Life isn’t perfect but I know for sure childhood days felt perfect, especially during Christmas. I have never gotten over family reunions and having to eat, eat, eat till you are too tired to continue eating. Our favourite meat/protein was always chicken and what is Christmas without it anyway? Every Christmas Eve, my family and I often go to church in our neighbourhood and also join everyone to sing carols and study the bible. Then, as we head home, we stop at the shops on our street to buy Knockout (bangers). Then we lit them up and enjoyed the sound that accompanies it.
The following day Christmas day, we rush for the early morning Mass in our Catholic church and return home at 9 a.m. to do our cooking. Then, we share meals with our neighbours and wait eagerly for visitors to come around. Oh, we never forget to watch our favourite Christmas movie, “Home Alone”, because it ended the way we love. While watching a movie, we enjoy our rice, stew and chicken with a bottle of soft drinks. We live in Calabar, so, we wait till 4 p.m., so we can go to the Christmas village and watch masquerades, buy toys and play some fun games to win prizes. We never forget to look for the ice cream man and his truck because what’s Christmas without the kids having ice creams?
Well, those memories never go away but now as an adult, I mostly miss my mother’s cooking on Christmas day because she passed away some years ago. She was always our chef on Christmas day, making us all what we wanted because she wanted us to be happy. I think about her every Christmas because I don’t buy Christmas clothes, make Christmas hair as an adult or spend Christmas with her anymore. I miss having her around and I also miss having not to spend anything as a child while enjoying Christmas. And then, Santa Claus comes bearing gifts of great Joy. I miss the fact that I didn’t know Santa was someone we may know and see every day. We are always careful not to make Santa angry, as we fear he will not give us gifts. Now, as an adult, I know it’s someone’s brother, uncle, son or father putting on those clothes to make ends meet. He’s working for his money but I still love him because he makes the children happy.
I want to feel like a child again like when my mum was here and when Santa had gifts for us all without discriminating or making any child feel bad. Santa was always there for every child whether good or bad. Those memories are so dear to me and I know I won’t forget them anytime soon.
From Margaret.
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The BellaNaija #FeelLikeAChild campaign, in collaboration with BreatherNG, presents the perfect opportunity for people to let go of adulthood, let their hair down and ‘play’ like a child for a day. Together with BreatherNG, we’re creating an unforgettable experience for 5 winners and their plus one this December.
<img src="https://www.mtlblog.com/media-library/aisle-at-a-grocery-store-in-montreal-illustrative.jpg?id=54017175&width=1200&height=800&coordinates=229%2C0%2C230%2C0"/><br/><br/><p>The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has recently shared multiple <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/tag/recall" target="_blank" rel="noopener">recall notices</a> for foods sold in Quebec, including popular products like burrata cheese, Haribo gummy candies and tons of frozen waffles and pancakes. </p><p>These recalls, affecting everything from frozen foods to packaged goods and even deli meats, are due to various safety concerns — including potential <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/food-recalls-quebec-listeria-oct-2024" target="_blank" rel="noopener">listeria</a> and E. coli contamination and even foreign objects like insects and pieces of wood.</p><p>In case you missed it last week, this round of recalls also includes the <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/frozen-waffle-recall-canada-no-name-great-value" target="_blank" rel="noopener">huge recall of frozen waffles</a> sold by major Canadian retailers like Walmart, <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/food-recalls-quebec-pc-kirkland-no-name" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Provigo</a> and Metro due to possible listeria contamination. That recall has also since been <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/frozen-waffle-recall-expanded-pancakes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expanded</a> to include even more brands, flavours and sizes, as well as various frozen pancakes. </p><p>The CFIA urges Canadians to check their kitchens for any of these recalled products and to either throw them out or return them to the store where they were bought. Here's a rundown of six of the latest food items being recalled in Quebec and why they're being flagged.</p><h3>Various brands of frozen waffles and pancakes</h3><br/><img alt="No Name brand Blueberry Waffles." class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="63128d6af6fe6bb967cc0a499eab1bd9" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="07894" loading="lazy" src="https://www.mtlblog.com/media-library/no-name-brand-blueberry-waffles.png?id=54016975&width=980"/><p>
<strong>Recalled products:</strong> 55 different products and flavours from the following brands:
</p><ul>
<li>Compliments (house label at IGA, Voisin, Marché Bonichoix, Marchés Tradition, Rachelle-Béry and other affiliated Sobeys stores)</li>
<li>Duncan Hines</li>
<li>Gordon Choice</li>
<li>Great Value (house label at Walmart)</li>
<li>Life Smart (house label at Metro, Super C and other affiliated stores)</li>
<li>Nature's Path Organic</li>
<li>no name (house label at Provigo, Maxi and other affiliated Loblaw stores)</li>
<li>President's Choice (house label at Provigo, Maxi and other affiliated Loblaw stores)</li>
<li>Selection (house label at Metro, Super C and other affiliated stores)</li>
<li>Western Family</li>
</ul><p>
<strong>Recall reason: </strong>TreeHouse Foods, Inc issued its initial <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/frozen-waffle-recall-canada-no-name-great-value" target="_blank" rel="noopener">massive recall last Monday</a>, before <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/frozen-waffle-recall-expanded-pancakes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expanding it further on Tuesday</a>. It now includes over 50 different frozen waffles and pancakes of various types, flavours, sizes and brands, all of which are being recalled due to possible listeria contamination. You can check the CFIA recall notices below for the specific products as well as the affected lots' UPC codes and best-before dates.</p><p><strong><a href="https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/various-brands-frozen-waffles-recalled-due-listeria-monocytogenes" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Initial frozen waffle recall</a> & <a href="https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/various-brands-frozen-waffles-and-pancakes-recalled-due-listeria-monocytogenes#tablefield-node-76374-field_affected_products-0" target="_blank" rel="noopener">expanded recall notice</a></strong></p><h3>Haribo Tangfastics</h3><br/><img alt="Haribo Tangfastics." class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="068a06861ebba6839e54f0404cc9ff51" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="78c31" loading="lazy" src="https://www.mtlblog.com/media-library/haribo-tangfastics.jpg?id=54017036&width=980"/><p><strong>Recalled products:</strong> Haribo Tangfastics (gummy candies), 175 g — best before June 25, 2025</p><p><strong>Recall reason:</strong> Concord Sales is recalling one lot of Haribo gummies sold in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Scotia, Ontario and Quebec due to "pieces of wood" in the product.</p><p><strong><a href="https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/haribo-brand-tangfastics-gummy-candies-recalled-due-pieces-wood" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Haribo recall notice</a></strong></p><h3>Clic Jerusalem Couscous</h3><br/><img alt="Clic Jerusalem Couscous." class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="a28960edefc8ece4e06cdda65ec47100" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="17eae" loading="lazy" src="https://www.mtlblog.com/media-library/clic-jerusalem-couscous.png?id=54017050&width=980"/><p><strong>Recalled products:</strong> </p><ul><li>Clic Jerusalem Couscous, 907 g — various best-before dates</li><li>Clic Jerusalem Couscous, 5 kg — various best-before dates</li><li>Clic Jerusalem Couscous, 10 kg — various best-before dates</li></ul><p><strong>Recall reason:</strong> AGT Clic Foods Inc. is recalling various packages of Jerusalem couscous sold in Alberta, B.C., Ontario and Quebec due to the presence of insects. You can find the specific best-before dates and UPC codes on the CFIA recall notice below.</p><p><strong><a href="https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/clic-brand-jerusalem-couscous-recalled-due-presence-insects" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Clic recall notice</a></strong></p><h3>Dal Molise Burratina</h3><br/><p><strong>Recalled products: </strong>Dal Molise Burratina, 200 g — best before December 15, 2025</p><p><strong>Recall reason:</strong> CTS Foods is recalling Dal Molise-brand Burratina — a smaller version of burrata cheese — sold in Alberta, Ontario and Quebec, due to "generic <em>E. coli</em>," which the CFIA describes as "non-pathogenic."</p><p><strong><a href="https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/dal-molise-brand-burratina-soft-italian-fresh-cheese-creamy-center-recalled-due" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Dal Molise recall notice</a></strong></p><h3>Cordova Sauerkraut</h3><br/><p><strong>Recalled products:</strong></p><ul><li>Cordova Sauerkraut, 540 ml — best before July 15, 2025</li><li>Cordova Sauerkraut, 540 ml — best before August 16, 2025</li></ul><p><strong>Recall reason:</strong> Dollarama is recalling two lots of Cordova-brand sauerkraut sold across the country due to "bulging lids."</p><p><strong><a href="https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/cordova-brand-sauerkraut-recalled-due-bulging-lids" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Cordova recall notice</a></strong></p><h3>Jubran Ground Jameed and Soup Starter</h3><br/><img alt="\u200bJubran Soup Starter." class="rm-shortcode" data-rm-shortcode-id="6168e8b608d462de41159580c0e47713" data-rm-shortcode-name="rebelmouse-image" id="65188" loading="lazy" src="https://www.mtlblog.com/media-library/u200bjubran-soup-starter.jpg?id=54017103&width=980"/><p><strong>Recalled products:</strong></p><ul><li>Jubran Ground Jameed Ready to Prepare, 300 g — all codes where milk is not declared on the label</li><li>Jubran Soup Starter, 500 g — all codes where milk is not declared on the label</li></ul><p><strong>Recall reason:</strong> Golden Eagle Trading is recalling Jubran-brand ground jameed and soup starter sold in Quebec due to undeclared milk, which is an allergen.</p><p><strong><a href="https://recalls-rappels.canada.ca/en/alert-recall/jubran-brand-ground-jameed-and-soup-starter-recalled-due-undeclared-milk" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Jubran recall notice</a></strong></p><p><br/></p><p><em>Love this? Check out our <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/notices/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MTL Blog noticeboard</a> for details on jobs, benefits, travel info and more!</em><br/></p><p><em>AI tools may have been used to support the creation or distribution of this content; however, it has been carefully edited and fact-checked by a member of MTL Blog's Editorial team. For more information on our use of AI, please visit our <a href="https://www.mtlblog.com/editorial-standards" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Editorial Standards page</a>.</em></p>
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