Merry Christmas

Wishing each of you a magical Christmas filled with wonderful memories and happy times. Wishing each of you a Happy New Year and a healthy and happy 2012.

LisaDay

You Don’t See This Much Anymore

Yesterday I was dusting my knick-knacks and books in my library when I pulled out my husband’s shoes from when he was a toddler.

The shoes, more than 40 years old, still look good and if I didn’t know that those hard-soled shoes were actually bad for children’s feet, I would still use them.
I flipped them over when I discovered this:



Yes, these beautiful shoes were made in Canada. It’s rare to find items made in Canada these days. And that is kind of sad.

Never Doubt a Salt Truck Operator

This morning on the way to my son’s daycare provider, a town truck was spraying the roads with sand.

The temperature was zero degrees and I thought to myself that it was a waste of resources sanding a road that was wet.

As I got out of my car to walk over to my son’s side, I slide across the driveway only catching myself by grabbing onto the door handle.

I should never doubt a salt truck operator. I believe they may know what they are doing.

Sarah’s Key

I just finished reading Sarah’s Key by Tatiana de Rosnay.

What a fantastic book. I couldn’t put it down. I can’t stop crying. I can’t get Sarah and her story out of my head.

I can’t stop thinking about all that was lost during the Holocaust. I can’t stop wondering how we can be so cruel to each other.

A New Toy

My guy is a big drinker. Since he started eating, he has also been drinking water from a sippy cup.

When he first went to daycare, I told his provider he was to only have water and milk. No juice. Other than juice at Nana and Poppa’s and in the morning, we drink only water.

Yesterday I received a press kit from Brita. In addition to a red Brita pitcher in celebration of Chinese New Year Jan. 23, I also received a Brita bottle with a built-in filtration system.

I was most excited about the Brita bottle.

At home we drink water from our well. It’s delicious water. However, when we visit my brother-in-law in the city or friends who are on town water, we hesitate drinking their water because of the strong chlorine taste.

According to the Brita, the filtration system reduces the taste and odour of chlorine. The other bonus is the bottle is dishwasher safe, BPA free and reduces the amount of water bottles produced.

And my guy loves the bottle. Last night he drank an entire bottle and this morning brought it to daycare to show it to his friends. A system that reduces the taste of chlorine is good for the environment and is a fun, new toy.

Perfect.

This Is What a House Should Look Like

It might have been the request to see a new one on this blog or the fact the kit was there waiting for me, but whatever the reason I again attempted to build a cookie house with my son.

In December 2009, I thought I would test my skills and my patience and make a gingerbread house for my son.

It was a disaster, and that is being generous.

This year, through work, I interviewed a woman who suggested people should have a gingerbread house making party rather than a traditional cookie exchange.

It would be more fun, she said, to gather your friends together, provide created gingerbread houses and decorate as they wished.

Once the interview was posted, KS said she would like to see a new gingerbread house picture posted on my blog. I didn’t think it would happen this year.

But then, this weekend, we went to the local apple orchard’s customer appreciation event and what did I spot – an apple spice cookie cottage kit. I bought it.

And this year I was smart enough to let my husband do the building and my son do the decorating.

So here you go, K, this house is for you.

Christmas Wish list

This Christmas, my husband and I would like -10 C weather with no snow and no wind so the swimming pool in our backyard will turn into the skating rink it is supposed to be.

It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I received an email from a colleague who said he is a cynic at this time of year.

I replied that I love the Christmas season and it’s not so much about the gifts but the memories and traditions that come along with the season.

It’s listening to Christmas carols in my car and watching Christmas movies at home. It's reading Christmas stories about love and redemption.

It’s going to get our tree the first weekend of December, pulling out the ornaments and decorations I haven’t seen in a year and placing them throughout the house.





It’s making cookies with my family and making more cookies at home.

It’s finding the perfect gift for everyone I love and then wrapping those presents beside the twinkling tree.

It’s deciding what to make for Christmas Eve, Christmas morning and Christmas dinner.

It’s hanging out with those I love.

Merry Christmas. I hope you find beautiful memories, too.

Now That Was A Parade

At the last moment, we decided to take our son to the local Santa Claus parade Saturday night. I am so glad we went.

Now that was a parade.

The last parade we went to was OK. I was disappointed about the lack of effort parade participants put into their floats.

I didn’t feel the same way about this parade.

Wow, what a great time.

All but two local businesses had great floats, lit up with hundreds of Christmas lights. The local Home Hardware had four floats, which each had a live band with great musicians. A local towing company also had four floats, each different from the other.

There were lots of local service clubs such as the Scouts, the Kinettes, who were collecting for the food bank, and the Optimist Club, and there were bands, both local and from Toronto.

Local businesses were open late and handed out hot chocolate and other treats and the food bank had a barbecue going by donation.

The street was closed off so my guy could run up and down it while waiting for the parade to come to us.

I want to commend the organizers of this Santa Claus parade for creating an event that celebrated what the season is suppose to be about.

Merry Christmas.

Here’s Something You Don’t Want For Christmas

Last week an illness struck.

Two visits to two different emergency departments, three X-rays, a half-hour long ultrasound, some IV fluids, two types of painkillers, including morphine, and a week lost with my son later and it turns out I had some sort of viral infection.

You do not want whatever I had this Christmas. Nor do you want another virus that is making its rounds in this part of the world – it affects your breathing for four weeks.