What to Do - sparkleshinylove

Roxymandy August 29, 2014

Win 4 Passes to the Treehouse Big Day Out Festival!

On September 13th and 14th Treehouse will have their first-ever Big Day Out festival at the Molson Canadian Amphitheatre. The two-day event will be headlined by The Wiggles, but also performing will be Max and Ruby, and Splash ‘N Boots.

The Treehouse Big Day Out will offer two separate ticketed events each day – a morning show from 9:30 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. and an afternoon show from 2:30 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.

You may even find yourself on T.V. because this event will be televised on Treehouse Saturday, October 4th, at 5:00pm EST.

There will be lots of activities including:

· Meet and greet photo opportunities from Sunwing.ca with favourite Treehouse characters, including Franklin the Turtle, Mike the Knight, Peppa Pig and Elmo
· LEGOLAND® Discovery Centre building station
· Amazing animals from the Toronto Zoo
· Souvenir “Wiggle-fied” videos from HP
· Nelvana Digital app play station
· Face-painting from Treehouse Kids Supplements
· FREE kids’ haircuts and styling from Melonhead
· Play-Doh Play Centre
· My Little Pony/Equestria Girls Interactive Area

All of the kids who attend this weekend event will receive a 60-page festival program with lots of activities and colouring pages as well.

Sunwing.ca is also hosting an awesome contest that runs until September 15th! You can win a trip to the luxurious and family-friendly Royalton Punta Cana Resort and Casino in the Dominican Republic for a family of 4.

Parents can visit http://sunwing.ca/bigdayout to enter the contest or stop by the Sunwing booth at the Treehouse Big Day Out festival to enter.

Tickets for Treehouse Big Day Out may be purchased at Ticketmaster. More information about the event can be found at http://www.treehousebigdayout.com.

Or you can enter my contest to win a pack of 4 passes for the Sunday, September 14th morning event from 9:30am – 12:00pm!

All you need to do to win is head over to the sparkleshinylove Facebook page here and comment below the Win 4 Passes to the Treehouse Big Day Out Festival! post “I want to win”!

The contest begins today, Friday, August 29th at 9:00am and ends Friday, September 5th at 9:00am. The contest winner will be announced via Facebook and on the blog. The contest is open to Canadian residents.

Good luck!

Roxymandy August 23, 2014

A Must Read Book – Carole Radziwill’s What Remains

I’m a total Real Housewife junkie. I watch them ALL. Ask me about any of them, and I am totally up to date on what is happening on any of the shows. I know, it’s embarrassing, but if you know me you can attest it’s totally true. Don’t let that deter you from my upcoming recommendation.

Carole Radziwill is currently a housewife on The Real Housewives of New York City. After her first season on the show I knew her husband had died of cancer, and that she had known John F. Kennedy Jr. and his wife Carolyn Bessette Kennedy. I didn’t look into this any further, but was curious about her best selling book What Remains.

Wow – you have to read this book.

I don’t want to give too much away or review the book for you, but I couldn’t put it down. She so honestly explains her story, and at times it’s embarrassingly hard to read. She was so brave to be so brutally honest on how she felt and the ways she reacted to what she went through.

I cried. A lot. Possibly sobs? I’m a bit of a pushover as it is, so maybe you will make it without a tear. It really is an amazing story of something you may also think you know about – the lives of her very famous extended family. 15 years ago last month the plane of JFK Jr., Carolyn Bessette Kennedy, and her sister Lauren crashed into the ocean, which is something most people know. How close Carole was to all of this was surprising to me.

This memoir is absolutely worth reading, and although it is a very sad story, I found Carole to be a great storyteller, adding enough details to paint the picture of exactly what was happening so you could see it yourself. And the life Carole led before her marriage and friendship with the Kennedy’s? She was impressively successful, and it’s amazing I watched her on a reality T.V. show and still didn’t realize how accomplished she really was.

Trust me – read it!

Roxymandy August 19, 2014

What To Do With The Rest Of Your Summer!

It feels like summer is ending fast! It’s been so cold this week and September is fast approaching, so I’ve been thinking about what I need to fit in before the end of the summer. I’m going to be having as many BBQ’s as possible, and trying to do everything outdoors, and I absolutely want to take advantage of all the fun events in and around Toronto at this time of year. There are a few on my list I want to make sure I fit in during these last couple weeks, and I have added them below for you to see as well!

Twilight Tuesday Mini Night Market – Tuesday’s in August from 5pm – 9pm

Held at the York Street parkette (Richmond Street and Adelaide Street), the event features summertime snacks and live entertainment.

Tickets are $5 and can be traded for one food item or one drink item from restaurants such as Momofuku, Drake One Fifty, Richmond Station and Gabaradine.

The Drake One Fifty

These restaurants will serving up snacks and street food with live music. More information on the event can be found here.

Scotiabank® presents Summer Cinema at Fort York – Tuesday’s in August & September

Starting at Dusk on Tuesday’s, Ford York is hosting a family friendly free outdoor movie for the month of August. This event is free, and all you need to bring is a blanket or lawnchair for seating. The first 300 people will receive free popcorn and the first 50 SCENE debit and VISA cardholders to show their cards will receive a VIP seat. Check out www.scotiabank.com/outdoormovies for more details.

August Movies: •August 19th – Ghostbusters (8:15pm)
•August 26th – The Amazing Spiderman 2 (8:05pm)

Chill Ice House – open year round!

The best time to visit a frozen bar and lounge is in the summer, right?

Located at King Street West and Bathurst Street, Chill Ice House is left at a temperature of -5 C. There is a $15 cover charge which includes your use of a made-in-Toronto cape (red or blue – your choice!) and gloves. You are also provided a wristband which tracks your purchases so you don’t need to worry about the money you can’t get out of your pocket because it is too cold.

Photo Courtesy of Chill Ice House

There is a 1200 square-foot chilled space, plus a 1500 square-foot speakeasy which is warmed in the back if you need a break. Every thing is frozen including the chandelier and cups, but the bathroom is not frozen luckily.

Photo Courtesy of Chill Ice House

At night it’s a bar, but during the day families and school trips visit and tour the Ice House.

More details at http://chillicehouse.com

Oshawa Centre Fashion Never Sleeps – Friday September 5th

Photo Courtesy of the Oshawa Centre

The mall will be open for extended hours on this night from 9pm until 11pm. There will be giveaways, live music, and the latest in fall fashions.

Photo Courtesty of The EX

The Canadian National Exhibition (CNE) – August 15th – September 1st

It’s one of North America’s largest annual fairs, and it signals the end of summer for Torontonians. There are 18 days of amusement park rides, parades, live entertainment, food and more.

Photo Courtesy of The Ex

The Canadian International Air Show will be on the last weekend of the summer, and there are lots of concerts and events which coincide with the fair. $16, Seniors: $12, Children (13 and under): $12, Children 4 and under: Free

www.theex.com

Photo Courtesy of Scotiabank Buskerfest

Toronto’s 2014 Scotiabank BuskerFest 2014 – August 21st – 24th

This festival takes over the Yonge Street from Queen to College and throughout the neighbourhood including Yonge-Dundas Square, Trinity Square Park and Gould St on the Ryerson Campus.

Street performers take over the city with appearances by magicians, circus acts, musicians, clowns, contortionists, acrobats aerialists, puppets, silent comedians and more.

Photo Courtesy of Scotiabank Buskerfest

There is no actual schedule for the performances – you just have to walk the streets of this festival and see what pops up. It’s the last major festival of the summer, and for more details check out http://www.torontobuskerfest.com/

Roxymandy August 14, 2014

The Drake Devonshire in Prince Edward Country set to Open September 15th!

I love hanging out at the Drake Hotel in Toronto. There is so much do to there that you could have a completely different experience each time you go. There is the Café which serves what I think are the city’s best chicken and waffles, the Sky Yard where you can enjoy a meal or just drinks under the stars, the Underground where you can catch a concert, a comedy show, or even a film screening, and a main restaurant with just some really good food.

The Drake Hotel is just a fun place to hang out, and usually has something to do whatever your mood is. It’s a fun, cozy spot that is always buzzing with something exciting happening.

After a two year restoration of a late 1800 year old building, the Drake Devonshire located in Prince Edward Country is set to open it’s doors on September 15th, and I’m kind of excited about it!

Prince Edward County is two hours away from Toronto, and all I have heard lately is buzz about the amazing wine and atmosphere this area has to offer. Twice a year I head down to Niagara-on-the-Lake for wine tours, and I have been itching to switch it up and head to Prince Edward County. Now that the Drake Devonshire is opening, this is totally happening sooner than later!

The Drake Devonshire will be open for business September 15th, but the actual grand opening will be in Spring 2015. By that time you will find a the Creekside Deck built, and cabanas situated near the water.

Until then you will find the Drake Devonshire is ready to host you with eleven rooms, and two suites. One of the suites will be a two bedroom loft-like space, while the other will be called the Owner’s Suite and will sit above the beach with a custom brick fireplace. How cozy does this sound? The rooms will feature Malin + Goetz toiletry products, free Wi-fi, and the Drake Pleasure Menu.

On site you will find the Glass Box ping pong room with beautiful glass walls overlooking the lake, a Pavilion where special events, fall markets and wine tastings will take place, a covered bar and deck, an expansive outdoor patio, and a fire pit.

Some of the cocktail creations from the Drake Devonshire

The lobby of the Devonshire will features a micro Drake General Store. I love checking out the Drake General store in Toronto for fun and original gifts. I always seem to find some strange item that I’ve never seen before, but wonder how I have survived this far without it.

One of the things I associate the most with the Drake Hotel is the food, and it seems like the Drake Devonshire won’t disappoint!

Seafood Chowder:
Shrimp, scallops, fish, crab + grilled corn
$22

Farmer’s Lunch:
Assorted house made charcuterie with traditional garnishes
$17

Beef on Weck:
Slow braised tri-tip of beef, pepperonata, gruyere, caramelized onions, horseradish & mustard on a soft caraway bun
$20

Chef Matt DeMille has created a farm- and lake-to-table menu with all-time Drake favourites alongside new Devonshire dishes. Local wines will be featured on the menus as well.

Drake Breakfast:
Fried eggs, hash browns, roasted tomatoes, banger, baked beans
$12.95

Cobb Salad:
Rotisserie chicken, blue cheese, apple, tarragon dressing, Vicki’s arugula + crispy bacon
$15

Highline Mushroom’s on toast:
With pickled eggplant & herbs
$15 + add smoked trout $4

I’m excited to visit this hotel, and it seems like it doesn’t matter which season I go because there will be something to do. I love visiting wineries in the fall because they are less busy than the summer months, and Prince Edward Country offers excursions like fishing, cross-country skiing, art tours, and of course wine tasting! Drinking is luckily a year-round activity.

The Drake Devonshire is located at 24 Wharf St., Wellington, Prince Edward County. Rates start at $229. Reservation requests are now being accepted for October 1 onward, and can be made at www.drakedevonshire.ca or by calling 1-844-898-3338. Dining is available for guests from 7:30 a.m. through to midnight, from opening day.

For more information, visit www.thedrakehotel.ca

Roxymandy August 7, 2014

Panda Lantern Parade at the Toronto Zoo

I just signed up to be a Toronto Zoo member for the first time this year after suffering from much peer pressure on behalf of my friends. OK, so no one actually pressured me to join, but I have been on so many play dates located at the zoo it really made the most sense to become a member. I’ve actually enjoyed it a lot this year! I receive a newsletter in the mail from the zoo as part of my membership, and I noticed there were some fun looking after-hours programs at the zoo, so I decided to try one with my son and husband.

We tried out the Panda Lantern Parade last week, and we loved it!

In order to sign up we had to complete a form and mail it to the zoo to register. The other option to register was to fax in the form, and this was my only complaint about the program. I was surprised you couldn’t scan and email the form in! Since I honestly don’t even know where our office fax machine is, I thought it was worth the trip to the post office and we registered.

The cost was $12.00 per person, but children under the age of 3 were only $5.00. This does not include admission into the zoo – the cost was only for this excursion, so keep that in mind! You do not need to be a zoo member to take part in this or some of the other activities.

The program started at 7:00pm, and we were met at the door by our guide and two volunteers. They brought us into the Panda section which was closed for the night.

The maximum number of people for this activity is 25, and that is how many we had for this event. It wasn’t a bad group size at all because there was still lots of room wherever we went for everyone to see, hear and take part in the activity.

First up we went into one of the large tents located at the panda enclosure where we could leave our belongings, and we headed out to see the pandas.

If you have gone to see the panda’s at the Toronto Zoo before, you know how incredibly busy it can be in the area they are located in. I’ve only had a glimpse of them before, so this opportunity was great because we had lots of time to see them play while we were there. We listened to the staff explain the daily routine of the panda’s, and they answered the children’s questions about all things to do with panda’s. The question and answer period was long, but the staff was well prepared for the kids who had a short attention span. Just outside of the pavilion there was one of the volunteers waiting with a basket full of panda-related items the children could play with like puzzles, samples of bamboo, crayons and colouring books. Whoever planed this event definitely has a toddler.

Next we went back to the main tent to have a snack and make our lantern. The snacks included Cherios, animal crackers, cupcakes, cookies and juice, among other treats. We sat at a table and were taught how to make an eco-friendly lantern. It was a cute craft! Once our lantern was complete, it was time to walk back over to see the panda’s so we could say goodnight. This was adorable as it sounded. Our little guy walked right back over to the panda’s with his lantern, and when he got there he held it up for the panda to see.

We used our lanterns to walk back through the dark zoo to visit a few other animals on our way back to the gate. We were finished around 9:00pm.

I thought this activity was adorable, and I highly recommend trying out one of the zoo’s other upcoming activities. The Panda Lantern Parade is full for this summer, but I have listed one other program happening in a couple weeks that you can take advantage of at the Toronto Zoo below. For more available programs check here to see what’s coming up next.

Breakfast with the Bears
(Morning Program)
Rise and shine with the giant pandas and polar bears and enjoy a morning snack as our bear buddies get their day started.

DATES: Sunday August 24th

TIME: 8:00AM to 9:30AM

COST: $10 per person (includes HST)
**If you plan to stay at the Zoo following the program, Zoo admission fees will apply.

Please Note: Any children age 3 and under on the same registration are $5 each (HST included). Payment is required at time of registration. Cost does not include parking. Program can accommodate up to 25 participants per session.