Jill Amery, Author at Urban Mommies

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Jill Amery

Jill Amery is a mom of 2 small boys and the Publisher of UrbanMommies, a stylish digital lifestyle magazine filled with fitness, style, health, recipes and savvy mom advice to help you through pregnancy, birth, and raising your kids.

How to swaddle a baby in Aden + Anais muslin swaddles

baby, EAVESDROP, FAM, GEAR, Seen, style By Jill Amery June 20, 2016 Tags: aden anais, celebrity, how to swaddle a baby, musin, Sleep, swaddle, Victoria Ehgoetz, wrap No Comments

We all know/love Aden + Anais for their delicious muslin swaddles, made famous by everyone—from just about every baby-toting celeb on the planet, to every mom in the know—but now they’re batting it out of the park again with their new muslin clothing line. With kimono tops, strategic snaps and covered zippers, I’m wishing they came in mommy sizes.

Samsung Gear VR – Oh YES!

GEAR, tech By Jill Amery June 16, 2016 Tags: netflix, Oculus, oitnb, samsung, Samsung Gear VR, Virtual Reality 2 Comments

The first time I ever used Samsung Gear VR was reviewing new Galaxy S7 and Galaxy S7 edge. My mind was boggled!! I can’t imagine explaining to my Mom, who still uses a phone book, that I could film a 360 degree view of my home or a vacation and these goggles would allow her to experience what we are seeing as if she were there. Maybe I’ll fix the flashing lights on her VCR before I break the news…

Mom-Acne Survival Tip: Cover & Heal a Blemish in 5 Seconds

beauty, GEAR By Jill Amery June 15, 2016 Tags: blemish, Cover Touch Concealer, guinot, pimple 2 Comments

When I was a young teenager I had acne. It was bad – but not as horrible as my once-great self esteem. I was on Accutane, wore cover-up by the spatula-full, and yet still had to have my high school grad photos take three times. Airbrushing wasn’t as easy back then. There was no easy way to remove a blemish but I tried everything. Tea tree oil, toothpaste… even mud.

There was a long period after that where my skin was mostly fine and I felt slightly pretty and even went out without makeup. But then I hit 40. Yes. Don’t you all go fainting. It’s the truth, and I still get ID’d.

Stop Searching Online: Go Ask Dad

beauty, GEAR By Jill Amery June 13, 2016 Tags: fathers day, Gilette, Go Ask Dad, PGMom, razor No Comments

In a world where screen-time often outweighs actual face time, the internet has become the go-to source of information – and as we all know, websites don’t always give you the most unbiased and truthful advice… It’s quick and easy to search the internet for videos and how-to articles in seconds, but do the results truly give the answers teens really need? This Father’s Day, Gillette is reminding people everywhere to “Go Ask Dad” for answers to their everyday questions. While your Dad will certainly appreciate a card (or a new razor) for Father’s Day, taking a moment to ask his advice will mean more to him than you might guess.

Musical Theatre on Netflix (for the Preschool Set)

grow, LIVE, nourish By Jill Amery June 10, 2016 No Comments

I am positively giddy!!! Many readers know that I trained as an actor, singer and dancer before falling into my current career. I can sing most songs from most Broadway shows, and have studied choreography from Jerome Robbins by watching films and live performances over and over again until I memorized the moves.

Even before ‘Frozen’ fame, Idina Menzel was an extreme girl-crush of mine. And Julie Andrews? I can’t even bear to sing along to the Sound of Music because I may drown out her beautiful voice. Think of it: Musical Theatre on Netflix. The streaming company has announced that Ms. Andrews will star in ‘Julie’s Greenroom‘, a new preschool show from The Jim Henson Company that features an all-new puppet cast of kids learning about the performing arts. The series will be available exclusively to Netflix members globally in early 2017.

36 Family Dinner Questions

EAT, family meals By Jill Amery June 9, 2016 Tags: breakfast, brunch, conversation starters, dinner table, divorce, ettique, family dinner, only child, questions 6 Comments

As part of a video recording, I was asked how I encouraged the boys (henceforth known as the little weasels) to come to the dinner table. Without missing a beat, the 10 year-old piped up that ‘Mommy just puts it on a plate and brings it down to us in front of the TV.” ^Mortified. But also… kind of true. We try to have at least three meals a week around the table but sometimes that path of least resistance reigns. Everyone always praises family dinners, but as I grew up an only child with parents who would quickly divorce, the ‘family dinner’ was often laboured, strained and uncomfortable. Maybe my childhood angst is now being brought to my own table. From that moment, I decided to develop 36 questions to ask your family at dinner.

The Summer Breakfast Table

EAT, family meals By Jill Amery June 9, 2016 Tags: breakfast, brunch, conversation, dinner table, flowers, pipe cleaners, questions, Sally's Cereal, summer, walmart 3 Comments

Anyone else’s roses in bloom? It’s spring, and as days get longer we experience the perfect time for al fresco meals—and that idea needn’t just extend to grand family dinners where your kids must exhibit perfect manners. Family dinners have actually always been slightly intimidating to me, and I’ve always slinked away from the judgmental moms who ask with disdain why we are at the park eating takeout and NOT HAVING A FAMILY DINNER at the table. So, if dinners are difficult, you can imagine how breakfast suffers.

How to Remove Red Wine, Tomato and Teriyaki Stains

FAM, kids, LIVE, wash By Jill Amery May 29, 2016 Tags: bleach, clean, laundry, red wine, stain, teriyaki stain, Tid ultra stain release, tomato stain, white 2 Comments

For part two of my great stain challenge, we headed to the kitchen to try and remove red wine, tomato and teriyaki stains. And after the arts and crafts stain cleanup last time, mommy needed a glass of wine. Because Tide Ultra Stain Release has challenged my family to a little game, we continued the fun with foodstuffs. After donning white t-shirts, we made tomato soup, a teriyaki stir fry and mommy had a glass of wine in order to put Tide Ultra Stain Release to the test.

Building Community with a Kids Kayak

FAM, kids, pets By Jill Amery May 25, 2016 Tags: activity, canadian tire, Canadian Tire App, Canadian Tire Money, Community, contest, kayak, summer, WOW Guide 92 Comments

I remember many shopping excursions to the United States with my mom—outlet stores filled with clothing and jewelry were thrilling, and buying unique back to school supplies made me feel like I was in a candy store. As I have aged, shopping is still a delight and yet my store preferences have evolved. As a new homeowner I would get excited about tools, and then after my kids were born I visited garden centres and kids’ gear shops more and more frequently. As a super busy Mom and business-owner, I now demand a ton from my shopping experiences. The stores must provide great value, include many items that I need, and allow me to research my purchases digitally. I have honed my passion for shopping and no longer trek south of the border to get my heart palpitating.

Road Trip with the Kids? Bring these Snacks.

auto, EAT, GEAR, snacks By Jill Amery May 19, 2016 Tags: 7 layer dip, craft box, energy bites, kids snacks, mason jar, mini ham and cheese muffins, nut allergy, peanut free, road trip, snack box, tackle box 3 Comments

Summer means long family road trips, and also the onset of ‘Are we there yet?’ and ‘I’m HUNGRY!’. Parents can hardly get the car packed and still have time to come up with healthy road trip snack ideas for kids, but we’ve come up with a few cool ideas that gan get you out of a rut. Well, hopefully not a real rut. Maybe driving safety tips will be next…

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