Easy Ways to Make Your Home More Kid-Friendly

April 20, 2017 by Kathryn Leave a Comment

Combining décor and functionality is hard enough, but adding kids into the mix makes home design feel almost impossible. Maintaining a clean space, providing comfort and adding safety features are just a few of the ways you can make your home more kid-friendly. Keep these facets in mind and transform your home into a safe, happy shelter for your entire family.

Furniture That Provides Storage Space

As any parent with young children can attest, it’s easy for the living room to turn from elegant sitting room to toy box overflow. It’s important to look for furniture that does double duty when it comes to style and storage. From ottomans that open up to provide the perfect book storing nook, to side tables that feature drawers where you can toss pencils and crayons that aren’t getting used, looking for furniture that provides storage solutions is essential. Shop for storage furniture on CrateandBarrel.com. [Read more…]

Find the Best Gear for Your Baby at the Best Buy Baby Sale-Giveaway

February 21, 2017 by Kathryn 156 Comments

One of the things that always amazes me about baby products is how many innovations are still being made when it comes to baby care. In just the few years since my boys were babies, products are now safer, more comfortable, more versatile and more effective when it comes to raising a happy baby. And Best Buy Canada has done an amazing job of finding those top products and offering them to parents at a great price!

Even better, from right now until March 9, Best Buy Canada is making its great selection of baby products even more appealing during the Best Buy Baby Sale! If you’ve been longing to stock up on baby gear for a new little one, this is the time to do it! As I glanced through the sale items, I couldn’t help but think about what I might have bought if these products had been available when my boys were babies. These are my top pics for must-haves for any new moms!

Graco Maddox 3-in-1 Crib

If there’s one thing that instantly makes a piece of baby gear more appealing to me, it’s versatility. And this crib boasts plenty! Its convertible design ensures that when baby outgrows the crib in its initial configuration, it can be converted into a toddler bed or a daybed so that one purchase will provide years of use for your little one! [Read more…]

How to Help Your Kids Express Themselves

September 29, 2016 by Kathryn 1 Comment

As adults, we often joke about wanting to be a kid again, but the truth is it can be hard to navigate childhood. They desperately want to be older and do things that are out of their reach, and processing their feelings when we turn them down can be difficult. They have so many emotions but don’t always have the maturity to know what to do with them. You don’t have to be a therapist to help. As parents, we have can learn many ways to help kids express themselves in a positive way. Read on for more!

Take Them on a Trip

This might sound weird, but road trips can work magic for getting your child to really open up and talk. Consider taking them to see something fairly educational, like these three monuments, the Grand Canyon, or the White House. Family trips are something they will value for years to come, and the stories they create about them are even better. They’ll also be able to write about them in school and, of course, writing is another form of self-expression. If you can’t get a road trip on the calendar any time soon, simply ask them questions while you’re driving them in the car. There’s something about the lack of eye contact that allows them to feel free to say what they mean. Turn down the music! [Read more…]

4 Tips to Help You Motivate Your Child in Sports

September 22, 2016 by Kathryn 1 Comment

Understanding what motivates your child in the first place to head out onto the pitch, field, or ice rink can help you better determine how to improve the experience for them. Keeping your little one motivated as time drags on, practices get harder, and competition gets tougher can be a difficult task, but with a little forethought, a lot of love and plenty of patience, you can help encourage your child to continue on in their youth sports career. Here are four tips to help you inspire your child to excel in whatever sport they choose!

Keep a Calm Head

If you haven’t been the hothead parent at the game, you’ve definitely seen one. It’s easy to get caught up in the moment during a tense inning or stressful quarter, but your child needs you calm and pulled together when the proverbial “stuff” is hitting the fan. Don’t be that nightmare sports parent that takes things way too seriously. Serve as a spectator when your child is on the field and his biggest supporter the moment he steps off. The right positive encouragement during a game is always welcome, but keep it to a minimum. Let your presence do the talking, cheer when appropriate, and avoid heckling and negative outbursts. We all know how easy it is to embarrass our kids (it’s a rite of passage for every parent), but this type of embarrassment could cause them to lose interest in the game and all that it entails. [Read more…]

As Canada Takes on the World at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, P&G Reminds Us To Say Thank You, Mom

August 8, 2016 by Kathryn 33 Comments

The Rio 2016 Olympic Games have kicked off with a bang and I have to admit that watching Penny Oleksiak win Canada’s first medals of the games (and its first medals in women’s swimming in the last twenty years!) has resulted in my being glued to the television as I go through my day. Whether I’m watching the highly acclaimed Canadian women’s gymnastics team to the men’s volleyball team winning a hard-fought victory over the United States, I can’t help but feel my heart swell up with pride for Canada as our athletes get a chance to show others what they can do.

Throughout those performances, P&G is there supporting our athletes and their families. An official sponsor of the Rio 2016 Olympic Games, the company has always been passionate about supporting athletes and also providing recognition for the sacrifices that parents make to help their children excel. And as in past years, the P&G video for the Rio 2016 Olympic Games exemplifies that. The video celebrates the idea that behind every amazing athlete is an amazing mom and I’ll admit that I can’t watch it without getting tears in my eyes!

My personal favourite competitors this year, the beautiful and talented FAB IV divers, are a great example of how a mother’s support is essential to success. Roseline Filion (27), Meaghan Benfeito (25), Jennifer Abel (23) and Pamela Ware (21) have won 86 medals between the four of them in a variety of international events and aren’t planning on slowing down any time soon. Ware has said that seeing her own mother get through tough times in younger years inspired her to be a stronger person. Now her mother is the first person she calls after competing, no matter what the results were. And Filion knows her mother’s sacrifices were essential to her success. She admits that without her mother’s support, she would have quit long ago.

While Abel and Ware narrowly missed the podium in the women’s 3-metre synchronized event (coming in fourth and less than one point away from a bronze medal), both women will also be competing in the individual 3-meter springboard event later in the week as well. And tomorrow Filion and Benfeito will have the chance to earn a medal in the women’s 10-metre synchronized diving event. I can’t wait to cheer them on and I have no doubt that their performance will be thrilling.

FAB IV Canadian Olympic Divers — Photo Credit: Vincent Graton

And throughout the games, the divers’ mothers will be cheering them on too, thanks in part to the sponsorship from P&G! Whether you’re a passionate Olympic fan or just a casual viewer of a few favourite events, make sure to watch this year’s P&G Rio 2016 Olympic video to help you get inspired for the coming days. Then tune in and check out Canada’s best athletes as they take on the world and go for gold this year in Rio!

7 Tips for Introducing Your Child to a New Puppy

November 11, 2015 by Kathryn 6 Comments

Have a puppy or are considering one? Congratulations! Getting a new puppy is a very exciting time for everyone in your household, but certain steps should be taken to properly introduce children to their new furry family member. After all, you and I both know that children and puppies alike are notorious for being very excitable and not always thinking before acting.

They’re sure to become friends quickly, but you can help smooth the process (and prevent unnecessary aggression) by following these seven tips:

1. Teach patience

Staying patient is the golden rule that should be followed throughout your dog ownership. If your child is like most, chances are they’ll get very excited when they first see the new puppy and will want to pet/play with them right away. So it’s very important that you talk with them beforehand about staying patient and letting the puppy come to them first. Have your child stay still and reach out their hand slowly to the puppy. [Read more…]

Teach Kids Differences Can Create the Best Friendships with #DinoTrux #StreamTeam

August 18, 2015 by Kathryn 15 Comments

One of the things that has always fascinated me about my oldest son is the way that he tends to find the kids in his class most in need of friendship and immediately form a bond with them. Zackary is very outgoing, so he’s never had much trouble making friends. But his very best friends are always the kids that aren’t as socially adept. From a child held back a year because of delayed speech development to a young boy in foster care that only attended Zackary’s school for half a year, watching my outgoing boy draw his peers out of their shells both impresses and intrigues me.

It’s just one example of a fact I’ve found to be true many times in life…opposites attract. And, more than that, opposites often compliment one another, especially among friends. The differences between us let us both learn from and be inspired by our peers so that all can grow as individuals. And that’s a lesson that the brand new Netflix original children’s series, DinoTrux, wants to illustrate to children. [Read more…]

Lying, Imagination and Teaching Kids Life’s Lessons #StreamTeam

April 23, 2015 by Kathryn 16 Comments

One of the things I love about having kids is getting a glimpse into the way their minds work. When my oldest son was about four years old, he created an imaginary friend named Tixer. Tixer, Zackary told me, was a ghost from the olden days that had come to live with us. Tixer was nice, but his arch-nemesis, Omlite (who I assume was another ghost), was not. The stories of their adventures always kept me entertained.

Yet at the same time as Zackary was inventing stories about Tixer, I was teaching and enforcing basic values of honesty and openness to my young son. And then one day as we were getting back from a trip to Regina and not talking about anything in particular, my uncharacteristically quiet boy looked at me and said, “Mom? There’s not really any such person as Tixer. I made him up. I’m sorry I lied.”

[Read more…]