• tobogganing
    family - parenting

    Tobogganing on Family Day #WordlessWednesday

    February 19, 2015 - By 

    It’s winter in Canada and as the saying goes: if you can’t beat them, join them. As soon as I started to feel better this weekend we decided to hit the toboggan hill. It was minus 25 Celsius and it was a good thing we bundled up because tobogganing is great exercise and it makes you feel like a kid again. There’s something extra fun about that. This is a Wordless Wednesday post. BUT I am rarely wordless. As I was posting this I started to wonder what does the word mean? It sounds like it might have an aboriginal…

  • How to Make Painting Easier
    family - Giveaways - homes

    How do you Make Painting Easier? #Giveaway

    January 19, 2015 - By 

    My husband is a handy guy. Thank goodness for that. He paints and builds and fixes. That saves a lot of money over time. Sadly we don’t always have the time for him to do the big picture projects, or even the emergency plumbing kinds of things, but he is the go to guy for helping. He lends himself to friends and family for wallpaper and painting and general fixit carpentry kinds of things. He is also very good at painting. He has a really old painting and wallpapering tray and kit and it sits in our garage waiting for someone…

  • Target Canada
    family - parenting

    Target Canada Closing – What Went Wrong? – Interview with Retail Expert

    January 16, 2015 - By 

    Target Canada made headlines across the country this week announcing they will close all 133 Canadian stores opened under two years ago. Target trended on Twitter all week, but this time it wasn’t for a twitter party or a social media marketing event. It was bad news for many. I interviewed retail expert John Winter of John Winter and Associates today on what went wrong. I used to  talk with John Winter often when I wrote daily news columns for business sections of the news. I still remember interviewing him when Walmart set up shop in Canada in the 90s. That was…

  • child poverty
    Health

    These are My Weapons Against Child Poverty #WorldVisionGifts #TMMWVC

    December 24, 2014 - By 

    There is a saying in martial arts that my kids repeat over and over each time they grade. My husband knows it too. I am paraphrasing a bit but it’s a little like this – I come to you with empty hands. If I should be forced to use them. These are my weapons: my empty hands. It’s the end of 2014 and so everyone is wrapping up their year with little red bows and packaging it away to start fresh on January 1st. There is beauty and peace in that. We are building our resolutions, hopes and plans. We…

  • family

    Wordless Wednesday Winter Wonderland

    November 25, 2014 - By 

    Winter was here  last week and it was quite beautiful despite the big snowfall. The kids welcomed the snowy weather, as kids do, and they built snowmen and snow serpents and they even tobogganed on the weekend. My morning walks were freezing, but nonetheless gorgeous. All the neighbourhood dogs were out in their snappy little sweaters. I snapped this picture just down the street from us and it reminded me of those old fashioned Currier and Ives pictures my Mom used to love so much. I don’t mind the snow when it creates a pretty sort of landscape that has…

  • Health - infertility

    What Makes EEVA Special? #EEVA1stBC

    February 18, 2014 - By 

    Imagine that you are one of the one in six people of reproductive age who struggles with infertility. Very often the medically recommended course of action is in vitro fertilization. The procedure itself can be costly. And like any medical treatment, you want to be sure you are making the best decision for your personal situation, your family. You want the best.    Infertility Treatment in BC Luckily if you live in British Columbia you have some remarkable fertility clinics to choose from and some amazing talented award-winning doctors like Dr. Sonya Kashyap, medical director of @GenesisIVFBC. Kashyap was mentored by Celine Dion’s fertility…

  • Health - infertility

    Crowdfunding A Baby: How One BC Couple Paid for Fertility Treatments #ivf4bc #bcpoli

    August 30, 2013 - By 

    (This post about crowdfunding a baby was originally published in 2013. It has been UPDATED with 2016 information) You’ve heard of crowdfunding a new product. And crowdfunding to launch a concept like a new app, or the perfect Canadian winter coat. How about crowdfunding a baby? When expensive fertility treatments are necessary and they aren’t covered sometimes you have to get extremely resourceful.   Remember Nick? You might have read of his creative approach to fertility funding earlier this year when he spoke to the Vancouver Sun about crowd funding health care treatment. Nick Beaulieu and his wife were running…

  • family

    Our Canada Day

    July 4, 2009 - By 

    I wholeheartedly, unabashedly love Canada Day. The first of July every year heralds summer here and we typically go out of our way to make this celebration of our country a fun family experience. Maybe it’s the fireworks. Or maybe it’s because it is the day before my eldest daughter’s birthday. Maybe it’s because I grew up in a time when we moaned at length through high school and university about the lack of a true Canadian culture. The lack of a Canadian identity. Entire careers and courses were made or taught on the topic. But somewhere in the last 10 years I…