Happy Halloween!

Shadows of a thousand years rise again unseen,
Voices whisper in the trees, "Tonight is Halloween!"
- Dexter Kozen

Halloween is one of my favorite nights of the year. Its doesn't matter whether I go out with friends, have a party or even stay in and just watch scary movies, it is always fun. Whiskey and I are off to a spooky party tonight, but I thought I'd post a couple of photos from last Halloween's festivities. My friends AC and Al joined me in one of the best group costumes I've come up with yet - Bees and a Beekeeper!

I made Al and I cute little bee cocktail dresses with some great black and yellow striped satin. We found cute yellow wings from a local dollar store, and made antennae with black pipe cleaners, pom-poms and headbands.

AC went as a beekeeper, using a white paper painters suit, old yellow work gloves and a beekeeper's hat that he found downtown.

We were a huge hit, and lots of people wanted to get their pictures taken with us, especially other people dressed up as bees. Can you guess why this guy came up to us? 

He was Bumblebee from Transformers!

The wings were a little difficult to maneuver around the party with, but all-in-all it was one of the funnest Halloween's I've ever had (and I didn't even get candy).

The party was held at Tattoo Rock Parlour in downtown Toronto, and they really went all out with the decorations. I loved these bottles they had everywhere. So creepy.

And there were some great costumes. Who would have thought that you'd ever see Hannibal Lecter and Jesus having a drink together? Only on Halloween...

This robot cracked me up. He talked with a robotic voice the whole night and kept making beeping noises...even when no one was around. Now that is staying in character.

Well, I'm off to go put the finishing touches on my costume, dig all the skeletons out of the closet and carve the pumpkins. On a final note, I leave you with one of my favorite Donald Duck cartoons of all time, "Trick or Treat".

Happy Halloween!

Tutorial: Dog Taco Costume

After much debate, I decided to make Whiskey a Taco Costume this year. He loves to wear anything that has straps like his winter coat (he seriously jumps for joy when I dig out his sweaters.) It was a blast to make, and has been a smash hit around town today. Can't wait for him to strut his stuff at the Halloween party tomorrow.

And of course I had to share this with all of you, so here is a tutorial on how to make a Taco Costume for your own dog.

You'll need:
Felt (tan, brown, green, yellow and red)
Embroidery Thread (tan, brown, green, yellow and red)
Cardboard
Velcro (the kind that you sew on, not the kind that has the adhesive)
Poly Fill
Measuring Tape
Washable Marker
Scissors

You'll need some felt:

- tan for the taco shell
- brown for the beef filling
- green for the lettuce
- yellow for the shredded cheddar cheese
- red for the tomatoes

You can use normal cotton thread for the stitches (and even use your sewing machine), but I prefer to use different coloured embroidery thread and hand sew the pieces together. You can match the embroidery thread and felt really well, or even have some fun with contrasting colours.

Measure the length that you want the taco shell to be. For Whiskey I measured on one side from the arm to the leg, which was about 9 inches.

On a piece of stiff board, cut a "taco shell" shape (half circle), the length that you measured on your dog, and half that for the height. Cut the shape out twice.

Lay one of the pieces on a length of tan felt. Measure a 1/2 inch border around the cardboard. Use this felt piece to cut 3 more pieces out of the felt.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Today is my Dad's birthday. I'm heading up north to help celebrate. Oh we've got him some great gifts that I'm definitely going to post about later. Some awesome ideas for anyone stuck on what to get their dad/brother/husband/any-male-you-know for the upcoming holidays too.

 Here is the birthday boy in Milan last year on our family trip to Italy. He was smiling because he finally found a McDonalds, to get some of those super addictive fries they dish up.

My poor Dad has had to endure having a birthday before Halloween his whole life. Pumpkin and witch themed birthday cakes. Orange and black balloons. Miniature chocolate bars everywhere (resulting in sugar-high kids). Its a wonder that he ever took us Trick-or-Treating.

The only thing worse would be to have your birthday near Christmas, which both my siblings do. My parents would try to keep one room of the house "decoration-free" so that they could have the birthday party photos without red and green everywhere. And don't even get me started on the consolidated gift-giving - "Instead of 2 gifts a couple weeks apart, I'm going to give you one gift now and call it a day". Geez.

Dad & all his hoodlums

Wait a sec, this isn't a post about them, its about my dear Dad. The leader of the pack. I guess he should really be called the ring leader, because he is always the one getting us up into trouble. He has the most mischievous grin, and you just KNOW that he ate the last ice cream bar and is waiting for you to go check the freezer and find out. Wrestling matches ensue.

He's the best father we could have ever hoped for. He's been our moral compass and is always there when we need advice (and usually its right on the money). So, its great to be able to celebrate his birthday, with a big cake, great food and lots of fun gifts that I know he'll be just itching to use once he opens them.

And simply because it is one of my all-time favorite photos of the two of us, I give you the following:

Taken sometime in the late 80s.

Why did my mother let either of us leave the house?

Awful white sunglasses...check

Horrible Christmas socks (is this July?)...check

Scrunching up my shoulders like I don't know about all this...check

And just look at my Dad's stylish choice to wear aviators AND a newsboy cap.

Thankfully we have improved our fashion choices since then.

Happy Birthday Dad!

Must Read Book: The Birth House by Amy McKay

Last year I was taking a trip to Poland for a film festival, and as I was packing to go, a friend stopped by and dropped off this book. I was in a rush, so I thanked her, stuffed it in my carry-on and completely forgot about it. A week later on my flight back to Canada, I was rummaging through my bag for anything edible, and came across the book. Why not give it a bit of a read? Its not like I've got anything to do on the plane? So, I curled up with the scratchy airline blanket and began to read...and read...and read. I was hooked.

The story follows Dora Rare, a young girl growing up in an isolated village in Nova Scotia. The only daughter of seven children, she befriends an eccentric Acadian midwife, Miss Babineau, who has the gift of healing. Soon, Dora begins working with the midwife as an apprentice, helping the women of Scots Bay with all the difficulties that women face with their own bodies - painful labours, unwanted pregnancies, infertility and breech births. As Miss B. and a growing Dora struggle to keep the tradition of midwifing alive, modern medicine is starting to encroach on their little village.

This was an unforgettable story that shows the power and struggles of women, within their own body and within their community. This is a must read for all women, of any age. Its fulfilling, uplifting and at times heartbreaking. This is a great read for book clubs and if you read this, I encourage you to pass it on. For a first novel, Amy McKay's has made a truly wonderful debut. I'm looking forward to reading more of her work.

For more information on this book, visit Ami McKay's website.
You can purchse it at Indigo in Canada and Amazon in the US.

Chicken Pasta with White Wine Cream Sauce aka "Adult Mac & Cheese"

This is a tried and true recipe around my place. It is affectionately called “Adult Mac & Cheese” because it has all the comfort food feeling of creamy pasta, but it’s a bit more grown up with white wine and shallots in it.

Here is what you need:

2 tbsp olive oil
2 chicken breasts, trimmed
2 shallots, finely chopped
5 cloves garlic, finely chopped
¾ cup dry white wine
¾ cup chicken stock
1 ¼ cup cream
1 medium carrot, julienned
1/3 cup pasta water reserved
salt & pepper to taste
1 lb pasta (fusilli is great, but spaghettini or angel hair are a fun twist too)
1 zucchini, julienned

Take 2 shallots and 5 cloves of garlic.

Peel them, and finely chop.

Cut the zucchini into ¼ inch thick medallions.

Take 4-5 of the zucchini medallions, and cut them into ¼ inch lengthwise strips.

Finish all the medallions, and set aside. You should have a nice pile like this.

Peel the carrots, and cut into 1 ½ inch pieces.

Halve lengthwise.

Slice lengthwise into ¼ inch matchsticks. Some slices will be wider than a ¼ inch. Slice them in half lengthwise so that sticks are all of similar size.

Finish all the carrots, until you have a nice pile of matchsticks. Set aside.

When you are done, there should be similar amounts of zucchini and carrot sticks about the same size. These really help to add colour to the dish, and a great crunch.

Monday Blues

Today is Monday, and that inevitably means that by midday I'm drained. The blues start to kick in, and not even a quick chocolate break can snap me out of it.

Don't you ever days like that? If Whiskey didn't need to be taken outside, and I didn't have to go to open up the office, I could have quite easily bunkered down for the day under the covers.

Whiskey never wants to get out of bed.

Maybe it is hibernation starting to kick in, or even my body's way of telling me to get more sleep (which is hard to do when there are episodes of Glee still on my PVR waiting to be watched.)

I think that bears have the right idea. Eat an incredible amount of food, find a nice cave, and sleep for 6 months. Maybe pop out for Christmas and New Years, but then right back in that cave until we can at least get away without wearing a parka.

I love snow, and the whole winter wonderland thing, but its the waking up while its still dark and staying awake when it starts to get dark at 5pm that gets to me. I think that for Christmas this year I'm going to ask for one of those S.A.D. machines that creates artificial light, and counteract the loss of Vitamin D. Maybe its my Vitamin D thats down.

That's it...its the Vitamin D. Couldn't possibly be that I just stay up too late.

Tomorrow will be better. Why? Because its Tuesday, and thankfully Tuesday is not Monday.

Whiskey vs The Cursor

Whiskey is a very curious little dog. No corner can go un-sniffed. No fly can go un-chased.

One day at the office, he was doing his usual snooping around, and decided to hop up on my lap to see what I was doing at my desk that was keeping me from playing ball with him. He seemed ambivalent at first, but when he saw the cursor on the screen he stopped...mesmerized. "What is that thing? Why can't I get it?" And that, my friends, led to the following video. Take a look!

Whiskey vs The Cursor from Small Home Big Start on Vimeo.

TONIGHT: U2 Concert Streaming LIVE on YouTube!

Tonight U2 will be streaming their L.A. concert on YouTube for free!



The Live Broadcast starts at 8:30pm (PT), and will be available in Canada, U.S., England, Ireland, France, Spain, Italy, Japan, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia, Brazil, Mexico, Israel, India, and the Netherlands.

Go to the Official U2 YouTube channel to catch the show!

If you miss the live stream, you can still watch two full replays on both U2.com and YouTube.

The Big Move

I grew up in a small town. They type of place where everyone knew everyone else, and you had to have a driver's license to be able to go anywhere. When I left for university it was a big change to leave behind all that was familiar and move to a bigger town, but the challenge of starting over somewhere new was exhilarating.

When I graduated I was lucky enough to get a job in the film industry right away, which meant moving back in the family and taking a 2 hour commute to work (and home too, yikes). That works out to 20 hours a week - basically a part-time job. After eight months I decided to make the big move to Toronto. I found a great apartment through a friend that was actually within my budget, and I before I knew it I was shopping for a new couch.

The day we packed up the trailer and moved me down to my new place, an insane blizzard hit on the way. We thankfully made it down there, parked on a massive snowdrift, trekked everything over snow and sludge to the house, and then up 3 flights of stairs. To say that my family and friends were unbelievable in helping me would be an understatement. But that night once all the dust had settled and I was alone by myself, I was giddy. This was my own place - no siblings, no roommates, no boyfriends. I could do anything I wanted at any time, and there was an entire city just waiting for me to explore it.

Now almost 2 years later I still love being down here. Don't get me wrong - I miss the farmland, the trees, going down to the lake, the slow quiet pace of life. But being in the city has been an incredible experience. The people who I have met, and the things that I have done would never have been possible if I stayed with the familiar. Pushing your boundaries and forcing yourself to experience new things is so important for growing. I've had many firsts since I've been here, like the first time I tried Indian food...we just didn't have that where I grew up. How did I ever live without it before? There is still so much more to explore, and I look forward to the adventure, because who knows where it will lead you next?

Fall Decor

Dressing up the apartment for Autumn and Halloween is one of the funnest parts of the season. Digging out all the little pumpkins and skeletons out of storage always gets me into the spirit. I posted about my Pumpkin Candy Dish yesterday, but here is what else SHBS is rockin' this year.

Due to the low height of the bookcase, I often use it as a mantle for displays. 

These little mice and foam pumpkins came from the local dollar store, and the mini pumpkins and leaves are from the florist section of the grocery store. The butternut squash is real...and will end up in a soup as soon as Halloween is over. I'm getting hungry just thinking about it.

Movie buffs out there might recognized this falcon as the dingus from The Maltese Falcon. It was given to me as a gift two years ago and it is one of my prized possessions. He is always perched on the mantle - even at Christmas (he gets a little santa hat...I kid you not). During Halloween he looks right at home amid the orange and black tones.

This great little vine pumpkin was only $5 at Walmart. I've seen these at Crate & Barrel for $10-20 and a rattan version at Pottery Barn for $19-29. Don't you love it when you get a great steal! 

I took some branches from the ravine, stuck them into a piece of wood and spray painted them black for a backdrop. Only took 5 minutes and it really adds some creepy shadows at night.

This is a hurricane centerpiece I won at a friend's wedding. Usually I just have river rocks and a pillar candle in it. Adding some dried leaves really spruces it up for the season. For safety reasons, I don't light the candle with the leaves in it. The last thing I need to deal with is smoke damage in my apartment!

I was on a road trip through Maine this summer and happened across this great little decor store, with some cute fall signs on sale (a bonus of shopping out of season!). This leaf sign was only $2, and looks fantastic on the front door. 

Still don't have a clue yet on what to carve into this year's pumpkin. Any ideas?

I linked up to The Inspired Room's Fall Nesting Party

Pumpkin Candy Dish

This is an adorable pumpkin candy dish that I picked up this year. I've seen this trend at Crate & Barrel ($12-40) using pumpkin dishes as soup tureens, and at Williams-Sonoma ($50 for 4) with acorn soup tureens. But this little guy is strictly for sugar cravings. And it only put me back $5 at Walmart. Score!

I love the detail in the little leaf and stem. This looks super adorable on the kitchen counter and little hands can't resist peeking inside of it. (To be honest, big hands can't hold back either)

And just look whats inside...

...lots of great little treats!

Charleston Chews! One of my favorites, and not easy to find in Canada, so when they show up around Halloween I just have to throw them in the shopping cart. Chewing nougatty chocolate goodness. Yum!

How to clean a stubborn stovetop

After a massive cooking session last Saturday (French Onion Soup, Chicken Cordon Bleu, Roast Potatoes...the list goes on), my stovetop was looking a little worse for wear. What a great opportunity to show you my eco-friendly tip for cleaning my gas stove!

(my apologizes for showing you this photo, but it was necessary, I swear)

This is a remedy that has been passed down 3 generations in my family. All you need to do is put some baking soda in a little bowl. I like to use the container that I have in my fridge to absorb odors, because I'm not going to be using it for cooking anyways.

Add in a little bit of water and mix it with a fork to make a slightly watery paste.

Take off the burners and pour the baking soda paste all over the stovetop. Let the mixture soak in for a few minutes.

Take a rag, or even a piece of papertowel and scrub the whole stovetop down with the mixture. Wipe all the baking soda mixture away and you're good to go!

Just look how it sparkles!

Oops, and remember put back on the burners!