Establishing credit back in Canada

I have worked in the US on a TN visa since 1996. I have no financial ties any longer in Canada and haven't for more than 10 years. This summer my husband and I (Canadian also) plan on moving back to Canada permanently.
How do we reestablish our credit? We have no credit history in Canada since 1997.
We are planning a trip in March and thought we would open a bank account. We plan on applying for a gas/department store card and use one of out parents addresses as our own.
Any hints.......

What sorts of credit cards do you have in the US? If you have an American Express card, it is transferable to a Canadian dollar account (and vice versa). Just go to their website and check it out.