My nine year old daughter, Grace, is a big fan of the Dreamworks film How to Train Your Dragon, as well as the Netflix exclusive series Dragons: Race to the Edge. So much so that she decided she wanted to create her own "Book of Dragons". Mostly this consists of her drawing various dragons, some based on beasts that appear in the show, and others being creatures that she makes … [Read more...]
The August Civic Holiday in Canada. What’s the deal? Is it a real holiday?
When I think of the Civic Holiday what first comes to mind is a memory from my childhood. Every Summer around this time my Dad would have an argument with his boss, who also happened to be my grandfather. My Dad would insist they were closing for the August Civic Holiday, and my grandfather would insist he'd never heard of it before...Was it something new this year? Was it even … [Read more...]
Alice knew, the company makes the weather…
... it's all about perspective. The meteorological records for these parts assure us that July 4, 1862, was "cool and rather wet": but on that day Lewis Carroll first told the tale of Alice in Wonderland to four people in a Thames gig, rowing upstream for a picnic tea, and to the ends of their lives all four remembered the afternoon as a dream of cloudless English sunshine. … [Read more...]
If You Love Books Enough…
“If you love books enough, books will love you back.” - Jo Walton, Welsh-Canadian fantasy and science fiction writer … [Read more...]
A Good Book Can Light a Fire, It Can Be a Star in an Expanding Universe…
“A book, too, can be a star, a living fire to lighten the darkness, leading out into the expanding universe.” - Madeleine L'Engle, Newberry Award Acceptance Speech "The Expanding Universe" … [Read more...]
How to Play Blue’s Clues at Home with Your Kids, Making the Everyday Fun with Clues & Puzzle Solving
Last night I was in the kitchen throwing dinner together. Hubby wasn't feeling well and had come home from work and headed straight to bed. I was desperately trying to keep the volume level on the kids down to a dull roar, while simultaneously finishing up dinner. Both kids had had a rough day at school for various reasons, neither of them were in the best mood, and they kept … [Read more...]
Spingtime Swingtime
The six year old's current preferred after school activity is a visit to the local park and a ride on the swings. She runs up to the swings and dive bombs into position, always on her belly, never on her bum. Grinning madly, she swings wildly up and down while singing "I'm flying, I'm flying." Add in the occasional shouts of "I'm Superman!" and you get the idea. How have … [Read more...]
Warm Up Your Springtime With This $260USD GIVEAWAY!
This weekend has marked the first real springtime like weather around here. The birds are singing, the daffodils and tulips are just starting to bloom, and I even spotted a dandelion on our walk to the school bus this morning. Perhaps spring hasn't really hit in your parts yet, or perhaps you're just looking for a springtime pick me up. Well, I've got just the thing. How about … [Read more...]
Happy Easter, 1930’s Style
Vintage postcard, postmarked 1932. … [Read more...]
Easter Greetings
Antique postcard, postmarked 1909. … [Read more...]
St. Patrick’s Day Souvenir from 1910
With it being St. Patrick's Day today I figured a St. Patty's themed throwback Thursday was called for. This vintage postcard from 1910 features a painting of Tramore, a small seaside town in Waterford County on the coast of Ireland. … [Read more...]
Great Deal on a Cool How to Train Your Dragon Book
So the very day after I wrote a post about flicks you can find on Netflix which are adapted from cool kid's books,we randomly stopped in at the local Chapters and I found this lovely hardcover How to Train Your Dragon book hanging out in the discount section. The (In)Complete Book of Dragons It was marked down to $6.99. How could I say no? I mean I have a … [Read more...]
St. Valentine’s Greeting, Antique 1912 Postcard
A kiss for St. Valentine's? Scan of an antique postcard, postmarked 1912. … [Read more...]
What Will You Be Streaming in 2016?
So yesterday I talked about how, in a roundabout way, my secret New Year's resolution is to watch more Netflix. Currently hubby and I are watching Buffy the Vampire Slayer, a show which we intentionally avoided when it originally aired. Back in the day many of our friends were Buffy fanatics, and we used to laugh at them when they would say they couldn't do x or go to y because … [Read more...]
#MySweetValentine $400USD PayPal Giveaway!
Welcome to #MySweetValentine Giveaway! Baby it’s Cold outside and we need a little bit of sweet nothings. This cash giveaway is a Blogger Sponsored Event which means the bloggers listed below all chipped in towards the prize. One lucky duck is going win $400 in PayPal cash! This giveaway is co-hosted by DownshiftingPRO and MapleMouseMama along with The Knit Wit by … [Read more...]