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back to school

The Back to School Shopping Guide

GEAR, tech By August 20, 2012 Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , 5 Comments

We all know that the end of August brings an obsession with things ‘wooly’ and the exciting task of acquiring school supplies and clothing for the kids.  Parents scour busy stores overflowing with pencils in order to outfit their children for back to school.  Not to worry!  The back to school shopping guide features lots of stylish goodies that can be found online.  In hopes you used a bit of the summer to de-clutter and inventory what you already have, you can fill the holes in your kids’ back to school shopping list with a few of our picks.  We’ve shopped around to find the best supplies, gadgets and funky fashions for your little collegiates.

Back to School Supplies

1.  The Spencer Stainless Steel Bento Box Container: Crafted of stainless steel with a spacious bottom compartment, an interior tray for separating snacks and a snug plastic lid, this is sure to be a winner.  Just make sure you check our our healthy snack ideas when you fill it!  $59   Available at www.potterybarnkids.com

2. Text Bands.  Now kids only have to bump fists in order to pass notes.  The text bands allow the message to appear on a friend’s wrist with a light bump.  You can type up to 10 characters and each band can hold up to 24 messages at once. (Turning the band off will delete all messages).  Now that’s a heck of an improvement from note passing.  Hallmark.com

3.  ABC Sigg Water Bottles are BPA and phthalate free. You can recyclable them at the end of their lifetime, and the nonporous interior lining in the bottles ensures that it remains taste and odor neutral.  Know what that means?  You can put grape juice in it (or something stronger for Mom) on the weekend and send it to school with milk on Monday. www.mysigg.com

4.  Fun, Fictional Flash Drives –  From The Simpsons, Family Guy, and Looney Tunes to skateboard USBs, students can transport files with their favourite characters.  Unfortunately, they do not come with your very own Princess Leah hologram.  You’ll have to hit the rides at Disneyland for that. www.staples.ca

5.  The Madbox from Land’s End is the coolest lunchbox we’ve seen in a while.  Five kids from Madison, WI set out to build a better lunchbox and Land’s End liked their idea so much – they produced it!  It comes with an adjustable ice pack that focuses the cold to the food that needs to stay cold and leaves room temperature food alone.  No more soggy crackers.  www.landsend.com

6.  Who doesn’t love labels?   Mabels Labels has a cool new Tween pack that is sure to delight your kids.  They’ve also got a rock-sold back-to-school pack and even preschool shoe labels.  www.mabelslabels.com

7.  New for the fall, the Native ‘Jimmy’.  From the makes of our favourite summer show comes the Jimmy, just in time for fall.  These durable and funky boots will look great with this season’s signature trench for kids.  www.shop.nativeshoes.com

8.  The Lunchkin reusable sandwich bag.  In Hermes orange, or course.  Wait.  That’s for me.  Well, if you want uber-cute, they’re available in crabs, sailboats, soccer balls and school apples too.  And they’re great for the environment.  And cool.  Need we say more?  www.raspberrykids.com

9.  Any flower-lover would eat every bite out out of this adorable PVC-free grab-and-go lunch purse.  But be careful.  Unless you snag a couple you may have a fight on your hands, as we guarantee you’ll want one too!  I think I may grab one and use it for a funky back tie clutch…  www.lavishandlime.com

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Unique Fathers Day Gifts for Dad

fitness, GEAR, style, tech By June 6, 2012 Tags: , , , , , , 3 Comments

Father’s Day is a tough one.  PS – socks and ties just don’t really cut it.  Here are a few curated picks that we’ll be ordering.  And probably using for ourselves..  (That’s when you get them for the father of your children instead of your own dad so the items are.. ahem.. nearby.. for your personal use.)

This was so awesome we actually already bought one for the office.  Sorry dad.  A new take on the retro polaroid, the shots from the Fuji Instax Mini 50s Camera come out immediately and in a mini size – about half the width of an old-fashioned polaroid.  And you don’t have to wave them in the air either.  Available at Caya.

What man could possibly attempt a camping trip without his R2D2 Folding armchair? If he’s into starwars you might want to check out our feature on the hand-knit R2D2 hat as well…. Available at  www.thinkgeek.com

CHARGE ‘N’ FRUITS Designed Docking Station: The most decorative way to charge cell phones and MP3 players: definite shapes and creative styling. Simply load your charging cable through the fruit from above and place the cord in the cable channel at the bottom.  Caya.ca

Blown Away: A Year Through the Lens of The Tornado Hunter.  I was so riveted to the photos in this tome that I could feel my testosterone level rising.  Showcasing the surreal, scary, romantic electricity of tornadoes across North America, Greg Johnson’s stunning book can be found at WalMart and online at chapters/indigo.  www.tornadohunter.ca (Oh – and if you comment on this post with your fav idea for dad you get an entry to win one!)

WEBER FIRESPICE® TRIAL-SIZED SMOKING KITS: Not sure what flavour dad likes to smoke? Here’s an opportunity to sample different smoking woods – hickory, cherry, apple and more. Comes in assorted four and six packs.  Pair it with Weber’s Smoke™ cookbook written by New York Times best-selling author and James Beard Award Nominee Jamie Purviance. It reveals the secrets to infusing rich, smoky flavours into almost any dish on any barbecue including  gas, charcoal, or smoker. www.weber.com

Date night with Dad. Especially wonderful for the dad who doesn’t get much one-on-one time with the kids, here is an opportunity for the children to share ideas as to what a perfect date with dad would look like: Building a model airplane? Learning how to fly a kite?  fly fishing?  Yes please. 12 different ideas for activities to do with your dad for a special date.  Brilliant DIY idea by the Happy HomeMaker.

Collapsable shot glass.  You couldn’t possibly go on a golf course without one of these.  Or to Europe.  Or to the office.  Just sayin’

www.thinkgeek.com

The Man Bouquet.  Attach assorted cigars, beers and Dad’s favourite items to small dowels and ‘plant’ them in a huge pot.  (You might also want to include some lingere for yourself, which we’re sure he’d also enjoy.)  Idea and photo by: Elyse Nichol

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Crib Safety Tips

Uncategorized By February 3, 2007 Tags: , , , 1 Comment

crib safety for your babyHow to choose a safe crib:

  • Do not use a crib made before 1986. Check the label on your child’s crib to see how old it is. If your crib does not have a label, or is homemade, it may not be safe to use.
  • Be sure that the space between crib bars is no more than 6 centimetres or 2-3/8 inches.
  • Choose a crib where the part supporting the mattress is attached permanently to the crib frame. It should not be attached by S-shaped or Z-shaped hooks.
  • Do not use a crib that has any corner posts that could catch on your child’s clothing.
  • Do not buy a crib that has loose, missing or broken parts.
  • Make sure the mattress in the crib is firm and no more than 15 centimetres or 6 inches thick.
  • Make sure the mattress fits tightly against all 4 sides of the crib. If you can fit more than one finger between the mattress and each side of the crib, the mattress is too small. Babies can get wedged between the mattress and the side of the crib.

Safety tips for using cribs:

  • Always lock the sides of the crib in the upright position after placing your baby in it.
  • Keep your baby’s crib away from windows, curtain or blind cords. Children can fall out of the window or get caught in curtain or blind cords.
  • Do not put large stuffed toys, pillows, bumper pads and thick comforters into your baby’s crib. These items can suffocate your baby.
  • Make sure your baby does not have a bib, necklace, or anything tied around his or her neck when in the crib. These items could get caught on parts of the crib and strangle your baby.
  • As soon as your baby can push up on his hands or knees, remove toys strung across the crib. Your baby can become caught in these toys and strangle.
  • When your child is about 90 centimetres or 35 inches tall, he or she can climb out of the crib. This is the time to move your child from the crib into a low bed.

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