Making Life a Little Easier for Busy Moms and Their Families
My husband got me this beautiful bouquet of rainbow roses for Valentine's Day. Isn't it gorgeous?
But this little guy is still my sweetest Valentine!
Aww, don't pout, honey...
We still love you too!
If you have a Wordless Wednesday post, feel free to link it up below; I’d love to check it out!
Would you fly while pregnant? I must say that back when I was pregnant, I certainly wouldn’t have considered boarding an airplane unless it was absolutely necessary, but thanks to a great new guide from CheapFlights.ca, I certainly don’t feel that way anymore! Flying While Pregnant is the newest article available on the website and it is chock-full of tips for pregnant women that want to take to the sky.
Whether you’re just looking for some quick tips to make your flight comfortable or are seeking more comprehensive information about specific rules and regulations, the CheapFlights.ca Flying While Pregnant guide has what you’re looking for. I was especially impressed by the Rules section; it contained a list of twelve of the largest airlines along with information about each airline’s specific regulations regarding flying while pregnant.
I also appreciated that there was useful advice for after landing too! I must admit, it likely wouldn’t have occurred to me to keep a list of emergency numbers and nearby hospitals on me in case of early delivery, but taking a few minutes to compile that information and have it close by could be incredibly useful in an emergency. And if you’re headed to a warmer climate, it can be easy to forget that skin is more sensitive during pregnancy when you first step out into the glorious sunshine! Here are just a few of the handy quick tips that you’ll find in the article:
Overall, Flying While Pregnant answered all the questions I had and contained lots of great tips to make the traveling experience more enjoyable too. If I need to fly while pregnant in the future, I’m glad that I’ll be able to make the experience as pleasant as possible with help from this great article. If you have a baby on the way and a flight in your future, check out the article for yourself. Whether you want to know about flight insurance considerations to keep in mind or the best products to make flying while pregnant more comfortable, CheapFlight.ca has the answers you need!
I am proud to be a Canadian woman for so many reasons. I believe I live in one of the greatest countries in the world and I love sharing information about our wonderful nation with others that I meet. So when Upper Canada Soap, a company that has provided Canadian women with the best all-natural bath and body products since 1969, contacted me to tell me about their brand new The Awesome Canadian Woman video, I couldn’t wait to check it out.
This new ad campaign is an adorably cheeky look at the ultimate Canadian woman. Whether she’s swinging an axe or sipping champagne, you know she’s in her element! And with a little help from Upper Canada Soap’s Naturally Signature Collection, she’ll be looking and feeling her best the entire time! Check out the video below; it really is pretty cute:
I received a gorgeous gift basket containing the entire Upper Canada Soap Naturally Signature Collection to review and I have to admit, I was feeling like an awesome Canadian woman myself with such decadent bath and body products! The entire product line boasts a Golden Maple Sugar scent that is just dreamy. It doesn’t have a strong smell of maple sugar but the scent definitely had that addictive hint of maple to it and reminded me of a sweet maple cookie.
The basket contained body wash, bar soap, hand and body lotion, whipped hand repair balm, lip balm and bubble bath. To my delight, the lip balm had the genuine smell of real maple sugar and it smelled so amazing that I was almost tempted to take a bite out of it! All the products were so nourishing and I couldn’t believe how soft my skin was after using the body wash in the shower.
My personal favourite product was definitely the whipped hand repair balm though. The whipped texture made the balm much easier to apply than a solid balm and it did such a great job of healing my dry hands. We haven’t had as much cold weather as we usually do here in Saskatchewan this winter, but my hands still suffer in the dry air and this balm was just what they needed to look and feel great!
Upper Canada Soap believes every Canadian woman is an Awesome Canadian Woman, and so they are offering three lucky readers the chance to win their own Naturally Signature Collection gift basket, an $85 value, for themselves! To enter, just share The Awesome Canadian Woman video by clicking any one of the share buttons (Facebook, Twitter or Google+) on the YouTube video to spread the message of awesomeness to other amazing women!
I loved this decadent collection and I especially loved the fact that, like all products from Upper Canada Soap, the line contains only natural ingredients and is completely free of harsh chemicals and preservatives. It’s even made right here in Canada! If you want bath and body products that will nourish your body and your soul, the Naturally Signature Collection from Upper Canada Soap is a great choice for you. After all, us awesome Canadian woman deserve the very best!
Buy It: To purchase any of the great products in the Naturally Signature Collection from Upper Canada Soap, check the website for a retailer near you or shop online now
Now that Zackary is in Kindergarten, I have lots of fun picking out fun t-shirts and other clothing for him to wear to school. He is so proud of having clothing that shows off his interests! Sometimes finding shirts he likes is easy (anything with a Hot Wheels logo is sure to be a hit, for example) and sometimes it is pretty hard. His newest favourite hero is Sonic the Hedgehog and while shirts featuring the spiky-haired speed-demon were absurdly easy to come by ten or twenty years ago, they’re significantly harder to find now.
When T-Shirts.com contacted me about reviewing one of their fun children’s t-shirts, I knew at once that this was just the kind of online boutique any mom of a picky boy would love. T-Shirts.com has an absolutely amazing collection of t-shirts for both adults and children that feature everything from funny sayings to popular singers. And to my son’s delight, the website offered t-shirts featuring all his favourite cartoon and video game characters too!
There were plenty of shirts to choose from and initially my son was torn between shirts featuring various Angry Birds, Mario and Phineas and Ferb. But when he saw the website’s Sonic the Hedgehog Posse t-shirt, his deliberation ended in an instant. “I want that one, Mom!” he announced.
We ordered the shirt in a size Small. While the site has shirts for the entire family, this particular t-shirt was for sized for older children and came in the standard children’s Small, Medium, Large and X-Large sizes. I was a little worried that the Small t-shirt would still be too big, but it fit Zackary just perfectly! I was happy to see that the shirt didn’t shrink at all after washing. I always find that the biggest risk with buying shirts online is finding out too late that they haven’t been made of pre-shrunk cotton. This shirt didn’t have that problem; it still fit perfectly after washing.
But what I loved most about this t-shirt was how happy it made my son. Zackary was absolutely thrilled when he saw the shirt and he wore it proudly every chance he got. If I had let him, he even would have worn it to bed! I loved the dark grey colour of the shirt and the decal of Sonic and his friends was bright and vibrant. Zackary had so much fun telling me about each of the hedgehogs on the shirt.
T-Shirts.com has shirts featuring all the most popular characters from television, movies and video games from today and past decades. And there are plenty of funny and silly shirts too! I’m so excited to have found this great online boutique and can’t wait to surprise my son with other shirts. He was pretty tempted by the Angry Birds t-shirt too and to be honest, I wouldn’t mind having one either. If I’m feeling creative, I can even design my own custom t-shirt! With low prices, online support and quick shipping to Canada, outfitting the whole family in style has never been easier. So check out the selection for yourself and enjoy fun and funky t-shirts that your kids will love wearing!
Buy It: To purchase any of the fun kids t-shirts at T-Shirts.com, shop online now
If your baby falls asleep on his or her own and consistently sleeps through the night, this article isn’t for you. This article is for parents of nap resisters and bedtime fussers, of late-night wakers and early risers. In other words, it is for most parents of most babies. For you, here are five steps toward a longer, more consistent night of sleep for your baby.
Step 1: Establish A Nightly Routine
You should have a fixed routine leading up to bedtime with the same steps in the same order every night. For example, after dinner you might have an hour of play time, then a bath, change into pajamas, a warm bottle, book and then bed. These are more than just necessary preparations; these are sensory cues – the warmth of the bath, the soft touch of pajamas, the sound of your voice reading a book – that relax your baby and prepare him or her for sleep. When you do the same things every night, it teaches your baby that there are a series of steps and that when they’re over, it’s time for bed. Do it right and your baby will fall asleep seconds after hitting the mattress.
Step 2: Focus On The Evening Meal
A lot of parents think that the last bottle of the evening is most important for keeping the baby content overnight. This certainly matters, but I think that the evening meal of solid food (for babies that can have it) is even more important. When our boys started waking up earlier (4 a.m.) at around 6 months of age and after they’d been sleeping through the night, we eventually figured out that the problem was hunger. The last bottle wasn’t holding them over – they needed more solid food at dinner. So we topped off at dinner time with an extra bowl of single-grain cereal and it had them sleeping 2-4 hours longer almost every night. However, solid food needs some time to settle. Thus, it’s better to do the solid food at dinner, then offer a bottle just before bed.
Step 3: Set An Early Bedtime
Many parents think that “Early to bed, early to rise,” applies to babies so they keep their babies up later in hopes of them sleeping in later. This just doesn’t work for babies (or toddlers, for that matter). They’re hard-wired to go to sleep early, say an hour or two after dinner. Any later than that and they tend to get cranky and over-tired. Setting an early bedtime lets your baby match up sleep with circadian rhythms, the body’s natural response to light and dark that triggers sleep hormones. They sleep better, and almost always longer, if you put them to bed early rather than keeping them up late. It also frees up your evening so you can spend time with your spouse and other children. You have to try this one!
Step 4: Let Your Baby Fall Asleep In The Crib
A cornerstone of successful sleep habits is teaching your baby to fall asleep in the crib on his or her own. That’s not to say that you shouldn’t rock your baby or read a book at bedtime, of course. The important thing is that you put your baby in bed before he or she falls asleep. Otherwise, you could be rocking for half an hour or longer, only to have your baby wake when you put him down. Worse, this conditions your baby to expect to fall asleep in your arms. Put him in bed, insert the pacifier, and leave the room.
Step 5: Soothe Your Baby Back To Sleep
Even if you do everything right, your baby will occasionally wake up at odd times overnight. When your baby is old enough (say around 3 months), you can often get away with not feeding the baby and instead just soothing him back to sleep. Enter the room quietly and look at your baby. Is he moving? Are his eyes open? If not, you have an excellent chance of avoiding waking him up to eat. First, find and re-insert the pacifier. Touch your baby’s head softly and whisper to him. Tuck the blanket back in. Often, this is enough to comfort a baby back to sleep. If not, pick up and rock your baby a bit. If you can avoid feeding or changing the diaper, do it. Your baby will stay drowsy and might sleep for hours more.
Try all of these things, and I hope you’ll see a difference with your baby. Good luck!
This post was contributed by Dan Koboldt, a father of three and the author of Get Your Baby to Sleep, a blog about establishing good sleep habits, soothing techniques, and getting your baby to sleep through the night.
I have to admit, as a stay-at-home Mom, I’m a little bit obsessed with saving. Whether I’m heading to the store or shopping online, I always want to make sure that I’m getting the best deal possible. But with two little boys running around, I don’t have tons of time to clip coupons and hunt for deals either.
That’s why I was thrilled to learn about VoucherCodes.ca, a new website with all the best coupons for Canadian stores. I’ve tried visiting websites to hunt for coupons in the past, but I generally find that most websites are geared to the U.S. and many of the Canadian forums are hard to navigate. I wanted a site that would make finding Canadian coupons a quick and easy task and I was so excited to see if this new site would finally be the site I had dreamed of for getting the savings I craved.
My first visit to the homepage was pretty promising compared to my past experiences with other coupons sites. I liked the fact that all the newest deals and coupons were listed right on the homepage so that I could see the most current offers. I also liked the way that the site’s most popular promotions were listed as well so that I could quickly check some of the “hot offers” and see if any of them appealed to me.
But it wasn’t until I realized that I could search through the currently listed stores alphabetically that I really fell in love! I was thrilled to discover hundreds of my favourite Canadian stores had coupons and promotions listed at VoucherCodes.ca. From Mabel’s Labels to Old Navy to Well.ca, VoucherCodes.ca had savings available for almost every retailer I could think of!
I appreciated that every promotion had an expiry date and a success rate so that I could quickly see if the coupon or promotion was likely to work for me. I also liked that every retailer’s page also featured a review and some information about the company. Since there were lots of promotions on VoucherCodes.ca for stores that I wasn’t familiar with, it was nice to be able to learn more about those stores.
And for all you freebie-lovers out there (and really, who doesn’t love a free sample?) VoucherCodes.ca even has a special Free Stuff section that contains links to all kinds of free sample promotions just for Canadians! I just love getting freebies in the mail and I’ll definitely be visiting this section regularly; thanks to VoucherCodes.ca I have a Biore free sample on its way to me now!
For the newest coupons and promotions, make sure to check out the VoucherCodes.ca Facebook page; it’s a great way to learn about the newest promotions and freebies available to Canadians. And if you’re getting ready to do some shopping, do yourself a favour and check the current coupons available at VoucherCodes.ca first! With the handy alphabetical search feature and all the newest and best Canadian coupons, it’s a great way to maximize your savings quickly and easily!
Have you visited VoucherCodes.ca? How did you like it?
I’ve seen a lot of different products in the last two years of blogging and so it’s pretty rare for me to find something that both touches my heart and blows me away with its brilliance all at once. But that’s exactly what the paintings from artist Katie M. Berggren did to me and I knew right away that I had to have one.
These painting are simply stunning; there’s no other way to describe them. Katie is hailed as the #1 motherhood artist in America and her artwork features gorgeous depictions of parents and children that almost seem to radiate love and energy. I was thrilled when I was given the chance to review an archival print of one of her paintings for myself.
While Katie M. Berggren has a huge collection of gorgeous paintings, I knew immediately which one I wanted to review. Happy Hour took my breath away from the first moment I saw it and I couldn’t imagine a picture that better represented my love for my boys.
I requested the 12” by 12” print and I was so happy to see how carefully it was packaged when it arrived. It came in a stiff mailer envelope and when I pulled it out I saw it had been placed in a clear plastic envelope with an acid-free cardboard backing to ensure that it reached me in mint condition. Even though I didn’t have the frame ready for it yet, I still had to pull it out right away and examine it close up.
The print looked even more vibrant and radiant in real life than it had looked on the website. I was so excited and decided to hang it up over the desk where I do my blogging to remind me of my boys and help keep me inspired.
The prints all come unframed and while I’m sure I could have found a suitable frame at a department store, I really wanted to do something special for this picture so I decided to have it professionally framed. I’m so glad I did; it makes this gorgeous print even more special to me! To enjoy all the newest artwork from Katie M. Berggren, I highly recommend visiting her Facebook page or following @kmberggren on Twitter.
All of Katie M. Berggren’s prints are of archival quality so that the colours won’t fade over time, ensuring you’ll be able to enjoy your print for decades to come. I can’t imagine any mother not falling in love with this stunning artwork and if you’re craving one of your own, you’re in luck because Katie M. Berggren is offering THREE lucky Mommy Kat and Kids readers their choice of any one of her gorgeous 8×10 archival prints! But while you’re waiting to find out if you’re one of the lucky three, you have got to check out this collection of prints for mothers and families for yourself. You’ll be sure to find one that touches your heart and reminds you of just how wonderful being a parent truly is!
Buy It: To purchase any of the paintings, prints or other products featuring the work of Katie M. Berggren, shop online now
To my delight, I have once again been chosen as a Kinder Mom for 2012 and I am so excited about it! What I love about being a Kinder Mom is that I get the chance to share my fondness for playtime and my fondness for Kinder eggs with all my wonderful readers. And with March break almost here, it’s a great time to plan some extra playtime for your family!
Here in small-town Saskatchewan, March break is actually in February and runs through the week of Family Day, which means that Friday was the official start of “March break” for our household. I’m so excited to enjoy a week of fun with my boys and to get ready for the adventure, we spent the day stocking up on craft supplies so that we could enjoy plenty of creative playtime together over the next few days.
We started the activities today by decorating some wooden lion masks with markers and glitter. Tomorrow we’ll be trying our hand at melted crayon artwork. And on Sunday, we’re going to make our own Gak, that rubbery and slimy substance that no kid can resist. What I love about craft projects is that not only are they a chance for kids to express some creativity and originality, they are also a chance to bond together as a family.
If crafts aren’t your thing, though, there are lots of other fun options to make March break special. Why not head outdoors for a family hike or check out a local museum? Even cooking a favourite meal can help make spring break feel special.
When family time is done, there’s no better way to finish the fun than with a Kinder Surprise. My boys are such big fans of the chocolate treat with a toy inside. In fact, the whole family tends to agree that a Kinder Surprise is the perfect end to any activity! And because Kinder Canada knows how important family togetherness is, they are giving away $500 towards a family “staycation” on the Kinder Canada Facebook page! Just use the Kinder Moments application to frame one of your special memories and you’ll be automatically entered to win. And don’t forget to check out the amazing 2012 toy collection too; the clever new toys are guaranteed to add more fun to your day!
So this spring break, whether you’re going on a trip or enjoying all the comforts of home, make sure that you take the opportunity to bond with your kids and make some new memories. And don’t forget to showcase your favourite moments with the help of the Kinder Moments application for your chance to win $500 for your own ultimate “staycation” experience! With Kinder Canada and a little creativity, your family will be sure to have a March break that they’ll remember for years.
Disclosure: I’m part of the Kinder Mom program and I receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own. Please view full Terms of Use and Policies.
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