My one year blogiversary!

One year ago I came up with a crazy idea to start my blog.  I can’t believe it’s already been a year and I can’t believe people are actually reading my blog.  At the time, I didn’t even know what a blog was; but I had so many stories to share and write about my life as a parent. When I first started, I was hoping that at least a handful of my friends would read my blog and that I would get a few followers (20 to be exact).  But here’s what has unfolded since my idea came to fruition.

• I have written a total of 64 posts (including this one)
• I’ve had over 44,000 unique views on my blog (approx. 3,667 views a month)
• On my best day, I had 4,514 views
• My top 5 most popular blog posts are 1) Communicating through Baby Sign Language – plus a Course Giveaway! 2) The start and end to my skydiving career 3) The church of the flying spaghetti monster?!?! Is this for real? 4) It’s not easy being a male baby model! 5) Is it a boy or a girl? Only the cupcakes know! (the best baby gender reveal EVER!!)
• My post “The start and end to my skydiving career” got Freshly Pressed on WordPress
• Top Views by Country are: Canada, United States, United Kingdom, Australia, India and Israel
• I did a total of 6 giveaways
• I had 6 guest posts (big thanksto all of my guest writers)

My favourite things for newborn babies

I may not be Oprah (okay, I’m nowhere near like Oprah), but I have my own list of favourite things.  Specifically, for newborn babies.  With the holiday season upon us, and the birth of our second child around the corner, it got me in the mood for some shopping! Okay, I’m always in the mood for shopping, but more so now…

Here’s a list of my favourite items (along with some input from my other mommy friends) that I think every parent of a newborn should have:

1. Velcro swaddle.  Kyle was a great sleeper and I attribute this to the fact that we swaddled him consistently.  In fact, we kept swaddling him until he was 6 months old!  A bit longer than most people would like to admit to, but hey, it worked (for all of us). Another one recommended by my friend is the Miracle Blanket.

Awesome work benefits for parents

Prior to my current gig as a stay-at-home-mom (SAHM), I worked for a large, multi-national corporation.  While the pay was decent, the benefits were better.  Specifically, they had some great benefits to assist parents. You know, the work-life balance thing.  Beyond the standard paternity / maternity leave and top-up, and work-life-balance workshops, my work offered a flexible spending account.  We each had $1,500 a year that we could use for any of the following:

• Contribute a portion to your RRSP
• Use for professional services such as getting a Will made
• Use for gym membership or for products that will help you stay fit (shoes, workout equipment, Garmen watch, etc…)
• Use towards other services that will help with your work-life balance such as babysitter, snow plowing or grass mowing services.

Holiday Entertaining Made Easy. Pickle Barrel Catering Review

If you’re anything like me, you love entertaining.  Ever since we bought our house almost seven years ago we’ve found many excuse to have people over.  House warming party, birthday parties, holidays, engagement parties, BBQs on warm summer days, mommy-group play dates, meet the baby, hosting guests from out-of-town, girls night in, clothes swap, super bowl parties and every other excuse I could find.  We’ve probably hosted 50 + events at our place and we’re not stopping anytime soon.

However, if you’re also like me, you’re not into cooking.  I know so many people who love to cook and bake as a way to relax.  But for me, I cook to stay alive and to feed my family something other than cereal, cream-cheese bagels, and Kraft-Dinner.  In fact, I only started cooking about four years ago.  So while I’ve hosted several parties, I did what any decent business would do, I outsourced the part that I wasn’t good – FOOD.

With the holiday season upon us, toddler in tow, my very pregnant self and lack of experience (or desire) for cooking large meals, I once again decided to outsource what I feel is the most important part of entertaining.  I got a chance to try out the amazing holiday feast offered by Pickle Barrel Catering while I had my family over for a pre-holiday, holiday dinner.  This simple, yet delicious and traditional meal is perfect for holiday entertaining. It comes with easy reheating instructions and there’s plenty to offer for  vegetarians.

Here’s what you can expect to receive (http://picklebarrelcatering.com/featured-menu/complete-turkey-holiday-dinner.html):

A whole turkey roasted, pre-carved and decorated or ready to be carved and enjoyed; accompanied by stuffing, gravy and cranberry sauce. This ready made meal for your holiday celebration also includes butternut squash soup, mixed greens salad and your choice of herb roasted mini potatoes, maple mashed sweet potatoes, or garlic mashed potatoes, choice of green beans with caramelized onions and almonds or roasted root vegetables, and a crumble top apple pie and an assorted fresh fruit platter for dessert!

For $25.99 per person, this meal is definitely affordable, especially considering how much food you get.  If you were to eat out, you would never receive so much “bang for your buck”.  Even after feeding six people, we had enough left-overs for a week and if there’s one thing I love more than a turkey dinner its having left-overs the next day.

Rose Reisman, who helped create the menus for Pickle Barrel has some great tips for easy entertaining on her blog: http://www.artoflivingwell.ca/blog/easy-entertaining-tips/  I also had a chance to speak to her and here’s a few of my favourite tips:

1. Inquire of potential allergies and have an option of chicken, fish and vegetarian dishes
2. Ask for help from your guests or hire help if you think you’ll need it.
3. Set the table ahead of your guests’ arrival
4. To involve the kids with the meal, make something special for them (i.e. cheese pizza’s instead of pizza with various toppings) and let them play pretend that they’re servers or cooks.
5. Hire a babysitter to keep the kids occupied (arts, reading, playing) in a separate room while you’re entertaining your friends
6. Let the kids in on the fun.  They may stay up later than usual, but they’ll probably behave themselves knowing that they’re included in the celebration.

The holiday feast is available to order now through December 31st.  The Pickle Barrel even delivers on Christmas Day!  You can place your order online here: http://picklebarrelcatering.com/holiday-entertaining-menus.html or by phone at 416.493.4333

So any of you moms or parents out there who want a traditional holiday meal but don’t have all day to prepare it, this is a GREAT alternative.

Confessions of a stay at home mom (SAHM)

I always imagined that being a stay at home mom would allow me to do some of the things that I didn’t get to do while I was in the workforce. I pictured myself visiting different neighbourhoods throughout Toronto, walking around, discovering new stores and enjoying the fresh air or a nice cup of coffee.  That was all fine and dandy, until reality sank in.  I had Kyle and hardly had time to get to know my own neighborhood let alone visit other ones in Toronto.  Well, here’s a couple of other things I didn’t really expect to experience either, but I’m laying it all out so there’s no confusion about the realities of a stay at home mom (mine anyways).

• I wear the same clothes two days in a row if I know I wont be seeing the same people both days (my husband and son are exempt from this rule)
• I know the theme songs to 10 kid shows (and it’s not because I remember them from my childhood)
• I spend more time in the washroom than I really need too
• I let my 2-year-old get away with more than he should because I don’t want to have a bad day
• Many of my child’s activities include shopping
• I can’t DIY anything 😦
• I look forward to my phone blinking as it’s my way to communicate with the outside world
• I enter several online contests as a way to “contribute financially” to my family
• The iPad is my son’s best friend
• My favorite book to read is “magazines”
• My cleaning schedule depends on when we’re expecting guests
• I know kids love repetition but if I have to read the same book more than 10 nights straight I start to shake (and quickly hide that book)
• I don’t always make my son’s food from scratch
• I don’t buy organic
• I never wear sweatpants because I don’t want to fall into the stereotype
• I don’t always compost because the garbage is more accessible
• After 2 years as a SAHM, my cooking hasn’t improved
• Obtaining my MBA was a cinch compared to being a SAHM
• Even thought I can’t always describe in detail what I do all day long, I promise you I’m busy and exhausted by the time I put my son to bed
• I still prefer being a stay at home mom over working outside the home

If you’re a stay at home mom, what are some of the things that surprised you the most that you weren’t expecting to feel or experience?

Imagine celebrating the holidays every month! Now you can, with the Baby Trunk {Review}

Opening Happiness Every Month is Baby Trunk’s tag line; and this perfectly describes their unique service.

Imagine receiving a package every month with 4 or 5 products from the best brands for your little one.  Each package is customized based on your child’s age (newborn to 3 years) and gender so they can be utilized immediately.  And who doesn’t love receiving packages in the mail.  I know I do, especially those that are surprises.  That’s how I felt when I received my first Baby Trunk package in late October.  I tore it open and found 5 items in the box that fell under the theme of “The Little Monster Box”.

The items include “Boo Bunny!” book, a race car (by Green Toys), a (organic) Giraffe Lovie Blanket, a Toy & Surface cleaner and packages of Organic Baby Food.  Total retail price of the five products is approximately $50.

Not only are these products organic and environmentally friendly, but they have all been selected and approved by mom’s, not endorsed by the companies that they are purchased from.  So you know you are receiving quality, useful products for your family.

With so many of our family and friends expecting their first (and some their second) baby, this makes for a unique and special gift idea.  I know I would love to receive it 😉 (hint, hint, wink, wink). I’ve already purchased one for a friend of mine.

Here’s how it works:

1. Go on Baby Trunk’s website (www.babytrunk.ca) and register

2. Choose a plan…. (added bonus, shipping is free!!!)

$35 / month

$105 / 3 months

$175 / 6 months (1 month is free)

$350 / 12 months (2 months are free)

3. Look forward to your Trunk delivery (or have a close family or friend anticipate the arrival of their amazing gift).

In order to receive the next Trunk in time for the holidays sign-up before December 12th, 2012.

Happy Holidays & Happy shopping 🙂

Delicious and sustainable Mexican food for the whole family. Chipotle review & Giveaway

About five years ago when I was in New York city for work, a colleague of mine suggested that we go to an amazing Mexican restaurant near our office.  Not knowing the area we were in too well, I took him up on his offer.

I have never heard of Chipotle (www.chipotle.com) before, but I was excited to try it out the moment I set foot in the door.  All of the ingredients looked fresh and the aromas were amazing.  I loved that I could order a burrito in a bowl. I have to say, it was one of my favourite restaurants to eat at in New York.  Yes, I just said that, but it’s true.  It was love at first taste.  I was sooooo excited when they finally opened their doors in Toronto and I could take my family there.  To this day it’s one of our favourite restaurants when we want a special “treat”.

Here’s some awesome facts about Chipotle (as if you needed additional persuasion to go and eat there):

• It’s committed to serving natural and (unprocessed) organic meat
• Food is freshly prepared in front of the customers in an open kitchen
• They serve dairy products that are rBGH (Recombinant Bovine Growth Hormone) free.

There are four Chipotle restaurants in Toronto so make it a Chipotle night or lunch with your family.  And to help you achieve that, Babylish Advice and Mayahood Blog are giving away FOUR Burrito bucks.  Each Burrito Buck is equivalent to one free meal good for a Burrito, Burrito bowl, Salad or order of Tacos.

To enter this contest, you need to do one of the followings.  The more you do, the more entries you will receive in the draw.  Kindly leave me a message at the end of this post to let me know which of the following activities you have completed.

1. Like Mayahood on Facebook

2. Like Babylish Advice on Facebook

3. Follow Mayahood blog on WordPress.  Click on the “follow” button and enter your e-mail address to receive my latest blog posts directly to your mailbox as soon as I publish them.

4. Sign up for Babylish Advice’s newsletter found on www.babylishadvice.com

5. Share this giveaway on your Facebook page.  Copy and Paste the following sentences on your personal timeline: Great giveaway from Chipotle Mexican Restaurant.  Enter here for your chance to win 4 free meals for your family to enjoy: http://wp.me/p248bN-os.

6. Let me know (by leaving me a message at the bottom of this post) what you would get from Chipotle if you won this giveaway.

7. Follow Mayahood Blog on Twitter (@fitzpatrickmaya).

Contest deadline is Thursday, December 6th.  Open to all residents in the GTA.  Good-luck!

Preparing our toddler to become an older brother

While Kyle isn’t great at socializing with kids his own age, he does love playing with older kids.  He also adores babies; and mostly, he’s very gentle with them.  This is a good thing, since we’re expecting our second child in two months.  From the moment we found out I was pregnant, we told our son Kyle about it.  At the time, he wasn’t talking much, so we weren’t worried about him spilling the beans.

More recently, we have stepped up our discussions of the impending birth of our second child and read to him daily one of our “I’m a big brother now” books.  Kyle will tell you that his baby brother is in “mommy’s tummy” and occasionally, he gives his future brother “gifts” under my shirt including his beloved pacifiers.  When I tell him that his brother is kicking he responds by kicking my tummy in retaliation. Clearly, he doesn’t yet understand what that means, but it’s completely hilarious to watch.

When we talk about being a big brother, Kyle gets excited about all of the things that he will get to teach him, including: hopping, touch-down, kicking, home-run, ABC’s, puzzles and hockey.  However, when we talk about helping mommy and dada push the stroller, Kyle immediately responds with a “no baby, Kyle’s stroller” and gets in his stroller even if we’re not going anywhere.  Same goes for his chairs and even though we haven’t gone there yet, I’m sure it will be the same reaction regarding his toys!

I know that issues with sharing is a phase, but I wonder if there’s anything we can do now, before the baby is here to help alleviate some of the stress that Kyle might have with sharing his things and his time with us with his new baby brother.

What advice can you give us to talk to Kyle about now or do now?  What was some of the best advice you received when preparing for the birth of your second (or third) child?

‘Before 40’ bucket list

With my 32nd birthday (today) and our second child’s birth looming around the corner, it got me thinking about my “bucket-list”.  Not too long ago, I had fulfilled many items on my list.  I went back-packing through Europe for four months, I skydived 10 times in places such as Switzerland, Israel and New Zealand (3 tandem jumps and 7 solo jumps), I bungee jumped, white water rafted and scuba dived in British Columbia, I parasailed in the Philippines, saw the Pyramids in Egypt, ran five half-marathons, obtained my MBA and married the love of my life.

Of course, all of that was pre-baby and even pre-wedding.  That’s not to say that becoming a family has slowed me down, but it just changed my priorities (for the best I think).  So now, as I think about my future, it’s time that I re-visit my bucket-list and update it to reflect both my current and future life-style.  While I will probably not be able to complete most of the items before I’m 40 (i.e. the travel ones), I hope that I can complete most of them in the next eight years.  Here’s what I’ve come up with so far, in no particular order:

1. Complete a full marathon.  Preferably the NY marathon
2. See a live taping of the Ellen Show in California
3. Have a third child
4. Take art lessons and create a piece that’s nice enough to hang in our house
5. Take photography lessons and use something other than the “auto” button on my awesome Nikon SLR camera
6. Swim in the Great Barrier Reef in Australia
7. Go on a safari tour in South Africa
8. Climb Mount Kilimanjaro
9. Walk the Great Wall of China
10. Travel all over India
11. Watch baby turtles hatch in their natural habitat
12. Watch an olympic sport in-person
13. Actively volunteer for a charity that’s important to my family
14. Become mortgage free
15. Learn something new like: wine making, sewing, cooking Indian food or a new language
16. Get back my pre-baby body (after I have our last child)
17. Have 1.000 followers on my blog
18. See a live taping of SNL
19. Learn to bake
20. Go to Disneyland

What about you?  Do you have a bucket-list?  What else would you add to my list or what is unique to yours?  I would love to hear!!  Suggestions are always welcome 🙂

Or let me know if you’re able to help me out with any of my bucket list items!

Add some FUN to your kid’s bath with LUSH!

My best-friend first introduced me to LUSH cosmetics when I was pregnant with Kyle.  She bought me a soap (Therapy) to try and said that she liked it because of the natural, made with chemical free components and said it would be very soothing.  With its awesome smell and great feel against my skin, I was instantly hooked.

More recently, I got to try out their new and exciting product specifically made for kids (or anyone that’s young at heart really).  Their FUN product (http://www.lush.ca/Fun/fun,en_CA,sc.html) is a multi-purpose moldable soap that combines soap, shampoo, bubble bath, and malleable toy into a single roll.  While Kyle loves his bath time, an important component are the toys he plays with during that time. Every once in a while, to keep things ‘exciting’ for Kyle, we like to switch what he plays with.  I couldn’t wait for him to try out the new FUN soap from LUSH.

FUN ($6.95 each) comes in FIVE fantastic colours, all which have their own unique scent!

FUN is preservative-free and comes in a biodegradable cellophane wrapper. In fact, you don’t have to worry about your kids accidentally eating it as they are all made with a base of corn flour, talc and glycerine.

Not only is this product fun and “green”, but it also supports a good cause.  2.5% of sales from every bar of FUN is contributed to the FUNd, a LUSH initiative which supports charities in Fukushima, Japan that create safe places for children to play outside.

So what are you waiting for… get some now and add more FUN to your bath!

FUN makes a great stocking stuffer, birthday gift and is great for hostesses and families, too!