Campfire Mayo and Uno Attack

We finally managed to get our schedules coordinated and I was able to have Marnie, Dave and Ron, Marnie's Dad, over for a BBQ.  Marnie made her mum's potato salad and we served a burger bar.  Of which I took absolutely no photos, not a one.  Grrrr.

This is a cheater picture from my post on summer burgers

A burger bar is simply a 'top your own burger' buffet.  We had fried onions, onions crisps, mushrooms, all the regular condiments: ketchup, mustard, sweet relish, dill pickle relish (which is amazing!), mayo, tomatoes,lettuce, and some awesome campfire mayo - that, I do have a picture of. 

The secret is the chipotle chili pepper spice.

You mix two parts mayo, to one part BBQ sauce.  My favourite is Bull's Eye Chicken and Rib. 

And then you season it with chipotle chili pepper spice.  If you like it with a hint of smoke, add a little, if you like it with some heat, add a lot. And voila:

Campfire Mayo!  It really compliments burgers and yam fries. But I digress. 

The main event, and the activity that caused the most laughter was a little game called Uno Attack.

Uno is a card game very similar to crazy eights, the goal is to get rid of all your cards, while preventing your opponents from getting rid of all their cards.  It's a fun card game that the whole family can play.  Uno Attack introduces this little machine which is pure evil.

At first we had no idea, Marn found this game at Target and raved so we were all willing to play.

We sat around outside after dinner and began.

My youngest and Dave LOVE to tease each other, notice Patrick blocking Dave from the picture.  That was 100% on purpose.

I've never seen Marnie laugh so hard or shreek so much.  She hates when the cards come flying out of the Uno machine.

This is my eldest demonstrating the Uno machine's evil.  However many cards the machine spits out, is how many you have to pick up.  And it's like a sneaky jack-in-the-box, sometimes you get no cards, and sometimes you get many, many, cards.

Dave had a good time. He had a good time making everyone else's life challenging.  And he giggled the whole time.

Yours truly won, but the battle for second was a competitive one.  Dave foiled Ron's plan of exiting in spectacular style.  Ron had a huge all green hand that he would have been able to discard all at once, until that is, Dave put down a yellow card and Ron had to follow suit.  Ron's feisty when he's riled.  

Best BBQ ever!

Dave's Kub Kar Part 1

Marnie has a craft studio down in her basement that rivals Michael's craft store.  Marnie's husband Dave on the other hand has a Home Depot shop he fits in a closet. It's amazing.  And he's got the talent to use every one of the tools he owns.  So when my son had a construction project,  I knew just where to turn.

This picture doesn't do it justice, but this tiny closet is like Mary Poppins' bag.  Dave reaches in and grabs whatever he needs.  I've seen a small excavator come out of here. 

Our cub scout group hosts a Kub Kar rally every early spring.  In the US, this is known as a pinewood derby.  The basic rules are you have to make your cub car from the official kub kar block of wood, and it can't weight more than 142g (5oz) or be more then 7 inches long.  Everything else goes.  

I'm not sure what the original idea behind this was.  Maybe to create a project that kids could do with their parents, teach kids tool safety basics, and have them use their imaginations.  The problem is, a Kub Kar rally is a competition.  Which means the fastest car wins.  Which means some very clever adults have figured out a formula for a "winning" car.  Which means you need shop tools.  Which means I needed Dave.

Here's what generous men and woman have shared with me on the internet regarding pinewood or kub kars:

You must polish the axles - take of all the burs and make them gleam
This requires 2000 grit sandpaper.  You know where you can get 2000 grit sandpaper in Burnaby?  Nowhere.  I'm being facetious.  But so far the only place I've found it is at an auto parts store.

You must polish the wheels
See the above paragraph.

You must coat the interior hole of the wheels where the axle head sits with graphite  
You apply the graphite with a pipe cleaner.  Finding graphite is no picnic.  You have to understand the difference between wet graphite lube, dry graphite lube, and dry graphite powder.  For some reason in my neck of the woods, dry graphite powder is associated with keys and locks.  Sadly this is not intuitive and until you figure that out, you won't find graphite powder in the lubrication section of your local hardware store.

Your car must be very thin
To take a block of wood and turn it into anything resembling a vehicle or anything for that matter requires a jig saw. Just about everyone has a hammer, most people own a screw driver, but no one owns a jig saw unless they are a furniture maker,carpenter...or Dave.

Once you've cut your car's form you need to sand it smooth.  The most effective way to do this is with a detail or palm sander. None of which an eight to ten year old is capable of using without intense supervision. And some know how from the supervisor.  More Dave.

Your car must be weighted at the back just in front of the rear axle
This means you've got to put some kind of weight in or on your car.  But be careful you don't want to mess with the aerodynamics.  The internet has taught me lead is the way to go.  You can get lead at Canadian Tire.  We use the malleable lead rods in our cub pack.  They are easy to cut.  Should kids be handling them?  Probably not.  This requires more research on a car that's supposed to be a simple project that any kid can do with his parent.  Witness my very dramatic eye roll.
Also fitting it all just in front of the rear axle requires some engineering skill.  I gave up at this point and just made sure it was in the back.

When fastening your wheels, you must angle the axles
Your front wheels should angle in and your back wheels should angle out.  Both my husband and Dave understand this concept and how to achieve it.  It would take me multiple tries to achieve this on purpose.

And finally, your car's weight must rest on only three wheels
Which means when you are fastening the wheels onto your car with the axles you need to tweak it so that only three are actually in use and one is for show.  I can do this accidentally.  But if my life depended on it, there is no way.  Also I'm not sure this one is legal in Canada.  I looked up Kub Kar rules on the Scouts Canada's website and the version they've got posted from 2010 (sigh), says the car has to run on all four wheels.

This is considered a winning car.  Does this look like an eight year old made it?

So off to Dave's we go to cut out our block of wood.  My son hopes out of the car, gives Dave the block of wood, explains what he wants and heads into the house to lay on the reclining couch and eat Cheetos while watching cooking shows with Marnie.  Dave heads into his cupboard to cut and sand a kub kar.  For this I will have to bake Dave copious amounts of chocolate chip cookies.

After that's done, and my son has debated the fairness of who should win Guy's Grocery Games with Marn, it's time to paint the car.  This is where Dave instructs P on how to spray paint.  In retrospect, I'm not sure this is a skill I want my son to have.

Once that's been accomplished, the decorating debate begins only to be solved by Marn's huge sticker collection.  She's got edging stickers.  Of course she does.

Doesn't everyone have a large box of edging stickers?

Together, Marnie and P carefully aligned the stickers to make the racer look extra speedy.  Now I'm off to buy 2000 grit sandpaper and see just how polished an axle I can achieve.

Tune in soon to see the finished product and find out how the car did in the actual race. 

The great tree costume

This year in early September when I was asking the kids what they wanted to be for Halloween, my youngest explained  "I'd like to be a tree, because I'm pretty tall."  And so my quest to make a tree costume was born.

The first thing I did was go to Google images and search up tree costumes.

I found this image.  I tried to go back to the site this page is posted on to credit the photo but it's buried in Pinterest.  From what I can gather from Google images this teacher was doing a musical and came up with this tree costume.

So now I had my inspiration.  I needed brown pants and some kind of hoodie I could attach leaves too.  At this point I didn't know where the leaves were going to come from but worst case scenario I could make them from felt.

I lied, the first thing I did was tell Marnie that we needed to make a tree costume.  Then I looked up tree costumes on Google images.  Once I had a picture to show Marn, she invited me down to Michael's.  Do you know what I found there?  Fake fall leaf garlands for 60% off.  Marnie is magical that way.  With the leaves all ready to go, it was just a matter of constructing the base.  Brown pants were in order.

It is very hard to find brown boys pants.  I see brown boys pants everywhere but when I went looking for them, nada, zip, zilch.  Until I found them buried under a stack of grey jogger pants at old Navy.There were some very red brown pants that no one wanted because red brown pants are...well...very brown and don't go with very many things.  However, they look really good as the trunk of a tree.

A kid's Halloween costume has to follow  three basic rules.  I've learned this over the last 9 years of dressing kids up for Halloween: no masks, no accessories that have to be carried and you must be able to run.

masks can look really great but five minutes into trick or treating and you are carrying it.  Even if the mask is a transformer and looks unbelievably cool with the rest of the costume.  It will be off your child's face and in your hands shortly after the first doorbell ring. 

If the costume requires you to carry a sword - you guessed it - you, not your pirate, will be carrying a sword.  A way to solve this "carrying an accessory" challenge is to attach it to the child's costume; holsters work nicely and so do carabineers attached to belt loops, ninja swords can be taped to your back, and accessories that basically make the costume can be worn around necks (fake nooses, stethoscopes), wrists (dangling hand cuff), etc. Just don't have them carry it in their hand.

This costume met all those requirements.  Now I just needed to find a hoody.  Or so I thought.

Marnie and I were on an errand to drop of Salvation Army donations and she encouraged me to go in to their second hand store.  There I found a gorgeous green cable knit sweater with flecks of orange, brown, red and yellow for $3; yep you heard me: three dollars!  The perfect backdrop for fall leaves and it would keep you relatively warm which would eliminate the "you must wear a jacket" fight. 

I'm convinced that Marnie's pure heart attracts this crazy secret energy of the universe that offers up just about anything you want.  And I shamelessly take full advantage.

So at last I had everything I needed, brown pants for the trunk, green textured sweater for the limbs, leaves to make it look somewhat tree like and safety pins to attach the leaves to the sweater.

And there you go!

The best part of Halloween is trick or treating.  The second best part is the next day. Because Nov 1st heralds the beginning of Christmas planning.  I'll be honest, I start thinking about Christmas in July, but I can start talking about it when Halloween ends.  Only to like minded people (read Marnie) though, otherwise I get into trouble.  But it's coming folks, and I will be ready!

Pumpkin spice and polka dots

Marnie and I had to go to a celebration of life and we misunderstood what time it started so we had 45 minutes to kill.  Fortunately the ceremony was being held within walking distance of both a Starbucks and a Disney store.  Two excellent ways to celebrate "pumpkin spice" season.

I'm convinced this was orchestrated by the individual who's life we were going to celebrate. He would have gotten such a kick out of us fooling around before offering what comfort we could to his family.

First stop Starbucks.  For you guessed it, decaf pumpkin spice lattes.  Marnie had never had one before.  What?!  I know!  I actually introduced her to something.  Although we quickly learned that she needs a half shot of syrup because the sugar had her buzzing.

This was fantastic to watch as she zoomed around the Disney store trying on clothes and exclaiming over details.  I headed for the cars section and Marn went straight for the pajamas.  Apparently Disney pajamas are the softest, comfiest PJs on the planet.  And lo and behold, in honour of Halloween - she found these beauties:

 They are very soft.  They've got Mini.  Aaaand.... polka dots!

I spent fifteen minutes looking for the TV commercial where the woman is sitting on the bench talking about how much she loves pumpkin spice season and the guy beside her says "you mean fall?" And she says "yes, that's what I said".  But I couldn't find it anywhere so I'm leaving you with John Oliver's pumpkin spice rant.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeQqe0oj5Ls

Flowers, Some Wildlife and a Marching Band or Five

This past Victoria long weekend we went to Victoria - it seemed appropriate - to meander the gardens and watch the Victoria day parade.  I got my spring flower fix. There's nothing so beautiful as a sun drenched flower.  And bonus, mother nature provided us with some company.

Those are turtles sunning themselves on that log.

Here they are up close and personal.  So great!

Not to be outdone baby ducks showed up.

Many of the flowering bushes were in bloom.  In my part of the world Rhododendrons are in season.

The colour of these flowers was extraordinary.

I also love them in white.

These purple gems were everywhere.  We've also got them growing at our house. Speaking of purple gems, my mother in law had these on her patio and I want them.

 Having been saturated in floral beauty it was time to turn my attention to the most energizing form of music on the planet - the march.  Victoria's Victoria day parade has such great marching bands. Most of them are high school students and they are local, from the mainland or from Washington and Oregon.  And holy smokes do they do a good job.  A spine tingling, toe tapping, goose bump raising good job.

I loved these guys because they were in kilts.  Such a great idea!

There's something about a feather in one's cap, no?

I love, love, love a drum line.  And this day I was not disappointed.  Also, how cool are these uniforms?

Every single one of these bands were mesmerizing.

Drum and tuba line - Squee!

I know very little about marching bands.  I can only imagine how much practice it takes to play an instrument and then play an instrument while precision marching.  The level of dedication of these musicians is phenomenal, not to mention the support teams that work like the dickens so they can practice, travel, look spiffy in their uniforms and perform.  It's actually exhausting just thinking about it.  And then I show up on a sunny day and get to be thoroughly entertained.  I am such a fan!

The icing on the marching band cake if you will, is the piper band.  I can't watch a piper band without getting chocked up.  I can't write about a piper band without getting choked up.  There is something so thrillingly dramatic about a bag pipe.  And more than one creates a haunting musical experience that reached right into my soul and squeezes.  Add drums to that and I'm lost.

My photo sucks - but you get the idea.  And to hammer it home, I'll leave you with a little tune these guys play that reduces me to a blubbering idiot of fanatical appreciation.

A Fiesta For Fifty

I was sitting at my son's school PAC (parent advisory committee) meeting when I found myself inadvertently criticizing the teacher appreciation lunch.  Once I shone a light on what was missing I was automatically in charge of the next one.  That's how it works, and I knew better, but I was tired.

So I agreed to organizing the school's teacher appreciation lunch.  And then because the budget was small, I thought "I wonder if I could cater it.".  Having been inspired by Ree Drummond and Nancy Fuller who cater for huge groups all the time, I thought "this might be fun".

It was!  it was a blast.  It was also nerve racking because I'd never fed fifty before and I wasn't sure how it was going to turn out.  Fortunately I was not alone, and everyone bought into my ideas and was willing to help me make them a reality.  That's an awesome feeling and left me on an appreciation high for days.

Here's what we did:

I turned to fellow mom volunteer creative team Sara and Christine to implement my fiesta decoration ideas, with a little help from Party City and Sara's mom; who is essentially a party city unto herself. Sara combed Pinterest - that magical land of inspirational ideas -  and found this Mexican-esque table skirt.  Here's the link.

So perfect right?! 

Fabulous parent volunteers making the skirt

We used tried and true sombreros filled with tortilla chips as the center pieces

And hung  tissue paper pompoms from the ceiling.

 We had fiesta-themed music in the background; Gypsy Kings, Pittbull, Serena
Gomez; Lady Gaga; an amazing rendition of America from West Side Story done by the London Cello Orchestra, Sergio Mendez, Gloria Estefan and so many more.  Truthfully, my favourite part of this whole experience other than the outcome was sourcing this playlist.

To get everyone in a fiesta mood we offered mock Margaritas, in a marg glass with little lime wedges. Okay maybe that was my favourite part.

I wish I'd gotten a close up shot of these glasses.

 This is were Party City came in.  I sourced the sombreros and glassware from there.  They had such an amazing variety of fiesta themed products.  Alas my budget was very tight.

Everyone knows that it doesn't matter how pretty the glass is if the substance within is no good.  And our mock margaritas were very, very good.  I found this amazing recipe on the Colorado Lady's blog.  It was incredibly tasty, incredibly easy and fit in perfectly with the theme.

Sara even got one parent to carve a cactus from a watermelon.  The parents at my son's school are really fantastic.

And now what you've all been waiting for... the menu.  To quote Nancy Fuller - "fresh is best" and just about everything we served was homemade. Unfortunately in all the hubbub I completely forgot to take a photo of the spread.  You will just have to use your imagination and next year I'll assign a photographer.

We offered two kinds of tacos - soft and hard.  We served shredded chicken, taco seasoned ground beef and the most amazing meat on the planet - Morton's tri-tip. I buy it at the US Costco.  We also had Mexican red rice and refried beans - Thank you Yajaira!   And then everyone could dress their plate however they wanted.  We had homemade pico de gallo; homemade salsa; sharp cheddar, colby and jack cheeses, Homemade salsa verde; sour cream, olives, jalapenos, black beans, and this fantastic dressing that I took from Ree Drummond.  It's so good I could eat it like soup.

So there you have it.  A successful Tex Mex Fiesta for 50. Everyone enjoyed themselves but no one more than me.  What a coup!  I can't wait for next year.  I feel a Hawaiian Luau coming on.

Really, Life is Perfect

I get to do this:

The local outdoor pool opened and we were graced with sunny, 25 degree weather.    Because spring had just sprung, I had a hard time believing this was going to be fun. Marn insisted and sure enough we had a blast!

And eat this:

This my friends is sushi pizza with tuna sashimi.  It will blow your taste buds away.  If you live in my neck of the woods you can find it at Japolo in Burnaby.

And receive pictures like this:

The day after Marn and I went swimming she was off to Disneyland.  If you can't experience it yourself, having one of your friends head down to hang with the mouse is the next best thing. Especially when she texts you fun pictures like the one above.

I've decided no matter what your concerns, if your loved ones are healthy, you are safe and sound and there are fun experiences to be had - life is perfect.