It’s a sad, confusing, frustrating time for educators, parents and students alike across the country who are about to navigate distance learning or some kind of in-class model that feels much too experimental for many of us. Whatever decision you’ve made, or are about to make, if it’s the right one for your family’s needs,…
Lake Ontario fishing with the Reel Mistress
According to Captain Steve, Lake Ontario fishing should be called Lake Awesome fishing. That’s how he and fellow sport fishers refer to the goldmine lurking in the deeper waters of Lake Ontario. And it’s all within easy reach of the Whitby marina, which the Captain’s boat — the Reel Mistress — calls home. Whether you’re…
My review of professional skin care lines
This professional skin care lines post was updated on April 5, 2022. Although I’ve had some pretty good success over the years with big-brand skin care products that can be found easily in any drugstore — like this moisturizer from L’Oreal and this lip care line from ChapStick — the onset of perimenopause a couple…
Awesome road trips from Toronto
(This road trips from Toronto post was updated on June 26, 2023.) When more than half of your content is in the travel category and a global pandemic hits, shutting down international and provincial borders and making even something as simple as a weekend hotel stay questionable, you have to pivot. And fast. Welcome to…
The best parental control app for iPhone: Apple Family Sharing
I’d been an Android user for years, prizing great photos above all else with my smartphone. Apple just wasn’t cutting it once the Samsungs and Pixels came on the scene. But that meant that once my kids got hand-me-down iPhones, only Big B could text and FaceTime with them since we haven’t given them SIM…
Sourdough discard recipe: sourdough English muffins
When I’m really in the bread-making zone, my routine includes feeding my sourdough starter (who we named Right Said Bread) on a 12-hour schedule, morning and evening. And that means we end up with quite a bit of discard each day, so I’m always looking for new ways to use it. My latest sourdough discard…
The easiest Dutch oven sourdough bread recipe ever
Dutch oven sourdough bread has become a staple in our house. You can poke fun and call me Laura Ingalls all you like (heck, I do it myself, alternating with Betty Crocker!), but if I’d known how easy it could be to make so many of our favourite bread products at home, well…let’s be honest…pre-pandemic,…
Easy evening snacks: crunchy granola bar recipe
Whether you or your kids knock these back for breakfast, eat them to prevent a mid-afternoon crash or indulge as easy evening snacks during an after-dinner walk or before bedtime, this crunchy granola bar recipe (that’s chewy on the inside) is a healthy, protein-packed snack. I don’t have kids with peanut allergies, so I can’t…
Making bread without yeast or a scale: sourdough Dutch oven bread
Everyone’s food decisions during what will someday be known as The Pandemic of 2020 are wildly different. While some are doing takeout and delivery, others are trying to make as much from scratch as possible. We fall into the latter camp. Partly because it’s cheaper and we’re currently a one-income family and partly because the…
How to feed sourdough starter (without a scale)
This how to feed sourdough starter post was updated on January 18, 2021. As I write this (on May 12, 2020), it’s been 60 days since we started sheltering in place, practising physical distancing and pivoting our entire life as a family to do our best to keep everyone sane, happy, educated and fed. Make…