I will be co-hosting a Twitter Party with @PamperedPatty to talk about the challenges of properly installing car seats as well as the statistics…and giving out prizes.   You must be a Quebec Resident to participate.

SO…please consider this your invitation!

#QCCarSeatDay TWITTER PARTY!
Wednesday, May 29, 2013
8:00-9:30 PM EST

With @CanadianTire gift cards to be won,
#QCCarSeatDay will be so much fun!
@PamperedPatty will be there, too
We’ll talk car seat safety & stats with you.

Join to learn or to chat & to spread the news
It’s not just the seat – but the way that you use…
Tweet from wherever you are & however you’re dressed
In comfy pajamas is probably best!

Invite all your Quebec Tweeps! Please feel free to share!
8PM is the time that you should be there
#QCCarSeatDay is the hashtag to Tweet
So set up a stream in Tweetdeck or Hootsuite!

Until then I wish you a fab, fun weekend,
Stay safe & enjoy with your loved ones & friends!

Please RSVP in comments section below!

Tanya
a.k.a. @montreal_mom 

P.S. Did you know that today, May 24th is Car Seat Safety Day in Quebec? You can get your car seat inspected & or installed for FREE at Canadian Tire Stores across Quebec (with one exception) Click here for details!

The installation of  the car seat directly impacts your child’s safety while travelling.

On Friday, May 24, Canadian Tire, together with the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ), CAA-Québec, as well as local police, will collaborate for Child Safety Seat Inspection Day - a day dedicated to raising awareness of the importance of properly installing a child safety seat to increase children’s safety when travelling.

From noon to 8PM you will be able to have your child’s safety seat inspected and/or installed FREE OF CHARGE in Canadian Tire stores across Quebec (exception: Atwater location in Montreal as it lacks the necessary parking space).

Canadian Tire employees are actually TRAINED by the Network for the Inspection of Child Safety Seats.

The Network was created by the SAAQ and CAA-Quebec with the goal of providing a permanent child safety car seat verification service to parents and anyone involved in the safety of young children riding in road vehicles.

Some eye-opening stats:

• 83.3% of parents use a car seat that is adequately suited to their child’s weight and height, but only 41% install it properly.
• Seats are used correctly, that is, the child car seat is properly anchored on the seat of the vehicle and the child is properly restrained in the seat, in only 61.6% of cases
• Every year in Quebec, around 1,150 children under age 9 are killed or injured in road accidents.
• Child car safety seats reduce the probability of death and serious injury in road accidents by up to 70%.

It is imperative that we make sure that:

• our children are in the right seat for their height & weight
• car seats are properly installed
• when using the car seat, children are properly restrained

Car seat safety is important every time a child is transported in a motor vehicle. As we gear up for our summer road trips, it’s a great time to make sure that everything is in order with our children’s safety seats.

Make your way to Canadian Tire on Friday & get everything checked out – FOR FREE!

In the market for a new seat?  You may or may not know that Canadian Tire has great car seats available as well as other excellent devices to help families stay safe on the road, such as backup cameras & hands-free devices.  You may recall I blogged about one of their fabulous backup cameras a while back: Forward Thinking for Driving in Reverse

Enter it into your agenda now, on your to-do list for this Friday, May 24:

GO TO CANADIAN TIRE TO INSPECT / INSTALL CAR SEATS!

If you truly can’t make it that day, enter it on a different day. Beginning on May 25, 2013, all Canadian Tire stores across the province will provide their customers with FREE verification of child safety seats and installation for $9.99.

JUST.DO.IT.

Wishing you a safe day on the roads,

Tanya

This was a job where I would need Daddy’s help, but even then, we found it challenging.

Everyone was still riding with training wheels, from eldest to youngest.

And then my sister-in-law told me about a method that she & my brother-in-law had tried that worked very well.  She told me to look it up on YouTube, which I did. The method was simple…and effective.

Tried, tested & true, 4 times over. The kids are all riding without training wheels & that includes the 6 year old

You can expect to have your child riding by the end of one or two afternoons of practice.

Here is what you do:

1. Remove the training wheels.
2. Remove the pedals from the bicycle (Yes, unscrew them & take them OFF)
3. Lower the seat of the bicycle so that when your child sits on the seat, her feet are COMPLETELY flat on the ground.  The seat can be too low, that’s ok.
4. Have your child “scoot” by using her feet and then, eventually, ‘gliding’ with her feet off the ground. This is how they get a feel for maintaining their balance.
5. When she can glide comfortably for a few seconds straight, it means she can balance. Put the pedals back on.
6. Now add in the pedaling motion.  It shouldn’t take long & your child will be riding on his or her own.
7. You may still have to work on the “starting” by using a little help from the curb for starting off, but this stage will not last for very long.

Here’s the link to a video that shows the method:

fyi- you may encounter some resistance to the “scooting”- They’d rather pedal with their training wheels. Stick with this method. You’ll be happy you did.

TRY IT & let me know how it worked!

ALWAYS remember to stay safe & have helmets for all- and that includes Mommy & Daddy!

Have a wonderful day & enjoy the sunshine!!!

Tanya

I couldn’t be happier than the moment I opened up the Canadian Tire flyer to find this BEAUTY: The Schwinn Memento, on sale for $169! (That’s $100 off the regular price of $269 ).

I wasn’t looking for something fancy but I was looking for something that I LOVE.

Practically, I wanted something that:

• I could ride sitting upright
• has some sort of rear rack for storage
• has a seat wide enough for my rear rack to be comfortable
• I could ride recreationally with the family or on my own

Style-wise, I was hoping for a vintage-look.

Price-wise, I wanted affordable.

This bike fit the bill on all counts. In fact I even find the $269 price-point reasonable, but the $100 off is just…WOW!

The offer is available at Canadian Tire only until Thursday April 25th.

I have to share that I loved the bike SO much that I wanted to buy an extra one for montrealmom.com to DONATE to Shopping From The Heart for the SILENT AUCTION at the May 9th event!!

The problem: Canadian Tire is out of stock all over the city! I will still try to get the actual bicycle in time for May 9th, but if impossible, we will supply the winner with the rain-check & a gift card for the sale price of the bicycle.

Haven’t heard about Shopping From the Heart?  It’s Mommy’s Night Out featuring chair massages, makeup & profile pics bundled with Mother’s day shopping & more…all while the kids are sleeping!  Check out more on my post about it here.

It’s the perfect gift for a Montreal Mom – A fun bicycle that will yield hours of great exercise & fun – alone, with hubby or with the kids.

So- if you’re in the market for a bicycle for yourself, you may want to:

• Get to Canadian Tire & get a rain-check before the end of day Thursday to benefit from the sale
• Send the link to this post to Hubby with Subject line : Save $100 on my Mother’s Day gift by acting now!
• Show up at Shopping from the Heart and buy a lot of raffle tickets
• Wait until the sale is over & still buy it at $269…when they have more in stock…Still a good deal

Wishing you sunshine & wheels to enjoy it

Tanya

 Disclosure: Canadian Tire totally should have paid me for my time to write this, but they didn’t.  I just HAD to share it with you!

Well, off to the mall we ran and Payless ShoeSource came to the rescue!  We found these adorable silver ballet flats for about $17 (tax in) & were in & out of the mall in under 20 minutes.  Not only were they comfortable, her friends loved them, too

Outfitting 4 kids is not only time consuming, it’s expensive. In addition, my kids use orthotics for their everyday shoes so I am quite particular about their footwear.  That said, when it comes to party shoes & fun summer shoes, it’s hard to beat Payless, and I am very happy to pay less.

The reason I’m bringing up Payless today is that they have just launched the Payless Rewards Program: a FREE Membership which entitles its members to exclusive benefits, including:

• A special birthday offer — a single discount offer redeemable anytime within the shopper’s birthday month
• Exclusive member offers throughout the year
• Tailored offers based on style and shopping preferences
• Advanced communications on upcoming sales events and trend alerts, like the arrival of key sandal styles for summer, as well as notification of special contests and exclusive shopping events.

I don’t know about you, but when I have to run into a retailer to pick up things for one of my kids post-growth-spurt, I love pulling out my iPhone with the latest offer and saving some cash.  I feel good about it & it makes my husband smile.

It would have been the same thing with my daughters ballet flats had I been a rewards member then!

So how do you register?

• Sign up is FREE at any Payless store or online at Canada.Payless.com/Rewards
• Within minutes registrants will receive an initial offer good on their next Payless purchase
• Show your Payless Rewards card with each purchase to continue to receive great benefits

That’s all there is to it!

Now, to celebrate the launch of this fun & fabulous program, Payless is offering a $50 Payless gift card to one lucky montrealmom.com reader

In order to ENTER THE GIVEAWAY you must:

• Leave a comment in the comments section of this post answering the following question: “What would you do with a $50 Payless gift card?”
• Correctly enter your email address as the winner will notified via email.

Once you have entered by answering the question above in the comments section, Here’s how you can get additional entries:

• Follow @montreal_mom on Twitter (leave your Twitter handle in the comments section of this post)
• Follow @PaylessInsider on Twitter (leave your Twitter handle in the comments section of this post)
• Tweet this giveaway by Tweeting this post using #Rewards  (1 entry for every Tweet, you can tweet up to 2 times daily- please leave a link to each Tweet in the comments section of this post)
• Add montrealmom.com/blog to your RSS Feed (leave note in comments that you have done so, use same email address for both comment & RSS Feed)
• Write about this giveaway on your blog/website and leave me a link to your post in the comments section (counts as 4 entries!)
• Read any other post on the montrealmom.com blog and comment on it (please leave a comment on this post as to which post you read & commented on)

The giveaway ends at 11:59 PM on Friday, April 26, 2013.  Winners will be chosen at random and will be contacted via email before the end of the day on Saturday April 27, 2013. Please make sure your email address is correctly entered in the comments section as the winner will notified via email. Winner must answer a skill-testing question before claiming prize. Open to Canadian residents only.

So…now it’s time to…

(1) Sign up for the rewards program &

(2) Enter the giveaway

(3) Follow Payless on Facebook, just because you’ll see lots of fun & great stuff there

I hear a pair of wedges calling your name

Wishing you happy feet this spring & summer!

Tanya

As with all sponsored posts, I will only ever share with you products and/or services I believe in. All opinions contained within are my own and cannot be bought

• could use a night out?
• feels that this is only permissible after the kids are in bed?
• could use a massage?
• has Mother’s Day shopping on the to-do-list?
• would love to support local businesses while purchasing for those on that list?
• would love to do more to give back to the community…if only there were more time?
• also has “get updated headshot for FB/LinkedIn/Twitter” on the to-do-list?

What if I told you that you can accomplish all of the above …in one night?!?

You MUST check out this event!

Shopping from the Heart is the brainchild of fellow blogger Julia from @AskMamaMoe and has taken place annually for the last two years.  In order to be able to accommodate more guests & give people easier access to parking, this year’s event will take place at the Holiday in Pointe Claire, right off of the Trans Canada Highway.

As a Mom of 3, including twins who were born prematurely, Julia wanted to do something to give back to the Lakeshore General Hospital Maternity Ward, the Royal Victoria Hospital- NICU and the Montreal Children’s Hospital Foundation.

Julia presents donation to MCHF in 2012

She had the idea of creating a Ladies’ night out where women can gather, kick-back & have access to the wares & services of a whole bunch of local businesses to shop for gifts or well-deserved treats for themselves.

PROCEEDS GO TO THE ABOVE CHARITIES

Each year, she schedules Shopping from the Heart to be right before Mother’s Day, because she knows that we’re often looking for that perfect Mother’s Day gift with so little time to dedicate to this task.

Some of the attractions during the evening include:

• Chair massages courtesy of Ashton Wellness
• Photo Booth courtesy of Valerie Pyke of Valerie Pyke Photography
• Makeup courtesy of Jennifer Harris (should you wish to spiff-up before your photo shoot!)
• Live musical performance by Meg Rose Smith
• Raffle prizes & Silent Auction

And yes..when I say “courtesy of” that does mean for FREE!

Of course, all raffle proceeds are split equally between the 3 organizations listed above (LGH, RVH, MCHF).

It’s sure to be a great night & I plan to be there as well – so please come by to say hello!

Here are the details:

DATE: Thursday, May 9th, 2013
TIME: 7pm-10pm
LOCATION: Holiday Inn Pointe Claire
6700 Trans Canada
ENTRANCE FEE DONATION: $10 (which gives you 5 raffle tickets)
#SFTH13

You can get all the information on the event by clicking here.

For more information on how you can participate as a sponsor or a vendor, contact Julia at 514-806-8318

Looking forward to seeing you there!

Tanya

We often ask this question to our loved ones when someone is ill, when someone has passed, when someone has lost their job. We ask this question knowing fully well that the answer lies somewhere between “There’s nothing anybody can do” and “Just be there for me“.

In the case of 4-year-old Jayden, the answer is YES.

A happy & playful little girl living in our community, Jayden Roll has recently been diagnosed with MDS, a rare disease that will develop into AML Leukemia.

She is in desperate need of a bone marrow donor and unfortunately neither of her two brothers are a match.

(1) GET SWABBED. If you are aged 18-60, the first step to helping Jayden is to get a cheek swab done to see if you could potentially be a match.

When & Where?
Concordia University (Montreal) – April 3 and 4 - 11 AM – 4PM
Hall Building 1455 Maisonneuve W -or-  SP- Richard J. Renaud Science Complex 7141 Sherbrooke W

If you can’t make it to Concordia: Get swabbed IN THE COMFORT OF YOUR OWN HOME:  Anyone can register as a donor for Jayden with Gift of Life in US & Canada. A kit with everything you need can be sent to you in the mail. All you need to do is call Gift of Life or register online. Click here for further info 

(2) SPREAD THE WORD.

• Like Jayden’s fight for a cure on FB.
• Follow @CureForJayden on Twitter
• SHARE this post on FB.
• Tweet it.
• Like it.
• Text it.
• Call your friends & family & encourage everyone to share to ensure that as many people as possible come to get swabbed  to see if they are a match for Jayden.

(3) VOLUNTEER on-site at one of the Bone Marrow Drives. If you would like to help please email alyson(at)balaila.com.

(4) SAY A LITTLE PRAYER for Jayden & her family.  It can only help.

You have the power to make a difference and I am counting on you to step up and do something to help.

Jayden is, too.

Wishing a day where you feel empowered to make a difference, and do something about it.

Tanya

With National Geographic’s Passport to Explore contest, it could be closer to reality than you think!

The Grand Prize is a 7-day adventure for 2 to a North American Destination of your choice (anywhere Air Canada flies) with accommodations at Loews Hotels!

Here’s all you need to do in order to enter:

1. Visit a participating National Geographic and National Geographic Explorer luggage retailer
2. Identify the animal that appears on The Passport to Explore hangtag that can be found on National Geographic and National Geographic Explorer products.
3. Come back to www.passporttoexplore.ca and submit your personal information along with the name of the mystery animal.

Earn an ADDITIONAL 2 BALLOTS by:

• entering the BLOGGER CODE 727
• SHARING the contest

Remember that the contest closes March 31st.

Wondering how to find a participating retailer?  Click right here: http://www.passporttoexplore.ca/where-to-buy/

No need to really go out of your way – You’ll see that the National Geographic Explorer Luggage collection is available at the retailers you frequent, in your local mall.  ( I happen to be a big fan of the travel stuff at the CAA stores and they tend to carry the National Geographic Explorer brand as well).

On the subject of National Geographic Explorer Luggage I’d like to add that I purchased a camera bag for my DSLR from the line earlier this year and am THRILLED with it.

It’s an ‘everything in its place’ bag: With spots for lenses, tripod, sunglasses, personal items (passport, wallet) and so much more.

I LOVE the little micro fibre cloth to clean my lenses- it’s sewn right into the bag so it doesn’t get lost.  The best part? It’s about 30% smaller than the competing version of the same bag that I was considering. So while no ‘small’ bag is going fit the multiple lenses, etc., this compact sling fits it all in 30% less space. That makes mama happy

So …

Step 1: Go check out the collection & find that mystery animal!

Step 2: Enter 3 times by naming the animal, Blogger Code & sharing

Step 3: Spend a little time dreaming about where you’d like to go…

I will leave you to it – Good Luck!

And if you win…I want to hear all about your Passport to Explore Adventure!!!

Official Contest Rules & regulations at http://www.passporttoexplore.ca

Wishing you a wonderful day of dreams & adventure

Tanya

As with all sponsored posts, I will only ever share with you products and/or services I believe in. All opinions contained within are my own and cannot be bought

I actually re-read this post from time to time to remind myself that “It’s O.K.”. I have even tweeted it out during the year as a little reminder.

Well, in honour of International Women’s Day, I thought I would re-post the main message because we could all use that little reminder once in a while.

I have also added the “It’s OKs …” that you left in last year’s comments

It’s OK…

• to miss work because your kids are sick.
• to let your sick kid watch TV all day because you have to work.
• to wear pajamas to drive the kids to school in the morning.
• to get dressed & fully made-up when you’re going to be in the house all day, just because it makes you feel good.
• to serve a ready-made BBQ chicken for dinner (and yes, it is actually cheaper than buying fresh and cooking it yourself).
• to prepare a 5-course meal for no reason other than the fact that you were inspired by a head of kale at the grocery store and one thing led to another…
• to want alone-time with your spouse.
• to want time all by yourself even if that means wishing you could be alone on a desert island where nobody needs you for anything.
• to lock the bathroom door because it’s actually the only alone-time you can get.
• to realize that locking yourself in the bathroom isn’t satisfactory and book a night, a weekend or a week away.
• to book that time away alone or with your spouse, as needed.
• to take a pregnancy test and pray that it’s negative.
• to resent the woman above because the 36 tests you’ve taken have all been negative.
• to love your children so much you’d do anything to protect them.
• to love your children enough to let them experience disappointment.
• to put your family first.
• to put yourself first.
• to bottle feed.
• to breastfeed in public.
• to volunteer because you want to give back.
• to hold back on volunteering because charity starts at home.
• to want to be treated like a princess.
• to take care of yourself.
• to realize you can’t do it all by yourself.
• to need help.
• to ask for help.
• to NEED a haircut.
• to make sure it never gets to the point that you NEED a haircut.
• for your kids to NEED a haircut.
• to make sure it never gets to the point that your kids NEED a haircut.
• to give yourself permission.
• to forgive the unforgivable.
• to forgive yourself.
• to look for prince charming.
• to realize that prince charming isn’t perfect and be OK with it.
• to accept that you’re not perfect and be OK with it.
• to keep striving for perfection because that’s how you grow.
• to expect others to accept you for your imperfect self.
• to share freely.
• to keep some things to yourself.
• to really want to win the lottery.
• to feel like you’ve won the lottery even though you’re knee-deep in debt but happy and in love.
• to have a crappy day even though you know you should appreciate your health.
• to prioritize your health over anything else.
• to realize that “me-time” makes you a happier and more productive person.
• to rationalize taking “me-time” by reminding yourself  that it makes you a better mom and spouse.
• to seek therapy if you need it.
• to practice shopping therapy if you can afford it.
• to read this list and others like it to remind yourself that it’s all OK…
• to fill in the next bullet point(s) with the very thing(s) you’re thinking about right now because it will make another woman feel better…

And from YOU, my fabulous readers who filled in those blanks last year:

• to scream every swear word in the book while in labour.
• to ask for an epidural.
• to lean on a girlfriend for support. That you don’t have to do everything alone, that sometimes being strong is being able to admit when your not.
• to slow down and smell the roses, for sometimes, even doing nothing is doing something.
• to leave dirty dishes in the sink.
• to lose, but when you lose, don’t lose the lesson!
• to NOT be OK…just know who an how to seek support if you should need it.
• to let go of people, of things, of ideas, if they do more harm than good (and ONLY YOU can determine which category they fall under).
• to admit that you can’t do it all…if g-d took 6 days to create the world, what makes us think we can do it in 1
• to wear the same clothes wore yesterday (after having leaned them on the laundry basket in anticipation you would wear them again)
• to stay positive even though you may have every reason to not stay positive
• to be sad/depressed/angry/tired/whatever and forget what everyone else will think if you are not being who everyone knows you to be
• to count your blessings and move on even though it may be the absolute hardest thing to do
• to feel like a cow when you double pump for your twins!
• t0 tell people they are rude when they give you rude comments about your multiples/big family, or anything for that matter…
• to love your child with all your heart and soul, yet still want to go back to work
• to drink an overpriced Starbucks coffee while you read trashy magazine
• to never admit that you read trashy magazines
• to eat ice cream. Often.
• to nap while your newborn baby is napping
• to add hair conditioner in the shower even if you hear the baby crying
• to not feel guilty for the any of the above
• to admit to being too tired to think about a reply to a great blog 
• to watch Top Gun only for the volleyball scene.
• to throw yourself a pity party, invite your friends, serve champagne and realize we truly are not alone in feeling that some days are just too much.
• to ask, nay DEMAND a 2-deep-breath-long hug when you need one!
• to NOT let anyone walk all over you. It doesn’t mean that you aren’t a loving person, it means that you love yourself enough NOT to let that happen.
• to toot your own horn sometimes. Loud and proud is ok too!

Here’s to all of us…

Some days inspired and some days less so,
Some days we’re sad and some days we glow
For what we’ve done and for what’s in store
We are women…hear us roar!!!

And one more:

It’s OK to re-post a blog that resonated with so many so that it can give offer that same feeling of support again, and again, and again.  AS NEEDED

Please share your “It’s OK’s…” We all need to hear/read them!

Happy International Women’s Day!

Tanya

YOU NAME IT. They’ve got it.

I have been to liquidation outlets but NONE like this.

They’ve got 1 MILLION DOLLARS worth of inventory that they are selling at 40%, 50% & up to 75% off!

Rather than put it all into words, I just figured I’d show you:

TOYS: V-Tech, Little Tikes, ThinkFun, Smart Games & MORE:

All at 50% off!!!  And that would be a REAL 50% off, folks…

I paid $11.50 & $12.50 for games like Rush Hour & Chocolate Fix: Easily $22-$25 at any retailer.

HOUSEWARES: From pots & pans to toasters & microwaves. Dishes & whisks to Vileda Mops..They’ve got it!

All at 40% off the ticketed price!

Let me tell you – I found things here that were CHEAPER THAN AT THE DOLLAR STORE!

CLOTHING: Men’s, Women’s, Children’s, Babies’.

Snowsuits, Jeans & everything in between.

SHOES?  Yup.

BOOTS? You bet.

FURNITURE? Mais OUI, mes amis

Seriously- It’s worth the trip.

5 (OK, 6) REASONS to go:

1. Stock up on birthday gifts.
2. Some of this stuff would make great (and affordable) Loot Bags
3. Find great hostess gifts for the upcoming holidays
4. If you celebrate Passover & change your dishes…This is PASSOVER PARADISE!
5. Get your Random Act of Kindness on & spend a few bucks to buy something fabulous to donate to someone in NEED
6. June will be here sooner than you think… TEACHERS’ GIFTS

There are so many more…but I don’t want to keep you reading…The sooner you get there, the better!  The inventory is always changing as they have got 1 MILLION DOLLARS of it to sell…

WHERE is it you ask?

It’s the NH Salvage Liquidation Outlet at 7155 Trans Canada (service road going west), just west of Cavendish.

(You know- the old Paintball place! ).

You’ll recognize it by the huge orange & yellow signs:

Looking for more information?

You can check out their website at nhinc.ca, Like NH Salvage on Facebook , Follow @NHSalvage on Twitter

Feel free to come back & post your finds!

Don’t forget to tell them that montrealmom.com sent you

Happy Shopping!!!

Tanya

As with all sponsored posts, I will only ever share with you products and/or services I believe in. All opinions contained within are my own and cannot be bought