When I started YMC almost a decade ago, it was just me-an overwhelmed new mom on a mission to connect with other like-minded mothers to celebrate and commiserate the rollercoaster ride of motherhood. I needed to know I wasn't alone. The message resonated. Readership grew, business grew and the team grew.
I'm on the fence about getting a pet. I need your help on this one. If you show me yours, I may pick you to win a $1,000 Gift Card from Global Pet Foods. But let me start at the beginning.
In my swinging, single thirties I had an awesome dog named Basil. He was a German Shorthaired Pointer and he was gorgeous. I think we actually looked alike. He was my constant companion, my running partner, and my *BFF (*best furry friend)...until I got married and had kids.
Getting older for me is a strange thing. Unlike people like Marilyn Monroe and Kurt Cobain who died before their time and will forever remain young and dewy, I am no longer that girl from the '80s who made an indelible mark on Canadian pop culture. When people meet me, I'm often told how their husbands, brothers, fathers, friends used to have a crush on me. "Used to?" I say with a laugh. Of course, there's a quick retraction and they assure me they still DO have "those feelings" for me.
I am SO EXCITED for my friends Sandy and Nick!! Their dream is actually coming true tomorrow! The Toronto Baby Show is finally launching this weekend at the Direct Energy Center at Exhibition Place!
As much as I understand the logic of genetics, I am continually amazed at how my daughter is morphing into a mini-me. Not only does she look like I did at her age, but she is also absorbing my very outspoken philosophies on beauty and self esteem into the way she sees the world.
In advance of my upcoming birthday, I asked her to make me a video explaining why she thinks her mother is beautiful. Have a look at this!
Travelling is an amazing opportunity to teach kids about the world. Our family vacation to Prince Edward Island was a strategic choice. As beautiful and relaxing as the province is, it is a key destination for kids to learn about Canada. As much as I appreciate museums, when I travel with my family I try to get hands on and make some experiential learning happen.
If you go to PEI with your family, these are some fun activities you can do with your kids to inspire them to learn.
If you're planning on taking your kids to Nova Scotia, there is a ton of stuff to do the whole family will have a blast doing. Four days travelling with my family around Nova Scotia was not enough time to explore everything the province has to offer. Here are the things we experienced on our short trip that my kids loved.
Last year's BlissDom Canada conference was a huge success. How do I know? I walked around with a video camera on the last day of the conference interviewing attendees to get a sense of what each person felt they had learned over the three day event. As you can see in this short video, everyone was on an emotional and inspirational high.
I'm always shocked at how expensive it is to travel with my family. I've learned a few easy tips and tricks to save money when booking our family trips by being smart and playing my cards right (pun intended). I discovered that my focus on being cost-effective forced me to be more organized, which in turn saves me money.
Keep in mind that I don't have a lot of time to devote to trip planning, so my suggestions are super easy and time-effective.
Have you noticed there are more and more credit cards with offers of big sign-up bonuses trying to get your business? I don't like missing out on an opportunity to save money, so I decided it was time to look through my wallet and make sure the cards I carry are still right for me. As the years go by, my spending habits change and it's important to choose the right rewards card that works for my needs, not the other way around.
For better or worse, Norman Rockwell had a big effect on my life. His paintings of America in the '50s etched in my mind a time where things seemed simpler and happier. Because of images like his, pine for a whimsical time when life was face-to-face, when we knew our neighbours, when your local pharmacist smiled with recognition when you walked in his store and your butcher knew the cut of meat you ordered on Thursday.
The audience for the Art of Leadership for Women in Toronto was filled with people like me looking for those little nuggets to inspire change and growth. Luckily, this conference featured a roster of entertaining, relevant speakers who shared useful tidbits to help us shift perspective and strategies for business and in life.
Just when I was looking for a bit of excitement, I received a last minute invitation to fly to Zurich for a day to experience Air Canada's new 787 Dreamliner. Sixteen hours on a return flight to Switzerland in Business Class? Sign me up! As any parent knows, long flights are a holiday in itself. Hours of luxurious uninterrupted time to watch movies, read, have meals delivered to your seat, and drink wine.
My hope was the Dreamliner experience would be "me-time" on steroids.
My family's summer travel schedule is pretty much already booked.
While I've left a lot of free time on the calendar, over the last 13 years we've accumulated a number of summer family travel traditions already slotted in and confirmed. I try to balance a bunch of family time with fun activities for each of us to enjoy separately.
Here are the Ehm Family Adventures that have become meaningful family traditions for us over the ten weeks of summer, in the hopes that it may inspire you to do the same.
I've been part of the evolving blogger landscape for the past seven years. I've watched the marketing and PR industry dismiss then embrace the influence of the "every day mom" with a blog. And like all trends, many jump on the bandwagon without research or realizing what the ground rules are. Truthfully, the blogger space is still the wild west. Although some standards are bandied about, there is no definitive approach, quality control, or manual for brands and marketers to follow.
There are seventy people working for YMC on a daily basis. #help!!
Translation #1: Ex-broadcaster Erica Ehm is responsible for leading 70 people to do the best work they can every day, while simultaneously engaging with potential partners to grow the YMC brand.
For most parents, there are those mornings you wake up and look at your kid and think to yourself, Oh My God, my baby is now a teenager. How did this happen? I'm not old enough to have a teenager? Where did the time go? Wasn't I in labour for 36 hours just yesterday? Which totally happened to me.
But the realization that my children are becoming awesome young adults was less shocking than noticing that there are at least ten ways for you to contact me on social media. TEN. No wonder I'm drowning in digital wasted time.
Translation #1: Ex-broadcaster Erica Ehm is responsible for leading 70 people to do the best work they can every day, while simultaneously engaging with potential partners to grow the YMC brand. 