We experienced a #MapleSugarRush with @ExploreWR and you should too! #DiscoverOntario

Photo by @zamlos
Used with permission from The Curious Creature

Pancakes are a pretty big deal around here on weekends, mostly because they are the perfect vessel for copious amounts of maple syrup. When we were asked to take part in a family bloggers trip to explore the Waterloo Region, we jumped at the chance. What a great day for all of us! 

The Maple Sugar Bush

It started with a horse-drawn sleigh ride through the Maple SugarBush at Martin's Farm with our equine companions, Duke and Mikki.

Mmmmm... Maple toffee on snow!

I'm a little ashamed to admit that despite living my whole life about an hour away from the Waterloo Region I have just never gotten around to doing a tour to see how maple syrup is made. I know, how dreadfully un-Canadian of me! Thankfully, I have rectified this for my own kids, though granted a little too early for Little Cat Z to have much recollection of it. That's OK, now that I'm reminded just how close to home it is and how much fun can be had, we can make this trip an annual event for his benefit. Also, it turns out I'm a "medium" maple syrup kind of gal, but I could be talked into an amber if the pancake is right.

After a break for some maple toffee on snow and hot apple cider to warm us up, we headed off to the St.Jacobs Farmers Market for a tasty lunch. The Husband highly recommends Grandpa’s Soft Pretzels, and this is not a man whose recommendations should be taken lightly, particularly not when it comes to baked goods.

The Village of St. Jacobs

Child provided for scale

St. Jacobs is so quaint, one might think time forgot it. This is probably due to the large local Mennonite population, a group we learned more about from TheMennonite Story at the St. Jacobs Visitor Center. M is a bit too young to "get it" but The Husband and I found it very interesting. The next stop, however, was a little kids dream. You’ll have to see the St. Jacobs & Aberfoyle ModelRailway to believe it. Model building isn't a hobby I could ever take up with any success because of skills required. Like patience, of which I have none. But when people who love it get together to build something like this, the results are spectacular. Another highlight of the day was sampling craft beers at Block Three Brewing.

The Maple Sugar Rush experience was a great way to spend a day with the littles. It's amazing to think about just how much there is to see and do just a short drive away from home. Family Day is coming up and it’s only an hour away. Better still, make a mid-week adventure during March Break. I'm not into crowds so I really enjoyed the weekday adventure, but if you don’t mind being one of the masses and you're really into your maple syrup, go check out the Elmira Maple Syrup Festival this spring.

Disclosure: We received complimentary meals and admission to attractions from the Waterloo Regional Tourism Marketing Corporation as part of this blogger tour for review purposes, but otherwise no compensation was received for this post. All opinions expressed are my own. 

Tips for surviving your partner’s business travel

Are there words more dreaded than “required business travel” when your partner starts a new job? We have a good division of labour in our household so his absence during these trips is strongly felt. The highlight of his last trip was making my daughter cry as I yelled at her to “Just get in the @*&$^ car!” I’ll pick up my Mother of the Year award later, thanks. In my defense pregnancy fatigue does not increase patience. Still, that’s not her fault. I made a promise it would be different for his next trip. Here are steps I have taken to make things easier on all of us:

Planning, planning, planning!
The meal plan features simple, one-pot affairs. Everybody’s laundry was done over the weekend because who wants to discover a wet, musty bathing suit when it’s time to leave for swimming class? The gas tank is full and I have enough cash for the week. Sure, surprises still happen (Hooray! A birthday party… this weekend!) but it’s easier to roll with the punches when there are fewer of them. 

Identify and eliminate potential points of FAIL!
Before I retire for the night I do EVERYTHING for the morning - including washing fruit and pouring cereal and breakfast drinks. It only saves a couple of minutes, but if the FaceTime call with Daddy fails I want those minutes to cuddle and dry tears instead of having to hustle, hustle, hustle.

Respect the routine
The Husband and I handle different parts of the bedtime routine (except when I'm pregnant, when he does the lion's share. Because he is awesome.) It’s tempting to skip steps when I’m on my own, but it’s not fair to expect a little kid to adapt to change in the who AND the what, so I complete all steps in the bedtime ritual. OK, maybe I skip a few words in the bedtime story... This practice will end when she learns to read. 

Know when to ditch the routine
I am a public transit evangelist who eschews the car for the daily commute because I respect the environment, dammit! Except while The Husband is out of town, when the planet can go to hell. Rather than berate myself for running late and then driving to daycare and work, I just budget for parking and carry on with my days. The relief is sweet when I hear about multiple subway delays. 

Revel in the one-on-one time
The baby will be here soon. I don’t have much time left to give my firstborn baby all of my attention. Thanks to advance planning, dinner prep is quick and the dishes can wait until after bedtime. We have time to cuddle on the couch and tell silly stories about My Little Pony.

So far, so good! Got any tips you'd care to add to the list?

The one where she talks to strangers

Six years ago, in what seems like another lifetime now, I crossed "See the Pyramids" off my bucket list.  Toronto to Cairo isn't a popular enough route to warrant a direct flight, so it required a stopover in Amsterdam both ways. On the way back I booked a few days in Amsterdam, because why not? I met The Stranger on that flight. What a story to tell the grandchildren! "We met on the way from Cairo to Amsterdam." Can you imagine? He was exotic and gorgeous, like one would expect the man you meet on a globetrotting adventure to be.

My flight was delayed. I was still a smoker back then and the only seat left in the airport lounge was the one in a booth across from him. After I sat down we made the idle chit-chat you make when circumstances force you to sit a few feet away from a person you don't know. We learned we were on the same flight. We talked about Amsterdam and things to do while there. When we discovered the plane was half empty, we sat together. It's a long flight, might as well have company to pass the time.

When we landed, he invited me to dinner. I said yes. After all, a stranger is just a friend you haven't met. He was there for work so his days were full, but we spent the evenings together. His mother was Egyptian, he was visiting her family but he was raised in Munich and still lived there. He was ridiculously interesting. When my three days in Amsterdam were up, he invited me to come to Germany for the weekend. Tempting! But I said I couldn't. We didn't exchange contact information. Why bother pretending you're going to keep in touch from half a world away?

I spent a lot of time wondering why I didn't go. It wouldn't have caused undue financial hardship to change my flight or spend a few more days away from home. Yes, he was exotic and gorgeous, but he was also smart and a lot of fun. I still had plenty of vacation time left, an occupational hazard of workaholism. Means. Motive. Opportunity. Was I nuts? A beautiful stranger invited me to a strange land and I said no? What the hell was wrong with me?

I flew home and carried on with my life. I thought about The Stranger once in a while, but only in passing. A few months later I met another stranger, this time one a little closer to home. I think I didn't go because I knew on some level the gorgeous, exotic man half a world away was not THE Stranger I was destined for. Our story isn't quite "We met on the way from Cairo to Amsterdam," but it has a happy ending. I hope the grandchildren will understand.


This post is written as part of GBE2 - Week #50 word prompt: The Stranger. For more info about GBE,  click here.   

Things I Did Elsewhere: Week 11 Recap

It would seem I'm a little behind on posting things I did elsewhere. Meh. Shit happens. I made a goal to submit articles to online publications at least twice a month and have sent in one so far, so I'll find out if it gets picked up for publication soon. See, I told you! Goals are good. 

At The Facebook Page, as usual I shared our weekly meal plans for last week and this week. It's possible I fucked up the order of those links. It probably doesn't matter, and I'm really hungover tired so if I did screw it up I might get around to checking and ultimately fixing it later. So if they are screwed up and you saw it, you'll be like one of those people who have one of those dollar bills that are printed upside down. If they're right, it's just like a plain old dollar bill here. Now you have to ask yourself... do you feel lucky?

At The Wine Fund, I shared a review of the hotel we stayed at for our Easter weekend getaway. A nice, clean, reasonably priced, family-friendly hotel mere blocks away from all the attractions in Niagara Falls, Ontario and minutes away from the border crossing. If a trip to the Falls is in your future, you should stay there. Later this week I'll share the review of a book that I... didn't love. Come back and see my feeble attempts at diplomacy!

Finding Nemo

SEASter Egg Hunt - Aquarium of Niagara

He's in there... somewhere. I think. Behind the Easter Egg? Or maybe he was in another tank. You know, after a while they all kind of look alike. But let me tell you, to a three year old, the sight of seal (sea lion?) swimming around a pool with a ball on his nose is officially The Funniest Thing Ever.  If you're in the Upstate New York/Southern Ontario area, the Aquarium of Niagara is just the right size for little people and a great time can be had by all. If you happen to be suffering from a devastating hangover because you and your partner dipped rather heavily into the wine the night before your kid decided 5:30 was a great time to start the day, you can be in and out of there well before the decibel level of hoards of children makes your eyes bleed. Feel free to file that one under "Good to Know" and you're welcome.

Also, since the souvenirs aren't the "officially licensed" ones, you can get a clown fish that a little kid will swear is Nemo for $15. I don't know if that's a good deal or not, but I do know it got us the hell out of the gift shop before I completely lost my shit, so I consider it money well spent.

Apparently a single visit to Niagara Falls can make a trip to Build a Bear a "thing." The Parasite picked the bear's name herself, and we have the birth certificate reading "Teddy Bear Queen Falling Bear" to prove it. I know, letting it become a "thing" was a newbie mistake, but watching her try to carry the box back to the hotel herself was worth its weight in gold.

Goals are good

If you found this post as part of a search for self-help type info, I'm afraid you're going to be very disappointed. I'd apologize, but I wouldn't mean it and really, insincerity harms us all. Better luck next time? Like most Type A people, I make a lot of lists and I set a lot of goals. One might think I relax this mindset when it comes to my kid. That would indicate one does not know me very well at all...

While at the zoo one day when The Parasite was very small, I noticed that the fish tank held her attention better than the mammals could ever hope to. I attempted to test this theory with a trip to Seaworld when she was a little older and was very disappointed to learn that the "aquarium" they speak of on the website was really a couple of large fish tanks in a gift shop. I'm sure the whale show is fascinating, but the wait was too long.

No matter, I had another opportunity a year later in the Bahamas. The fish-fascination held and an idea was born. A quick Google showed there are about 50 aquariums in North America. I resolve to take The Parasite to most, if not all, of them before she leaves for University. We're going to do a lot of traveling anyway because we love to, so seeing some fishies while we're at it seems as good a reason for a trip as any.

Last summer's road trip took us to the Aquarium of New England. A trip to Southern California one day will cross about eight off the list, and we'll hit the others as it strikes our fancy. Like the one we'll see tomorrow on our Easter mini getaway. Will the fascination with the fishies hold for long enough to see all 50? Only time will tell!

Things I Did Elsewhere: Week 7 Recap

Yes, I did miss a few weeks. I wasn't doing bloggy things elsewhere because I was busy teaching my daughter how to be a world traveler. She's had a total meltdown in an airport now, so I think she's all set.

At The Facebook Page I posted the back to reality meal plan and my recipe for a crockpot beef stroganoff. Which doesn't involve a crockpot. It's less complicated than it sounds. Want some ideas for what to make for dinner this week or a recipe me tested and me approved to be quick and easy for a weeknight meal? Don't feel like waiting for me to get around to posting a weekly recap? Can't say I blame you, patience is a virtue but it's not one of mine. Go ahead and "Like" The Facebook Page already!

At The Wine Fund, I posted my review our holiday (Awesome! The holiday, not the review. Though I think the review is pretty good too...) AND the first of what I plan to make a weekly feature, the App of the Week. But I might not actually get around to posting an app every week because, as we already know, I'm really quite lazy. Want to know a better way to find out what's the latest and greatest in the world of apps? Sign up for the appSmitten weekly email update. Pick your device, pick your categories of interest and sit back and watch with glee as you receive suggestions for apps YOU want to know about. Yeah, I'm an appSmitten affiliate and I get a small commission if you sign up for the newsletter, but that's not why you should do it. You should because you're pretty cool and cool people should know about cool stuff first.

And finally, want to know how The Husband and I have managed to keep up our sex life since becoming parents? Well, we haven't. But you should still read the article I wrote for Circle of Moms for tips on keeping in touch without keeping touched.

Have a great week!

Don't mark an occasion like this!

And here you thought I'd been neglecting my poor blog, didn't you? I've actually been aboard the Norwegian Star for the last week visiting Honduras, Belize and Mexico. I know I'm biased, but my kid was totally awesome for 99.76% of the trip, and on the occasions she wasn't awesome, it was usually more my fault (no nap, late lunch) than hers. She's a travelling dream.

However, today we were awakened at the ass crack of dawn to register with U.S. Customs and Immigration, had a super-long wait for our flight which was delayed to boot, and had the pleasure of waking up an exhausted toddler when we landed. Oh, and it's my birthday. I have established that air travel is second only to a hospital bed as the shittiest way one's birthday. My kid is not the only one ready to collapse into her bed. I'll have more about the trip later, including reviews over at The Wine Fund of the cruise itself and the ports of call.

Missing you

See? Told you it was the size of a pail!

I'm in a place that's pretty close to paradise. They serve drinks in glasses the size of pails here. I'm having a great time with a lifelong friend and it's really a wonderful trip. But there's this underlying feeling of something that should be there that isn't.

Oh, that's right! It's my baby.

I knew I was going to miss her, I just had no idea it was going to be a near constant ache. In about 30 hours I'm going to give her the world's biggest hug, and I'm not going to spend another night away from her for a really, really long time.

Hi 2012!

Happy New Year! I hope everyone spent last night with loved ones, or at least well liked ones. The Husband and I have a New Year's tradition of our own, eschewing the big party scene for fondue and copious amounts of Prosecco, a nectar of the Gods. There were some sad times in 2011 as both of The Husband's grandmothers passed away and there were some disappointing times as we learned the second baby we long for isn't coming without some help. But on the whole it was a good year with lots of fun times for my little family.

I don't make New Year's Resolutions because I do better with periodic, short-term goals but I do like to look at the year ahead and make a game plan. We've got a two family vacations planned to help us take a break from the crazy that is our day-to-day life and just bask in our love for each other. And fight and bicker in airports somewhere, but that's just details. When you look back at time with the family, with any luck you only see smiles in the pictures.

The most significant item on the 2012 agenda is, hopefully, the start of a sibling for The Parasite. Three rounds of treatment and a few more months of letting nature take its course with a deadline of December 31, 2012. If there's no baby on the way as we have champagne and Prosecco next year, we'll close up shop and enjoy our life with the awesome kid we already have. And we'll concentrate on making her life the stuff that dreams are made of.

Happy New Year everyone! I hope you'll stay along for the ride.

Winter Vacation

This week, I made the final payment on our winter vacation. We're taking a cruise that goes from Tampa to Honduras, Belize and Mexico. It is literally months away and I'm trying to decide what day activities we're going to do. I have already determined how many points I'll need for the flights for our summer vacation. It's a sickness, people. A sickness!

After last Friday's relaxation, I have decided most of you are right, I need to do it more often. I am doing the laundry tonight and I'm going grocery shopping tomorrow night so that on Sunday I can sleep in and goof off, dammit! Wish me luck with that, I'll probably need it.

Happy Thanksgiving to all my American friends! I hope those of you going shopping tomorrow are wearing full protective gear and keeping your elbows sharp.