Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo 2014
The Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo IS Family Fun!
I can’t even begin to tell you how excited I am. I am like a kid at Christmas. We are going to see the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo in Halifax!
I have great memories of going to the Tattoo as a child. I’m not sure how old I was, but I remember the amazing music, the acrobats, and the light patterns that were cast on the floor during performances. The Russian dancers stand out the most in my mind though, for every time their sword hit the floor, sparks lit the air. It was so thrilling to be there!
Fast forward twenty years later, and I had the great privilege of working at the Metro Centre as part of my public relations degree. I got to be there during the Tattoo, and once again got to attend the show. It was every bit as thrilling as when I was a child.
I could not wait until my children were old enough so that I might be able to take them to the Tattoo! We are finally there, and this year we will be going to the show!
The Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo is a week-long event held every year in Halifax. The two-and-a-half hour family show is fast-paced – every scene only lasts about 3-6 minutes, so there is always something new to see and experience. This is great for kids with short attention spans!
The show has performers from all over the world, as well as right here from Nova Scotia. There’s bagpipes, highland dancers, la culture de l’acadie and military traditions. Hoping for something more modern? The Tattoo also features innovative acrobatic acts, modern music, contemporary dancing, trampoline routines and cutting-edge videos. There is literally something for everyone. The hardest part will be deciding which is your favourite act!
Here are the basics from the Royal International Nova Scotia Tattoo website:
When is it?
The first week of July every year! In 2014, the Tattoo will be held July 1-8.
Who is it for?
Everybody! Young and old alike will enjoy this spectacular display. It is for tourists and locals, children and seniors, students and parents, couples and families. It is for you….
Where is it?
The Halifax Metro Centre, a modern, air-conditioned arena located in the very heart of Downtown Halifax.
Want tickets?
Tickets are available online at , by phone at (902) 451-1221 and at designated ticket outlets.
Pick your own seats when you buy your tickets online!
Order by Phone: Halifax Metro Centre Box Office – 1-877-451-1221 or (902) 451-1221
Right now there is a special on that is you buy 3 tickets, you will get 1 free.
Prices start at only $24.50 and there are both evening and matinee performances. A full list of ticket prices and showtimes can be found on the website.
With the Royal Nova Scotia International Tattoo only being approximately an hour’s drive from the Valley, it makes for an easy family excursion. Treat your family this year to a show at the Tattoo. We are so lucky to have “the world’s largest annual indoor show” right here in our own backyards!
You won’t be disappointed! See you at the show!
**I was not compensated for this post, however, did receive complimentary tickets for the preview show**
Keeping Things Whole
Keeping Things Whole: A Review
*I received a stack of books from Nimbus Publishing to review. My friend Cheri Caplan (congratulations one becoming a fully fledged lawyer!) is an avid reader with a Masters in English, so I thought she’d be the perfect one to review this book. Here’s what she had to say!*
Keeping things full of the same old same old
I had a like-hate relationship with this book. Frankly, if I had come to this book on my own, I probably would not have finished reading it.
I’m happy to report that I was mostly wrong with this book. It has a good middle and a decent end.
The beginning suffers from too much cleverness. There is a plethora of sentences that are just so carefully crafted I could not get lost in the forest of the book because the trees were so darn painstaking. This is an odd criticism from me, because I love a finely wrought turn-of-phrase. Nonetheless, it is too much of a good thing. To wit:
“When I was two feet from her, a very lacquered stretch of bangs and nails walked her tan between us.”
or
“A decade after my McJob I also gladly buttoned up a valet’s vest at Casino Windsor. Uniform. One form. In uniform, the soldier is no longer an individual, but one spoke in a mighty wheel.”
or even
“On the news, bus accidents and illnesses are inaccurately labelled “tragic.” Tragic=pitiable. And hero now generally means victim. Little Timmy fell down a well, so he’s a hero.”
I’ve left out the proliferation of cringe-worthy smutty and/or overly graphic rants.
The book is about a small potatoes weed peddler who graduates to the big-leagues first by building a trebuchet to launch bundles of marijuana across the river from Windsor into Detroit, and later by infiltrating a tourist hotspot. He’s also literally a product of both countries in that he was raised by a single mother who had been abandoned by her commitment-phobic draft-dodger boyfriend. Much of the book is dedicated to our hero pining after/searching for the father he never knew and the implications of their shared background: both historical and genetic. How inevitable is it that you become a smuggler if your grandparents were bootlegging rum-runners during Prohibition? Apparently genetics is destiny.
The sub-plot centres around a love affair with a woman who is impossibly out of his league. She is, however, seduced by his charm and his seemingly endless supply of cash. I suppose these two are metaphors for America and Canada, as could only be written by a Canadian. Canada is an earnest law student who is happy to live off the avails of crime, as long as it doesn’t sully her reputation. America is a schmoozing self-starter of a swindler who hits the road at the first sign of real commitment.
But I’m not giving much away because the very first page gives you enough to figure out that the entire book is meant be a letter-in-a-bottle to someone our hero has abandoned. Genetics is destiny, indeed. Like father, like son.
From its too obvious play on words title, to the depressing message of entitled, yet somehow noble, deadbeat dads, this book is a bit of a slog to get through. It did have some great bits in the middle, and many phrases, in isolation, are quite lovely.
If you’re interested in pondering the implications of living on a border town between two places that are economically, politically, legally, and even morally opposed, you might like this book. Or if you’re wondering whether a hand-dug tunnel under the Detroit river can last for decades after it was sealed off.
Here’s the synopis of the book from the website:
It’s 1998 and Antony Williams is about to meet his match. A native of Windsor, Ontario, Antony is the child of a demanding single mother and an absconding Vietnam War resister who got too used to leaving home, country, and family. With a keen eye on the hybrid Windsor-Detroit landscape, backhanded affection for his hometown, and a growing understanding of his own family’s place in its bootleg history, Antony makes his living as a house painter by day before catapulting loads of Canadian weed across the river to Detroit by night.
Then he meets Kate Chan, a beautiful, street-smart law student, who calls his bluff and picks apart his personal mythology. Ultimately she presents him with his own hard choice and forces him to realize he’s been smuggling much more than he knows. Keeping Things Whole recounts the arc of their relationship and is cut with Antony’s entertaining manifestoes on marijuana, legality, art, theatre, sex, money, and lineage.
With this, his second novel, Darryl Whetter gives us a maddeningly cocky but introspective hero, and his frank, nuanced portrait of a border city and its underground history.
Try it out for yourself! Win a copy of Keeping Things Whole by Darryl Whetter courtesy of Nimbus Publishing! Enter daily until June 20!
T-Shirts for Father’s Day
T-Shirts for Father’s Day
Are you looking for a unique Father’s Day gift that you can make this year with the kids?
Why not try designing your own T-shirt?
Last year for Father’s Day, each boy designed his own T-shirt. Start with a plain T-shirt. We bought ours from Michaels craft store. Then, grab a package of fabric markers (also available at Michaels).
Place layers of newspaper, paper or cardboard inside the shirt so that the marker does not transfer to the other side. This also provides a semi-hard surface to draw on.
Let the kids go wild with their design, making sure it is dark enough to see.
Another option is to create a “road massage shirt”. This idea has been circulating around Pinterest, so my sister-in-law decided to make one from her kids for my brother!
On the back of a plain T-shirt, simply draw a road system. You can make this as elaborate as you want.
Then, have dad wear the T-shirt and lay on the floor. Give the children some Hotwheels cars and let them drive them over the roads. This way, the kids get to play, and dad gets a nice rest and back massage!
Here, I am modeling my brother’s shirt.
What are some other possibilities for T-shirts for Father’s Day?
Behind the Scenes of a Ghost Walk
Behind the Scenes of a Ghost Walk
I am obsessed with ghost walks.
The first one I went on was when I was travelling in Edinburgh with my sister over fifteen years ago. I immediately fell in love with the concept of learning about history, hearing some great stories, and going of a tour or a city.
Since then, I have done ghost walks in York, England; St. John’s, Newfoundland; Halifax, Wolfville, Windsor Nova Scotia; and now Liverpool, England.
To complete my passion for ghost walks, I am now involved with Jeremy Novak and Valley Ghost Walks here in the Annapolis Valley.
While a university student, Jeremy took a course in designing and implementing small business plans. Little did he know then how successful that his own plan would be! Having been on historic walks in other towns, he loved what he saw and thought that if others could have such tours run with such success, then why couldn’t Wolfville?
From this, he has built an empire of ghost walks here in the Annapolis Valley. Now in his seventh season, Valley Ghost Walks is a story of great success!
Photo courtesy of Heather Rusthon, Twin Bridges Photography
How did I get involved?
For four years, Jeremy was solely running the ghost walks in Wolfville, Nova Scotia. He had hopes of expanding into other towns, but not the time.
As someone who seems to be involved in too much in the community, I was approached by members of the Kentville business development committee to see if we could get a ghost walk in Kentville, much like they had in Wolfville.
I emailed Jeremy to share the idea. He was keen. However, he didn’t have the time to research and write the scripts. I, being a freelance writer, would love to write the scripts, but wasn’t able to do it as a volunteer. Together, we applied for the Cultural Activities Grant through the Nova Scotia Department of Tourism, Culture and Heritage with the help of CentreStage Theatre. We were successful and received enough money to hire me as a research assistant!
The way that Valley Ghost Walks works is that you convene at one point while Jerome the Gravekeeper (Jeremy) gives you a walking tour, while sharing information along the way.
On your walk, you meet various ghosts who come onto the scene to tell you their story.
Photo courtesy of Heather Rusthon, Twin Bridges Photography
The Ghost walk is more like a theatrical historical tour rather than stories all about ghostly apparitions.
I spent the spring of 2012 reading everything I could about Kentville’s history, interviewing people and pouring over documents in the archives at our local museum. Key events and people kept popping up, so those were the ones that I turned into stories and monologues. In fact, we had so much great information that we actually created two ghost walks – one in the downtown core, and one in the town’s cemetery.
Photo courtesy of Heather Rusthon, Twin Bridges Photography
There were stories of pirates, murder, liquor raids, hangings – just to name a few!
Photo courtesy of Heather Rusthon, Twin Bridges Photography
One of my favourite characters that I wrote a monologue for was Archie Pelton. He, along with Dan and Jack MacKay helped build MacKay cars right here in Kentville.
Pelton later became mayor of Kentville. He is a fascinating character. I was telling my sister about some of the ghosts she would see in the walk and she stopped me mid-sentence. Archie Pelton was her husband’s great-grandfather! I had no idea when I wrote the script! Archie’s granddaughters came along on the tour one night, and were happy to meet their “grandfather!”
Running a ghost walk takes a lot of work and dedication. The amount of information that is in Jerome the Gravekeeper’s head will astound you!
Photo courtesy of Heather Rusthon, Twin Bridges Photography
Then, there are the 8+ professional community actors who need to be organized, in place at the right time, and in a costume (thanks to CentreStage Theatre). After seven years, though, it’s all like clockwork.
Since writing the Kentville ghost walks, I have also received the same grant to write a ghost walk for Halls Harbour which focuses on the Legend and Lore of the Fundy Shore full of tales of ghost ships, pirate treasures, shipwrecks and more.
Valley Ghost Walks are now in four towns in the Annapolis Valley: Wolfville, Windsor, Kentville and Halls Harbour. They run all summer and into the fall. A full schedule is here.
If you are looking for something new and fun to do this summer, try out one of these various walks! They are appropriate for kids 10+. There is nothing inappropriate for children in the walks, it’s just that these are history lessons, and not every kid is into history!
The walks happen rain or shine, so grab some walking shoes, a flashlight, some bug spray and your camera! You’ll see me taking tickets in Kentville and Halls Harbour (you’ll never see me acting, though!)
Photo courtesy of Tamar Marshall, Red Birch Media
Make your reservations through the website. You won’t be disappointed!
Caramel Popcorn
Caramel Popcorn
Are you looking for an addictive, easy snack that the kids will love?
Making caramel popcorn is a lot easier than you think.
Here’s a recipe that I got from a friend.
Caramel Popcorn
1 c sugar
1/2 c margarine
1/4 c corn syrup
1/4 tsp baking soda
Pop popcorn. (I used 2 bags of microwave popcorn)
Mix together syrup, margarine and sugar in a saucepan.
Bring to a boil. Stir for 1 min.
Take off heat and add baking soda.
Stir and pour over popcorn (be sure to grease bowl that popcorn is in or it will stick to sides when cooled.
Tips:
I spread the popcorn over a cookie sheet so that it wouldn’t become soggy and it would harden faster.
I used a sheet of wax paper over the cookie, sheet, but this was a BAD idea as the paper stuck to the popcorn. Next time, I would use a silicone mat or nothing at all.
I would also spread it over two sheets, as I found the popcorn too thick for fully hardening.
Try not to eat this in one sitting!
Tapestry of Life
Little Earthquakes and the Tapestry of Life
“David, turn on my CD for me!” “Mom, put the kettle on for tea.” “Dad, pass me my book!”
That’s me. Barking orders from behind the breastfeeding pillow. I’m Kelly. Well, my name isn’t actually Kelly, but I am most definitely the most like Kelly in the book Little Earthquakes by Jennifer Weiner. She’s the character who, when not doing everything herself, is managing her family and friends with their simple, everyday tasks.
Little Earthquakes is a must-read for any new mom. You are sure to see something of yourself in at least one of the characters, be it the “by-the-book” mom, or the mom who has to deal with the domineering mother-in-law, or the mom who has it somewhat together (they do exist!).
While reading the book, I couldn’t help think about all the quirky characters in my own life.
First, we have Sally. Sally does a lot of research. She thoroughly researched all the credentials of every doctor in the area before making an appointment. Sally reads all the instructions. If the exer-saucer says to put the baby in when they are four months old, on the baby’s four-month birthday, she can go in the exer-saucer. Sally reads a lot of books. If the book says the child is to start cereal at six months, then on the sixth-month day, the baby starts cereal. If you need the latest research on everything from baby acne to a great child photographer, just ask Sally.
Then there is Joanne. Joanne loves her baby Ashley. We all know how much Joanne loves Ashley. In fact, Ashley is all that Joanne talks about. No matter what you talk to Joanne about, somehow Ashley is relevant.
“My Brody now weighs 25 pounds!” “Really? Ashley weighed 25 pounds at about this time, too.”
“My Samantha hates eating peas.” “Really? Ashley liked peas but didn’t like squash.”
“I think I am going to go to Walmart after lunch.” “Ashley and I went to Walmart last week.”
“My Mark went to the moon.” “Really? Ashley went to the moon and back.”
You get the picture.
Don’t forget the Ultra-Clean mom who goes washes her children’s hands each time they touch anything. Or, the Princess-mom who has her daughter perfectly groomed wherever she goes and gets upset if a hair is out of place.
Having said this, I am sure that I am a character in my own right. When my little guy goes down for his 45-minute nap, I hit Kelly-mode. Time to go! By minute 44, I’ve got two loads of laundry on the go, washed the dishes, baked cookies for playgroup, made homemade baby wipes, folded all the cloth diapers, steamed, mashed and frozen three trays of baby food, fed the dog, and called my mother. Nap when the baby naps? Who has time?!
Motherhood can make us quirky and crazy. We might not agree with each other, but that is part of parenting. It takes all types to raise children. Who would want each child to be the same? We need to appreciate our friends’ quirky parenting styles, and embrace one another’s differences.
Why? Well, first, we can learn from one another; even if it’s realizing some of the things that we don’t want to do as parents, but surprisingly often, we learn something that we never would have otherwise tried – and lo and behold, it’s great! We can also value the Sallys of our parenting world too. After all, they do a great deal of research and are always keen to pass on what they’ve learned.
Maybe fellow moms learn from me too – how to monu-multitask, as my husband calls it. The point is that we’re all part of a parenting tapestry, each one of us following our own threads. Sometimes we focus hard on what we do. Then at other times, at playgroup, at tots’ swim, or at a dinner party when parents are sitting round the table (armies of babysitters having been hired), we get a chance to step back and see the marvelous, vibrant, and breathtaking picture called “parenting” that those threads weave together.
*All names have been changed to protect the innocent – or guilty!
What is your mommy personality?
