July 11, 1982, I was 8 years old (ok you can do the math now..lol)and it was a hot summer day. For some people, it meant school came to an end, and it was time for summer vacation. But for Italians, it meant a lot more than a “usual” summer day. Italy won the World Cup. Paulo Rossi was the hero and Italy beat Germany 3-1 that day.
Every 4 years in soccer, the World Cup is watched and followed. It is a time where all people come together and cheer on “their” team. Flags come out, and so does patriotism. It seems like everyone and anyone has passion for a sport they usually do not follow for 4 years. Kids that are second generation, third generation, and sometimes fourth generation Italian are “Italian” or “Brazilian” or British” for 4 weeks. It is an amazing and wonderful show of passion for their heritage.
After Italy won the cup back in 1982, I remember my father went nuts. In fact, all my family did. We set off our house alarm to make some noise, and then we packed up the familia and headed off to St.Clair. We celebrated with all the other Italians, and I remember like it was yesterday, it was just amazing. 4 years ago, my own children were able to experience the same thing I did, when I was a kid. Celebrating with all other “Italian” kids, waving the green, white and red flag in the air for all to see and celebrate.
Everyone is proud of whom they are and where they “came” from, but for me being Italian is something that I just am. I was raised in an Italian home, by Italian parents, in an Italian neighbourhood. My sandwiches were called sangwiches and bologna to me was a city in Italy. My parents were first generation Italians and like many other families I knew, they followed many of the traditions. Sauce in the summer, sausages in the winter and wine in the cantina..lol. Eating is very important and it is taken very seriously. It is an absolute insult to refuse anything at an aunts’ house, and espresso is a common beverage for children under 6.
As time passes, so have some of the traditions. Fast food is now not a luxury but a necessity on nights that we just don’t have time. Most people no longer make the sauce; they just buy it at Fortino’s because it is the “same” thing. Wine is purchased at the LCBO, and visiting an aunt is done maybe once a year, in a rush.
My grandparents came to this country to have a better life for their kids. They had a dream and a luggage..lol..no but seriously, they wanted more than what they had in the old country. They brought their traditions, and passed it on to their kids. My parents did the same to me, and I am trying to do the same to my own children.
On Friday, soccer is alive again. I see the flags already on the cars. The jerseys are worn, and the caps are being sported. It is the time for all to gather and share a few laughs, a few groans, and tons of cheers. The bars will be packed, the TVs will be on, and the world will be watching. Many Canadians will be what they were raised to be; Proud to be of Brazilian blood, German roots, or French background. They will be glued to the screen for the love of their country, the love of the game and the love of the traditions.
It is labelled the “beautiful” game, and now that I am older I can really appreciate why...it’s the shorts..lol. It is exciting and passionate, and only in this country can so many people have the freedom to root, to cheer and to be loud and clear of whom they want to win. Just for 1 month, every 4 years, Canadians put away the red and white Maple leaf and replace it with whatever flag reminds them of who they are and where they came from...and that’s what makes it the “Beautiful Game.”
That’s me peace today!
Cherry Tomato Salad
2 packages tomatoes
1 clove garlic sliced thin
4 bunches basil chopped large
1/4 thinly sliced red onion
1/4 cup olive oil
salt
dried oregano
1/4 cup black olives with pit (wrinkly ones)
Cut up tomatoes and put in a large bowl. Add basil, garlic and onion. Pour oil, salt and oregano. Mix and top with olives.
Thursday, June 10, 2010
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
Every frikkin, frakkin minute of it!
In the daytime I went to a birthday party for my son’s friend. It was a long day, lots of kids, noise and food. I was extremely tired and a little bit annoyed to be with dozens of kids. I was 35 weeks pregnant and telling all the other mothers at the party, I still had at least 3 weeks to go to deliver my twins.
I got home at around 5pm and I was planning to unwind and enjoy the rest of my Sunday evening. Much to my surprise, I realized that I was in pre labour. I began to panic. Although I knew I could have gone early, I was not ready to have my babies. I screamed for my husband, I called the hospital, and just like that, we were on our way to York Central Hospital.
I made some calls; my mother, my sisters, my friends. When I got there, I was greeted with very pleasant nurses, and a gown that I was told to put on. I was given a bed and the process began. The babies heartbeats were being monitored and I was getting prodded and poked. We were not sure if I was in active labour, so we just waited. I was eventually given a bed and I tried to get some sleep.
In the morning my doctor arrived and decided that the babies were ready to enter the world, and the labour began. It was a long day. It had been a long night. I was tired and hungry. The doctor did not allow me to eat in case I had to have a c-section. I just wanted a BigMac.
At 7:00pm, a nurse checked me and reassured my husband I still had a while to go. He felt confident to go home, change and pick up some last minute things. As he was leaving, my friend Brenda decided to pop in and visit. Her visit ended up being one of the most important visits I ever had.
20 minutes after my husband left, I began to feel some pressure. A pressure that I recognized. I mentioned it to the nurse, and low and behold, I was 10 centimetres. “Time to push” is what she said. I began to hyper ventilate. She asked me what was wrong? “My husband is not here! He went home and I do not know when he will be back!” She assured me she would wait as much as she could, but my babies did not want to wait. I had to go into the delivery room. Tears streamed down my face, I looked at Brenda with a helpless look. “Please call him and tell him to get here now!”
The nurse could not wait anymore, she had to bring me in the room. After all these months of waiting for my babies to arrive, my husband was going to miss the delivery. As I was being wheeled in I heard the nurse yelling to the other nurse to call downstairs and allow my husband to stop in front of the hospital doors, just to make it time. She instructed Brenda to wait for him at the L&D doors with the scrubs. Brenda looked mortified. She made all the calls she had too. My mother, my in-laws and my sisters were also on their way.
When I arrived into the room I was greeted with the doctor, and he seemed confused when he saw me in tears. The nurse explained to him my situation and he also reassured me they would wait as long as possible. All the thoughts that were running through my head were just crazy, it felt surreal. Minutes (literally) before I was going to begin pushing I hear a nurse saying, “Look what I found in the hallway.” It was my husband. I cried, laughed and wanted to kill him all at the same time. So the delivery began.
20 minutes later...”It’s a girl” tears of happiness overwhelmed both of us. Since I did not know what we were having, I was happy to know my older daughter now has a sister. Jenna was born with some breathing problems, and the pediatric nurses were working hard to help her to breathe. During all the chaos, I had to push out another baby.I was so worried about Jenna but I had another important job to do. 19 minutes later, my baby Michael was born. WOW. “A boy and a girl” is what I heard everyone saying. I was so happy that I was blessed to add another son and daughter to our family.
My babies were born prematurely and had to be put in an incubator for 2 days, but they were doing great. I was now a mother of multiples. There was a lot to get used to from the beginning,I cried a lot, and I had lots of sleepless nights. But so far, we have made it, and every day can still be challenging, tiring, and overwhelming.
Michael and Jenna have grown into beautiful little rambunctious toddlers. I still cannot believe that they are mine, and that they shared a womb. They have a connection I will never be able to understand, but a connection I appreciate. You never see one without the other closely behind. They run to each other first thing in the morning, and they say goodnight to one another every night before bed.
It has been 2 years today since they were brought into this world and just like the delivery; it is full of surprises, full of suspense, and there are a lot of last minute saves. Thankfully my life with them has exceeded my expectations, and they bring me complete joy.
Happy birthday to my 2 beautiful babies. I don’t know which one of them “snuck” into the womb, and I don’t care, I am just glad they did, because I cannot imagine one without the other. When we went for a third child, we were not expecting two. But when people say to me,"I guess it was a surprise to both of you." I just reply "God sent me the bonus prize." We have our own little frick and frack, and we are loving every frikkin, frakkin, minute of it!
That’s my peace today!
These cupcakes are my kids favourite and perfect for any kids birthday
Vanilla Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
2 cups of sifted cake and pastry flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Using electric mixer on low speed, mix in butter, milk, eggs and vanilla; beat on high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Spoon into 12 paper-lined or greased muffin cups, filling about three-quarters full. Bake in centre of 375°F oven about 18 minutes. Transfer to rack; let cool completely
Frosting Recipe
1/4 cup cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla
1-1/2 cups icing sugar
In bowl, beat cream cheese with butter; beat in vanilla. Beat in sugar in 2 additions until smooth.
I got home at around 5pm and I was planning to unwind and enjoy the rest of my Sunday evening. Much to my surprise, I realized that I was in pre labour. I began to panic. Although I knew I could have gone early, I was not ready to have my babies. I screamed for my husband, I called the hospital, and just like that, we were on our way to York Central Hospital.
I made some calls; my mother, my sisters, my friends. When I got there, I was greeted with very pleasant nurses, and a gown that I was told to put on. I was given a bed and the process began. The babies heartbeats were being monitored and I was getting prodded and poked. We were not sure if I was in active labour, so we just waited. I was eventually given a bed and I tried to get some sleep.
In the morning my doctor arrived and decided that the babies were ready to enter the world, and the labour began. It was a long day. It had been a long night. I was tired and hungry. The doctor did not allow me to eat in case I had to have a c-section. I just wanted a BigMac.
At 7:00pm, a nurse checked me and reassured my husband I still had a while to go. He felt confident to go home, change and pick up some last minute things. As he was leaving, my friend Brenda decided to pop in and visit. Her visit ended up being one of the most important visits I ever had.
20 minutes after my husband left, I began to feel some pressure. A pressure that I recognized. I mentioned it to the nurse, and low and behold, I was 10 centimetres. “Time to push” is what she said. I began to hyper ventilate. She asked me what was wrong? “My husband is not here! He went home and I do not know when he will be back!” She assured me she would wait as much as she could, but my babies did not want to wait. I had to go into the delivery room. Tears streamed down my face, I looked at Brenda with a helpless look. “Please call him and tell him to get here now!”
The nurse could not wait anymore, she had to bring me in the room. After all these months of waiting for my babies to arrive, my husband was going to miss the delivery. As I was being wheeled in I heard the nurse yelling to the other nurse to call downstairs and allow my husband to stop in front of the hospital doors, just to make it time. She instructed Brenda to wait for him at the L&D doors with the scrubs. Brenda looked mortified. She made all the calls she had too. My mother, my in-laws and my sisters were also on their way.
When I arrived into the room I was greeted with the doctor, and he seemed confused when he saw me in tears. The nurse explained to him my situation and he also reassured me they would wait as long as possible. All the thoughts that were running through my head were just crazy, it felt surreal. Minutes (literally) before I was going to begin pushing I hear a nurse saying, “Look what I found in the hallway.” It was my husband. I cried, laughed and wanted to kill him all at the same time. So the delivery began.
20 minutes later...”It’s a girl” tears of happiness overwhelmed both of us. Since I did not know what we were having, I was happy to know my older daughter now has a sister. Jenna was born with some breathing problems, and the pediatric nurses were working hard to help her to breathe. During all the chaos, I had to push out another baby.I was so worried about Jenna but I had another important job to do. 19 minutes later, my baby Michael was born. WOW. “A boy and a girl” is what I heard everyone saying. I was so happy that I was blessed to add another son and daughter to our family.
My babies were born prematurely and had to be put in an incubator for 2 days, but they were doing great. I was now a mother of multiples. There was a lot to get used to from the beginning,I cried a lot, and I had lots of sleepless nights. But so far, we have made it, and every day can still be challenging, tiring, and overwhelming.
Michael and Jenna have grown into beautiful little rambunctious toddlers. I still cannot believe that they are mine, and that they shared a womb. They have a connection I will never be able to understand, but a connection I appreciate. You never see one without the other closely behind. They run to each other first thing in the morning, and they say goodnight to one another every night before bed.
It has been 2 years today since they were brought into this world and just like the delivery; it is full of surprises, full of suspense, and there are a lot of last minute saves. Thankfully my life with them has exceeded my expectations, and they bring me complete joy.
Happy birthday to my 2 beautiful babies. I don’t know which one of them “snuck” into the womb, and I don’t care, I am just glad they did, because I cannot imagine one without the other. When we went for a third child, we were not expecting two. But when people say to me,"I guess it was a surprise to both of you." I just reply "God sent me the bonus prize." We have our own little frick and frack, and we are loving every frikkin, frakkin, minute of it!
That’s my peace today!
These cupcakes are my kids favourite and perfect for any kids birthday
Vanilla Cupcakes with Cream Cheese Frosting
2 cups of sifted cake and pastry flour
1 cup sugar
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 cup softened butter
1/2 cup milk
2 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
In large bowl, whisk together flour, sugar, baking powder and salt. Using electric mixer on low speed, mix in butter, milk, eggs and vanilla; beat on high speed until smooth, about 2 minutes.
Spoon into 12 paper-lined or greased muffin cups, filling about three-quarters full. Bake in centre of 375°F oven about 18 minutes. Transfer to rack; let cool completely
Frosting Recipe
1/4 cup cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup butter, softened
1/2 tsp vanilla
1-1/2 cups icing sugar
In bowl, beat cream cheese with butter; beat in vanilla. Beat in sugar in 2 additions until smooth.
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