Daily Email Archives
articles with parenting tips
tutu for you
Filed Under Tips & Tricks | February 1, 2012
We’re all about dressing up in our house. We’re reticent, however, to spend tonnes of money on togs that will be spilled on, torn and generally played with until they dissolve. Bowing to a request for more ballerina related attire, we decided to make some tutus…and get our primas to lend a hand.
encyclopaedia 2.0
Filed Under Stuff, Tips & Tricks | January 30, 2012
Can you get through a whole dinner party without somebody googling something by dessert? We can’t. The accessibility of information has fuelled our insatiable need to know, or, more often, to verify crazy facts right now. But for our kids we recognize that computers, tablets, smart phones, and such are primarily entertainment. Sure, it’s easy to download a few apps and let them have a go at it, but as they grow older we’d really love them to appreciate the internet as a source of learning. So we’re trying to introduce some more knowledge-based online content.
one card to rule them all
Filed Under Tips & Tricks | January 25, 2012
We have a confession to make. We have a library addiction. We loved the storytimes when our wee ones were babes in arms and toddling terrors. We think librarians are sexy, and we can’t believe there is a place where we can get so many books to read…for free (except for those pesky library fines [...]
clip those coupons
Filed Under Tips & Tricks | January 11, 2012
One of the things we love about the new year is the opportunity to “start fresh.” And one of our ‘fresh’ ideas this year is to save money on our grocery bills. No matter how organized we think we are with our meal planning, we continue to be stunned by the amount we spend on groceries every month. So we decided to develop a frugal nature and seek out some deals using Grocery Alerts.
dollars and sense
Filed Under Tips & Tricks | January 9, 2012
Joanna Muir of Dear Piggy Bank tells us her favourite toy as a child was a cash register (bought with her own money). So perhaps it’s not surprising that she’s now a CGA and personal financial coach. And as a mom of two, she’s passionate about the need to raise financially literate children. We sat down with her recently to get answers about our kids’ dollars and “sense”:
gifts that give the whole year long
Filed Under Stuff, Tips & Tricks | December 21, 2011
We love giving gifts. Finding the perfect toy, book or knick-knack for the loved ones on our list fills us with unending delight. Sometimes though, as great as a thing might be, it’s the gifts that keep on giving that truly fill their hearts with joy.
an appetite for christmas
Filed Under Tips & Tricks | December 19, 2011
When there are kids in the house, the last week before Christmas has an energy all its own. There’s an appetite for festive 24/7, and we find we’d rather feed that than risk self-combustion! At the same time, we’re trying to finish off baking/shopping/work which means we can’t dedicate the whole day to holiday outings. [...]
charitable cheer
Filed Under Tips & Tricks | December 13, 2011
Holiday time can become more about consumerism than cheer. So we think teaching our kids that giving is even better than receiving is the best gift we can give them. There are plenty of ways to get kids into the spirit of charitable giving (money and time), and lots of organizations who will gladly accept those donations.
Looking for your Vancouver yoyomama? Find it here!
charity begins with kids
Filed Under Tips & Tricks | December 6, 2011
The wrapping paper covered shoe box is divided in half with a slot on each side. All year it has been receiving monthly deposits. Half of our kids’ (they’re five and eight years old) allowance is designated to charity. This weekend, following the last deposit for the year, we sat down to figure out where this year’s donations would go.
Looking for your Toronto yoyomama? Find it here!
‘tis better to give…
Filed Under Stuff, Tips & Tricks | November 21, 2011
What gifts do your children give? And to whom? We don’t mean fancy soaps for granny (that we buy and add a cute tag to), but gifts they make or buy. We want to teach our kids how to be givers as well as receivers, so we’ve been experimenting with different options the last few years. Since we’ve found taking kids shopping (anytime really, but particularly during the festive season) can ratchet up stress levels, we’ve been turning more and more to the handmade (which means starting early).
