Tag: Thanksgiving

Posted on in family, Food and drink, holidays, humour

Happy turkey day

Roasted turkey

Conversation with Clare over FaceTime this morning. She’s cooking a turkey for the first time for her friends in Halifax. We’re in the car driving to our local conservation area to walk off last night’s Thanksgiving dinner:

“I’m cooking a turkey for our Friendsgiving tonight. How long do I cook it for?”

Dave: “How many pounds is it?”

“18 pounds.”

 “6 hours at 350 then.”

 “6 hours? I ain’t got time for dat.”

 “I hope it’s unfrozen. Did you take it out of the freezer?”

“I don’t know, it’s been in the fridge.”

“You better check to make sure it’s unfrozen or it won’t be ready in time. What time are you having dinner?”

“6 pm” (it’s 12 noon in Halifax already). Yells to her roommates: “Make sure you turn the fire alarm off”. Then, “How do I tell if it’s unfrozen?”

“Stick your hand inside it and see if it’s hard.”

“Oh lordie, lordie that’s cold. It’s a little hard but I think it’s mainly unfrozen. What do I do next?”

“You have to look for the neck and giblets and take them out.”

“Jib what?”

“Giblets. They’ll be in a little bag.”

“Okay, I got them. What was the other thing?”

“The neck.”

“Huh?”

“It looks like 4-inch penis. You have to pull it out.”

“I don’t see anything that looks like that.”

I’m laughing so hard at this point I miss the turn to the conservation area. Dave has to stop giving turkey instructions to give me road directions.

Dave: “There might not be a neck. Not all turkeys come with the neck and it’s okay to cook it with the neck in if it is there.”

“Okay, now what do I do?”

“Just add some water to the bottom of the pan, cover it up and put it in the oven.”

At this point, she gets distracted and starts talking to Grace about her outfit. “Is that a pink Lululemon top? I love it.”

Grace: “Yeah, I’ll bring it to Halifax when I come see you on the weekend so you can steal it from me.”

She finally finishes covering up the turkey with foil and puts it in the oven. She holds up her happy face oven mitts wide with pride.

“Happy Turkey Day guys.”

To all my loyal readers, I hope you have a wonderful Thanksgiving. We were grateful for the family, friends and laughter around our table last night but missed our loved ones far away.

Posted on in Food and drink, holidays

Who you should really be thankful for this Thanksgiving

turkeys on a farm

A few weeks ago, I attended a “Meet a Farmer” night hosted by South Frontenac Township as part of the Open Farm Days events.

It was a lively, informal and highly illuminating discussion of the trials, tribulations and joys of small-scale farming in eastern Ontario.

I learned I have a lot to learn about the food that goes on my table.

One of the panelists was Sarah Winney from The Rise Farm in Godfrey. Sarah and her partner Rob sell farm fresh ducks, chickens, turkeys, rabbits, and eggs along with bread and kitchen pantry staples, such as seasoning salt, farm fresh garlic, and marinades.

You would think it would be a relatively simple process for small-scale farmers like Sarah and Rob to get meat butchered and prepared, but it’s not. Sarah and Rob have to take their meat to five different abbatoirs, some as far as 300 kms away. That’s because there isn’t enough abbatoirs to meet the demand, and the big ones are dominated by the large meat producers.

They could prepare their birds and rabbits themselves, but they aren’t allowed to. Regulations stipulate the meat needs to be taken to a licensed abbatoir (they can kill their own birds, but only for their own consumption, not for retail).  

As a result, it’s very expensive to get their ducks, turkeys and chickens prepped—it can cost them as much as $9 a bird, which leaves very little profit margin.

The cost is even higher if they have the abbatoir label the packages with weight and other information which is a requirement if they want to sell their meat at farmer’s market (which is why it’s rare to see meat farmers in local farmers markets by the way).

Another thing I didn’t know is when you buy a pound of beef, it can actually be parts of 20 different cows in the package, as opposed to just a single cow when you buy beef directly from a farmer.

A few years ago, a local farmer looked into building a new abbatoir to serve small-scale farmers in our area. There was huge interest and he even had the support of local officials, but the costs ballooned past the $5 million mark and they just couldn’t make it work.  

I walked away that night with a new, deep-founded respect for farmers and the obstacles they need to overcome to put food on the table for their own families and other families.

Before you pass around the mashed potatoes, turkey, ham and squash this weekend, be sure to thank a farmer.

Posted on in inspiration

300 Happy Acts

flower petal

Last week, my little blog hit a milestone. I posted my 300th happy act.

Six years ago, when I decided to start this blog, I wasn’t sure where it would take me. The idea was simple: post one insight or one little act of happiness each week, and challenge my readers to join me.

I was inspired by many things, but mainly from watching people I care about struggle with happiness.

Sadly, I think my blog is more relevant today than it was six years ago. I believe mental health issues in young people especially are reaching epidemic proportions in this country. When social platforms like Facebook talk about removing likes to protect people from feelings of envy and negative self-worth, it’s a sign of a major societal problem.

I’ve learned many things from this blog. I’ve learned the importance of living in the moment, and being grateful for what I have. In going back through some of my old drafts, I found this post I had written but never shared for my 100th happy act written on Thanksgiving weekend. I’d like to share it with you now.

——————————————-

This is my 100th blog post. I’m happy I reached this milestone on Thanksgiving weekend because it reminds me of everything in my life to be thankful for.

It also reminds me the things that make me most happy are life’s everyday moments. So for my one hundredth #HappyAct, I thought I’d recite happy moments from just one day this weekend.

  • Swilling German beer at my friend Karen’s Oktoberfest party
  • Meeting someone new
  • Feeling the breeze and warm sun on my face
  • Watching the sun shimmer on Bella and Clare in the boat
  • Petting my big dopey mutts
  • Making a Halloween scarecrow
  • Curling up and watching a movie with Clare
  • Reading the newspapers
  • Sitting with a glass of wine on the back deck
  • Buying $30 worth of candy at Bulk Barn that will last only a week
  • Eating caramels at 10 o’clock in the morning
  • Biting into a fresh, crunchy apple
  • Having a hot tub
  • Watching a red leaf dance in the air as it gently floats to the ground
  • Picking fresh flowers

This week’s #HappyAct is to celebrate the little moments that make life wonderful and be grateful for each and every day. Thanks for continuing on this journey with me.

Posted on in Technology and social media

Ten cool apps for an appy Thanksgiving

Thanksgiving—the time to give thanks, spend time with family with friends and download some new apps on your phone as you curl up into turkey-induced coma on the couch.

Here are some of my favourite apps to check out that are useful.

  1. TeamSnap—Have a child on a sports team? TeamSnap allows coaches and parents to see schedules, who’s available for practices and games and even allows you to upload photos from games to create an online team photo album.
  2. Carrot—Developed in partnership with Canadian Diabetes Association, the Heart and Stroke Foundation and different government agencies, Carrot rewards you with Aeroplan, Petro Points or other reward program points for making healthy choices, taking fun interactive quizzes and even for your daily steps.
  3. Slack—Tired of endless emails at work? Slack is quickly becoming the go-to app for teams and companies who are looking for simpler, easier ways to communicate and collaborate. Many teams at my company are using Slack.
  4. Calorie counter and diet tracker—A great post-Thanksgiving app for losing weight and getting healthy.
  5. Aura: Meditation and Mindfulness—it’s like having your own personalized mindfulness coach who will guide you for three minutes a day to better mental health and happiness.
  6. AroundMe—Handy app for finding restaurants, gas stations or businesses nearby.
  7. Find My iPhone—even if your iPhone isn’t missing, it’s fun to track yourself on the map; if it is missing, it’s a lifesaver.
  8. WeTransfer/WeDownload—you don’t even need to download the app for this one, just go to the website. Allows you to transfer files up to two gigabytes free—great for sending videos, large photo collections.
  9. Stubhub—buy or sell tickets to any sporting event or concert.
  10. Yonder Outdoor Adventures–Check out posts from fellow outdoor enthusiasts on the best hikes and paddles around the world.

And if downloading apps isn’t your preferred way to while away Thanksgiving Monday, Clare informs me there is a spongebob marathan today “Spongegiving”.

What’s your favourite app? Leave a comment. Appy thanksgiving, everyone!

Posted on in Uncategorized

Walk a country road

Woman and dog walking on country road
Our road with our new yellow line. Clare liked this angled picture best

It’s another glorious Thanksgiving weekend.

When Dave and I used to live in the city, we’d go for a drive in October in the Caledon Hills or the Hockley Valley. This area will always have a special place in our heart, because it’s where we got married 24 years ago this month.

As much as the drive was beautiful, I would yearn to get out of the car and walk the country roads.

There’s something special about walking a country road. Seeing the farms and fields ablaze in autumnal hues, feeling the warmth of the fall sun on your face, gazing up at piercing blue skies that perfectly frame nature’s masterpiece, and wondering what picturesque view lies beyond the next bend in the road.

Mushrooms
Clare took this amazing picture of a mushroom village we discovered

Yesterday, Clare and I walked our country road. Today, I plan to discover new roads with my best friend Leslie as we go on the Westport studio tour. I can’t imagine a better way to spend Thanksgiving Sunday.

This week’s #HappyAct is to escape for an hour this weekend from family gatherings and gobfuls of turkey and get out and walk a country road. Enjoy the brilliant sunshine, fall colours and promise of adventure around every curve.

Ed. note: Interesting side fact. Until this year, our road never had a yellow line. The roads crew painted it on Canada Day weekend. We cheered when we saw them (when you live in the country, this is our excitement), but I’m still not used to it. Maybe when winter comes, I’ll appreciate our bright yellow line.

Poison ivy
Poison ivy leaves turn a beautiful red in the fall, but they are still lethal–avoid them at all costs!

Country road

Posted on in Uncategorized

Write an old fashioned thank you note

Donna Swinton
My thank you note to Donna Swinton

This is Thanksgiving weekend, a time when most of us will spend time with family, eat way too much turkey and give thanks.

My mother-in-law still writes old fashioned thank you notes. I wanted to send Donna a special thank you note this Thanksgiving, so I bought a pretty card and sent it to her. I thought I would share it with you too. This is what the card said:

Thank you for not making me name my daughters Gladys

Thank you for the gift of music, our beautiful old piano

Thank you for putting up with John for the last 59 years

Thank you for welcoming me into your family and always treating me like a daughter

Thank you for fixing the zipper on my favourite dress

Thank you for proving that you can have a successful career and be a good mother at the same time

Thank you for somehow being at the same time both the best and worst Cheat card player I’ve ever seen

Thank you for teaching your son how to cook

Thank you for making sandies at Christmas time

Thank you for your youthful giggle and smile that was probably one of the many reasons John fell in love with you all those years ago and still loves you so dearly today

Thank you for your unconditional love and support

Thank you for being the strength and soul of the Swinton clan

This week’s #HappyAct is to write an old fashioned thank you note. Send it to someone who holds a special place in your heart or share it at the table this weekend when you’re giving thanks. Happy Thanksgiving everyone.