The restaurant is about to open again

We have had such a great summer, and with a break in routine, came a break in cooking. That was great while it lasted, but the truth is, we love to prepare and serve good food. We have joined an organic food co-op and we are always experimenting with yummy food that is also nutritious because we are after all, athletes all of us, no? Students are athletes of the mind and need energy and enjoyable food. For the rest of us, there is always so much to do that we all need to be well fed. We always try to keep sugar to a minimum, but we still love our treats. As well, we like to eat a variety of vegetables and lots of protein is always on the menu. The more colourful the better and it better taste good. Remember, we have kids and they are very picky customers. First, we have to open the appetite and then satisfy everyone. Actually, it's a blast. Hope you will have a chance to come and see for yourselves. Last night we ate breaded talapia fish and broccoli and brown mushroom stir-fry. If you want to join our kids in the ketchup club, you too can put ketchup on your breaded fish - if you ask them, ketchup goes quite well with everything!
I'll let you in on a secret too - since it was sooo healthy, we all had frozen yoghurt and cookies too!
All the best, hope to welcome you soon.
Shoshana

Designing our new rooms

Too bad you can't see the back yard in this photo. There is a pear tree in bloom from this walk-out lower level bedroom (the ground is approximately at radiator level). We got a TV for the room just yesterday!

Boy oh boy have I become an expert at taking apart and building beds!!!! My husband Jason and I, and of course the kids helped out a lot too. We had such a great time over the last two weeks. I really should have taken pictures of the before and after of each room. You wouldn't have believed it. It is truly amazing what a difference furniture placement makes and a great bed-spread. The truth is though, that we live in a wonderful house with lots of light and air and space, so we did not have to work too hard to make it look welcoming. After all, what is a home to welcome you to if it does not look welcoming? You want your room to be comfortable and condusive to your studies. The only frustrating thing was that when we finally finished, we realized that we had no more rooms to decorate! It was a lot of fun - especially taking pictures afterwards. Thanks a lot to our 9 year old daughter who helped out with the pictures. Just to let you know, when I do post the pictures of our downstairs bedroom, even though only two feet at the bottom are underground, the windows are closer to the ceiling. Don't be fooled, this is not a basement room! Hope you like it. Please get in touch if you want to know more and I hope you will really enjoy our house and our neighbourhood and your room. By the way, our five year old was very unimpressed that you get your own TV when he doesn't. And for one of you, your own bathroom as well. Anyhow, cheers!

Shoshana

Check out this new room!

 

preparing for success in your studies

This was the week we all started getting ready for school. Uniforms and books and supplies, and of course attitudes! There is always lots to do and lots of ways that we can be at our best. First things first - we have to start going to bed earlier after the long summer hours. Then of course it is all about being ready mentally for excellence and looking forward to working hard. Everyone has their concerns and there will be a lot of new beginnings, but our experiences living abroad and my experiences working in an immigrant agency have given me enough patience and understanding to help out. Of course, if you ask me, the most important ingredient for being a successful host family has always just been really liking people and enjoying meeting new students. As always, we go over the rules to make sure everyone is comfortable and we will be organized with everyone knowing what is expected of them. We are really looking forward to welcoming two new students this fall and because we moved into a new house and have just opened two new rooms, we do not have our students yet, so please be in touch if you're a match. Good luck and much success in your studies!
All the best,
Shoshana