Daily Prompt: Remembering Summer

Posted on April 6, 2014 by Mama Cormier

Theoretically, summer will return to the polar-vortex-battered Northern Hemisphere. What are you looking forward to doing this summer?

Summer Dreams

Mornings at the cottage

sitting on the deck with a good book

and a cup of coffee

Long walks on the beach

soaking up the sun

running through the waves

Puttering in the garden

turning the warm soil

picking fresh herbs

Starting up the barbeque

sharing food with family and friends

warm evenings with a glass of wine

in the backyard

Painting in the great outdoors

Listening to the CBC

Marathon games of scrabble,

Rummikub and euchre

Car trips to the country

farmers’ markets, antique stores

ice-cream parlours

Dreaming of summer

http://dailypost.wordpress.com/2014/04/06/daily-prompt-in-the-summertime/

Feeling the Indigo Blues?

Posted on March 30, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….only if it’s a feeling of joy and accomplishment

Yesterday I attended a 6 hour workshop on dyeing fabric with indigo at Articulations in the Junction. It was a Christmas gift from my youngest daughter. It was a small class with 8 students ranging in age from their 20s to 60s. We even had one man in the class who came with his partner.

Our instructor, Jane Jacobs, was truly inspirational. She had a multitude of samples for us to look at and an infinite number of objects to experiment with. Everyone brought their own fabric and articles of clothing to play with. There were also white silk scarves and infinity scarves that you could buy for the purpose of dyeing.

I experimented with a technique that involved stitching designs and pulling them tightly. I wish I had more time to make more of these but I think I may try more of these at home. The technique is called shibori and comes from Japan. The secret is to pull the thread really tightly. It will work with any kind of dye. I loved the indigo but it has a few more steps and requires more time to get it to the stage where it’s ready to use. Here is a website that demonstrates how to stitch on the fabric. Shibori from Japan.

The dyeing techniques also included folding and clamping the fabric. I wrapped string around small stones that were buried into the fabric and I pulled fabric from the middle and put elastic bands around it. This created a real retro 60s look that was reminiscent of tie dye. I also clamped buttons and metal squares between folds of fabric. Some of the students wrapped their fabric around large plastic cylinders, then wrapped string around the fabric and kept pushing the wrapped fabric up the cylinder. That was hard work but the finished product was beautiful. If I go back for another class I will try that technique with silk.

I brought a variety of fabrics to play with. I had two 100% cotton samples, one in white and one in taupe. I had a piece of linen and rayon that was also a taupe but with a tinge of green in it and my last piece that I played with was a white 100% cotton knit.

We weren’t sure how the coloured fabrics would take the dye but another student brought a grey fabric and all of them turned out well. The contrast wasn’t as dramatic as the white but the patterns showed up nicely against the blue.

Now I have to decide what I’m going to do with my pieces of fabric. I’ve already decided to make one into a pillow, one will be a table runner and the third I will sew into an infinity scarf. I’m not sure about the fourth piece but I’m sure I’ll think of something.

The following photos are my creations after they dried.

Happy Birthday, Sis!

Posted on March 16, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….even though her actual birthday is in December we celebrated on Friday

Last Christmas my sister’s husband surprised her with a gift certificate for a dinner for three at the Chef’s Table. That was only half of her birthday gift. The other half included flying her two sisters from Ontario to Calgary to join her for the dinner. It was as much a gift for her as it was for her sisters.

We arrived in Calgary on Wednesday and the dinner took place on Friday. After a long afternoon of shopping at the outlet mall we returned to C’s home and showered and dressed for our special dinner.

I’m not really that short. I wore flats while my sisters had on heels. C’s husband drove us to the restaurant. We arrived at 7: 00 and were seated immediately. For the next four hours we were treated to a five course meal with a wine pairing for each course. The sommelier took extra care to explain each course and the reason for his wine selection. We were truly pampered.

We had a wonderful evening with great food and wine and we loved reminiscing about our childhood together. I started to photograph each course but at times I was so anxious to try each course that I forgot to take pictures of some of the plates. I truly savoured each dish and was surprised that I didn’t finish first. This is not something I’m proud of. I tend to eat too quickly but for some reason that didn’t happen on Friday. At the end of the meal C’s husband picked us up. It was nice not to have to worry about drinking and driving.

Sharing Memories and Reconnecting With Old Friends

Posted on March 14, 2014 by Mama Cormier

…watching old V8 movies of us as kids and meeting up with friends from university

Thursday was a laid back day. I couldn’t sleep past 6:00 am so I got up and wrote my first post about the flight to Calgary. I took my time getting showered and dressed and then I went downstairs to join my sisters for breakfast.

My middle sister had given each of us a DVD that she had transposed from VHS. Years ago our mom took all the old V8 movies that my Dad had taken of us as kids and had them put onto videotape. It’s pretty rough and of course there’s no soundtrack. We decided to watch the DVD together, not realizing that it was over two hours. It was great seeing all those clips again. It brought back great memories and we couldn’t help but notice how different life was 50 years ago.

The one thing that really struck us was how formally our parents dressed. Outings to the park, going on picnics and day trips to Niagara Falls involved dressing in your Sunday best. Mom wore heels, dresses, hats and gloves and Dad wore dress pants, jackets and ties and of course all the ‘sisters’ wore dresses and party shoes. The only time I saw us in trousers was when I went roller skating down the sidewalk by our house in the Junction. Good thing too, because I took a couple of nasty spills.

It was also interesting to see the transition from long hair to short hair and then back to long hair when we were teenagers. My Mom wore her hair in a bun for many years and her hair was actually quite dark. Sometime in the 60s she cut her hair short and became a blonde. I never saw her with long hair ever again.

I’m sure there’s some way of copying bits and pieces of the DVD to share with you but I just haven’t figured out how to do that. I’m thinking I need to go to Garage Band and cut and paste segments onto a Youtube video but I’ll have to investigate that a bit more. If any of you have any suggestions I’d be more than grateful.

After lunch, I arranged to meet two friends from university at the Learning Centre in Fish Creek Park. Melissa McKinnon who I follow on WordPress has an exhibition there and one of the things I wanted to do when I got to Calgary was check out her work. I’ve seen it on-line but there’s nothing like seeing it up close and personal. The staff at the centre were very friendly and told us how successful Melissa’s opening was. Her paintings are beautiful and it looks like half or more are already sold. You can check out her blog, here.

I haven’t been to Calgary in over 20 years but I have seen my sister and my friends, L & L, on numerous occasions in Toronto. It’s been great seeing them on their home turf, something that’s long overdue. My next trip will be with my husband. He hasn’t been to Calgary in 38 years.

Share Your World – Week 10

Posted on March 10, 2014 by Mama Cormier

…..great questions Cee! I had to think about the second one.

Describe yourself in a word that starts with the first letter of your name.

This sounds like a getting to know you game I play at the beginning of the school year. We go around in a circle and everyone has to attach an adjective to the beginning of their name that is positive and starts with the first letter of their name. I often participate and seeing that my first and last name both start with C I can use the same words regardless of which name I choose to share with the kids.

Words that describe me are: caring, creative, curious, compassionate, and sometimes a little crazy.

If 100 people your age were chosen at random, how many do you think you’d find leading a more satisfying life than yours?

I think that I lead a very satisfying life. I only wish that at my age I didn’t have any debt but in less than 3 years the house will be paid for, I made the last payment on the car last month and one credit card is paid off. So putting that aside I would say that there would only be 10 people out of a 100 that would be leading a more satisfying life than me.

If you were a tree, would you become a book or furniture? Please describe.

I think I would be a piece of fine furniture. A book can be shared but a piece of furniture can be shared by several people at the same time and evoke life long memories i.e. family dinners around the dining room table. If taken care of furniture can be used for a very long time where a book needs special handling and won’t wear as well or as long unless it’s locked away.

You are trapped in an elevator, who would you want to be trapped with?

I would want to be trapped with my husband. We really do like each other’s company and we always find things to talk about. If I were trapped with a stranger, even a famous one, I’m not so sure that I would see the best side of this person. They could be claustrophobic or anxious or down right miserable. I’d rather meet them in more pleasant surroundings.

Bonus question: What are you grateful for from last week, and what are you looking forward to in the week coming up?

My Dad called me last week, thinking I was leaving for my holiday the next day. Other than being a little forgetful, I’m grateful that he is so healthy, physically and mentally. My good friend is going through a rough patch with her parents who are a little older than my Dad and she’s making some very difficult choices as I write this post.

This week I’m looking forward to my trip to Calgary. I leave on Wednesday with my middle sister. It’s been over 20 years since I’ve been there but it’s not the city that I’m excited to see. I have friends who’ve lived there most of their married life and my baby sister has been there for over 30 years. It’s time spent with friends and family that I’m looking forward to.

http://ceenphotography.com/2014/03/10/share-your-world-2014-week-10/

A Perfect Way to Spend a Sunday Morning

Posted on March 9, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….especially the first morning of daylight savings time

People have a hard time adjusting to the change in time, especially when the clocks are moved forward. It means one hour less sleep unless you talked yourself into going to bed one hour earlier. I’m thankful that the time change occurred during March Break. At least it gives us (the teachers) and the kids a week to adjust to the earlier hour in the morning.

Today I woke up at my usual time but it was actually an hour later, so had it been a school day I would have been late. We had prearranged to meet our youngest daughter at the AGO this morning when the gallery first opens which is 10:00. I basically had time to grab a cup of coffee, get dressed and put on some make-up before heading out the door. We discovered on our last trip that arriving when the AGO opens on a Sunday is a good time to go. It’s not crowded, the kids haven’t arrived yet (especially during March Break) and parking is free until 1:00.

My husband was struggling a bit to get going today but he quickly found his groove and the change in time hasn’t bothered him, yet. As we were walking towards the entrance we spotted our daughter coming up the street. Perfect timing. I went to the members’ desk, picked up our tickets and we deposited our coats at the coat check counter. For the rest of the morning we wandered leisurely throughout the galleries. There is no big show on right now so we enjoyed some of the smaller displays throughout the building.

One of the first things we came across was a display put on by Hot Wheels.

It was obviously there for the kids to enjoy but we were invited to play if we wanted. We graciously declined the invitation and made our way to the galleries where photographs were being displayed. Our daughter studied photography at university and my husband used to be a photography fan in his younger days. As he gets older he plays with his camera more often and he still appreciates the art of photography, especially some of the older black and white photographs.

Next to one of the rooms that housed some very interesting and very old photographs I came across a room designed for kids. The walls were lined with some famous paintings that featured children and in the middle of the room stood a booth. Children could dress up and then sit behind a frame with a painted scene behind them (I think it’s from one of the Group of Seven). Parents are encouraged to take photographs of their children who look like they’re part of a painting. I wanted to do it myself but I don’t think my husband or daughter would humour me and take a photograph. There were hardly any children there at the time so I think I could have gotten away with it.

Once we had exhausted all the photography galleries we headed upstairs to the 5th floor to check out the contemporary exhibits. My favourite installation piece took up an entire room and featured mirrors, trees, birds, (real and not) and half man half bird creatures. It was called The Index and was the creation of David Altmejd.

We decided to walk down to the other floors. The stairway had beautiful architectural curves made from wood and was built on the side of the building with glass windows that looked out over the city. I love the curves, arches and the grain in the wood along the ledges. The second floor has huge stone arches that overlook the foyer on the first floor which is also surrounded with these large archways.

Before leaving the AGO we stopped at the Galleria Italia (here, here) for our traditional coffee break at the Espresso Bar. I really wanted to check out the gift shop so I left my husband and daughter at the table so that they could catch up and make plans for the week while I headed to the main floor to do a bit of shopping. I had a little bit of money from the library fund so I bought a few art books for school and I found a present to bring to my sister in Calgary.

When we left the art gallery we were ready for lunch (brunch in my case because I hadn’t had breakfast). We drove along Queen St East and headed toward Leslieville where we found a tiny Irish pub. Our daughter had been there before but for my husband and I it was a new experience. G and I ordered and shared mushrooms on toast and the terrine plate while my husband ordered his traditional Irish breakfast.

After our meal we drove our daughter home and then headed out to see our oldest daughter. We stayed just long enough to have a cup of coffee and pick up a parcel notification. Sometime tomorrow I’ll drive to Purolator and pick up a parcel for her.

When we got home it was already 4:00. Time just flew by. Looks like we’ll be eating salad for dinner. It’s already 6:00 and I’m still full from my one meal today. This should be my last post today. Hopefully I can get to some of my art. If I do I’ll share with you tomorrow. No more staying up late to post things that can wait till tomorrow.

Cheers!

First Day of March Break

Posted on March 7, 2014 by Mama Cormier

…..even though this is a PA day without pay it couldn’t come soon enough

The sun is shining, the temperature is warmer, I didn’t have to get up at 6:30, my husband made me a perfect omelet and I got out for a long walk with the dog and K this morning. Heavenly!

I leave for Calgary next week so I was hoping to get my hair cut before I go but when I phoned to make an appointment my regular hairdresser, who I haven’t seen in months, was booked solid until next Friday. Boo hoo! I’ve been going to a young woman just up the street and even though she does a pretty good job, the last time I went I wasn’t 100% satisfied. Well it must be my lucky day because the salon called back and told me that D had a cancellation. Yahoo!

Driving into town in the middle of the afternoon wasn’t bad and finding a place to park was relatively easy. I think a lot of people have already left town for March Break vacations. It was great to see D again. She was off for awhile planning her wedding and going on her honeymoon and that’s why I went elsewhere for a couple of cuts. The salon by the way is Brennan DeMelo on Adelaide St., if you’re interested.

As soon as D saw me see she knew exactly what I needed and could see why I wasn’t that happy with the last cut. The big news in her life is that soon after her wedding she got pregnant. She planned it that way just in case it took awhile to get pregnant. Well I guess it didn’t and she looks like she’s having twins, although the ultrasound showed only one baby. Her baby is due on August 28th which just so happens to be my birthday.

I’m happy for her but I was wondering if I was going to have to look for a new hairdresser when the baby is born but she assured me that she was coming back, even if it is only a few hours a week. I’ll really have to book in advance. I love my new haircut. It’s a bit shorter than the last cut. To fix the problem D had to cut more away but I don’t mind. I think the new cut looks great.

What’s next on the agenda. I’m not sure. We’re thinking about going to the movies tonight and tomorrow we’re hoping to go to the museum (ROM) and Sunday looks like a good day to check out the AGO (art gallery). The one thing I am sure about, though is going for long walks every morning as long as this nice weather holds out.

The Perfect Day for our Winter Olympics

Posted on February 20, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….freshly fallen snow and temperatures just below freezing

Tuesday morning I arrived early for basketball practice. I assigned a couple of students to sweep the snow off the adventure playground and I drew a couple of targets on the brick wall in preparation for the event that G and I were in charge of, the biathlon. In total there were 11 activities that were being set up for our Winter Olympics.

Shortly after the bell rang students waited to be called to the gym where they would find out which country and team they would be part of. We were hoping to start the first activity at 9:00 but organizing 420 students into 22 teams took longer than we anticipated. The older students were the flag bearers and held up their flags which also had a number of letter assigned to it. Before the students arrived their teachers wrote a number or letter on their hands so they would know where to go when they got to the gym.

The challenge was placing the kindergarten children with the older children. It was the first time that the younger children participated in a fun day with the whole school. I think that their teachers were a little more anxious than the kids themselves. The grades 4 and 5 students did an excellent job looking after their younger team members. They assisted them with the activities and ran with them when necessary but most importantly no one was lost or misplaced during the entire morning.

Every team rotated through at least six activities before the morning ended and then everyone returned to their classes where hot chocolate and cookies were waiting.

After lunch all the students went to the gym where all the choirs were called to the front of the room to perform the songs that they would be singing later in the week and in the following week for Kiwanis. This is a music festival that our school participates in every year. It’s a competition where schools compete against each other in different categories. This year we’ve entered a primary choir, junior choir, grade 4 homeroom choir, grade 5 homeroom choir and a boy’s choir.

After the choirs performed we had our closing ceremony for the Olympic games. At lunch G and I tabulated all the scores from the morning’s events and we determined which countries would win the gold, silver and bronze medals.

We asked the flag bearers to pick up their flags and after the Olympic torch and the banner with the Olympic rings entered the gym I called on each country to enter the gym with their flags held high. The spirit in the room was amazing.

Then it was time to announce the winning countries. The winner of the bronze medal was Denmark. Silver went to Sweden and the gold medalists came from Germany.

Enjoy the photos while you listen to

ThePianoGuys – Let It Go (Disney’s “Frozen”) Vivaldi’s Winter

Burning the Midnight Oil on the Weekend Preparing for the Winter Olympics

Posted on February 20, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….my weekend wasn’t all fun and games with the family

Of course when I say ‘the Winter Olympics’ I’m referring to our fun day at school where we organized a variety of winter games for the boys and girls to participate in. Last week a group of us quickly assembled a committee to plan for a Winter Olympic extravaganza that involved the entire school, from JKs to grade 5s. Not knowing how much longer the snow would stay on the ground and knowing that the temperatures wouldn’t be in the polar vortex zone we decided to host the games on the Tuesday right after the Family Day weekend.

The committee came up with 12 different sporting events, from the ‘Biathlon to Luge to Hockey, that teams could compete in. The sign up sheet went up in the staffroom and all the staff signed up for an event. Two teachers volunteered to make hot chocolate for 420 children and two of the kindergarten teachers wanted to make the Olympic banner with the Olympic Rings. My colleague next to the library worked with me and her class to make 22 different flags from some of the countries that actually participate in the Winter Olympics. After making the paper flags we decided that we needed to laminate them so that they wouldn’t be destroyed when they were taken outside. That job was done mostly during our prep time and after school and G took some home to finish off the remaining ones after we ran out of the Mack Tack that we were using.

I volunteered to make the 60 medals on the weekend and I had started to make paper dowels for the flags but I hadn’t made nearly enough before I left for the weekend. I also wanted to make an Olympic torch but I wasn’t quite sure how I would tackle that because of course I wanted it to look like the one that was used in Sochi.

Over the weekend I spent some of my time shopping for ribbon for the medals and silver spray paint. A parent at school donated enough CDs for 60 medals and a can of gold and bronze spray paint.

After spray painting the CDs gold, silver and bronze I wrote on each of them, Rosethorn’s Winter Olympics 2014 and then I attached a ribbon big enough to fit over a child’s head. I debated whether to hot glue the ribbon at the ends or sew the ends together. On Monday night I opted for a quicker method and I taped the ends together.

Once the medals were finished I made 36 paper dowels to attach to the flags so that the children could carry them high in the air and then I taped them to the back of each flag. This is what my dining room table looked like Monday night.

One night over the weekend I was up till 3:00 in the morning working on the medals and on Monday I was up till 1:30. Before I went to bed the night before school I decided at the last minute that I really needed to make the Olympic torch as well. I quickly traced out the shape of the torch that they used in Sochi and then transferred the design onto 3 pieces of cardboard that I glued together and spray painted white. In the morning I added the red trim and glued some tissue paper at the top to represent the flames. When we did the closing ceremony I chose a little boy in kindergarten to carry the torch into the gym. He was the perfect choice.

To be continued……….

A Happy Day

Posted on February 15, 2014 by Mama Cormier

….busy, too many treats and a great dinner made by my husband

After surprising my husband with breakfast and his heart shaped donut this morning I left the house extra early to pick up three dozen “I love you” donuts from Tim Horton’s and then I continued on to school for another early morning basketball practice. When I got to school I discovered that my coaching colleague was also there so I took the time to pack the donuts into the specially decorated paper bags and started to deliver my little gifts to the staff.

People were surprised and delighted to find that the donut inside the bag was in the shape of a heart. This was the beginning of an onslaught of treats throughout the day. I don’t have the heart to say ‘no thank you’ to the boys and girls who offer me their specially made treats but I did resist the snacks that were in the staffroom. For most of the treats I took a single bite and when no one was looking I discarded the rest. If I didn’t do that I’m sure I would be suffering a ‘sugar induced headache’.

For lunch our principal treated us to pizza and not just any old pizza but pizza from Mamma’s. There were 7 different varieties to cater to the different dietary needs and individual preferences. I had one piece with the crust and after that I only ate the toppings. You might think that is odd but I’ve learned over the years that it’s the bread dough that plays havoc with my weight.

Tonight when I got home my husband had prepared the most amazing dinner. Shrimp cocktail and a glass of champagne to start, followed by a medium rare filet mignon, Brussel sprouts, sweet potatoes and red wine. It was the perfect amount of food and delicious to boot.

Whether you celebrate Valentine’s Day or not I hope you had a fabulous day, filled with love and laughter.