Events

IT’S CONCERT TIME! Today, we’re off to Massey Hall for the annual Saint Michael’s Choir School Christmas Concert, featuring Handel’s Messiah and an array of Seasonal Favourites. Okay, so maybe one of us is actually performing…. Return to the Advent Calendar 2017 Monthly View

TODAY IS OUR FAMILY BOOK EXCHANGE! Secret-Santa-Style, we’ll each choose someone in the house to buy a book for. Used and road-side finds are A-okay! Click here to see our Family Book Exchange Picks for 2017: Return to the Advent Calendar 2017 Monthly View

MAKE FINISHING SALTS! Each year, we make a big batch of something magical, glam it up, and give it away as our signature gift! Today, we’ll be creating some gorgeous spiced finishing salts for the kitchen. You can find the recipe for Spiced Finishing Salts HERE.   Return to the Advent Calendar 2017 Monthly View

TUESDAYS IN ADVENT ARE GIVING DAYS! Today, we will be donating funds towards a “Safe-Delivery Kit” at PlanCanada.ca. From the organization: There are few bonds as strong as that between mother and child. Instinctively, mothers worry about keeping their children healthy and safe. But this can be challenging in the developing world, where diseases are […]

TODAY WE WRITE CHRISTMAS CARDS & LETTERS TO SANTA! (Yes! All of us are writing letters to Santa!) But, here’s the twist, folks. Don’t mail those letters to Santa yet. On Friday, we’ll be doing something a little different with them… Of course, no letter writing party is complete without a cookie! We’ve got a batch […]

TORONTO CHRISTMAS MARKET! Today, we’re heading to the Toronto Christmas Market to browse the stalls, ride the Ferris wheel, and sample the hot chocolate. The main focus of our trip will be to photograph the market from interesting angles. Return to the Advent Calendar 2017 Monthly View

A VERY BRITISH NETFLIX CHRISTMAS Tonight, we’ll watch Season Two of Netflix’s The Crown and do some “Very British Christmas” things. We’ll make (and probably burn) sponge toffee, sample a few Cadbury bars, open last year’s leftover Christmas crackers just to steal their paper crowns, and…drumroll please…burn our letters to Santa in hopes that the wind […]

MARKET INSPO DAY  We’re going to head over to the busy Saturday St. Lawrence Food Market to take more photographs today. We’ll tour the food stalls, indulge in as many free samples as possible, and take pictures of our potential “main courses.” Back at home, we’ll pore over our cookbooks and come up with a […]

LISTEN TO CHRISTMAS RADIO PLAYS AND SKETCH A SCENE Tonight, we’re going to listen to some old-school radio plays, not via radio, but via youtube. And, as we listen along, we’ll sketch a scene or two using whatever blank paper and art supplies we happen to have on hand. We might just try these three […]

BLIND CHOCOLATE TASTING SAY, WHAT? Today, we’ll grab a box or two of chocolates from the drugstore or from a fancy chocolatier, or both. We’ll divide them into quarters and place them into labelled-on-the-bottom and numbered-on-the-top mini-muffin cups. We’ll take turns pulling a Santa hat down over each other’s eyes . And, we’ll guess which […]

IT’S ANOTHER #GIVINGTUESDAY WE’VE GIVEN TO THE DAILY BREAD FOOD BANK! Click the logo below and give. It’s just that simple. Return to the Advent Calendar 2017 Monthly View

DECEMBER 13th MARKS THE FEAST OF SANTA LUCIA! Today, we light candles, or “wear light in our hair,” and brave the winter weather by going for an evening walk or skate. And, in our pockets, we’ll hide some Pepparkakor: Spicy Ginger Snaps! Want to learn more about the Feast of Saint Lucy? Watch this Video! So, […]

DINNER AND STAR WARS! DINNER AND STAR WARS! It’s the most wonderful time of the year! Today, we’ll be sneaking off for a screening of Star Wars, The Last Jedi. And, we’re hoping to work in some of the miraculous burgers, fries, and shakes from a favourite restaurant downtown. Return to the Advent Calendar 2017 Monthly […]

IMPROVISE A CHRISTMAS MYSTERY RADIO DRAMA Round up your jingle bells, your train whistles, and all your best sound props! Inspired by last Sunday’s radio listening party and by a recent screening of Murder on the Orient Express, we’re going to improvise and record a 30-Minute Christmas Radio Play tonight. Our focus will be on […]

CHRISTMAS COOKIE MARATHON! Today, we’re making ALL of the Christmas Cookies! Check out my 12 Days of Holiday Baking for all the recipes! Return to the Advent Calendar 2017 Monthly View

IT’S BEGINNING TO LOOK A LOT LIKE COCKTAILS! Let’s make this a low-tech Sunday. We’ll sing carols, make cocktails and kid-friendly mixed drinks, and read our Family Book Exchange books. Here are my recipes for a Fireshine Martini and a Hot Buttered Rum inspired, respectively, by my recent trip to Stratford and by our anniversary […]

BREAKFAST FOR DINNER! There’s nothing like the smell of Sunday brunch, especially on a Monday night! Bacon? Eggs? Coffee? Maple Syrup? Magic! Seeing as it’s the last Monday of the school year, we might as well go crazy and have an enormous breakfast for dinner. Along with the pancakes and bacon, I’ll have an amazing […]

MAKE A DONATION TO FORESTS ONTARIO Forests Ontario is dedicated to making Ontario’s forests greener. Their ambitious tree planting initiatives, extensive education programs, and decades of community outreach have helped plant millions of trees in the province each year—and it’s through these efforts that they’re bringing their vision for healthier forests to a new generation […]

BREAK OUT THE MITTENS AND TOQUES! WE’RE HEADING OUT TO SEE THE CHRISTMAS LIGHTS! Since we’re closing in on the winter Solstice, we might as well take advantage of all of this darkness and enjoy the holiday spectacle. Tonight, we’ll take a walk or a cab to see the rows and rows of light-up, inflatable […]

SPA DAY AT HOME Break out the sheet masks and polishes. Today, we’re going to have a spa day at home. And, we’re doing it on the cheap, with whatever we’ve got on hand. Want to slather an egg on your face? Go right ahead. Feel like rubbing avocado all over your tired elbows? What’s […]

PYJAMA EXCHANGE & PIZZA PARTY Today, we’ll be exchanging pyjamas by the fire. Of course we’ll put them on right away! Then, we’ll order pizza, pour the wine or fizzy water, cuddle up on the couch, and put on a few old movies. It can’t get any better than that! Fave movie? Holiday (1938), of […]

CHOCOLATE MALT BÛCHE DE NOËL & A BRISK WALK Every year, or close to, I come up with a new recipe or flavour profile for our Christmas Yule Log Cake, or Büche de Noël. This year, I’ve come up with a Chocolate Malt Bûche de Noël for us to bake. Click Here for the Recipe! […]

IT’S THE LAST DAY OF ADVENT! Here’s my Christmas Eve Checklist for 2017 □ Take another brisk walk outdoors and come home to a hot cuppa! □ Prep the mains and sides for tomorrow’s Christmas dinner. □ Eat a light lunch and have a teaser cocktail! Or, raid the cookie platter.  □ Mid-afternoon nap to prepare for […]

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE! Return to the Advent Calendar 2017 Monthly View

TREE TRIMMING PARTY It’s December 1st and the Scouts have set up their Christmas tree lot around the corner beside the AME Church. We’ve had an artificial tree for years. But, now that we have furniture that seats more than two, our old tree doesn’t fit our living space. For the first time in forever, […]

Today, each of us is going to write a Punk Rock Christmas Carol. Signing bonus if you mention seltzer or incorporate the sound of carbonation. Here are some Ramones lyrics for inspo: _________________________________ Merry Christmas (I Don’t Wanna Fight Tonight) Merry Christmas, I don’t want to fight tonight with __ Merry Christmas, I don’t want […]

CHRISTMAS COOKIE WARS! Today marks a Battle Royale between the Ancients and the Moderns Today, our favourite Christmas Cookie recipe will go head-to-head with a rookie-newcomer for the title of Christmas Cookie Champion 2018!  What does this mean?  First, the family is going to settle on our favourite holiday cookie from our own recipe collection. Will it […]

Adopt and Invent an Animal Tuesdays are traditionally giving days on our Advent Calendar Today, we’re going “adopt” an animal from a favourite charity We’ll be letting the kids decide whether this is a symbolic adoption from either the WWF or the Zoo or a Gift of Hope in the form of chickens, goats, etc. […]

FRIED CHICKEN TOUR! Today, we’re starting stage one of our Fried Chicken Tour of the City of Toronto! T’s crazy about fried chicken and looking for the best in the city to sample. So, we’re going to scan the top-ten lists and get recommendations from friends re the best (non-K) FC in the City and […]

We’ve got a late night tonight. So we’re going to spend the tail end of it having… A Late Night Tailgate Party Get out the red and green tortilla chips, the coloured salsas, fancy cheese and guac! We’re going to watch the recorded highlights of Thursday Night Football with our late night meal! Starting Lineup? […]

Mail the Christmas Cards! With our best wishes to the hard-working folks at Canada Post! RETURN TO THE ADVENT 2018 EVENTS PAGE

Checkered Tablecloth, The Works! Tonight, we’re fixing on an old fashioned steakhouse dinner with steaks & burgers, frites & baked potatoes, beer & whisky + dessert! RETURN TO THE ADVENT 2018 EVENTS PAGE  

Christmas Concert at Roy Thomson Hall Today’s the first of the two Saint Michael’s Choir School Holiday Concerts at Roy Thomson Hall. This season marks a shift from the event’s taking place at the choir school’s usual Christmas venue, Massey Hall, which is undergoing extensive renovations. For tickets: https://www.roythomsonhall.com/tickets/st-michaels-choir-school-annual-christmas-concert/ RETURN TO THE ADVENT 2018 EVENTS […]

CHRISTMAS CANNING Today, we’re making some extra special holiday gifts. Alongside my famous Whisky Fig Cranberry Sauce, we’ll be tackling either Lillie O’Brien’s Persimmon, Saffron & Vanilla Jam or her Cranberry & Sherry Vinegar Jam (or both!) from the miraculous cookbook I discovered on our summer vacation, Five Seasons of Jam. To speed the process […]

SKETCH THE TREE AND SPONSOR A LIVE ONE Today, we’ll spend some time sketching our Christmas tree. We’re fishing out all of the old boxes of oil pastels and charcoal pencils and sharpies and watercolours, and we’ll get to work memorializing the first fresh tree we’ve had in the house in over a decade! Then, […]

Pyjama Day + Building the Ultimate Breakfast Sandwich Each year, during Advent, we grab a pair of crazy holiday pyjamas for at least one person in the family (usually Bea) and we celebrate with Dinner for Breakfast. Today, we’re going to have Breakfast for EVERY SINGLE MEAL! And, we’re going to attempt to build the […]

Feast of Santa Lucia Family Book Exchange is ON B & T are swapping titles again this year. They’re hunting gently used books for each other (and an extra for their local book depository) This year’s key words are “Mystery” and “Light.” RETURN TO THE ADVENT 2018 EVENTS PAGE  

Holiday Game Night with Cocktails for Mom and Dad Tonight, we’re going to play holiday versions of all of our favourite games. We’ll haul out the game of “Christmas Clue” we made with the kids ages ago to see if the Christmas Villain, once again, wasn’t Rudolph with the Sleigh Bells in the Toy-Makers’ Room! […]

Photograph the City Today, we’ll visit the Art Gallery of Ontario (for Anthropocene) and Allen Gardens (for the Winter Flower Show). Then, we’ll go outside and photograph the city with an eye for the elements from these exhibits which inspired us the most! RETURN TO THE ADVENT 2018 EVENTS PAGE