Klout* released a list of 10 Dads who are influencing others on parenthood and dad life. That list made me think about influence and Klout and dads. The Dads we are born with and the ones we foster along the way...the Dads that are real and adopted in our lives.
Sometimes you just have to put the laundry aside and enjoy some giggles and family-time. It’s good for the soul. This weekend, I put out some Cadbury Dairy Milk Buttons candy and the kids et moi got creative. And had fun. Yummy fun.
I had the chance to review two titles from Me to We BooksMy Maasai Life: A Child’s Adventure in Africa by Robin Wiszowaty and Lessons From a Street Kid by international children’s rights activist Craig Kielburger. After reading them I wanted one thing: an interview with Craig.
This was a shock tag line I heard on the radio the other day. I thought to myself? In this day and age, what does sexual orientation have to do with sports? Then days after, my kids asked me what is "gay"...
The shocking tag-line did its job. It shocked me. I googled "homosexuals in hockey" and came up with 5,680,000 results. Interestingly, "heterosexuals in hockey" had no results found. I guess the latter is just not a good headline.
In planning this weekend's 8-year old "American Idol" birthday party, I came upon a bit of a challenge...creating a playlist that did not reference sex, drugs or a bottle of Jack.
My kids LOVE American Idol and I'm amazed they can remember all the singers' names, but forget to put their glasses in the dishwasher (an obvious priority issue there!). So my 8-year old wanted an "American Idol" party and I thought...I can make that happen.
So this weekend, we left the baby for the 1st time and took the kids on a "big kid only" trip to see TFC (Toronto Football Club). Bonding time with the biggies. At one point I looked over to see my Thing 2 yelling "Bull Shirt" "Bull Shirt!" at the ref...
Now the rest of the crowd wasn't chanting "Bull Shirt" (delete the r and you can read what they were chanting). Holy Wake Up Call Batman...Soccer Stadiums are not G rated.
With THE Royal Wedding upon us there is much in the news about princes and princesses. Activity Alert! -- it's a game, it's a thought-puzzle, it's a boredom buster! How many movies can you name - that have princes and princesses as characters...GO!
Cinderella
Snow White
Sleeping Beauty
Aladdin
Pocahontas (we can call the daughter of a chief a princess right?)
Tangled
The Little Mermaid
Beauty and the Beast (the beast was a prince right?)
Growing up (and still now) my family gifts small presents at Easter rather than chocolates. With my own kids, the "Easter Bunny" makes a scavenger hunt to find messages, in those dollar store Easter eggs, which leads them to a small toy rather than candy. Recently, I was offered a giveaway which encourages parents to gift outside the sugar aisle for Easter and I just had to share it with you...
Cookies, wrapping paper, magazine subscriptions, holiday cards, t-shirts, spaghetti lunch...the fundraiser forms come home with kids almost weekly these days. Are kid-selling fundraisers good team building or is it parents paying the price?. Discuss...
So let's start with the big meanies of the readership...who doesn't buy whatever fundraising somethin' somethin' kids are selling these days? Me. That's me raising my hand. Well, I buy some things...just not everything (and of course I feel morally awful for not buying the things I don't buy).
Calling all #zombiemoms: Apr. 6 mad tweet baby questions, cheer on tired parents & support pregger peeps. Tweet your mombie moment & follow #zombiemoms.
ZOMBIEMOMS: sleep deprived mothers. In this state due to pregnancy discomfort, worry, newborn, sick kid, big kid sleepovers, and/or lack of sleep due to late night baking because of school fundraiser.
I signed DS up for baby group. When the admin person found out I had other kids she said "This group is only for new mothers". I responded "Can't it be for mothers of new babies?" She questioned me about what I thought I might get from the group...what I didn't tell her was the thing I wanted most...I wanted to pick up a mom.
Blogging makes me a better mother because...it opened up a whole new world of friends which make me less isolated. My new friends have advised and supported me through the baby blues, sleep depravation, breast feeding, field trips and school breaks. They have been my social network and my safety net.
I'm a NO on the giving kids allowance for helping around the house. Personal choice. My feeling is that the world is made of HAVE TO's and PAID TO's. And my child making her bed falls into the HAVE TO category. Just like I have to make my own bed. Fair's Fair in love, war and household chores.
Because making a bed is not PAID TO worthy in my world. Everyone has to make a bed. Just like everyone has to brush their teeth. And wipe their bum. You. Just. Have. To.
Whether you are staying close to home or visiting a different province...here's what's on during March Break 2011 across Canada for families.
NATIONAL
Kids and caregivers are invited to daily interactive FREE events at Indigo and Chapters stores nationally. Enjoy arts & crafts plus 20% off kids and teen books.
Oh the yummy goodness of crepes (it's plural there because you can't just eat one). Nutella* crepes, strawberry & whipped cream crepes, sugar crepes, chocolate crepes, jam crepes...nom nom nom. Prepare for tried and true deliciousness when you follow this simple recipe.
Caroline's Crepes
3 cups of flour 3 cups of milk 6 eggs 1 tbsp of melted butter 1 tsp of sugar splash of rum** (alcohol cooks off - promise no one will get crepe drunk) **you can replace rum with vanilla
How do you say "seal" in French? (un phoque - which sounds a lot like the F bomb). Yes, I'm raising bilingual kids and they love messing around with vocabulary in English and in French. Want to incorporate some French activities into your day? Je vais te dire un secret...
Klout* released a list of 10 Dads who are influencing others on parenthood and dad life. That list made me think about influence and Klout and dads. The Dads we are born with and the ones we foster along the way...the Dads that are real and adopted in our lives.
