Daisy A Hen into the Wild
Daisy: A Hen into the Wild
*Disclosure: I received a copy of this film to review*
It wasn’t hard to convince a group of kids to come over to watch a movie. The only stipulation was that they knew they had to give me their opinions when it was over.
We gathered a group of boys and girls ranging in age from 3 to 8 to watch Daisy: A Hen into the Wild.
Daisy is a hen who manages to escape the horrible conditions of an egg production line. After surviving a harrowing encounter with a one-eyed weasel and being rejected by the barnyard animals where she grew up, a chance encounter sees her becoming the guardian of a duckling. Despite the child being a duck, Daisy is willing to learn and make the sacrifices she needs in order to ensure the happiness of her son.
Watch the trailer:
This is a Korean film that has been adapted into English.
The movie seems like it is three short stories made into one movie. Just as you feel that one issue is being wrapped up, another one arises. So, throughout the movie, you get to see the characters in many different situations.
As it is a foreign film, it is completely different from movies made in the Western world. Issues are presented in a realistic way, not like a perfect Disney world, which kids may not be used to. For example, the one-eyed weasel does kill and eat some of the ducks.
I highly recommend that you watch Daisy: A Hen into the Wild with your children. There will be a lot of questions.
The ending of the movie is very shocking and one that the kids did not fully understand. I won’t describe it for fear of ruining the film. If they do, it’s a good opportunity to talk about the circle of life. I shall say no more!
The kids enjoyed Daisy: A Hen into the Wild. They loved the “pictures”. The scenery, set in Korea, was different from what they are used to seeing in North American films. It made us want to research Asian birds! They all agreed that the otter was funny, and they enjoyed the antics of Daisy and her son, Will.
Overall, the film is great for kids between 4-8 as long as you sit and watch it with them. It’s a great opportunity to expose kids to a whole new type of kid’s movie where not everything in life is always perfect.
Daisy: A Hen into the Wild is AVAILABLE on ITUNES and Video-On-Demand.
Painted Bread
Painted Bread
Sometimes it is fun to turn your breakfast or afternoon snack into a craft activity! Try making painted toast!
You will need:
Milk
Food colouring (or other food colouring agents)
Paintbrushes
Bread
Toaster
Fill small containers with 1 – 2 Tbsp of milk
Add a couple of drops of food colouring to each container to make different coloured “paints”. Stir.
Give each child a paint brush and a piece of bread.
Have children pain their bread making different patterns, shapes or drawings on the bread.
Toast. The pattern will remain on the toast!
Although, according to the boys, it tastes just the same as “regular toast”, it is a fun, new way to eat it!
3 Ways to Cook Outdoors
3 Ways to Cook Outdoors
Get outside and start experimenting with different ways to cook supper! They don’t always work, or work that well, but half the fun is trying something new!
Here are a few outdoor cooking ideas to try
Cook a Hotdog in a Milk Carton
Cook on a Tin Can
Cook an Egg in a Bag!
Make a Solar Oven!
What Happened to my House
What Happened to My House?
We moved into our house 10 years ago. Before we had kids, and before we had a dog.
When we purchased the house, there were nice floors, crystal dishes reflecting the vast amount of sunshine, and it was clean. It was a beautiful home.
We were able to keep it this way even after getting a dog who sheds constantly and lies on the furniture – even though she knows she’s not supposed to. And, even with a new baby, the house was still beautiful.
Now, I’m not sure what happened. Actually, I do know what happened. Kids. That and lower standards.
Have a look at my living room before kids.
Now, look at it after kids.
I walk into some people’s homes and am so envious. They are neat, tidy, well-designed, and beautiful. Some of these houses have kids, too.
Our home is not that way.
Take our hallway for example. It started when Thomas was 2. He decided to start stripping off the wallpaper. Instead of redoing it, we just hung the kids’ artwork up. Once it falls off, it gets recycled and the next ones go up. This covers the wallpaper – or lack thereof – nicely.
I keep saying that when the kids are older I will redo the hallway, and re-set up the living room. When the kids are older, I’m going to have a lot of jobs to do.
My kitchen is still covered in bows. The Elf on the Shelf put them up when he came, but didn’t bother to take them down when he left! The nerve! Again, we just wait for them to fall off or my niece to come over and pick them off!
I think a lot of this stemmed from the fact that when we were growing up, all our friends wanted to hang out at our house. We had lots of parties and gatherings.
It felt like home to so many.
We were also in constant renovation mode, so there was always a floor board or wall to sign.
It really doesn’t bother me that much. The house is tidy and clean (most of the time). It’s family friendly, and I don’t have to worry about “my stuff” getting broken or ruined.
Besides, this is a short stage of life and it will be over before I know it.
And, my house will eventually come together.
Or, at least that’s what I tell myself!
What is your house like?
Magic Wine Bus
Magic Winery Bus
*I was not compensated for this post. All of these opinions are my own*
As the saying goes…
Happy Mommy = Happy Family!
I truly believe that as moms we do not reward ourselves enough, nor do we take enough time to spend kid-free surrounded by other women!
I have the solution for you! It is the Magic Winery Bus which leaves from Wolfville, NS. Even if you don’t drink wine, this is still an incredible day out, and well worth the trip!
Here’s what the website says:
The Wolfville Magic Winery Bus–a classic British double-decker–will whisk you away for an incomparable day of tasteful adventure in the heart of Nova Scotia wine country. A North American one-of-a-kind, this hop-on, hop-off excursion visits four of the most storied and beautiful local wineries. You’ll experience firsthand the unique terrior that creates some of the most memorable wines in the world; learn a little about the region’s history and rooted connection with food; and best of all, get a taste for why this region has a reputation as the centre of wine country in Atlantic Canada. Ready to be transported?
Overview of the Wineries
Each day, the bus goes a different direction around the loop of wineries. The bus arrives at each winery every hour. It is up to you how many hours you spend at each location, or if you stop at each winery.
Throughout the ride on the double-decker bus, we had a tour guide who told us information about each of the wineries and the local area. Our guide happened to be Jeremy – a good friend of mine who I work with on Valley Ghost Walks. This made the tour extra-special!
Here is what we experienced at each of the wineries:
This was actually one of the first vineyards (if not THE first) in Atlantic Canada! Here, we sampled two wines (a red and a rose) and had a mini-lecture on the process of making wine. The rest of the time we spent walking through the vineyards and sampling the grapes.
We also learned about the two different types of netting used to protect the grapes from the birds and racoons.
Through the vineyard, you can also take a walk up to the viewpark that overlooks the Grand Pre Historical site.
There is a restaurant on site which opens at 11:30.
We were met off the bus by Pete Luckett’s own daughter, Sophia, who gave us the low-down on the winery. We sampled a Rosetta wine before heading into the winery.
Probably best known is the phone box that sits in the middle of the vineyard. Bring your address book, because from this phone you can make a free call to anywhere in North America!
There is a restaurant here and we stayed for an incredible lunch overlooking the vineyard.
Because we stayed for lunch, we allowed for two hours at this stop.
This winery is notable for two main reasons. First, it is a fully-certified organic winery. This means that they use no pesticides! Secondly, they make an award-winning sparkling wine – which we got to sample.
At this stop, we wandered through the vineyard, and learned what makes a vineyard organic. Amongst other things, the weeds are left to grow, and sheep manure is used to fertilize the grounds.
Apparently, when you drink organic wine, it does not leave you with a hangover that non-organic wines do. I did not have enough to sample to put this idea to the test!
On site is a playground for kids and a Mexican food truck.
This winery is my personal favourite. I love the wine here, and I love that we got to sample 6 wines (STC)! A great way to end the day.
In the middle of the vineyards, we got to learning about the different grapes, and what wines are made with them. This includes the Tidal Bay wine. The Nova Scotia winery owners and winemakers decided to develop a signature wine that revealed represented the area – thus Tidal Bay was born. There are a list of 21 grapes that can be used, and it is up to each wine maker to concoct her own recipe and version of Tidal Bay.
Buying Tickets
Tickets are purchased through TicketPro on the Magic Winery website.
I cannot stress this enough: book early!
Especially if you plan on touring with a group of friends. Last year, we tried to book tickets for 10 people about 3 weeks in advance and had a very hard time. This year, we booked almost 2 months in advance! Tickets sell out quickly. For a good reason – it is a top-notch day!
Tickets are $50 per person (STC). It is worth every penny!
Planning your Day
There are three slots to choose from: 10:30, 12:30 and 1:30.
If you want to go to all four wineries, select either the 10:30 or 12:30 time slots.
The first year we went, we were only able to get the 1:30 time slot. So, what we decided to to was to drive to Luckett’s for lunch, and then go back and catch the 1:30 bus. This way, we were still able to take in two more wineries.
This year, we left at 10:30 and visited all 4 wineries. We spend two hours at Luckett’s because we stayed for lunch. However, because lunch does take awhile, we were not able to do the full wine tour on site. If you stop for lunch, you almost need 3 hours at Lucketts!
We arrived back in Wolfville at 5pm.
Parking
There is a free parking lot across the street from the Wolfville Visitor Information Centre – from where the bus departs. You may also want to consider getting dropped off. I know that after all those wine samples, I would not have been able to drive home safely! Plan ahead and be responsible.
Extra Samples
Each of the wineries offer extra samplings – usually for $5.00. This is a great way to get introduced to an even wider variety of wines. At L’Acadie, if you make a purchase, this $5.00 is deducted from the price!
Meals
There is a restaurant at the Domaine de Grand Pre Winery and at Luckett Vineyards. A Mexican food truck was available at L’Acadie.
If you are going to eat at Luckett’s like we did, you need to have a group of over 10 people to make a reservation. I booked our table of 14 a week in advance.
The food was incredible! After coaxing from several people to try the Churchill sandwich – I couldn’t resist the brie and chicken sandwich with a glass of muscat! All the food was delicious, as you can see!
Children
The first year that the Magic Winery Bus operated I went with my husband and children. Some people couldn’t believe that I would take my children on a wine tour! Yes, I did, and I’m glad!
Children under 16 ride for free when accompanied by an adult.
My boys always wanted to ride a double-decker bus. This was a perfect way to make this happen (instead of spending over $75 in Halifax!) The kids loved riding on the top, and enjoyed the view from up top.
With the boys, we only stopped at two of the stops. However, they had a great time walking through the vineyards, sampling some grapes and being in the fresh air. At L’Acadie, there is a small playground area where the kids can play.
If you are taking kids, I would recommend going on the 1:30 tour and only making 1-2 stops.
Overall
The Magic Winery Bus is a wonderful asset to our area. It’s a great way to tour the countryside, enjoy a beautiful scenic drive, learn something new, taste some fantastic wine, and and spend time with friends and family. It is also a great way to support our local wine industry.
I will continue to go every year. You should, too!
Sweet and Sour Chicken
Sweet and Sour Chicken
Once upon a time my mom took a Chinese food cooking class. This recipe has become one of our family’s favourites!
It’s one of those dishes that you have to eat as soon as you make it, so make sure everything else is ready to go before you start cooking, because you can’t really be interrupted or it might burn! Trust me on this!
Sweet and Sour Chicken
Chicken breasts (or pork) – usually the number of people minus 1
2 eggs
6 Tbsp Flour
Oil
Sauce:
1 C pineapple juice
2 Tbsp ketchup
1-2 Tbsp sugar
1-2 Tbsp soy sauce
1/4 C vinegar
1 Can pineapple chunks
1 Tbsp corn starch
Chop chicken breasts (or pork) into bite-sized pieces. If I am serving 4 people, I usually cut up 3 chicken breasts (number of people minus one).
Mix eggs and flour until it becomes a thick paste.
Stir in chunks of chicken until they are coated in batter.
In a deep frying pan, wok, or electric frying pan, heat oil. I usually pour enough so it is about 1 inch thick. If there are no allergies, use peanut oil as it smokes less.
Heat oil on medium heat. When it is bubbling drop in a few pieces of chicken. I use long cooking chopsticks, but you could also use a slotted spoon.
Cook on each side for 1-2 minutes, or until batter has cooked and is medium brown. You can use a knife to check if the inside is cooked. You will soon learn what is cooked or not!
When both sides are cooked, transfer the chicken piece to a plate covered in paper towel (to absorb the oil).
Add new chicken pieces to the oil. Keep doing this until all the chicken is cooked.
Sauce:
In the meantime, open a can of pineapple juice. Drain the can into a measuring can. You will need 1 cup. If this doesn’t equal 1 cup, then add water until it does.
Pour into a small pot.
Add ketchup, sugar, soy sauce and vinegar. Add more sugar if you like it sweet!
Heat until boiling.
Once the sauce is boiling, remove about 1/2 cup of the sauce and put it in a small bowl. To this bowl, add 1 Tbsp of corn starch.
Stir until it is completely dissolved and is not lumpy. Add this mixture back into the pot (doing this prevents the corn starch from becoming lumpy).
If the sauce is not thick enough, repeat the process and add more corn starch. This is not an exact science!
Into a large serving dish place the chicken pieces. Cover with the sauce and add the pineapple chunks.
Serve hot with rice.
