• adoption and tweens - Parenting

    We Stay: Five Things I Never Told You About Special Needs Adoption

    I am not unlike you. I love my kids more than anything on the planet. They are my heart. They are my life. They are my first glorious sight in the morning. (One of them bursts into my room every day at crack of dawn, but that’s another story) and one of the last things I see at night. There is nothing that can bring out the mama bear in me like someone wronging my child. My family is not perfect, but it is mine. Everything I do is to build a future for them. Most of you know by now that…

  • family - Health - parenting - Travel

    Five Facts About the World Vision Gift Catalogue 2014 #WorldVisionGifts

      By now you know that gifts from the World Vision gift catalogue 2014 matter. They matter to children like these girls who are able to attend school in Colombia thanks to sponsorship and often thanks to donations from the gift catalogue. They matter to the boys in this picture playing soccer and building a healthy outlook for life in an area where drugs, gangs and poverty are very real threats to children. They matter to children you might never meet all over the world in so many countries that need help. Tonight on twitter, we are talking about the impact…

  • Uncategorized

    Disney Mickey Mouse Ears Printable Craft #DisneyOnIceInsider

      I am thrilled to be a Disney On Ice Insider again this year. I love Disney on Ice and I have written about that experience often. This Disney post is from way back in 2011. Disney on Ice is always fun for the entire family. This year Disney on Ice returns to Budweiser Gardens in London. I look forward to giving some tickets away here on my blog soon. In the mean time here is a free Disney Mickey Mouse Ears printable for your children to make and play with. Enjoy! And keep reading so you don’t miss the chance…

  • Health

    Twelve Home Safety Tips for the Holiday Season

    We had a strange event in our neighbourhood last weekend involving one of my children. A person we did not know pulled over at the side of the road where my one daughter was playing with a friend and started taking pictures of them. The girls had been out playing on their bikes, in daylight, after school. Normally I can see my child out front. That afternoon I couldn’t see her, nonetheless, I knew she was riding her bike, helmet on, safe on our street with a friend. But the safety I take for granted was taken away when the…

  • family

    Hot Collector Toys for Christmas #TMMGG2014

      Mutant Mania arrived here this week and I originally thought, well this is just another trendy toy. But, then we started playing with them together, my daughter and I, and I really found myself enjoying these hot collector toys. First thing to know, these are not for teeny people under five years old or anyone who puts too many toys near their mouth. They are, however, extremely fun hot collector toys. The heads and bodies of Mutant Mania Mix and Match Wrestlers come apart and can be interchanged to make each tiny figure into something different. These are so much…

  • Travel

    Johan’s Story: What Becomes of Sponsored Children in Colombia

    Johan Espinosa has been linked to World Vision for most of his life. He was sponsored at the age of five and grew up to be sponsorship coordinator in Bucaramanga, Colombia where I visited recently with World Vision Canada. His journey from sponsored child to inspirational leader building futures for sponsored children in Colombia is nothing short of remarkable. His story is a beautiful illustration of what becomes of sponsored children in Colombia.     One of Three Brothers Espinosa was one of three brothers. They lived with both parents and their father worked, but they were still barely getting…

  • family

    Halloween DIY Bubble Gum Machine #WordlessWednesday

      Well Halloween has come and gone, but I wanted to share our photos from this year’s event to prolong the fun a bit. As you can see we had a great time with costumes this year. Payton and I found the concept for this DIY Halloween Bubble Gum Machine costume on Pinterest and we duplicated it, with a few modifications for a young girl. I don’t let my kids wear costumes that are inappropriate for their ages. On Pinterest this Halloween DIY Bubble Gum Machine was shown with a mini-skirt. I prefer the pants and I think Payton did a…

  • Giveaways - Health

    The Most Meaningful Holiday Gifts #worldvisiongifts Twitter Party Save The Date Nov. 19

    This is a twitter party with a difference. We at Linked Moms, often tackle hard topics, like infertility, adoption, advocacy and poverty. It’s one of the things that makes us unique. We have a voice, a platform, and an audience too. We care about topics that matter. We care about families and issues. We never underestimate our readers. We know they want to hear about things that matter. We know several of you are just like us parenting kids with special needs, trying to make a difference in the world and struggling with the reality of aging parents. Life is…

  • Health

    The Importance of Uniforms In Sports #TMMWVC #WorldVisionGifts

    At first glance this field seems pretty unremarkable. But first glances can be deceiving. This is a field built with love, sweat, volunteer hours and some financial investment from Canadian donations. This is another tangible space made real and safe for children, because of the help of World Vision Canada. This is a field of dreams where we are about to learn the importance of uniforms in sports in Colombia, and the need for children to have a field of their own. We have driven to a field outside Santander De Quilichao near Taminango. This is an area that is…

  • family

    Summer Days with Cousins

    Summer days are my favourite. I mean what’s not to love? Summer days with cousins are even better than average seasonal sunny days we already love. Always have been and always will be, simply because of moments like this. I shot this random picture of Ainsley when her cousins were visiting this summer. Cousin fun is always special and it was a gorgeous sunny day, as you can see. Summer days are hanging out and leisurely swimming in the pool and sometimes doing day camps and being outside more often than any other time of year. Being out of doors…