14 Jun, 2017
By andrea tomkins in Ottawa
My goodness, isn’t the weather simply amazing right now?
Things I am excited about:
- The clover seed I planted in some bare patches in the lawn is growing.
- My hostas are practically exploding out of their flowerbeds.
- PEONIES!
- An amazing gelato place has opened up near our place. We’ve been twice now, including once as a power walk destination. (This is an exercise regimen I can get behind.) Read more about Stella Luna right here, then go!
- The Cupcake Lounge is my official new hangout and meeting place. First of all, I really like the vibe. It’s quiet and I almost always manage to snag a window seat that has a view of the street. Second, the coffee is fantastic. Third, the cupcakes are probably my favourite in all of Ottawa: moist cake (dry cupcakes are a crime against humanity) and the best kind of frosting.
- The eldest and I have finally finished watching Gilmore Girls. Now we can move on the the “new” season.
- I’ve discovered the joy of grocery shopping with my earbuds and a good playlist. The soundtrack to La La Land is making my trips to the store a lot more fun. I feel like I’m starring in my own musical! So if you see me twirling and gliding through the produce section, you know why.
I’ve also completed a little home decor project that I am quite pleased about. I wasn’t sure if it was going to work out, but I’m happy with the results. More about that, later.
I included a very important story in my recent weekend reading roundup. A definitive ranking of Canada’s best ketchup chips was posted on the Chatelaine website and I thought it deserved a bit of extra investigation here. I was intrigued. As a fan of ketchup chips, I felt it was my duty to follow up on this piece!
Their panel decided that Old Dutch had the best ketchup chip in Canada. Of course, I had to go out to buy some right away.
(I bought them at Canadian Tire, in case you’re wondering.)
Two things about the Chatelaine article: I really really don’t think rice crisps/crackers should be in the same league as potato chips. Rice chips are not chips, people! Also, baked chips are the sad cousins of potato chips and probably should have their own separate category, or be wiped off the face of this earth forever. Either/or.
As for the Old Dutch chips, they were ok, just ok. I definitely wouldn’t have given them top billing.
The Hostess chips of my youth were the best ketchup chips. They were the thing of sleepovers and movie nights, leaving our fingers red and sticky with ketchup powder. Sadly, Hostess is no more. (Sniff.) I guess they’ve been taken over by Lay’s. Lay’s, in general, is not my favourite potato chip brand. I generally find them a little too thin and lacking substance, but in terms of their ketchup flavour, I think they’ve nailed the proper ratio of tangy to sweet. It’s a fine balance, don’t you think?
