Wednesday Words

As my students begin writing EQAO today (provincial standardized testing; one of the most anxious times of the year for me) I was looking for some spiritual inspiration.

Although I don't know exactly how these words apply to today's situation (unless the Lord is arriving with the calculators and dictionaries) it's still one of my favourite quotations from scripture:

"Be strong, take heart and wait for the Lord."

Psalm 27: 14

What does that mean to you today?

As Seen On Pinterest: Framing Grandma's Recipe

I added a new piece of decor to my kitchen recently, inspired by Pinterest, of course!

I started with a frame and scrapbook paper from Dollarama (total cost $3) and one of my late Grandma Leahy's handwritten recipes (which just happened to be for Christmas Pudding). It's even wrinkled and smudged...just perfect for this project!

I used the scrapbook paper as a matte and then a tiny bit of tape to keep the recipe in place. (I photocopied the sheet in advance, just in case.)


Et voilà:

Here is the original pin, which I found on Pinterest and added to my "Decorating/Home" Board weeks ago:

Source: homegoods.com via Kate on Pinterest

What a lovely way to preserve the memory of lost family members. I've already looked to the frame to draw strength from my Grandma, in sort of a "You raised eight kids on a farm while living with your mother-, father- and brother-in-law so I'm sure I can get through whatever is troubling me today" kind of way.

Stay tuned for other great Pinterest finds!

This Mom Loves...Facebook?

You guys! I just signed up for this cool new site I found called "Facebook"! You have to check it out!

Yes, it's 2012.

And yes, I swore I wouldn't do it...and I still sort of haven't.

While "Kate Winn" is not (and has no plans to be) active on Facebook, This Mom Loves' page is now up and running!

My reasons for holding out (being a teacher, the whole oxymoronic "private blogger" thing, my fear of frittering away even more hours in front of the computer) are still keeping me from being a personal Facebook user, which is why I have not responded to the friend requests I've received since first setting up an account. (You have to have a personal page in order to create a fan page. And I think I have explained that to most of those people, so they wouldn't be offended. If I missed you, now you know it was nothing personal!)

However, it has become increasingly clear to me that in order to continue growing and fostering This Mom Loves, I must stop ignoring one of the most prevalent forms of social media. I love communicating with my readers, and I am learning that the majority of them go to Facebook first to communicate.

So...please pop on over and take a look. At the risk of slipping into a bad Sally Field misquote, I really hope you'll like me!

Right here:

This Mom Loves

Promote Your Page Too

Links to my posts will be published there, as well as other news and tidbits that I think my readers would be interested in. As well, future giveaways here on the blog will offer a bonus entry for "liking" This Mom Loves' Facebook page.

If any bloggers have tips for how to effectively partner Facebook pages with blogs, I would absolutely love to hear them. I'd also be interested in learning (from any Facebook users) what not to do as a "Fan Page" in order to maintain and grow a following (rather than spamming/annoying/scaring everybody away!) This is all new to me and feedback would be very much appreciated.

See you on Facebook!

Younger Skin Tomorrow With Avon's Resurfacing Expert Smoothing Fluid ~Giveaway~

Giveaway open to Canadians.

Please allow me to preface everything else here by saying that I realize looking younger should not be the ultimate beauty goal. I did a Beauty and Self Esteem Workshop with students this year, and painfully admitted to them that I had actually purchased (and used) a product with "Age Rewind" in the title. This led to a lot of discussion about whether I would really want to rewind ten years of my life: before kids, house and the job that I love. No thanks.

But is it okay to want my skin to look its best? Of course it is. As my regular readers know, my skin has always been "my thing" to struggle with. The acne woes of my youth are now replaced by the onset of fine lines and little age spots, and I've tried all sorts of products looking for improvement.

When I was sent a bottle of Avon's new Anew Clinical Resurfacing Expert Smoothing Fluid (try saying that one three times fast) I thought it wouldn't hurt to give it a shot, and I've been exceptionally pleased with it.


Some of the product's claims:

• retexturizes skin overnight, exfoliating and replenishing skin to leave it younger, smoother and revitalized
• in a clinical study vs. three professional microdermabrasion treatments over 12 weeks, the product was found to be 79% as effective as a professional microdermabrasion, without the same irritation (or cost. I've done microderm, and while I didn't notice much irritation with it, the cost was significant).

I've found that my skin feels more taut and pores look tighter when I wake up (here I am talking about large pores; see how I've opened up to my readers this year?)  I can even tell if I forgot to apply it the night before. (It's definitely a 'night' product: it gives the skin a shiny look and leaves a bit of a film that washes off in the morning.)

With a price tag of $39.00, it doesn't even break the bank. The dropper gives you the perfect pre-portioned amount of fluid each night so there's no guessing or waste, and my first bottle has lasted me more than two months of almost nightly application. (I requested a second bottle, fearing that the first one would run out before I could get through a six week trial, but have been pleasantly surprised by how long it has lasted.)

You can order this product through your Avon representative or http://www.avon.ca/... or you can enter below to win a free bottle! All you need to do is leave your e-mail address, with extra entries if you follow me on e-mail, GFC, Twitter or Pinterest (links in my sidebar). The contest will run until Friday, May 25th at 11:59 p.m. Eastern, after which time a winner will be chosen through random number generation. Good luck!



Disclosure: I was provided with a free bottle of the product for review purposes. Opinions are, as always, my own!

Anastasia's Picks: Her Latest Book Reviews For Tweens

My ten year old niece Anastasia shares her most recent book recommendations.

THE SHADOW COLLECTOR'S APPRENTICE BY AMY GORDON

Cully is an ordinary boy. He lives on a apple tree farm, goes to the soda shop in the summer, and hangs out with his friends. He is normal except for one thing: Cully has no father. Then, things get even worse. The rest of the family (his three aunties) run out of money! Cully finds a summer job at a pawn shop, but strange things begin to happen there too. Cully's boss has a hobby of collecting shadows. Soon, Cully has a sneaking suspicion. Did the owner of the pawn shop collect his father's shadow too? Cully and his new friend, Isabelle, set out to find if shadow collecting is right or wrong, save his farm, and bring back his father.

What I liked about this book is the climax. The tension gets really high when Cully discovers something new!

What I disliked about this book was the length of the chapters. they could be a little bit longer.

This book is for 9 to 12 year olds.

All in all, I am going to give this book 3 stars!

THE EXCEPTIONALS BY ERIN CASHMAN

Claire is a fifteen year old girl who is caught with a friend who has alcohol in a dance party. She is kicked out of her old school and sent to one for people with special powers. There, she makes new friends and starts fresh. But people have gone missing from the school, and as her parents go looking for them, they go missing as well. With the help of friends, she sets out to save her parents and develop HER special power.

What I liked about this book was the magical powers. I LOVE ANYTHING about magic!

What I disliked about this book was the beginning. At first I didn't know what was going on.

I will give this book 4 stars!
TEMPLE GRANDIN BY SY MONTGOMOMERY

This is a book about a marvellous lady, Temple Grandin, who has autism. But still, despite her differences, she went on to become a successful woman who works on building, making, discovering, and bringing back machines that will make cattle's lives easier. This also talks about Temple's life, past to present. This is an awesome book, and I hope to read it again and again.

What I liked about this book is that Temple has a foreword at the beginning, so I can hear her opinion as well.

There was nothing to dislike about this book. I'll give it 5 stars!

Kids and Money: My Girls' New Bank Accounts

I will never forget the day that my parents handed me the passbook for my own bank account. They had been depositing "baby bonuses" over the years, and if I recall correctly there was close to a thousand bucks in the account. And it was all mine!! Did I rush right out and start spending? On the contrary. I immediately started stashing more money away, taking pleasure in watching the numbers rise. Gradually I began to find the joy in the "spending" side of things, however I would like to think that in general, I've been a pretty good money-manager since a young age. What went right? I've been reflecting on that, as I want my daughters to have the skills they need to be money-savvy even in tough economic times. (While I hope that the country will be more prosperous than ever in their adulthood, it never hurts to be prepared.)

We've been making deposits into RESP's for each of them, although I'm not sure we'll even tell them that until they make their own decision on post-secondary education, based on the premise that they will primarily be funding their own. (Someone remind me to take this post down when they are old enough to find and read my blog on their own. Which will be disturbingly soon.)

A couple of years ago we gave Frannie a Moonjar Moneybox, with three different sections marked "Save", "Spend" and "Share". My intention was to start giving her an allowance to distribute amongst the sections, but I haven't been at all consistent about it, and any money she received was randomly slotted for one spot or another.


Poor Maggie has been dealing with a two-inch high dollar store Dora piggybank, which was almost overflowing. (Not that she's rich. But don't try to explain to her that dozens of pennies are worth...well, 48 cents.)

On Easter Monday, I decided it was time for the two of them (yes, at the ripe old ages of six and four) to open their first bank accounts.

We headed for CIBC, where we do our banking. This is not a sponsored post in any way, and we certainly have had glitches with our CIBC products over the years (in university, two branches merged, and I unfortunately shared an account number with someone else, who continued to make withdrawals from my account. It took a while for a twenty year old student to convince a big bank that it really was their mistake and I did indeed keep track of my money!) but generally speaking they've been good enough to keep our business.

It's also a very true marketing fact that brand loyalty is instilled at an early age. Why are my daughters banking with CIBC? Because that's where my parents banked.

Heather was excellent with the girls, chatting with them, counting their cash, and putting stickers on their very first statements. They got their own bank cards (unfortunately there's now a monthly fee for passbooks, but in this age I guess checking one's own balance online should be just as exciting as the passbook update) and saw the grand total of their first piggybank deposits:

Frannie: $78.52

Maggie: $33.55

I went back to the store where we had purchased Frannie's Moonjar Moneybox, but they no longer carry them. Thankfully the company was kind enough to send one for Maggie. The new plan is that each girl gets four quarters per week, two for "Spend" and one each for "Save" and "Share".

When the Savings section gets full, we'll deposit it in the account. "Share" has been perfect for when charity or fundraising events come up at school or church. It doesn't seem as painful to give up the money when they know it's already been earmarked for good deeds.

Frannie just took money from her "Spend" jar, transferred it to her wallet, and proudly marched into Zellers to buy a Queen Amidala figurine (yes, my daughter loves Star Wars). It was a proud moment for me as well. I was also impressed that Maggie didn't even peep when I said that she wouldn't be getting a toy that day, as she didn't have "Spend" money to use. (Her birthday hasn't arrived yet.)

Another quick tip about teaching money: we've started playing a game with coins while waiting for our meals at restaurants (not exactly sanitary; wash hands again before eating!) If the girls name the penny, nickel, dime and quarter correctly they get to keep them (Frannie also needs to name the value). We eat out too often for me to start throwing loonies and toonies around for free, though! Once they've mastered that, we'll move on to the relationships (four quarters in a dollar, etc.) There is a money focus in every year of the curriculum, but without constant exposure I've seen firsthand that kids can easily forget from one year to the next.

Visit the Moonjar website to order products or for more valuable tips!

Books For Moms (That You'll Want To Read)

Some of my readers eagerly anticipate my book recommendations, and rush to the bookstore or library right away. Others have informed me that book reviews for mothers are a waste, because who has time to read?

Well, today's suggestions aren't huge tomes of fiction. Rather, they're all worthwhile non-fiction selections which you may actually find as valuable as I do. Give me a chance here!

Toronto Fun Places by Nathalie Prézeau

This family-tested guide to year-round fun in the GTA and Southern Ontario outlines hundreds of outings you could take with your family, including:

• All the things to do within a 10 minute walk of every subway station in Toronto (I think that would be a great adventure with my girls some summer day)
• Tips, nearby attractions, driving time, age recommendations, etc.

The book is divided into sections (including Amusement Corner, Farms, Holiday Outings, Museums, Sports and Water Fun) and the tips given for each attraction are very helpful to parents. If you live anywhere near the GTA, put this one on your Mother's Day list. You can also check out the website.

celebraTORI by Tori Spelling



I'm sorry, but I really enjoy Tori Spelling's books. I always like to think that I'm privy to behind-the-scenes Hollywood info, and in this case, Tori shares her party-planning secrets. There are tons of photos (of the lavish parties thrown by her mother when she was a child, as well as many of the recent fêtes Tori has hosted), funny stories, and some tips that are actually helpful to middle-class party throwers as well. Sections include Essentials, Getting Started, Décor, Flowers, Food and Drink, and The Dessert Table.

I read through it in a night (not spending too long on the recipes, of course) and I'll be keeping it as a reference. If you enjoy entertaining, and want some creative, budget-friendly ideas cool enough for L.A., this one's for you.

For My Children: A Mother's Journal of Memories, Wishes and Wisdom by Dionna Ford

This beautifully designed and illustrated book is full of creative prompts that will spark Mom's recollections so she can record them for her children. Full of questions for Mom to answer (List some of the things you have learned from your children, What moments have made you most proud of your child?, Who makes you laugh and what do you laugh about?) when complete, this will be an irreplaceable memento.

I once gave my Grandma a similar book for Christmas, and the next year she returned it to me complete. I will always treasure the thoughts she shared, which I can now pass on to my girls.

This won't be a quick project, and I expect it will take my daughters' entire childhoods for me to attempt to fill every page (Maggie's "baby book" is still under construction), but I am certain they will treasure it when it's finished.

What Would Michelle Do? A Modern-Day Guide To Living With Substance and Style by Allison Samuels

This one is an interesting mix of self-help and biography. Interspersed with facts and anecdotes about the life of Michelle Obama, the book aims to help young women find their place, and navigate the difficult terrains of home, work, friends and relationships.

A very American concept (I don't think we'll be seeing a "What Would Laureen Do?" book anytime soon...probably because half of you are now asking "Who's Laureen?"), I was still interested in learning more about the First Lady, who seems like a very grounded wife and mother. I felt a little old for some of the sections (e.g. since I'm already in my dream job - minus report cards and winter yard duty - I just skimmed some of the employment-related tips) but enjoyed reading about Michelle's style and parenting. While some of the advice is very indirect ("Here are five films that Michelle surely would approve of...") other tidbits are from celebs, family members and other direct sources who are closely acquainted with the famous First Lady. I paid particular attention to some of the quotes from Michelle herself which really resonated with me:

"For me, fashion is fun, and it's supposed to help you feel good about yourself. I think that's what all women should focus on: what makes them happy, feeling comfortable and beautiful. I wear what I love. Sometimes people love it, sometimes they don't. I'm fine with it."

"I have freed myself to put me on the priority list and say yes, I can make choices that make me happy."

"You do what you have to do for your children to have the lives you want them to have. It's difficult and sometimes you have no idea how you will get it all done, but you do. You may have to lean on a lot of people along the way but you'll get it done."

***********

I know, I know...you have no time to read, much less tackle Toronto's subway stations, throw a party, fill in a journal, or worry about following in the footsteps of a First Lady. But if you had to pick?

"Shame on Jane" RemindeRings Challenge!

RemindeRings from Shame on Jane are the latest way to express yourself, and remind yourself of what's important...or maybe just fun! They come in sterling silver or gold dipped styles, and are approximately $40 each.

I'm past the point of needing some of the reminders (wedding related ones like "Remember the groom", baby related ones like "Feed...sleep...repeat") but I still have lots of favourites: "Make a reservation", "Get a babysitter", "Mani/Pedi" , and "Sleep in"! (As an aside, I first tried to check it out the selections on my lunch hour, but our Web Filter thought I was trying to look at porn. Nice. Guess it's the name.)

You can now enter the Shame on Jane Mother’s Day Contest where they are looking for the “next great message” to add to their RemindeRing collection. Click below to enter!

The person who comes up with the winning message will snag a $200 shopping spree on ShameonJane.com and the ring with their winning message. Second and third place winners will receive a $50 gift certificate for a little retail therapy.

The contest has already begun and will run through May 11th. The winner will be announced on Mother’s Day.

And guess what? I get to be on the panel of judges! I can't wait to see all of the creative entries and have my say. Good luck!