Apricot Coconut Bally Goodness

Our good friend Latonia, or "O-ney" as Aiden has dubbed her, is on her way to our house as we speak. She used to live in Calgary but moved away almost two years ago. We miss her terribly but we do get to see her when she comes back every few months for a visit. And because she's only here for a week at a time and has so many friends (she's a very popular lady) our visits are short and sweet.

To up the specialness of her visits I like to make a treat for us for our play-dates. This morning I was all set to make a cheesecake only to discover that my whipping cream had gone off. In lieu of cheesecake I scoured my pantry to search for some useable ingredients. Aha, I found some condensed milk, some apricots and some coconut balls. Apricot Coconut Balls it is.

These ooey gooey treats are easy to whip up at a moments notice (I made mine today using one arm while holding my fabulous sous chef with my other arm), and require only three ingredients. You can also enlist the help of your little one with the stirring and the rolling of the balls. They are relatively healthy and make a great play-date snack, which is why I am posting the recipe here.

Apricot Coconut Balls
Ingredients
1 1/2 cups dried apricots
1 1/4 cups shredded coconut
2/3 cups condensed milk
Extra coconut for rolling

Directions
1. Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper.
2. Put dried apricots in a food processor to finely chop them.
3. Put chopped apricots in a bowl and add the coconut.
4. Stir the mixture or get your little person to do this.
5. Add condensed milk. Stir again.
6. Pour the extra coconut onto a plate.
7. Roll the mixture into small balls and then roll the balls in the extra coconut. You can get your little person to help you with this.
8. Place finished balls onto the cookie sheet and put them in the fridge to set.
9. Enjoy!

Happy cooking,
Creatively yours,
Maya

You Know You Are An Anderson When...

Every year at Christmas time we are fortunate to receive a Christmas-baking care package from Aiden's Great-Grandma. The care package usually consists of oodles of yummy goodness like shortbread cookies, Quality Street chocolates, banana bread, beet pickles and the best butter tarts known to man.

The other day, when we were digging into our goodies, I offered Aiden some of my butter tart. Not surprisingly he loved it. Upon his devouring of the butter tart I said to him, "Aiden, you know you are an Anderson when you love butter-tarts!" And this got me thinking about a project we could do together: The Book of Anderson.

Here's how I envision the project:

The Book of INSERT FAMILY NAME HERE
Supplies
Digital camera
Printer
Various art supplies
Stickers
Markers
Crayons
Construction paper
Binder
Clear plastic sheet protectors

Directions
1. With you little person, make a list of 15-20 things that are unique to your family. These could be things like family traditions, food that you all like, activities that you enjoy together or books that you read at bedtime.
2. Spend some time finding or taking or drawing pictures to illustrate each thing on your list.
3. Cut out the pictures and stick then to blank sheets of paper. Somewhere on the page write: You know you're a INSERT FAMILY NAME HERE when... And then somewhere on the page write down the item on your list.
4. Decorate each page with your little person using your art supplies.
5. When the pages are complete put them in the clear plastic sheet protectors and then in the binder.
6. Be sure to create a title page for your book.

Read the book with your little person as often as you like and add to the book whenever you discover something new that's unique about your family.

This would also be a fabulous project to do with a little one who is soon to be a big brother or sister. They will feel very important and special knowing that they are the ones who get to teach their younger sibling all about their family.

Happy book making,
Creatively yours,
Maya :)

A Jazzy Christmas Playlist

This post is by special request from Aiden's Dad, code name Blizzard, and for anyone else who is looking for some groovy tunes for today's festivities...

A Jazzy Christmas Playlist
1. Merry Christmas Baby - Lou Rawls -Ultra Lounge Christmas Cocktails
2. Let it Snow - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
3. Santa Claus is Coming to Town - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
4. Sleigh Ride - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
5. Frosty the Snowman - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
6. Jingle Bells - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
7. Winter Wonderland - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
8. White Christmas - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
9. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas
10. Angels We Have Heard on High - Ella Fitzgerald - Ella Fitzgerald's Christmas
11. That's What I Want for Christmas - Count Basie and Lena Horne - Blues Christmas
12. Jingle Bells - Count Basie and Lena Horne - Blues Christmas
13. Winter Wonderland - Peggy Lee - Ultra Lounge Christmas Cocktails
14. I'll Be Home For Christmas - Jackie Gleason - Ultra Lounge Christmas Cocktails
15. Santa Baby - Eartha Kitt
16. I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm - Dean Martin - Ultra Lounge Christmas Cocktails

Happy listening and Happy Christmas!
Creatively and Christmas-ly yours,
Maya, code name Mistletoe :)

A Thank You Letter to Santa

This morning Aiden, Aiden's Dad and I watched part of the Phineas and Ferb Christmas Special. In this special Phin and Ferb decided to make a rest stop for Santa as a thank you present. Phineas and Ferb also asked their friends if they had ever written a thank you letter to Santa, to which their friends replied with a sheepish no. So I ask you, why don't we do that? And why don't we make this part of our Christmas traditions? If we want our little people to grow up to be thoughtful, caring citizens of the world I think we should encourage our little ones to do this...I will definitely be doing this with Aiden. And to get the ball rolling, here is my thank you letter to Santa:

Dear Santa,
I know you are extremely busy today with all the present delivering and the cookie and milk eating, but I just wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude for everything that you have given me this past year.

BEST GIFTS EVER!!!

Thank you for my beautiful, sweet, lovely, smart, thoughtful little guy (he is the only gift I will ever need) and for my equally beautiful, sweet, smart, thoughtful bigger guy (again, I don't need anymore gifts than these two!). And thank you for arranging things so that I can stay at home with my aforementioned little guy. I am truly blessed that I have the opportunity to watch him explore the world and go on amazingly fun adventures with him every day.

Thank you for my family and my friends. They are a wonderful group of people and I am so very lucky to have them in my life.

And thank you for the gifts that I'll be opening tomorrow. I'm sure I will be very pleasantly surprised!

I wish you the absolute best for your travels today. Please give my regards to Mrs. Claus, all the Elves and the reindeer crew who make it all possible.

Happy travels,
Creatively yours,
Maya :)

For The Love of Christmas Movies: Disney Prep and Landing

For me, Christmas and movies go hand in hand. Perhaps it's because when I was young we went to Wales every year to visit my Aunt and Uncle and I remember watching classic musicals (Sound of Music, Mary Poppins and Chitty Chitty Bang Bang) with my uncle. And what's Christmas Eve without a little bit of "It's a Wonderful Life"?

Now that I have a little person I intend to pass this love of Christmas movies on to him. And in terms of family friendly movies my list of favorites is short and sweet : A Christmas Story, A Charlie Brown Christmas, The Garfield Christmas Special and Home Alone This year I am happy to say that I have a new addition to my list: Disney Prep and Landing.

Disney Prep and Landing gives us a unique, behind the scenes look at Christmas Eve from the perspective of a special ops Elf, Wayne, who is part of the Prep and Landing crew. When Wayne is passed over for a promotion, which was given instead to his partner, he is assigned a new partner, Lanny, an idealistic, straight out of the academy rookie. Wayne is supposed to take Lanny under his wing during their first mission together but instead, because of his disgruntled attitude, he lets Lanny go solo while he sits back, has a ginormous cup of hot chocolate and eats a Santa cookie. Trouble ensues when the kid in the house wakes up and a snow storm subsequently forces Santa to divert from the house. This forces Wayne to reevaluate his attitude, and come up with a plan to save the night.

And why is this one on my favorite's list? Well, first of all, it captured Aiden's attention for the full 22 minutes (as you'll recall if you've read my posts Aiden is not really the sit-down,-for-more-than-five-minutes-let-alone-a-full-movie type of kid). Second, the spy gear was awesome, and what's not to love about neat spy gadgets (yes, I do have my gadget geek moments). Third, the idea of telling a story from a special ops elf, and a disgruntled one at that, is brilliantly creative. And finally, I love the teachable moment of the story: It's ok to be on the naughty list once in awhile but what matters the most is what you do in the end to make up for your mistakes.

Check it out:

Oh, the sequel is pretty darn great too by the way!

Happy movie watching,
Creatively yours,
Maya

Choose Your Own Activity Advent Calendars

Alright, so I know it's way past the point of creating advent calendars but this brilliant idea, via Dawn McManus, floated into my inbox yesterday and I felt I had to share it with you.

Choose Your Own Activity Advent Calendar
Materials
Poster board
Construction paper
Glue
Sticky tack
Markers
Various art supplies

Directions
1. With your little person draw your chosen Christmas themed scene on your poster board. Decorate the scene using various art supplies.
2. Cut out 25 shapes that go with the scene (e.g. Tree decorations for a Christmas tree). Have your little person decorate one side of these. Number each shape from 1-25.
3. On the other side of the shape wrote down a special activity. Enlist your little person to come up with ideas. Examples: Decorate gingerbread men, go sledding, go to an indoor playground etc.
4. Stick the shapes to the scene using tack.
5. Each day have your little person take down the appropriate shape. Rear the activity and make time in the day to complete the activity.

Dawn said that this is the second year that her colleague has done this project. Her little guy loved it so much the first year that he asked if they would be doing it again this year.

I wish I had heard about this one before the season started but I will definitely do it next year. And if I can't wait that long I just might make a birthday advent calendar for Aiden in June.

Happy calendar making,
Creatively yours,
Maya :)

Taking Time To Enjoy Your Little Person

In this frantic last week before Christmas, filled with episodes of "Yay, our Christmas shopping is done!"while removing boots, coats, toques and mitts of your thoroughly bundled little person, followed promptly with "Oh wait, did we get something for Cousin Bob?...no?...ugh...back to the stores we go", having only then to re-bundle your squirming, I've-had-enough-of-the-car/mall-for-a-lifetime, little person, it is crucial that we all take a moment to just be with our little people.

Sometimes we get so caught up in the I-want-to-host-dinner-this-year-but-we-always-do-it-at-my-place-exactly-that's-why-we-should-do-it-at-my-place-this-year-it's-only-fair family drama (or your version thereof) of this joyous season that we lose sight of the real heart and soul of Christmas. Religious or not, to me Christmas is about celebrating all the wonderful people in our lives and finding the perfect gift for each of them so that they will know how special they are to us. And what better gift to give your little person than your complete, undivided attention.

Here are a few things you can do with your little person, in between the Christmas rush, to give them that all-important, one-on-one attention:

One-on-One Activities
1. On the way back from one of your many shopping excursions, stop at the library and choose some books together. When you come home, make some hot chocolate, curl up together in your bean bag chairs and read a book together. Look for all the fun, tiny details in the pictures and get your little person to point out certain things when they hear them in the story.
2. Go to a Gymboree class or an indoor playground. Be with your little person and talk with them the whole time. Find something that they do that is impressive (not very hard as these little people are amazing!) and tell them how great they are getting at doing x, y or z.
3. When you unload the groceries enlist your little person's help. Get down to their level and give them small objects to put away. Talk to them about what they are putting away. Describe the textures, colours, shapes etc of the item. And be sure to thank your little person for their help.
4. Do an activity like pudding painting with your little person. (Put pre-made vanilla flavored pudding in several cups. Add food colouring to each cup. Lay out some wax paper in your art centre. Put your little person in their art smock and put dollops of the pudding paint on the paper. Let your artist dive in and paint with their hands). Get in there with them and explore the media together. Talk to your little person about the feel and the smell and the taste of the pudding. And don't worry about the mess - you can clean up later once you've both finished your creations.
5. At the mall, stop into a book store that had a kids section with your little person. Go to the train table or the princess castle or whatever they have laid out for the kids to play with and play with your little person. Get on their level and play with the toys too.
6. At the grocery store put your little one in the cart facing you. Chat with them about what you see in the store. Ask them questions about whatever it is that they like to talk about and really listen to their response. By the time you've finished your grocery shop you will have given your little person at least 30 minutes of undivided attention that will be cherished by both you and your little one.
7. Anything that involves being on the same level as your little on and being engaged in whatever activity they are doing. The little moments are really the most important ones.

Happy giving,
Creatively yours,
Maya :)

Mud Pie Fossil Madness

As I was looking through my photos from the summer I came across this one of our adventures in making mud pie fossils.

This was a very special project for me as I was sharing a first with Aiden - both of our first time making mud pies. (Yes, I managed to live for 33 years without making a single mud pie!). It was extremely messy and ended up turning more into mud soup than mud pies but it was oodles of fun. Here's the recipe:

Marvelous Mud Pie Fossils
Ingredients:
Soil (either from your yard or from your leftover potting soil)
Water
Pasta shapes
Digging tools (spoons, trowels, cups etc.)
Container for the soil (foil roasting pans work well)
Felt square

1. Pour soil into a container.
2. Pour water into the container and have your little person stir it up.
3. Let your little person add pasta shapes to the mud mixture.
4. When your little person has made a pie, transfer it to a felt square. Let the mud dry.
Voila, you have yourself a mud pie fossil!

Tips
This is a wonderful project for outdoors, but it can be done indoors. It was very windy on the day we did this project so I set up Aiden's paddling pool in the kitchen and let him sit in the pool while making his fossils. Clean up was easy as I just had to hose off the pool and clean off Aiden.

The Review
This one was buckets of fun! Aiden had a great time mixing the soil and scooping it out to make his pies. We will definitely be doing this one again.

Happy mud pie baking,
Creatively yours,
Maya:)

Now I Know My ABCs

Please be forewarned: This post contains some extremely annoying, prouder than proud Mom statements!

I have a pretty smart kid. At seventeen and a half months Aiden know about fifty words, knows all his major body parts and recognizes ten out of twenty-six letters. I'd love to take credit for his cleverness (ok I'll take a bit) but most of his letter and number (he knows the number 2) recognition is due to his love of sesame street (what a fantastic show by the way, although I have the song "Why oh why do I love Y" stuck in my head on repeat right now!).

What I can take credit for is encouraging his superb language skills. I've read to him everyday since birth and I've always talked to him as I'd he understands everything. And now that he can identify letters and numbers (which he loves doing) I try to incorporate language activities into our regular adventures.

Here's a list of some of the things we've done and you can do to encourage your letter detectives:

ABC Activities
1. Buy an alphabet play mat to put down in your play room. Ask your little person to find certain letters or numbers and bring them to you.
2. Find small items, like toys and household items, that begin with the same letter. Place them in a bucket or container. Have your little person pull each item out of the container, one by one, and have them tell you what it is. Remind them what letter the item begins with each time.
3. Draw a letter on a big piece of paper. Have your little one colour and collage the letter. Look through magazines to find pictures of things that begin with the letter you drew. Cut out the pictures and stick them to the letter poster.
4. Go on an alphabet walk: As you walk with your little person point out things that begin with a certain letter.
5. In the grocery store, as you are waiting to pay, ask your little person to point out different letters on the magazines. (This also gives you a chance to catch up on the latest celebrity gossip!)
6. Try on some dress up clothes or have your little person dress up. When you are both dressed up tell your little one what you are wearing that begins with a certain letter, e.g. Mom is wearing a hat and hat begins with the letter H.
7. Make letter puppets by drawing letters on card stock and attaching them to Popsicle sticks. Decorate the puppets, giving them faces and googly eyes. Then create stories using the letter puppets based on the letters, e.g. A's Amazing Adventure to Alaska.
8. Hide letter blocks around your play room (in fairly obvious places). Have your little on search for and find different letters.
9. Read, read and read some more to your little one. Ask them to point out letters that they know in the book.
10. Clap, cheer, hoot and holler when your little person identifies letters when you are out and about. A little encouragement goes a long way.

Happy letter learning,
Creatively yours,
Maya :)

My Substitute Gym

Aside from freezing fingers and cold toes, the main reason why I strongly dislike cold weather is because I can't go outside to play/exercise with Aiden. One of my favorite things to do with Aiden is to go for a walk or a run through the playground, but alas, no more as the temperatures have drop into the minuses with a nasty wind-chill factor. And one of the reasons I like being outside with Aiden is that it gives us the chance to exercise.

I should explain one thing, before I became Aiden's Mom, I was addicted to the gym. I was lucky enough to work in a place that had a magnificent gym so most days I'd go on my lunch break and after work for two workouts a day. But since having Aiden I seem to not have enough time in the day to do the laundry or keep the house neat and tidy let alone make it to the gym, so I substituted my gym time with walks and runs and play time outdoors.

However, now that the weather has turned I need to come up with ways to exercise indoors while entertaining my little man. Here's a list of things I've come up with so far:

Indoor Non-Gym Workout Activities
1. Turn on the radio or iPod or stereo to some upbeat dance music and have a 15 minute dance party. Do this 4 times throughout the day and you've clocked in an hour cardio session.
2. Run up and down the stairs while carrying your little person.
3. Do crunches and pelvic tilts while your little person sits on you for extra resistance. You can teach your little one counting and numbers at the same time.
4. Play rocket ships with your little person: Do a count up (1, 2, 3, blast off) and lift them up into the air above your head. Do this 10 or 12 times and you've got a killer arm workout.
5. Play giant tag with your little person: Be a giant by taking wide, lunging steps. Chase your little one around the house for a fabulous lower body workout.
6. Play jumping frogs with your little one: Squat down low and jump up like a frog. Do this 10-12 times and you've down a set of squats.
7. Set up an indoor obstacle course using chairs and tunnels and hoops and balls and whatever equipment. (child-friendly of course) that you have lying around. Do the obstacle course with your little person for a quick cardio session.
8. Take your little one carpet tobogganing: Place a rug on a hard wood or laminate floor. Put your little one on the rug and pull them around the house. Not only is this super fun for your little person but you also get a great total body workout.
9. Get a video game like Dance Workout 3 (just got it for my bday) or NFL training camp. Stick it in the game player and do the game with your little person. Aiden loves the Dance Workout game so much that when we go into the living room he brings me the wii-mote and starts singing "oh, oh, oh, oh, oh, oh-oh" from the California Girls song, and as soon as I put the game on his face lights up as he starts to dance along with the game.
10. Go on a parade around the house with your little one. Using a drum or shakers or some kind of instrument march around the house to the beat of your music. Change the tempo for some great interval training.

Happy exercising,
Creatively yours,
Maya :)

Prepping for Santa

In a previous post (Family Photo Flash Cards I think) I mentioned that Aiden is in the "I'm not so keen about being around strangers" stage. Because of this we decided to forgo the visit with Santa in the mall this year as I think for Aiden the visit would be the equivalent of making me hold a big, hairy spider (I hate spiders) and the photo would be akin to Munch's Scream painting.

Well, next weekend we have a kids Christmas party that's being held by Aiden's Dad's work. It a pretty big deal - we've heard that there's horses, cookie decorating, face painting, games, treats, and a present from none other that the big guy in the red suit. The catch though is that Aiden will need to visit Santa in order to get his gift. We want Aiden to enjoy his experience there as much as possible and not scar him for life with his first encounter with St. Nick, so over the last week or so I have been doing my best to prepare Aiden for his all important meet and greet. Here's a list of what we have done to prep for Santa and things you can do if you are in a similar situation:

The Prepping for Santa List
1. Make a personalized video from Santa for your little person. I used the Magic Santa app. Play the video at least once a day to get your little one used to seeing Santa.
2. Read stories about Santa. Father Christmas by Raymond Briggs is excellent.
3. Make Santa hats out of construction paper for your little person and their animals.
4. Write a letter to Santa with your little person. Make a special trip to the post office to mail it.
5. Get or make an advent calendar with a picture of Santa on it. (Aiden now associates Santa with the little chocolate he gets every morning when we open a door).
6. Walk past the mall Santa a few times on different days before your official Santa photo day. Wave to him and maybe he'll wave back.
7. Make Santa puppets and act out stories using the puppets. We made Santa into a secret agent super spy and also a time traveller who hangs out with Aiden's dinosaurs when he's not needed in the north pole.

I'm happy to report that our preparations for Santa are going well. Our preparations are going so well that when we were in the mall the other day and Aiden saw an older gentleman with a full, white beard who looked remarkably like Santa he yelled out "Danta". Thankfully plain clothes Santa was an excellent sport and chuckled in a very Santa-like way and said "Why yes I am!" Here's hoping that Saturday goes as well!

Happy Santa-ing,
Creatively yours,
Maya :)

Super-Hero-Crockpot-Chicken-Soup-And-Dumplings

Argh, sickness has come over to play once again. I suppose, with having a little guy who still likes to taste things just to make sure they are not edible and that he's not missing out on anything yummy, we should get used to this pesky visitor. But we can still put up a good fight and try to rid our house of this troublesome squatter.

And what better way to do that than make some super-hero-worthy-hi-yah-biff-boff-pow-take-that-sickness-fighting-chicken-soup for dinner. Not only will the soup boost our sickness fighting powers when it gets into our bellies, but the smell of the soup, cooking in the crockpot for the rest of the day, should give the sickness a fair warning that it is no longer welcome in our house. Here's the recipe:

Super-Hero-Crockpot-Chicken-Soup-and-Dumplings

1 large potato, peeled and cubed
3 carrots, peeled and sliced
1 cup shredded cabbage
1 medium onion, diced
1 cloves of garlic, minced
1 can chicken broth
2 cups water
1/8 cup all purpose flour
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp ground thyme
1/2 tsp basil
1/2 tsp oregano
1/2 tsp freshly ground pepper
4 boneless skinless chicken breasts or thighs cut into 2 inch pieces
1 cup frozen green peas

Dumplings:
3 Tbsp butter, melted
3/4 cup all purpose flour
1/4 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup milk

1. Add potato, carrot, onion, cabbage and garlic to the crock pot.
2. Whisk together the flour, chicken broth and water. Pour over veggies.
3. Add spices and chicken pieces.
4. Stir well and cook on low for 6 – 8 hours.
5. One hour before you want to serve the chicken and dumplings, stir in the frozen peas.
6. Let chicken mixture return to bubbling.
7.Stir dumpling ingredients together in a small bowl but don’t over mix.
8. Drop into bubbling chicken mixture by tablespoonfuls. Cook for 20 – 25 minutes or until dumplings are done in the middle.

Makes 4 servings

Happy cooking,
Creatively yours,
Maya :)

I Love You Always Forever, Near and Far, Closer Together

Since becoming a Mom there are many things that have surprised me. Some of these things include my mastery of one-handed tasks like cooking a family style ham and cheese omelet complete with a side of homemade sweet potato fries using only one hand while holding Aiden with the other hand, my capability to function in the day after an exhausting night spent "sleeping" on the rocking chair with my sick little man, and my ability to make a multitude of boy-style sound effects including cars, trains, planes, rocket ships, animals, robots, dinosaurs and even wookies.

But a surprise that snuck up on my yesterday is my sudden ineptitude at saying goodbye to loved ones without turning into an absolute puddle if tear-filled mush.

I discovered this as I was driving home from my Dad's house from our last visit with him until at least March of next year when he'll be done his locuum. Aiden was sound asleep in the car and the song "Last Christmas, I gave you my heart..." came on the radio. I glanced in the rear view mirror at my sweet little man and tears immediately welled in my eyes as I realized how much Aiden will miss his Grandpa and how much I'll miss my Dad. And as the tears started rolling down my cheeks I thought "Huh, this is strange." Now if read my post about what makes me unique you will understand that I have had a lot of practice saying goodbye to my Dad, so it doesn't usually phase me when he leaves, but for whatever reason (alright, let's get real here - the reason is Aiden...poor little guy won't be able to understand that Grandpa is coming back!), this time it hit me hard.

So to turn this feeling into a more positive one, here's a list of things that Aiden and I will do keep our loved ones close even when they are far away:

Keeping Our Loved Ones Close Activities
1. Make a care package for the loved one. Find a box, decorate the box and fill it with all of their favorite things. Take it to the post office and let your little person choose the stamps and mail it.
2. Write a story about your little one's adventures with the loved one. Illustrate the story with photos of your little person and your loved one. Make a copy to send to your loved one.
3. Make a day-in-the-life video of your little person. Have your loved one do the same. Exchange videos via email and play them frequently.
4. Exchange teddy bears or stuffed animals with your loved one. Anytime your little person misses your loved one, give them the teddy bear or animal to hug.
5. Have your teddy bear write letters to the other bear and get your loved one to respond on behalf of the bear.
6. Look on the map where your loved one is. Put a marker in the map where you are and where they are. Attach the two points with string and go on an imaginary journey to the other place.
7. Go to the library and find books about where your loved one is. Find a recipe from that country and make it for dinner. You and your loved one will then be eating the same thing.
8. Skype, FaceTime and video chat as much as possible.

Creatively yours,
Maya :)