• Health - homes - parenting

    Trick out your #Lysolhandsoapcontest

    March 15, 2013 - By 

    I have girls. Enough said. They like the bling. They like crafting. They like to drive me bonkers. Wait, did I say that out loud?  Lysol No Touch Hand soap, the soap dispenser built for the kid who touches everything, is also made for my girls who like to bling up everything. If your kids are like mine at all, or even if they just want to craft, go pick up the Lysol Hand Soap dispenser and take photos of it all fancied up. You could win a mini iPad right now.  For a limited time, visit the Lysol Canada…

  • parenting

    Do You Have Taxi Mom Syndrome?

    March 14, 2013 - By 

    When my baby was this size I would race out of a store holding her ears shut tight if I heard someone drop a swear word at the checkout. Today I swore three times on the drive to the Market where this same baby, now a tween, acts and sings with a local kid’s theatre group. This left me shaking my head and wondering what happened? Am I a bad Mom because I swear now occasionally? When did that become okay for me? What happened to that pristine atmosphere I used to maintain for this new little person? And why…

  • family - Health - special needs - Travel

    Five Ways to Save Money on Summer Camp #MuskokaWoods

    March 13, 2013 - By 

    Dear Mom: Remember last month when I reminded you all about how we needed to book my summer camps now! Well, I am really hoping you did that Mom. I want to get into the same overnight summer camp I did last year with my BFF. It was the most fun event of my entire summer. Oh I enjoyed Canada’s Wonderland too, but nothing will ever top staying up late, crafting all week long, singing songs and making my own dolls and then swimming in a lake and sleeping on bunks away from home. My counsellors were incredible. In fact,…

  • Health - Parenting

    This was Eight – #WordlessWednesday

    March 13, 2013 - By 

    This was eight. The year you got your junior black belt. The year you got a teacher that really truly liked and got you. The year your friends became really big in your world. The year you made laser webs from yarn and spun them through your room. The year you fought with your sister, and then fell asleep in her bed. The year you wondered why Grandma had to get Alzheimer’s and then simply quietly helped her – often and without being asked. The year you got an appliance for your teeth. The year you won three trophies. The…

  • Health - infertility

    Endometriosis Awareness Month #ivf4bc #bcpoli

    March 11, 2013 - By 

    March marks Endometriosis Awareness Month and because I write often about infertility, adoption and health I wanted to take this post to tell you about endometriosis. Endometriosis is a painful chronic disease impacting 1 in 10 women. It is linked to infertility and is often difficult to diagnose. Many readers here know that I have some health issues. I write about Crohn’s Disease sometimes, but until now I have never written about the endometriosis I used to struggle with as well. Despite my frankness with many other issues and topics, talking about periods, menstruation and even some fertility issues, is difficult.…

  • family

    #Kindermom #Easter Is a Joy To Share

    March 9, 2013 - By 

    Kindermom is a joy to share. You’ve heard the slogan before, and yet did you know that Kindersurprise lives that fully and takes it to heart? That’s why I keep happily representing them here on thriftymommastips and working with them to share their great toys and Kindereggs. Kinder partners with Children’s Miracle Network to share their good fortune with the amazing charity that helps support families with a child undergoing a health care crisis.  Recently, I had an opportunity to tour the London Children’s Hospital and see some of the remarkable strong families the network helps to support. They are…

  • family

    Best Birthday Gifts for Crafty Kids: Kiwi Crate Review

    March 8, 2013 - By 

      I was going to show you the web site for Kiwi Crate, but then I realized I needed to capture how fun this experience is. I spied Kiwi Crate crafting experiences on line, likely in someone’s twitter mentions at some point and realized I really wanted to take a peek under the hood so to speak. So the Faboosh people at Kiwi Crate sent me one this week.  My girls are craft crazy. They always have been. My oldest child at the age of three would endlessly search the house for recyclables to turn into crafts. She has yet…

  • Health

    Good Health Care Policy Includes #OHIP4IVF #onpoli

    March 7, 2013 - By 

    By now my readers know I am community manager for a group called Conceivable Dreams. I believe strongly, just as the World Health Organization does, that infertility is a health issue impacting many areas of society on a human and economic level. I wrote about the reasons why Ohip funding for in vitro fertilization makes sense last September here on thriftymommastips. I have also interviewed many people struggling with infertility here in Ontario, Alberta and B.C. I have spoken with many Ontarian’s who have spent as much as $50,000 trying to build a family through IVF. Currently in Canada, the…

  • beauty products - Giveaways - Health

    Tria Beauty Series Post 4: At Home Hair Removal

    March 4, 2013 - By 

    Tria at Home Hair removal laser has been a regular part of my daily routine now for several weeks. This is post number four about the device which promises to remove hair permanently from legs, underarms and other areas of the body where unwanted hair grows. At the end of this series I get to give a device away (worth $449) and the giveaway will be open to Canada and the U.S. I have been faithfully using the Tria for several weeks, and have seen it easily integrate into the morning beauty routine here. It works best after a shower…