Postcard from Vancouver
Saturday, September 18, 2004
I am having a fabulous time in Vancouver -- working hard, but enjoying myself tremendously.
I sat next to a really nice fellow on the plane ride out -- a father of four from New Brunswick who was accompanying his wife and four kids (a couple in their teens and a few in their 20s) plus one future son-in-law out to a family wedding in BC. His kids were all adorable and adoring, so it's clear he and his wife have done a fabulous job raising their kids. I personally think his twisted sense of humor was one of the keys to his parenting success. (Anyone who has read my books know that I consider a sense of humor to be a prerequisite for survival and/or success in the parenting trenches.)
After I collected my luggage, I checked into my hotel in Vancouver -- the truly to-die-for Opus Hotel and then headed off to have coffee with Karen Nordahl, author of Fit to Deliver. Needless to say, Karen and I had plenty to talk about: pregnancy, publishing, coffee, insane schedules, striving for balance, etc. etc. (I'm not going to tell you about the etc. etc. Some things are off the record!)
Friday was a whirlwind day of media for me. Kim Plumley of Publicity Mavens (someone who has become a friend to me as a publicist to me during the many, many years we have worked together), picked me up at 6:30 am and whisked me off to CITY TV's Breakfast Television, where I did an early morning spot with Kim's adorable 4 1/2 month old daughter Ella Rose.
Then we were off to Studio 4 to do an interview with Fanny Kiefer, one of the most interesting interviewers in Canada. (You never know what Fanny is going to ask you, and that's what makes it so much fun!)
After that, I did a quick phone interview with Sterling Faux of CKNW. He has a great sense of humour. We chatted about pregnancy, babies, and how your life changes forever when that tiny 8 lb. bundle arrives on the scene.
Then Kim and I headed off to a really cool coffee shop -- Bean Around the World at Lonsdale Quay -- to meet up with Vancouver Sun journalist Dorianne Sager, who is known for telling the truth about motherhood in her highly popular parenting column "Baby Talk." Her son Zach joined us for coffee (he actually played with a coffee cup instead) and we had a great time talking about the highs and lows of motherhood, and why it can be tougher than a lot of people are willing to admit.
We had a bit of spare time in our schedule, so Kim took me to my favourite Vancouver clothes shop, Fashion Addition (a store for voluptuous, full-figured gals). I bought the most amazing llme green jacket, a striped green shirt, and a black skirt. You'll get to see it if you come out to Baby Fair to hear me speak today. (Forget the outfit I packed and brought from Peterborough. Once I saw this outfit, I knew it was the one!) :-)
We wrapped up the media circuit with a one-hour live phone-in at CKNW on the Jennifer Mather Show. Again, we talked pregnancy, babies, and toddlers and then I got to meet Jennifer's adorable baby daughter, Marin. What a great way to end the day!
Well, actually the day wasn't over quite yet. We headed back to Kim's place for a delicious dinner that had been loving prepared by her husband extraordinaire, George. Not only is George great in the kitchen and a fabulous Dad to their two kids, Ella (4 1/2 months) and (3 years): George is a talented web designer and audio whiz. He gave me copies of two of his audio CDs, including a Halloween sounds CD (Sounds Like Halloween Night) that is very cool. It contains super-spooky tracks that teens will love and less spooky tracks that are great for younger kids. My kids are going to be very happy that I visited George.
Today is going to be another busy day. I'm heading off to the Global TV studios for a morning interview and then I'll be speaking at Baby Fair this afternoon.
By the way, if you note the time of this post, you will see that I am still on Ontario time. I woke up at 4:30 am Vancouver time and couldn't get back to sleep, so I decided that I might as well get up and start my day. Good morning, Vancouver!
I sat next to a really nice fellow on the plane ride out -- a father of four from New Brunswick who was accompanying his wife and four kids (a couple in their teens and a few in their 20s) plus one future son-in-law out to a family wedding in BC. His kids were all adorable and adoring, so it's clear he and his wife have done a fabulous job raising their kids. I personally think his twisted sense of humor was one of the keys to his parenting success. (Anyone who has read my books know that I consider a sense of humor to be a prerequisite for survival and/or success in the parenting trenches.)
After I collected my luggage, I checked into my hotel in Vancouver -- the truly to-die-for Opus Hotel and then headed off to have coffee with Karen Nordahl, author of Fit to Deliver. Needless to say, Karen and I had plenty to talk about: pregnancy, publishing, coffee, insane schedules, striving for balance, etc. etc. (I'm not going to tell you about the etc. etc. Some things are off the record!)
Friday was a whirlwind day of media for me. Kim Plumley of Publicity Mavens (someone who has become a friend to me as a publicist to me during the many, many years we have worked together), picked me up at 6:30 am and whisked me off to CITY TV's Breakfast Television, where I did an early morning spot with Kim's adorable 4 1/2 month old daughter Ella Rose.
Then we were off to Studio 4 to do an interview with Fanny Kiefer, one of the most interesting interviewers in Canada. (You never know what Fanny is going to ask you, and that's what makes it so much fun!)
After that, I did a quick phone interview with Sterling Faux of CKNW. He has a great sense of humour. We chatted about pregnancy, babies, and how your life changes forever when that tiny 8 lb. bundle arrives on the scene.
Then Kim and I headed off to a really cool coffee shop -- Bean Around the World at Lonsdale Quay -- to meet up with Vancouver Sun journalist Dorianne Sager, who is known for telling the truth about motherhood in her highly popular parenting column "Baby Talk." Her son Zach joined us for coffee (he actually played with a coffee cup instead) and we had a great time talking about the highs and lows of motherhood, and why it can be tougher than a lot of people are willing to admit.
We had a bit of spare time in our schedule, so Kim took me to my favourite Vancouver clothes shop, Fashion Addition (a store for voluptuous, full-figured gals). I bought the most amazing llme green jacket, a striped green shirt, and a black skirt. You'll get to see it if you come out to Baby Fair to hear me speak today. (Forget the outfit I packed and brought from Peterborough. Once I saw this outfit, I knew it was the one!) :-)
We wrapped up the media circuit with a one-hour live phone-in at CKNW on the Jennifer Mather Show. Again, we talked pregnancy, babies, and toddlers and then I got to meet Jennifer's adorable baby daughter, Marin. What a great way to end the day!
Well, actually the day wasn't over quite yet. We headed back to Kim's place for a delicious dinner that had been loving prepared by her husband extraordinaire, George. Not only is George great in the kitchen and a fabulous Dad to their two kids, Ella (4 1/2 months) and (3 years): George is a talented web designer and audio whiz. He gave me copies of two of his audio CDs, including a Halloween sounds CD (Sounds Like Halloween Night) that is very cool. It contains super-spooky tracks that teens will love and less spooky tracks that are great for younger kids. My kids are going to be very happy that I visited George.
Today is going to be another busy day. I'm heading off to the Global TV studios for a morning interview and then I'll be speaking at Baby Fair this afternoon.
By the way, if you note the time of this post, you will see that I am still on Ontario time. I woke up at 4:30 am Vancouver time and couldn't get back to sleep, so I decided that I might as well get up and start my day. Good morning, Vancouver!
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posted by Ann D @ 8:15 AM
