As moms we tend to put the needs of our family before ourselves … but even moms need a break, from cooking, cleaning dishes, getting up from the table to get someone another glass of milk. Now in its impressive 10th year, Winterlicious offers moms the perfect reprieve: a chance to leave the kids in daddy’s care and head out for a night of great food, a few drinks and lots of laughs. That’s exactly what we did last Friday with a few of our local mom pals at Estiatorio Volos.
I’ll admit I am a huge Potterhead. Actually our whole family loves Harry Potter, having seen all the movies in theatres and through our DVD collection. We loved following the journey of Harry and his friends as they fought ‘he who must not be named’.
Now enters the long, cold, drawn-out part of winter, the time when we dream about escaping to a warm beach or hibernating in front of the television at home. Instead of trying to avoid the season, why not laugh in its face this year with some friends, food and fine wine.
Whether you live in a big city or small town, it’s important to expose your kids to different ideas, experiences, and cultures. You may not have a Chinatown or Little Italy in your city but you can bring a little cultural experience home with a family celebration.
As soon as October 1st hits, most kids are probably counting down the days until Halloween. A great way to build-up to any holiday is family TV time. Cuddling together on a chilly afternoon or ending a busy day with some family time enjoying a Halloween special on TV can be a lot of fun. Some of our favourite family tv channels have some spooky fun planned.
PBS Kids
Enjoy all new specials of Dinosaur Train and Sid the Science Kid.
Dinosaur Train Haunted Roundhouse/Big Pond Pumpkin Patch
October 20, 24, 28, 30, 31
In Haunted Roundhouse, dad takes the kids on a special Night Train to Troodon Town, where the Troodons have decoratedtheir Roundhouse into a “haunted house” for a spooky party. The kids end up meeting a strange new nocturnal creature – a mammal named Vlad Volaticotherium, who was hiding in the roundhouse trying to get some sleep. And in Big Pond Pumpkin Patch, the Pteranodon family learns more about the customs of their neighbors, the Lambeosaurus family, when they are invited for the first time to accompany them to the Big Pond to celebrate “Gourd Day” – a kind of Mesozoic Halloween. The kids see their first pumpkins, and Larry Lambeosaurus even shows our family how to hollow them out and carve faces into them.
Sid the Science Kid Spooky Science Special
October 17, 25, 28, 30, 31
In Halloween Spooky Science Special, it’s Halloween time and Sid and his friends have dressed up in the spookiest andscariest costumes possible. Sid is a bat with big fangs. May is a spooky black cat. Gabriela is a furry, yucky spider. And Gerald is a super spooky skeleton that goes boo! Susie (dressed as a silly mad scientist) loves their costumes, and helps the kids discover that Halloween can be spooky and scientific! The kids investigate how bats are helpful creatures that catch mosquitoes, spiders are expert engineer web builders, cats are leaping aerial acrobats, and skeletons help hold up our body frames! At the Halloween party, the kids also investigate how to make icky, gooey green slime. Susie then ends the day with a special “Halloween Parade” song so the kids can march around and show off their spooky and scientific costumes!
PBS.org has an easy no-sew Sid the Science Kid Halloween costume for your own little science kid.
Family Channel
Enjoy a month of bone-chilling Halloween specials on the Family Channel
Frightening Friday Night Flicks
The movie lineup includes Halloweentown 1, 2, 3 and 4, Twitches, Twitches Too, Roxy Hunter and the Horrific Halloween, Roxy Hunter and the Mystery of the Moody Ghost and Under Wraps.
Wizards of Waverly Place
Spellbinding new episodes of Wizards of Waverly Place continue to air Friday nights throughout the month with a four-episode story arc entitled “Wizards of Waverly Place – Apartment 13B.” Following the episode included in the Night of Premieres lineup on October 14, the Russos will continue to face off against their archenemy, Gorog, in a never-before seen episode on Friday, October 21 at 5:00 p.m. ET/PT. The battle comes to a head on Friday, October 28 at 8:00 p.m. ET/PT, when all four episodes of the arc (two previously broadcast and two premiere episodes) air back to back followed by Wizards of Waverly Place The Movie at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT.
Kid’s CBC
Kids' CBC celebrates Halloween every year with segments featuring Patty in her butterfly costume, "Mummy" Yamma, "robot" Captain Claw, and Pirate Sid. The segments run throughout the Kids' CBC morning block in the lead up to Halloween and feature knock-knock-jokes, pumpkin painting, trick-or-treat practicing, and a segment in which Sid discovers that Captain Claw's idea of a treat isn't the same as his.
Haunted Mansion
Oct 30
Heard of the Disney theme park ride Haunted Mansion? Now you can experience it in the movie Haunted Mansion, Kid’s CBC Halloween movie. (see details from IMdb .)/p>
Halloween on CBC isn’t just for the kids either with special Halloween episodes of Steven and Chris, Best Recipes Ever and Battle of the Blades.
Teletoon
In celebration of Halloween, Teletoon will be filling the month of October with some great Halloween movies and specials.
After School Monster Movies and Scooby Doo
Beginning October 11, catch 3 weeks of your favourite Scooby Doo every weekday starting at 5 p.m ET. In addition catch some family Halloween movie favourits: My Babysitter’s a Vampire – Monday, October 24, 6:30 p.m. ET and Monster’s vs Aliens – Tuesday, October 25, 5 p.m. ET
Saturday Morning Movies
Checkout our spooky Halloween-themed movies every Saturday morning at 9 a.m. ET: Scooby Doo and the Goblin King (October 22) and Garfield Gets Real (October 29).
Big Ticket Double Features
Some ex-screamly awesome Big Ticket Movie Double Features in October on Saturday’s at 5 p.m and 7 p.m. ET: October 22 – Scooby Doo and the Samurai Sword (5 p.m.) Scooby Doo Abracadabra-Doo (7 p.m.), October 29 – Ghostbusters (5 p.m.)/ Ghostbusters II (7 p.m.)
Plus a special presentation of the Addams Family movies on October 30: The Addams Family (5 p.m.) / The Addams Family Values (7 p.m.)
Halloween Night
Before heading out trick-or-treating catch these Halloween specials starting at 4 p.m. ET: Johnny Test ‘Johnny’s Grow Your Own Monster’ (4 p.m.), Monsters vs. Aliens: Mutant Pumpkins from Outer Space (4:30 p.m.), Monster High (5 p.m.), Wallace and Gromit: A Mater of Loaf and Death (6 p.m.)
Happy Halloween
Glimpse into the Magic of Flicka 3
Written by MichelleOne of my daughter’s favourite movies is Flicka 2 so when EverythingMom was asked to come out for a Flicka 3 set visit in Kelowna, I was keen to learn more about the magic behind the movie.
For anyone who knows me, you know that relationships are everything to me. I always want to learn how to give, feel and love more in all of my relationships, business or personal.
When I discovered that Flicka 3 is all about relationships, I set out to learn as much as I could about the film’s message and how we might be able to bring its wisdom back to our readers.
We spent an entire day on the set of Flicka 3 jaunting between sets, chatting with actors and each other while inhaling the beauty of the majestic set location in the rolling hills of the Okanagan Valley.
Not only is this move about family, but it is created from family. Husband/wife team, Michael Damian (Director) and Janeen Damian (Executive Producer) brought in the Black family Clint Black, and Lisa Hartman Black to continue the story from Flicka 2. Even the Black’s daughter, Lily - age 9, plays a role.
What struck me throughout the interviews with the various actors and producers was the thick emotion in their words. From their fears and insecurities to their fascinating passion and connection with the horses and each other. Everyone cares deeply about their work, their message and how they show up in relationships with their viewers, interviewers, co-workers and their loved ones.
Making movies or muffins, everyone cares about what you are making, how you are making it and how it will be received.
Lisa Hartman Black, for instance, expressed anxiety around how she might manage the balance between being a mom, a wife and an actress while on set. Clint Black, fairly new to the acting game, feels more comfortable when Michael Damian encourages him to bring his own sense of humour into the script through his character, Toby.
If you take a peek at this photo or this one from Michael Damian’s twitter feed, you can see the joy of creation the photos captured. Or watch this video of Clint Black breaking into impromptu song on set. These people love what they do. Movies are not all smoke and mirrors. People make movies and when the true feelings of the people behind the movies come through to the screen, that is where magic happens.
Flicka 3 will bring the feelings of healing, caring and loving to you in mid 2012. We’ll be here to share more about the movie and the magic with you then.
Aside....
One thing I love about press junkets is the relationships you build with other participants. It is so appreciated by attendees of junkets when an experience is created around the event to facilitate community. This trip offered us all a number of opportunities to share information, connect and have a blast at venues such as the Manteo Resort, Wild Apple restaurant and the Old Vines Restaurant at Quail’s Gate Winery. The food, wine and accommodations provided were fantastic and I would highly recommend visiting the venues if you are in Kelowna.
So anybody who knows me knows it drives me crazy to not print out pictures. I have teenagers and they love looking through their photo albums. I’m not talking scrapbook-type photo albums; I am talking regular old albums. 
The other thing most people about me is I’m a complete tech freak! So a few years back I started making photo books online and then having them printed and shipped to me. I LOVE THESE BOOKS!
A little while back I was asked by EverythingMom if I’d be interested in giving Blurb a try. I’d heard a lot about Blurb but had never actually tried them. It was so easy.
I was able to create a custom photo book in 5 easy steps:
- Download the software. You can create a simple photo book using a collection of preset templates within Blurb's online editing tool, Bookfly, but I wanted to have a little more control over customizing my book. I downloaded Blurb's custom book editing software, BookSmart.
- Click on "start a new book".
- Pick my book. I gave my book a title and choose what kind of book I wanted to make (square or landscape; various preset templates like photo book, blog book; or customize completely).
- Upload my photos. Select my pictures to upload (from my computer or other various photo programs I have an account with) and what happened next was life changing. The program asked my if I wanted them to auto insert my images! I would have clicked definitely but they only had yes so I chose that.
- Order my book. So once my photos were uploaded I looked through the book and clicked on order the book. It uploaded to www.Blurb.com and that’s truly when the magic happened for me.
I go to a lot of events and I always have my camera; sometimes I’m working but other times I’m just there as me. It never fails that I get asked about pictures. By uploading a finished book people can actually go on the site, see the book, and order a copy if they choose. I LOVE THIS! If you go to Blurb.com and look me up (CLBPhotograp) you can see the BlissDom Canada 2010 book that I uploaded. Another book I chose to make was from an engagement session I did with clients (it was the guest book at their wedding).
There were a couple of hiccups with the shipping but the book I received was well worth the wait. I’ve included a few pictures of the book I printed and I will admit that I was very impressed with the print quality of this book.
I will without a doubt use Blurb again and probably sooner rather than later seeing as I’ve already started making my holiday gift list.
* I was given an account in order to try Blurb's service firsthand.
Food Ideas: Party Food Ideas
Written by KathyIf it's a kid's party, cocktails with friends, or just a casual gathering you’ll need some tasty treats for your party guests. Below is a selection of party food ideas that should work great for all your summer parties.
There are recipes to create the perfect nibbles for a cocktail party, casual and fancy party fare, and even a few homemade goodies that your kids will go wild over. Pick a few or go ahead and make a whole buffet. Either way your party is bound to be a hit.
Food Ideas: Cocktail Party Food
- Caramel Snack Mix
- Roasted Chickpea Snack
- Mini Banana Creme Pies
- Grilled Fruit Skewers
- White Bean Dip with Chives
- Spanakopita Dip
- Caprese Salad Bites
- Hummus with Parsley Oil
- Buffalo "Chicken" Dip
- Creamy Olive & Feta Dip
- Tapenade
- Spiced Rosemary Cocktail Nuts
- Edamame Feta Hummus
Food Ideas: Casual Yet Unique Party Foods
- Grilled Sweet Potato Salad with Green Onion, Basil, Thyme, and Feta
- Jalapeno Corn Cakes with Avocado Salsa
- Stuffed Mushrooms
- Spanish-Style Deviled Eggs with Tuna (Huevos Rellenos de Atun)
- Joe's Italian Stuffed Japapenos
- Hoisin-Glazed Turkey Meatballs
- Caprese Sticks
- Asian Turkey Lettuce Wraps
- Cherry Coke & Jalapeño Meatballs
- Pineapple Cream Cheese Spread (Makes an amazing centerpiece!)
- Gazpacho (Served in spoons)
- Lemon Riccotta Zucchini Boats
- Tandoori Tofu Mini Skewers
- Sun-Dried Tomato Tapenade with Garlic and Herbs
- Deb’s Black Bean Confetti Salad
- Oyster Po' Boy Sliders
- Tahu Bacem - Java Marinated Tofu Recipe
- Whole Wheat Orzo with Golden Beets and Feta Cheese
- Chipotle Mustard Itty Bitty Burgers
- Sparkling Wine Cupcakes with Sparkling Wine Butter Cream
- Mini Chicken Pot Pies
- Tamale Bites
- Watermelon Mojito Sorbet Recipe
- Chili-Lime Chicken Skewers with Spicy Green Sauce
- Chicken Tikka
Food Ideas: Fancy Party Food
- Baby Potato and Smoked Salmon Bites
- Shrimp Salad in a Savory Cup
- Cucumber Cups with Caramelized Onion and Bacon
- Spaghetti Nests with Chard & Bacon
- Lemon Tarragon Polpette with Tomato Glaze
- Mini Crab Cakes with Cilantro-Lime Aioli
- Sage & Truffle Custard with Parmesan Crisp & Tomato Foam
- Champagne Cupcakes with Champagne Butter-cream
- Herbed Goat Cheese Stuffed Strawberries
- Mini Pavlovas
- Fettuccine & Wasabi ‘Breadsticks’
- Lasagna Appetizer Cups
- Pancetta Risotto Cakes with Vodka Dipping Sauce
- Sorrel Pesto for Crostinis
- Watermelon Balsamic Cubes
Food Ideas: Kids Party Food
Ideas for Father's Day
Written by Michelle SteppWith Father’s Day coming up quickly (June 19), it’s time to put some thought into your preparations!
Need some ideas for Father’s Day? Look no further! I’ve gathered up a few ideas from around the blogosphere that are easy to pull off and yet make that special guy feel loved!
Most everyone loves a party and why not surprise Dad with a few decorations celebrating his day?
I love these two DIY garlands!
First is the tie garland from My Insanity.
All you have to do is cut tie shapes out of various construction or scrapbook papers, add stick on letters and hang with ribbon or twine.
The guy doesn’t wear ties? No problem! Cut out any shape that relates to him. Fish, baseballs, running shoes, golf, hammers, etc! You can even get die cut shapes at craft stores already cut out.
The other garland I love is the “Dad’s Head” garland over at Are We There Yet
This garland really involves the children! You just cut out shapes of heads and your children draw on the faces! Visit her site to see all the cute faces up close!
To set the table, how about surprising him with folded napkin shirts?
Add to this paper shirt cuffs for napkin rings!
These are easy to create and Martha Stewart shows you how here.
My friend, Amy at The Idea Room shows how to make these cute bottle tags. For your meal, serve individual bottles and create tags that match the rest of your decorations whether they be ties or the father’s favorite sports team.
What about inexpensive, yet meaningful gifts? Here are a few DIY ideas for the fathers in your life!
One of the easiest gifts are photos. This photo from Smashed Peas and Carrots shows taking a 3 photo frame and turning it into a special Dad message. Simply cut out or purchase a D and an A and take your children’s photos with them. (Remember, you only need one D.) This gift is perfect for a Dad to display in his office.
Another photo gift from Just Another Day in Paradise shows adding scrabble tiles as messages on photos.
Traditionally, many Dads like to watch tv! So putting together a nice tv care package added to some of his very own TV time would make many Dads happy men!
This package from Homespun with Love features many items that can be purchased at your local dollar store.
While there are many many more gifts ideas for Father’s Day, I love this final addition. The Dad Survey!
Simply print this out from The Creative Homemakers and ask each of your children each question. Their father will get such a kick out of the answers. But wait… make sure you keep them and ask the same questions next year! It’s a great way to see how your children have grown!
Creating a memorable Father’s Day can be easy, fun and inexpensive! And don’t forget, being remembered is always the best gift of all!
