1. Red is Best by Kathy Stinson. This story is a classic that I’ve just recently discovered (thanks Dawn!). Three year old Kelly must have only the red cup, the red mittens, the red stockings. No other colour will do. As the mother of a three year old, the unwavering kid logic is immediately relatable to me. Little Kelly’s voice comes across loud, clear and with beautiful authenticity. For a mother who wants to encourage her daughter to embrace and defend her opinions, this one was an instant favourite.
2. If You Give a Moose a Muffin by Laura Joffe Numeroff. Follow step by step all the crazy occurrences when forced to appease the largest species in the deer family who runs out of baked goods. Whimsical, quirky and with great illustrations, this book shows kids what reading for pleasure is all about: fun, imagination, entertainment.
3. Marvin K. Mooney Will You Please Go Now by Dr. Seuss. What kind of children’s book list would this be without Dr. Seuss? But you were probably expecting something more mainstream like Cat in the Hat or Go, Dog. Go! And rightly so. Those are great books, maybe even better than Marvin K. But when I was two years old my parents read Marvin K. to me so often I had it memorized right down to when to turn the pages. I would try and trick people into thinking I was reading. Flash forward thirty-ish years to me reading this toddler favourite of mine to my kids. What can I say? It gives me the warm fuzzies.
4. Miss Nelson is Missing by Harry Allard and James Marshall. Permit me to go off on a tangent here that will not only enlighten you about a great book, if you haven’t heard of it already, but also tell you a lot about a big difference between my sister and me.
About this time last year my sister was visiting and we were reminiscing about a book we both loved when we were kids, a book whose title we could no longer remember. All that we could remember was that it was about a teacher, it was kinda creepy and we simultaneously loved it and were frightened by it. Cut to me, ordering a Christmas gift for my sister. This is always difficult for me because I’m a) crap at picking gifts for people and 2) never on time when it comes to shipping Christmas gifts overseas. This time I decided I would order something online. I found out from my sister she wanted kitchen gadgets: mini cheese grater, salt & pepper shaker, spoon rest, you get the picture. I found an online store in my family’s area so that they will ship for free to my mother, who had kindly agreed to wrap the presents for me and then pass them on to my sister. I finalized my online purchase thinking how clever I was, all without ever having to leave my house and brave the mall, which I avoid doing like a mammogram (which I know, I shouldn’t avoid those but geez, they don’t sound like fun, do they?). Anyway, a few weeks later I get a call from my mom: somehow I have shipped her 6 spoon rests, 6 salt and pepper shakers, 18 mini cheese graters!!! Turns out the store I was ordering from was a restaurant supplier for bulk purchases. ARGH!!
What, you may be wondering, does this have to do with the book? Well about a week later I get a Christmas package from my sister containing many wonderful, thoughtful and completely perfect gifts for my family. Among them is, you guessed it, Miss Nelson Is Missing. She somehow managed to locate the book from our childhood, a book we couldn’t even remember the title of, and send it to me. *Sigh* And now you know one of the many reasons my sister is so fabulous. She is one of those thoughtful people with the uncanny knack of selecting the absolute perfect gift.
Oh, you want to know about the book? Well, I’ll just say that this book was probably my first significant introduction to the “plot twist.” Done well, even at a children’s level, it is a thing of beauty. Get it. Read it. See what I mean.
5. The Bear Snores On by Karma Wilson. Often I’ll get children’s books from the library and think, who the heck wrote this? Do they even have children? Don’t they know that children’s books are usually read to them and therefore have to sound good out loud? Karma Wilson gets it. The Bear Snores On has all the elements of a great children’s book: funny little story, easy to follow, likeable characters, cute pictures, but best of all is the lyrical element of the words. They roll off your tongue. My children love to hear it and I love to read it to them.
Yay books! Do you have a favourite? Tell me!
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Monday, November 10, 2008
5 reasons I’m jealous of American politics
1. American politicians are like rock stars. Whereas Canadian politicians are like the nerds who got beat up in high school. Come on. You know forty years ago some jock was roughing up Dion for his lunch money. I remember about nine years ago I was flying in to Philadelphia to visit a friend when the plane started circling the airport. The pilot came on and explained that we had to wait to land because President Clinton was flying in at the same time. I suddenly felt a little giddy. I was in the same place as the President of the United States. I was sharing airspace with Bill! Cool! Then I thought, what if it were Jean Chretien, Prime Minister at the time, who was the one flying in. Totally different. Then I would have just been annoyed that he was delaying my landing time.
2. The choices are clear. During our election (Yes, American friends, we did have one! I know, blink and you missed it.) I kept lamenting, if I were American I know who I’d vote for. But up here it was confusing to me. At least five different choices. And not different like Republican vs. Democrat different. The Green Party vs. NDP differences were more subtle. And then there was this notion of strategic voting: giving your vote to whichever party had the better chance of beating the Conservatives depending on what riding you were in. Huh? I know I am woefully under informed when it comes to politics in general and Canadian politics in particular but I just wanted to ask someone, if I would vote for Obama in the States then who does that translate to in Canadian??
3. The debates. Now my fellow Canadians, be honest. How many of you watched the American Vice Presidential Debate instead of the Canadian Leaders’ Debate on October 2nd? You are not alone. It was hard not to be sucked in by the guilty temptation of potentially seeing Sarah Palin humiliate herself on internationally broadcasted television … again. In the end she did alright and I felt guilty so I watched a recording of the Canadian round table discussion online. But holy Snoozeville, Batman!
4. The glamour. Whether it’s the controversy over Palin’s pricey wardrobe, the talk about the return to Camelot now that an attractive younger couple are heading to the White House or comparing Michelle Obama to Jackie Kennedy, there’s a glamour to American politics. One that is completely absent from Canadian politics. Look what we have to work with. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t have anything against Elizabeth May. I thought she came across very well, intellectually, in the debate and in fact, I even voted Green. But it’s hard to imagine anyone referring to her as a MILF.
5. Barack Obama. I can’t be the only Canadian who, swept up in the excitement of the election and the emotion of the historical democratic win, felt a tinge of jealousy over the American’s shiny new president. I mean, it was such a long run, hard fought, emotionally charged race. To see the world celebrate as the U.S., with record numbers of voters flocking to the polls, voted in its first African American president. Then to see his acceptance speech, his beautiful family, grown men and women listening to him in tears. With images of Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. rising from the past, to imagine the country forging forth on a new path, looking to this man to lead them … it was all so moving. In Canada after our own, in the words of Jon Stewart, “adorable” election, with decidedly mediocre numbers of Canadians voting, we were left with… the same damn guy. Crickets chirping. Ho hum.
2. The choices are clear. During our election (Yes, American friends, we did have one! I know, blink and you missed it.) I kept lamenting, if I were American I know who I’d vote for. But up here it was confusing to me. At least five different choices. And not different like Republican vs. Democrat different. The Green Party vs. NDP differences were more subtle. And then there was this notion of strategic voting: giving your vote to whichever party had the better chance of beating the Conservatives depending on what riding you were in. Huh? I know I am woefully under informed when it comes to politics in general and Canadian politics in particular but I just wanted to ask someone, if I would vote for Obama in the States then who does that translate to in Canadian??
3. The debates. Now my fellow Canadians, be honest. How many of you watched the American Vice Presidential Debate instead of the Canadian Leaders’ Debate on October 2nd? You are not alone. It was hard not to be sucked in by the guilty temptation of potentially seeing Sarah Palin humiliate herself on internationally broadcasted television … again. In the end she did alright and I felt guilty so I watched a recording of the Canadian round table discussion online. But holy Snoozeville, Batman!
4. The glamour. Whether it’s the controversy over Palin’s pricey wardrobe, the talk about the return to Camelot now that an attractive younger couple are heading to the White House or comparing Michelle Obama to Jackie Kennedy, there’s a glamour to American politics. One that is completely absent from Canadian politics. Look what we have to work with. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t have anything against Elizabeth May. I thought she came across very well, intellectually, in the debate and in fact, I even voted Green. But it’s hard to imagine anyone referring to her as a MILF.
5. Barack Obama. I can’t be the only Canadian who, swept up in the excitement of the election and the emotion of the historical democratic win, felt a tinge of jealousy over the American’s shiny new president. I mean, it was such a long run, hard fought, emotionally charged race. To see the world celebrate as the U.S., with record numbers of voters flocking to the polls, voted in its first African American president. Then to see his acceptance speech, his beautiful family, grown men and women listening to him in tears. With images of Rosa Parks and Martin Luther King Jr. rising from the past, to imagine the country forging forth on a new path, looking to this man to lead them … it was all so moving. In Canada after our own, in the words of Jon Stewart, “adorable” election, with decidedly mediocre numbers of Canadians voting, we were left with… the same damn guy. Crickets chirping. Ho hum.
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
5 ways I can complete the sentence, “I’m an athiest but…”
1. I got married in a Catholic church. Hubby told me it was very important to him, even though he hasn’t set foot in a church, except for weddings, funerals and baptisms, since.
2. I love Little House on the Prairie. Come on! Pa, Half Pint, Nellie Olsen. Who doesn’t love it?? I’m so glad they’ve started showing reruns everyday at 5pm on CTS. I even tolerate the nauseating ads to watch it.
3. I love the saying, “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” It’s such a poetically beautiful saying, don’t you think? When considering the plight of someone else enduring a hardship, I often find myself thinking “There but for the grace of …. something I believe in…. go I.” Somehow it just doesn’t have the same ring to it.
4. I am learning that I can be spiritual. When I was a kid I thought of God as some white haired guy hanging out in the clouds looking down and judging everything I did. As I got older and the implausibility of this notion grew in my mind I began rejecting all things religious. The pendulum swung past agnostic, over to atheist and stuck there for a while. But these days the pendulum is starting to swing back. Or maybe not back but over. Over to the idea that, just because I no longer identify with this notion of a bearded man in robes residing in the heavens, doesn’t mean I necessarily reject the idea of a guiding force or a oneness to humanity. If I sound very “New Earth” it’s because I love that book! In homage, one of these days I plan to write the list “5 reasons Eckhart Tolle could never have a Facebook page.”
5. I wish my kids said grace before a meal. Or maybe not grace. But showed appreciation in some way. In Japanese one says “itadakimasu” before a meal which literally means “I receive” but is generally meant to express gratitude for the food one is about to eat. Maybe I should start this tradition with my kids. To make up for the tradition I started in my family…
Okay, true story: Even though I didn’t have a particularly religious upbringing, we always said grace before a meal, followed by itadakimasu. When I was about 20 I began to feel a bit hypocritical about participating in the religious part of this practice. So I mentioned to my mother one day that I would no longer be saying grace with them and explained why. I meant to just quietly sit and respectfully wait while they said grace. To lighten the situation I joked with her that I was sorry her daughter was such a heathen. Well. The next time they went to say grace they looked at me somewhat awkwardly until my dad laughed, pointed at me and said, “Heathen!” So now, not only does my whole family no longer say grace, but after saying itadakimasu they follow it up with simply yelling, “Heathens!” I know, it’s unbelievable that lightening doesn’t strike me down.
2. I love Little House on the Prairie. Come on! Pa, Half Pint, Nellie Olsen. Who doesn’t love it?? I’m so glad they’ve started showing reruns everyday at 5pm on CTS. I even tolerate the nauseating ads to watch it.
3. I love the saying, “There, but for the grace of God, go I.” It’s such a poetically beautiful saying, don’t you think? When considering the plight of someone else enduring a hardship, I often find myself thinking “There but for the grace of …. something I believe in…. go I.” Somehow it just doesn’t have the same ring to it.
4. I am learning that I can be spiritual. When I was a kid I thought of God as some white haired guy hanging out in the clouds looking down and judging everything I did. As I got older and the implausibility of this notion grew in my mind I began rejecting all things religious. The pendulum swung past agnostic, over to atheist and stuck there for a while. But these days the pendulum is starting to swing back. Or maybe not back but over. Over to the idea that, just because I no longer identify with this notion of a bearded man in robes residing in the heavens, doesn’t mean I necessarily reject the idea of a guiding force or a oneness to humanity. If I sound very “New Earth” it’s because I love that book! In homage, one of these days I plan to write the list “5 reasons Eckhart Tolle could never have a Facebook page.”
5. I wish my kids said grace before a meal. Or maybe not grace. But showed appreciation in some way. In Japanese one says “itadakimasu” before a meal which literally means “I receive” but is generally meant to express gratitude for the food one is about to eat. Maybe I should start this tradition with my kids. To make up for the tradition I started in my family…
Okay, true story: Even though I didn’t have a particularly religious upbringing, we always said grace before a meal, followed by itadakimasu. When I was about 20 I began to feel a bit hypocritical about participating in the religious part of this practice. So I mentioned to my mother one day that I would no longer be saying grace with them and explained why. I meant to just quietly sit and respectfully wait while they said grace. To lighten the situation I joked with her that I was sorry her daughter was such a heathen. Well. The next time they went to say grace they looked at me somewhat awkwardly until my dad laughed, pointed at me and said, “Heathen!” So now, not only does my whole family no longer say grace, but after saying itadakimasu they follow it up with simply yelling, “Heathens!” I know, it’s unbelievable that lightening doesn’t strike me down.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Another Canadian Parents article
I've had another article published at this online magazine. If you'd like, check it out here!
Thursday, October 23, 2008
5 things I didn’t know until I became a mom
(Don't hate me for continuing to use old Facebook posts. I'm taking a writing class right now and it's been taking up my writing time. Thank you to everyone who's continued to check back, regardless of the slowdown in updates. And thank you to those who have left comments - I'm sorry I haven't been replying these days. Don't lose faith! I will be back to brand new posts ASAP!)
1. That the Alphabet Song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Baa Baa Black Sheep all have the same tune.
2. That someone could think that dipping sushi in ketchup or grapes in soy sauce is a reasonable culinary decision.
3. That sometimes diapering a toddler is more difficult than putting a tuxedo on a horse.
4. That the length of open-mouthed silence that follows the bang of a child falling down is directly proportional to the volume of the ensuing scream, once that child catches his breath.
5. That the first time a boy told you you’re beautiful has nothing on the first time it came out of the mouth of your two year old.
1. That the Alphabet Song, Twinkle Twinkle Little Star and Baa Baa Black Sheep all have the same tune.
2. That someone could think that dipping sushi in ketchup or grapes in soy sauce is a reasonable culinary decision.
3. That sometimes diapering a toddler is more difficult than putting a tuxedo on a horse.
4. That the length of open-mouthed silence that follows the bang of a child falling down is directly proportional to the volume of the ensuing scream, once that child catches his breath.
5. That the first time a boy told you you’re beautiful has nothing on the first time it came out of the mouth of your two year old.
Tuesday, October 7, 2008
Five kids’ shows I like more than my kids do
(Here's another oldie but hopefully goodie post from Facebook. Enjoy!)
1. Timothy Goes to School
I don’t really know why I like this one, I just do. There’s Yoko. Love Yoko. Especially how she lives in a temple and her mother is always wearing kimono (I don’t even know any Japanese mothers in Japan who always wear kimono). Then there are the brothers Frank and Frank. It always calls to mind those Newhart characters, “This is my brother Darryl … and this is my other brother Darryl.”
2. Elmo’s World
Sadly, my kids seem to have outgrown this show. Not even my little Sarah requests it anymore. There’s something so comforting about seeing those Jim Henson puppet faces that haven’t changed since we were kids. My favourite is still Grover. Or actually Super Grover. And every so often they’ll have a retro clip straight from the days before people started trying to out Bert and Ernie. Ah, the innocence.
3. Wonder Pets
I actually don’t really like this show but the theme song gets stuck in my head and I find myself walking around the kitchen, cleaning up after dinner, singing, “Wonder Pets, Wonder Pets we’re on our way, to help the baby elephant and save the day…”
4. The one where the guy uses all kinds of different materials and when you see it from an aerial view it makes a picture
Do you know the one I mean? I tried to look up the title online but what do you search? No idea. Anyway, my kids are so bored with this one. Doug and I, however, are always totally enthralled as the guy moves this and that around, shifting sheets, shaking out coloured sand. When they move up to the aerial view and the picture is revealed we’re like, “Cooooool.”
5. Peep and the Big Wide World
I saved my favourite for last. I have actually watched this show by myself. That’s right, no kids, just me. First things first: Joan Cusak narrates. That’s cool right there. Then there’s the duck. Has anyone noticed that Quack sounds like Charlotte’s gay friend from Sex and the City?? I’ve checked it out, it isn’t him but man, I keep expecting him to take off his little white hat and say “Some of the best sex I’ve had is with people I can’t stand!” That aside, that duck’s got some great quotes himself. Like, "Of course I'm a duck! I have all the duck bits. The bill. The webbed feet. The cute tail. The sailor hat." That duck kills me.
1. Timothy Goes to School
I don’t really know why I like this one, I just do. There’s Yoko. Love Yoko. Especially how she lives in a temple and her mother is always wearing kimono (I don’t even know any Japanese mothers in Japan who always wear kimono). Then there are the brothers Frank and Frank. It always calls to mind those Newhart characters, “This is my brother Darryl … and this is my other brother Darryl.”
2. Elmo’s World
Sadly, my kids seem to have outgrown this show. Not even my little Sarah requests it anymore. There’s something so comforting about seeing those Jim Henson puppet faces that haven’t changed since we were kids. My favourite is still Grover. Or actually Super Grover. And every so often they’ll have a retro clip straight from the days before people started trying to out Bert and Ernie. Ah, the innocence.
3. Wonder Pets
I actually don’t really like this show but the theme song gets stuck in my head and I find myself walking around the kitchen, cleaning up after dinner, singing, “Wonder Pets, Wonder Pets we’re on our way, to help the baby elephant and save the day…”
4. The one where the guy uses all kinds of different materials and when you see it from an aerial view it makes a picture
Do you know the one I mean? I tried to look up the title online but what do you search? No idea. Anyway, my kids are so bored with this one. Doug and I, however, are always totally enthralled as the guy moves this and that around, shifting sheets, shaking out coloured sand. When they move up to the aerial view and the picture is revealed we’re like, “Cooooool.”
5. Peep and the Big Wide World
I saved my favourite for last. I have actually watched this show by myself. That’s right, no kids, just me. First things first: Joan Cusak narrates. That’s cool right there. Then there’s the duck. Has anyone noticed that Quack sounds like Charlotte’s gay friend from Sex and the City?? I’ve checked it out, it isn’t him but man, I keep expecting him to take off his little white hat and say “Some of the best sex I’ve had is with people I can’t stand!” That aside, that duck’s got some great quotes himself. Like, "Of course I'm a duck! I have all the duck bits. The bill. The webbed feet. The cute tail. The sailor hat." That duck kills me.
Monday, September 8, 2008
5 men I find strangely attractive
1. Ashley from Sin Cities. Do you watch this show? Ashley Hames is the lanky, nerdy, bespectacled Brit host who takes you to cities around the world in search of the most bizarre sexual fetishes. Does this seem like the recipe for a sex symbol to you? Me neither. Especially when you see him in such humiliating and painful looking situations as having his testicles nailed to a board or having huge, industrial-looking, metal hooks strung through the skin of his back or being lead around naked on a leash, to name but a meager few on a very long list. But he’s funny and amazingly game for anything. I don’t know. It works.
2. Dan Connor. Goofy, overweight, blue collar jokester is not my usual dream guy. But John Goodman makes Roseanne’s long suffering husband charming and loveable. On the opposite end of the bad boy’s mysterious allure, Dan is the quintessential good guy in his salt-of-the-earth, middle American, tough on the outside, soft on the inside way. Perhaps my favourite episode is when he finds out Jackie – the sister-in-law he only just barely tolerates hanging around his house annoying him everyday – is getting beat up by her boyfriend. He takes one look at Jackie huddled in tears and wordlessly grabs his jacket and slips out the back door. Dan Connor, avenger of abused women, to the rescue!
3. Tony Soprano. But speaking of bad boys, I find it completely inexplicable why a murdering, cheating, overweight, balding, selfish head of a crime family would be in any way attractive to me whatsoever, but for some reason, he kinda is. During the writers’ strike my husband and I survived the lack of original TV by purchasing all six seasons of the Sopranos on DVD. It was addictive. We watched two or three episodes a night and by the end of it, we were fighting the urge to talk to each other with an Italian-New Jersey accent complete with expletives and Paulie-type hand gestures. And I was sort of crushing on Tony. I think the combination of his unyielding power at work combined with the vulnerability he would show in his sessions with Dr. Melfi somehow melded this crime lord into something appealing.
4. George Stroumboulopoulos. I personally don’t think George should be on this list. I don’t find anything “strange” about being attracted to the cute, funny, witty, sexy host of a smart Canadian prime time talk show with great guests. But my husband insists it’s strange so I’ve added him. Plus it gives me an excuse to blog about him. I love how George starts off The Hour with, “I’m your boyfriend, George Stroumbouloupoulos.” How does he know?! I thought it was all in my head but there he is, announcing it. Love ya, George!
5. Anderson Cooper. The distinguished grey hair. The piercing blue eyes. Intelligent, well-spoken, knowledgeable, quirky, self-deprecating, well-dressed….Okay, I realize he’s totally gay, which is what puts him on this list. That doesn’t stop Erica Hill from shamelessly flirting with him on America’s number one cable news network. It’s not just me, right? She totally wants him. I’m with you Erica… even if Anderson ain’t with us.
So, who’s on your list of unlikely secret boyfriends?
2. Dan Connor. Goofy, overweight, blue collar jokester is not my usual dream guy. But John Goodman makes Roseanne’s long suffering husband charming and loveable. On the opposite end of the bad boy’s mysterious allure, Dan is the quintessential good guy in his salt-of-the-earth, middle American, tough on the outside, soft on the inside way. Perhaps my favourite episode is when he finds out Jackie – the sister-in-law he only just barely tolerates hanging around his house annoying him everyday – is getting beat up by her boyfriend. He takes one look at Jackie huddled in tears and wordlessly grabs his jacket and slips out the back door. Dan Connor, avenger of abused women, to the rescue!
3. Tony Soprano. But speaking of bad boys, I find it completely inexplicable why a murdering, cheating, overweight, balding, selfish head of a crime family would be in any way attractive to me whatsoever, but for some reason, he kinda is. During the writers’ strike my husband and I survived the lack of original TV by purchasing all six seasons of the Sopranos on DVD. It was addictive. We watched two or three episodes a night and by the end of it, we were fighting the urge to talk to each other with an Italian-New Jersey accent complete with expletives and Paulie-type hand gestures. And I was sort of crushing on Tony. I think the combination of his unyielding power at work combined with the vulnerability he would show in his sessions with Dr. Melfi somehow melded this crime lord into something appealing.
4. George Stroumboulopoulos. I personally don’t think George should be on this list. I don’t find anything “strange” about being attracted to the cute, funny, witty, sexy host of a smart Canadian prime time talk show with great guests. But my husband insists it’s strange so I’ve added him. Plus it gives me an excuse to blog about him. I love how George starts off The Hour with, “I’m your boyfriend, George Stroumbouloupoulos.” How does he know?! I thought it was all in my head but there he is, announcing it. Love ya, George!
5. Anderson Cooper. The distinguished grey hair. The piercing blue eyes. Intelligent, well-spoken, knowledgeable, quirky, self-deprecating, well-dressed….Okay, I realize he’s totally gay, which is what puts him on this list. That doesn’t stop Erica Hill from shamelessly flirting with him on America’s number one cable news network. It’s not just me, right? She totally wants him. I’m with you Erica… even if Anderson ain’t with us.
So, who’s on your list of unlikely secret boyfriends?
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