Hintonburg Get-up-and-Go Style vs. Cozy Time

I really like the period between Christmas and New Year's. My work shuts down so I have tons of time on my hands. That leads to a dilemma, however: what to do with that time?

I think there are two broad categories of people in the world. The cozy/comfortable ones and the get-up-and-go-getters. If I was purely cozzy/comfortable I would spend much of my time enjoying low energy (but rewarding!) things like reading books or watching Netflix. If I was purely get-up-and-go-getter I would use the time to do more cross country skiing or skating or hiking.

While I fall in between the extremes, if I'm honest with myself I'm more of a get-up-and-go-getter kinda guy. That probably explains why Margot, Glosette Girl, and I went for a walk on Christmas and another one yesterday. However (and here's the cozy style coming out) if truth be told, the walks were pretty short.

OK maybe I'm not that low energy!

Once we wrapped those up, and with a righteous sense of accomplishment in hand, we cocooned at home and spent much of the rest of the time indoors reading, playing our new family Board game, Settlers of Catan Junior,  and most important of all...finishing the brutal 1000 piece puzzle my brother bought Margot for her birthday. It only took 5 months but we finished it! I guess we just needed my work to shut down in order to do it. Mental note for the future!

5 months of frustration...but worth it!

Pinhey Forest

 
Frozen snow on the trees.
Crunching boots and laughing kids.

Making plans and hatching schemes.
Amongst the snowflakes and the new ice.

A happy start to the winter.
In Pinhey Forest.

Chorale Lyrica Finale

So I heard through the grapevine that some of my European readers have been wishing I would  blog more about Margot's adventures (I'm looking at you "Mex Milbeam"). Well, your prayers are answered! This week's post is all about Margot's grande finale as part of Chorale Lyrica, a bilingual children's choir based just across the river in Hull, Quebec.

This past weekend was the spectacular Christmas finale of her choir, which was part of the 12th annual European Union Christmas Concert at the Notre Dame Basilica in Ottawa. It was an impressive event with a choirs from all over the city performing. And good on Margot, even though she didn't go on until 8:30 pm or so, she sang loud and clear along with the other children in her choir.

I think Margot's favourite part of the show was wearing high heels

December is truly "performance" season in our household. In addition to the Basilica show, Margot had a horse competition, dance show and another Christmas concert. I think we were pushing our luck a bit, but fortunately Margot was...mostly...good humoured about it all.

Margot is the kid wearing black

 The Chorale Lyrica show was my favourite of them all though. Perhaps it was the space, Margot's constant smile throughout the show, or just the sound of voices reverberating around the cathedral, but regardless, it made for a memorable evening and a great reminder of why the Christmas season can be so special.

Here's the link to the full performance (Margot's part starts around 1:17:00).

Christmas Fair

Think Christmas is on the way? You betcha!

This last weekend was a veritable bonanza of Christmas goodness at our house! Let me count the ways:

• First, we continued our annual tradition of making our way across the river and watching the Aylmer Christmas parade.
• Second, we started writing our Christmas cards (keep an eye on your mailboxes!).
• Third, we spruced up our front door with a Christmas wreath purchased at our local farmer's market. 
• Fourth, we put up some Christmas decorations (nutcracker, stockings and indoor lights).
• Fifth, I opened up a special box of Christmas kids books that I always save for this time of year.
• Finally, we visited the Hintonburg Annual Artisan Craft Fair at the Hintonburg Community Centre. 

The fair is full of stuff you don't need (jewellery, ornaments, fancy soaps) but gosh darn the sheer home-made-organicniss of it all is irresistible.

I'm sure more than a few people left the fair with their wallets a bit lighter (virtually speaking of course!).

We also did some local celebrity spotting as we saw Minister of Infrastructure and Communities, Catherine McKenna, at one point. To be honest, this is less of a "wow" sighting for us as we seem to run across her at every artisan fair we visit. Guess she likes beeswax candles and knitted products!