The list of traits I want to pass on to my children is extremely long. Near the top of that list, however, is that I want my kids to be able to express themselves creatively. That said, I was excited to find out that my son’s kindergarten class had decided to re-arrange their play area, and was even more excited to find out that they had voted to turn it into a Tim Hortons drive-thru station. If you have been reading this blog for any length of time, you will know about my love for everything Tim Hortons.
In essence, what this did was combine two of my favourite things, in creativity and Tim Hortons coffee! I decided to reach out to my local Tim’s restaurant to see if there was anything they could do to help out and I was pleasantly surprised with not only how quickly they said yes, but also with the amount of stuff they contributed to the kids’ new play station. There were hats, toques, balloons, Tim cards, cups, carry trays and even name tags that read “Owner”, which my kids loved.
The kids all had a blast with their new Tim Hortons drive-thru and one of the parents even told me that it was her son’s favourite part of the whole year so far because of all the cool stuff in there. With that, I would like to extend a huge thank you to the management and staff at the Tim Hortons on Carling Avenue for making these kids’ lives a little more exciting and a lot more creative!
https://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/Tims2.jpg396538Chris Readhttps://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.pngChris Read2014-03-18 05:00:112020-04-11 15:43:13How Tim Hortons Gave One Classroom The Gift Of Creativity
Thanks to Tim Hortons, I recently had the opportunity to do something that I would have never imagined possible. I was invited to attend the taping of their new commercial (linked below), where I had the chance to act as one of the cheering fans in the stands during a hockey game. The commercial starred Pittsburgh Penguins’ star and recently named Team Canada member, Sidney Crosby and it was incredibly cool to see him in action.
In planning this post, I wanted to share every single minute detail about my time at Copps Coliseum in Hamilton, but I felt like I might be a little more excited about the day than you all would be. That said, I still wanted to share some of my observations of the event. First off, for anyone who has ever dreamed of a life in show business, let me tell you something. The amount of work that went into every shot you see in the commercial is beyond anything I could have imagined. Those skaters, including Crosby, must have jumped the boards about 50 times each in the 4 hours it took to record that scene. In fact, at one point in the commercial, you see a man lifting a young skater over the boards. Multiply that by 50…
One of the best parts of the experience, other than the unlimited amount of Tim Hortons coffee, was that I got to share it with two of my blogging friends in Sharon DeVellis & Shannon Mischuk, two women that I respect very much. Oh yeah, and when got to meet Sidney Crosby! We went in to this with no expectations as to what was going to happen, so when we were told that Crosby agreed to take some time out of his schedule for some one on one time with us, we were very excited. I have to point out that between Sharon, Shannon and their young sons, I think I was blushing the least as Sid chatted with us.
Overall, the experience was amazing and I can’t thank Tim Hortons enough for inviting me to be a part of it. I would also like to thank my good friend, CL Buchanan and her family, for serving me an amazing home cooked meal and also for taking me to the very first Tim Hortons location! Now, without further ado, here is the all new and very patriotic Tim Hortons commercial, starring Sidney Crosby. PS – Although you can’t see any of us in the actual commercial, I can assure you that we were there and that we were some of the best fake goal cheerers you will ever see!
Now it’s your turn to meet Sidney Crosby! Entering the contest is simple – Canadians can visit the #JumpTheBoards app on Tim Hortons Facebook page where you can enter daily until January 25, 2014. On the app, you can also watch and share Tim Hortons newest commercial to ‘fill’ the Tim’s virtual arena and help create the largest virtual audience for Canada’s favourite game.
Good Luck and thanks for reading!
Disclosure: While Tim Hortons didn’t pay me for this experience, they did cover my travel expenses to Hamilton. Also, I did get paid by the actors union, because of my amazing acting chops!
https://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/01/Tim-Hortons-Sidney-Crosby.png329600Chris Readhttps://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.pngChris Read2014-01-09 18:41:192014-11-12 13:51:23I Was In Tim Hortons’ New Commercial! Well, Almost…
In what may be the coolest, most unexpected thing I’ve seen so far in this short 2013, I came across this video of a group of older gentlemen hanging out at a Tim Hortons, when they suddenly burst into an incredible version of Elton John’s, “Can You Feel The Love Tonight”.
I don’t know who these guys are, what Tim Hortons location they are at or who shot this video but it felt like my duty as a Canadian to share this in the hopes that it makes you smile as much as my wife and I just did. This is a great example of how easy it is to make people smile and one of the many reasons why I love it here in Canada! Great work, guys! You are the original flash mobbers.
Cheers!
https://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.png00Chris Readhttps://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.pngChris Read2013-01-12 12:42:582013-01-12 12:42:58A Group of Men Unexpectedly Burst Into Song at Tim Hortons
I’m proud to announce a new partnership on the blog. I’d like to welcome and thank my friends at CardSwap for becoming the latest Canadian Dad sponsor. I have been a fan of their service for a while, which made teaming up with them an easy decision.
For those of you who are not familiar with them, Cardswap is Canada’s #1 resource for selling, buying and donating gift cards. You know those gift cards you get every year and think, “I will literally never use this”, but you are too afraid to tell the giver of the card? CardSwap makes it easy for you to turn those cards into cash. On top of that, for every transaction you make with them, you collect points that can be redeemed for more gift cards!
CardSwap carries gift cards featuring more than 450 retailers, including Esso, HBC, Winners, Canadian Tire and more, with new gift cards added daily. They also have the highest offers I’ve seen for your gift cards. If you’ve ever used a Kijiji or Craig’s List to try to sell your cards, you know that 50% offers are the norm. Through CardSwap, I just got $21 for my $25 card (I can’t name the store in case the giver reads this, lol).
Thanks again to CardSwap for supporting Canadian Dad! You can check out CardSwap on Facebook and Twitter as well!
Cheers!
https://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.png00Chris Readhttps://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.pngChris Read2013-01-05 16:17:172015-11-20 14:53:29Welcome To My New Sponsor ~ @CardSwap
I’m not sure, in my lifetime, that I have felt as emotionally drained as I do right now. Between family illnesses, lack of sleep and what happened in Connecticut last week, I haven’t been able to find a lot of room for happy thoughts. Just as I began to sink into hibernation, I received an email from the PR department at Tim Hortons.
The last thing I was looking for was to start working on a new project. My plate was already pretty full and I have to keep reminding myself that blogging is a hobby and not my real job. Before I opened the email, I had already located my standard, copy and paste, “Thanks but I can’t accept any new projects at this time” response. Luckily, I read the email because what they were proposing was the exact thing I needed at that very moment.
They were offering to send me 50 – $5 gift cards for their Random Cups of Kindness promotion, that I was allowed to hand out to whoever I saw fit. I accepted immediately and waited with anticipation for the cards to arrive. I wasn’t really sure how I was going to distribute the cards and as it turns out, the experience was a lot more uplifting than I could have imagined.
I began my adventure by leaving two cards at the Tim Hortons drive-thru, for the next two cars in line. The person at the window looked at me like I was nuts but by the end of the week; they were expecting me and knew the drill. I never saw any of the recipients of the gift cards but I was encouraged by how happy it made the employees inside the store. I was determined to not let my pneumonia slow down my mission and soldiered on. I surprised parents and teachers at my son’s school. I visited a couple stores that I constantly get excellent customer service from and surprised them with special gifts. I handed them out to people who looked like they hadn’t smiled in a long time and I even gave one to Santa Claus at the mall, because, well, Santa needs love too!
Just watching the smiles on people’s faces as I handed them the cards would have been enough for me to enjoy the experience, but hearing comments like “I really needed this” and “You really have made my day”, pushed the experience over the top. Oddly enough, my favourite part of the campaign came when my daughter fell and cut her mouth, which sent us to the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario. Don’t worry, she is fine and didn’t require any stitches, but it gave me the chance to hand out gift cards to parents of sick kids and also to some of the wonderful staff at CHEO. This was the point where I really started getting emotional about what I had been fortunate enough to be a part of.
It might sound silly and exaggerated, and I’ll never be able to accurately capture my feelings in words but this experience has really changed me. It’s changed the way I interpret what is important in my life versus what is unnecessary extras. Giving is important. Making people smile is important. Helping others is important and family is the most important of them all. Money and feuds and impatience and anger are not important, they are just distractions from what we should really be focusing on.
I realize that Tim Hortons’ “Random Cups of Kindness” was a marketing campaign designed to create a buzz for the brand, but whether they realized it or not, they have touched some people’s lives at a time when it was most important to do so. There was no compensation for this campaign, nor was any expected. I wasn’t required to write, tweet, speak or do anything else but hand out the cards and bring smiles to people’s faces, which I gladly did.
I want to say Thank You to Tim Hortons for including me in this amazing promotion and for restoring my faith in the good things that people are capable of doing for each other. They were only $5 gift cards but I am a different person for having done it. If more big companies did what you have just done, the world would be a better place, even if only a little bit better.
Happy Holidays Everyone! I am wishing nothing but the best for all of you in the New Year!
Chris
https://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.png00Chris Readhttps://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.pngChris Read2012-12-21 10:28:422012-12-21 12:20:49Restoring My Faith In Humanity
Awhile back, I wrote about my superhero idea on my page over at the PTPA. I think it’s time to introduce him to the rest of my faithful followers as I attempt to take his adventures to the next level!
My superhero’s name is Captain Caffeine and he is one of the few Canadian Superhero’s in existence! His goal is to fight chronic fatigue by providing special caffeine injections, which he gets from the planet Tim Hortons!
His arch nemesis is the Decaffeinator, who slips about the country, swapping people’s much needed strong coffee with useless decaf. His plan is to take over the world by keeping the world tired and weak.
As you can tell by this point, I had a lot of time on my hands a few years ago when I created this character. Times have certainly changed but the one thing that has remained the same is that I still have my childish side. That’s why Captain Caffeine has made a comeback and I think I’ll write a few stories for him.
Anyway, this is just an introduction. You’ll be learning more about Captain Caffeine in the weeks and months to come and he may be making a live appearance at the Blissdom Canada conference this October….Just saying.
I’ll leave you with some photos from the live action comic I created about 7 years ago. I was really on the ball back then as you’ll see from the small details, like the Tim Hortons utility belt!
I hope you’ll come back and check out the adventures of Captain Caffeine!
Ahhh, Family Vacation time! Is there a better time of year?
This year we decided to take a trip to the Toronto Zoo! My kids are getting old enough that animals are of great interest to them, so it seemed like a perfect fit! We’d never done a long trip before, so the thought of the unknown was unsettling and exciting all in one precious little bundle.
First things first, how were we going to drive 4 and a half hours each way to Toronto (Not Canada’s Capital for my American friends) and back, without a riot breaking out in the back seats?
Luckily for us, in these hard economic times, our neighbours were gracious enough to lend us their portable DVD players! You know, the ones that attach to the headrests and turn your little monsters into silent Tinker Fairies.
We weren’t blessed with children who fall asleep the moment you start the car. Our kids will fight the sandman until he waves the white flag and retreats! The DVD players worked wonders on the way to Toronto, to the point where I actually had to check to make sure they were still back there!
Now, normally I wouldn’t interruprt a Zoo story to talk about a random occurence at a Rest Stop but this one is important to the story. Also, if my wife is reading this right now, I apologize….
We stopped in Napanee (*Trivia: Which Canadian singer hails from Napanee?) to get some coffee and snacks for the trip. No stop would be complete without a group trip to the over-sized family restroom. No wacky family trip would be complete without your 4 year old son hitting the handicap button on the door, which opens up to the main seating area, while Mommy is…well, you know. Humiliation ensued.
We recovered in time to grab some TimBits from our favorite little coffee shop, Tim Hortons, where I crowned my daughter “The Queen Of The TimBits”! And yes, occasionally my kids get to eat junk. Especially on holiday! Plus, in Canada, Tim Hortons is a part of our Food Groups…
Back to the trip! We arrived at our destination after a very silent, relaxing drive and immediately got to work! The Zoo visit wasn’t until the following day, so we had lots of time for fun!!! After we unpacked all our clothes, of course… It must be a man thing but I have no desire to be in my hotel room any longer than necessary upon arriving there. I need to do the tour and mark my territory!
We had a great (and very expensive) dinner at Boston Pizza and then it was time for swimming and bed for the kids. Little did I realize, that bed for the kids also meant bed for Mommy and Daddy because the children didn’t understand why the TV was still on at sleep time. Oh well, a little sleep never hurt anyone, right? When you have a son that punches and kicks in his sleep, it does in fact hurt. A Lot!
Before I get to the Zoo portion of the story, which I promise will be short, I want to mention that my children are not the easiest to please. I love them with all my heart but they tend to get cranky and occasionally go to the violent tantrum phase. We are pretty good at dealing with this but with the prospect of 40 degree heat and 5-6 hours of walking, my guard was up and I was ready for anything.
We had some pretty tense moments, such as my son and I fighting over who would navigate the map of the Zoo. He won. Also, there was the 500 pictures I took of my Daughter and I before I got her to smile nicely instead of making her silly “Cheese” face. You know the one.
We were there with some friends of ours and their two kids, so I was hopeful that the kids would all keep each other in check. I have to say that after 6 hours of walking the treacherous terrain, a crazy lunch and a million animals, I have never been more proud of the way my children behaved! It was like they had made a pact ahead of time, to make this the best family vacation we could possibly have and it totally worked!!
No Griswold disasters for us!
There was so much more that happened on the trip. A less than quiet drive home after the DVD players had lost their “new car smell” appeal. Petting Sharks and Sting Rays. Highway Potty Problems. Merry Go Round Insanity. But those are all stories for another time!
The important things to take away from this post are as follows:
1. My kids were well behaved and we had a great trip! 2. The Toronto Zoo is an amazing place. 6 hours and we still could have used an extra day to see it all. 3. DVD players in cars are amazing! For trips of course. You don’t want to create Zombies….I guess. 4. Make sure your kids DO NOT push the handicap button while you are using the bathroom!!!
That’s all I feel like writing for today. I hope you enjoyed reading about our adventure and I’ll close it out with some footage I shot of the kids favorite part of the Zoo.
Cheers!!
* Trivia answer was Avril Lavigne. You win nothing for guessing it correctly ;P
https://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.png00Chris Readhttps://canadiandad.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/CD.pngChris Read2012-07-05 04:13:442018-07-20 23:24:06The Time I Brought More Animals To The Toronto Zoo
