• family

    Backyardigans and Toopy and Binoo and an Amazing Playdate of a Lifetime

    August 29, 2011 - By 

    Who doesn’t love The Backyardigans? I can remember when they first came out and how my kids loved the show, with its cute characters always solving mysteries and, even I enjoyed the fun, varied, styles of music. Adorable! Over the years we have seen these guys a few times on stage. They are one of the more believable children’s performances. As in, the The Backyardigans on stage look like the ones from TV. http://www.facebook.com/KobaEntertainment So I couldn’t be happier to tell you that I have partnered with Koba entertainment to bring you news, reviews and contests involving some of their most…

  • easter_egg_hunt
    family

    KinderToys and Ten Things I Still Want To Do Before September

    August 27, 2011 - By 

    No other season comes close to summer. As a family, we try to make opportunities to play all year round. We have been known to run around after dinner in February in three feet of snow playing Dark Tag (Tag in the dark) or Hide ‘N Seek After Dark. I love to be moving and to get my family moving. It helps too that our rule has always been no TV after dinner. We play instead. So, even when I have to get the whole crew in boots and snowpants after dinner, movement and play is a philosophy we embrace all…

  • family

    Twitter Meets The Tooth Fairy or Why I Love TWITTER!

    August 25, 2011 - By 

    Darling daughter number two missing her front tooth. Cutie Patootie number one missing her front tooth. I love Twitter, unabashedly. It is filled with the smartest Moms and Dads around. Oh,  and there are some savvy brands on deck too. But, for now a word about the Moms and Dads. A few weeks ago at bedtime I had a tooth fairy problem. My daughter, 10, lost a tooth, perhaps her last for the tooth fairy and she forgot to put her tooth out, but we remembered late and stuck it in the cute little bedside tooth treasure box we have.…

  • family

    Jack Layton’s Death: Cancer and Who Else Do You Pay Tribute To Today?

    August 22, 2011 - By 

    A few short months ago I stood in a room in London with supporters of the federal New Democrat Party awaiting Jack Layton’s arrival. The federal election campaign had just begun. It was April. The NDP were slow and steady at the start. Layton, a career politician, who was for many years a Toronto politician, was late on this particular night. The crowd was anxious, a somewhat ragtag bunch of students and seniors, visible minorities and young families, disabled people in scooters and wheelchairs. Middle aged working couples wearing jackets that declared their jobs. When Layton finally arrived, he stood filling up…

  • Parenting

    Each Adoption is Like a Snowflake

    August 17, 2011 - By 

    Having two children that are so incredibly different has taught me a lot. My eldest was easy going from the start – a good sleeper and a bright cheery little babe. She was Christmas Day every morning for the first five years of her little life. My youngest, well she appeared with some potential special needs and was born with prenatal exposures to drugs and alcohol. She was a sweet baby and a really challenging toddler. She is an active child with special needs. She teaches us a lot about life every day. I love my two unique girls with…

  • Giveaways

    Dinner at My House: a Life Choices Review and #Giveaway

    August 15, 2011 - By 

    We are not a fish sticks kind of family. Like a lot of Moms, I try to serve nutritious, healthy food, on a budget. And I usually don’t have much time to cook my meals. I appreciate convenience. I love to buy organic food and I love to buy fresh items that are made or grown close to home. So when I discovered a new company called Life Choices I was thrilled and more than a bit curious. Life Choices is a company based out of Toronto. Like so many great Canadian companies, Life Choices was started by a Canadian family.…

  • family

    Monday Hop

    August 15, 2011 - By 

                                                                     http://makobiscribe.com/ Happy Monday! I am trying out a new hop. A Not So Moody Monday. Click on the button above or the link (whichever works and make some new friends.) Makobi Scribe is a super savvy blogger. So for my fellow bloggers out there, I highly recommend following and learning a few smart blogging ideas.

  • family travel

    What Do Kids Like Better Than Fart Jokes?

    August 10, 2011 - By 

    What do kids like more than fart jokes? Well pretty much anything gross. It’s true. They may pretend to be squeamish but when faced with an entire room full of displays about bugs that suck your blood and different types of animal scat, they are entirely captivated. So I knew when The Museum in Kitchener had a traveling exhibit called Grossology that my kids would love it. And they did. Last week I drove my niece back to Kitchener after a sleepover and met the rest of my niece’s family at The Museum. The entry fee for the exhibit is…

  • family

    Monday Mingle Freestyle Summer

    August 8, 2011 - By 

    Alright here it is. I can’t get vimeo up and running well tonight and facebook is no better. So for those of you who want to watch my Monday Mingle click on the link and visit me there. Thanks!                                  http://www.facebook.com/v/263560776987412

  • Health

    Hiding in the Bathroom

    August 4, 2011 - By 

    I am hiding in the bathroom. And now I am writing a post about hiding in the bathroom. Because I have three girls in my living room, each one gorgeous and smart and related to me and therefore giving me back everything I ever dished out as a child. And yes, I love them madly, my niece included, but the 7, 10, and 11 year old girls in my house are giving me grief and I probably deserve it. But holy crapbuckets of all that is sweet and holy I am very unprepared for the coming teenage years and I…