoors. Oh, and that pesky cougar went away so the trails opened up again. Julian loved riding his bike around with Melvin.

Sunday night was our (Melvin & I) turn to make dinner, so we had decided to make a Dominican Feast. That was before 3 more families decided to come up for the day, but no problem, we had 2 chefs at our disposal and they were able to help us get our menu together in the wilderness. We brought all the meats marinated and I must have bought 10 lbs of produce -plantains, bell peppers, mangoes, avocados, tomatoes, onions, etc. We successfully fed 14 adults and 11 children with white rice, black beans, tostones, pico de gallo, chickpea salad, guacamole and steaks/chicken on the grill. Everyone was happy and we ended the meal with banana boats (bananas with toppings-chocolate, marshmallow, nuts, etc in foil thrown on the fire) and s'mores. Divine!

My general outlook after my first weekend camping is this: It's loads of fun with a group of people, we'd be eaten alive out there if we went alone, it requires A LOT of work if you want to eat well (eating canned beans/chili and nuts all weekend is not acceptable), kids have a blast and it's healthy for them to be outdoors and be dirty every once in awhile, 2 nights max, great weather and electric hook-up is mandatory. Oh, and never forget the Aerobed and warm clothing for night time.

Oh alright, the title of this post should really be "Luxury Camping"....