…..just a few images from our annual trek to this fabulous show
One of my favv
The One of a Kind Show in Toronto
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Category Archives: Happiness File
Our Urban Rural Drawings
….in the Hundertwasser style
This week the grade 3 students have been working on their urban rural landscapes using vibrant chalk pastels.
We started the lesson discussing the components of a landscape; foreground, middle ground, background and horizon line. We talked about how objects in the foreground were larger and smaller in the background. I then showed the class images of Hundertwasser’s whimsical houses and lollipop trees.
The assignment was to draw city buildings in the foreground and a rural setting in the background. After drawing their rough copies, each student was allowed to choose a sheet of coloured construction paper and then redraw their landscape lines using first pencil and then black or silver marker.
Starting at the top of their paper they then started to add colour using chalk pastels. I showed them how to blend colours using their fingers and pieces of tissue paper. Once all the colour was in place, the black lines were redrawn as the last step. 
The final results have been stunning. You be the judge. Enjoy!
Planting Tulips in December
….temperatures warmed up enough to get a shovel in the ground
Sunday, December 1st…the first advent of the Christmas season and I’m in the garden planting tulip bulbs. About three weeks ago a parent at school kindly gifted me 40 tulip bulbs and advised me to plant them that weekend. I told her I had problems with squirrels digging up all my bulbs in the past so she also brought me a small bag of hen poop. Apparently they don’t like the smell. We’ll see.
Unfortunately I didn’t get the bulbs in the ground when the weather was warmer and the soil was still soft. Life just got in the way. Last weekend when I had some time I pulled out the trowel and almost broke it when I tried to turn the soil. It was so cold that the ground was frozen solid. Winter had arrived early.
This past weekend we were having the kids over for our annual pre-Christmas goulash and mulled wine party. I wanted to start decorating the house to get in the festive mood so I pulled out the outdoor lights. After testing each string and hauling the ladder out from the garage I started to drape the yew in front of the house. I noticed that the ground was pretty muddy so I decided to take advantage of the conditions and get my bulbs into the ground.
So there I stood in the drizzling rain, bent over and digging holes in the garden. My neighbours must have thought that I was crazy.
Once all the bulbs were in the ground I continued to decorate the tree with the outdoor lights. It was still raining as I was literally tossing the strings over the branches. I made several trips into the house and I noticed that I was tracking in a lot of mud.
With only a couple of hours left before the kids arrived I got out the pail and mop and washed the floors, cleaned the mud from my shoes and set the table for our meal. I then drove up to the liquor store to buy the wine for our mulled wine or gluewine as we call it. My husband was in charge of making the goulash.
When the kids arrived we enjoyed some appetizers and cups of mulled wine while the spaetzle cooked. I underestimated the amount of German noodles that I needed to cook but there was more than enough of the goulash to go around. Everything was delicious. After dinner our son-in-law brought out the board game we bought him for his birthday and we all learned how to play Small World: Underworld from Days of Wonder. When the rules were being explained to us I really didn’t think I’d get the hang of it but once we started to play I was on a roll. In the end I tied for second place. My son-in-law, the game board master, was impressed with my standing.
Less than three weeks of school left before we’re off for the holidays. The Hundertwasser projects are coming along nicely and hopefully I’ll be able to post some of the finished projects in the next day or so. I’d better get off to bed. I have to get up early for more basketball practises. We play in the semi-finals next week. Till later.
Cheers!
Christmas Shopping On-Line
…..easy if you know what you want and don’t go for the first link
More and more I’ve been shopping on-line for Christmas presents. One of the reasons is that my adult children post everything they would like on-line with links as to where one can purchase the items. It really makes it easy but I have discovered a few glitches along the way.
First of all, when you’re ordering from Canada the free shipping claim is often null and void. By the time you pay the shipping you’re not saving very much money, if any. This is true for Amazon. com. The shipping charge was more than $16.00 for one item and the Canadian taxes hadn’t been added either. When I went to Amazon.ca the same item was initially a little bit more expensive but even with taxes in and no shipping charge the final price was cheaper than the American price. So Canadians beware.
Amazon.com and Amazon.ca are offering free shipping for a month on all items but after that you will be charged a $79.00 fee for the rest of the year. Personally I rarely shop on-line after Christmas so it doesn’t make sense to sign up for the free offer. If you’re willing to wait a few extra days for delivery you can get free shipping anyway. The lesson here is to read the small print.
If you use Paypal you can get a 5% discount back on all your purchases that you make for the next little while. I think its just from now until the first week in December but every little bit helps. I wish I could use Paypal for all my on-line purchases.
This year we used Elfster to organize our gift exchange. It’s been fun and it’s forced me to think about what I would really like for Christmas. At first I found it extremely difficult to write down what I wanted. I just couldn’t think of anything that fit within the $100.00 limit. I never have problems knowing what I’d like when I actually go shopping but the reality is that I probably don’t NEED anything. I did, however, come up with several items. Once I started I was on a roll and before I knew it I had nine items on my list. Some of them are over the limit but my husband doesn’t have to stick to the limit. The gift exchange doesn’t include significant others. I’m still responsible for getting my husband gifts and vice versa.
The best part of on-line shopping is having the parcels arrive at the door in a few days. It’s like Christmas opening the parcels, even though you know they’re for someone else. I think there’s some truth in the saying ‘It’s better to give than to receive’.
Cheers!
P.S. We’re finally having our gift exchange party tomorrow, even though we all know who we’re buying presents for. My husband is starting to feel better as he recovers from his shingles and is finally up to preparing his Gluewein and Goulash dinner.
Basketball All Day Long
…..starting at 7:45 and ending at 2:15
The girls all arrived on time for our last practice before the tournament today.
Practice was grim. Everything we taught the girls seemed to go out the window this morning. The adults in the crowd just shook their heads.
After our 30 minute warm-up, the girls put on their numbered jerseys, grabbed their coats, snacks, water and lunches and boarded one of two cars that transported them to our destination.
The school that hosted the tournament only had one gym which also doubles as the school lunchroom. Ten games, back to back, were scheduled for the day with 45 minutes off for lunch. We knew we were in trouble when our first game was delayed by 40 minutes. Luckily for us it didn’t affect the outcome of the game. The girls looked good and played well. They won with a score of 28 to 8.
We then had to sit out and watch two games before our next match. The delay with the first game threw the schedule off considerably so when it was our turn to play again the school lunch hour was about to begin and all the teams had to go to the library and wait until the lunch hour was over. Unfortunately that meant we had to play two games back to back with no break in-between.
We looked at rearranging the schedule but nothing worked so we agreed to shorten each half to 10 minutes and follow the schedule as it was originally set up. Our next game was against the school that we knew would give us our biggest challenge. It started out okay but as soon as the other team started to pull ahead the girls fell apart and we lost by a considerable margin.
Luckily the next two games went in our favour. In the end we finished close to the time that was originally scheduled and we won three out of our four games. We had to leave before the other teams finished playing but I’m pretty sure we came in second place. Not bad after the sorry practice we had in the morning.
No one was sure how many teams move on to the semi-finals but if it is only the first place team then we’re done for the season. I should know by tomorrow or on Monday at the latest.
The one good thing about coaching girls is that if they lose they always see the bright side. They didn’t focus on the one game they lost, rather they were proud of the three that they won. They were so eager that they were prepared to come to another practice tomorrow morning without even knowing if they move on or not. I needed a break so I begged them not to come tomorrow morning.
Thanks to the parents for their support and my fellow coaches for coming out to all the morning practices. One of my colleagues helped me with the coaching and two student teachers volunteered their time. It was great having so much help and input from these wonderful people. A special thanks to Mr. S who accompanied us to the game today and gave the girls a lot of moral support and great advice during the games. I loved his running commentary throughout the matches. He kept me smiling all day long.
Cheers!
Sports, Shingles, Supper and Shopping
…..my week so far
Basketball
Last week, after a flurry of tryouts, we chose the girls’ basketball team. We had to go from 40 girls to 12 when choosing the team. Every morning since we’ve had early morning practices starting at 7:45. Tomorrow is the tournament. Yikes! I know that the season has been short but we literally didn’t get any information about the season until people started to ask when and where the teams would play. My friend, L swears that we’re going to win but I know for a fact that some schools have been practising for over a month compared to our seven days. Anyway wish us luck. If we win, however, it means more early morning practises and another tournament.
Shingles
No, not the ones on my roof. I’m talking about the painful kind that affects adults who’ve had chicken pox when they were children and no, I’m not the one who is suffering with it. Shingles is an infection of a band of nerves and results in a rash along that band. The pain can be moderate or severe. In my husband’s case, unfortunately his pain is severe and feels like stabbing pains under the skin. This is my husband’s second bout with this horrible infection. He’s on some antiviral medication that should help with the healing process but he’s already at day 10 and only today is he starting to feel somewhat better. There is a shot to prevent shingles but it costs about $200. for one dose. If K could take it, he says he’d pay $1000.00 to be pain free but because his immune system was compromised by his cancer he doesn’t qualify for the treatment. If you want more information about shingles click here.
Supper
My brother-in-law from Calgary called on Sunday and told us he was going to be in town on Tuesday on business. He wanted to get together and grab some dinner before he checked into his hotel. Not knowing how well K would be feeling we left it open as to where we would dine. I also didn’t know if I’d be having dinner because I already had made plans to have dinner downtown with a group of friends from work.
It turned out that my dinner was cancelled so when I got home I was able to join them. GS literally arrived a few minutes after I walked through the door and at that moment in time K wasn’t feeling too bad. So we got back into my car and drove over to the Junction to catch up with what was going on in GS’s life while we enjoyed a light dinner at the Indie Ale House. The evening went well but I could see that K was starting to fade so we had to call it an early night. I sure hope these shingles are gone before Christmas.
Shopping
Now I know that I told you that I didn’t need to shop for a long time but I can’t resist a great sale and I mean great. The doors were only open to family and friends and as a friend I couldn’t turn around and invite some of my friends. I did, however, buy some great gifts for my family and, well, I just couldn’t pass up a good deal, I picked up a few things for myself. How can you say no to $100. sweaters for $15. 00 and designer blue jeans for $15.00.
Tune in tomorrow to see how we performed at the tournament.
Cheers!
Cleaning Wins Out Over More Shopping
…..funny how I get the same satisfaction from organizing my space as I do from shopping
Yesterday I wrote that I might attend another craft show today but when I woke up it was bitter cold and there was a fresh layer of snow on the ground. It seemed like a perfect day to stay indoors and work on organizing my clothes.
I got an early start to the day. After a quick breakfast I checked my emails and then closed my laptop. I find I’m spending way too much time on the computer lately. I set a goal to clean out my closet and purge, purge, purge. I stripped all the beds and gathered up all the laundry around the house and from my husband’s car (i discovered that there was bedding still in the back of his car that he brought back from the cottage but didn’t bring into the house).
While the washer and dryer were going full tilt I started to go through all my clothes. I put away the summer clothes, took out the winter clothes and discarded clothing that didn’t fit anymore or I hadn’t worn in years. I folded and organized my 37 scarves (yes 37, not including the 4 I’m giving away or my woollen scarves), I packed three garbage bags with clothes and loaded them into my car and dropped them off at the Good Will store.
I vacuumed, did four loads of laundry, made chicken stock, returned two bags of bottles, cleaned the bird cage, cleaned the kitchen and managed to organize half of my bedroom. Now that the clothes are put away I can start organizing all my paperwork….ugh! A job for next weekend….maybe.
Now that my closet is organized I can see that I don’t need to go shopping for quite awhile. I also discovered some Christmas gifts that I had bought in the summer and had forgotten about. I put all the gifts in one of the blanket boxes at the end of my bed where I’ll be able to find them when I’m ready to wrap them. I’m usually a last minute wrapper but maybe this year I can get a head start on that as well.
I packed my gym bag and will place it in the car so that I have no more excuses for not going to the gym. I haven’t been in months, despite the fact that I’ve been paying for it every month. I need to leave school earlier and get a workout in before dinner. I have one more medical appointment tomorrow right after school and then I’m planning on stopping at the gym. I’ve packed my lunch for tomorrow and will be leaving extra early to get to basketball practice by 7:45. Our tournament is this Thursday.
Did I say I didn’t need to do any shopping for awhile? Hmmm! I forgot that I’m going to a special clothing sale on Tuesday after school. Maybe I’ll find some more gifts for the family.
Cheers!
Winter is at our Doorstep
…..cold temperatures and a dusting of snow today (yesterday)…..hit published….looked like it went through…..discovered this morning that it hadn’t…..sigh…..by the way we got another covering of snow last night
An image of what’s to come in the next few months. Brrrr!!!!!!!!!
What a perfect day to do a little Christmas shopping and check out the Winter Arts Fest at Neilson Park Creative Centre. I met a great artist who makes beautiful jewellery with glass imbedded with copper, a retired principal who creates gorgeous wooden boards and boxes made from different types of coloured wood and an author who wrote a novel about Toronto’s history.
I also ran into my former art teacher, LZ, whose classes I took for a couple of years at Neilson Park Creative Centre. She told me she’s been thinking about me lately and hopes I’ll come back to one of her classes in January. She says she’s including collage and more printmaking lessons to the class. She must have been channelling my thoughts of late because I’ve wanted to do more of both, especially collage.
An earlier attempt at collage.
Printing on Gelli plates.
After doing some shopping at the craft show I headed over to the mall which is close by. The kitchen store had some great sales and I picked up some small items for stocking stuffers. I then went to one of my favourite stores and treated myself to a couple of new tops.
What’s up for tomorrow? Well I keep saying I’m going to reorganize my bedroom but there’s an interesting arts and craft show at my old alma mater in Guelph that I might check out. It all depends on whether someone is willing to go with me. I’m all about living in the moment.
Cheers!
Unexpected Pleasures
…..the joys of spontaneity
I really didn’t have much in the way of plans for the weekend. The only thing that I really needed to do was buy new tires for my car. So early Saturday morning I dropped the car off at the Tire Centre at Costco and walked home. It turned out to be a beautiful day and the walk was invigorating. I made an unexpected stop at the library and successfully signed out the next book for our book club meeting in December. So far I’d logged in 5 kilometres of walking and it didn’t stop there.
When I got home I changed into my running shoes and joined my husband, my daughter, G, her dog, Lucy and our dog, Frances for a walk to Sam Smith Park. I brought along the camera and found lots of wonderful things to photograph. Again, I played around with the macro setting and got close and personal with some plant materials.
Not only did I walk another 5 kilometres but some of that distance was covered with running. I didn’t want to get too far behind the family who were always a few steps ahead of me. The distance would get longer every time I stopped to take pictures so I found myself running to catch up. Near the end of the trail I found the group sitting on the rocks waiting for me. As you can see, Lucy has fully recovered from her surgery.
Later in the day, my other daughter called and wanted to meet and go to Ikea. We planned to rendezvous at Costco when I picked up the car but when I got to the tire centre the car wasn’t ready. I quickly called my husband to pick me and the girls up and drop us off at Ikea. This part of the day wasn’t so wonderful for K but the rest of us had a great time. Since it was already late in the day, we decided to have dinner together after our shopping adventure at Ikea. Again K picked us up and took me back to Costco to get the car and then we each had a job to do to get dinner organized. A and I were assigned to get the salad and wine and K, G and J were in charge of getting the pizza.
The day ended with a lovely unplanned dinner with all the girls. G’s husband was at a conference in North Carolina and our son of course is still in Rotterdam. We sent him a quick message to see if he still wants to participate in our Secret Santa draw but I haven’t heard back from him yet. Next week we’re getting together again for a planned meal where we will draw names to see who we will buy gifts for this Christmas. I didn’t think I’d like the Secret Santa concept but we’ve done it for a couple of years now and it certainly takes some of the stress off of buying gifts at Christmas.
Yesterday we got an unexpected phone call from old friends who live in Calgary. They were in town and wanted to get together before they go back on Wednesday. Today was the best time for all of us so we met at the house and then drove over to the Roncesvalle area and had a nice lunch at Hey’s. We had a long leisurely lunch and got caught up on what’s been happening in our lives. My husband and L have been friends since grade school and we all went to university together. We were at each other’s weddings and the births of our children. We literally had to drive L and L to the hospital when their first child wanted to enter the world in the middle of the night. As luck would have it, their car wouldn’t start at that crucial moment in time.
What a great weekend; fantastic weather on Saturday, walking 10 k in one day, an unplanned dinner with family and an unexpected visit from old friends. What more could you ask for? I hope your weekend had some special moments as well.
Cheers!
I Must Confess
….I haven’t walked or run in weeks
As much as I like to walk and even run I haven’t done much of either in several weeks. Today I left the house early in the morning to have new tires installed on my car. I’ve been shopping around and found that Costco had the best deals but you can’t make an appointment. I arrived right at opening and was shocked to find that I was number 22 in line. Luckily the wait wasn’t too long and I’m glad I didn’t get there any later than I did because they stopped taking cars at number 24. The downside was that I had to leave the car and it wouldn’t be ready for six hours. Obviously I wasn’t going to wait around for that length of time so I decided to start walking home.
I wasn’t sure how far the walk would be but my plan was to walk about one third of the way and then phone my husband and have him pick me up at the Italian bakery. I ordered a cappuccino and a breakfast sandwich and then pulled out my phone. It was dead. Oh well!
I knew that the walk was doable, so after nourishing myself I continued to walk. It is a beautiful day today in Toronto, one that I’m sure we won’t see too many of before next spring. I forgot how much I really do like to walk. As I got closer to home I felt compelled to walk even further and check out the library to see if they had the book I needed for our next book club meeting. Bonus! I lucked out and checked out their only copy of The Light Between Oceans by M.L. Stedman.
When I got home my husband was surprised to see me walk through the door and no car in the driveway. I went to gmap pedometer and mapped out the route and discovered that the walk covered 5 k. Will I walk back to pick up the car? Probably not but then one should never say ‘never’. I will, however, do some gardening today and plant some tulip bulbs that were gifted to me and maybe I’ll join my husband and daughter and walk the dogs to Sam Smith Park.
It’s going to be a good day!
Cheers!
Mama Cormier 