Summertime

Hey everyone!

Sorry it has been so long but believe it or not, I have actually been playing outside this month! Gasp!

You see this is the first summer in the past 12 years that I have actually gotten a tan without going on a true vacation. Sad but true.

We have spent afternoons at the park, breakfasts outside, & dinners by candlelight and it has been Awe-some.  It has been good for me, good for Max and good as our family as a whole. I have been able to worry just a little bit less about what is to come and just enjoy the moment. Isn't that what summer is all about anyways?

I have way more to say on this but a certain someone needs "Night, Night Hop" read to them just one more time......

PS. In all seriousness, I have been severely neglecting the blog but all that will change in August, I promise!  Girl Guides Honour (OK so was never a Girl Guide and that's a whole other post but you know what I mean, right?)

XO

Happy Canada Day Mississauga!

Happy Canada Day everyone!

Today's post is a little bit of a cheat but since it is Canada Day and all I hope you don't mind. I mean I really would rather be BBQing & setting off some fireworks, since I am Canadian and all.....

If you are looking for Mississauga Firework and Canada Day friendly info check out MississaugaKids.com.

It is the best source not only for Canada Day in Mississauga but also all year round. Here you will find info on classes, activities & all things for kids in Mississauga!

So what are you waiting for? Get yourself to www.mississaugakids.com !

HAPPY CANADA DAY EVERYONE! No go fire up the BBQ or something! :)

Free Chillers at Second Cup - Thursday June 30th!

So anybody who knows me that there is only one thing I like more than Iced Coffee Goodness & that's FREE Iced Coffee Goodness!

Well you are in luck today, because Second Cup is offering free 4 oz samples of their chillers today (June 30th) including 5 limited edition flavours;

White Chocolate Chiller - deliciously decadent white chocolate, smooth, thick and cool. The ultimate patio drink for the white chocolate fan.

White & Dark Chiller - all the white chocolate goodness of the White Chocolate Chiller, Chocolate with Belgian Chocolate curls blended in.

White Mocha Chiller - Sweet and smooth white chocolate for the coffee lover.
This Chiller combines our hand crafted, Rainforest Alliance Certified™
espresso (made fresh with every drink) with our decadent white chocolate.

Raspberry Tea Chiller - Creamy and sweet raspberry flavours with a subtle
floral tea note. Widberry Iced Tea - summer berries and Rainforest
Alliance Certified™ black tea

AND even better, Second Cup has launched Chiller Tuesdays where you can enjoy your fave medium sized Chiller for only $2.95 (plus tax) every Tuesday to August 30, 2011

To find your nearest Second Cup please visit www.secondcup.com

Happy Chilling! :)


Disclaimer: I was not compensated in any way for this post, I just love Iced Coffee and want you to love it too. :P

Choose Your Playground Battles Wisely

Since Spring has finally arrived here, we have gotten in a nice groove of an early dinner and then some time in our neighbourhood park before bath and bedtime. It is good for all three of us, Max burns off some energy and DH and I get some time outside and not staring at our respective computer screens.

Now this is the first Spring that Max is big enough to really enjoy the whole park and he loves it. Going down slides, the swings, playing in the sand you name it he goes crazy for it.

Since the weather is so nice the park is super crowded and that means tons of kids who are still learning the meaning of personal space or waiting their turn. So Max, was playing in the sand and another kid takes his shovel. Luckily Max had more than one so he kind of gave the kid an odd look while I trilled " That's ok Max, you can share." Then the kid takes another one of his toys., and another, and another and so on. I look around for this kid's parents and I see a dad pecking away at his blackberry.

Finally I say firmly to the toy stealer/other child "Now, now we have to share" and take 1/2 the toys (I think I was being uber-nice considering the situation) and give them to Max. Does this kid not start screaming bloody murder which finally makes this dad lift his head from his Blackberry, come over and huffily say "What the F*** (no lie) is going on?"

Ok so first my head exploded by being sworn at by a stranger and then I calmly said "First, easy with the swearing in a park full of kids and second your kid is stealing my kids toys" He looked at me with a strange look and said "Kids need to work things about by themselves"

Umm, these are toddlers they have the conflict resolution skills of a 6 month old puppy. Here is how I think Max's brain works ; "Hey, what's that? It's shiny and moves, I'm getting it, what no I want it, what do you mean no?, WHAAAAAAA"

So in response to this father I simply said "In our house we share, and since you were too busy texting to step in and take control of the situation, if you had a problem with that you should be paying attention to your kid in the park"

So the dad then realized the silence in the park meant everyone was waiting for his response and got all huffy and left, muttering "It's a park, kids should get to do what they want" or something like that. I immediately felt like a helicopter mom and had visions of my going with Max on dates and his first job interviews.

So tell me readers, was what I did a classic helicopter mom move Max is now doomed to live with me forever or did I handle the situation correctly?

Because Every Mother Deserves A Mother's Day

Max's birth story is not something I normally talk about, besides jokingly refrerring to how stunned the nurses were at the sheer size of his head, 99th percentile anyone?

One of the first things I remember after Max was born was how it seemed like an eternity until he took a first breath. My husband assures me it took him less then a few seconds but I just remember the sheer terror I felt that he might not be ok and my husband on the other remembers how scared he was that I might not make it.

For you see, I had the stuff of legend. Max's 99th percentile head combined with a fast labour meant I suffered the mythological 4th degree tear whispered about in prenatal class in hushed tones never to be mentioned again. (FYI, DO NOT google image 4th degree tear. Trust me, you will thank me later)

As the plastic surgeon was hurriedly called and sewed up the remnants of my lady bits. I was blissfully unaware of how dire the situation could have been if not for the amazing Canadian Health Care System. But you see, my mother did, as she was in the room as she watched her 20 year old sister die after giving birth at home to a large baby. She still cries when she talks about it to this day as I give thanks to living ion the 21st century where this doesn't happen right?

WRONG. Did you know that;

• There is one maternal death every 90 seconds today?
• 15% of all pregnancies result in complications during labor and delivery and sometimes are fatal?
• For every woman who dies in childbirth, 20 more suffer from debilitating complications. Which also means that several complications go uncounted and lives are forever impacted?
• We have the knowledge to prevent 90% of all maternal deaths?

While we have the knowledge, what we don't have is the money or do we? For you see, $14.6 billion* was spent on Mother’s Day presents last year in the U.S. alone "celebrating" mother's day.

So how can you help? Every Mother Counts is an organization Christy Turlington started after her own home birth went not as she had hoped or planned. The documentary will air on the Oprah Winfrey Network on May 7^th at 9:30–11 p.m. (ET/PT). The organization works with maternal deaths and supports moms in several countries.

Join the Mom4Moms movement and visit http://www.facebook.com/HaveMomentum to learn how to donate money, time, even your old cell phones can help give a mom access needed health care services that can keep her and her baby alive.

Because brunches just add to our love handles, and flowers just die. Every mother deserves a Mother's day. Let's make sure she is around to celebrate it.

Thank you Princess Di

So this Friday is the Royal "Wedding of the Century" if you have been stuck under a rock and haven't heard.

One of my fondest mom/daughter memories is having my mom wake me up at 5am to watch Lady Diana marry Prince Charles. We snuggled under blankets, drank tea & ate cookies and it was the highlight of my life up to that date most likely due to the fact that she even let me skip school to watch it. It is even more special now that I look back as my mother worked midnights and when she woke up to watch the wedding with me, she hadn't slept a wink yet and had been up for 24 hours straight at that point.

To her credit, my mother stayed up the whole time and answered my million questions, agreed with me that Diana's dress was the most beautiful ever, and that yes I would be really, truly a princess if I married Prince Andrew.

So even though Diana had the fairytale start we all know it didn't end that way.

Anyways Thank You Princess Di, for giving me the best memory and for teaching me that even princesses should look before they leap.

Five Blogs I like to Follow Friday

Today is Friday and if you're Catholic it is actually "Good Friday" although am not sure what is so good about it if you read the Easter story this actually should be a pretty bad day for us according to my nephew but I digress....

In an effort to force myself to actually write more on my blog, I am getting over the whole 'every post has to be deep, important and perfect' and since for many of you you actually have a day off your paying jobs I thought I would borrow from on of my fave things on Twitter which is Follow Friday.

If you want to hear the long story behind Follow Friday click here but for those who aren't familiar with it using the #FollowFriday or #FF hashtag alerts your Twitter followers to other people you think they should follow.

Due to this trend I have found many amazing bloggers over whose blogs I alternately laugh, swoon, & sometimes even cry over. So with no further ado here is my 1st edition of Five Blogs I like to Follow Friday or #BILFF in no particular order as there is no way I could rank these.

• Enjoying The Small Things Kelle Hampton is one of those amazing artists who can truly make you feel like you know her and her family by her posts. Her daughter Nella's birth story is one of those posts you have to read at home alone and when you have an hour or so to fully digest it and have a good sob session.

• Mom Without A Map Sarah is a blogger that I can totally relate to. Our sons are around the same age and I feel like whatever I am going through she seems to write a post at just the right time.

• Fearless Formula Feeder Regardless of where you fall on the Boob/Bottle spectrum, I find her posts refreshing, well researched, and extremely supportive of all mothers. Her Fridays feature a different story every week on each mother's decision/battle/struggle on feeding their baby is powerful and reminds us that behind every mother there's a story to hear.

• How to Survive Life in the Suburbs Love this blog, she can write about issues both big and small and I love that am entertained with both kinds of posts. As a fellow suburban mom, I feel like she gets me and she has great balance between her roles as a mom, wife, and woman. Plus, she is uber-supportive and nice to new bloggers. :)

• Suburban Bliss This blog isn't shy about being honest about motherhood and even the occasional drink on a playdate which is why I love it. She doesn't sugarcoat and stands up for herself.

So there it is, just the first 5 of some of my favourite blogs. What are yours? Stay tuned next Friday for more great blogs.

Happy "Good" Friday everyone!