Toronto Money Spending Going Wrong!

City Select - Great Stroller!

The day started with a decent work out followed by a stop at Moms to be on Bayview (http://www.momstobeandmore.com/contactus.aspx) where I had to return a faulty piece on my stroller in exchange for a new one.   Luckily, I had 14 days left on my 1 year warranty and it’s not going to be an issue.  That makes me happy!  I am quite happy with my Britax double stroller which I purchased there however would recommend the City Select for any one who is comparing.  It has better options with the changing of the seats and also has better wheels.  However, it’s probably more expensive so if those items aren’t a deal breaker for you, the Britax is pretty good.I stopped in for a loaf at Cobs bread.  The cranberry sourdough bread is very good.  I would have bought a croissant but they did not look as good as the ones I am used to on Mt Pleasant or Queen St so I decided it was not worth the extra calories! (go big or go home right!)

Great Place on Queen St for all kinds of goodies!

What I found interesting today was what I heard on news radio this morning however.  Turns out the police have selected today to be the “Get moving Toronto day”.  They are apparently going to come down hard on traffic and parking in the city (specifically downtown) and ticket drivers aggressively over infractions related to clogging up traffic.   Now, I don’t see how traffic is affected by basic parking infractions like going over your paid parking time limit, nevertheless the parking guy I saw today on a small side street (near Bayview south of Eglinton) anyway was seriously on a mission!  I wish I had my camera to video tape this guy speed walk to each car with his huge piece of chalk, very clearly mark every front passenger tire.  Perhaps it was just a coincident that I got there when he did but I don’t think I was even there for 60 seconds before he got to my car and put a line through my front tire!  As I walk out with my coffee and loaf of bred I see him again on Bayview this time checking every car, then boom starts to write out a ticket for one that of course merits one.  During this time, he is eyeing the lady at the parking pass machine (which are so NOT user friendly BTW if you’ve ever used one) as he ensures her he realizes she will have a parking pass very shortly.  

As cbc’s interview will show on http://www.cbc.ca/player/Radio/Local+Shows/ID/2262691565/ 

Apparently busy traffic in downtown Toronto according to Toront police is caused by things like:  “People’s work places being stretched out… we’re trying to modify a certain behaviour… people parking on the side of the road blocking traffic…”cbc radio, Aug 2012.

Really?  Is that what it is?  What about the problem we have with our outdated subway system?  How about the fact that we have really done nothing with our transportation system (public transit or highways) to compensate for the huge population of people moving into the overly exaggerated number of high rise condos in downtown Toronto?  What about the simple fact that there is ongoing construction everywhere in the city making it harder for drivers to get around?  You’re going to ticket UPS because it’s dropping off mail?  I bet if they were dropping off  the city council’s cheques, they would get off with no ticket!  This is not going to help keep people moving!  This will only piss everyone off!

But don’t you worry, Toronto has it all figured out.  To help generate more income, it plans on investing in a huge casino that will be built on what used to be a great place for kids to have fun outdoors; what we will remember as Ontario Place.  In this time of economic hardship, what a great idea huh?  Let’s create a place for people to randomly gamble what little money they have.  Most of these people have families that they have to support.  There is no way the cost of this casino will outweigh it’s benefits for anyone living here unless of course you are running the place.  Way to go Toronto!

Busy Summer!

I know, I know, it’s been a while.  It’s been such a busy summer so far with so much going on and still lots for us to do.  We’ve been going to bed pretty late most nights and of course never with the luxury of sleeping in.  To top it off, our little one has been teething and is thus very needy and a little restless.  The good news is, he’s also moving around like crazy now (standing & crawling) and is consequently finally sleeping a little more during the day (hence why I have the time right now to write J).   Needless to say, we are combating the heat by incorporating plenty of water activities and definitely successful at tiring the kids out every time!  In keeping with the condensed ways of a  blog, I will try to keep my blurb short and sweet.

Cedar Park Resort – It’s not really a resort.  I would call it “Cedar Water Park & Campground”, nevertheless, what a great place to take the kids on a hot summer day!  It’s a short drive just north of Bowmanville and is basically a mini Wild Water Kingdom but in a campground.  There is plenty of space to set up, have a picnic or play soccer on open grass.  The water park is a good size and there is a huge park on sand for kids’ entertainment.  I would recommend it for small children (up to about 12ish – until their ready for the bigger parks like Wonderland and Wild Water Kingdom).  It was only 10$ per adult and kids under 3 were free.  It is also a great place to throw a b-day party.

Cobourg on Canada Day – It was HOT, busy, and there was plenty to do!  I would definitely do it again!  My daughter and her cousin tried the carousel ride for the first time and cried the whole way through.  It was hilarious!  We made up for it at the splash pad and ice cream later J

Long Point (Lake Erie) – Fantastic sandy beaches with great shallow water for the kids.  I prefer the more quiet and private setting when I’m camping and felt this place was a little crammed but I’m told that’s what campgrounds are normally like.  There were some good spots near the beach though (far from the big campers and trailers).  You're compromising electricity for privacy though so Imaybe we’ll go for that option once the kids are a little more self sufficient.  Lets be honest here, camping is no holiday with a baby and a toddler!  We still had fun and the kids loved it.

St-Clair Ice Cream Factory Outlet – Yes, there is an outlet for ice cream!  It’s quite a dive actually located on the Danforth just west of Victoria Park but the ice cream is good and cheap.  I must say, it’s not the best ice cream I’ve had but they may have something to do with the ridiculously hot weather we’ve had, making the ice cream melt faster than you can get to it and possibly affecting the freezers.  You do get lots for your money and the variety is huge so the trip is  worthwhile.  I would definitely go again especially because they carry SuperKid!! I thought that was exclusive to Lora Secord (they call it something else though)!

St-Lawrence Antique Market – Always a hit on Sundays!  I bought 2 pairs of sunglasses in mint condition for 120$.  D&G and Prada.

Fernbrook Resort – O.k. let’s not kid ourselves here… It’s a trailer park!  It’s actually been around for many years and was probably your typical trailer park at one time.  It’s gone through many changes in the last few years however including new ownership and improvements to the main building and I’m sure will become an up and coming for generations to follow.  Although we had fun visiting and enjoyed the great pool (that we had all to ourselves), we decided trailer living is not really for us.  Having lived in the country with acreage, we still chose property over community resort living.  Nevertheless, for anyone who is looking for a good deal to get in on a trailer park, this would be a good place.  It is in its early stage of change and so might be a good option for a new family.  Bonus: There is a great Antique market a couple of kms from it too that is totally worth checking out!

Aberfoyle Antique Market – Love it!!

Although  I don’t want to advertise much on this in case the word gets out and it becomes too popular, I can’t help but blog about it because it is the best place to go  antiquing!  It is also one of my favourite things to do on a beautiful Sunday morning.  Aberfoyle is near Guelph about an hour drive outside the city.  Parking is free and the 2$ admission per adult is completely worth it.  There are a couple of parks on the premise to keep the kids entertained and a decent but little pricy spot to get your usual burger, fries and ice cream. 

I love the idea of finding unique pieces to fill my home and I love it even more when I know I got a good deal on them.  I know it’s crazy but I feel this sort of great satisfaction in me when I can negotiate a better price for something. I feel as though I can not be fooled by the pricing game and that I will get what I want at my price.   Perhaps it is the competitive side of me that enjoys it so much.  Nevertheless, there is still an art to it and I am still working on bettering my bargaining skills.  Here are some tips I have learnt along the way:

1)  Never act like the item you want to buy is so unattainable or that someone else will snag it.  Keep your cool and do take the time to think about the purchase.  This will make you confident as a buyer and may make the vendor want to ease on his price (without you even saying anything)

2)   Always have cash on you.  When dealers see money, they know you are serious and they will be more likely to lower their price knowing you are a serious buyer not wasting their time.

3)   Dealers will always say great things about their stuff (of course, they are salesmen!).  Just remember to take it in with an open mind.  For instance: ‘Yes, I realize this is very old and valuable but it also needs a lot of work which will take me too much time.  I can pay xyz amount for it.

4)   Walk away from the deal if your reasonable offer is not either negotiated back again reasonably or if they are too firm on their high price.  The items are unique but chances are that you may see something like it again.

5)   Remember what you are willing to pay for something before even starting to negotiate a price.  It’s only worth as much as what you are willing to pay for it.  A good way to know if it’s a good price is to compare what you would normally pay for the item brand new in retail then evaluate from there if it is worth it.

6)   The more you buy, chances are better the price ;-)     

 

My finds: Large white antique frame - 20$, small antique frame from 1800's - 5$, brass hardware - 5$

Entertaining work out today

So I thought I would try a different Goodlife this morning just to change things up a bit.  I ended up doing a body combat class at Victoria Terrace with a rather interesting instructor.  Actually, this guy was hilarious!  My first impression of him was not so good.  He was a little geeky and did not look at all like an instructor if you know what I mean (belly, bad posture, no muscle tone, etc) and all I could think of was: “Great!  Just my luck!  I should have gone to my usual Scarborough location”

Nevertheless, thankfully Goodlife’s classes are pretty standard and if you go to them often enough they are all pretty easy to follow.  Anyway, once he gets his music set up, after almost bursting our ear drums, he stands in front of the class and randomly starts to stretch (encouraging us to do the same).  We get started and of course I think to myself: “Just what I thought! He not only looks like a bad instructor, he is one!  His form was terrible, he was completely off cue and had no rhythm.   I kept wondering how this guys passed his instructor testing. But after the warm up, I began to see that although he was lacking in technique, he made up for it with his personality and motivational style.  He made me laugh and actually have fun, and because I knew the moves, it did not matter how horrible his instructions were.  He said things like: “o.k. now, I want you to wear your attitude… like a sweater vest!” I thought that was hilarious.  Then when the Pirates of the Caribean track came up (which is one of my favourites), he says to us: “Arrrhg, ships a-hoy…. That’s Ships ahoy not Chips ahoy!” Lol! Now I know why this guy passed his exam. He kicked butt on everything else that was not related to technique and instruction!  His motivation and passion for what he does was completely evident.  He is the only instructor I have seen actually run the two laps around the floor with us at the end of the class and not turn to his music.  He admitted to us his weakness to push ups and yet still chose to include them in his routine.  And the most impressive thing was that he knew all of his regular participants by name and very attentively asked each of them how they were. 

I’m glad I gave this guy a chance.  Although he is probably one of the worst instructors I have ever seen, he made me laugh and my work out was fun ;-)    

More on Yonge Street

Walked south on Yonge today from Davisville Park after some fun in the splash pad.  My daughter fell asleep nicely in the stroller but as for my son, he slept for the first 30 minutes until I walked into a store.  Is this a male thing?  I can not walk into any shop without him fussing.  It’s like he has a telepathic thing going on with my husband to get me out of there so I don’t spend money!  Well dear, it’s working!  We only went passed St-Clair this time and walked back through Mt. Pleasant Cemetery.  It was another beautiful day in Toronto to be out and about.  

Stopped in for a bagel at The Bagel House.  Good bagel but I think 2.99$ for a bagel and cream cheese is a little pricy no?

This man must have been pretty special when he passed

Inside Job - Great Documentary!

Yesterday’s heat wave got us spending the day at our friends’ pool, which in turn put my kids out by about 7 pm!  Let me tell you how happy I was to get an extra hour and a half of me time!  So, I decided to see what I can find on Netflix, which by the way I am so far not very impressed with.  Most of the movies on there are really old and good new releases are few and far between.  Nevertheless, I have decided to give it some more time in hopes for it to get better.  Since there were no romantic movies to watch that I had not seen, I ventured into the documentaries section and Inside Job caught my eye.  It’s narrated by Matt Damon (so pleasant for the listener J) and it is an excellent description of what happened during the market crash in 2008.  I do believe what it represents and I don’t think that it was at all an exaggeration of the truth.  It is well worth the time to watch and a real eye opener to the reality of what power and money has done to mankind.  It really had me thinking and quite frankly makes me sick to know how much corruption, greed and sluggishness surrounds us.  What happened to paying for the consequences of our actions?  Your thoughts on this issue? 

Toronto Ribfest and High Park in two days

Had a very busy week/weekend with 2 kids who were both sick and a husband who had to work for most of it but got to make the best of it anyway.  My blog post is consequently a little behind.

Ribsfest this past Sunday (17^th) in the beaches was a hit (as usual).  Although I found my experience with Ribfest in Ottawa (Sparks St) much more appealing, I suppose for a big city like Toronto, this type of event is small.  Plus, I think they have them across the GTA throughout the summer, so great for those who like this kind of stuff.  Woodbine Park is a good place to host something like this with plenty of space for those long line ups.  I expected to see more trucks and more people though.  Nevertheless, we got our food in decent time and there was lots of room to sit and get our faces full of sauce!  Ribs were fantastic!  My pics aren’t that great for this one.  My hands were pretty full literally as daddy could not be there that day and of course my 2 year old decided she was going to have a tantrum for the better part of it.

A walk through High Park on Monday sure filled our day.  The free zoo was great for the kids.  Parking was free and there was even a place there to get ice cream!  We didn’t make it to the kids park but saw it on the way out and we will definitely be back to check it out.  Beautiful place to spend the day at no cost.  Why don’t I let the pictures show do the talking…