I'm on a mission to make the world a little kinder. I try to do small things in my life to surprise and delight people—making other people's days happier makes mine better. This is why I was thrilled to be a part of the Kleenex Kindness campaign.
It's Saturday night. I'm standing in the middle of Kingsway Mall in Edmonton on a stage, the mall empty except for 200 moms with filled wine glasses in the audience. This is my kind of party!
The topic I was invited to speak about to this group of moms was how to find balance as a mother. Instead, I spoke about the myth of balance and the pressure women are under to be everything to everyone. If you couldn't be in the audience that night, here are some of the points I covered that may be helpful for you.
This past Saturday I took my 9-year-old daughter to see Taylor Swift's Red Tour at the Rogers Centre in Toronto along with 45,000 other mothers and daughters. It was a special night for us — it was my daughter's first concert, which I consider a rite of passage from girlhood to tweendom. Of course my daughter and I got all dressed up for the show, because a Taylor Swift show is all about style.
I feel something like an electric current running through me. Today I'm in Los Gatos, headquarters to Netfilix. Fifty miles away is Twitter's San Francisco office. Drive thirty miles from where I'm sitting and I'd be in Facebook's driveway in Palo Alto.
The YMC Gang are coming to Clevelands House for some fun family and friends time July 10 - 13, 2014. You're welcome to join us!
My family and I have been coming to Cleve's for nine years already! If you do the math, my daughter was six months, my son three years old when we first booked a room at the Muskoka resort. Over the years, we've become friends with families who are also "lifers" - every summer we marvel at how much each others kids have grown and then spend the next seven days reconnecting.
My daughter Jessie has severe allergies. I still remember the first time she had a reaction to fish—the small bite of bland, white Tilapia on her plate suddenly became life-threatening. I fought to stay calm even though I was sure my heart was going to pound right out of my chest.
For the last two and a half months, I've been training for the Sporting Life 10K Run.
I'm running for a few reasons. The first is to raise money for Camp Oochigeas — to help send a child with cancer to camp. Secondly, I'm doing it for me — to test my endurance and get me away from my computer. And, I'm doing it for my family — to show my kids how strong their mom is and how awesome running can make you feel. This is why it makes me happy that this run happens on the morning of Mother's Day.
"Hey Erica, how would you like to share your personal fashion style with all the moms on Beyond the Rack and YMC readers?"
How could I refuse an offer like that? I love to shop but I am not easily parted with my money. I know what I like style-wise, but I can't always get what I want. So now I get to live vicariously through all of you!
I can’t imagine my children being ripped from my arms to work 14 hours a day or worse, to become a sex slave. Yet this is what is happening to children in Cambodia every day.
When I saw myself in the mirror in my Stephan Caras gown, minutes before walking the runway for the Heart Truth Fashion Show, all I could think was, "Gimme this dress!"
I know it's not the most appropriate thing to say when you're helping out Heart & Stroke Foundation by being a part of their yearly fashion show. But the dress was stunning. Like every other dress in the show, it was bright red, but mine had a sparkly touch of black. It fit me like a glove and was totally my style. But once I strutted it down the catwalk, I had to give it back.
Breaking news. YMC just released this press release which I wanted to share with you!
YMC has announced a new venture with their team of bloggers and experts to launch a network of home day cares from coast to coast. Understanding that YMC readers are stressed out from trying to have it all, all of the YMC staff members have decided to put their personal lives and careers on hold to open daycares in their homes.
As you probably know from posts like this, my daughter has severe nut allergies. I live in a state of semi-terror. Must. never. let. guard. down. Ever.
When the PR people from Nestle sent over this cute Smarties Chicken and Egg chocolate Easter treat, my daughter was excited. I'm a big fan of Nestle chocolates — especially the Coffee Crisps — because they're nut-free and dependable.
My philosophy in life is to constantly surprise with kindness.
I've been known to compliment a total stranger on her beautiful smile. I call up store managers to tell them about a fantastic customer experience rather than to complain. And when my kids are busy at work or happy at play I've been known to suddenly scoop them into my arms to remind them how awesome they are. Just cuz.
When I was invited to interview Gretchen Rubin about her #1 New York Times Bestseller The Happiness Project, I jumped at the chance. Both of us braved the biggest storm to hit Toronto in years to meet at Kobo headquarters on a snowy morning to chat about her newest book, Happier at Home.
For the fourth year, the Ehm Clan packed up the minivan for three days in Ottawa for Winterlude! What better way to spend Family Day Long Weekend than having fun outdoors with family and friends. If you couldn't make it this year for our #YMCWinterlude events, there's always next year.
Here's my virtual scrapbook with photo highlights of some of our Winterlude friends and fun.
One of the most common challenges of being a mom is often not having enough hours in the day. We make time to squeeze in our kids' extra-curricular activities, grocery shop for healthy foods they will eat, make their doctors and dentist appointments, and help them with homework. Many of us are racing off to jobs outside the home. Then, when there is down time, most of us opt to spend it with our families. As my friend Shannon M.
