Friday, August 28, 2015

Today, He Is Five



It's almost too hard for me to believe that my "baby" was born 5 years ago.  Hubby and I spent the morning watching movies and waiting for the call from the OB to come in for an induction.  I had a head cold and felt like crap.  We finally got the call and went to pick up my mom; once at the hospital things got moving pretty quickly and he was born after 3 hours and 44 minutes of labour.

The doctor commented immediately on the size of his feet and said he was going to be a big boy, just like his dad.  That has held true today, and most people think he is 6 or 7 years old - based off of size alone.

I call him my little hurricane - he just doesn't seem to ever run out of energy, and the aftermath of Mr. K can be quite catastrophic.

He is such a sweet, lovable little boy though and I absolutely cannot even imagine what my life would be like without him being a part of it.


Wednesday, August 26, 2015

Shopping Made Easy With MyBraOutlet.Com



I have to say that shopping is one of my least favourite tasks.  I LOVED it in high school, and would often be found at a local mall checking out all that was offered.  That changed at some point though, and now I much prefer to be at home, away from the crowds.

Thankfully, my mother works at a clothing store and often picks me up clothes (she knows my taste and my size well) and hubby is also great at buying me items for my birthday and Christmas.  There are times where I decide to shop for myself and that is when I am grateful for the internet - online shopping makes it SO easy!

MyBraOutlet.com is a website that caters to womens lingerie and swimsuits. They have bras, panties, shape-wear and swimsuits at AMAZING prices. They carry a wide range of sizes, and also have a size chart that tells you how to measure yourself.  I received a few items and I am happy with them. The items are great quality, very comfortable and fit as they should. I was also surprised at the quick shipping time, seeing that they are coming from Estonia.

If you are on the lookout for new lingerie, I would suggest checking out the site.  They have some beautiful items.

Tales of Mommyhood received items in exchange for this review; all opinions are honest and belong to Tales of Mommyhood. Your opinion/experience may vary

WW: Froggy Came To Visit

a little froggy came to visit last week...the kids liked checking it out

Tuesday, August 25, 2015

Lunchtime Fun With Thermos Brand FUNtainers

It's that time of year again, Back To School shopping has begun.  Most parents are breathing a sigh of relief, however I always have mixed emotions about school starting up.

One of the big things with back to school is lunches. Unless your school offers a hot lunch program, you need to pack daily lunches and snacks.  Why not make it fun for the kids with Thermos Brand FUNtainers?  They have products geared at different ages and you can find some of your favourite characters now on the FUNtainers!

Our school likes to have litter-less lunches sent in with the kids, and we need a gazillion containers to make this happen.  It's nice to have an assortment to choose from, and really nice to know that when the kids take dinner leftovers for lunch, that their food will still be warm (and safe to eat) by the time lunch comes around with FUNtainers food jars.

Before placing in hot food, you do need to prep the jar a bit.  Run the tap water on hot and fill the jar, place the lid back on for 1-2 minutes and then empty out the water and replace it with your heated up food.  Secure the lid again and then you are good to go for a few hours (5 hours for hot food - you can do the same for cold food, just use cold water and food should be good for 7 hours) until lunch time!

The school is also a plastic water bottle free zone, meaning that they need to have a reusable, leak proof bottle to drink from.  The FUNtainers bottles will keep your drinks cold for 12 hours!

My kids are super excited to head back to school with the Minion and Batman FUNtainers that we were sent to try out. There are other great character options, and also fun coloured options if you want something a little more versatile!

Tales of Mommyhood received 2 sets of FUNtainers in exchange for this review.  All opinions are honest and belong to Tales of Mommyhood.  Your opinion/experience may vary.

Saturday, August 22, 2015

Rescue Bots - Dinobots DVD [review and giveaway]


It's no secret that Mr. K is pretty obsessed with Rescue Bots.  If you are a regular reader, then you know that for the last two years at Christmas, he has received Transformers and Rescue Bots.  Not only does he love to PLAY with his Rescue Bots toys, he also loves to watch them on tv. 

We have a few different DVD's with episodes on them, but when I found out the there was a new one coming out called DINOBOTS - I knew he would be thrilled.

When it arrived in the mail, he was ecstatic to watch it for the first...and second...and third + time!  

I am happy to tell you that I also have the opportunity to provide one of YOU with a copy as well! What a great item to have tucked away for a Christmas gift!  All you have to do to enter is fill out the giveaway tools form below.  Open to Canadian and US residents that are 18+. Good luck!

"More fun with everyone’s favorite Dinobots! Chase, Heatwave, Blades and Boulder are back for morerescuing adventures in Griffin Rock! This time, their adventures are going to be huge — and prehistoric! That’s right! The Dinobots are back and they’re bringing big fun back to Griffin Rock!

This heroic collection of Transformers: Rescue Bots will be released on DVD on August 25, 2015 from Shout! Factory Kids, in conjunction with Hasbro Studios. Featuring five exciting episodes that the whole family can enjoy, this DVD is priced to own with a suggested retail price of $14.93.

Executive produced by Jeff Kline (TRANSFORMERS PRIME), TRANSFORMERS RESCUE BOTS features the vocal talents of LeVar Burton (Star Trek: The Next Generation), Lacey Chabert (Party of Five), Steve Blum (TRANSFORMERS PRIME), Maurice LaMarche (Emmy® Award winner for Futurama) and the legendary Peter Cullen who voices OPTIMUS PRIME when he makes cameo appearances in the series.?

Episodes Include:
Land Before Prime
Big Game
Quarry’s Quarry
Did You See What I Thaw?
The Attack Of Humungado

Join Us For The #BloggersFete Facebook Party



August 31st is the end of our #BloggersFete event and we are planning on wrapping it up with an awesome Facebook party!  Hosted by Life, Love and the Pursuit of Play, we really hope you can all join us!

Friday, August 21, 2015

2015 Tales of Mommyhood Gift Guide #ToMGiftGuide


It's time for me to start preparing the 2015 Tales of Mommyhood Gift Guide #ToMGiftGuide.  The gift guide will go live on November 1st and new items will be added until December 15th (all items must be received by me no later than December 10th)

Tales of Mommyhood is accepting products geared towards men, women, children (ages 5-10) and families.  If you have a product geared towards babies and toddlers, I do have a reviewer that can handle those as well.

What does your brand receive?

  • Your product will be seen by Tales of Mommyhood readers and social media followers
  • Your product will receive a full review post
  • Your product review post will be linked to the ToM Gift Guide
  • Gift Guide will be promoted throughout social media channels from November 1st until December 24th
  • Your product post will receive it's own social media promotion immediately following being published
  • Option to include a giveaway with product review post
  • Optional sidebar advertising 

Guidelines For Product Submission

  • I must receive a full sized item to keep; this helps to facilitate the review
  • You must cover any shipping charges
  • Any items sent must have been approved prior, otherwise it will not be included in the ToM Gift Guide and will not be returned
  • There is a listing fee to be included in the ToM Gift Guide in addition to the product received
  • Interested in a feature with no review? That is possible as well - contact me to discuss.
I am excited to get started on the 2015 Tales of Mommyhood Gift Guide.  If you are interested in being featured in the ToM Gift Guide please send an email to ashleypicco@talesofmommyhood.com with subject line "2015 Holiday Gift Guide"

Thursday, August 20, 2015

Fun Back To School Lunches

This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions are honest and belong to Tales of Mommyhood; your opinion/experience may vary #CollectiveBias




Back to school is coming up fast - and that means making lunches again....5 times a week, for 2 kids. Any other parents out there groaning with me? I shouldn't complain too much, Mr. J is 8, and started taking over his own lunch making towards the end of school and I expect that to continue.  That means I am responsible for buying the food that goes into our cupboards/fridge and for supervising him to make sure he has good choices in his lunch box.  It also leaves me making Mr. K's lunch - although I let him pick his snacks from appropriate options, and I make the "meal" portion.

Sunday, August 16, 2015

Week 7 Update on Summer Bucket List

Week 7 has ended and I cannot believe we only have 3 weeks left. They are home this week, camp next week, and then home the last week.  Last week was filled with swimming lessons in the morning (they each passed their levels and get to move to the next one for September)  We went on a bike ride, Mr. K had a sleepover at his grandparents and we made a trek to the cottage!

#BloggersFete Instagram Round Up and Giveaway

Monday, August 17th at 9am EST begins our Instagram Round Up.  You can join us by clicking through on each of the pictures we have uploaded, following the hosts and sponsors and you will have a chance to win some fantastic prizes.

I hope you will join us! You can find all of our Instagram handles if you aren't already following us:

talesofmommyhood
heather_vmil
koalamomblog
maplemousemama
inrdream
lisa_marief

Sponsors

bumbini_diapers
shopproject30
2SistersHandcrafted

Happy Instagraming!




Saturday, August 15, 2015

S.E.A.T.S For Kids Family Fun Day #Ottawa


S.E.A.T.S for kids is non-profit organization located in Ottawa,  They are volunteer based and they help ensure our children are safe while being driven in a vehicle. They do this by running carseat clinics, information sessions, appearances at community events and more.  They offer a nationally recognized certification program as well.

They are organizing a family fun day on September 13th from 9am - 2pm and would love for you to come by with the kids.  Admission is $2/person and there will be bouncy castles, touch a truck, Little Ray's Reptiles and more.  There will be face painting available for a MIN $5 donation, as well as a silent auction for you to take part in.

The money raised is going to help keep the organization going.  It costs approximately $2000 to run their inspection clinics each time.  If you would like to help sponsor this event, or more information on the S.E.A.T.S organization, feel free to contact me (talesofmommyhood at yahoo.ca)  and I can put you in touch with the right person.

Friday, August 14, 2015

The Seventh Dwarf [review]





THE SEVENTH DWARF



Featuring All-Star Voice Cast of Peyton List, Norm Macdonald, Nina Hagen and Joshua Green




HIGHLY ANTICIPATED CG-ANIMATED MOTION PICTURE

ARRIVES ON DVD AND TWO-DISC BLU-RAY™ 3D COMBO PACK

(WITH 2D BLU-RAY + DVD + DIGITAL COPY)

IN STORES EVERYWHERE AND AVAILABLE ON VOD

AUGUST 18, 2015 FROM SHOUT! FACTORY


"This summer, venture into the wondrous world of Fantabularasa Castle and be spellbound by the exciting adventures of your favorite storybook characters in THE SEVENTH DWARF. With an exceptional voice cast ofPeyton List (Disney Channel series BUNK’D, Jessie and Diary of a Wimpy Kid), Norm Macdonald (The Middle,Saturday Night Live), internationally renowned singer and actress Nina Hagen and newcomer Joshua Graham, this new CG-animated motion picture is a hilarious mash-up of the best classic fairytales, packed with beloved storybook characters, non-stop laughs and toe-tapping songs! Directed by Harald Siepermann (Tarzan, Enchanted) and Boris Aljinovic, THE SEVENTH DWARF is a wonderfully magical movie adventure for the whole family.

On August 18, 2015, Shout! Factory is proud to present THE SEVENTH DWARF on two-disc BLU-RAY™ 3D Combo Pack, on DVD and available on VOD. The Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack allows viewers to enjoy THE SEVENTH DWARF on the platform of their choice and includes spectacular movie presentation on Blu-ray 3D and 2D, DVD and a digital copy of the movie. Enhancing both editions of the film are sing-alongs, character profiles and a downloadable Royal Birthday invitation as bonus features. THE SEVENTH DWARF can also be seen in select theaters in Los Angeles and New York on July 31, 2015.


Join all seven dwarfs for an adventure as big as they are small! It’s the eve of Princess Rose’s 18th birthday. Everyone in the kingdom has come to Fantabularasa Castle to celebrate including Snow White, the Seven Dwarfs, Cinderella and Red Riding Hood. But just before the stroke of midnight Bobo, the youngest dwarf, accidentally pricks the finger of Princess Rose (a.k.a. Sleeping Beauty) with a cursed needle and sends the kingdom into a century-long slumber! To find Rose’s true love Jack to save her with a kiss, Bobo and the other six dwarfs must go on a treacherous journey, face a fiery dragon and outwit the jealous, scheming and evil witch, Dellamorta!


Movie Runtime is 88 minutes. MPAA Rating: PG. For more information on The Seventh Dwarf, please visitwww.seventhdwarfmovie.com"



I was recently sent a copy of The Seventh Dwarf to watch with my family, and I have to say, we won't be watching it again.  Unfortunately, it didn't hold the interest of any of us and we ended up turning it off less than half way through.  Mr. J seemed to enjoy it the most, but it's not one that I would recommend.

If you are going to watch it, I would suggest that it be for older children - some of the content is a bit much for the young ones.

Tales of Mommyhood received the above product in exchange for this review. All opinions are honest and belong to ToM; your opinion/experience may vary


Thursday, August 13, 2015

De-Clutter Your Home AND Make Some Cash With VarageSale

varagesale, ottawa, ottawa for sale


Do you ever look around your house and think that you have too much stuff? I do...frequently. Then the cleaning bug hits and I go through things and make a pile in my basement of things I need to list to sell.....and it often sits their, for months....collecting dust.

Wednesday, August 12, 2015

Summer Accomplishments for Mr. J


I have written a few times about Mr. J and his fear of water.  2 years ago, he would freak out if he got his face wet.  It made swimming lessons pretty difficult, but we persevered - it's a life skill that we think is necessary.  We did private lessons to help him gain confidence without having to feel like he was behind the others in a swim class.  It took a while, but with a lot of effort on all of our parts we got him to enjoy being in the pool.

This summer, I signed each of the boys up for a week of swimming lessons. They were daily for 30 minutes, and were both in low ratio classes (3 kids/class).  Mr. J passed swim kids 1.  He has made such great strides, I wanted to keep the momentum going, so I registered them in another 1 week session - moving him up to swim kids 2.  After the 3rd class, the instructor said that I could go ahead and register him in swim kids 3 for the September session.

Afterwards we came home and he picked up one of my shoes and asked me to show him how to tie it. So I did, and that was it. He got it on his 2nd try.  We spent lots of time last summer trying to learn, with both of us getting frustrated.  Today, it just clicked with him.



Tuesday, August 11, 2015

#BloggersFete Blog Link Party



The #BloggersFete event is in full swing!  We kicked off Monday night with our twitter party, and now we want you to link up your blog!  It's a chance to find some awesome new blogs to check out and also a chance to get your blog seen and attract some new readers!

Feel free to add your link below, and spend some time over the next couple of weeks making your way through the other blogs that are linked up.  Leave some comments, share some posts if they interest you and have fun! Before linking up, be sure to check out the other five #BloggersFete hosts! This is a celebration, and what goes better with celebrations than prizes?  Link up your blog to the Mister Linky widget at the bottom of the post, and then fill out the giveaway tools form for a chance to win a pair of tickets to Toronto Oktoberfest.

Be sure to check out the Social Media linkies hosted by The Canadian Homeschooler, The Koala Mom, Maple Mouse Mama, In R Dream and Life, Love And The Pursuit Of Play 

Monday, August 10, 2015

August 10th Monday Madness Giveaway Linky



Tales of Mommyhood, giveaways, linky, monday madness

#BloggersFete Magic Canvas #Giveaway

PlaSmart has some pretty amazing products.  Our family has been the recipient of a PlasmaCar and also Hiccups.  To help us celebrate #BloggersFete, PlaSmart has now offered up a Magic Canvas for one of my readers!

Kernels Giveaway #BloggersFete

Popcorn is one of my all time favourite snacks.  I love to sit down with a big bowl of popcorn and catch up on my shows, or watch a movie with the kids and hubby.  I am hoping that you like popcorn as well, and if you do - then you are in luck!

Happy Blogiversary to Tales of Mommyhood! #BloggersFete


It's here! It's here! #BloggersFete has begun! I am teaming up with In R Dream, Maple Mouse Mama, Life, Love and The Pursuit of Play, The Canadian Homeschooler and The Koala Mom to bring you this fantastic event!

7 years ago I decided to start a blog.  I wanted a way to keep track of cute things Mr. J did, and also for family to be kept up to date.  Little did I know at the time that my "little blog" would become what it is today.

For those of you that have found Tales of Mommyhood through the #BloggersFete event - thanks for stopping by!  My name is Ashley.  My hubby, Jason, and I have been married for 9 years and we have 2 wild little boys.  Mr. J (8) and Mr. K (soon to be 5).
Visiting Paris on a family trip to Disney in January 2015
Tales of Mommyhood is my little space on the web where I write about our family life, post reviews and giveaways, and sometimes recipes that our family loves.  I love getting to know my readers, so please feel free to leave me a comment (I always love seeing the comment awaiting moderation pop up when I login!)

Sunday, August 9, 2015

#BloggersFete Twitter Party Terms and Conditions

The #BloggersFete twitter party is not endorsed by twitter; it is being run by @tlsofmommyhood, @MapleMouseMama, @cdnhomeschooler, @Heather_vmil, @inRdream and @KoalaMom - further referred to as "co-hosts".  It is open for anyone to join in.  Only Canadian residents (excluding Quebec) are eligible to win prizes.

To be eligible to win, you must have RSVP'd, engage on the #BloggersFete hashtag between 8pm EST and 9pm EST August 10, 2015 AND be following the 6 co-hosts and 7 twitter party sponsors (this information is found on the RSVP page)

There will be 8 random winners throughout the party - drawn from the RSVP list and using Random.Org to pick the winning numbers. Party is open to anyone but prizing is only open to Canadian residents (excluding Quebec).

Winners will be notified on twitter from the @cdnhomeschooler account and will have 24 hours to submit prize claim form or they will forfeit their prize.  Name and address information will be shared with the sponsors of the prize for shipping purposes only.   Co-hosts are NOT responsible for prize fulfillment. By taking part in the #BloggersFete twitter party, you release these bloggers from any liability whatsoever, and waive any and all causes of action, related to any claims, costs, injuries, losses or damages of any kind arising out of or in connection with the giveaway or delivery, mis-delivery or acceptance of any prize.


Friday, August 7, 2015

#BloggersFete Sponsor Spotlight

#bloggersfete, sponsor spotlight, prizes, contests, twitter party, facebook party


The 6 of us bloggers were so excited to be celebrating our Blogiversaries that we decided to put together this #BloggersFete event!  We know that our readers all like to win, so we managed to get some sponsors involved for prizes.

A big thank you to the businesses that donated prizes for us to use on our blogs and at the live events.

Tuesday, August 4, 2015

Get Your Family Game On With Hasbro

We are a board game loving family.  Last summer, Mr. J and I played monopoly a lot - I used it to help him improve his math skills.  I have been wanting to play scrabble with him as well, to help him with spelling - not to mention it is one of my favourite games, but hubby isn't a fan so I don't have anyone to play it with.

Hasbro wants YOU to get your family game on!  From August 1st - August 31 2015, bring in your monopoly money to Toys R Us , and receive 20% off the purchase price of Hasbro board games.

I was sent a Family Game Night package to help facilitate a game night for our family. We started off playing Trouble, and then moved on to The Game of Life.  Our next family game night will probably be Scrabble.
Hasbro, family game night, monopoly, scrabble, trouble, twister, board game

To celebrate this promotion, Hasbro is offering my readers the chance to win a prize pack valued at over $100!  The prize package includes the following games:

Monopoly (ARV 19.99)
Twister (ARV 19.99)
The Game of Life (ARV 24.99)
Scrabble (ARV 19.99)
Trouble (ARV 16.99)
Total ARV $101.95

This giveaway is open to Canadian residents only (excluding Quebec) that are 18+. Full rules can be found in the giveaway tools form below, which you will need to complete to enter.

Good luck!


Monday, August 3, 2015

#BloggersFete Twitter Party

#bloggersfete, twitter party, blogiversary, tales of mommyhood, prizes, fun,

We are getting so close to the #BloggersFete event and we will be kicking it off on August 10th with a twitter party at 8pm EST.  We would love to have you join us for the party - so please use the linky form below to RSVP.

Sunday, August 2, 2015

Summer Bucket List - Update Week 5

Week 5 has ended. We didn't accomplish anything on our bucket list this week, but they had a wonderful time.  This week they each got to have some one on one time with their grandma, and that meant they each got to have a short date with me!  They completed a week of swimming lessons - Mr. J has now passed onto swim kids level 2 - which is amazing - to think that even last summer he was still nervous around water. You would never know now that up until he was 6 he was TERRIFIED of swimming.  

Saturday, August 1, 2015

Marvel Universe Live - A Fun Outing For All Super Hero Fans


Tales of Mommyhood received tickets in exchange for this post and the previous giveaway run on the blog.  All opinions are honest and belong to Tales of Mommyhood. Your opinion/experience may vary

We had the opportunity to attend Marvel Universe Live at the Canadian Tire Center today.  I have known for a few months, but we didn't tell the boys until this morning. To say that they were a TAD bit excited is an understatement.

Hubby ended up sick and not able to join us, so it was a mommy son date today!  When we arrived we picked up our tickets, had a look at the merchandise and found our seats.

The boys wanted sno cones and popcorn (be warned - it's NOT cheap).  I was aware that it would be expensive, so I was prepared.

We excitedly awaited the start of the show, and it was definitely worth attending.  My boys are super hero obsessed (like a lot of other children) and they were thrilled to see their favourite Marvel characters live.
Marvel Universe Live, Ottawa, Canadian Tire Center, super heros, Feld entertainment

Know Before You Go:
  • there is onsite parking for a fee (we paid $11)
  • no outside food or drink permitted
  • they do check bags
  • merchandise for sale when you walk in - front and center. Most items ranged between $25 and $40.00
  • face painting is available off to the side for a fee ($15)
  • the first act is approximately 35 minutes, then a 15 minute intermission and the last act is approximately 45 minutes
  • tickets are still available for purchase for the shows today and tomorrow at Capital Tickets - or onsite at the box office
  • it is loud, so if you have children that startle easily, consider using noise cancelling headphones
  • the show is action packed, and there is violence 
I highly recommend this show for anyone that is a Marvel fan, or that has super hero loving children! It is action packed - my favourite parts were the tricks/stunts on the motor bikes!  

August 3rd Monday Madness Giveaway Linky....posted early

August has arrived....I sit here trying to think how I feel about summer so far and can't help but feel that we are nowhere near done our bucket list.  Some items haven't been crossed off because of illness (Mr. J was ill when we were supposed to go mini golf and go karting, and I was ill when we were supposed to go for ice cream.  We have gone for ice cream since, but not to the place on the list).  The kids have fought a ridiculous amount, they have played outside for hours, had a little more screen time than I had planned, and made a LOT of wonderful memories....so I should be happy with the way things have turned out.  I don't like to over-plan things, and I think the way things have fallen into place this year has been pretty good.  I hope to make the most of the rest of the summer with the boys, because soon enough they will be back in school.

Tales of Mommyhood, giveaways, linky, monday madness