Maple Leaf Mommy

Thanks to everyone who took the time to comment and let me know know your thoughts on Rafflecopter.  Overall, I think folks like it, and I have decided to stick with the program for the time being.

So here's the game plan:

If you ever run into a problem where Rafflecopter won't load or you can't enter, you can email your entries to me and I will add them in manually.

It is true, Rafflecopter is in Beta and there are still bugs to iron out.  To that end, I ask if you do encounter a problem with the entry form please let me know!  Send me an email at mapleleafmommy@gmail.com, telling me 1) exactly what went wrong for you and 2)what internet browser you're using.  I will pass the info on to the folks working on Rafflecopter, and hopefully sometime soon we will be seeing an error-free version. I will even give you a bonus entry to thank you for the time spent reporting the bug.

To recap - If you run into a problem, please tell me.
and - If it won't work for you, you can still enter by emailing me.

I have a confession to make, I am one of those people that doesn't like the Summertime.  If I could I would hibernate from July until September each year. Given that's not an option, I tend to hide out indoors as much as possible. In my opinion, air conditioning exists for a reason.


It's days like this when I am so glad I am a stay at home mom and don't have to leave the house. Ha. Instead I get to hang out in the A.C. with my little ones, while everyone else is outside melting.  When it's this hot, we act like it's a rainy day and play simple children's games and puzzles.

What are you guys doing to get through this crazy heatwave?

Part of me does still wish I could hibernate.  If they ever develop cryogenics to the point where you can volunteer to be frozen and skip over Summer, only to thaw out each Fall... I am so there.

As a wedding gift my godmother gave me this lovely food processor, that I actually use fairly regularly.


This is the centre insert bit for my food processor.


Or at least it used to be, before it somehow managed to make it's way from the top rack into the very bottom of my dishwasher, where it got wedged up against the heating element and melted. I was a bit shocked that such a very dense and solid piece of plastic could melt in the dishwasher! All things considered I am relieved we didn't burn the house down. Time to try and find a replacement piece. Sigh.

You've probably noticed that I have been using Rafflecopter for my last few giveaways. I want to know what you guys think.  I need to weigh the pros and cons and decide what format to use going forward.

A little while back I added Intense Debate as my comment system.  Overall I love it, particularly the fact that I can now have threaded comments. Woohoo!  However, is is horrible for comment system based giveaway entries.  There is no way to number the comments.  This means that when the contest ends I have to import the entries into excel, a messy and time consuming process, before I can draw a winner.  So my options are to drop Intense Debate (which I would hate to do), or swap over to a different entry system.... like say Google docs.

Now, with perfect timing, Rafflecopter arrives on the scene. It is a fairly slick widget based entry system which solves all of my entry comment dilemmas. It makes setting up the giveaway, and drawing a winner, fast and easy.  I have also used it to enter on other people's sites and I've found it really speeds things up. I have even seen people composing lists of Rafflecopter friendly giveaway sites, or stating that from now on they are solely entering Rafflecopter giveaways.

However, since I have started using Rafflecopter, I have had a handful of complaints from folks who weren't able to get the form to work. I haven't had any positive comments. I worry also that if four people have come forward to tell me they weren't able to enter, perhaps many others are having the same problem and I'm not hearing about it. I would really love to know your experiences and what you think about using Rafflecopter to enter giveaways.

Scrambled States of America and more stories by Laurie Keller is one of the many DVDs in the Scholastic Storybook Treasures series. The theme for this particular DVD is that all of the stories are written and illustrated by Laurie Keller. The DVD contains 4 stories and I really loved about half of them.

In Scrambled States of America the United States, as anthropomorphic characters, hold a party and decide to swap places on the map. The states are animated "coloured pieces of paper with noses" as my daughter called them.  Other then general familiarity with their names and shapes, the story doesn't give you much pertinent info on the States. Though watching this did prompt an interesting discussion during which I tried to explain to my four year old what a State is.


The second story, the Scrambled States of America Talent Show was slightly better in that is contained more useful facts and trivia bits about the various States. I found both of the Scrambled States stories to be too long. They didn't keep my attention and they certainly didn't keep my daughter's. Maybe it's a Canadian thing? Perhaps if I was from the States I would have been more amused by the whole scrambled states gag?

We both really enjoyed the third story, Do Unto Otters, a manners tale based on the golden rule ("Just doo-dee-doo unto otters as you would have otters doo-dee-doo unto you."). I loved the different aspects of good manners that the story touched upon; such as playing fair, sharing, politeness, honesty, and being friendly. The story managed to both keep my daughter's interest and make her giggle.

I loved the final story Open Wide: Tooth School Inside, which managed to fit in tons of in-depth info on teeth. I really enjoyed this one, however it did seem to be a bit over my 4 year old's head. My daughter hasn't started Junior Kindergarten yet and has no experience with school, so the parody of permanent teeth being in school was sort of lost on her.  The story went into a great level of detail concerning both primary and permanent teeth, and explained concepts such as the crown, enamel, dentin, pulp, gums, ligament, bone, cementum, root, bacteria, and germs.  It also included one of the best explanations I've ever seen as to exactly how bacteria/plaque causes cavities.

The special features included a set of interviews with the author/illustrator, Laurie Keller, and a Tooth School music video.  I always love when they include interviews with the author! The first of the two interviews was a little dry, and didn't keep my daughters attention, but I still enjoyed it. The second interview seemed more geared towards children.
 

Overall, compared to the stories on the First Collection which I reviewed previously, the stories are longer and more involved. The suggested age range on this DVD is 4-10 years old, which to me seemed a little off.  The stories did not keep the interest of my just turned four year old girl, and seemed a bit above her level of understanding.  While this was not my personal favourite of the Scholastic Storybook Treasures series I do think older kids would enjoy this DVD. The voice acting, music, sound effects, and animation were all fantastic. Just the subject matter didn't work as well for me

You can purchase Scrambled States of America and more stories by Laurie Keller direct from Scholastic via their NewKideo site.  (Purchase via the NewKideo site is US only. In Canada the DVD is available on Amazon.ca as well as Chapters.)

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Congrats to @orangeheromama, the winner of the IMAX tickets!

Okay guys, here's the deal....
Want to win a pair of Cineplex IMAX tickets?


These tickets are good at any Cineplex theatre and will grant admission to any feature film available in IMAX or IMAX 3D.  You can check out the brand new IMAX theatre at the SilverCity in Windsor, or use these passes to get into one of the other Cineplex IMAX theatres across Canada. You can take a look at the complete list of Cineplex IMAX locations here. If you don't have an IMAX theatre in your home town these tickets can also be used to get into a Front Row Centre Event or a Real D 3D film.  The tickets don't expire until October 31st, which leaves plenty of time to fit in a good summer flick!

To win you just need to:
Follow @MapleLeafMommy on Twitter.
Follow @CineplexMovies on Twitter.

Tweet me the answer to this question:
What's the best movie you've ever seen on IMAX? Or if you've never seen an IMAX film, name the film you'd like to see most.

You have from now until 11:59pmEST on Friday July 22nd.
Address your tweet to @mapleleafmommy and be sure to include the hashtag #IMAX.

I can't believe The Wiggles have been around for 20 years!  Those guys have so much energy!  The Wiggles are celebrating 20 years of entertaining children, if you can believe it.  To honour the occasion they are touring across the globe with The Wiggles Big Birthday tour, and Windsor is one of the stops on their tour!

That's right, the Wiggles are going to be in Windsor!!  The Wiggles Birthday Tour promises plenty of birthday themed fun, as well as tons of your favourite Wiggles songs.  Come along and “Sound Your Funky Horn,” “Clap Your Hands With Dorothy,” and do the “Hot Potato.” Join The Wiggles, Captain Feathersword, Dorothy the Dinosaur, Henry the Octopus, Wags the Dog and all the Wiggly Dancers as they celebrate their Big Birthday in Windsor!

"We never expected to still be doing this after 20 years but we're enjoying it so much! It's amazing that some of our earliest fans are now parents themselves and bringing their own children along to shows!" ~ Murray

The Wiggles are performing in Windsor at the WFCU Centre on next Thursday, July 28, 2011 at 6:30 pm. Tickets are still available, and I even have a special promo code to share with you guys.  Head to the WFCU Centre sale/promo page and in the box where it asks for "presale/promotion code" enter UKULELE to receive $10 off.

Tickets to the Windsor show start at only $15.  The next tier up are $42, but with the special promo code you can get them for $32. Or perhaps you want to celebrate a birthday or other special event? You can go hog wild and purchase VIP tickets at $75 a piece. Tickets in the Wiggles VIP section are limited, and will include the best seats in the house, an exclusive gift, an activity sheet and a chance to dance along with The Wiggles themselves! The $10 off promo code does not apply towards the $15 tickets or the VIP tickets, but only the medium range tickets.

If you're not from Windsor, don't fret, you still might be able to catch the Wiggles in a town near you. That special $10 off code (UKULELE) should work for buying tickets at other venues across Canada, give it a try.  Other Canadian stops on the tour include Toronto, Ottawa, Oshawa, Winnipeg, Saskatoon, Calgary, Edmonton and Vancouver.

For more wiggly fun you can check out the Wiggles online at www.thewiggles.com. You can also follow the gang on Twitter or become a fan of the group’s official Facebook page.



You don't need to be a local to win. If you are from outside of the Windsor area, but are willing to take a road trip to see the Wiggles feel free to enter. However, PLEASE only enter this giveaway if you will be able to attend The Wiggles show IN WINDSOR on Thursday, July 28, 2011 at 6:30 pm.

The winner of the $70 Discovery Girls prizepack is...


The winner has 48 hours to respond to my email, after which I'll redraw. Thanks to Discovery Girls for teaming up with me for this giveaway. And thanks so much to everyone who entered!

I had a chance to look through the special 10th Anniversary edition of the Discovery Girls Magazine and I have to say that I was pretty impressed.  How could I not be impressed, when they sifted through and reprinted the best from their first ten years of publication? (Some of which was pretty amusing, such as Gotta Have it tech gadgets from 2002). Along with collecting some of the best articles from the last ten years, and some cute and funny blasts from the past, the issue features the winners of the rather nifty Role Model Contest.

The Role Model Contest was something special Discovery Girls cooked up for their 10th Anniversary. Girls submitted questionnaires to be considered for one of the coveted 12 spots, and then the Discovery Girls team selected the top 30. The top 30 were then placed online for girls to vote for their favorites.  Finally, the 12 winning "DG Role Models" were flown to California for a photo shoot and featured in the 10-Year Anniversary Collector's Edition! The 30 top entrants were all truly remarkable girls who did amazing things like starting their own charities, volunteering, etc. Inspiring stuff. These are not just pretty faces, but truly girls that their peers look up to as role models.

"We don't have dates finalized yet for next year, but we have so many Canadian readers that are always begging us to head north that we figured it was past time!"

Hidden Valley sent me some of their yummy Ranch Dressing to sample. This did not turn out at all how I thought it would. I already knew that my husband hates all things Ranch, but I thought my daughter would enjoy Ranch dipping sauce.  I was wrong. G-girl apparently takes after her Dad, because she had zero interest in eating Ranch Dressing. Who would of thought?  I know most kids love the stuff!   I know for many children adding dipping sauce to the mix can get them to eat vegetables that they normally would turn their noses up at. Thankfully G-Girl loves her veggies and eats most of them with zero hassle, so I don't need sauce to coax her.


So over all... big hit with mommy, strike out with the rest of the family.  How does Hidden Valley Ranch Dressing go over at your house?

This is to all of those Tweeps out there that I see asking for +Ks.  I am going to bust a common misconception... Receiving +K does NOT increase your Klout score.

Here is a great article explaining +K in which they actually interview Klout's marketing manager: http://mommyofamonster.com/2011/06/klout-what-is-k-and-how-does-it-work.html

I'll quote from it: "It currently does not change your Klout score, but our team of scientists are looking at the data we get from it to determine if we should add it in (and how) in the future. "

Receiving +K does not help with your Klout score, though it might at some point in the future.

+K does help determine what topics you are ranked as influential in, and the topics you are influential in can help determine if you qualify for Klout perks (many of which are US only).

Basically, giving out +K can be a fun way to give a Twitter shout out to someone.... but it's doesn't really have much practical application for the moment.

Bad news.
We were supposed to go out last night and check out Windsor's brand new IMAX screen, but we had to cancel date night.  The baby was sick last week, but I thought the rest of us had managed to escape unscathed. Not so. Yesterday eve our four year old started to feel not so great, so movie night had to be postponed. I have to admit I was was pretty bummed out. Now I have to wait until next weekend to check out out the new IMAX theatre. Boo.

Good news.
I don't want to wait until I manage to make it out to the show to share the goodies with you guys....  I have IMAX tickets to give away!

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These tickets are good at any Cineplex theatre and will grant admission to any feature film available in IMAX or IMAX 3D.  You can check out the brand new IMAX theatre at the SilverCity in Windsor, or use these passes to get into one of the other Cineplex IMAX theatres across Canada. You can take a look at the complete list of Cineplex IMAX locations here. If you don't have an IMAX theatre in your home town these tickets can also be used to get into a Front Row Centre Event or a Real D 3D film.  The tickets don't expire until October 31st, which leaves plenty of time to fit in a good summer flick!

You can enter below for your chance to win one of two pairs of IMAX tickets.

Want more chances to win?  After you enter here, go on over to Callista's Ramblings, where she is hosting a giveaway for three more pairs of IMAX tickets. 

I am completely geeked out... I am going to see Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows Part 2 on Windsor's brand new IMAX screen tonight. The new Cineplex IMAX theatre had it's grand opening this past Thursday, to coincide with the premiere of the new Harry Potter movie.


I fondly remember seeing films on IMAX when I was a teen. It was a very cool experience. I haven't seen an IMAX film in at least a dozen years.  I can only assume that the advances in technology that have happened in the past decade are going to lead to an even more immersive experience.  Plus this isn't just IMAX, this is IMAX 3D... I fully expect to be wowed.


The IMAX Technology uses the largest commercial film format in motion picture history to create images of incredible sharpness.  IMAX and IMAX 3D giant flat screens can soar up to eight stories high and the sound system is comprised of 44 custom designed speakers that extract 12,000 watts of pure digital sound.

For more information on IMAX, head over to http://www.cineplex.com/Theatres/IMAX/Home.aspx. Or if you would like to know learn more about the cool things Cineplex is doing, please visit http://www.facebook.com/Cineplex or follow Cineplex on Twitter, @CineplexMovies.

You can check out Windsor's new IMAX theatre at Silvercity Windsor, 4611 Walker Road.  Regular adult admission is $14.99.


So anyone else excited about this?  Have  you seen an IMAX film lately?  If so, what did you think?

Disclosure:  I received a set a free IMAX movie passes, as always the opinions expressed on this blog are my own.

Baby-G isn't feeling well. She has a fever. She is miserable. It is at times like these that I am thankful that I am still breastfeeding. I know that despite the fact that she hasn't had much appetite for the past few days, that she is staying well hydrated and getting the nourishment she needs.  When nothing else seems to work to calm her down, snuggling on mom's lap and nursing does the trick.  I can comfort her and nourish her at the same time.

Ajay Shrivastava - Fotolia.com

For those that can't see the benefit of nursing past a year, here is one of many. Honestly, I can't imagine how I would be getting through this without having nursing in my arsenal of mommy tricks. Today I am extremely thankful for extended breastfeeding, and so is my poor miserable 16 month old babe.

As you know I'm rather in love with the new Gluten Free Chex cereal (If you missed it, here's my review).  To help celebrate the launch of Gluten Free Chex in Canada Mom Central Canada is hosting a Twitter party. Take part for your chance to win one of six prize packs, each containing a Cuisinart Smart Stick Hand Blender with Chopper Attachment, plus Chex Honey Nut Gluten Free cereal and Gluten Free Rice Chex! (a value of about $100 per prizepack).

When: Thursday July 14 at 8:30pm EST
Follow the hashtag #ChexGF
Follow the host @MC_Canada
No RSVP required!

You can check out the official rules here.
I look forward to seeing you guys there tonight!

Disclosure: I am participating in the Chex Gluten Free program by Mom Central Canada on behalf of General Mills. I received a Chex gift pack and a gift card as a thank you for my participation. The opinions on this blog are my own.

srodrim - Fotolia.com

My mom has celiacs disease, which means like 14% of other Canadians she has to follow a gluten free diet. When I was a kid growing up during the 80s, our house was filled with various gluten free products. Twenty some years ago gluten free products were hard to hunt down, they were expensive, and for the most part they didn't taste so great. The consistency was always off. Everything tasted a bit like sponge. Yuck.


A few hours later we had guests over for a playdate, so I grabbed the box of Honey Nut Chex and put some in a bowl for the kids to munch on. It disappeared at an astonishing rate. The kids asked for seconds, and thirds. At one point I got distracted chatting with my girlfriend and my daughter and her playmate sneakily grabbed the box and took off with it into her bedroom. Needless to say the box didn't survive the afternoon, Two thirty something moms, and three kids between the ages of 16 months and 5 years, between the five of us we polished off the entire box in short order. The thing to note here is none of us follow a gluten free diet, and we all happily munched it up. There is absolutely no comparison between Gluten Free Chex cereal and the gluten free cereals I remember testing out as a kid. Nothing about the taste says gluten free. It's just plain yummy.

I hadn't actually expected us to finish the box of Honey Nut Chex off in one sitting. Now I had to wait to make the tasty looking coconut and Chex chicken recipe. I picked up a second box. The exciting part about this was that I didn't have to head to a specialty or health store to get another box, the new Gluten Free Chex is readily available at grocery stores across Canada.

The following morning my husband was sweet enough to let me sleep in. He let the kids pick what they wanted for breakfast. They chose Honey Nut Chex and ate over half the box. He later reported they were fighting over the bowl. Another time I caught my my 16 month old making off down the hallway with the Chex box which she somehow managed to get down from the table  Suffice it to say, it`s been a big hit with the kids.

I picked up a third box of Honey Nut Chex and this afternoon I finally made the Sweet n Salty Coconut chicken tenders. (You can check out the recipe for Sweet n Salty Chicken along with nine other yummy looking Chex based recipes over at www.chexcanada.com.)

If you have little ones I recommend letting them help with this one. My four year old daughter enjoyed her normal cook's helper chores of mixing and measuring. However, the really fun part was crushing the cereal. The recipe calls for four cups of crushed Honey Nut Chex and she had a blast helping to me crush it.

The recipe was quick and easy, one I`ll definitely be making again. At first I figured there was going to be left over breading mix, but I was surprised to find that the portions were just right and I used it all up. I found that the first few pieces of chicken were easy to dip and coat, but as egg got mixed into the dry "breading" mix it clumped up and it became difficult to get the breading to stick with the later pieces.  My plan for next time to to use a shallow plate and dump a little bit of the dry mix in at a time.  Finally, you really do need to coat your cookie sheet with some sort of non-stick cooking spray, I skipped this step and had a baked on sticky mess to contend with.

End result? This tastes so good I am thinking of coating everything in Chex & coconut... Coconut and Chex cauliflower bake? Coconut and Chex encrusted talapia filets? Yeah, seriously, I think so.


Overall, we love the new Gluten Free Chex. This is a great tasting cereal which just also happens to be gluten free. I like both the honey and the regular. We have been eating it dry by the handful. I like mixing a bit of the regular with the honey, to dial down the sweetness a bit. The kids love it.  I originally thought this would be something that I would get to have on hand for when my mom was over, but instead we've been eating it regularly and I'm having a hard time keeping it in stock. Next time my mom comes to visit she can share a gluten free snack with the grandkids (if there's any left).

 "The prime purpose of being four is to enjoy being four - of secondary importance is to prepare for being five."  ~ Jim Trelease, The Read-Aloud Handbook, 1985

I have been selling on eBay for over a dozen years now, and in that time I have discovered a couple of odd things that people will buy.  You can find a little surprise cash within your own home by keeping an eye out for these unlikely items.

1. Toys.
You probably wouldn't throw out an antique tin toy, or a rubber doll from the 50s.  But you might be surprised to learn that there is a market for vintage toys from the 70s, 80s and even the 90s.  Old toys from your childhood can be worth big bucks.


Fisher Price Little People sets from the 70s and 80s can go for anywhere from $10 to $300 depending on the condition and if you have all of the pieces.

If you happen to still have the original box with your toy you've probably got a gem on your hands. Original boxes, catalogues, mini-comics and other paper inserts from retro toys are all worth taking the time to look up online.

Even modern toys that your children have out grown may be worth holding on to. Particularly keep an eye out for things that are out of production. If you can no longer readily walk into a toy store and buy it, odds are some one out there is looking for it.


2. Buttons.

Wondering if it's worth your time to sort through grandma's tins?  Take a look under Collectibles > Sewing (1930-Now) > Buttons > Mixed Lots. To give you an idea; 8lbs of "newer" vintage buttons recently sold for over $100. While another lot of 7lbs "antique & vintage buttons" closed for over $575.


3. Magazines & Catalogues.

Here's a few examples of recent vintage magazine sales:
- Lot of 44 Vogue magazines from 1967-1974 sold for over $800.00
- Lot of 11 Rolling Stone Magazines from the 1960s and 70s sold for over $200.

Personally, I have sold computing, gaming and video game magazines from the 80s and even the 90s for up to $20 an issue, or even more.


4. Greeting Cards.

Here's a few samples of recent sales:
- Lot of 150 vintage greeting cards from the 1950 - the 80s sold for over $180. 
- Lot of 100 "children's" themed cards for over $100.

It doesn't work out to much per card, but it can add up to a nice bit of change for something that you would most likely consider throwing in the recycle bin. Of course if you happen to have unused vintage greeting cards, those will fetch even more.


5. Slides, 8mm Films, & Photos.

To give you an idea, here are some examples of recent sales:
- 1400 vintage 35MM slides from early 1960s to late 1980s featuring trips to Japan, Iran, England, etc. sold for over $300.
- 221 slides taken on trips across Canada from 1950-1962 sold for over $40.
- A reel of home movies shot in Disneyland during the 1970s sold for over $50.
- Fifty 8mm home movies from the 1950s and 60s sold for over $270.

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Overall, it pays to take a moment to look online first before pitching something.  Pretty much anything that is old, say ten years or more, is probably worth your time to look up. Prices online are constantly fluctuating, so don't just take my word for it. Do some research. The best way to get an idea of how much something may sell for on eBay is to look at completed auctions.  You can look at my quick and easy tutorial on searching for completed eBay items -- right here.


So, what do you think of my list? Do you find it strange that people will buy used greeting cards and personal photographs? Have you sold any odd items online? Know of any other "throw-away" items that are actually worth big bucks? I'd love to hear about it!

Image #1 -  Jenn Mackenzie - Fotolia.com	Image #2, #3, & #6 - Deanna Tousignant	Image #4 - Lusoimages - Fotolia.com
Image #5 - Olga Drabovich - Fotolia.com	Image #7 - Rob Pitman - Fotolia.com

JJAVA - Fotolia.com

Today starts the three day G-Girl birthday-palooza. One day spent playing at her bubby's house, one day spent chilling with the family at Greenview Aviaries, and finally on Saturday we'll have a small cake + BBQ party here with our close family. Too much to fit in one day, so we're spreading it out over three... which means for the next few days I will be offline with my family.

To all my awesome readers... I hope you're enjoying your summer! See you in a few.

"Making the decision to have a child is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body."  ~ Elizabeth Stone

My little girl is turning four years old.
I can't believe it's already been four years... 
Four years since I first signed on for the best, most tiring, job in the world... 
Four years since I first held this little bundle in my arms.

She weighed 6.7 pounds and it was a totally natural birth. I had gestational diabetes, so they were worried about me having an extra large baby but she came out just right.

Since that day I have watched her grow into a wonderful kid. She is bright, sunny, inquisitive, intelligent, independent and stubborn as hell, with an imagination twice the size of her body. I am constantly both amused and awestruck by the things she says and does. She is already such an amazing person. She wants to know everything and do everything, and she wants to do it all on her own... provided I'm within six feet of her.




She still sucks her thumb when she goes to sleep, and she still thinks all of the worlds troubles can be solved by a hair hug. She is an opinionated little bugger.  She wants to learn French and is still fixated on learning to play the banjo.



She loves drawing.  Her art is getting pretty good too. She can create recognizable images of things like people, cats, houses, flowers, and trees.  She loves books. She will sit and read to herself or to her sister. She knows 90% of the books we own off by heart.  She love animals, and not just the run of the mill cat, dog, mouse... she loves cheetahs, wolverines, coatis and kinkajous (Thanks Zoobomafoo!).


Her favourite colour is pink. She loves flowers, ballerinas and teaparties, but she also loves pirates, trains and dumptrucks. She loves to play in the sand.  She thinks a trip to the library is the best treat possible.

Scholastic's My First Storybook Treasures DVD collection is a 3-DVD set featuring over a dozen stories. The series was designed specifically to support early literacy skills and to help foster a love of reading in pre- and early readers. Together the 14 stories in this collection have won more then 15 awards, including the Caldecott Medal, NAPPA Gold, and American Library Association Notable Books.

The third DVD in the series, The Napping House and other stories that rhyme, features:

• The Napping House (Written by Audrey Wood, illustrated by Don Wood)
• Each Peach Pear Plum (Written and illustrated by Janet and Allen Ahlberg)
• Drummer Hoff (Written by Barbara Emberly, illustrated by Ed Emberly)
• Bear Snores On (Written and narrated by Karma Wilson, illustrated by Jane Chapman)
• Wild About Books (Written by Judy Sierra, illustrated by Marc Brown, narrated by Catherine O'Hara) 

G-Girl says, "When I watch Napping House it makes me feel happy and when I watch Splat the Cat it makes me feel Very Excited!"  (Out of the entire 3 DVD series the story of Splat the Cat is still her favourite. )


Overall, I am deeply impressed with the My First Collection. Scholastic's innovative Read Along function is a big hit with my daughter and I truly believe that these videos are helping her develop literacy skills. She is definitely aware of the words on the screen and comments on them. I think as a series deigned to support early literacy skills, this is a definitely success. She understands that the stories on these videos come from storybooks, and she doesn't just want to sit and watch the DVD, she wants to read the books!  The DVDs are also just plain good entertainment. I don't mind sitting and watching them with her at all.  The background music and sound effects, the narration, the animation -- everything is well done in these quality videos.


You can purchase the DVDs from the My First series direct from Scholastic via their NewKideo site. The Napping House and other stories that rhyme is available on it's own, or as part of the My First Collection Box Set.  (Purchase via the NewKideo site is US only. In Canada the DVD is available on Amazon.ca as well as Chapters.)


You can read my reviews on the first two DVDS in the series here:
Splat the Cat... and Other Furry Friends
The Story About Ping... and Other Fine Feathered Friends

And keep your eyes posted for another Scholastic Books DVD giveaway, coming soon.

Disclosure: I received a free My First Collection box set for review purposes. My opinions are my own and were not influenced by the company, or by the free product received.

We had a tough choice to make this year concerning our Canada Day celebrations.  G-Girl's birthday is coming up next week. Normally we throw some kind of pool-party BBQ on the Canada Day weekend and celebrate her birthday with fireworks and cake. This year due to the fact that we need to make some costly repairs, we haven't opened the pool.  The idea of holding a BBQ in our backyard and then sitting around staring at the cover of the unopened pool was just too depressing....

On the other hand some fantastic friends of ours invited us over to their place for a Day After Canada Day party. They live out in the county in this cool little winterized cottage that is right on the lake.  Let's see... partying on a private beach vs. hanging out in my weed-filled, pool-is-still-closed, back yard?  I guess it wasn't such a tough choice after all.

We packed up the family and head out to our friend's place.  Sunscreen, swimsuits, hamburger patties, jar of yummy locally made pickles, PJs, blankie, stuffed friend, diapers, sand toys... Check!  But what about the buns?


We had told our friends that thanks to the generosity of Wonder+ SimplyFree we'd be providing buns for everyone at the party!

Here's a tip: Don't head out on the day after Canada Day looking to buy hamburger and hotdog buns. We had to hit SIX stores before I finally found 'em. Six stores full of grumpy unhelpful clerks that wished they were out somewhere else and not stuck at work. Yuck.


So we arrived at the party a wee bit late, where folks were holding off on BBQing and eagerly awaiting the arrival of the Wonder+ SimplyFree buns.  If you haven't tried them yet, Wonder+ SimplyFree buns are basically the same Wonder Bread hotdog and hamburger buns that you know and love, now made with unbleached wheat flour and free of artificial preservatives, flavors and colours. Totally yummy and a huge hit with everyone who tried them at the party.


All in all, it was a great day. We shared some fantastic food, pot-luck style, and had a great time hanging out with some great people. G-Girl had a blast, playing with all the other kids. A crazy storm blew in after dinner, which meant the fireworks were cancelled.  On the other hand, Mother Nature gave us an amazing fireworks show of her own, as we watched the storm roll in off the lake.

G-Girl had a fantastic time playing on the beach,

...picking sand from her toes,

...and even hiding out inside from the storm.

Want to have your own awesome BBQ party? Keep an eye out for specially marked packages of Wonder+ SimplyFree buns and enter the pin# from the sticker on the package for your chance at a a BBQ party worth $5000!! Can you just image the party you'd have after wining? Now that would be one hell of a shindig!

I hope all of my Canadian readers had an awesome Canada Day weekend!  What did you guys do? Did you get outside and enjoy the summer weather? Have a BBQ? Hit the cottage? I'd love to hear all about it...

Disclosure – I am participating in the WONDER+ SimplyFree program by Mom Central Canada on behalf of Weston Bakeries.  I received a gift card, BBQ kit and free product coupons as a thank you for my participation.  The opinions on this blog are my own.