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Beaches Boscobel, Jamaica: A Tween’s Perspective (Day 2)

Sandals Golf & Country Club, Jamaica

Stella, who is almost 10 years old, and I have just returned from Beaches Boscobel in Jamaica, where we were invited to experience the resort. If you’re a parent and you travel to the Carribean during winter, then you’ve likely heard of Beaches Resorts. This chain of resorts is known for providing an above-and-beyond experience to families and their young children. But what about the “tween”? When your child is not a “little kid” nor are they a … [Read more...]

Beaches Boscobel, Jamaica: A Tween’s Perspective (Day 1)

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Stella, who is almost 10 years old, and I have just returned from Beaches Boscobel in Jamaica, where we were invited to experience the resort. If you're a parent and you travel to the Carribean during winter, then you've likely heard of Beaches Resorts. This chain of resorts is known for providing an above-and-beyond experience to families and their young children. But what about the "tween"? When your child is not a "little kid" nor are they a … [Read more...]

Everything’s Amazing and Nobody’s Happy

Hello my lovely bloggy friends, Stella and I are now in Jamaica (my Jamaica 101 post)! We were invited to come and visit the Beaches Boscobel resort in Jamaica and it's actually our first "girls' trip" together. Beaches Resorts cater specifically to families, so we are here to experience the resort and its activities to the fullest. I will be telling you all about it ... but first, I want to tell you about the trip to get here. To fully … [Read more...]

I Used to Really Love Advertisements

This might sound strange, but I used to really love advertisements. Advertisements can provide an amazing creative outlet for "ideas people" -- it's rare to get so much creative freedom and budget combined. As a kid, I would watch all the ads during television shows and admire all the ads in my favourite magazines. Now, as an adult, I work (indirectly) with advertising. But I have to admit that, these days, I tend to skip over television ads … [Read more...]

Jamaica 101

Stella, my 9-year-old daughter, and I are going to Jamaica next week. I know ... awesome, right?! We are really excited, despite the realization that we actually know very little about this country. So, won't you join us as we teach ourselves a touch of geography, history, and social studies? Where in the world? First of all, the WHERE! Below is map showing the island of Jamaica in red. From our home town of Ottawa, if you were to catch … [Read more...]

Last Night at Von’s

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It's been a while since I went out for a dinner that wasn't work-related. Where you can just sit, and let your mind wander between conversations and whatever thoughts are poking around inside it. A girlfriend was turning 40, and so eight of us gathered to enjoy a meal and drink some wine. I sat down in Von's restaurant in the Glebe, and then I noticed the wall in front of me. The entire wall was covered with portraits. Each face, … [Read more...]

Ottawa Giveaway! The Seagull – A Modern Ballet at Canada’s NAC

Canada's National Arts Centre has generously offered two tickets for a giveaway to Coffee with Julie readers! Up for grabs are two orchestra-level tickets to The Seagull, by the National Ballet of Canada. It's been given brilliant reviews here, there, and just about everywhere. Canada's NAC, Ottawa Friday, April 13, 2012 Curtain time: 8 pm 2 tickets To enter: This ballet is based on a play authored by Anton Chekhov and first produced … [Read more...]

I have Cloud White walls! (And other notes on my Dining Room)

Dining-Before

I know that I am supposed to be sharing some cute Easter egg craft with you but that's not happening. There are no Easter crafts in this house. Sorry to disappoint. It just didn't happen. But what did happen is white walls. Three to be precise. Hubby and I decided to "test" the white wall concept by painting the dining room (since it irked me the most at the moment). Here is how our dining room looked before we (the royal "we") started … [Read more...]

A muffin-making virgin no longer.

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Last week, I got all inspired by my copy of The Looneyspoons Collection (TLC) and made muffins. For the first time. Ever. Please don't ask how I got this far in life without having made muffins because then I'd have to admit to you all the other things that I've never cooked or baked. It's a long list. I was actually going to make a cookie recipe because it had fewer ingredients (and therefore seemed less intimidating), but Stella, my … [Read more...]

Sightseeing in Seattle

Seattle folks *really* love their city!

It's Sunday evening and I am sitting in an airport waiting. Although actually seeing new places keeps me alive, the travel to get there is so tedious. And I seem to dislike it more with each passing year. I'm returning from Seattle. I flew in on Wednesday afternoon for work, and despite a busy schedule and it raining cats and dogs the whole time I was there, I managed to get to see a lot of the city's sights. It's a cool city. Sort of feels a … [Read more...]