5 Little Puppies Jumping on the Bed

Our baby version of Tales for Tots is always fun.  The babies just want to play and eat the books but the moms always love seeing what we have and reading the stories.

This time our older babies loved the book as it was a familiar one to them... sort of.

5 Little Puppies Jumping on the Bed is a cute version of 5 Little Monkey's jumping on the bed. 

A classis rhyming song that we have all played with our kids at some point.  The illustrations in the book are bright and fun and the babies enjoyed them along with the moms.

This board book was a great one for the babies!  Not only was the story familiar but new and fun, the pictures bright and interesting, but there was a touch and feel aspect that they really seemed to enjoy

Thank you Scholastic Canada for another great baby book!

Tropicana made our Tropical Picasso a Hit!

It was a windy day but that didn't stop us from having fun at our Tropicana Tropical Picasso!

The sun shining and the morning was cool but it was still a great to get our Picasso on and enjoy a Tropical Juice Bar courtesy of Tropicana!

We had our Picasso all ready to go for the kids to get messy painting and being creative.  The kids had fun even though the wind made it hard for the paper to stay put!!!  Kids love getting into the paint no matter what so they were happy











We had our juice bar set up and ready to go for the moms and tots to enjoy the Tropicana Tropics Juice.   The kids (and the moms!) made to sure to try all the flavours we had for them.  The kids loved all the juice and couldn't get enough!

It was a hands down decision that we all loved the   Orange, strawberry, Banana  and the          Orange, Peach, Mango

Thanks to Tropicana all of our moms went home with coupons to get more of the the Tropics at home!

Little Scientist fun!

Kids love learning and they love exploring.  Add them together and you get the fun of our Little Scientist program.

We did some neat experiments recently with the kids that was so fun!

 

Taking normal household objects and a big bucket of water we learned about density and volume by seeing what items will float and what will sink.

The kids took turns putting items in the bucket and guessing what would float or sink.

Some of the items surprised the kids!  A big apple would float but a small coin would sink!   They learned that it's not all about size!


We also took some fun with Magic Milk!  This one really got the kids excited and some of the moms too!

 For anyone that had not seen the Magic Milk experiment it was so fun to watch the explosion of colours that could be created with just a touch of a cotton swap dipped in the "magic potion"

First we filled a low dish with a bit of milk.  Then we put drops of food colouring in the milk randomly.  

In a separate bowl there was water mixed with some regular old dish soap.  The kids dipped their cotton swab in the "magic potion" (the dish soap mixture) and then touched the tip to the colours in the milk.

The colours magically exploded creating beautiful patterns of colour!

The dish soap breaks the skin of the milk allowing the colours to spread and bloom.  This was lots of fun and an easy one for moms to do at home on a rainy day!

Let It Shine was a hit with the Tales for Tots group!

This months book was a great summer read for the kids!  Our sponsor, Scholastic Canada, sent us Let it Shine by Maryann Cocca-Leffler (for our July read.

The kids loved the rhyming and the fun pictures and had us read it twice!

The pages were full of detail and colour and the story was fun!

I loved how the book talked about all the good things that you can do in the summer and also pointed out some of hazards of summer like bug bites and sun burns! 

I thought it was a great touch, especially after having just been away for a weekend in the North where myself and my kids experience the side effects of summer fun!

This book is part of a series by the same author about the various seasons.  We had read Let it Fall this past October and it was a great book as well!

As always, one of our tots got to take the book home!  She was thrilled and sat and looked at the book and got her mom to read the book again!

Jr. Chefs was a wrap with Et Tu Salad kits!

Our Jr. Chefs this month was sponsored by Et Tu Salad Kits.
 
Getting kids to eat salad is a great way to add veggies into their diet! 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Et TuSalad Kits are a great way to get kids to eat more vegetables.  You can keep them involved in the preparation, and the salad tastes great!

Our tots got to help prepare the Caesar salad for our Chicken Caesar Salad Wraps.
 

 

They had fun making this very easy but delicious meal!  Some fresh chopped romaine lettuce, mixed with the contents of the Et Tu Salad Kit (dressing, some croutons and some bacon bits), a good mix and  voila!  A great salad that is good for you too!

 
Once the salad was all mixed, we got some chopped, cooked chicken and fresh wraps.
 
The kids put their wraps together and enjoyed a healthy and delicious lunch!
 
Some of our younger chefs had the salad and chicken on it's own, and they loved it!!!
 

Having a salad that is healthy and delicious doesn't have to be a lot of work, make it simple with Et Tu Salad kits!
 
You can enter to win with Et Tu Salad Kits and their  “stock your pantry contest”.  Visit http://bepreparedtobesurprised.ca/ 

Family Fun at Fern Resort

To sum up our stay at Fern Resort this past weekend would be to say it was AMAZING!

Having been to Fern in the past for our momstown conferences, I had an idea of what the resort is like, but I had no idea just how much fun it would be with my kids.

 From the moment we checked in we were greeted with warm and welcoming staff that were truly ready to make sure we had a great stay.

We had a little cottage near the docks that the kids thought was just great!  they could sit and watch the lake from the porch and the loved the idea of the cottage, so different from our family cottage home.

We took a little walk around the property so the kids could see all the neat stuff there was to do!

As soon as they saw the pool it was swim time.  We got ready for the pool and spent the rest of the afternoon swimming.

Dinner time was a great adventure for my kids.  We have never had the luxury of visiting a resort and while they had been to restaurants before, they felt so special to have a table just for them with fancy napkins and fancy glasses for their drinks!

The buffet spread for the kids was great with lots of options, especially the dessert, the kids favorite part of all the meals!  Fern Resort really makes sure that everyone is well fed!

After dinner we played on the trampoline, went on the zip lines and had a quick round of mini golf.
I decided since we were on vacation the kids could stay up late and we could go check out the entertainment, a magic show.

The kids had a ball!  The show was great and was perfect for the whole family!  A quick stop at the bon fire and we were back in our rooms for a good sleep before a full day of Fern Resort fun!!!

On Saturday the kids got a full taste of resort life.  It was also Noelle's 6th birthday so i wanted to make sure she had a fabulous day!

After a delicious breakfast the kids were ready to get the fun started.  We started our morning at the beach, we saw an adorable family of ducks, watched the water skiers and played in the sand and the lake.     After a short beach visit, we made our way to the pool where we spent most of our day.

As a treat, we had our lunch on the pool deck.  The resort puts on a big BBQ on Saturday for lunch with a great variety of foods and desserts for everyone. 

The rest of the day was full of adventure!  My oldest got to go zorbing, we saw a wildlife show, did some fishing and of course spent a few more hours in the pool before dinner!

Dinner was great!  Our wonderful server made sure to make Noelle's birthday dinner special.  After we ate they brought her a sundae with a candle and all the staff and other guests sang Happy Birthday!

Another great day and the kids were excited for another late night! 

Our last day was a blast as well.  We made sure to make the most out of every moment we had before heading home.  Swimming and fishing is all the kids wanted to do.

When it was time to head home we were all pooped, full of sun and lots of memories had been made.  This kids were already asking when we could come back before we even hit the highway!

Thank you so much Fern Resort for a fabulous stay!!

Celebrate our Birthday with Us!!!!

Have you marked your calendar yet?  We are celebrating our 6th Birthday this summer in true momstown style!

Our Birthday Bash will be held on Sunday August 25th from 10:30am to 2pm at Bulldog Interactive Fitness.

This is a free event for the whole community!  Come out with your whole family and enjoy entertainment and activities with our amazing Sponsors and Vendors!


Our amazing national sponsors are

There are lots of great local sponsors and vendors joining us for the celebration as well including

You can register to attend our event by going to our event at Eventbrite.   By registering you will get the chance to win tickets to see Dora the Explorer this fall!  Everyone that brings their tickets from Eventbrite will get an extra chance to win!!!

Goody bags to the first 200 guests!!!

Visit us on facebook for updates!

 

 

Campfire and Cupcakes Birthday Party!

My daughter Noelle just turned 6 and I wanted to do something different for her birthday this year.  We have done the princess, the pool, rainbows, and lots of other girly themes (always a theme!) but this year I thought just to take two things she loves and make them into a party!

We are lucky enough to have a campfire pit in our backyard, we live in the boonies so this is the norm around here!   I took a risk and made her party later in the evening so that having a campfire wasn't too out there.

The kids came over all excited and ready to party!  It's been hot so we had the pool out for the kids to splash around in until it was campfire time.

First we roasted wieners.  We like to make spider dogs by cutting the ends of the wieners.  The pieces will start to curl as they cook, it's a good way to know their done and they look fun!

The kids had fun doing this, and so did the adults!  A few of the kids had never had the opportunity to roast wieners, or even marshmallows, so this was extra fun for them.

After we had our spider dogs we got down to roasting marshmallows and making s'mores!

This was so much fun with the kids.  They all had fun roasting their marshmallows and putting the s'mores together!  It was quite the messy treat, but so fun and so yummy!!!

Since this was a birthday party, we couldn't finish the evening off without having cake!  Even though bellies were full of hot dogs and marshmallows, everyone made room for cake!

I was so lucky to have found Vanilla Beans and Butter Cream to make my daughters cake!  It was a last minute decision and I told her my them of cupcakes and campfires.  I never could have imagined that she would come up with such a perfect, awesome cake!!!  I was beyond impressed!!!

Happy Birthday Noelle!

Enter to Win 1 My Little Pony Equestria Girls Doll!

Introducing My Little Pony Equestria Girls!  A magic mirror connects the world of My Little Pony to Canterlot High, where some things change, but true friendships remain magical! The mirror is a portal to a magical new land with high schools instead of castles, and where six pony friends become real girls with a love for fun and fashion. Rainbow Dash is sporty chic, Rarity shines with girly glamour, and Fluttershy dazzles in her own graceful style. Playful Pinkie Pie wears outfits fit for a party, while Twilight Sparkle shows off her smart style, and Applejack loves to look country chic.

 

Straight from the halls of Canterlot High, the My Little Pony Equestria Girls dolls are best friends with a flair for fashion and fun!  Each doll in the collection comes stylishly dressed in an ultra-chic look and features her signature ‘cutie splash,’ a unique design similar to the cutie marks on their pony alter egos.  Each doll sold separately.

Coming soon to DVD:  My Little Pony Equestria Girls movie on DVD August 6th at major retailers across Canada.

Keep checking the My Little Pony Equestria Girls website for upcoming information and fun activities.

 

HOW TO ENTER - Leave a comment about why you'd love to win and your email address.  One entry per email address. 

 

By entering this Contest, you acknowledge that you have read, understood and accept the terms and conditions below.

 

No purchase necessary. Contest closes August 6th, 2013 at 11:59pm EST. Open to residents of Canada (excluding Quebec), who are of legal age. Limit one submitted entry per person/email address. Odds of winning depend on the total number of eligible entries received online by the contest closing date.  One winner will be chosen randomly and contacted by August 10th, 2013.  Winner will not be able to select specific doll characters.

 

 © 2013 Hasbro. MY LITTLE PONY Equestria Girls is a registered trade-marks of Hasbro, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

 

 

Fishing with kids

Every summer we spend as much time at the cottage as possible.

This is how I spent my summers growing up, and this is what I am so greatful my kids get to do.  Our cottage is 3 hours north of the city, on a gorgeous quiet lake.  It's the perfect place for the kids to grow up.

One of the things I enjoyed doing as a kid was going fishing with my parents.  After dinner we would get ourselves ready to go out on the boat and catch some fish.

I now get to do this with my kids and my parents.  Seeing my kids fish with their papa is heartwarming.  I watched my oldest go through this stage and now seeing the little ones go through it is just as fun.

This past weekend we got our first taste of summer at the cottage.  A fabulous day of swimming, a bbq dinner and of course our evening fishing time.

The kid got all dressed, protected with bug spray, put on their life jackets and were presented brand new fishing rods from their papa.

I watched my son help his papa get the boat ready to go and eagerly climb in ready to catch some fish.

Fishing with kids takes patience. And a sense of humour. In past years they were more of a spectator, they showed some interest, wanted to hold the fishing rod for 2 minutes  and then all interest was lost.

This year they became full on fishermen, or fisherwomen.  They were ready to catch some big fish.

As our fishing adventure took place I made a mental note of the events of the evening, I thought I would share my thoughts.

Things to remember when fishing with kids:

1. Save your breath telling them to be quiet that they will scare the fish away, it's not going to happen.  The louder they are the more fish you will catch

2. Pack lots of snacks.  Apparently fishing is hard work and requires constant snacking.

3. When your 5 year old learns how to cast, ensure they have a 3 foot clearance at all times, unless of course you are looking for a new nose piercing

4. When other people decide to fish near you, they will leave after the 3rd round of "eye spy" when they realize the kids only get louder.  Either that or when the fish net becomes a microphone and the kids put on a concert in the middle of the lake

5. They will want to touch every single fish that is caught, get over the gross factor

6. Peeing off the back of the boat is an adventure for a 3 year old boy.

7. The kids will drive you nuts.  But you will do it again the following night.

8. Finally, have your camera ready.  You will want to capture every single moment of the chaos that is fishing with children.

New adventures with the kids are memories made to last forever.  Happy Summer!

Strawberry picking fun with the momstown tots!

Every summer we look forward to hitting the fields of Barrie Hill Farms for some strawberry picking.

This year the humidity almost had us beat but we decided to brave the summer heat and enjoy a morning of strawberry picking fun!

 

The kids were excited as we armed ourselves with baskets and waited in the sun and heat for the wagon to pick us up and take us to the picking fields!

The kids were so excited, and I was too.  I love fresh strawberries and had vowed to make some jam.

We got out to the fields and the kids got down to picking..... and eating!

They had a blast searching for the biggest and reddest berries.  The moms had fun too.  Even though it was hot, and humid, we all had a great time!

With full baskets, full tummies, red faces and hands, we headed back to the wagon to go back to the market to take our berries home.

The fresh berries were amazingly delicious and were well worth braving the heat!!!