The Rainbow Cake

Now, I have never ever professed to be a fancy baker.  I absolutely love to bake, but the finesse that professional bakers and pastry chefs have to decorate their tasty creations is something I can only dream about.  I will blow my own horn and say that what I bake is from scratch and is always damn tasty, but I humbly aspire to one day make them as beautiful as they taste. A girl can hope, can't she?

My sister is an astoundingly talented chef, however she is not as thoroughly gifted in the baked goods department, so I often get the family baking duty.  This year my nephew Benjamin turned 11.  He is the most wonderful and kind little boy on the planet and I am wrapped around his finger. While looking for photos for his Tumbler account he came across a picture of a rainbow cake and asked me to make it for his birthday.  How could I say no?  With a lot of time and love this was the result.  Pretty cool if I do say so myself...

I couldn't help but take a photo of them during the process...

All in all Beans was delighted with his cake, it tasted delicious and looked awesome.  Once again, I secure my spot as the coolest aunt alive!

Deck the Halls

I'm not a Christmas person and when I tell people this, inevitably I receive either a sideways glance or a barrage of psycho-analytic questions to determine why it is I just don't jump into the holiday spirit. The fact is, I truly love Christmas eve; the magic of the night and the beauty of the true meaning of Christmas is what it is truly about for me.  The running around the mall and the spastic Christmas shoppers, on the other hand, I can do without.

Now, as you know, no holiday can go by in our house without some serious decorating.  Let's be honest, even a change in weather sometimes motivates a decor change here at The Olden Household.  As I have mentioned in the past, my OCD manifests itself in a variety of ways, but for Christmas decor it takes on new limits with half a dozen large Rubbermaid chests.  Each one is labeled in detail, and each contains a different colour combination.  I mean, let's be serious, we can't commit to the same colour scheme every year... can we?

Last year we did a traditional front foyer in gold, green and red.  Our tree and family room was gunmetal silver and blackened cobalt.  Well, this year, I decided to change it up a wee bit......

First, my little obsession, the outside of the house:

Close up of the fancy urn

There is no denying that even though my mom has retired from the floral and event business, and my sister is no longer designing full-time, there is no way on earth we will be giving up the idea of adorning our houses!

This year the foyer was inspired by old Hollywood; black, white and silver.

Originally the Hollywood idea was going to be the theme for the tree, but Dave had other plans...

                                          

While unpacking a blanket box, I finally came across my Hudson Bay blanket and was inspired to have a traditional tree.  Although to my chagrin there is no such thing as a Bay blanket tree skirt, we did manage to come up with our version of "Lodge Chic" for the tree this year.  The very best part of buying the pieces for our new tree theme was that Dave and I had the chance  to adventure through the countryside (and to the Bay of course) to find all the little pieces to create a tree that was all our own. 

Punk Rock Moose

We were blessed to be able to do all of our family visiting this Christmas with the aid of our little friend global warming. The roads were dry and it was, as always, so nice to see everyone without struggling through the snow.  However, on the 27th of December this is what we awoke to enjoy... from the warmth of our house.

Dave took a week off for the holiday and we had every intention to go to Vegas, but our little Miss. Humphery was a bit under the weather.  Being the crazy pet  parents we are, we have postponed our little jaunt.  Humphery is feeling better now, but she regrets that the tree will be packed up this weekend.  I may not love Christmas, but she certainly does. 

The Mega Quarry Picnic

So, after having lived down by the river with hippies for a fair length of time in my 20's, there is something quite comforting about the idea of eating and sharing a communal experience in the woods. So, when it came time to join with other concerned citizens in showing our support against the proposed Ontario Mega Quarry, it was a no brainier that I was happy to participate in Foodstock.

The premise of the event was to bring public attention to the issue of the proposed quarry that looks to be built north of Toronto.

Seventy chefs from all over the provence set up in the woods of a farm which neighbours the proposed open pit site. They came to cook and share their support against the exploitation of this prime farmland. Much of the food they cooked was food that was local and the product of the distinct soil to which the area is home.

Though it was cold and muddy, the proposed ten thousand people that were expected came out in masses and the final total of attendants reached an estimated 20 thousand.

Though the nibbles we had were delicious, it really wasn't about the food or the outstanding musical acts. It was about free speech, democracy and the power of the individual to be heard. Ok, and a good excuse to wear my Hunter wellies?

Yes, there could have been significantly more national news coverage, but already there is a larger group that is heeding the message of our need for sustainable farmland near the GTA.

Sure I suppose I could have occupied Bay street, but Dave and I chose to use our voices for a cause near to our hearts, and I can honestly say that it was truly inspiring to be a part if it.

The views as we marched with other supporters into the woods!

Delicious morsels in hipster containers

Mud could not keep us away

So it was a little chilly, but the chefs were prepared!

Can you see the foodies for the trees?

Yes, there were moments that seemed overcast. 

Imagine this as an open pit dug below the water table... no thanks!

For kids who grew up in Ontario in the 90's this is a shot of Hayden on stage!

A truly fitting end to the day! A rainbow of hope.

Who Lives Here? Martha Stewart?

So you can take the family out of the floral business, but...

This Thanksgiving we finally had a chance to gather together and have an unrushed family day.  Sure it was particularly special because we were not tied down to the shop, however the best part was that for the first time Dave and I could finally host our first holiday. Sure our dining room is in need of a few things, but I pulled out my best Martha Stewart and this is the result....

I also managed to whip up an awesome pecan pumpkin cake complete with fondant leaves and acorns. Damn, those acorns were more difficult to make than I first suspected.

And, of course, you cannot forget about the finer details of the flatware...

Then weeks later we were thrust into my favorite day of the year...

Halloween!!!

I think we are hated by the other people on the street, 'cause we are a little too focused on decorating for this particular day. 

I know this because one woman who came to the door with her brood of Trick or Treaters asked in a venomous tone, " is this where Martha Stewart Lives?"

Ok, sure the owl pumpkin was carved from an idea from Martha's web site. But why do people need to be so nasty on the best day of the year? Sure we have real fire and the pizzazz of pumpkins that are fancy, but we don't have a full grave year on the lawn...yet.

And besides, I never forget to pay an homage to my favorite classic childhood moment: The 'free hand carve'

To be completely honest... it is always the moment that gives me the most joy.

Friday Night Lights

All my life I have wished that I could live my life as if I were the character of a fabulous t.v. show.  As a child, it started off in the kitchen where I would host "Cooking with Erica".  I think that this behaviour was more acceptable to my mother than me having an imaginary friend because I was, in her mind, demonstrating my need for a connection to the greater audience of the world.  Little did she know it was really just because I had unrealistic dreams of grandeur.  As I grew, I took to breaking out of conversations only to address the imaginary audience that followed me with the occasional "aside".  Eventually this action proved a useful meter to gauge how patient my friends had become over the years with my t.v. dream.

Then it happened. Yes, finally I was going to have the opportunity to have my moment in the limelight. After years of waiting, my life would indeed include a prime-time moment, and that moment would come to me in the form a football game.

Though I no longer teach at my former school, I am still a bit of a diehard when it comes to school spirit.  My niece goes to the school, many of my friends still teach there, and to be honest, though I have mixed emotions about leaving, I still have a kinship to the place that will never die.  When I was a student, we did not have a football team; at least I don't think we did. So I did not have a chance to live out teenage moments at the football field.  Truth be told, even if I had had the chance, there's little chance that's where my friends and I would have been found!! Unless, of course it was under the bleachers or re-mounting a scene from Dazed & Confused.  However, for the last few years the school has been participating against its enemies on the field at a huge evening game at a "real" stadium.

The event is really something... very "U.S. high school football cliche". And who am I to avoid a good cliche?

So, this past Friday I made plans to go with my friend Leanna to Friday Night Lights.  God bless her heart, she is my side-kick on all my little romps.  We planned to meet my niece and friends at the game.  We packed our supplies: blankets, umbrellas, hot chocolate spiked with Bailey's (yes, we are the "bad" kids in the episode) and headed to Brampton toward the park with the bright lights.  To say I was excited is a gross understatement.

Once we arrived, I could not contain myself. Then, just as I exclaimed, "I finally get my cliche night", a woman stopped us in our tracks. "The game is cancelled; the Refs didn't show".  My mouth dropped open and my heart fell into the blankets I held to my chest. Leanna looked at me and let out an awkward laugh.  Then she saw my devastation.

Like a funeral march we made our way to the stands anyway.  I dropped off our stuff and went to see all the people we had planned to meet. The boys on the team were distraught when I went to greet them; I understood their pain. We mingled a bit amongst the hoards of disappointed. Then I made the choice to make the best of the situation. Damn it, I looked cute and I was not about to let the great stadium lighting go to waste.

Sooooo.........PHOTO OP!!!!!!

Obviously the best place to take a photo is on the field..... let's say right in the centre, shall we?

Oooohhhh...... Don't Debbie and Erica look great!

Yes Leanna, you are right.... we do look better and better in every photo tonight.

It doesn't look like there will be re-mount of the "big game" anytime soon.  So I suppose my dream will have to go on hold again. At least we tried to make the best of the situation... and really, isn't that all the character's in these shows do anyway?

Alive and Attempting to Kick- PART TWO : The Garage Sale Saga

Along with the major changes that have occurred with my new job change, an even greater change has been at the centre of our family. As of June 1st, my mother retired from her career as a florist and closed the flower shop we have owned for the past 18 years. Along with this change came my sister's choice to return to school to pursue her career as a lawyer; a dream she put on hold 18 years ago to be an outstanding floral designer.

My mother was absolutely ready for retirement, and the choice to close the shop rather than sell it came down to pure emotion. We were not willing to sell a family name. We had a three week long sale and cleared out a vast amount of inventory. What was left over was moved to my father's garage for a giant garage sale. Simple idea, right? Not quite.

Our family is not very well versed in the art of garage sales, so preparing for the event took weeks. When all was said and done, each and every item was priced, packaged and displayed. After three separate weeks of sales, almost all of our leftover items were sold. It was an exercise in patience and tenacity, but it was well worth it.

So what's next? Well, as fall approaches we cannot wait to enjoy our first holiday together; a celebration that will not be contingent on other people's needs or schedules.

Though the future brings change for all of us, I cannot wait to see what is in store for the future!

Alive and Attempting to Kick- PART ONE

Well, to say the least, it has been a long time since I have posted.  Truth be told, when life gets a little overwhelming I'm more of a head-down and plow through it silently kind of girl than one who shares it.  So much has happened since March that I'm not really sure I want to get into it in detail.  The fact is, I have kind of dealt with it and really don't want to rehash it much. However, I suppose I will address what needs to be addressed for posterity's sake and do so in the most direct and concise way possible... if there is a way to do so. 


WORK
I have absolutely loved being an English and Drama teacher, however, for almost three years I worked to have my school offer a Dance program.  When the province issued a special arts designation to the school I was finally able to achieve my dream and start my very own program from the barres and mirrors up.  The new program was part of an effort to draw students from outside boundaries to our school.  Though for a very long time we had been bursting at the seams (we had 635 graduates this year), we were now faced with a drastic enrollment decline thanks to a new school finally being built in a nearby town.  Though I won't get into the short-sighted nature of school locations, the result of the reduction in the number of students coming to the school  (this year will see only 155 grade 9's) has caused a school staff surplus issue the likes of which our school board has never seen.  Last year the school lost 27 staff and this year the school said goodbye to another 17.  


In the midst of all this chaos, I was personally having a crisis of profession.  I was feeling disillusioned with the state of the teaching profession, the idiocy of the union, and the quality of education we were providing our students.  When I changed professions and entered teaching, I did so with the express intention of making learning accessible to the students who were most at risk of failure and whose needs were not being met academically, emotionally, and psychologically.  Though I was doing my best in a traditional school setting to meet my goals as a teacher, I found that the red tape and bureaucracy was really getting to me.  I was hoping to have a spark reignited within me by starting the dance program, alas, I still found myself in a pretty dark place. 


It did not take long for me to realize that there was also something very wrong behind the scenes in the enrollment department.  Students were being called in to Guidance and being moved out of my dance course.  Being the only certified dance teacher, I had been saved from being surplus and moved to another school because I was needed to run my program. However, no students in the course, no program.  My program had become the target of student poaching for the livelihood of other programs.  Within three days, and completely under my nose, I had my program erased and I was told I was going to have to move schools with the hoard of other teachers who were also leaving.  I was devastated.  The fact that I was the teacher primarily responsible for the entire Grade 12 College English program did not matter either.  It was a seniority and union thing, I was told.


As if the speed with which this had all happened wasn't bad enough, I was told a school an hour away was interested in me because of my teaching specialties.  "Please tell me you are kidding me, right?" now I'm being asked to commute for a decent job too?  I was repulsed.  This had to be a window opening and not a door closing. I was ready to quit teaching before this chaos, maybe this was the stiff kick I needed to get out.


Then in an awesome twist of fate (which I completely do not believe in) God had me bump into a friend in the grocery store. I knew the moment I saw her and spoke with her that God was once again proving my need for patience should be worked on.  Long story not-very-short, she made me aware of a new location for my school board's alternative education program.  And, it was literally going to be down the street from the school I was leaving. This information had yet to hit the press.  There really were not any teachers willing to start the program at the site because of its location, and she suggested I speak to my principal.  So that's what I did.


The following day I walked into the principals office and asked about the proposed location. Once he confirmed it, I told him that that was where I wanted to be moved. Now, in most cases of teacher surplus in my school board, administrators trade teachers like an NFL draft to meet the various needs at different schools.  In the case of the alternative school, they do not enter into the draft with other schools because, as you can imagine, if an unwilling teacher were placed into this program, they would not be very happy. Well, far be it for me to be part of the norm!!!! Within three days of being surplus from my school, I made to choice to join the staff of Archbishop Romero. 


I will now be working at a suspension/expulsion school for students who have been removed  from school do to various reasons (most of which have legal ramifications), and I could not be more excited! I realize that with the giant size of my school board I am SO VERY LUCKY to have a job in the face of surplus. Our board guarantees a job somewhere, no matter what.   So many of my friends who are in small school boards have been surplus and find themselves jobless.  Further, unlike so many others, I had a choice of where I ended up.  


It has taken my family a bit of getting use to the idea of me teaching in a suspension/expulsion setting.  I have assured Dave that contrary to his worst imaginings, I will not be waring a Kevlar vest to work everyday.  The school has various locations as oppose to only one site, so I will learn the ropes at one of the existing sites and then I will move into the new location where I will be the one responsible for starting up the new branch of the program.  The stark reality of this particular job is that there is a very high burnout rate due to the nature of the role.  However, before I make a choice to leave the profession of teaching all together, I knew I needed to finally be immersed in the job I first entered teaching to do. No doubt this new chapter in my life will provide many stories to blog about in the the future.