Fairmont Banff Springs – the start to a great vacation!

06 Monday Oct 2014

Posted by in Pleasure, Travel

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , ,

Over a week a go I flew west with my dad (well not exactly with my dad. we took separate flights since he has Air Miles and I have Aeroplan) to start our “Go West” adventure that was a gift for his birthday. We had two nights in Banff before boarding the Rocky Mountaineer – watch for a subsequent post on the train portion of the vacation.

Banff Springs Hotel

From just outside the hotel heading in to town

What an amazing and magical place to stay! Banff Springs opened over 125 years ago in 1888 and has obviously been well maintained and renovated over the decades. The hotel is situated in a national park right near the Bow River. It is smack in the middle of nature! We actually saw a pair of elk grazing on a hill right next to the hotel!

Banff Springs lobby

Hotel lobby taken from the cafe.

Every nook and cranny of the hotel has something marvellous to see. I am going to share some of the pictures I took during our stay (over 700 were taken in the 5 days I was away) to give you a glimpse of this stunning hotel.

 

Treats

Chocolates, twitter birds & a tin full of snacks

Everything is perfect at theFairmont Banff Springs. I had a chance to check out the spa (that review is to come) and on the second night the outdoor pool which is heated to make it comfortable in the chilly mountain evening air. I was even left a welcome treat that first night.

I’m already planning a ski trip back to Banff for 2016 with stops in Jasper and Lake Louise. The one regret of this trip was not getting to Lake Louise on the full day we had in Banff so I have no choice but to head back!

View from the top

View from the top of the gondola – Can you spot the hotel?

Liquids and Solids Lake Placid

07 Sunday Sep 2014

Posted by in Pleasure, Travel

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

Liquids and Solids

Liquids and Solids

If you are ever near Lake Placid you have to give Liquids and Solids a try – it is amazing! And I have to tell you we are not the easy to please crowd! It was the last night of our girls trip for Outstanding in the Field (check out my earlier post if you missed it) and we were trying to figure out where to go and so glad we picked Liquids and Solids.

Drink Menu!

Drink Menu!

We decided to go with a tapas style and order a bunch of things but first it was the liquids! There are a lot of drinks on this menu. Most of the drinks were delicious while a couple were an acquired taste. We did two rounds over dinner – you have to try more than one.

Drinks!

Drinks!

We tried so many things from the menu: brussels sprouts, meatballs, asparagus bun, clams, sweet potato poutine, cheese platter – it was all amazing. The brussels sprouts were a favourite and we did order a second order before the night

Brussels Sprouts

Brussels Sprouts

 

 

Outstanding in the Field

25 Monday Aug 2014

Posted by in Pleasure, Travel

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , ,

This past weekend I had the pleasure of heading south-east to Vermont with three great girlfriends. We planned a long weekend around attending “Outstanding in the Field”. Anyone who check out the website is WOWed by the images shared on their website. Beyond the scenery is the food.

The menu is prepared by a local chef with local food, most from the farm you are eating at and picked that day. Of course why wouldn’t anyone jump at the chance to attend one of the 82 dinners they put on each year.

The field we were supposed to be in

The field of buckwheat we were supposed to be in

I had hoped for a magical August night under the stars in Vermont with a warm breeze, great food and wonderful conversation. What we got was RAIN. Lots of rain. Cats and dogs rain. So the nice outfit I planned stayed in the suitcase and I stayed in my croc sandals and capris, grabbed my waterproof jacket and Ben & Jerry’s umbrella and got ready for some fun.

Pete's Greens

Pete’s Greens

 

Pete of Pete’s Greens was our host for the night and took us on a tour of his farm before we settled in for dinner. Now remember we were supposed to be out in a field under the stars. Where we ended up was in the barn but we still had a view – sort of!

Chef Eric

Chef Eric and the girls

 

Our chef was Eric Warnstedt from Hen of the Wood and you couldn’t find a nicer, humbler and talented guy. We got to tell him how much we loved his food after dinner. Sad we couldn’t check out his restaurant too.

The night was filled with laughs (you can’t imagine the mud!), amazing food and new friends. Even though we didn’t get to be out in the field it was memorable and will become an annual trip.

More posts from the weekend to come including The County Cider Company in Prince Edward County, the great bagel competition in Montreal, the farmers market Burlington Vermont and Liquids and Solids in Lake Placed NY.

Check out some photos below.

Farmer Pete

Farmer Pete

Dirty Feet

Dirty Feet

Best tomato salad ever

Best tomato salad ever

That rain ain't stopping!

That rain ain’t stopping!

Amazing veggies!

Amazing veggies!

Niagara Falls: playing tourist in my home town

30 Wednesday Jul 2014

Posted by in Pleasure, Travel

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , , ,

A couple weekends ago we headed down the QEW to visit my dad and planned some activities for the day.

We enjoy a good round of mini-golf and can get pretty competitive. Having played a the Super Putt along the highway several

Dino-Adventure Volcano

Dino-Adventure Volcano

times I went looking for a new place to play and decided on Dino-Adventure Golf on Clifton Hill. It was a great course with an actual volcano that spewed fire. So much fire you could feel the heat when it erupted! It has 2 courses to choose from and you can find a dollar off coupon on their website. Another tip: Park a couple blocks away on Desson or North streets for free parking!

As we walked back to the car we passed the Niagara Falls Memorial Arena where the OHL team used to play. Now it houses the exhibit of sand sculptures depicting the war of 1812.

Amazing detail!

Amazing detail!

We decided to pop in since my other half loves history and specifically the different wars and battles. What an amazing feat these sculptures are! We watched a video of how they made them that covered a bit about the war – this year is 200 years of peace since the war ended in 1814. I definitely recommend this as a stop if you are in Niagara.

We then stopped for a quick lunch at one of our favourite spots – Johnny Rocco’s – good Italian food and gluten-free options too!

After lunch we headed further south to Fort Erie to the racetrack to check out a few of the runnings

And their off!

And their off!

before the World Cup finals started. I love the track and was saddened when they announced it was closing – well it had a reprieve for this season and runs races on Sundays and Tuesdays. There is a Tiki bar outside right at track level that serves up great drinks and some days they even have live music. I hope I can make it back for another race this season and that they keep this track open for years to come.

It is amazing just how many things there are to do in Niagara Falls and just a short drive from the  Big City (depending which time you leave of course – damn traffic)

Going gluten-free changed my life

12 Saturday Jul 2014

Posted by in About me, Advice & Recommendations, Health & Fitness

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

, , , ,

Over a month ago I posted that I was going to try going gluten-free to help with the symptoms of my auto-immune disease Hashimotos. I was sadly a different person – tired, grumpy, didn’t feel as excited to face each day as I used to. They are dozens of symptoms that go with this disease but everyone is affected differently.

Even this years birthday cake was gluten-free

Even this years birthday cake was gluten-free

So gluten-free was going to be something I tried. I started with a meal delivery service that was gluten-free, vegetarian and dairy-free but things really didn’t take off til I did my 10 day transformation cleanse. You can read more about it here.

I look back to the date of that post about my 10 day journey and realize that it was just two months ago but so much has changed, for the better!

  • the weight I lost has stayed off or at least the inches have
  • I have more energy and drive that has me back in the gym lifting weights and doing more to be active
  • I feel less agitated and more content with things in general

Now, I am not going to push gluten-free living and I know some medical professionals say it can be bad for you if you are not suffering from celiac, what I will say is that you have to listen to your body and find out what works best for it. Mine obviously prefers to be gluten-free, dairy-free and 99% caffeine free. I have also given up diet pop as part of this process.

There are surprisingly so many options these days for gluten-frees (that is what I will call us people who avoid the G stuff). Here is a list of some of my favourites:

Bard’s Gluten-Free Beer – I tried a couple and this one is the most tasty to my preferred flavour profile. It is a pale beer with no bitter, hoppy taste.

Tori’s Bake Shop – they made the yummy cake pictured above. I’ve had several items on their menu and their coffees – delish.

Green Zebra – this is where I order my meals from to help me through the week. It is really helpful when I get busy and don’t have time to cook lunches.

St. Anne’s Bakery – a bit of a distance but if you have a friend spending a day there call in your order the day before. I recommend the hamburger buns, raison bread and the lasagna (note it isn’t dairy free). Get several trays of the lasagna!

O’Doughs – they totally live up to their tag line. “Too good to be gluten-free”. Available at Loblaws, Whole Foods and Organic Garage, they are the best buns I have tasted. It is nice to be able to enjoy a BBQ in the summer.

Today I plan to check out a gluten-free bakery in Dundas while visiting there. If you have a gluten-free find, share it with me!

The costs of badly planned direct mail

29 Thursday May 2014

Posted by in Marketing

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , ,

I am sure you can relate to the angry grad who wrote a letter to his university after they had sent him so glossy brochures (take a read here). Reading his post reminded me that I had wanted to write about a piece of mail I got from York University. Here is the back story:

One of the many packages from York that I have received over the years.

One of the many packages from York that I have received over the years.

I think back in 2002 I took a continuing education course at York University, a course on EQ so that I could be a better leader, better teammate. It was a great course. After it concluded I was entered in to the database and started to receive mail from York University. Great. I read a few course catalogues but wasn’t in the market for another course and actually haven’t been for over a decade – at least a course from York but these big packages keep coming! And sometimes 2 a week or even in the same day.

They immediately go in to the recycling bin, unopened.

Lets do some math. I am going to assume that a package like this is costing $4.00 including postage. If I get one a month that is $48.00 and over 12 years that is $576 for a former student who has done nothing in 12 years! Now let’s say there are a 100 just like me.

That is now a whopping $57,600!

So what could they do about this situation?

  1. Start segmenting! Look at recency and frequency and draw a line in the sand on how long is too long. I can tell you that over a decade is too long!
  2. Convert people to email. It is far less expensive (yes, I know there is a cost to create the email and there are servers to run but it really is cheaper to send me an email than a package) to send and it can link to all the same information that you think I need.
  3. Pick up the phone. If you haven’t heard from me in 10 years maybe it is time to check and see if I am still in the country, still in the same field and interested in what you are sending. For much less than $576 you can find someone to reach out to me and say “Hey, we’ve been sending you are packages and notice you haven’t signed up for any courses. Are you still interested in our continuing education? Can we put you on our email list instead?”
  4. Keep your data clean. There are many tools available with Canada Post and other providers that can check the accuracy of your address file.

Do you know any companies or institutions throwing away money with their direct mail?

My 10 Day Transformation

13 Tuesday May 2014

Posted by in Health & Fitness

≈ 5 Comments

Tags

, , , ,

Last week I posted about Rob Ford’s experience and mentioned that I too was doing a bit of a rehab; against sugar, fats, bad carbs and processed foods. I was just starting my 10 Day Transformation. That was the first quarter of my journey and it was a struggle. My goal was to to make it to Friday and I am happy to announce I made it to the final day! And I feel great. And for the hard numbers:

I have lost 10 pounds and 3 inches overall. I wish I had before and after pictures but I can tell you I pulled a pair of skinny jeans from the closet and they did fit!

Now I know you’re thinking well you are just going to gain it back when you pig out this week but I am not going to head down that path. My cravings are actually gone and I haven’t felt this good in many many months. I don’t want to ruin that. If you have been reading my blog you know that I have an autoimmune disease, used to be a competitive fitness model and have tried a juice cleanse in the past. This is different.

All the goodies

All the goodies

First, it comes with a coach who sends you a message every morning. Daniel from Inspired Life in Carrot Commons is the coordinator/ coach and is always an email away if you need him. Second, is the high quality supplements and shakes that are full of nutrients and good stuff your body needs so that you won’t get tired and cranky and potentially bite off your co-workers head for walking buy with a wonderfully fragrant cup of Stabuck’s blonde (ok so maybe I miss coffee but decaf tastes just as good as the real thing).

I can’t really say enough good things about it and while I lost wait – it was so much more. I feel like my old self with tonnes of energy and just a happier disposition. I am looking forward to becoming more active again and continuing with a better lifestyle. If you want real proof though – My boyfriend decided to do it after seeing how great it made me feel. He is on Day 2!

Now if you want a NEW YOU. Inspired Health is offering a great deal for anyone who signs up by May 24th at 6pm will get a free infrared sauna session! You just have to let them know you heard about the transformation through my blog.* You can also sign up and pay online. Feel free to post any questions you may have here.

 

 

 

* I have not been compensated for this post, I am just a big fan after running through the program these last 10 days.

Detox is Amazing!

07 Wednesday May 2014

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

This post is inspired by Rob Ford and today’s Toronto Sun (read the article here). Like Rob, I am trying to detox. Unlike him the experience has not been amazing. I am trying to get over caffeine, sugar and processed foods in a hope to get my energy levels up and in general feel better. A friend and I embarked on this journey Saturday with a prep day. Today is day 4 with 6 more to go! (A future post will give you a synopsis of how this all goes – I have my doubts about making it 10 days. Short term goal is Friday.)

I have had cranky moments, hungry moments, aches, pains, headaches. So I am curious on how a man who is trying to get over alcohol and crack cocaine is having an awesome time in week 1! I have watched many an episode of Intervention – shouldn’t it be awful? Isn’t he supposed to be cut off from the rest of the world and his enablers?

How is this man making phone calls and telling reporters it is amazing? And he wants to return phone calls to constituents? I want someone to take away my phone and let me sleep!