This is a picture of one of the entries from a real family that stayed there a few years ago.
At the cottage we rented there was a book for guests to sign and write about their fun experiences during the week that they stayed. This is a picture of one of the entries from a real family that stayed there a few years ago. That's right, there's a married couple named Laurence & Olivier. So good.
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The Barrie Film Festival is on this week once again. I'm so glad our town continues to have this because it's one of the few times a year when I actually get excited about seeing a movie (or movies) and I'm not disappointed after I do. The selections look great - and I'd heard about only two of them prior to the list being released. I'm not sure how many we'll get to see (probably only one because doing adult things when you have kids is super hard), but we're going to try. I think Art and Craft looks particularly interesting but I'd also love to see Boyhood, in spite of the hype. Regan's mom and grandmother, and Tudor, Shauna and Devon came over for dinner on Friday night.
I re-made the same potato/beet dish that was a success in Elmvale, plus I tried out this recipe for apple/onion pulled pork and this recipe for apple rhubarb crisp. I forgot to take pictures of my creations but I think they turned out pretty well because they disappeared very quickly from the table into people's tummies. We also grabbed some kale salad/slaw creation from the grocery store. Yes, I cheated on one dish. Forgive me, I was tired. If you want to try either recipe I followed them exactly and the food came out great, so I highly recommend them. The pulled pork was very tender but not very apple-y. I put some bbq sauce on the table if people wanted a more saucy sandwich. and I bet it would also be fantastic with a little bit of apple butter. Yum. Alas Toronto, our municipal election doesn't seem to be shaping up to be nearly as interesting as yours. Our mayor doesn't even have any serious challengers. I know this because there are four people on the ballot and the only person other than the incumbent who even has a website is this guy: I sent Regan the link and he sent me back this: "we better vote for him or he'll put strychnine in the water supply".
Today Emmett learned what happens when this: goes down this: Answer: nothing good. It was whisked away never to be seen again, which is better than clogging my toilet. The sad part is he didn't even mean to do it. It was an accident. Lesson: don't hold your favourite red car over the toilet while flushing your pee. Tears happened. Many tears.
My mullet-sporting brother got married last weekend. It was a different sort of wedding, more on that later, but the food was great. They made most of it themselves and had a local company bring in a big bbq for the meat. There were quinoa cabbage rolls and a roasted potato/sweet potato/ and beet dish. It was seriously delicious and very simple. I decided to try to re-create it for the Borrelli-Platts dinner on Saturday night (the annual Elmvale Fall Fair celebration). The recipe was similar to this one: http://allrecipes.com/recipe/roasted-beets-n-sweets/ and it turned out like this (before roasting): Not bad if I do say so myself. Megan's mom liked it so much she bartered hot pepper jelly and wine with me for the second pan. I think I made out alright in that deal.
I just realized that all of my posts this week have been about stuff. Material goods. Things. Even the post about the kids (also for sale!) was mostly about the matching pjs (which I also blogged about in a separate post). I promise I don't just spend ALL day looking at things to buy online. Sometimes I play with my kids. Sometimes I even read them a story (if they're lucky). When thinking about this, I got to wondering what I would spend a butt-load of money on if I could. What items are the kind of thing I might generally splurge on or "invest" in (to stretch the definition of the term a bit), and are those items really needs or wants. Generally speaking I think I only spend on items that are needs, for example large items such as appliances or furniture that I intend to keep for a long time. Sometimes this may extend to things like shoes (specifically winter boots or a jacket, not heels). There are other things in our house that we've spent a larger amount of money on (like art, or landscaping, etc.) that are not things we need. I wonder if these purchases are "worth it" in the sense that we get pleasure from having nice things, or if we'd be better tucking that money away for a new car or an appliance repair. Are there any quality goods anymore or does it all come from the same factory in China so it doesn't matter? A friend was recently boasting about her new kitchen stools that were made in Canada. They weren't that much more expensive than other ready-made kinds, but it was hard to find somewhere to buy such a thing. Should we all just give up and shop at Wal-mart? (I think NO, but more on that in another post). It seems to be the way things are going, but then we can always console ourselves with pretty handmade wants like this: or a more cow-friendly kind like this:
I just sent this link to Regan and said "we don't need a fire pit but these are awesome." He agreed.
This seems like a cost effective way to die in a fiery car crash. I can't wait to get mine. (yes, I know the idea isn't to use it while also driving, but really the image just invites the idea that one doesn't value his or her life, or the lives of others very much, but that Candy Crush is just really, really important.
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