Monday, August 31, 2009

Part 2 of Many

The Byward Market has been a central fixture in Ottawa since 1827, although between then and now its taken on several incarnations. For me the market is the centre of downtown and was/is a fixture of summer living. On Saturdays my mom, me, my sister and my grandmother would head down to the market to get our fresh produce for the week ahead and would often end up in one of the many restaurants for post-shopping refreshment. In my younger years, all the farmers were local and came usually within an hour or two of Ottawa from both the Ontario and Québec sides of the river. Nowadays, not all the produce is local to the Ottawa area but from the province of Ontario or Québec.

In addition to the fresh produce which is sold in the market stalls, the surrounding shops trade is fresh meat, fish and cheese, European delicatessens, locally owned cafes and bakeries and shops that sell all sorts of Canadiana paraphernalia - Caribou droppings anyone? It should be noted (and to clarify some of the pictures below) that in February, the second-coming of Christ aka Barack H. Obama - came to Ottawa on his first official foreign visit. He went rogue after his meeting with our Prime Minister and made a stop at the market. You'll see from the photos below that effect it had on the local merchants...nerds...

Anyways, without further adieu, the Byward Market!


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My Mom and one of the local farmers

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Blueberry pie anyone?

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Uuuummmm, cheeeeeeeessssssseeee

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My Mom & Dad check out a basket of garlic - I guess they're not vampires after all...

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One of the market's bakeries was visited by President Obama on his trip to Ottawa and from this bakery he bought 2 of their maple leaf shaped cookies for his daughters...

Bakery: "OMG, President Obama is going to buy some cookies for us! Take his picture, take his picture!!!" {Squeal} "We're going to have to post this in the exact spot where he bought the cookies!!!"

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Bakery: "I know, let's blow up the picture we took of him with the cookies to largest frame size that Ikea sells and then let's rename the red and white iced maple leaf shaped cookies that have CANADA written on them to...wait for it...Obama Cookies!!!!" "Brilliant - soon we'll be headed for cookie world domination!!!"

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(ok, ok, in all likelihood, that's not at all how it went down and no doubt meeting this president is a geniune highlight of one's year/life but Obama cookies...puh-lease!)

La Botegga Nicastro - delicious pizzas made for you by real Italians and a shop that is both a feast for the eyes and the palate!

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My parents checking out the wall of oil

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12 year old balsamic vinegar $99.99, 15 year old balsamic vinegar $150.00, 25 year old balsamic vinegar $199.99....

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We'll be back in Ottawa for Christmas and hopefully it'll be a white one so I can show-off how pretty the city looks under snow!

Happy Anniversary Husband!

Today is our 2nd anniversary - how he survived me this long, I don't know but 3 cheers for him!!!! Love you babe!

I'm taking this opportunity to self-indulgently post one of our wedding photos!

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And probably one of the best all time wedding party photos - The Zoolander!!!

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More Ottawa photos to come later today!

Friday, August 28, 2009

Part 1 of Many

I'm back! And feeling fairly recharged! Our trip home was great and this will be the first of a few posts on the subject!

But to deviate for a moment - yesterday was a great day! Why you ask? Because yesterday I finally found a long lost friend! Yannick of Australia!!! I have been searching for her online for a few years now and with no luck. I've even tried tracking down her brother but my google searches still produced no joy. Yesterday, I tried Facebook again and viola! There she was! So, to recap how Yannick & I became friends: in grade 6 my teacher, Mr. Rogers, had a friend teaching year 6 in Keysborough, Victoria, Australia. We spent 3 weeks learning all about Australia and at the end of it we wrote generic introductory letters that Mr. Rogers sent to his friend Down Under. After several weeks, we each received letters back from the Australian students we had been paired with and Yannick and I became pen pals. We wrote back and forth for several years and spoke on the phone a few times as well but lost touch about 10 years ago. Well, I sent her an email yesterday to make sure it was her and yes, she is Yannick of pen pal days! It totally made my day and my week! I can’t wait to get caught up on everything that’s been going on with her!

Anyways, back to the trip! This trip home provided a lot of firsts for my little boy Moose. It was the first time Moose was in his other home country (I’ve decided and have granted him Canadian citizenship through my citizenship, all legal you know, naturally…), the first time he stayed in a hotel, the first time he flew, the first time he went for a swim in a hot tub…, the first time he went off-leash, the first time he went to the cottage and swam in a lake and the first time he went out on a boat. He was a total superstar on the plane and the Air Canada cabin staff couldn’t believe how good he was. He loved my parent’s home and its 2 flights of stairs, which on the first night there he ran up & down one flight of them 8 times in row as though it was a new toy. That same night he got his first hot tub experience by (hilarious) accident – earlier in the evening he had been burning off energy by jumping on top of the hot tub cover so he could get a good view of us and the backyard. A few hours pass and we humans decide to get into the hot tub to relax, however, Moose being 10 months old and a canine failed to realize that with the hot tub lid off and as I was about to step into the tub he sailed through the air and plunged into the hot water and then struggled against the jets to get to the surface. Now this probably shouldn’t be all that funny, but it took us all (Moose included) by surprise and when I pulled him out he looked like a drowned and frightened rat! I wish I had had my camera there to capture it.

Apart from Moose and his adventures, we humans had a great time at home too. Summer finally arrived in Ontario just a few days before we did so Mike got to experience 28C with 10 degrees of humidity – gloriously gross! We went into Ottawa a few times and Mike got to see his first Canadian Changing of the Guard. They have the same ceremony outside of Buckingham Palace (and likely Her Majesty’s other palaces) but her guards wear rather drab gray tunics where as our Governor General’s guards are kitted out in striking red! Below are pictures of the ceremony and I’ll post more of the city over the next couple days!

Finally, the last of the photos attached below are that of the newly decked out Vancouver aiport. The last time I flew out of YVR was April 2008 and much of the domestic arrival/departure gates were in various stages of construction or renovation and having forgotten what it previously looked like I was super impressed at how spiffy it looks now and so much so that I took pictures - odd, I know, but its really pretty, trust me. And I think the changes will make a great first impression for those arriving for the Olympics in a few months time!


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Parliament Hill (Centre Block) - the ceremony begins several blocks away from Parliament Hill with the Guard marching up Elgin St to Wellington St and then onto the Hill itself.

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Marching onto the Hill - the old looking building across the street with the Canadian flag is the old US Embassy - they built a new one a few blocks away 10 or 12 years ago and now the old building has been turned into a portrait gallery.

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The Band

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The red tunics are made from 100% wool and their dapper hats are made of real bear fur. I've heard that the temperature inside the hats can get up to a torturous 50C/122F!

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And as a result of the thermal uniform, additional members of the army are on standby to pick up those that drop, like this guy on the stretcher. Had the day been sunny and hotter, several other Guards would have likely passed out.

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Mike taking it in!

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Last one of the Guard...I promise!

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Now for Vancouver's airport! Below are photos of the new & improved interior!

Children's tv area


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Aboriginal sculpture installations at the gates

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The Bathroom - ok, I realize its a bit odd to take pictures of the airport bathroom and in other contexts with people behaving inappropriately, it would no doubt lead to arrest but the tile work and wood doors have to admired! Some hotels don't even have bathrooms this nice! And you could tell that the tile had been laid by hand. Very impressive.

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And last but not least - a few shots of Moose being off leash at the park!

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We threw the ball about 5 times before he decided it was too warm for him to continue! He really is a West Coast boy!

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Congratulatory Side Note: My sister-in-law and friend, Keisha, just today got a job with Veteran's Affairs!!!! She's going be to the region's Veteran's Services Representative!!! YAY!!!!!

Thursday, August 13, 2009

Prints on Etsy & Count Down to Take Off!

Long time, no blog. And in less than 2 days (43 hours to be exact but who's counting...) I'll be at home in Ottawa with likely limited posting opportunities. This week hasn't been a banner one but my goal is to keep with space light and upbeat so today's posting is a compilation of prints/posters from Etsy that I l♥ve! Some of these are more on the motivational side of things, which would have come in very handy this week at work! And others are just fun and remind me of places I've lived.

I'll likely do another instalment of this post but with a focus on all the fabulous kiddy inspired art work. I wish I could plaster my godson's room with all those super cute prints but:
1) he's a 6 year old boy
2) he would rather receive toys then art for his birthday and Christmas (duh Robyn!)
3) a lot of the really cute prints are too baby for a big boy of 6!

Oh, why can't he be 2 again????!!!! (My cousin, his mother, is probably cursing me right now, I didn't live through the 2's, she did!).

Anyways, here are some visuals from the world of Etsy.

From Looky Loo ~ Rumi Poster
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http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5336060


From Hijirik Studio ~ Live What You Love Letterpress Print
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http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5584012


From Roll & Tumble Press ~ Dream Big- Handprinted Letterpress
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http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6356691


From Made by Girl ~ I Love You, Blogs and Coffee
This is just one is too cute! It would make a great pressie...hhmmmm, who shall I send it to?...
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http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5352520


From Nicodesum Green ~ Bacon Is Like A Little Hug from God
How awesome would this be in a kitchen?! And let's be serious, bacon really is like a little hug from god.
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http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=6792346


The following 3 prints are from DripStick Artwork and he has other great vintage inspired travel poster prints.
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http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5132097§ion_id=5307809


From Julia Pott ~ Brussels
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http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5594921


These two prints are of my beloved city Edinburgh from Artquirk ~ the first is of Victoria St, and the second print is titled Edinburgh windows.
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http://www.etsy.com/shop.php?user_id=5039982

I think that may my last post for several days, but ya never know, if my parent's computer is on its best behaviour I may be able to post some mid-trip photos.

Aurevoir pour le moment.

Sunday, August 9, 2009

Monkey on the bed!

I was changing the sheets on our bed this morning and after I had just smoothed out the top sheet, this monkey decided it was the perfect place from him to park his butt. Monkey and Monkey-butt are two of about 10 nicknames we have for him and yes, he answers to almost all of them.

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Yes, those are pink sheets. About every 3 months (hence why they're so wrinkled) I can sneak them on the bed without too much protest from Mike. The way I see it just because I got married to a boy doesn't mean I have to give up everything girly.

Anyways, here's a photo of the finished product and my attempt at decorating. The Union Jack and birdcage pillows are both Etsy finds.


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Friday, August 7, 2009

Barcelona 4 Sounders 0 but still a good time

As mentioned on Tuesday Mike and I joined Tracy & Alberto at the Seattle Sounders game against Barcelona and even though the Sounders lost (no surprise), it was a lot of fun!

I got to see my two (imaginary) boyfriends:

Freddie

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and Thierry
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And although Alberto had to work the game – he translates the games to Spanish and now hosts a Sounders show on Sunday nights on Univision (yep, I hang with celebs) – Tracy, Mike & I had a great time taking it all in. Qwest Field was over capacity at 66,800 in attendance and the Sounders Club I thought did a really nice job of making you feel like you were at a match in Europe - their announcer is English and when Barcelona scored, a Spanish speaking announcer can over the PA and only spoke in Spanish. Small details but important ones I think.

The following are some photos from the game including shots of downtown Seattle and Puget Sound from the stadium.

Tracy & Mike outside Qwest Field
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My first ever shower of ticker-tape (like I said, its the small things like this that I love!)
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Pre-anthem - what was Barcelona wearing? The hideous cross-walk-guard neon orange did no one favours!
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Tracy & Alberto - whose that guy in the dodgy England shirt???!!! Lee...
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Qwest Field full up with Sounder's love
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Tracy & I looking fabulously coordinated with the pitch and the crowd!
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Over here! I'm over here!!!!!!!
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Seattle at sundown
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As for this weekend’s entertainment…house cleaning and preparing for our 12 day visit home!!!!!!!! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!! We leave next Saturday morning for a long over due visit home to Ottawa (I haven’t been home since April 2008) and wee Moose is coming with us. This will be his first ever plane ride and depending on how he copes, either it will be the first of many or the last! So, this weekend will be filled with cleaning, organizing, laundry, and shopping. What fun.

Bon Weekend!