Eating out with Friends and Family at Chrismaria Indian Restaurant in New Minas
Eating out with Friends and Family at Chrismaria Indian Restaurant in New Minas
Our goal is to eat our way around the Annapolis Valley, teaching you about great places to eat out with friends and family including Chrismaria Indian Restaurant in New Minas. All opinions are our own.
There were a lot of people excited when they heard an authentic Indian restaurant was coming to town, as it had been decades since there was one!
In January 2019, Chrismaria Family Restaurant opened its doors.
Chrismaria Family Restaurant at New Minas offers wonderful opportunity to have novel Indian dishes. The authentic spices are imported directly from India.
Our family went to do some investigative reporting.
My youngest son and I are spice wimps. My husband and oldest love things hot and spicy! I must admit, since turning 40, I am able to eat a lot spicier food than I could in the past – maybe all my taste buds are dying!
My son was a bit nervous, wondering if he would find something that wasn’t too spicy for him. NO PROBLEM!
He ordered a big plateful of samosas! They weren’t spicy, but they were delicious! 
The rest of us tried a variety of dishes, and ended up sharing them around so we could discover our favourite dishes.
Everything was so full of rich flavours!
I ordered a combo plate, and got a bit of everything, including the butter chicken, which I will order a gallon of the next time!
We loved the beef curry and managed to lick the platter clean!
Everything is so delicious from the warm naan bread, the raita, the rice, and everything in between.
For kids who might not be so adventurous to try something new, there are a few basics on the menu including soups, salads, french fries and onion rings.
For those with more adventurous taste buds, it’s a good excuse to go back many times, trying a variety of dishes to determine your favourite.
Hours and Location
Chrismaria is located in the strip mall behind the movie theatre in New Minas. Currently, they are opened Tuesday to Saturday (STC).
Keep checking their Facebook page for updates.
Learn more about Chrismaria Family Restaurant
Looking for a great new place to eat out? Want to support a local business? Want to learn something new and expose your taste buds to some great flavours?
Check out Chrismaria Family Restaurant in New Minas!
Know Your Facts: 4 Myths Surrounding Emotional Support Animals
Know Your Facts: 4 Myths Surrounding Emotional Support Animals
Disclosure: This is a sponsored post debunking the myths surrounding emotional support animals.
Do you know exactly what an emotional support animal is? Lots of myths and misconceptions exist around emotional support animals like what they do, who are they for, and how you get one. ESAs provide comfort and improve the mental health of those with a diagnosed mental disability. Any animal can be an ESA, but some psychologists may only recognize dogs, cats, rabbits and other common pets as emotional support animals. Separate fact from fiction with these ESA myths.
Myth #1: Emotional support animals are service animals
The most common ESA myth is that they are the same as service animals. Service animals are highly trained to perform specific functions for those with a physical or psychological disability. Service animals have to undergo certifications and tests to make sure they qualify as a service dog and complete their training before being paired with a disabled person. ESAs are pets that help someone with a diagnosed mental disability cope with the symptoms of their disability and improve their mental health.
Myth #2: Emotional support animals can go anywhere
Service animals are allowed to accompany their owners in any places that the general public is allowed. Emotional support animals are only allowed in housing that does not allow pets and aboard the aircraft cabin during flights through the Fair Housing Act and the Air Carrier Access Act. ESAs cannot be taken into restaurants or grocery stores unless they allow pets. Service animals are not pets in the eyes of the law.
Myth #3: All You Need is a Vest to Get an ESA
While emotional support animals do not need official training besides basic obedience to behave in public, they do require a letter from a licensed mental health professional. The LMHP will evaluate whether the pet improves the mental health of their owner who has a diagnosed mental disability like anxiety or depression. Vests and badges aren’t enough and are not always necessary. There is also no “registry” for emotional support animals.
Myth #4: All ESAs Can Travel for Free on Planes
Emotional support animals are allowed to travel in the cabin of an aircraft with the proper letter from a licensed mental health professional and other documentation as requested by the airline. Each airline has different rules and requirements as to what animals are allowed on the aircraft. Many airlines only allow dogs and cats. ESAs can be denied boarding if they are not behaving correctly.
There are many falsehoods and fake facts about emotional support animals, how to get one and where they are permitted. People often confuse ESAs with service animals, which are allowed to accompany their owners in any public places. ESAs require a letter from a licensed mental health professional and can only travel with their owners in an airplane and live in non-pet housing; otherwise, they are pets and can go in pet-friendly places only.
There is no “registry” for ESAs and badges/vests are not required. Many sites offer fake ESA letters and gear for profit. Traveling with your ESA soon?
Make sure to read about Delta Airline’s Pet Policy here.
Making Sushi with Rice Krispies and Swedish Fish
Making Sushi with Rice Krispies and Swedish Fish
My kids love real sushi. When we were having a family potluck dinner, I wanted to try to make a different kind of sushi for the kids. This time, it would be made with Rice Krispies and Swedish Fish!
I started by making the Rice Krispies according to package directions. Because it was a family Christmas party, I used holiday Rice Krispies that I had on hand.
I then molded the warm Rice Krispies into sushi shapes. I actually have sushi molds from my time living in Japan, but this is easily done by hand, too. Cup enough of the mixture in the palm of your hands and create a “log” shape.
The secret is to make sure your hands and tools are WET.
Next, I laid a Swedish fish on top of each shape.
Finally, I used Rainbow Fruit by the Foot to wrap each of the sushi rolls.
Unroll the Fruit by the Foot, wrap it all the way around, and then cut. It is sticky enough it will stay in place!
The end result is a fun tray that kids (and adults) will love!
Why is Lice such a taboo subject?
Why is Lice such a taboo subject? Advice from Lice Matters
This is a guest post written by Tracey Bartie of Lice Matters, based in the Annapolis Valley, Nova Scotia.
Lice, such a taboo subject. But why? How did we become a society in which a health issue is off limits to discuss?
When lice came into my house and I couldn’t get rid of it, or talk to anyone about it, I knew I had to delve a bit further into why lice had become the subject that most everyone has had ,but no one will talk about.
When lice first came into my house, I did everything I was told to do. I used the most commonly prescribed lice shampoo (which is a neurotoxin) to kill the live lice. Only problem was, 97% of the lice in Canada are immune or resistant to it!
Fast forward 3 weeks later: too many loads of laundry, an anxious child, a neurotic mother and more hair combing than I ever hope to do in a lifetime and I decided I needed to learn more.
Out came my nursing and medical articles as I was determined to overcome this invader.
We all know googling symptoms and treatment can lead you down some very dark, and wrong pathways.
I was determined to find out the accurate information about lice and here are some tips I learned along the way.
- Lice are extremely resilient. They can change color, move very fast and are immune to most of the regularly used products in Canada.
- Combing with a regular nit comb does not work as effectively as they need to. In my experience, only the Nit Free Terminator Comb will help you in the battle against lice as they will remove a lot of the eggs and can be safely boiled between uses so you will have it for a decade. It is also a great early detection tool for picking up lice in your family’s hair.
- Lice live on heads, not on things. So yes, while you need to do a thorough environmental cleaning, you need to focus on the head that has the lice. And yes, this means checking parents as well because oftentimes a mom or dad will have lice as well and they continue to share it back and forth.
- Teenagers and tweens are the most overlooked but common carriers of lice due to the prevalence of “selfies”. Boys are not immune so girls who have lice also need to have their boyfriends checked as well.
- Lice is best checked under sunlight or a full spectrum daylight light
“Your best defence is a good offence” absolutely applies to lice. You cannot stop lice from entering your home, but having a good game plan and catching it early will save a lot of time and energy in the clean-up process. You need to have the right tools and a great resource to ensure you are only having to do laundry etc. once because you are using the right product that will kill live lice.
- DEC plugs (desquamated epithelials cells) look and act a lot like eggs. I have assisted people treating DEC plugs for weeks thinking they were lice. Knowing what you are looking for is crucial. If you are looking for “white things” you are looking a week late and likely will be finding DEC plugs, dandruff or empty lice eggs that have hatched. Viable eggs are brown and are close to the scalp.
DEC plug, not an egg.
- Just because you can’t find a live louse, does not mean they are not there. They hate light and are extremely good at being hard to see, especially the nymphs.
- Not talking about lice likely means you will end up with it back. If you do not share that you have lice with those who could have been exposed, you will, in all likelihood, get it back from them as they have probably picked it up and do not know.
This is just some of the information I have learned in my own personal journey with lice. Most of the technical information on how to treat it and the general facts of lice are on my website at https://licematters.ca
At the end of the day, until we as parents, start talking about it, our kids will continue to be anxious and no one will get the correct information they need to be “once and done” with lice, which is my philosophy.
It is not a 4 letter word (well I guess it is). It should not be taboo, nor should it be embarrassing.
Arm yourself with knowledge and a willingness to talk about it, and we will stop being good hosts for lice. Lice thrive on us being secretive.
Mostly empty eggs. This is what a 5 year battle with lice looks like.
If you need help with your lice situation, feel overwhelmed, need the proper products, of just want the right information, contact Tracey Bartie of Lice Matters
A Judgment Free Zone for Lice Treatment in Nova Scotia
Organizing a Child’s Bedroom with Your Last Resort Home Organization Annapolis Valley
Organizing a Child’s Bedroom with Your Last Resort Home Organization Annapolis Valley
With two friends, I have started a new venture to help people called Your Last Resort Home Organization and Staging Annapolis Valley. Through this business, we are helping people to declutter and reorganize their homes.
Turn Your Home Into a Resort
Are you surrounded by too much stuff? Do you need to downsize? Our team will help you declutter your home, whether you have a specific problem area or just need a general decluttering.
When you feel like you are at your last resort in terms of your home, we will help you turn your home into your own resort.
One of the areas of our family homes that seems to get out of control is our children’s bedrooms. Surrounded by too much stuff, it’s easy for it to quickly become a cluttered mess.
Instead of saying to your child to “clean your room”, maybe it’s time to let go of some of the things in it, to make sure there is a place for everything to go.
Decluttering with Kids
I am strongly against going in and throwing out your children’s things without their involvement. Sure, if the kids are really little, that’s a different situation, but older children need to be involved. By doing this on your own, you are robbing them of the opportunity of gaining these important life skills.
For my kids (and husband!) I use a very simple process.
I put a pile of items in the middle and write out two quick signs: Keep and Get Rid Of.
The kids then slide the item into either category. I deal with the “get rid of” pile, by putting it in a donation bag, recycling or garbage.
I rarely question anything in the KEEP pile, because I know the next time around, they might be willing to get rid of it.
Once the room is sorted, we create a system, or a permanent home for the items in the KEEP pile.
It is impossible to tidy without getting rid of some items first!
Systems for Organizing a Child’s Bedroom
In one of my Facebook Live videos for Your Last Resort, I gave a tour of my son’s bedroom and outlined all these tips. Watch the video here, or keep reading.
Peanut Butter Jars
My son loves to collect items, and is very sentimental about them. To keep his collections under control, we sorted like-with-like and placed each one in a peanut butter jar and lined them up along his windowsill. When the jar was full, it was time to sort through and make room for new items!
Hot Wheels Storage
This could work just as well for any toy that is a set and the pieces need to be kept together. We store each Hot Wheels set in a separate plastic bag that came from a sheet/pillow set. These zip up and keep things separate. You can also cut off the picture from the box top to know what the item is.
Lego
There is never enough ways to store, display and sort Lego! My son, Thomas, came up with this idea on his own, as a way to play with some of his favourite pieces and keep his favourite pieces separate.
We glued a large Lego sheet to the top of a bookcase. Then, my husband built a frame to go around it. You could also find a regular frame in a store that was the right size to use.
Electronic Cords
Not just good for a child’s bedroom, but any drawer! Cords get tangled. To prevent this from happening, Thomas cut a toilet paper roll in thirds and put a cord inside each section!
Keeping The Room Tidy
Having storage systems keeps a child’s room tidy. However, so does properly folding your clothing drawers!
Based on the Marie Kondo method of folding, this technique was a life changer!
Here’s how to get your drawers under control! READ HERE
Overflow
I also keep an overflow box in the closet. Any time the kids outgrow something, it goes in the box, and when the box is full, I take it to the basement to sort in the appropriately-sized totes. This way, all clothing in the drawer fits, is worn, and I’m not constantly having to deal with the extras.
Remember to ask for help from Your Last Resort Home Organization Annapolis Valley!
It’s ok to ask for help! We are all busy parents, and the thought of organizing and decluttering can be daunting. Let us take away the stress and the clutter today!
Best Sports for Developing Confidence
Best Sports for Developing Confidence
Disclosure: This post about the best sports for developing confidence is a sponsored post meant to bring you some great information from another source.
Growing up, kids are often faced with many situations that can be both scary and uncomfortable. While this is a natural part of becoming adult person, there are certain activities, namely sports, that parents can put their children into to help develop confidence and leadership skills to combat some of these situations. Sports have been shown to not only improve confidence and develop leadership skills but also the importance of exercise, how to build strong relationships, how to respect others and set authority figures and how to work together as a team (for team sports).
While some sports are better for development of only some of the listed skills, most sports will instill and develop all of these skills into your child.
Check some of the popular sports are the most beneficial for a child’s confidence building.
Martial Arts
While Martial Arts are great for keeping kids healthy and active, it is also one of the best sports for helping establish confidence in both your child’s body movement as well as their interactions with others. It helps kids to understand how to stand up for themselves, which is a confidence boost if ever faced in the situation where they have bullies. It also teaches them that you don’t have to be big and strong to overpower your opponent, which is most often seen in sports like Jiu-Jitsu, where the more agile participant usually wins.
Your child will also develop both physical and mental toughness and show that even through the failure of losing a match, they will progress through to success. This can be seen in boxing and mixed martial arts, where one small mistake can lose a match, even if the losing fighter is better overall. This is an excellent example that the outcome will not always fall in your favour, even if you are prepared for it, which is a great lesson to teach kids at a young age.
Soccer
In soccer, the most significant way to develop confidence is to overcome fear. One of the early stages is not to be afraid to get hit by the ball, which happens regularly in this kind of sport. It might take a lot of hits, and might lead to a lot of tears, but it will instill confidence that if you get knocked down, you will always get back up, stronger than ever. There will also be fear of making a mistake and letting down your team, which will happen as well. But with proper coaching and supportive parenting, these fears are a great opportunity to instill confidence.
Kids need to learn to make mistakes, and that the world won’t end.
It’s through this experience they will get better. Soccer gives ample room for these mistakes and confidence boosting because there is a lot of individual opportunities, the games are long, and the goal scoring is low. Soccer is also a great way to teach kids about their weaknesses to overcome and how to develop towards progress in those areas.
Swimming
Teaching kids to swim at an early age is very important for instilling confidence and reducing the opportunity to develop an intense fear that a lot of people have. Adding to that the sport of swimming competitively will ensure your child is confident in the water while offering a low impact sport that is non-contact. Your child needs to develop proper coordination to swim well and develop muscles properly at the same time. Practicing this sport will ensure your child always feels confident at pool parties and family trips to the beach, and you can feel relieved knowing they know how to swim if there is ever an accident with them falling into the water. Aside from confidence, muscle and coordination, swimming is also competitive and teaches kids how to handle failure and defeat, while still having something exciting to train for and competition wins.
Basketball
Basketball is one of the most accessible sports for kids since it only requires a ball and a basket, and most parks have this facilities. There are lots of youth basketball leagues, and it’s fun for kids to watch professional sports they play as well, where basketball is one of the more popular choices. Basketball teaches confidence in a similar way as soccer since this is a team sport with individual stat tracking and attention. With fewer players on the court, there is much more focus on each one, and there is constant movement for kids that have the energy to burn. Basketball helps kids develop confidence with every pass, shot and attempt to rebound or block since they are putting themselves right up against each player with a chance of failure.
While each sport offers unique skills and development for kids, the most important takeaway is that your child is physically involved into the sport activity. Whether it’s soccer, swimming or even individual sports like tennis and martial arts, your child will develop skills that will inherently make them more confident and build leadership skills and both physical and mental toughness.
Make sure to do some research for the benefits and negatives of each sport you are considering, and make sure it is something that sounds fun to your child and they would want to do as well. For these skills to develop, your child needs to enjoy the activity, so make sure to consider their preferences.
