Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Nutrition Facts Table: #FocusOnTheFacts

This post is a sponsored post. All opinions are my own.

Have you ever looked at the back of any packages of food you buy at the grocery store? They have a Nutrition Facts Table (NFt)on them.  The information contained tells you what the serving size is (and you would probably be surprised to see what an actual serving is compared to what you are putting on your plate or in your bowl). Next, you can see the percent daily value (%dv) of the nutrients that are in it (calcium, iron, vitamin a, vitamin d etc).

Once you have found the %dv, you can tell whether or not a serving has a little or a lot of nutrients. A little would be less than 5 %dv, and a lot would be more than 15 %dv.  This will help you know if you are reaching the recommended amounts, and how many servings are needed to get there.

It's important to me that my family gets the proper nutrients in the food we eat.  I try and buy fresh fruits and vegetables as much as possible, and incorporate them into many of our meals and snacks. We also eat meat, poultry, fish and dairy products, and while I have a HUGE sweet tooth, I try and make sure to keep a good balance in all of what we eat.

Will you start checking the facts on your next grocery trip? If you want to #FocusOnTheFacts you can enter to win a $100 Grocery Gift Card - I am sure that would come in handy to help you start checking the facts!  If you think it would - then use the giveaway tools form below to enter for your chance to win.  This giveaway is open to Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) that are 18+ Full rules can be found on the giveaway tools form. This will run from February 24th until 1159pm EST March 2nd 2016.

Good luck!

Monday, February 22, 2016

Playtime Fun With Play-Doh Town!


Most kids love to play with Play-Doh. Between the feel of it squishing between your hands, and the endless creativity that can go along with Play-Doh - it can definitely provide hours of fun.

Now, they can have fun with Play-Doh Town!  They can build their little town with the buildings and other accessories that are available, all while having fun with Play-Doh! There are many sets available - Firehouse Playset, Fire Truck Playset, Ice Cream Truck Playset, Hairdresser and bird figure, Roadworker and Pup figure, Pet Store Playset, Pizza Delivery Playset and Police Officer and Vehicle.  They range in price from $14.99-$29.99. These are great price points for birthday gifts!

We were sent 3 of the sets to see for ourselves and with 2 snow days in a row last week, it was the perfect time to get them out for some fun!

The recommended age is 3+, and I would say it's good until age 5 or 6.



Wednesday, February 17, 2016

Fun Family Adventures in Nassau, Bahamas


Growing up I always dreamed of visiting The Bahamas - I thought it would be a wonderful place to relax on the beach with drink in hand.  It's not a place I ever thought of taking a family though.  My friend at Tales of A Ranting Ginger has an article with activities great for families.

Monday, February 15, 2016

Bollywood North

I have known for a while that some Canadian cities seem to be high on the list to act as backdrop for many Hollywood movies. There are many different landscapes available in Canada, with choices from big cities or wilderness adventures.

In addition to the numerous locations available, also offers studios very lucrative tax incentives for filming in the Great White North and the professionals that make up our film industry’s supportive roles (everything from set designers to makeup artists) have received critical accolades and have been deemed second to none.

Even though I knew that there were many places like Toronto, Calgary, Montreal, and Vancouver playing host to film crews and celebrities, it definitely surprised me to learn that Canada has also been gaining notoriety under a new banner when it comes to filmmaking: Bollywood North.

On this side of the pond, one doesn’t normally consider the sheer magnitude of India’s film industry. With a domestic population of well over a billion people (and climbing), releasing a film in India has the potential to reach untold millions – making it one of the most lucrative film markets in the world.

Producing Bollywood Films in Canada Bringing New Challenges to the Industry’s Professionals

While I love the movies coming out of Hollywood, I often hear complaints that it seems they are either producing more and more sequels or that new releases so closely follow another film’s plot that it might as well be classified as a reboot. To put it simply, some of the offerings coming out of Hollywood are just tired – for lack of a better term.

For the Canadian audience, producing a new type of cinema in their own backyard could provide the industry some much needed variety – bringing with it stories inspired by life in another culture or at the very least, a difference in the way stories are told. And while I think that diversity does wonders for the movie going public in Canada, I can only imagine the exciting new opportunities that lay before the many qualified professionals that make up the film industry.

Think of the costume designer charged with designing brilliantly coloured robes for a historical Indian film, or the artist who must apply traditional makeups to scores of dancers for a Canadian-produced Indian musical. Possibly more exciting still is being on the cusp of this new genre, and playing a role in laying the foundation of what will one day become the standard.

Just a Few Recommendations on What Bollywood North Has to Offer

For those of you interested in checking out some other genres, these films have been recommended to me:

1. Tum Bin (2001)
2. Bollywood/Hollywood (2002)
3. Kal Ho Naa Ho
4. Neal ‘n’ Nikki (2005)
5. Apne (2007)
6. Thank You (2011)

The nice thing about these films is that some address the difficulty of being an immigrant in a new land, a storyline that many in the audience may be able to identify with; others are comedies or dramas – but the one thing that unifies them is that they all bring a unique flavour to the silver screen.

Wednesday, February 10, 2016

Walt Disney World Fastpass Worthy Rides



The idea behind the Fastpass is to pre-book a time range to arrive and ride a particular attraction. You have a 1-hour time frame to show up in, and the cast member at the gate will scan your band to see that you have arrived at the correct time.  The Fastpass system is completely free to use, and is pretty simple once you get used to it.

There are 2 gates when you approach the ride or attraction. Standby and Fastpass. If you have a reserved Fastpass, you go to that line. *MOST times, you can walk on to the ride, or have a very minimal wait.  Standby is a regular line.  There will be a time above the sign letting you know the approximate wait time.

Wednesday, February 3, 2016

10 Movie Choices For Valentine's Day


Valentine's Day is around the corner, and it's the perfect time to cuddle up and watch a movie.  I have put together a list of my favourite romance movies:

Monday, February 1, 2016

Travelling To The Florida Keys


Florida is pretty much the only travel destination I have been to.  I stayed in Kissimmee for 2 weeks in high school, spending time at some of the theme parks in the area and hanging out by the hotel pool.  Other than that, I have only been to Disney (3 trips).  I have often thought about visiting the Florida Keys (ever since hearing the Beach Boys song "Kokomo" when I was a little girl) - I just haven't made that happen yet.

My friend Sandy from Canadian Blog House had a chance to visit earlier this year, and it made me want to go even more.