Global Blog

Had me a blast

2013-05-22T20:08:17Z

While winter in Toronto seems agonizingly long, every time I blink I find the spring months passing by and the summer quickly approaching. Summer planning for our boys is trying to find the balance between organized activities, the peppering of do nothing weeks, where they can ride bikes, catch bugs and stay in the pj's all day and finally a couple of weeks of organized family vacation.

Well I just got off the phone with a camp in Collingwood, bartering my pancreas so both boys could spend a week splashing around in a pool all day. Thus completing our eight week allocation of what the hell to do with our two boys when they are not in school in July and August.

This year's biggest change was the agreement of our eldest son to attend Kilcoo, an overnight boys camp. The first two weeks in August, he will be away hopefully having the time of his life, even if the first two nights will seem like anxious hell. Last year he was dead against it, having a tough time at a two-night tester the previous summer. This year he seems fine, a bit high pitched and trembly when claiming to be excited, but with a friend from school also attending, he is genuinely curious about what type of fun can be had when away from your folks for two whole weeks.

I longed to go to overnight camp when I was kid. Actually the envy came into play in my teenage years when I realized how deep and strong the bonds forged by my peers who went to camp together. I went to some YMCA-based day camps that were tons a fun, but nothing compared to the toothpastey, bandanna, flip flop farty fun kids can have when staying eight to a bunk for umpteen nights in a row. While it took a huge chunk of money to send him this year, we are really excited for him to go.

Tasman's trade off is a great day camp near our house during the the same time his brother is away at Kilcoo. When it comes right down to it, Tasman will miss Hud the most. Even with the four year gap, they are still really close friends.

Summer buds

There is a week of basketball camp for both boys in August and a week at the cottage with just me as my wife's new job is placing extra demands on her time. There is two days camping on Lake Huron with some close friends, which should be a hoot as none of us are true campers. And another two weeks of loafing, no real rules, no schedules to keep, just hanging out, getting outside at some point with friends and enjoying the very short summer season.

What do you do?

Do you over program or under program your kids during the summer?

It's The Little Things That Matter

2013-05-22T14:58:05Z

About a month ago while at the radio station my dear friend and co-worker John Garbutt asked me the following question "How was your weekend"? Not that unusual right? I answer with the classic... "good thanks....blah blah blah, and you"? He then asked me "what was your favourite part"? That is the part that intrigued me. It got me thinking. After pausing for a moment I gave him my answer. It was when my son and I played an impromptu game of hide and seek while shopping with my wife and my youngest son in a department store

I was fascinated that he asked me for one specific part of my weekend. That one detail got me thinking and it lasted for weeks. In fact it has changed a part of my Monday morning routine and hopefully (without getting too dramatic) part of my life. Since this first conversation I've made a point over the past four Mondays to reflect on my favorite part of the weekend.

To give it some context, they are the following...

Monday April 29th- Hide and Seek

Monday May 6th-Playing Star Wars

Monday May 13th-Flying a kite for the first time with the kids

Tuesday May 21st (Monday was a holiday so no worky)- Watching the kids slide into a kiddy pool. I even MacGyvered up a garden hose to the slide so it turns into a water slide.

Looking back on the past month I realized that the best part of my weekends are always about the simple little things. It's never about a major accomplishment, it's never about sleeping in, it's never about booking a vacation, it's never about solving the world's problems, it's always about stuff like making pancakes.

I know I'm not telling you something new by trotting out the cliché about the best things in life being free, but that is something that gets lost on me through the daily routine of life.

About a year ago I read an article about a woman who worked with the dying. It was pretty interesting because she wrote a list of the top 5 regrets people say aloud on their deathbed. Although it wasn't the most uplifting article, I took away a lot from it, and I think most of us can relate to all 5...they are the following...

-I wish I'd had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me.

-I wish I didn't work so hard.

-I wish I'd had the courage to express my feelings.

-I wish I had stayed in touch with my friends.

-I wish that I had let myself be happier.

A lot of wishing eh?

I know I wish a lot. I also tend to be one of those people who can't "shut off my mind" and tend not to always "enjoy the moment". It's a real challenge for me to do that, another challenge for me is avoiding any food with dill pickle flavour. I'm also the type of person who has to make a joke when it starts to get serious.

All I know is this, ever since I started keeping a weekly log about certain moments in my life, I tend to be IN those certain moments now, know what I mean?

One last thing...I'm so proud of this water slide pool I put together, I had to take a picture to show you. It doesn't look like much, but the garden hose is a sweet touch

words for wednesday- why I love travel

2013-05-22T12:28:56Z

"Traveling is a brutality. It forces you to trust strangers and to lose sight of all that familiar comfort of home and friends. You are constantly off balance. Nothing is yours except the essential things - air, sleep, dreams, the sea, the sky - all things tending towards the eternal or what we imagine of it." - Cesare Pavese

Momma Magic

2013-05-22T03:36:42Z

My mom was here for a visit this week and she helped me pick up the pieces. Literally.

This is what my house looked like before she arrived:

And this is what it looked like when she left:

Not seen: me cheering in the corner just like Brinley.

My mom is the patron saint of frazzled mothers. She swoops in on an airplane, settles into our home and cleans up the wake of disaster we leave behind us, she buys me mochas and cookies, she reads stories to my girls and plays with them, and she tells me I'm doing a good job (even though most days I find that hard to believe).

I have been stuck in a stint of parenting where my kids are driving me a little batty with their horrible attitudes and I get so easily frustrated by their poor behavior when it rolls over me like never-ending waves, but then I feel so GUILTY for not savouring the moments with them, and also I feel like I must be failing because they are kind of acting like little jerks a lot of the time. Gah. My "before" laundry room looks like MY MIND. Things strewn about, no order to be found.

Thanks, Mom, for restoring a bit of balance for me. And also for the mochas. Those were really good.

Work. Life. Imbalance.

2013-05-22T02:52:09Z

Work. Bills. Groceries. Dinner. Bathtime. Staying up too late, and getting up too early, and meeting every end but never making any end meet. At work, the two projects I was hired to manage are winding down, and the late stages are where the execution takes place, and the demands of actually bringing something to fruition are making me tired.

Work. Bills. Groceries. Dinner. Bathtime. Calls from the bank, and the vet, and someone we must owe money to whose affiliation was garbled at the end of the message by our ancient answering machine.

When I was younger than I am now, I never wanted to fall into this kind of drudgery. It never ends. The projects change, and the deadlines change, but the day-in, day-out demands and expectations and debts never seem to falter. I need a new challenge, I think, or something to look forward to. We catch up just to teeter on the brink of falling behind, and then we topple over and down. The toddler eats well one night and then spends seven nights wailing at the injustice of pears on his plate.

We watch travel shows and fantasize about running away. Reality is an anchor.

Vancouver is the kind of place where you can do anything. You really can spend a day skiing and then unwind at the beach afterward. Spouse and I have had bitter, bitter fights over whether to eat tacos or sushi or curry or noodles and we have reached impasses where we have gone our separate ways for dinner because that was the only solution. The bike routes are lined with trees and the shade keeps them cool and comfortable. British Columbia is the only place in Canada where you can find any climate in the world; two hours north there is a mountain resort; four hours east, wine country and the desert.

It is - perhaps literally - the most beautiful place in the world, and I am so in love with it that the idea of leaving for an affordable lifestyle where we could pay off our debts and maybe get ahead is less desirable than simply staying and trying to make it work. That is the thing about this place. It will choke you out and you will beg it to let you stay.

Work. Bills. Groceries. Dinner. Bathtime. Rent. Hydro. Car insurance. Credit cards. Daycare. Student loans forever. There are more people in my industry than there are jobs. Every great opportunity is in Toronto. I love the woman who looks after the toddler. I love that if I need pho at 3:00 am because I've had a nightmare and can't get back to sleep I can walk a few blocks and get it (it's never so cold that you can't walk a few blocks at 3:00 am). Vancouver is one of the most expensive places to live in the world, and it's not getting cheaper.

It has been a hard year and a half, and there is no real end in sight. But then we sit on a patch of grass beside the ocean all afternoon in May and I don't care. The air smells like salt and lilacs.

I don't know what to do with myself. Work-life balance is one thing; work-life direction an entire other thing. I don't really have either. We work to pay our way and pay so much to just get by. It's not sustainable, and I am not excited at any of my current prospects.

Our needs are simple. We are happy to rent. We are city-folk, apartment-dwellers, and occasional hippies. Our friends are artists and writers and environmentalists and teachers and none of us have a lot, but if you zoom out, we really are happy, even if sometimes we have to reassure ourselves of that. It's just that up close, there are so many hurdles.

Work. Bills. Groceries. Dinner. Bathtime. Repeat indefinitely? What would you do?

7 reasons to take your teens (and yourself) to NYC

2013-05-22T00:21:39Z

This past weekend I took my mom and two teenage daughters to New York City. It was a long anticipated gift to both them and myself. It was something I have wanted to do for a long time.

There are so many reasons to take people who are forming their minds/ or still approaching life with fresh eyes (all of us, hopefully) to a place as rich as this

but here are a few from the top of my head

1. Everyone there has a big personality. Cab drivers, waiters, the homeless, the bankers, the artists, the musicians, the concierge. Nothing inspires like a population of bold.

(I loved the way my kids mouths hung open the whole weekend)

2. No one apologizes here- for their clothes, their style, their moxie, their driving, their consumption, their poverty, their wealth, their lifestyle, their choices- anything. It is refreshing.

3. The unexpected is around every single corner. You are in the subway and an opera singer entertains you, you walk under a bridge in Central Park and a saxaphonist is there just for you, in the shadows with the sun dancing behind,

the waiter is fascinating, the cab driver is grumpy, the perspectives on the city are vast and varied -from the water, 80 floors up, from the highline, on foot, subterranean or from just over there.

Life looks different to you after NYC

4. " If you can make it here, you can make it anywhere". You feel the drive, creativity and passion oozing from every nook.

5. The best of everything is here. It is intoxicating to be around the best.

6. It is a creative feast. It feeds you in ways you forgot about.

(yup - this is the 'penis chair'- MOMA. I ask you how many opportunities will I have to see something like this with my mom and daughters?)

7. You come away remembering your own sense of possibility and your own power.

A trip to NYC is a gift that keeps on giving. So good for the soul.

What Happened to Keanu Reeves?

2013-05-21T19:53:12Z

Ever since the 66th Cannes Film festival kicked off May 15th, I've been gleefully enjoying the photos of attending celebs as they strut their stuff on the Croisette. This morning, one person in particular caught my eye, but not for the reasons you might think.

As I perused the photos from the photo agencies from this weekend, my eyes settled on a man who looked familiar - but not quite. Then it hit me, it's Keanu Reeves!

Appearing on May 19th to promote his directorial debut in "The Man of Tai Chi", Reeves stands with the beach behind him looking...how shall I put this? Somewhat bloated and not as good as I've seen him before.

I'm just sayin'...

Look, I know he's 48 and he still looks pretty good for a man that age. You could make the case that I'm being overly critical. That it's a bad angle. But I don't apply "regular people" standars to someone rich, famous and with access to surgeons, private chefs and trainers. Truth be told, what I've posted is not the worst photo from the weekend. Read on.

On the left, is my last memory of Reeves - from last October - at the "The Cloud Atlas" premiere:

See what I mean???

Before you call me mean, or say it's the lack of beard that is making Keanu look bloated, feast your eyes on THIS. Keanu on the Odessa boat in Cannes over the weekend, as featured in US Weekly. I am not alone in my asessement!!

Now, let's just remind ourselves of what once was. On the right is a photo from 2003 taken at the Los Angeles premiere of "Matrix Reloaded". Ahhhh.....YES!

Please Keanu. Not you too. Stop it now. Save yourself man. Do NOT go the way of Val Kilmer.

Two Out Of Three Ain't Bad!

2013-05-21T18:42:57Z

Just try to get that Meatloaf song out of your head now! Come on. Try it. I know. No luck.

So, in roughly 85 days, it's triathlon time. 85 DAYS! I'm actually excited. You know I've been biking for a year or so now, and I've added the swim in during the last month. Now that I have a bathing cap that doesn't cut off my brain flow and I figured out that I was wearing my goggles upside down (why yes, I am blonde), I'm loving swimming. Next up? The run. Hence the Two Out of Three ain't bad that I've been singing since buying all my running gear Saturday.

I'm terrified. Here is a brief history of my relationship with running.

1. Ten year-old Sara develops some freakishly long legs. Her gym teachers cheer! Have we got a 100m dash kid here or what. Sara enters the London Public School track meet and promptly trips over her own legs, like a newborn foal, and face plants. It remains unclear who cried more - Sara or the coaches who recognized that along with the legs, came some major un-coordination.

2. Fifteen year-old Sara meets all the bad ass chicks in her high school gym class during the daily runs. The girls were lagging behind hoping to grab a butt under the bridge by the Humber River. Sara was just lazy and had no interest in hacking out any lungs.

3. Sixteen year-old Sara realizes she looooves playing centre on the basketball team and gives up the forward position forever. Why would she choose to be manhandled by opposing 6"2 amazons from the other team? Because she realizes she only has to run from top of the key to top of the key. Perfect.

4. Thirty year-old Sara goes on Outward Bound mountain climbing trek. She successfully climbs a mountain with a pack on her back, spends 24 hours alone in the wilderness, scales a rock face. But when told she had to run a 10k to complete the program, she shrugs, says 'I'm good' and walks it.

5. Fourty-three year-old Sara agrees to run a 5k with the other UrbanMoms for breast cancer. She brings her adorable son along for the fun. He quickly turns non-adorable when he remarks, 'Mom, why is everyone else running and we're walking?'. No popsicle for you kid.

So suffice it to say I don't like running. I'm not good at it. I don't enjoy it. I dread it.

BUT. I will do it. Yes, Nike - I will just do it. (in my hideous new New Balance running shoes - sorry). I'm hoping that maybe I've grown up slightly and can shed my laziness and embrace the sweat, the sore knees, the red face and all that comes with running.

Any tips from you runners out there? Help....

Family matters

2013-05-21T12:20:55Z

We had a great weekend, so busy but by far the best part was the opportunity to spend the majority of the weekend with my extended family at our cottage. 14 people and five dogs made for a lot of laughs, lots of great food and the appropriate amount of accompanying wine and beer (and maybe a scotch or two).

Growing up I had various places to go on weekends throughout my childhood, but they were sporadic and felt that way. For the past 7 years, our boys have the luxury to scoot up north and play in the water and woods without a care in the world. They simply don't know how lucky they have it. So I remind them.

Anyway, here is my family (the parental divorced version anyway) in all their glory.

I love them all very much.

The Gritty Underworld

2013-05-21T00:36:56Z

Crusher
by Niall Leonard
Doubleday Canada
ISBN: 978 0 385 67928 2

Finn's life is not exactly glamorous - his dad is an out-of-work actor, his mom left when he was a little kid, and his dyslexia has held him back enough that he is working at a crummy fast food joint that he hates just to make ends sort of meet. This all looks not bad in retrospect, though, because one day he arrives home to find his dad murdered, and he's a suspect. Since the police don't seem interested in investigating too hard, he starts digging around himself, and soon finds himself in the middle of multiple messes involving a crime boss and his henchmen, not to mention a girl, a new job, his dad's ex and her husband, and his reappearing mother.

Sound like there's a lot going on here? There sure is. There are more twists and turns and ups and downs than a rollercoaster. The only thing that keeps Finn going is that he is a tough kid with some serious boxing chops and raw determination that only breaks when it's all over. This is a gripping read, but it's not for the faint of heart. The action involves plenty of beatdowns and ill-advised moves on Finn's part, and the characters he tangles with are an assortment of dangerous types. It's set in parts of London you won't find in a guidebook, and emotion is set aside while Finn is focused on answers. Without posting spoilers, I will tell you that all the ends wrap up, but there is enough blood spilled to match any Shakespearean tragedy. It's definitely for the teen who likes a gritty edge on their read - but for that kid? It's a good ride.

Do you go all the way?

2013-05-20T19:00:10Z

Or just halfway?

I had put it off most of the weekend. Trying on my shorts, that is.

It was a hot weekend and I always hate this weekend. The start of shorts season.
It's come much later this year but I knew I had to bite the bullet and put some shorts on.

But before I could, there was one order of business that needed to be taken care of.
I had to shave my legs.

I really admire my friend, Amy. She shaves her legs every single day. Every single day of the year. I admire her commitment to her great legs - loofah-ing and shaving and moisturizing every single day. She shakes her head at me in disbelief when we talk about it.
I'm not afraid to admit on this fairly large platform that I do not shave my legs every day. In fact, I don't shave them very often throughout the winter.
I hope you don't think less of me because of that. But really, I *hate* how it feels in the winter after I shave my legs. It's an odd sensory thing but the feeling of shaved, moisturized legs in the winter is disturbing to me. Especially if I'm wearing jeans.

This morning I lathered up my puff, scrubbed my skin and started the ritual of gliding the razor up my leg, stopping just above my kneecap.
Ever since I started shaving my legs I have been torn as to whether of not to shave my full leg of just half. Ever since I started shaving I have only shaved half. When I get to the knee - I stop. It was what my mum taught me.
I think if I start going all the way up I'll have to go all the way forever. It's an added commitment to a hygiene practice that I already find to be a pain in the ass. I lasered off my underarm hair and bikini line. I'd love to be able get my legs done next.

My thighs aren't particularly hairy. It's very fine hair and not noticeable that I don't shave it, but I always wonder why some women go all the way and some only half way.

How far do you go and why?

homemade bubbles

2013-05-20T01:43:24Z

My L'il E loves bubbles. In fact, he could just blow bubbles all day long and be quite happy. If only I would allow him to blow bubbles in the house - then I would be the best mom ever.

It's not even June and we've already blasted through about four large containers of the sudsy stuff. So, this morning I took to Google to find a homemade bubble solution. If I keep buying bubbles at this rate we'll be broke!

If you have a little bubble crazy kid like me, give this bubble recipe a try. It's a super easy and it yielded about 4 cups of bubbles. For us that's a long weekend's worth and I'm satisfied.

You'll need:

1 cup dish detergent
3 cups water
1/2 cup corn syrup (yes you read that correctly)

Then you:

Stir water and corn syrup together, add dish detergent and stir gently until well mixed.

Done! It's that simple and the bubbles are amazing.

(On The Way Out) From My Closet - May 18th, 2013

2013-05-19T13:00:00Z

I'm a bit sad about these cool kicks, but they were looking decidedly worse for wear when had to put them away last fall. Their soles were wearing thin due to the fact that I used them as brakes while riding Oliver's scooter for the last few years, and the sequins have been dropping off all over the place, and smallish holes were growing. I really wore the crap out of them. I'm all for being an Urban Muther and everything, but since I'm not exactly a teenager *ahem* I draw the line at scruffy. I don't want or need to look unkempt for any reason... it's time to go, adorable sequined Converse high-tops. *sniff* (Anyway, I have these bad girls to replace them, so all is fair in the world of sneakers as of today.)

Also heading to the clothing grave? This dress I've had for at least five years, and I knew had seen it's last summer, but I packed it away anyway, just in case I was wrong.

But I wasn't wrong.

It was just limp and faded, and pin-sized holes here and there were starting to get larger with each wash... threadbare is what is was, really. So long, girl. Thanks for the memories.

Also in the heap is this ruffled tank top that never did hold it's black colour as steadfastly as I'd hoped. (Of course, I washed and wore it about a hundred times...) I suppose I could try to re-dye it or something, but I know I won't actually do it. I know when to throw in the towel on intentions. And honestly, the last thing I need to do is go mucking about with a bunch of black dye in my washing machine, or whatever - that does not sound like a good idea to me at all. So. I loved you once, but we have to break up now, tank top. It's not me, it's you.

(But for better or for worse? My youth and I are still hanging onto that sequin skirt which I also wore here. Believe it. I will rock it until I am leaky and creaky and ooooold.)

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Summer Sun Protection

2013-05-19T00:11:25Z

With gorgeous weather arriving an summer nearly upon is, it's time to start thinking about sun safety again. Of course, this is something you should consider year-round, but it's especially important in the summer. And if you're anything like me, you probably have a cupboard with several bottles with varying amounts left in them, and probably more than a couple are expired. For me, sunscreen is one of those things that I desperately need (given that my natural colour is somewhere around the colour of snow), but am always paranoid about, given my skin's sensitivity to the majority of body products. And now that I have kids, I want to be extra-cautious about what I'm spreading on their skin, too. It's a balance I am very aware of - I want them to be protected, but I'm not willing to just use anything. So, what's a mom to do? Here are some ideas for deciding what you need for sun protection.

1. When you can, cover up. Long sleeves and pants or long skirts made with lightweight fabric can be cool and breezy even on the hottest days, and provide protection from the sun without the need for sunscreen. And what's more fun than a big floppy hat? Many manufacturers of outdoor apparel also have UPF factors listed for their clothing, too, so for those more prone to burning (like the fair-skinned, or children), this can be a good choice. Make breezy hippy chic or rugged outdoor mountain-girl your style this summer, and you'll need a lot less of the creams and lotions.

2. Know what the different types of sun protection products. There are chemical sunscreens - these use chemicals that absorb harmful UV rays, and are often the types of sunscreens that we are most familiar with. They are often sprays or lotions, and easy to apply. There are also physical sunscreens, and these use ingredients like zinc oxide and titanium dioxide. Physical blocks reflect the UV rays and are often considered 'safer', but may come at the cost of being thicker and harder to apply. Broad-spectrum sunscreens usually have both chemical sunscreens and physical sunblocks.

3. Check out the Environmental Working Group's Guide to Summer Sun. You can have a look at the EWG's ratings and reviews of various products, and make an informed decision about what you're slathering on your skin. (Note: this links to the 2012 data, hopefully the 2013 info will be up soon.)

4. Choose a sunscreen you will use, and don't feel like you have to pick just one. In my cupboard I usually have at least three - a sport/waterproof one, a spray, and a thicker zinc-based block. I make the kids sit still for the zinc block in the morning, but when we're at the park or pool and they just want to go go go, I know I won't be able to get it on them for a reapplication so I carry a spray.

5. Choose your SPF wisely. We all know a higher SPF means greater protection, but what do the numbers really mean? Here's a handy chart for figuring out the pros and cons of some of the more popular SPF numbers:

SPF Against UVB Rays	% of UVB Rays Absorbed	Considerations
SPF 30	97%	Excellent general-purpose sunscreen for all activities and conditions. Contains fewer sun-blocking agents than higher SPF sunscreens, so skin can breathe and perspire more freely.
SPF 45	98%	A good choice for active use at higher elevations. Includes more sun-blocking agents and may feel heavy. Greasy or warm on skin. Good for children and winter activities.
SPF 50	98%	Good for extended high-elevations exposure, thin-skin body regions (nose, ears) and children. Includes a high quantity of sun-blocking agents; may feel heavy, greasy, or warm on skin and reduce its breathability.

(table from REI.com)

Choosing the right product can be hard, especially when you're trying to stick to something as green and natural as possible, so hopefulyl the above will help you choose the right products for your family. Have a wonderful, sunburn-free summer!

(Photo © Can Stock Photo Inc. / ampak)

FotoFriday - Perfect Playground

2013-05-17T19:30:23Z

This is my "office"

This is where I commute 7 minutes to everyday.

I could stand out here all day taking in the crabapple blooms and the lavender fragrance.
It's very soul soothing.