The Official Canadian Temperature Conversion Chart

50° Fahrenheit (10° C)

· Californians shiver uncontrollably.

· Canadians plant gardens.

35° Fahrenheit (1.6° C)

· Italian Cars won't start.

· Canadians drive with the windows down.

32° Fahrenheit (0° C)

· American water freezes.

· Canadian water gets thicker.

0° Fahrenheit (-17.9° C)

· New York City landlords finally turn on the heat.

· Canadians have the last cookout of the season.

-60° Fahrenheit (-51° C)

· Santa Claus abandons the North Pole.

· Canadian Girl Guides sell cookies door-to-door.

-109.9° Fahrenheit (-78.5° C)

· Carbon dioxide freezes to make dry ice.

· Canadians pull down their earflaps.

-173° Fahrenheit (-114° C)

· Ethyl alcohol freezes.

· Canadians get frustrated when they can't thaw the keg.

-459.67° Fahrenheit (-273.15° C)

· Absolute zero; all atomic motion stops.

· Canadians start saying "Cold, eh?"

-500° Fahrenheit (-295° C)

· Hell freezes over.

· The Toronto Maple Leafs win the Stanley Cup.

The last one makes me smile, as that is so true!!!

Christmas is changing........(Spolier alert about Santa!!)

 albeit slowly in our house, but it's changing.  

This year I am giving Christmas cards out to only immediate family, and people who we will see in person.  Years gone by we would have up to 50 or more cards from various people.  Our kids only send cards to immediate family as well and I think that's under pressure from me!!

I am normally organized and have everything done and wrapped by this time.  Not this year, and instead of a pile of presents, it's a couple of small gifts and money, other than for the two boys, as they are only 4 & 7 and don't understand the concept of money yet, not like the older ones.

If I hadn't of had that party on the weekend, I know I would be not doing as much decorating around the house.  I think it would have just been the tree and a couple of other things.

Now we have grandkids, we have not had Christmas Day at our house in years, and I love it...LOL  At the end of the day Christmas is for kids, not for us oldies!!  These past two years it was one or the other of our adult children and their family away over Christmas, and again that's fine.  When there are inlaws involved, you have to share, which I am totally fine about.

The older we get the less we are bothered about Christmas.  However, I do love to see the kids' face when they open their gifts and I love the excitement they have about Santa coming.  I also enjoy threatening the two little ones with, "If you don't listen, I'm going to have a word with Santa and tell him you've been a naughty boy!!"  As that threat still works!!  Listening is a major problem with the boys.....just saying!!

The next bit is a SPOLIER ALERT ABOUT SANTA!!!

With the girls, the 12 year old, does not believe in Santa, sorry to disappoint you if you still believe in him!  However, she hasn't actually come out and said it.....just in case Santa does not come!!  The 9 year old is on the cusp of not believing, but again doesn't want to come out with it, just in case!!

So yes, Christmas is changing around here, but my memories of Christmas's past will always remain.

How about you?

Shopper's Drug Mart Bonus Redemption......

This past week was a bonus points redemption event at Shopper's Drug Mart.  I had been saving up my points and had 130,000 points that I could redeem for $200 worth of free product.

Here is what I got for under $17 out of pocket.

I got 4 bottles of Aveeno body lotion, for the winter.  A Dove shampoo and conditioner.  An eight pack of Activia yogurt, a jar of pasta sauce, and two loaves of bread.  Plus some chocolate/mint cookie things for the Christmas party.

Also four pizzas for the freezer, a couple can's of baked beans, 4 litre bag of milk and the big ticket item 5 containers of coffee which if I had, had to pay for would have cost $95.  When did coffee get so expensive?

Pleased with what I got and everything was things we use and need, especially the coffee.  If you're in Canada, and collect PC points, did you cash in this past weekend?

Christmas Party.........

I am part of a group of ladies, that gets together once a year for a Christmas get together and favourite things gift exchange.  My daughter was hosting it at our house this year.  Four out of the seven of us live north of Toronto.  The other two live closer to the city.  I live in the middle, so our house is the perfect mid location.  

We try to have the party on the last weekend of November before the weather turns bad and everyone gets too busy.  

We had one person who is vegan, another who is vegetarian and another who does not eat beef.

From bottom to top, there was a beef lasagna, a veggie lasagna.  A green leaf salad with pomegranate's and a raspberry vinaigrette.  A vegan lasagna, this one and it was so good, a bit pricy though. Cheese tortellini with rose sauce.  Garlic bread, homemade veggie samosa's someone brought, veggie tray and dip.  The fruit punch was made with pineapple juice, can frozen lemonade, cranberry juice and ginger ale.

The dessert tray, and it was yummy........the cupcakes were all vegan as well.

We do a favourite things gift exchange, where we buy everyone, something we love that's around $20.  I forgot to take a photo of my gift I got for everyone, but it was a Christmas ornament set that you had a cross stitch and a diamond art kit.

One person gave us personalized travel jewelry cases and personalized bracelets.

Another gave a box of shower steamers.

Another gave a compact chopper...........which is handy as I have always wanted one.

Another gave this water bottle, always handy.

Another gave various bathroom products.  Again super useful.

Daughter gave us that handmade Christmas ornament, which is lovely.  A tool which scratches off the things on scratch and win tickets, and the Cashingo ticket, which I ended up winning $3 on.  I normally use a ten cent coin to scratch the numbers on those cards, I never knew there was a scratch card scratcher, here is a link to them on Amazon, super useful thing.

Here is a close up of the ornament.

We also do a craft and this year we made mosaic coasters.  Below are mine glued to the wooden coaster before they were grouted.

Here they are all grouted.

Here are mine all grouted.  We have to wait 48 hours for them to cure then we can seal them.

All in all we all had a lovely day and it was good to catch up with everyone.