• Parenting

    Twenty-one Things I Am Proud of in 2020

    January 2, 2021 - By 

    So what are you proud of in 2020? What was your greatest accomplishment? What are you proud of in 2020? People keep asking this question. Part of me wants to be a total smart ass when I read the question – I mean 2020 accomplishments at the end of the year were dramatically different than our expectations at the start. Let’s be clear. I got up, got out of bed and kept going in a year full of anxiety and stress. That was enough many days. My 2020 Moments Instead of making it a negative or griping or dismissing the…

  • Ilderton_christmas_lights
    family

    Best London Christmas Lights to See Now (Have a Drive Through, Socially Distant New Year!)

    December 31, 2020 - By 

    So where are the best London Christmas lights that are safe to see from the car? Are they still open? Can you make that part of your New Year’s Eve tonight? Read the information below to find out. Obviously parades and the holiday season went virtual this year around Ontario and in many places throughout Canada. But, what about New Year’s Eve? And what about social distancing? Good news. There are still a few London Christmas lights and homes to drive by and enjoy. Check out some of the Best Drive Through London Christmas lights and holiday light displays before…

  • kids_daily_planner
    Parenting

    Five Ways to Organize Your Child’s Day + Printable Planner

    December 28, 2020 - By 

    What does your child’s day look like right now? Is it a bit like a battle getting them out of bed to start? This post contains affiliate links as a service to readers. I receive a small commission via purchases from qualifying links. For Some Organizing and Planning Can Be Hard When my daughter was small she needed a lot of help getting organized. She still does actually. But, she can, for the most part, organize using strategies that we have used over the years. So, the difference now versus when she was in elementary school is that she now…

  • christmas_gift_guide
    family

    My 2020 Christmas Gift Guide – Celebrate With Me

    December 15, 2020 - By 

    Happy Holidays! My 2020 Christmas Gift Guide is ready to share. I couldn’t be happier to spread some joy this year and share a few of my favourite things with you. My 2020 Christmas Gift guide contains affiliate links. At no extra fee to you, I receive a small commission off of purchases made via qualifying links. I received product and compensation in some cases for features in this guide. Well, here we are almost at Christmas and this year I am doing a few things differently. One thing I am doing is shopping slowly and in chunks to spread…

  • teen in a mask
    Parenting

    Your Mask is Completely Inappropriate and What Happened Later

    December 11, 2020 - By 

    A week or so ago I wrote this Your Mask is Completely Inappropriate post for CBC Parents. Here’s what happened afterwards. As some of you probably already know, I freelance and publish content in many other spaces. This year, a lot of that content has appeared on CBC Parents. Happy to hang my hat there sometimes. An Excerpt From My Recent Post on CBC Parents This past week we were walking through a grocery store near my home when my teenage daughter spied something scrawled on a face mask. In fact, I heard her speaking to a stranger before I…

  • letter_to_santa
    family

    Cute Children’s Christmas Letter to Santa Writing Prompt

    December 1, 2020 - By 

    I think we can all easily recall that time during childhood when we believed wholeheartedly in magic and in Santa Claus. Back before pandemic was even a word in our daily vocabulary, as children we wrote at least one creative and joyful letter to Santa each year. Dear Santa Letter Writing an annual letter to Santa was something I looked forward to for weeks before Christmas. It was my chance to plant suggestions in my home, and send them directly to the North Pole. As an adult, I have enjoyed many years of creating that illusion for my kids. I…

  • bleach_dye_tshirts
    Parenting

    How to Bleach Dye a T-Shirt in a Few Easy Steps

    November 29, 2020 - By 

    So, a few weeks ago my daughter was all about this bleach dye phase. We had seen it on several sweatshirts and hoodies and thought that it looked cool, but the finished product always seemed expensive. So, we wondered if we could do it ourselves. How hard could it be? Post may contain affiliate links as a service to readers. I receive a small commission off of purchases made via qualifying links. Then we saw t-shirts and long sleeved shirts in Michaels one day on sale. Fate. Serendipity. Whatever you want to call it. It’s all good and it clearly…

  • harry_potter_movies
    family

    Ten Reasons Harry Potter Movies are the Best to Binge on Right Now.

    November 17, 2020 - By 

    By Ainsley Schuck  Note from Paula: This Harry Potter movies post is by my daughter Ainsley. We have been Potterheads for years. But, during the pandemic the kids have asked to watch the Harry Potter movies from start to finish repeatedly. So, I have asked them several times why Harry Potter movies right now? Post contains affiliate links as a service to readers. I may receive a small commission via qualifying purchases. Why Harry Potter Movies are Perfect to Binge on Right Now Near the start of the pandemic the kids were asking to watch Harry Potter movies so often…

  • fasd_teen
    Parenting

    My Daughter Has FASD – My CBC Parents Post

    November 16, 2020 - By 

    My youngest daughter has FASD. I have occasionally written a bit about that here, but I am adding a bit more content about this invisible disability and publishing in major national outlets to grow awareness. My CBC Parents Content Over the last two years I have been writing a lot of consistent content on CBC Parents. I am happy to be able to reach a wider audience and frankly freelance, of course, is where I began years ago when I started writing. A few of my posts have centred on our journey parenting kids with special needs, or mental health…

  • teen affirmations
    Parenting

    Affirmation Cards for Teens to Build Positive Self Image

    November 11, 2020 - By 

    Raising teens is all at once the hardest thing I have ever done and also the most rewarding. As hard as it can be for me to parent them, sometimes I fully recognize that it is even harder to be them right now, especially during a pandemic. Teens need all the mental health tools they can find. These Affirmation Cards for teens are a positive way to encourage mental health and self esteem. I printed these out for my oldest daughter and she was thrilled with them. You never know how these things will be accepted. But, she said OMG…