a midsummer dream

During my high school and university years, I was fortunate to spend my summers simultaneously working part time jobs to support my education AND attending one or two English literature/creative writing classes for extra school credits.  Back then, I looked at summer time as an opportunity to experiment and explore...taking jobs that were not in my realm of studies but peeked my curiosities (fashion) and classes that honed my writing skills (studying Shakespeare and Chauncer to fill my summer reading requirements).

You can say I had a lot of drive and was a bit of a keener.  Even though I had a few weeks of vacation to relax at the beach with my family or friends, for the most part, summer was a time to transform myself.  There were times when I actually looked forward to going back to school just so I can show how far I've grown and what I've proudly accomplished while others were working on their tan.

A bit of that feeling still carries with me today.  As we approach midway through a busy summer of trips, cottage and swim camps, I still have that slight nagging feeling like we haven't accomplished enough.  What have we learned this summer? What have we done?

As I ponder these thoughts, I look at how my kids glow in the pleasures of being outside splashing in the water, or how windblown crazy their hair get after a ride on their motor bikes, or the dirt accumulated under their fingernails from playing in the yard.  Yes, they still continue to upkeep their reading and arithmetic skills, and have accomplished graduating to higher levels with their swimming programs, but their greatest accomplishment this summer is making lasting memories that we too, created when we were kids. Cultivating new interests (like diving), visiting new places and meeting new friends without the pressure of schedules or competition.

As adults we have created a society that now suffers from decision fatigue and I think many of us long for those summer moments when we laid on the grass doing nothing but pointing out shapes made by the clouds. Or skipping rocks along the water.  A simpler time.  

I think there is plenty of time for our kids to grow up, when they too, will be inundated with overwhelming choices and decisions to make. Until then, I'll squash all those nagging feelings I've been having and appreciate that my dreams for this summer have already been realized...each day being with my family has been such a joy and gift...

...and we're barely half way there.

Parmesan Crusted Tilapia

Makes 4-6 servings

After weeks of indulging and consuming lots of BBQ meat, it's nice to occasionally switch to lighter fare to break the summer menu.  This recipe is great for those quick dinners that are light but still fulfilling...on those nights when you'd rather enjoy the beautiful outdoors than spending it sweating in the kitchen or over a hot BBQ.

Ingredients

• ½ cup parmesan cheese
• ¼ cup bread crumbs
• ¼ cup of butter, softened
• ¼ cup of mayonnaise
• 1 tsp. thyme
• 1 garlic clove, minced
• Black of white pepper (to taste)
• 4 fillets of tilapia (or any white fish of your choosing)

Directions:

• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees
• Add parmesan, bread crumbs and mayonnaise to the butter until well mixed.
• Gently stir in the garlic, thyme and pepper.
• Place the tilapia fillets in a single layer on a baking sheet.
• Top with the parmesan crumb mixture.
• Bake in the oven for 20 minutes or until the fish is cooked. (if you wish, you can broil the fish for about 1 minute to toast the crumb topping.
• Serve (with rice or sweet potatoes).

Enjoy! 

happy canada day

swimming upstream

My children's school started summer break one week earlier than most of the surrounding schools this year.  So we decided to take advantage of what I seemingly thought would be a quiet week, going to attractions that wouldn't be busy since most of the kids were still in school.

We decided to visit the new Ripley's Aquarium, going early in the morning thinking we could have the whole place almost all to ourselves.  Little did I factor that many schools do field trips during the last two days of school (ughh!), and we found ourselves swimming upstream, so to speak.

Our day started by missing the train...we saw it leave the platform as we ascended the stairs.  Once we arrived at the aquarium, my jaw dropped as we saw bus load after bus load of school children line up to get in.  Luckily we were able to "fast pass" the crowd by purchasing our tickets online the night before.

We decided to do what we did at Disney...do the "back nine" first (I'm sure many of you golfers out there understand this).  In other words, we headed to the end of the aquarium and worked our way back towards the front entrance.  We were able to miss most of the crowds, we ate lunch ahead of the long line ups, and got to see a few interesting shows to boot.

After the lunch crowd dispersed, we were able to really enjoy the best part of the exhibit...the shark tunnel!  And we made it just in time for feeding, so we felt like we were swimming with the sharks.

Although the day may not have started as we had originally planned, it worked out after all and we learned that sometimes going against the crowd works out better at the end.  

{Disclaimer}: There are no endorsements or affiliations with any of the businesses or establishments mentioned in this post.  I just wanted to share the simply beautiful  experience my family enjoyed, and all opinions are my own.

Garlic Scallop and Bacon Pasta

Makes 4-6 servings.

Ingredients:

• 10 scallops
• 10 slices of bacon
• 4 cloves of garlic, minced
• 3 tbsp. olive oil
• ¼ cup unsalted butter
• 1 tsp. dried parsley or 1 tbsp. fresh parsley
• ¼ cup of grated parmesan cheese
• 450 g of pasta (linguine, spaghetti or fettucine work here)

Directions:

• Preheat oven at 375 degrees.
• In a cast iron skillet, wrap the scallops with bacon, and bake for approximately 20 minutes.
• Boil the pasta as directed.
• In the meantime, in a small saute pan, brown the garlic in olive oil and butter, until the garlic is softened.
• Remove from heat and stir in the parmesan and parsley.
• Add cooked scallops and bacon, and toss until scallops and bacon are coated with the garlic oil.
• Toss with cooked pasta.
• Top with more parmesan, as desired.

Enjoy!

d is for dad

I love to watch my kids with their Dad.  He has such amazing grace and ease with them, and their relationship is filled with love, laughter and giggles.

It goes without saying that my husband plays such a huge role in our children's lives, and I see a lot of his special qualities in our kids:  leadership, intelligence, kindness and understanding.  

One of his favourite Father's Day gift from the kids was a "secret" year-long project (we dubbed it "project D") that the kids concocted last year...something special that showed how they cherish him, not just on Father's Day, birthdays or other special occasions...but every day, every season, all year long.

When he opened the framed photo, he cherished knowing we were dedicated to complete our "project" for him, wherever we were together as a family. Whether we were on our family vacation on the beach...

...or after a day of skiing together...

...or just hanging out in our backyard...

...we cherished our time together.  I think their Father's Day gift was worth a thousand words.

Happy Father's Day!

mother's day

As a writer of a blog, I've published many stories, recipes, DIY and crafts that have been tested, tried and true in my home.  My own cathartic way to express my creativity.

Creative expression is very important, and as a mother (or any parent or guardian), one of the most rewarding things to see is our children's creativity.  It reflects how much they have progressed, what they've learned, and their view of the world.  It's also a sneak peek at understanding how we've  influenced them...answering which trait, which part of us has been passed on to them.  

For Mother's Day, I thought I'd sit back and show the results of my kid's creative juices...art and crafts made by the KIDS.  The recipes, the creative juices that flowed, the results of their creative juices.  It's a window into their world.  Those funny, insane, creative little moments...displayed in the hall of their school...

...or a drawing for a book report...

...or just silly dress up play with the toys...

...or a family craft, done yearly for the holidays...

Now it's my turn to really shine...with pride.

Happy Mother's Day!

connect

In an increasingly digital world where it often feels like we're actually not connecting, adding to the challenges like financial restraints, demanding work schedules and conflicting educational objectives can often make it difficult to find the time and energy to continue developing our personal relationships.

Time to connect is very important to me.  Although around this time of year, sometimes that slight feeling of panic washes over me as I wonder if I've planned, booked or scheduled enough travel activities for the summer, amazingly enough, owning a dog has helped us by circumstance, to slow down and disconnect from crazy schedules instead of each other.  More than I had ever imagined, having a dog as part of our family has given us so many beautiful moments together.

Here are 5 ways our dog has given us opportunities to slow down and connect (although owning a dog is not required to do any of these):

1)  Observing the little creatures around us.  So often our dog would run to the door and bark at a squirrel or a bird that is in our backyard.  Although we all get a good laugh to see our dog become overprotective of our family against any critter outside, often it has made us actually stop and look outside and see what is really just at our doorstep...right under our noses.

2)  Going for a walk.  Although we may not be very diligent (especially in snow or rain weather) with our daily walks, we try to highlight it's importance to our daily routine.  We strive to incorporate  physical activity in our daily lives, even if it's just for 10 minutes, to maintain a healthy lifestyle. This brief time gives us a little break, a reprieve from our daily schedule to just collect our thoughts at the end of the day.

3)  Running free.  When we visit our local leash-free dog park, it's amazing the things we discover in our neighbourhood on our way there. Running free without care at the park is just enough to invigorate us and when we breathe that fresh air, the oxygen clears our minds, de-stresses us so we can be open to listen and converse with each other, without anxiety or pent up emotions (and gets our creative juices flowing).

4) Learning new tricks.  I often say the best way to learn is to teach.  It forces you to see from another person's perspective (or in this case, a little animal) what facts are important to know, how to communicate those facts, and patience with teaching and explanation.  Having a dog has given us compassion, not just for our pup who is behaving more and more like a well-mannered dog, but for us as humans, learning to behave and treat each other with kindness and respect.  We all have our own story.

5)  Unconditional love.  No matter what kind of day we've had, our pup is there by our side.  No matter how long we've been out doing our own activities without our dog, whenever we get home, our pup is there patiently waiting without judgement or anger...just waiting to give all the kisses and attention in the world, because we're family.  We can all learn from this pup.

As we plan for the summer season that will arrive in just a few short months, this time, I'm less inclined to worry too much about scheduling activities. We'll still have plenty of summer memories visiting friends and family, cottage activities and BBQ's...and now we'll also have memories of spending lazy days with our pup, just observing the little things around us...and enjoying our quiet moments together.