Steak and Eggs for Dinner - We #LoveCDNBeef

Confession: I used to never like steak. I ate ground beef and the occasional beef roast but I never liked steak. Turns out, it matters how it’s cooked.

I’ve taught myself most of my cooking skills beyond the basics. I watch cooking shows and look at cookbooks and just experiment. I prefer to cook without recipes actually, I use them to help me the first time I make something new but I never follow them exactly.

Now I like steak, especially dipped in ranch dressing. Even better if they have fried onions slathered all over them. I always thought eating Steak with Eggs was weird but my husband insisted it was good. I realized my problem with the idea was eating steak for breakfast. So I made it for dinner!

Steak with Scrambled Eggs For My Husband

Steak With Eggs Over-Easy and Bagels For Me

Even My Kids Like Steak and Eggs!

If you want to try something new with beef but aren’t sure where to start, the Canadian Beef webpage has a ton of information (most of which could be used by Non-Canadians too!)

Love making burgers but can never quite get them right? Or perhaps you hear conflicting advice on how to make them and what to put in them and you aren’t sure which is better. Either way, check out this post on their blog about the best homemade burgers.

Want to try a new recipe? The next one I want to try is these yummy looking Beefy Huevos Rancheros! (see below) Also check out Canada Beef.

We used Sirloin Steaks and Burnbrae Eggs (our usual brands.) 

Burnbrae Farms is a big support of Canadian Beef as well. You can connect with Burnrae on Twitter and Facebook. They have a great egg facts section with everything you ever wanted to know about eggs.

Over to you… do you like Steak and Eggs? How do you like them?

*Disclosure: I received compensation for this post but all information and opinions are honest. Please see my full disclosure policy for more information.

REVIEW–G. Marquis Premium Wines from Niagara-on-the-Lake

*This Review is Written By Barb, a Member of my Team.

I am a wine lover, somewhere between a novice and connoisseur.  A friend gave me a two day wine course where I learned more about wine and pairing. The more I drink it the better I like it. I would like to pay more attention to pairing. Right now it’s a matter of expense dryness and taste that determined my choices. I prefer white wine but have found some reds pretty good. So I was very excited to have the opportunity to try the G. Marquis Red Line from the Niagara Peninsula.

The company sent two bottles in a nice bag with a bow and a very cute cork USB stick with product info. When I read their marketing info on the Red Line I was very happy to see that it is unoaked and fruit flavoured as I really don’t care for oaky tasting wine and tend to choose fruity wines.

I started with the 2009 Merlot, a medium bodied wine, which is a red wine I would choose. I haven’t paid too much attention to correct serving temperature in the past so thought I’d start there. I chilled it to the suggested 14-16° C and tried a glass. I tend to find red wine a little too overpowering for me and I find it difficult to taste the underlying flavours. This wine wasn’t too bad for a red. Many people who love red, I’m sure will find it very good. Next I paired it with a beef stew; I love how different a wine will taste with food. I enjoyed it much more with food. I did however find it too cold at the recommended temperature. I would recommend it as a good accompaniment when paired with suggested foods.

The other bottle was a 2010 Riesling. I have had Riesling before but one of my favourites is Pinot Grigio. I think it’s because it’s a light bodied wine while Riesling is medium bodied. The Riesling was crisp and dry and I could detect the fruit flavours in it. I found that I liked it at a colder temperature, between 16-17°C. I tried a new recipe using the Riesling. I did a search for cooking with Riesling and found Pork Chops with a Riesling Peach Sauce at allrecipes.com. It was delicious and the wine itself was even better with the dish. I think it was the peach in the food and the peach in the wine that made it so good. While I thought it was okay on its own it was totally awesome with the peach chops. I would defiantly purchase it to make that dish again. Even my husband who doesn’t like wine loved the dish.



I had never tried G. Marquis before but I sure would like to try their ice wine next.

Interested in The 5 Steps to Being a True Oenophile aka Wine Lover? Check out South Western Ontario Parent for more.

About G. Marquis:

G. Marquis is new wine brand produced in the Niagara-on-the-Lake region at the Niagara Stone Road vineyard. It comes in two lines: Silver and Red.

Where to Buy:

You can find the wine’s I tried at your local LCBO and some of the other G. Marquis wines at LCBO and Duty Free shops. The Red Line ranges from $11.95-$12.95 while the Silver line ranges from $14.95-$39.95

*The reviewer received product from a company or PR agency for evaluation purposes. All review are honest.

Summer Camp at Pioneer Camps #pioneercamp

Summer camp is the perfect way to teach your children the importance of getting outdoors and making new friendships. It’s a great experience for all children although some are ready earlier than others.

There are pioneer camps in Ontario, Alberta, Manitoba and British Columbia (Pacific). There are a bunch of different types of camps your child can sign up for. There is even a family camp if your children are not ready to camp alone yet.  There is special ones for high schoolers and an LIT program (Leadership in Training).

In addition, there is a contest going on that ends July 15 to win a week at either the Pioneer Camp or the Circle Square Ranch Camp. You also have a chance to win some smaller prizes or a really big one: Trip for Two to Punta Cana!

Check out this video about Ontario Pioneer Camp:

 

*Disclosure:  This post was compensated however all opinions and stories are my own. See my Disclosure Policy for more information. 

I’m Proud to Be Canadian, How About You? #TGCBB

I’m happy to be participating again in The Great Canadian Blog Bash(TGCBB), a celebration of Canadian Bloggers and All Things Canadian.

About Me

So first to introduce me. My name is Kathleen and I live in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. I’m a SAHM to three children:

1. Girl 6 years old
2. Girl 5 years old
3. Boy 1 year old

I’m also a Girl Guide Leader, playgroup enthusiast and nonfiction book lover. I love to blog and learn about blogging and blog with others.

I’m turning 29 very soon (June 28) and I’m happy to be sharing a Birthday Weekend with Canada!

Proud Canadian

I have always been a proud Canadian. I love living in Canada and I can’t imagine living anywhere else! I’ve always lived in Windsor, Ontario, Canada too. Well I was in Leamington for a while as a baby but I don’t remember and that’s pretty much the same places anyways!

Photo Above Taken at the Canada Day Parade Windsor, Ontario, Canada 2010.

About Callista’s Ramblings

First of all you should know that Callista is the name I used to use online. It’s still in many of my usernames and emails but when I was younger, I was told not to use my real name online for safety. Now that I share my name with all kinds of companies anyways, I figured I might as well go by it. I prefer Kathleen anyways. I contemplated changing my  blog name a few times, not just because of the Callista thing but I didn’t want to have to go through all that renaming such with all the links and references to my blog and such.

Callista’s Ramblings Over the Years

• Started 2003  - when I was a teen and was new to blogging. Posts from back then are mostly memes, personal thoughts and silly quizzes.
• 2004-2006 – I posted irregularly, mostly in little spurts.
• 2007 – Mid year I started taking blogging a bit more seriously and started trying to post regularly. Still mostly memes and such though.
• 2008 – late in the year I started getting contacted by companies and started out with small posts with product compensation.
• 2009 – This is when I consider myself to really be a serious blogger that works with brands. I started doing more reviews and giveaways with opinion and random posts mixed in. April 2009 I got my current design. I also accepted my first guest post.
• 2010  - Posted the post that has received the most pageviews and searches EVER on my blog, even to this day it is the most popular and it’s very simple and I wrote it on my own. Why is an Orange Called and Orange? I also got my first “gig” with Mom Central as a Majesta Mom. I also held my first special event: Camping Week
• 2011 – big year for brand work and building readership. I participated in my first cash giveaway and started doing blog giveaway hops and sponsored posts. I also did my first Christmas Gift Guide
• 2012 – Realized I was getting to be too much reviews and giveaways and not other content like I had originally hoped. I’ve lately started to write other posts (such as 6 Things to Remember When Hosting a Child’s Birthday) but have been catching up on reviews. I plan on unveiling more content soon.

So it’s nice to “meet” you  and thanks for reading this. I hope you will decide to Subscribe, Like or Follow me to keep up and please introduce yourself in the comments (or say hello if I already know you!)

Zellers is Looking For Your Memories (Sponsored Video)

(Photo credit: Wikipedia)

As mentioned previously, Zellers is closing it's doors and I am sad to see it go.

My family shopped there all the time. I got my back to school shopping done there, I bought new clothes there, we bought gifts for others there, and when I had kids, we bought baby stuff there. I don't want to let it go!

Do you remember Zeddy? The Zellers Teddy Bear character? I had almost forgot about him till I saw mention of him. He was taken off as mascot in 2005 except in the baby section but was brought back a few times since the stores starting preparing to close.

Unlike other stores, Zellers really appreciates it's customers and wants your help in remembering it's past. They are looking for customer's memories that they can recreate like the video below.  Maybe something memorable happened to you or your family member in a Zellers. Something funny perhaps? Or embarassing? Don't be shy, share your story!

Share your story on the Memory Showcase Tab of the Zellers facebook page. If your story is one of the eight they pick to bring to life, you will receive a $250 Zellers Gift Card! Considering all the sales that are going on, you can buy a lot with that. There are some stories there already that you can check out!

Also anyone can stop by the page and pick up a Zellers coupon for $15 off when you spend $75 or more in the seasonal department but hurry, the coupon ends Apr 5.


*Disclosure:  This post was sponsored by Zellers but written by Callista's Ramblings. See my Disclosure Policy for more information. 

Getting My Income Taxes Done at H&R Block Canada #incometax #tax

Does the thought of doing your income taxes fill you with dread?

It does for many Canadians. Figuring out what slips you need, what information goes in what spot and if you might be missing something important are very stressful.

Why fret and sweat, trying to figure out your taxes when you can have qualified help from tax professionals at H&R Block?

I've done my taxes with them for over 8 years now and I've been satisfied each and every time. My needs have changed as I had kids and bought a house and went on disability but H&R Block is able to carry over my past information each year so that they just have to make minimal alterations to my file and it's up to date. This year I had to add my son Liam who was born in 2011. I gave them his name, birth date and SIN # and boom, he is in the system with his sisters.

Just this past week we went in to do our taxes, my husband and I . You can make an appointment but we just walked in, gave them our names and SIN numbers and sat down to wait. When it was our turn, we were led to a small cubicle (for privacy) where a very friendly tax professional asked us how we were doing. If you aren't sure what you will need to bring with, you can call one of their offices first and ask.

We signed our privacy agreements and then got right down to work. He went over what papers we had brought and our situation to figure out if we had all the papers we needed. It turns out we forgot one but he was able to calculate it out so we didn't have to go back to search for it. He also reminded us that now that our children are older and will be getting into sports and other activities, that we need to keep receipts for anything we pay for them, to be claimed next year.

One thing I really like, is that I can see the computer he is working on, and watch him input the information so I know it's going in right. If I see an error, I could point it out right away. Not that he made any errors, but I like seeing the process.

As he inputted our information, the computer changed it around to work the best for us. This year, my husband claimed the house, I claimed the kids and I claimed our boarder. It's different every year because the computer is smart and as I said, it will move things around as needed to get you the best possible return.

By going in and having them do your taxes for you, you mostly just sit there and answer questions while they do all the hard work for you.

Also, H&R Block offers:

Maximum Refund Guarantee (they will get the biggest refund possible)
Audit Assistance (they will stand by you and help if you get audited)
Second Look Service (if a past year's return was not done by H&R Block, they will look it over to ensure you got biggest possible refund.)

Click to see full size

By giving your email to them, you get newsletters will helpful tips, reminders to do your taxes and FAQS about what you can claim. You can also call H&R Block, year round with your tax questions, such as wondering: Do I have to claim blog income?

If you still prefer to do your taxes from your own home, H&R Block offers that too. They even help out US citizens living in Canada, who must do US taxes too.

Be sure to check out Tax Talk - the H&R Block blog. For example, did you know that there were changes to the Ontario credits that will affect if you get a refund?

*Disclosure: I received gift certificates to do my taxes for free in exchange for this review. All opinions are honest. No other compensation was provided. See my Disclosure Policy for more information.

Click for Babies: Knit Baby Hats for Shaken Baby Syndrome + Period of P.U.R.P.L.E. Crying

Babies Cry.

We've figured out that much so far. Sometimes they seem to cry for no reason, as if  something is bothering them, but you can't figure out what.  Now I'll be honest and say that I've been blessed with babies who don't cry for long periods of time for seemingly no reason. When the first baby was easy, I figured the second HAD to be colicky. When the second was a bit more cranky but still not colicky, I thought for sure the third would have to be. When the third wasn't colicky either, boy was I surprised!

If you are expecting a child or just had a little one, you may have heard of The Period of P.U.R.P.L.E. Crying. If not, you might want to pay attention. I first heard of it in the hospital after having my third. They had us watch the video in hospital and I took a copy home. Let me show you:

Click On Image to See Larger

If you are concerned by the amount of your babies crying, are feeling overwhelmed and exhausted or are concerned your yet to be born child may be "colicky", you should check this out. You can find out more about crying babies at Period of P.U.R.P.L.E. Crying.

Attention Knitters! 

Click for Babies is helping to raise awareness for The Period of Purple Crying and Shaken Baby Syndrome by collecting knitted purple hats for newborns across North America to be distributed in November with information on a newborn's crying phase. The aim is to have a hat for every baby born in November at participating hospitals.

How to Join in Ontario
 Knit or crochet from 5 to 50 purple baby caps using soft baby friendly yarn and send them by mid-October to:

Southwest Ontario
Denise Polgar
Injury Prevention Specialist Trauma Program
London Health Sciences Centre/Children's Hospital
800 Commissioners Road East
Room E1-129
London, Ontario N6A 5W9

Click for Babies is a North American campaign with sites in BC, Utah, Kansas, Iowa and more. Hospital addresses are listed at http://www.clickforbabies.org/ (URL fixed 08/12/11)

(Ontario) Guest Post: 5 Things to Do in Toronto Before You Die

photo by Oceanik via PhotoRee

If you're visiting Toronto and you fear that your life is likely to end soon, you need to make sure you go out with a bang. Visiting Toronto's Textile Museum of Canada - as well-regarded as it is - is not the way you want to go out. Instead, you need to have fun. Push the limit. Party, make some bad decisions, etc.
Here's how you go about it.

1. Laugh your tail off at the Second City Theatre. Comedy shows at Toronto's Second City Theatre are a blast. The comics are professionals that rival the best you'll find anywhere in North America. The proof? Mike Myers, Steve Carell, John Candy, Eugene Levy, and Stephen Colbert all came out of this comedy club. Go, laugh, rinse, wash, and repeat.

2. Publicly besmirch the great Wayne Gretzky at the Hockey Hall of Fame. If you're looking for a fight on your last days on Earth, you'll find one mocking one of hockey's best ever. Of course, if you're not looking for a fight - or if you're a Gretzky fan and could never imagine mocking him - the Hockey Hall of Fame is still worth the trip. It's a slice of Canada.

3. Lose track of time in the Distillery District. Toronto's history is on display in the Distillery District, but that might not matter to you much if you grab a stool at the Mill Street Brewpub. Open for more than 100 years, it's a great place to start a Distillery District bender.

4. Ride a roller coast at Toronto Island Park. You may be thinking to yourself "roller coaster? that's kid stuff." However, what's more fun than acting like a kid again? People love that park - some even say it's the best thing to do in all of Toronto (kids or no kids).

5. Take a Steam Whistle Brewery six-pack tour. Close to the iconic CN Tower, you'll find the Steam Whistle Brewery. For $15, you can tour the place and get a six pack for your trouble. Oh yeah - and free samples too.

Please note that all the standard Toronto tourist attractions - like the CN Tower (one of the tallest in the world), the Royal Ontario Museum, and Kensington market - aren't listed here because they're not the sort of things you probably want to do on your last days on Earth. However, if you're visiting Toronto for fun and your life expectancy is long, these are a good time too.

Author Jason Lancaster works with GTA real estate agent Denny Finelli, a Toronto real estate broker who writes all about the city on his Toronto real estate blog.

(Windsor) INFO/GIVEAWAY: The Wiggles! Big Birthday! is at the WFCU Centre!

I've decided to host more local content on this blog. Local for me is Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Anything I post local to Ontario will start with (Ontario) in the title. If it's Windsor/Essex County Specific, it will start with (Windsor.) That way my readers who aren't local can skip it. Don't worry, there will still be lots of generic content too! To celebrate the local focus, I have some info to share and a giveaway for Windsor/Essex County readers.

NOTE: If you live in Toronto or the surrounding area, visit Toronto Teacher Mom, a great canadian blog, for your chance to win by June 28. 

Also Windsorites can enter at Whispered Inspirations too for another chance to win!

---

The Wiggles! Big Birthday! Tour is coming to the WFCU Centre on Thursday, July 28 at 6:30 PM.

Tickets are on sale now, and go from $15 to $75 for VIP seats (additional facility fees and service charges may apply) $75 tickets are limited and will include the best seats in the house, an exclusive gift, an activity sheet and a chance to dance along with the Wiggles themselves.

Audience participation for the tour includes:

• Create a giant wiggly birthday card or sign at home
• Have fun with the Wiggles as they sing and dance through the audience.
• Dress up as your favourite character.
• Yelling "Wake Up Jeff" whenever he falls asleep on stage!

While you are waiting for the show date to get here, check out http://www.wiggletime.com, a virtual world for preschoolers and their parents. Parents can monitor their child's progress and will have access to premium promotional offers, contests, merchandise discounts and presale Wiggles tickets.

Click the graphic above to buy tickets!

To purchase tickets, click on the image to the right.

GIVEAWAY CLOSED

Canadian Environment Week - Take the Power Pledge!

This week is Canadian Environment Week and in honour of that I'd like to share what I did this morning.

I took The Power Pledge from the Ontario Power Authority this morning. Here are the steps (Canada Only)

1. Go to http://www.powerpledge.ca/ and click on "Take the Power Pledge."
2. Read and choose at least one action that you pledge to take. They range from wash your clothes in cold water to buy an energy star efficient appliance soon (I wish I could afford that!)
3. Take the pledge, enter your info to make it official. You can choose to opt out of future mailings.
4. They will send you an confirmation email which if you click through, you can possibly get Air Miles points*

*If you got your Air Miles card in Ontario, you can choose either to donate 10 reward miles (to your choice of WWF Canada, Kids Help Phone or Special Olympics Canada) and get 20 reward miles for yourself or donate all 30 points.) If you got your Air Miles card outside of Ontario or if you don't have a air miles card, you can donate 30 points to one of the three charities.

Note: I didn't get any compensation for posting this and I don't get anything if you take the pledge. I just wanted to share this because I'm always for helping the environment.

Windsor Women Working With Immigrant Women and NAP

Tonight I attended a performance of the Newcomer Art Project (NAP), a program funded by Citizenship and Immigration Canada and a part of Windsor Women Working With Immigrant Women.

The mission of the WWWWIW is:

Assisting immigrant and first generation Canadian women and their families to become full and participating members of Canadian Society.

The NAP program:

Established in Fall 2009, The Newcomer Art Project came from a will to channel displaced energies of young newcomer women and direct them towards something creative and productive -- towards something participants could be proud of. The idea behind the program is to instill values of commitment, hard work, team spirit and fun while encouraging active participation in their communities in a meaningful way.

The show (at the Capitol Theatre here in Windsor, Ontario, Canada) was absolutely amazing. The girls really portrayed what coming to Canada from another country is like for them:

• The scary plane ride
• Leaving family and friends behind
• Going to a new school where they are often made fun of because they look, speak, act or dress different.
• Trying to find a job when you don't speak English well or have much experience
• Home life
• and more

The girls danced, sang, acted and showed who they really were. The music was beautiful, at least one song was an original composition by a NAP actor.

What's amazing is that the NAP program has only been around for 6 months but all the girls and the adult support team are close, they're friends. At the end, some of the girls thanked their support team with flowers and gratitude, explaining how they are surrogate moms for the time they are at the NAP program. It brought tears to my eyes.

I have no photos because we were not allowed to take any but it was beautiful. If I see they are putting on another one in the future I want to go.

You can find out more about Windsor Women Working With Immigrant Women but since NAP is so new, there doesn't seem to be a website or email directly for them. If you live in Windsor, ON and are a young women who immigrated here, contact WWWWIW at info@wwwwiw.org and ask about the NAP program

Norglen's Cross Canada Tour is almost up!

Have you heard of Norglen yet?
You can listen to them here: http://download.themusebox.net/norglen/

Norglen, whose name references the street the founding three members of the now Toronto-based group grew up on in Northern Alberta, have already found radio success in Western Canada with their single “Summer Nights” and are looking forward to building on the momentum they’ve created in the four years since their inception with the digital release of what is arguably their hottest single yet, “Miss You Yet” which came out on May 24.

You can watch a video of Miss You Yet here: http://www.trendsettermarketing.net/norglen/norglen_web.mov

“Miss You Yet” is the first single from Norglen’s forthcoming album A Long Way From the Truth. The album was produced by Chris Fudurich (Jimmy Eat World, AFI and Nada Surf), mixed by Mark Trombino (Blink 182, Motion City Soundtrack and The Starting Line) and is due out in August on Read the Footnotes.

Norglen was touring cross-Canada but unfortunately, I was alerted just recently and there are only three dates left on the tour, one tomorrow and the other not actually in Canada.

June 11, 2009 – Kitchener, ON @ Circus Room

June 12, 2009 – Windsor, ON @ The Blind Dog

July 9, 2009 – New York, NY @ Arlene's Grocery

Official website: http://www.norglen.com/

Myspace: www.myspace.com/norglen

Winning Techniques Camp - Scholarships Available

Just Passing Info Along...

Twenty (20) $500.00 camp scholarships for various 2009 camp programs to be awarded to children who demonstrate a love for sport, contribute to their communities and excel academically.

Winning Techniques Camp (15 minutes North of Huntsville, Ontario) wants to reward 20 children from various communities with a $500 camp scholarship. A simple online nomination form is available at http://www.winningtechniques.com. If a child in your community stands above the rest and you want to nominate them, simply fill out the form and submit it. Nominations will close May 30, 2009 and winning individuals will be notified June 15, 2009. Scholarships available are 10-Hockey, 5-Figure Skating, 1-Golf, 1- Horseback Riding, 1-Dance, 1-Leadership and 1-Intense Watersports.

Winning Techniques Camp offers co-ed day and resident camp programs for children aged 4 to 16. Camp is structured so that children spend approximately half their day on their chosen specialty program. The balance of a camper’s day will be spent participating in traditional camp programs including Archery, Arts & Crafts, Badminton, Barefooting, Board & Card Games, Bocce Ball, Bonfires, Canoeing, Fishing, Hiking, Horse Shoes, Kayaking, Low Ropes Course, Movie Night, Paddle Boating, Rock Climbing, Snorkeling, Swimming, Tubing, Waterskiing, Wakeboarding, Wakeskating, Variety Night & Volleyball.

Winning Techniques Camp is about excellence. Instruction is provided by highly qualified professional coaches including a 10 year NHL veteran & former Figure Skating National Team member. The camp wants to reward excellence in outstanding young people by giving them the opportunity to attend camp and make life long friends with other young people that share similar interests.

Do What You Can (for Ontarians)

Stewardship Ontario, the industry organization responsible for the Blue Box program and the Municipal Hazardous or Special Waste (MHSW) program, is making it easier for Ontarians to recycle old batteries, paint, solvents and other “household hazardous waste” with a new initiative under a new program called Do What You Can.

The Do What You Can program aims to more than double the amount of ‘hazardous’ or ‘special’ waste diverted from landfill over the next five years. The target is to divert more than 33,000 tonnes of potentially hazardous or special waste, up from the 16,000 tonnes currently collected. Materials targeted under the program include paint, solvents, non-rechargeable batteries, antifreeze, propane cylinders and other items commonly found in Ontario homes but which need special care when there are leftovers and used containers.

Did you know that…

- Before this program, municipalities paid the fee to dispose of these hazardous materials. Now, the brand owners and importers of these products are responsible for paying the fee. The fee is used to pay for the program including collection, transportation, reuse and recycling, processing, research and development, and consumer education.

- The companies that make and market these items are also working with municipalities and leading retailers to enhance recovery of potentially hazardous or special wastes by making the process much more convenient. This means consumers will be able to conveniently drop their hazardous products off at retails locations like Home Depot, RONA and Jiffy Lube.

- Red Lake is the northernmost Ontario community with an MHSW agreement, Spanish is the smallest municipality with a population of 740 and Toronto is the largest (population 1.9 million).

To find out how to recycle many different items, check out http://www.dowhatyoucan.ca/