The Anteater Bug Vac is certain to make sure they get hours of fresh air. This baby anteater has an appetite for collecting all kinds of insects and bugs. Lucky you mom. (You might want to invest in some jars with holes in the lids!) With the touch of a button, you can quickly and safely gather up bugs to observe in the anteater’s removable belly chamber. After you’re done viewing the bugs, please try to encourage your kids to release them back into their habitats unharmed… Note to kids: bedrooms are not their natural habitat. ($29.95, Ages 6+) www.mastermindtoys.com
You just want to keep saying it over and over. BubbleBum. BubbleBum. Ok, maybe it’s just me. Giggle. The BubbleBum inflatable booster seat for kids aged 4-11 is the coolest thing to help busy moms since the invention of the pool boy. It checks in at less than 1 pound and inflates in minutes. When not in use, simply deflate the booster seat, roll it up and stow away in the trunk or backpack for the next use. Perfect for travel with rental cars, cabs, carpooling and restaurants.
BubbleBum ($39.99) is sold online at BubbleBum, Target.com, and Babies ‘R Us. It is also available in select Target stores nationwide.
If your kids are living with Type 1 diabetes, you’ve got a few extra challenges. We’re very excited about a Disney’s New Diabetes Resource from one of our favourite Disney sites. Disney Interactive has partnered with Lilly Diabetes to launch an online destination dedicated to help families affected by type 1 diabetes on Disney’s family lifestyle site Lilley Diabetes. Combining Lilly’s knowledge of diabetes with Disney’s robust parenting network has created a unique and powerful diabetes resource.
After a fruit-filled tropical March break, the family is completely hooked on two things: peaches and coconut water! Getting back into the school routine wasn’t easy, but breakfast is proving to be less stressful (and more healthful) than it was prior to the vacay. With a chill still in the Canadian air, I had resigned myself to using expensive, imported fruit. But then I was given a revelation: canned peaches are amazing! Their nutritional value is not only on par with fresh peaches, but they actually have 1.5 times more antioxidants and their Vitamin C levels are 3.5 times higher than fresh. California Cling Peaches are canned within 24 hours of delivery to the cannery, which ensures that the peaches maintain superior taste and nutritional value. The way to find them is to look at the various peaches in the stores to make sure they say Made in the USA – those are the California Cling Peaches. With this new information, I found a recipe that has quickly become a stable in the house (and at the office!).
Tropical Peach Breeze Smoothie
1 can 14 oz / 398 mL California cling peaches (slices)
½ cup coconut water or plain or vanilla almond milk
½ cup Greek vanilla, honey or peach yogurt, preferably 0%
1 tsp vanilla
¼ tsp ginger
tsp nutmeg
Honey or agave syrup (optional)
Prep: 5 min Total time: 5 min
Directions
Drain peaches reserving 2 tbsp (30 mL) juice. Place peaches, reserved peach juice, coconut water or almond milk, yogurt, vanilla, ginger and nutmeg in a blender. Blend until smooth. If you wish sweeten with honey or agave syrup.
Makes about 2 cups (500 mL) for 2 smoothies.
Ugh. How I despise the term ‘Mommy Blogger’. But it seems that brands, friends and PR firms tend to understand that concept and even magazines get lumped in. As I meet more and more colleagues, I have become proud and honoured to be associated with the blogging community throughout Canada and the US and love ways to connect with like-minded business people and moms. Too many parents have trouble remembering their identity and passions after having kids. At UrbanMommies we believe you can help your children to thrive and learn when you’re a happy parent. Math can be taught just as easily in a Parisian museum as it can be using flash cards. And taking care of your soul as well as your family isn’t selfish. Seriously.
Our Areas of Focus:
– Exclusive Family Travel
– Healthy Recipes
– Style for Moms
– Parenting and Pregnancy
– Technology and Gadgets
– Helping kids develop into the tween years
We’re always looking for contributors and love to read your posts too! Connect with us!! xx Jill
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Meeting with the Microsoft Office 365 team, I got the feeling that I was their perfect target market. I run the household, use many different brands of technology and need a better and more efficient way to do it all. They spoke of Canadian families’ frustrations about not being able to use programs across different platforms and how frustrating it is when calendars can’t sync, or numbers and financial data aren’t easily accessible. We are a new generation – multitasking and managing life from multiple locations. We manage caregivers, aging parents and our kids. We have great communication with teens with the advent of texting. Grandparents are on Facebook and Skype, and people learn better English with the help of autocorrect. (sometimes!!) We need to be productive and connected between all different devices at home and in the office, on PC and Mac.
With the new Office 365, Microsoft has solved a ton of issues for families and I am pretty impressed.
The rundown:
* Includes the latest and most complete set of Office applications: Word, Excel, PowerPoint, OneNote, Outlook, Publisher and Access
* One license for the entire household to use Office on up to five devices
* An additional 20 GB of SkyDrive cloud storage, three times the amount available with a free SkyDrive account
* 60 free Skype world calling minutes per month to call mobiles, landlines or PCs around the world
* Future upgrades, so you always use the latest time-saving technology
* Automatic save to SkyDrive, so your documents — and even your personal settings — are always available from virtually anywhere and on your favourite devices
* As you will have a microsoft acct, you get 60 mins/mth of skype long distance free
* At CA$99.00 for an annual subscription, Office 365 Home Premium costs the equivalent of CA$8.25 per month.
Asking a mom to write about coffee is like suggesting that Carrie Bradshaw evaluate a pair of Manolos. It’s a perfect fit. Close friends and my children know that Mommy is not to be asked any taxing questions before her second java in the morning. I sample baristas who design flowers and logos on the froth, and taste tests are common in my household. That said… I have learned that there are two crucial parts of coffee: the taste, and the ritual. My new must-have for spring is the Tassimo T47. And maybe a few pairs of heels. Damn you Carrie Bradshaw.
Last week I was in Liberia, West Africa learning about how Right To Play levels the field for kids. The educational games were exciting, but the 40-degree heat and emotional rollercoaster of seeing the poverty around me made for deep sleeps. And very groggy mornings. Breakfast was ever-important and I went to the restaurant with high hopes after a night of wicked cold air conditioning. I didn’t understand the whole coffee drill. But it was explained. You boil the water. Rip open (good luck) the tiny packet of instant coffee and drink out of a cup and saucer. After three rounds I was ready to meet more smiling children. Compared with the atmosphere outside and lack of basic services, I grew to find comfort in the morning coffee routine, even if I didn’t enjoy the taste of the coffee.
Flash forward a week and I am home. The cleanliness, smell and luxuries I had always taken for granted were heightened. And in a daze I received a courier at my office of one of the products at Canadian Tire. It was a Tassimo T47. It looked more advanced than the most sophisticated medical equipment in Liberia. And after the experiences I had just had, I was admittedly thinking that instant coffee rocked. Kind of. Well, not really. I had no idea how Vancouver had influenced my taste buds until I turned on the Tassimo. Wow.
The connoisseur in me was geeking out on the barcode technology and ability to brew a custom strength (STRONG would suffice but I guess they must cater to tastes other than my own). You can remove the drip tray as well as the water reservoir for washing, and set the height of the tray to different levels. Just in case you want to use your grandmother’s demitasse cups. (I have extras if you need some).
Now let’s talk pods. Not only am I able to get a fancy new pod storage system, but the pods make a perfect cup. And the coffee is incredible. But the routine? Priceless. We know that kids thrive on predictability, and I had recently learned that the morning routine can make even the most upsetting situations grounding.
With the Tassimo? My sons can make it. Yes. When they wake at 5 and poke me, I can send them to the kitchen to make my coffee. The water is already in the machine. They simply have to pop in a pod and push a button. On day 1 the boys begged to be the one to put in the pod. Hopefully in time they can work out their duties so I can remain in bed and not break up an argument! Mother’s Day breakfast should be amazing this year.. Their sense of accomplishment and pride was inspiring, and they now have a task to ‘own’ while they simultaneously make Mommy happy.
As I mentioned, I live in Vancouver, so not only is coffee a religion, but recycling and environmental mindfulness is always front of mind. In Liberia I threw away plastic individual instant coffee packets, and usually at home I toss coffee cans into the recycling. But what about the pods? Checking, I found that Tassimo has partnered with Terracycle for a pod recycling program. Excellent!
So I now have a system that engages my kids without spilling coffee grounds, wakes me up and impresses dinner guests. (I promise – it’s the coffee, not the demitasse cups). The benefits of that kind of routine are beyond measure.
Canada’s heritage, culture and values are vibrantly displayed on the Royal Canadian Mint’s new line of 2013 gold and silver Year of the Snake collector coins and the Mint is joining Vancouver’s celebration of this popular cultural festival by hosting a three-day program of activities, from February 8 to 10, 2013 at its downtown Vancouver boutique. Come see how the Royal Canadian Mint Celebrates the Year of the Snake!
· Be among the first 88 daily visitors to win a door prize;
· Enter a draw to win a Year of the Snake gold coin;
· Admire a spectacular gold display; and
· Strike their very own “Snake” medallion* and take home this free keepsake in a special-edition red velvet pouch. (*While quantities last)
When:
Friday, February 8
10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Saturday, February 9
10:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Sunday, February 10
11:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m.
Where:
Royal Canadian Mint Boutique
752 Granville St
Vancouver, BC
(Between Robson and Georgia)
Woo hoo! The Royal Canadian Mint Celebrates the Year of the Snake!
At UrbanMommies some of our most popular articles focus on ‘energy busters for toddlers’, ‘top fun and educational iPad apps for kids’ and ‘games to play at the beach’. In North America, we place an incredibly high value on playtime and as parents, we are taught to spend at least 30 minutes per day on the floor with our kids, building lego, throwing a ball or stacking blocks.
The other day, my 5 year old and I waited for my older son to finish his tae kwon do class at our local community centre. While we waited, we… blush.. played tag in the lobby. This boisterous disruption would typically be frowned upon in another atmosphere, but his giggles incited smiles on faces of all of the other parents. I felt like a rockstar. Best Mom Ever. (Little do they know…) And my child was happy, active and connected. The approving looks from other moms only reinforced that in our society, we value play pretty highly.
Skills learned from sport teach our kids determination, leadership abilities, fairness, equality, how to be a part of a team, how to balance play and school, drive, and discipline.
Don’t you think it’s odd that only 5% of Canadians surveyed in a 2012 Ipsos Reid poll believed that play is important in developing countries? Read: Play is a luxury only when healthcare, conflicts, education and other problems are dealt with. I’d love to try and explain that to my 5 year old. “Sorry dear. We can’t play ball. We need to debate health care reform and do something about gun control first. Maybe when you’re older.”
Don’t the lessons learned through play work towards resolving all of these big issues?
This is what Leveling The Field with Right To Play is about. According to the Canadian Council on Learning, play nourishes every aspect of children’s development – it forms the foundation of intellectual, social, physical, and emotional skills necessary for success in school and in life. Play paves the way for learning.
Picking up and dropping off media vehicles with kids in tow is always an adventure. Especially at the incredibly spotless and organized Brian Jessel BMW. Thank goodness the staff are wonderful – and so are the snacks at the café.. Thankfully the kids also quieted down completely once I initiated the ‘tracking device’ in the BMW X3 (aka. navigation). They felt like spies. And the backup cameras tell you when you are close to an obstacle in the front or back, which kept them watching the dashboard throughout the drive.
My first test for the X3 was to Big White Resort for a media familiarization trip. Despite not having snow tires on the icy Coquihalla highway, we hugged the road. The AWD and XDrive gave us so much piece of mind! Reaching Kelowna and heading up the steep hill to Big White, the outdoor temperature was frigid. Seat warmers, amazing defogging technology and a bit of Gamgam-style seat-dancing kept us happy and warm.
The next day I met our guide and ran (skiied) right into a sign outside the main building. It was an ad for an X3 on a ski vacation! Can I ever pick my stories, huh? Unlike the photo, I didn’t test it on the ski runs both for fear of getting in trouble from our Big White hosts, but I also didn’t want the vehicle to take all of my fresh powder.
In the city, the X3 handled equally as beautifully and the kids became quite addicted to driving in the spacious back seats. From their perspective? The tray tables. The cup holders. The huge sunroof, low windows that allow them to see out and of course the ‘tracking device’ make it a favourite. Giving back our ‘borrowed car’ made them quite grumpy (until the Jedi sword fight in the dealership parking lot broke out and then I was more concerned for the vehicles than the kids).
What I liked:
1. E-mails, calendar entries, tasks and SMS messages will appear wirelessly on the Control Display so you can pretend you are in ‘your office’ when you’re doing something fun like, well, heading out on a ski vacation..
2. BMW xDrive is able to recognize difficult road surfaces through sensors in the chassis and reacts within a fraction of a second.
3. Plug in a USB cable to the audio system and you can even see cover art from your albums projected on the screen.
4. Bluetooth Sync with phone address book and stream audio from your smartphone
5. The circular dial for switching radio, navigation and media is easy to use and safe, as it’s where your hand naturally reaches.
5. The extra long sunroof thrilled the whole family
6. Rear and forward sensors provided so much safety while parking (you never have to do a ‘Kramer’, bumping cars on either end).
7. Sleek extrerior lines make you feel like a rock star.
8. Great visibility
9. Lane Departure Warning helps you avoid dangerous situations.
10. And most important: Storage. Even 1.5 litre water bottles and ANY sized coffee cup. We know moms don’t go for the tiny ones…
The only ‘drawback’ for me to this vehicle would be a huge plus for most. The eco mode turned the car off at stop lights to save fuel. It was so quiet I kept thinking the car had turned off and wanted to re-start the engine. The pickup when you press the gas took a while to get used to. You can turn it off, though, so it really is a mut point. On the Control Display you can read how ECO PRO Mode is actively lowering energy consumption and following the tips can enable you to achieve a reduction in fuel consumption of up to 20 %. Cool.
In all? Along with my new Ride snowboard gear, perfect lipgloss and twin-tipped skis, the BMW X3 is the only other equipment I’ll need for my next ski vacation.