Wednesday, December 30, 2015

Top 5 Posts For 2015

I did some digging to see what the most popular posts on Tales of Mommyhood were in 2015.  I have the top 5 listed below:

  1. People really like to know where kids can eat free. West Ottawa Restaurants Where Kids Eat Free was my #1 post for the year (and it was published in the spring)
  2. Kids health is popular as well - my post on Mr. K's vision had the second highest views
  3. I wrote a list of ways to help when kids are in hospital. A question that isn't easy to answer when you are in the middle of it.  This had the 3rd highest views for the year.
  4. If you will be flying with young kids, then you won't want to miss my tips for flying with them!
  5. Disney posts always do well also, and my recap of The Pirates League experience at WDW was also very popular
The above posts are my top evergreen posts.  Most of my highest viewed posts were giveaways, which are not relevant now as they have finished.

Do you have a favourite post from Tales of Mommyhood? Feel free to let me know what it is in the comments,  or what you would like to see more of in the year ahead!

Monday, December 28, 2015

December 28th Monday Madness Giveaway Linky



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Christmas has come and gone - I hope you had a wonderful few days with family and friends.  We had a great time celebrating with each of our families, and our children enjoyed it as well.

Thursday, December 24, 2015

Merry Christmas 2015

 
I would like to wish you, my wonderful readers, a very Merry Christmas.  This is a bit of a strange year, and our weather has definitely not been normal for December.  I have experienced a few green Christmases in my life, but I don't remember ever having temperatures warm enough on Christmas eve to be outside in a sleeveless top.

I picked up a few last minute grocery items this morning and I didn't need a jacket - it was very odd. Personally, I find that snow adds a certain magic to Christmas, and it always takes me a lot longer to get into the Christmas mood without it.

This year, the boys are super excited.  They are hoping to catch Santa tonight (they hope this every year and always end up falling asleep long before he arrives).

We always go to my mothers house dinner on Christmas Eve.  My family is all together, we eat, chat and have fun.  When we come home the boys leave out cookies and milk for Santa, and we also read Twas The Night Before Christmas.  When the story is done, we leave the book by the cookies for Santa - and he signs it every year!  This is a tradition that my parents did with us growing up, and I knew I wanted to continue with my children.

Merry Christmas to all of you - thank you for your support in 2015, and I am really looking forward to what 2016 will bring!

Ashley P.

Monday, December 21, 2015

December 21st Monday Madness Giveaway Linky



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Hard to believe that Christmas is only a few days away.  Are you finished your shopping? If not, be sure to check out the 2015 Gift Guide . We hosted our annual Christmas party with friends this weekend and had a lot of fun (and lots of food...too much, lots left over)

Disney On Ice 100 Years of Magic is BACK in Ottawa this February! {giveaway}

We really enjoy taking our kids to Disney on Ice shows.  We have been the last 2 years and are excited to go back again this year!
"Grab your Mickey ears and get ready for the ultimate Disney experience at Disney On Icecelebrates 100 Years of Magic! Be charmed by a cast of over 50, with Mouse-ter of Ceremonies Mickey Mouse, sweetheart Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy and Disney Princesses including Cinderella, Rapunzel, Ariel, Snow White and Tiana. Relive the magic of Disney’s Frozen with Anna, Elsa and the hilarious Olaf as they discover that true love is the greatest magic of all. Sing-along to over 30 unforgettable songs including “Let It Go,” “You’ve Got a Friend in Me,” and “Hakuna Matata.” Exciting moments from Disney Pixar’s Toy Story, Finding Nemo, Disney’s The Lion King,Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and more will leave the whole family with memories to last a lifetime. Show off your moves at the Disney Magic of Healthy Living dance-along pre-show inspired by the Disney Healthy Living commitment as the celebration of the century skates into your hometown!"
Disney on Ice will be in Ottawa from February 24th until February 28th 2016.  There are many shows available and tickets can be purchased from Capital Tickets.  Ticket prices start as low as $15.  If you are looking for an experience gift to give to someone this Christmas, tickets to one of these shows would be a great idea!

February 24, 2016 7:00 p.m.
February 25, 2016 10:30 a.m. 7:00 p.m.
February 26, 2016 7:00 p.m.
February 27, 2016 11:00 a.m. 3:00 p.m. 7:00 p.m.
February 28, 2016 11:00 a.m. 3:00 p.m. (in French) 

Tales of Mommyhood has partnered with Feld Family Entertainment to offer you the chance to WIN 4 tickets to opening night (7 pm Wednesday, February 24th, 2016 - Canadian Tire Center). Must be a Canadian resident (excluding Quebec) over the age of 18, and able to make it to the show in Kanata.

To enter for your chance to win this awesome prize pack, complete the form below - good luck!

Tales of Mommyhood received complimentary tickets in exchange for this post

Sunday, December 20, 2015

Simple, Fun Christmas Craft For Kids - Popsicle Stick Rudolph

The kindergarten classes at my sons school do a "craft-o-rama" day the week before Christmas break. Each class has 5-6 parent volunteers come in and lead a Christmas/Winter themed craft.  We design the craft ourselves, bring in a pre-made model and then the kids are split into small groups and go through each craft station.

Last year I made candy cane ornaments with them, and this year we made popsicle stick rudolphs.

The kids in class had a difficult time making a triangle with the popsicle sticks (the glue was wet, so they kept slipping off). Depending on your kids, you may want to make that part ahead of time so the glue can dry.

What you need:

Popsicle Sticks (3 per person)
Red paint or red pom poms (1 each) for the nose
Googly Eyes (2 each)
White glue
Construction paper antlers
Pipe Cleaner or ribbon (if you want to hang it on the tree)

If you want to paint the sticks brown, you could do that too. It would take a little while to dry before gluing them together.

Saturday, December 19, 2015

Fantastic Four Blu-Ray Available December 15th

The perfect gift for any MARVEL fan in your life! Fantastic Four was released for home viewing on December 15th.

"The FANTASTIC FOUR make a triumphant return with MARVEL’s next generation of heroes — four young outsiders who teleport to an alternate universe, their physical forms altered in shocking ways. Their lives changed forever, Reed Richards (“MR. FANTASTIC”), Sue Storm (“INVISIBLE WOMAN”), Johnny Storm (“THE HUMAN TORCH”) and Ben Grimm (“THE THING”) must harness their incredible new powers and work together to save Earth from a former friend turned enemy, the infamous DR. DOOM."
Feel free to download these free printables (right click, save as and then print from your computer)


My kids were so excited when our copy of the movie arrived, and they can't wait to watch it.  This will be watched on our next family movie night!

Wednesday, December 16, 2015

Tales of Mommyhood's Top Picks From Hasbro for 2015


We are big fans of Hasbro toys and games in our household.  They have items that are great for all ages, and I am going to list a few of our top picks below!

Rescue Bots have been the center of most of Mr. K's gifts (birthday and Christmas) since he was 3 - I knew that I would have to include some on our list.

The Playskool Heroes Transformers Rescue Bots High Tide rig is an awesome gift for any Rescue Bots fan in your life!  Mr. K has spent a lot of time playing with it.

With Mr. K getting older now, he also loves the regular Transformers characters, and any of those such toys will never go wrong with him.  This 3 step Grimlock will be under the tree for him this year!  He also showed interest in the Roar to Rescue Bumblebee (easy to change modes)

Minions are also huge with my two little boys, and this Despicable Me 2 version of the classic game Operation is sure to be a hit. This is a great game to play that can help with hand/eye co-ordination! If you are looking for a "family" gift to give, this would be one to consider.

My Little Pony's are popular again (I had a huge collection when I was a little girl) and the Sweet Apple Juice stand would be a great addition for any pony fan in your life!


Tales of Mommyhood was sent these items in exchange for inclusion in our 2015 Christmas Gift Guide.  All opinions are honest and belong to ToM. Your opinion/experience may vary

Monday, December 14, 2015

December 14th Monday Madness Giveaway Linky



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10 days until Christmas Eve! Are you ready? I am finished my baking, have gifts purchased but they still need to be wrapped.  We cleaned up the boys rooms yesterday and while we were at it we had them choose a few things to donate.  I will be spending some time this week getting those items out of the house.

Tuesday, December 8, 2015

Snow Shoveling - Do Your Kids Get Involved?


Growing up I can remember helping out my parents with the snow shoveling.  I may not have always enjoyed being outside shoveling, but it was something we did.  My brother and I would often do our neighbours drive way as well.

As we got older, my dad ended up with a snow blower, but when he wasn't home we still had to shovel. After he died, we only had a few snowfalls that winter before my mom got out the Yellow Pages and found a snow plow company. She hired them for the rest of the winter, and has continued using a plow service ever since.

When hubby and I got our house, his parents gave us their old snow blower as they were buying a new one.  It was definitely nice to have, but hubby has this obsession with a clear drive way, so he still uses a shovel to scrape the driveway right down.

I didn't do much shoveling until I was home with the kids.  If it's a nice day, I would bundle them up and go out to "play" in the snow. From the time our kids could walk, we had them out helping us. They wouldn't do much other than play in the snow, but they were with us as this was happening.  As they got older and could handle a shovel, they would help with the walk way. Now that they are older, the kids will help dad with the driveway, and have now learned from hubby about how to scrape up the last remaining snow left.

Our previous neighbours had a snowplow service, but my kids would often shovel the walkway and steps for them.  Most of the time they would do this without prompting from us.

When I look at other houses around us, I am surprised that I don't see more kids out helping.  I know that a LOT of people have started using plow services, or they have a snow blower - but I am amazed at how many families don't seem to get the kids involved in snow clearing.

This year we haven't had much shoveling to do - yet. I know it is coming though, and we will be making sure the kids pitch in to help.

Monday, December 7, 2015

December 7th Monday Madness Giveaway Linky



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Happy Monday everyone - first Monday in December. I hope that you all had a wonderful weekend! I have been enjoying spending time listening to Christmas music and sitting by my tree!

Thursday, December 3, 2015

Stocking Stuffers To Help With Dry Skin


Every winter the weather plays havoc with my skin.  Having the heat on makes the house a little dry, and that transfers over to my skin, my hair and my lips.  I am not the only one feeling this way, and skinfix has you covered!

The skinfix Lip Repair Balm, Ultra Rich Hand Cream and Ultra Rich Body Butter would make great additions to a stocking this Christmas.

I really liked that they helped with the dryness, but didn't leave my lips and skin feeling greasy like some creams can.  It helped add some moisture.

I am normally not a fan of hand creams. I find that they leave my hands smelling nice, but then when I eat I am tasting the fragrance.  The skinfix Ultra Rich Hand Cream is fragrance free and absorbs quite quickly into the skin.

Tales of Mommyhood received the above products in exchange for being included in the 2015 Gift Guide.  All opinions are honest and belong to ToM. Your opinion/experience may vary.

Tuesday, December 1, 2015

Bundled Up Boys With Baffin Boots

Mr. K throwing a snowball at his brother

My boys love to spend time outside. It doesn't matter to them what the temperature is, -40 or +40 and they will be asking me to go outside and play.  I LOVE this about them. They have such diverse interests like climbing trees, playing video games, inventing games with their imagination, and in the winter climbing snow banks and having snowball fights.

Living in Ottawa, our winter temperatures can vary, and it could be -40 with windchill one day, and -5 no wind the next.  We need to be prepared for it all, and the cold doesn't stop our lives from continuing.  I was introduced to Baffin Boots 2 years ago, and I fell in love with them.  It was the first winter I played outside with the kids without having cold feet.

Both the boys needed new boots this year so I decided to check out Baffin's kids line. I love that they have boots with coverage to -60.  Mr. K's boots are good to temperature levels of -40, and Mr. J's to -60.
Mr. K loves the flames on the side of the boots
His boots are the Flame Jrs and have the fastener to tighten the straps, which I find works well for the little ones. It's super quick to get them tightened.

We are having fairly mild temperatures, and only one day of snow (with a very little amount) that they haven't had a good chance to test them out.  Mr. K wore his to school the day we had our first (and only) snowfall.

Mr. J received the Young Eiger in black.  He hasn't worn his yet, and he refuses to let me take a picture while trying them on.  One of the things I really like about his boots is that the white strips on them are reflective (which you can see in the photo below)

These boots have velcro straps across the front, and a fastener at the top to tighten the gap.  They are a little bulkier than the boots that he is used to wearing, so that is something to keep in mind. They are super warm however, and great for playing outside.

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