My Grandmother on my mother’s side was British. She was a total kick in the pants, a mom to five boys and one daughter and she was a huge tea drinker. Of course she also rolled cigarettes back when Virginia Slims make smoking appear sexy, then quit cold turkey one day after smoking for 30 years. She was a great, quirky and inspirational lady who loved to talk politics with me even when I was only nine or ten. As a child, when I went to her house (every single sick day) I would marvel at the teas (mostly…
-
-
My kids are crafters. In fact that’s why I originally signed my older daughter up for preschool many years ago. I couldn’t keep up with her need to craft. It was constant. She still loves to craft and little daughter has followed in her footsteps. So, I always know when it is birthday time, or Christmas, a great craft kit will be appreciated almost more than any other item or toy. Beados arrived here on a day when Payton came home from school because she had been feeling sick. Beados is now one of my new favourite craft gifts for school…
-
Meet my new crush. This is my favourite gadget of the year – the LG G3 Smartphone has changed the way I work. I have been an iPhone user for as long as I have been a blogger. But then I got the chance to test-drive the LG G3 Smartphone. I never thought I would love an LG G3 Android so much. The thing about my iPhone that I loved the most was its reliability. It never dropped calls and it connected seamlessly wherever I travelled. Colombia with World Vision Canada, no problem! Mexico? No problem. So then the LG…
-
We had a strange event in our neighbourhood last weekend involving one of my children. A person we did not know pulled over at the side of the road where my one daughter was playing with a friend and started taking pictures of them. The girls had been out playing on their bikes, in daylight, after school. Normally I can see my child out front. That afternoon I couldn’t see her, nonetheless, I knew she was riding her bike, helmet on, safe on our street with a friend. But the safety I take for granted was taken away when the…
-
Many of you who are regular readers here know that this September I travelled with World Vision Canada to Colombia. While I was there for the better part of a week I toured many of the area development programs where the work of volunteers and staff at World Vision Canada is changing lives. The experience was life altering and heartbreaking all at once. I saw children who had grown up with World Vision Canada sponsorship and become leaders in their communities. I recently wrote about Johan Espinosa who impressed me so because he has spent his life working with World Vision…
-
This year infertility patients in Ontario welcomed the announcement that in vitro fertilization would be funded here as soon as 2015. Public funding for IVF would be a reality. Or would it? After that announcement last April, a spring election was called. That left many feeling worried that proposed funding would never arrive. For infertility patents in Ontario it was a roller coaster of emotions. But remarkably, the spring election resulted in a Liberal majority and the government did in fact reiterate its promise to support an IVF funding program in 2015. Members of Conceivable Dreams were overjoyed and hopeful with the announcement. But…
-
Last summer I attended Blogher 10 in San Jose. One of the highlights for me was Guy Kawasaki – social media guru and smarty pants – interviewing Arianna Huffington, who was a total breath of fresh air. She responded to his questions with razor sharp comebacks that were all sort of directed exactly where she wanted them to go. It was the most hysterical thing. She gave great responses and had everyone laughing. She was also clearly used to commanding attention in any room and she was promoting her new book Thrive. The crux of that seemed to be get…
-
Mutant Mania arrived here this week and I originally thought, well this is just another trendy toy. But, then we started playing with them together, my daughter and I, and I really found myself enjoying these hot collector toys. First thing to know, these are not for teeny people under five years old or anyone who puts too many toys near their mouth. They are, however, extremely fun hot collector toys. The heads and bodies of Mutant Mania Mix and Match Wrestlers come apart and can be interchanged to make each tiny figure into something different. These are so much…
-
Johan Espinosa has been linked to World Vision for most of his life. He was sponsored at the age of five and grew up to be sponsorship coordinator in Bucaramanga, Colombia where I visited recently with World Vision Canada. His journey from sponsored child to inspirational leader building futures for sponsored children in Colombia is nothing short of remarkable. His story is a beautiful illustration of what becomes of sponsored children in Colombia. One of Three Brothers Espinosa was one of three brothers. They lived with both parents and their father worked, but they were still barely getting…
-
Back in April we heard the happy news that IVF (in vitro fertilization) would be funded in Ontario. Then suddenly an election was called and infertility patients were worried the promise of IVF funding would die before it even had a chance to be reality. But then, in an amazing twist, the Ontario Liberal party won a majority under Premier Kathleen Wynne. The Liberal government promise was good. The Wynne government confirmed that public funding for IVF in Ontario would be reality in 2015. It was a cause to celebrate. It still is a cause to celebrate. In Canada an estimated…