The Secret Life of Pets

Bernie was excited to watch The Secret Life of Pets! There was only a handful of us in the theatre so Bernie had an unobstructed view of the screen. The movie was a fun one! If you go see it, let us know what you think!

Chi-town Eats

I went to Chicago this past weekend to celebrate a friend's recent marriage. I always intended to bring New Colin. Dumbo politely asked if he could join too and I couldn't say no! This is his first trip south of the border.

After checking into my AirBnB in Bucktown/Wicker Park, we walked around the neighbourhood before having a trio of tacos from Big Star.

We also grabbed a lemon pistachio cruller from Stan's Donuts. I then tucked in the friends before catching a late night improv show at iO Theatre.

The next day we visited the Museum for Contemporary Art. The Kerry James Marshall exhibit was excellent! New Colin and Dumbo liked this painting in particular.

We walked down the Magnificent Mile and checked out a few shops. It was the Fourth of July long weekend, hence the huge American flag.

We ate brunch at Little Goat. We asked for a light dish and the server recommended this burrito. We were so stuffed afterward! We slept all the way on the train to the suburbs to meet my friend.

On our final day, we hit up a few places I always wanted to go to (but never did on past trips to Chicago). We ate a char dog at the Wiener Circle in Lincoln Park.

And checked out the baseball scene at Wrigley Field. The game was completely sold out and scalpers were selling tickets for $80 a pop. I will plan better next time and order tickets in advance!

For an afternoon treat we had coffee basil and goat cheese cashew caramel gelato. Yum! We also bought a sandwich from the Chop Shop. It hit the spot before heading on the plane.

New Colin and Dumbo's tummies were happy! Thanks for joining me, guys!

Farewell, Kingston (and PEC)!

I made one last trip to Kingston recently. It was bittersweet. I made great memories in Kingston but I'm also excited to moving on to another chapter of my life. The Mins wanted to go to Juniper, a new cafe by the water, before we parted ways.

We did a quick day trip to Prince Edward County. It's a pleasant drive along the water from Kingston. We took the ferry to the island. Can you see the Mins' reflection in the car mirror?

We checked out a few wineries. The Mins' favourite was County Cider Company. We bought a case of the peach cider for the summer.

We went to Sandbanks, one of the largest beaches in Ontario. I've been wanting to go here for a long time so I'm glad to check this off the bucket list.

We grabbed ice cream at Slickers. The strawberry rhubarb hit the spot! The campfire flavour was even better (and quite possibly the best)!

We ate dinner at the Drake Devonshire. The inn has a small beach with lots of lounge chairs and a fire pit. It was a great spot for the Mins to relax after a big meal.

Farewell, Kingston (and PEC)! Thanks for the memories!

Simple Ice Cream

Q helped me whip up ice cream yesterday. It's not the healthiest, but is super simple to make, and tastes very much like the real deal. You only need two ingredients for the base, and we added a tad of vanilla extract to pump up the flavour. Click here for the recipe.

For our vegan friends, check out this recipe. Q and I were a bit skeptical at first, but we tried the Nutella version, and it turned out pretty good.

Have fun making ice cream!

The Rock

Spencer joined B and I for a hike a few weekends ago. We went to Rock Dunder, a wilderness area 30 minutes away from Kingston. Rock Dunder used to be Boy Scout camp and is the highest point of land in the area. It was a hot and steamy hike, but the view was worth it!

Keep Tijuana Tasty

Colin was super stoke for our day trip to Tijuana. We ate so much good food, including fish tacos...

...Caesar salad (from the original Caesar's restaurant)...

...a bunch of snacks at Telefonica Gastropark, including an unreal octupus burger.... 

...more tacos...

...paletas at the Food Garden...

...and cocktails at a speakeasy!

San Diego: Gardens and Land

A highlight of our trip to San Diego was Balboa Park. The gardens were beautiful! We didn't end up going to the zoo but we hear it's terrific.

Colin is standing in front of the Spreckels Organ Pavilion. It is home to one of the world's largest outdoor pipe organs. Free concerts are held throughout the summer.

Though a bit touristy, we made a point to visit Old Town, the birthplace of California. It is the site of the first Spanish settlement on the U.S. West Coast. Today it is a state park featuring original buildings, museums, shops, and restaurants.

Colin asked if we could take the wagon back to downtown. We ended up taking the trolley, but the wagon would have been a fun ride!

San Diego: Ships and Beaches

Colin joined B and I on a trip to the west coast! Our first stop was in San Diego. We visited the USS Midway. A nice veteran taught Colin about flight instruments.

We spent a few hours walking all over the ship, including the flight deck.

The next morning, Colin and I went to the famous Hotel Del Coronado on Coronado Island.

The weather was perfection so we walked along the boardwalk and on Orange Avenue, Coronado's main drag.

We took the ferry back to San Diego. Colin thought the skyline was quite nice!

Back from La La Land

New Colin had a monsteriffic vacation in the sunny state of California! He really enjoyed spending our last day in LA at Manhattan Beach!

More photos to come...stay tuned!

We The North

Snowman is ready to cheer on the Raptors today!

He's hoping for a big win in the 6ix!