It’s not easy being a male baby model!

Of course every parent believes that their baby or child is the cutest, and John and I were no exception. In fact, the first thing that my husband John said when Kyle was born was “he’s so cute!”* over and over again.

When Kyle was around 3 months, my brother and sister-in-law were telling me about a friend of theirs who had her son with a modeling agency. I contacted their friend (thanks Jenn) and asked her what she thought about the agency and the overall experience. She said that it was actually a lot of fun! So I immediately went and signed Kyle up. It wasn’t long before we received an e-mail for his first photo shoot. It was a cover-shoot for a Harlequin romance novel, how could I say no 😉 For those of you picturing Kyle with his shirt off rescuing a girl baby from a burning building, it wasn’t quite that cool. He was wearing a sailor’s outfit though!  And it was a lot of fun.

Bizzy Bee Playcentre – Giveaways – winners selected: Frillygirly & Reejsaad

Thanks to everyone who entered our contest.  The winners have been selected!  Frillygirly won entrance to the Princesses in Training workshop on April 28th and Reejsaad won one free day of summer camp.  CONGRATULATIONS! (Please e-mail me at mayay@rogers.com for details on how to claim your price).

A few weeks ago, on a dreary weekend day in Toronto (unlike the weather we’re currently experiencing), my husband and I decided to hit up a local play center with our son Kyle. It was too cold to play outside, so we were stuck in-doors or running around doing errands most of the weekend until we realized we didn’t do anything “fun” for Kyle. So we got in our van and headed to Bizzy Bee Play center in the Beach. I wasn’t really sure what to expect, but I was definitely pleasantly surprised.  Bizzy Bee was vibrant with happy kids playing with every kind of toy imaginable, going down slides and running around with enormous  grins on their faces. It wasn’t hard to see why the kids were having so much fun, the place was FULL of toys, activities and crafts. Everything was kept nice and clean and tidy considering the amount of kids that were there. Brenda, the owner, an early childhood educator, ensures that the place is kept safe and enjoyable for everyone.

A war hero, undercover cop, entrepreneur and foster parent: My dad, my hero!

My dad heard a loud noise, he could smell something burning and his tank began to shake. He felt a ton of pressure, like someone was holding him paralyzed against the tank’s wall. Parts of the tank starting crashing into his face and body and suddenly it become eerily quiet.

______________________________________________________________________

Growing up I’ve always admired my dad. He has managed to experience some of the most life-changing experiences, filled with ups and downs, and through it all, he has always maintained a positive attitude with a smile on his face. He’s one of the most generous people I know, with a heart the size of Niagara Falls (both the U.S. and Canada sides combined). My dad’s life story, although nowhere near the end, is so amazing and inspiring, I wanted to share it with the world. I couldn’t be prouder of my dad, his accomplishments, and positive outlook on life. I believe we can all learn to live each day to the fullest after hearing his story.

Being born in Jerusalem, Israel, my dad was drafted to the army, like everyone else, when he was 18 1/2 years old. He joined the Armour unit and began three months of general studies before beginning more intensive training. For two months, he studies with the combat unit and learned everything about the M48 Patton tanks. He was specializing as the gunner of his tank unit but he was still trained in all other areas including; ammunition, driving, computer use and tank maintenance. In total, he had seven months of training before being deployed in Egypt.

Getting Pregnant 101 – Guest Post

My guest writer is Jenn, a loving wife and mother of two sweet boys.  She has written a beautiful post about the ups and downs of trying to conceive.  I’m so glad she is sharing her story with us, because I know there’s many people who have gone through this as and can relate.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

You know it’s coming…you just finished walking down the aisle and have yet to enjoy the real honeymoon, when countless inquiring minds ask “so when are you having a baby?!” My husband and I had always been upfront about our intentions of having children to our family and friends. Our plan was to purchase our first home, enjoy some time together as a married couple and then take the plunge! Nevertheless, any time my husband or I came close to a baby, or dare I say hold a baby, we’d set ourselves up for scrutiny!

Fast forward a few years later; the house is bought, we feel that we’ve gotten a handle on married life, and decide it’s about that time. Easy, right? We never would have thought it would be another two years before we actually got to hold that sweet baby we always dreamed of in our arms.

This too shall pass – Guest post!!!

While I’m on vacation, my loving and wise cousin Jenny, has graciously offered to write a guest post for my blog.  It’s easy to see she’s been a great mother to Lily from this sweet post about stages, phases and the passing of time.  I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I have.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

I know many of you that are reading Maya’s blog have younger children.  I am the mother of a “tween”.  I enjoy reading Maya’s blog, it brings back lovely memories.  You see, it’s true what they say, once you have kids, time seems to pass very quickly.  Maybe it is because you have specific stages with which to identify the passage of time; such as when Lily was taking naps, when Lily was in preschool, or when Lily was in grade school.  For me, there is a large block of time in my life, between college graduation and motherhood that seems to just meld together.

Maui with Baby. What to see and do!

Last year we were fortunate enough to go to Hawaii through my husband’s work.  Kyle was turning 6 months while we were there.  So while I stressed out about what to pack, I was very excited to be heading to Maui.  My husband and I had always considered going to Hawaii for our honeymoon, but we ended up flying east instead. I was sooo excited to finally enjoy this piece of paradise for two weeks.

The view from our balcony

We arrived a week before the work-paid part of the trip and stayed at Kahana Sunset (http://www.kahanasunset.com/) on the West side of Maui.  I can’t recommend this place enough!  It’s one of the few places to have only a 2-story building and a private beach.  Oh ya, this place is so nice, a family of sea turtles have decided to make Kahana Sunset their private beach home as well!  Which means, you will get to swim FOR FREE every day with sea turtles (if you’re not freaked out by it – they look huge underwater).  This was a dream of mine for as long as I can remember (I have a slight turtle obsession) and I couldn’t believe I got to enjoy it at my “new home away from home”.  I really think that this accommodation is one of the best kept secrets in Maui.

Is it a boy or a girl? Only the cupcakes know! (the best baby gender reveal EVER!!)

There are two very different views when it comes to finding out a baby’s gender*.  Some people can’t wait to find out as soon as possible (generally around 18 – 20 weeks), while others prefer to keep it as a “surprise” until they deliver.  John and I are in the camp of “can’t wait to find out” and we did as soon as possible.  My mom was also with us at the ultrasound, and we immediately called the rest of our family to share the news with them.  Later on in the day, we also posted the news that we’re having a BOY on Facebook (of course!).

However, our good friends Andrea and Mike wanted the best of both worlds.  They wanted to know their baby’s gender but also wanted the element of surprise.  And so, to make their special day even more amazing, they decided to throw an intimate (immediate family only) baby gender reveal party.