• Health - infertility

    We’ve Been Trying Since I Was 25: An Infertility Story #ivf4on #onpoli

    June 12, 2013 - By 

    Ashley and Brandon Powell Ashley Powell is 29, diagnosed with PCOS and she has exhausted most of her options trying to get pregnant. Ashley ’s infertility story starts back at puberty. She had her first period at 13. But it took a full year before her next period arrived. Her menstrual cycles have always been erratic and painful. Powell typically had only 4-8 periods each year and they were extremely painful. In college she was diagnosed with Polycystic ovarian syndrome and referred to a gynecologist. The doctor told her she might have trouble conceiving and that has been proven repeatedly.…

  • Travel

    #WordlessWednesday My Parasailing Family #Travel

    June 12, 2013 - By 

    My family is daring. I am not. This is the photo I took of them getting ready to go parasailing. Five minutes after this photo the three of them were flying down the beach watching sea turtles and such from way too high for this Mom. Thank goodness the husband has no issue with heights at all.

  • Health

    Five Tips for Getting Results on Your Petition #ABHC4IVF #Abpoli

    June 10, 2013 - By 

    One of our amazing motivated Generations of Hope community members has taken the petition challenge to heart and filled three full pages with signatures already. So, based on her experience and my history of advocating for others I thought we’d share some of the incredible tips we know work well for collecting signatures on a petition. Here is the original Alberta Generations of Hope petition challenge post I shared June 1st. We know 1 in 6 people (or couples) struggle with infertility. We also know infertility is a complex health condition as recognized by the World Health Organization. Want more…

  • Food - Parenting - special needs

    What is Unique? #Kindermom and a $250 Visa Contest

    June 9, 2013 - By 

    My girls with their martial arts hero Frank Trejo My kids are fierce. There are other words to describe them for sure. And some days they push me to my limits like any other kids on the planet, but my girls are my heart. Walking around outside my body. In that devastatingly painful way that children do. My girls are hope and pride, memories, passion, love and strength, faith. My girls are smart and kind and caring and loving and compassionate and strong. They stand up for others and have a strong sense of advocacy and a voice. My girls…

  • Food - Giveaways

    Upcycling, 25 Free Boxes of Cereal #Giveaway and #HNCHeartyOatCrunch

    June 6, 2013 - By 

    How do you make something familiar and well loved into something brand new entirely? Well, you can up cycle, if you are a DIYer. Or you can recreate a classic cereal, that is one of our family favourites, and add oats and nut clusters to give it crunch. That’s just what the people at General Mills have done with new Honey Nut Cheerios Hearty Oat Crunch and they want to give a few boxes away. So stay tuned for details. My kiddo is the queen of up cycling. Truth. She has been taking old stand by materials and objects and…

  • Health - parenting

    Losing a Parent: Every Day is a Gift, Just Not Tomorrow

    June 4, 2013 - By 

    Every day is a gift. But today I would gladly trade tomorrow in if I could. June 5th marks a month since my Mom passed away. I can barely type that without crying. One month  of sadness and anger and frustration and forgetting and movement and tears and heaviness and guilt and devastation, and heart-stopping pain. One month ago I had no idea grief felt like a stone in your chest weighing you down with sad. This weekend, I attended TBEX, travel blogging conference, and it was the first time I really felt like I had smiled and kicked back…

  • Health

    You Might Be A Caregiver If: Medicare Part D Costs #Walgreens #ad

    June 4, 2013 - By 

    (This is the second of my sponsored posts for Walgreens Part D. Thanks to Walgreens for allowing thriftymommastips.com to partner with them for this series. This post was compensated. My first post about saving money with Walgreens Part D is here. My opinion is all my own.) Caregiving is hard work. That’s reality. No way around it. It can be draining – emotionally, psychologically and physically. Walgreens Medicare Part D cost means it doesn’t have to be draining financially also. Which is good because this is what my prescription story looks like many weeks. I work 24/7 almost every day…

  • Health - infertility

    Petition Challenge – Get 6 signatures #abhc4ivf #abpoli

    June 1, 2013 - By 

    If you live in Alberta, then odds are pretty strong that you know someone struggling with infertility. Quick – write down the names of six of your closest friends. Now try to figure out which one of the six is struggling with, or has already battled infertility. It’s that close. Infertility was, up until recently not talked about in Canada. But a funny thing happened this past year. People started sharing their stories. People started standing up to say yes I am 1 in 6. I want to talk about infertility and the pressing health care issues surrounding access to…

  • Giveaways - Health - parenting

    Win $25 K for Your Park – Kraft Celebration Tour #KCT

    June 1, 2013 - By 

      It might not have made front page news, but the day they unveiled Mayor Norm Jary Park in Guelph, the world shifted just a little bit for my brother and I. First of all, we had our pictures in the local daily, The Guelph Mercury (local section). That in itself was an event – and pretty cool for a grade schooler. I recall the photo opp with the mayor. I think I might have been nine or so standing in the background and my little brother was cute as a button perched atop a slide. Aside from the school playground…