Airmiles Armchair Chatter

[Disney Addicted]

I picked up 4 boxes also. I was going to split with their mini pies but they weren't shipped to the store. I find if I let them thaw before cooking they don't shrink as much.

Ohh, I'll have to try that next time. Thanks for the tip.

 

[marcyleecorgan]

I'm on the back burner on this last set of promo's. Xmas has been bought and stored since oh... June?

 

[Donald - my hero]

****Warning, very long post here with only a bit of pertinent AIRMILES info. You can ignore it if you get bored

Reporting in from a trip to Foodland that belongs in several different threads, but other than the StB I'll just post HERE, my comfy, safe spot with all my favourite peeps!
This one to report on my airmiles haul today and what's coming up at some point before Thursday when my Metro offers switch.

We border several different hot spots in the province right now and figure it won't be long before we slide into Red ourselves. We decided (ok read that as I decided and then convinced hubby ) that it would be responsible to stick close to home now that things are getting "messy" again so if we needed anything that we can't get in Guelph, this weekend would be the last time we'll look at flyers or offers that we can't get in our own city. Foodland flyer was just too good for us to pass up so we made the trek to Elmira to a store that's actually big enough to have the stuff on sale in stock! ---side note feel really bad for that community that it will get pulled into Red because they are part of Waterloo yet they are mainly a hub for the rural community.
Bought:

• 10 boxes of granola bars, hubby loves them and at $2, buy 10 get 100 miles it was a no-brainer
• 3 boxes of perogies, again hubby loves them $2.50 buy 3 get 25 miles
• 3 boxes of mini chickee pies, again hubby loves them but they seem to be out of stock EVERYWHERE else we've looked so price wasn't even a factor in this $5.99 buy 3 get 30 miles
• Santa spied a few things while we were there as well those bagged Brookes chocolates, $4.29 buy 2 get 20 miles
• Had a couple of loaded offers as well

total pretax spend $65.97 (urgh comment about this in the StB thread ) used the remaining $14.58 on a gift card and put the rest on the MC
Snagged 208 miles! Happy shoppers.

I'm going to spend the next couple of days studying the pantry, recipes, flyers to make some shopping lists. I have a HUGE threshold spend at Metro this week, spend $140 get 140 but if I plan it carefully i can do that and knock off 2 of the Metro StB coupons.

*****here's where i wander into the "this has nothing to do with AM territory" ****
For the COVID Creativity thread: I need some more material, notions and 2 special presser feet for my sewing machine to finish a couple of project that are ongoing. Rather than hop on Amazon, I'm going to hit up the very small local sewing store, pay the much higher prices for the presser feet, needles & bobbins for my machine. Then on Thursday I'll go to Len's Mill for the material since they have 30% ANYTHING with even the smallest spec of black on it (get it Black Friday !) including fabrics! We are extremely fortunate to have both of these stores in our city, that we can afford to shop in them and that we will be helping our local economy keep moving. I'm excited to go to both of these stores, it's like Home Hardware for my hubby I'm slowly working on building up our supply of 3-layer masks, the polypropylene seems to make them fit differently and is a P I A to sew with!

For the Christmas thread : I just don't have it in me to do much about this whole season right now. Not sure if I'll put the tree up or not, might hang the wreath on the door? I'll change out the kleenex boxes for the cute Christmas designs i bought at boxing day sales (if i can find them!) I might make one or possibly 2 of the family-favourite treats but i'm really starting to HATE cooking things I love to eat but can no longer even taste

Meanwhile, I'm still struggling, pushing thru each day. The girls have made the decision to return the puppy to the rescue agency because they simply can't afford to keep her any longer. She's constantly needing to go to the vet (probably close to $2,000 in bills in just under 2 months!), she's taken to barking constantly and still is not housetrained. That's a hard one to deal with, I'm not sure how I'll support them as they move thru this transition period when my tank is empty. While we did find a hospital that has the ability to give me the treatments i was receiving in Toronto they are currently within the shutdown zone. I don't know how that would work out since I need to go every single weekday for about 6 weeks - that would more than likely mean I should stay in the house other than those trips but hubby hasn't been grocery shopping since March, he's in a very high risk category - how would we get our food? Metro doesn't deliver and most of my food comes from there!

PHEW, rather wordy tonight, sorry gang for taking this waaay off topic.

 

[dancin Disney style]

Meanwhile, I'm still struggling, pushing thru each day. The girls have made the decision to return the puppy to the rescue agency because they simply can't afford to keep her any longer. She's constantly needing to go to the vet (probably close to $2,000 in bills in just under 2 months!), she's taken to barking constantly and still is not housetrained. That's a hard one to deal with, I'm not sure how I'll support them as they move thru this transition period when my tank is empty. While we did find a hospital that has the ability to give me the treatments i was receiving in Toronto they are currently within the shutdown zone. I don't know how that would work out since I need to go every single weekday for about 6 weeks - that would more than likely mean I should stay in the house other than those trips but hubby hasn't been grocery shopping since March, he's in a very high risk category - how would we get our food? Metro doesn't deliver and most of my food comes from there!

PHEW, rather wordy tonight, sorry gang for taking this waaay off topic.

PLEASE figure out a way to get your treatments. This is so so so important. Can the girls get your groceries...what about Instacard or Ubereats grocery? There has to be some shopping service in your area. Call your Metro and explain...maybe they could put your order together and have it ready for a taxi to pick up.

I'm heartbroken about the dog. I know how hard that is going to be. Have they spoken with the vet about costs...good vets will work with families to help. Barking....that can be fixed...it just takes the right trainer. I know someone who is literally the dog whisperer. From what you've told me about the rescue...will they even take the dog back?

There has to be a way we can fix these problems! I'm probably going to have a lot of time off work this winter....I could be your personal Uber.

 

[ottawamom]

Jacqueline, one foot in front of the other. Tackle one issue at a time and you'll get through them all. You've got a lot on your plate give yourself time. Everything doesn't have to be resolved tomorrow.

Sending hugs your way.

 

[tinkerone]

****Warning, very long post here with only a bit of pertinent AIRMILES info. You can ignore it if you get bored

Reporting in from a trip to Foodland that belongs in several different threads, but other than the StB I'll just post HERE, my comfy, safe spot with all my favourite peeps!
This one to report on my airmiles haul today and what's coming up at some point before Thursday when my Metro offers switch.

We border several different hot spots in the province right now and figure it won't be long before we slide into Red ourselves. We decided (ok read that as I decided and then convinced hubby ) that it would be responsible to stick close to home now that things are getting "messy" again so if we needed anything that we can't get in Guelph, this weekend would be the last time we'll look at flyers or offers that we can't get in our own city. Foodland flyer was just too good for us to pass up so we made the trek to Elmira to a store that's actually big enough to have the stuff on sale in stock! ---side note feel really bad for that community that it will get pulled into Red because they are part of Waterloo yet they are mainly a hub for the rural community.
Bought:

• 10 boxes of granola bars, hubby loves them and at $2, buy 10 get 100 miles it was a no-brainer
• 3 boxes of perogies, again hubby loves them $2.50 buy 3 get 25 miles
• 3 boxes of mini chickee pies, again hubby loves them but they seem to be out of stock EVERYWHERE else we've looked so price wasn't even a factor in this $5.99 buy 3 get 30 miles
• Santa spied a few things while we were there as well those bagged Brookes chocolates, $4.29 buy 2 get 20 miles
• Had a couple of loaded offers as well

total pretax spend $65.97 (urgh comment about this in the StB thread ) used the remaining $14.58 on a gift card and put the rest on the MC
Snagged 208 miles! Happy shoppers.

I'm going to spend the next couple of days studying the pantry, recipes, flyers to make some shopping lists. I have a HUGE threshold spend at Metro this week, spend $140 get 140 but if I plan it carefully i can do that and knock off 2 of the Metro StB coupons.

*****here's where i wander into the "this has nothing to do with AM territory" ****
For the COVID Creativity thread: I need some more material, notions and 2 special presser feet for my sewing machine to finish a couple of project that are ongoing. Rather than hop on Amazon, I'm going to hit up the very small local sewing store, pay the much higher prices for the presser feet, needles & bobbins for my machine. Then on Thursday I'll go to Len's Mill for the material since they have 30% ANYTHING with even the smallest spec of black on it (get it Black Friday !) including fabrics! We are extremely fortunate to have both of these stores in our city, that we can afford to shop in them and that we will be helping our local economy keep moving. I'm excited to go to both of these stores, it's like Home Hardware for my hubby I'm slowly working on building up our supply of 3-layer masks, the polypropylene seems to make them fit differently and is a P I A to sew with!

For the Christmas thread : I just don't have it in me to do much about this whole season right now. Not sure if I'll put the tree up or not, might hang the wreath on the door? I'll change out the kleenex boxes for the cute Christmas designs i bought at boxing day sales (if i can find them!) I might make one or possibly 2 of the family-favourite treats but i'm really starting to HATE cooking things I love to eat but can no longer even taste

Meanwhile, I'm still struggling, pushing thru each day. The girls have made the decision to return the puppy to the rescue agency because they simply can't afford to keep her any longer. She's constantly needing to go to the vet (probably close to $2,000 in bills in just under 2 months!), she's taken to barking constantly and still is not housetrained. That's a hard one to deal with, I'm not sure how I'll support them as they move thru this transition period when my tank is empty. While we did find a hospital that has the ability to give me the treatments i was receiving in Toronto they are currently within the shutdown zone. I don't know how that would work out since I need to go every single weekday for about 6 weeks - that would more than likely mean I should stay in the house other than those trips but hubby hasn't been grocery shopping since March, he's in a very high risk category - how would we get our food? Metro doesn't deliver and most of my food comes from there!

PHEW, rather wordy tonight, sorry gang for taking this waaay off topic.

Oh, love, don't let it all overwhelm you. We have your back.

Talked with DH and have decided that we will not be doing the Christmas tree thing this year either. He put up outdoor lights and that is going to be it for this season. We would have 30/40/50 over for Christmas Eve, which obviously isn't happening this year. Our Christmas dinner is being streamlined as well, only seven. Our two children and their loved ones. The only one who will question no tree will be our four year old grandson. He'll get over it.
Your girls will be heart broke about the dog but they have each other to lean on so let that not weigh heavy on your heart. As much as we want to embrace our children and fix all their issues I have learned I can't, so I stand in the background and wait for them to ask for help. They often surprise me, although I probably shouldn't be.

If you need to talk about anything you always have your online friends. Feel free to post what you want.

 

[marchingstar]

****Warning, very long post here with only a bit of pertinent AIRMILES info. You can ignore it if you get bored

Reporting in from a trip to Foodland that belongs in several different threads, but other than the StB I'll just post HERE, my comfy, safe spot with all my favourite peeps!
This one to report on my airmiles haul today and what's coming up at some point before Thursday when my Metro offers switch.

We border several different hot spots in the province right now and figure it won't be long before we slide into Red ourselves. We decided (ok read that as I decided and then convinced hubby ) that it would be responsible to stick close to home now that things are getting "messy" again so if we needed anything that we can't get in Guelph, this weekend would be the last time we'll look at flyers or offers that we can't get in our own city. Foodland flyer was just too good for us to pass up so we made the trek to Elmira to a store that's actually big enough to have the stuff on sale in stock! ---side note feel really bad for that community that it will get pulled into Red because they are part of Waterloo yet they are mainly a hub for the rural community.
Bought:

• 10 boxes of granola bars, hubby loves them and at $2, buy 10 get 100 miles it was a no-brainer
• 3 boxes of perogies, again hubby loves them $2.50 buy 3 get 25 miles
• 3 boxes of mini chickee pies, again hubby loves them but they seem to be out of stock EVERYWHERE else we've looked so price wasn't even a factor in this $5.99 buy 3 get 30 miles
• Santa spied a few things while we were there as well those bagged Brookes chocolates, $4.29 buy 2 get 20 miles
• Had a couple of loaded offers as well

total pretax spend $65.97 (urgh comment about this in the StB thread ) used the remaining $14.58 on a gift card and put the rest on the MC
Snagged 208 miles! Happy shoppers.

I'm going to spend the next couple of days studying the pantry, recipes, flyers to make some shopping lists. I have a HUGE threshold spend at Metro this week, spend $140 get 140 but if I plan it carefully i can do that and knock off 2 of the Metro StB coupons.

*****here's where i wander into the "this has nothing to do with AM territory" ****
For the COVID Creativity thread: I need some more material, notions and 2 special presser feet for my sewing machine to finish a couple of project that are ongoing. Rather than hop on Amazon, I'm going to hit up the very small local sewing store, pay the much higher prices for the presser feet, needles & bobbins for my machine. Then on Thursday I'll go to Len's Mill for the material since they have 30% ANYTHING with even the smallest spec of black on it (get it Black Friday !) including fabrics! We are extremely fortunate to have both of these stores in our city, that we can afford to shop in them and that we will be helping our local economy keep moving. I'm excited to go to both of these stores, it's like Home Hardware for my hubby I'm slowly working on building up our supply of 3-layer masks, the polypropylene seems to make them fit differently and is a P I A to sew with!

For the Christmas thread : I just don't have it in me to do much about this whole season right now. Not sure if I'll put the tree up or not, might hang the wreath on the door? I'll change out the kleenex boxes for the cute Christmas designs i bought at boxing day sales (if i can find them!) I might make one or possibly 2 of the family-favourite treats but i'm really starting to HATE cooking things I love to eat but can no longer even taste

Meanwhile, I'm still struggling, pushing thru each day. The girls have made the decision to return the puppy to the rescue agency because they simply can't afford to keep her any longer. She's constantly needing to go to the vet (probably close to $2,000 in bills in just under 2 months!), she's taken to barking constantly and still is not housetrained. That's a hard one to deal with, I'm not sure how I'll support them as they move thru this transition period when my tank is empty. While we did find a hospital that has the ability to give me the treatments i was receiving in Toronto they are currently within the shutdown zone. I don't know how that would work out since I need to go every single weekday for about 6 weeks - that would more than likely mean I should stay in the house other than those trips but hubby hasn't been grocery shopping since March, he's in a very high risk category - how would we get our food? Metro doesn't deliver and most of my food comes from there!

PHEW, rather wordy tonight, sorry gang for taking this waaay off topic.

sending so many hugs, jacqueline. it sounds like you have an absolute mountain on your plate, and that’s really hard.

can you lean on your kids for grocery shopping? i know they’re processing the pup, but i bet they still want to help. my parents have needed some extra help lately, and i’m glad they’ve asked. i would so much rather do what i can so they can take care of their health.

 

[Debbie]

****Warning, very long post here with only a bit of pertinent AIRMILES info. You can ignore it if you get bored

Reporting in from a trip to Foodland that belongs in several different threads, but other than the StB I'll just post HERE, my comfy, safe spot with all my favourite peeps!
This one to report on my airmiles haul today and what's coming up at some point before Thursday when my Metro offers switch.

We border several different hot spots in the province right now and figure it won't be long before we slide into Red ourselves. We decided (ok read that as I decided and then convinced hubby ) that it would be responsible to stick close to home now that things are getting "messy" again so if we needed anything that we can't get in Guelph, this weekend would be the last time we'll look at flyers or offers that we can't get in our own city. Foodland flyer was just too good for us to pass up so we made the trek to Elmira to a store that's actually big enough to have the stuff on sale in stock! ---side note feel really bad for that community that it will get pulled into Red because they are part of Waterloo yet they are mainly a hub for the rural community.
Bought:

• 10 boxes of granola bars, hubby loves them and at $2, buy 10 get 100 miles it was a no-brainer
• 3 boxes of perogies, again hubby loves them $2.50 buy 3 get 25 miles
• 3 boxes of mini chickee pies, again hubby loves them but they seem to be out of stock EVERYWHERE else we've looked so price wasn't even a factor in this $5.99 buy 3 get 30 miles
• Santa spied a few things while we were there as well those bagged Brookes chocolates, $4.29 buy 2 get 20 miles
• Had a couple of loaded offers as well

total pretax spend $65.97 (urgh comment about this in the StB thread ) used the remaining $14.58 on a gift card and put the rest on the MC
Snagged 208 miles! Happy shoppers.

I'm going to spend the next couple of days studying the pantry, recipes, flyers to make some shopping lists. I have a HUGE threshold spend at Metro this week, spend $140 get 140 but if I plan it carefully i can do that and knock off 2 of the Metro StB coupons.

*****here's where i wander into the "this has nothing to do with AM territory" ****
For the COVID Creativity thread: I need some more material, notions and 2 special presser feet for my sewing machine to finish a couple of project that are ongoing. Rather than hop on Amazon, I'm going to hit up the very small local sewing store, pay the much higher prices for the presser feet, needles & bobbins for my machine. Then on Thursday I'll go to Len's Mill for the material since they have 30% ANYTHING with even the smallest spec of black on it (get it Black Friday !) including fabrics! We are extremely fortunate to have both of these stores in our city, that we can afford to shop in them and that we will be helping our local economy keep moving. I'm excited to go to both of these stores, it's like Home Hardware for my hubby I'm slowly working on building up our supply of 3-layer masks, the polypropylene seems to make them fit differently and is a P I A to sew with!

For the Christmas thread : I just don't have it in me to do much about this whole season right now. Not sure if I'll put the tree up or not, might hang the wreath on the door? I'll change out the kleenex boxes for the cute Christmas designs i bought at boxing day sales (if i can find them!) I might make one or possibly 2 of the family-favourite treats but i'm really starting to HATE cooking things I love to eat but can no longer even taste

Meanwhile, I'm still struggling, pushing thru each day. The girls have made the decision to return the puppy to the rescue agency because they simply can't afford to keep her any longer. She's constantly needing to go to the vet (probably close to $2,000 in bills in just under 2 months!), she's taken to barking constantly and still is not housetrained. That's a hard one to deal with, I'm not sure how I'll support them as they move thru this transition period when my tank is empty. While we did find a hospital that has the ability to give me the treatments i was receiving in Toronto they are currently within the shutdown zone. I don't know how that would work out since I need to go every single weekday for about 6 weeks - that would more than likely mean I should stay in the house other than those trips but hubby hasn't been grocery shopping since March, he's in a very high risk category - how would we get our food? Metro doesn't deliver and most of my food comes from there!

PHEW, rather wordy tonight, sorry gang for taking this waaay off topic.

Jacqueline. I so wanted to 'like' the Foodland part of your post, 'love' the Black Friday fabric shopping part, 'gasp' at the cost of the puppy (DS has a Bernie that was exceedingly costly the first years of his life. Even with insurance, he cost them thousands of dollars), and 'sad' at your treatments issues. This is one space where Facebook, with their icon wins. Take care. Tackle one thing at a time, and know that sometimes 'good enough' is best.

 

[juniorbugman]

how would we get our food? Metro doesn't deliver and most of my food comes from there!

Can either of your kids shop for you or baring that what about check out people in the neighbourhood and see if there is anybody who is doing grocery shopping for people who can't go out? I watch CTV news and they are always talking about groups that help out people.

I'm slowly working on building up our supply of 3-layer masks, the polypropylene seems to make them fit differently and is a P I A to sew with!

So I am trying to figure out what exactly polypropylene is so I will ask the Mask expert @Donald - my hero . Yup that's what you are to me. I read somewhere that it was like the interfacing that you can iron onto the material and I also read somewhere else it is like the material that the reusable Dollarama bags are made of. So what exactly is it?

 

[Donald - my hero]

I want to say thank you to all of you for being so compassionate. I've never hidden the fact that i have a mental illness (heck it's in my signature!) but I'm also very cautious about how much i share because I've learned over the years that it is a term that frightens people and has cost us friendships. It's a go-to comment when unexplainable violent acts take place "they must have stopped taking their meds"

I'll answer the questions you've asked and respond to your comments as well.

YES, I will be getting the treatments. As a couple we've decided that what's best for us is for me to wait until January. The lockdown will be over by then (fingers crossed!) and hopefully Peel will have gotten it's crap in order! It just doesn't feel right for me to be driving in an out of the hottest spot in our province right now. We've been told to stay close to home, no travelling out of a red zone into others and I just can't justify it right now. I have the support of the best human in the world, like seriously, my hubby would (and has) do anything for me. He understands me better than i do myself at times. I see the pain in his eyes right now because all he can do is watch, he can't fix this. I have an amazing psychiatrist who still "sees" me weekly through online sessions. She gives me "homework" occasionally to help me focus on myself, that's where the journal cover, the purse and the nightie (still in the planning stage) came from, this weekend we had to make a decision and then let her know tomorrow.

Piper -- the puppy. They've paid for session with TWO different trainers and their vet is wonderful. UofG has a world-renowned vet college and that is where they take their pets. They have done all they can to make it work but it really is the best decision for all 3 of them to give her up. The contract they have with the rescue agency clearly states they need to surrender the dog back to the agency if they can no longer care for her. It will be extremely hard because Piper was to be a sort of therapy dog for our daughter

Getting someone else to grocery shop for us? Uhm, yeah, that's a no. Tried it earlier and I still ended up needing to go back out, i can only eat so few things and it requires reading labels every single time, even on items that i have already bought because ingredients changes.

@juniorbugman Polypropylene - NO it is not interfacing (but some people have used that in masks) it can't be ironed because it's basically plastic it will melt. I am able to use a low heat iron to carefully press open the seams though. YES, it's what the bags some stores sell as reusable ones, Dollaramas are but ones you get at metro/sobey's aren't because they've been coated in plastic to help keep them clean. It cuts like a stiff fabric but doesn't fray. I'm currently sewing it directly into the masks I'm now making but it is also possible to carefully split open a seam on a mask and insert a layer of this. I got mine at Len's Mill in a big piece
it looks like this: (stole this image from a company that makes masks and sells the filters as well)

 

[tinkerone]

You know who you are.....Happy Birthday

 

[bababear_50]

Happy Birthday to You Jacqueline!!!!

Hugs
Mel

 

[dancin Disney style]

 

[Disney Addicted]

Happy Birthday!!

 

[Debbie]

Happy Birthday, Jacqueline!

 

[alohamom]

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JACQUELINE

 

[marchingstar]

 

[marchingstar]

off topic:

anyone want to help me dream?

i’ve never taken an all-inclusive vacation, but these days i’m really dreaming about one. i want to relax at a nice resort! i feel like people here have talked about these types of trips before but i don’t remember any details.

i don’t have opinions on where i want to go (Mexico, the Caribbean, you tell me!). we would be traveling as a family though, so no adult-only resorts.

PS: i’m still super dreaming...i imagine it won’t be until at least 2022 before my family is ready to travel.

 

[ilovetotravel1977]

@marchingstar I have currently narrowed down the MANY choices for our next big family trip to Punta Cana in the DR and the resort is the Hyatt Ziva Cap Cana!

Family resort with an onsite waterpark, beautiful calm beach and close drive from the airport. Amenities are all new and modern with tons of food options.

We went on a multigenerational trip in 2019 to The Grand at Moon Palace in Cancun and it was amazing, although the ocean wasn’t the best.

When looking at prices, don’t let the high adult cost put you off as some resort offer really good deals for kids under 12 and some under 18. For example, The Grand was $2500 per adult but kids were $700. So a family of 4 would be $6400 which is amazing for a 5 star. Now this is pricing from Halifax.

 

[tinkerone]

off topic:

anyone want to help me dream?

i’ve never taken an all-inclusive vacation, but these days i’m really dreaming about one. i want to relax at a nice resort! i feel like people here have talked about these types of trips before but i don’t remember any details.

i don’t have opinions on where i want to go (Mexico, the Caribbean, you tell me!). we would be traveling as a family though, so no adult-only resorts.

PS: i’m still super dreaming...i imagine it won’t be until at least 2022 before my family is ready to travel.

I've been to AI's in both Mexico and the Caribbean, you really can't go wrong with either. Just make sure you book at least a 4 star, you don't want anything less. Not to scare you but be cautious where ever it is you land. Resorts are safe but when leaving resorts make sure to pay attention to surroundings.
We loved Jamaica the most, it is a beautiful country full of lots of history, plenty to do if you are looking for day excursions. Dunn's River Falls comes to mind. We took our children to see Rose Hall where the legend of the White Witch is. They enjoyed that, it was ghostly for them and good history.
Mexico as well has a ton of places that are good. We have been to both coasts. Puerto Vallarta is another place that is beautiful with some lovely history. The ocean isn't as vibrant though.
Anyways, just to let you know, most places are good but keep in mind the rating.
Happy planning.