This is a guest post by Julie Henning, Feed Me Editor, Road Trips for Families. You can check out yesterday's post for an intro to Julie and the other travel bloggers I met at BlogHer. Please join in me giving her a warm welcome to our little coffee spot! ********************* All Who Wander Are Not Lost! Kids today are “high tech.” Gaming, cell phones, and texting (OMG, LOL). Heck, sometimes we use email to communicate, even though we’re … [Read more...]
School for Bloggers: Some fellow travel bloggers I’d like you to meet! (#BlogHer10)
August 16, 2010 by 4 Comments
I'm really thrilled to be hosting a guest post tomorrow by Julie Henning of Road Trips for Families! But let me back up a little in order to introduce her ... While I was at BlogHer, there were "Birds of a Feather" lunches that we could join. I dropped into a seat at the "travel" table and met some really cool women who run really clever blogs. These included (and please let me know if I've forgotten someone!): Traci from Go BIG or … [Read more...]
School for Bloggers: The mandatory BlogHer recap post that never happened. And won’t. (#BlogHer10)
August 14, 2010 by 2 Comments
So. BlogHer. I know, I know. I'm supposed to do a recap of my experience -- what was great, what was not so great, which blogger idols I met and what swag I lugged back. But I'm not going to. I just didn't have time this week and now I don't feel like it. Plus, it's totally unnecessary, since some fabulous writers have already done great recaps. So I'll share a few of those with you instead. First, I'll point you towards the recaps written … [Read more...]
BlogHer Swag: baby & toddler giveaway packages
August 9, 2010 by
Edited to Add: The New Mother & Baby package had a total of 5 entries and the winner via Random.org was Tracy! The winner of the Toddler package had a total of 14 entries and the winner via Random.org was Judy! Congrats to you both and thanks to you all for participating in the fun! I got back from the BlogHer conference in New York City late last night and I'm still processing everything -- it was non-stop activity from morning until … [Read more...]
School for Bloggers: I don’t see sleep anywhere on this BlogHer agenda (#BlogHer10)
August 5, 2010 by 6 Comments
I started up this blog just over a year ago as an outlet for personal writing -- the kind of writing that doesn't take place during my work day in corporate communications. I envisioned it as my own little creative and social sandbox for my free time. But what I didn't realize then was just how much I would enjoy playing in this sandbox. And I think the reason I love being in this space so much is because it's a constant learning joy ride. I … [Read more...]
Postcard from Bar Harbor, Maine: Humans and the creatures they love
August 3, 2010 by Leave a Comment
While in Bar Harbor, I took in a tourist attraction to see a much-loved creature. "I stood shuffling nervously. Nervous because I really wanted a lucky glimpse of the creature and also, because I hoped that the motion-sickness pills I had gulped down would work." The experience left me wondering about the finicky nature of human love ... Please click here to read the full piece as featured in the e-zine Life As A Human. … [Read more...]
Mama got her groove back
July 29, 2010 by 10 Comments
I've been having a great vacation. Lots of relaxing. Hanging out. Laughing. All that sort of thing. But for some reason, I've been feeling a little, well, blah. Not a lot. Just a bit. I wondered why ... then I realized that I was spending a lot of time on the beach watching people walk around in bikinis while I was wearing a bathing suit that was handed down to me by a friend who'd lost weight and gave me all her "fat" clothes. Now, … [Read more...]
Postcard from Jonesport, Maine: Are Fishermen Lonely?
July 25, 2010 by Leave a Comment
We had had only one criterion for our holiday: an ocean view. So I simply searched the internet for all cottages that met this criterion and then booked the one at the best rate, which happened to be in a small fishing town called Jonesport ... [to read more, please click here to read the full post on Life As A Human] … [Read more...]
A “downeast” meal
July 23, 2010 by 8 Comments
After spending a beautiful day in Bar Harbour, Maine, we decided to treat the family to a downeast meal. The restaurant was literally on the pier, and we sat happily looking out at the lobster boats and the sea. First on the list was clam chowder. As a kid living in Nova Scotia, I can remember running about the beach and digging up clams with my brother. Then my mom would make us all a delicious clam chowder. I don't know which I enjoyed more … [Read more...]
When will he learn?
July 18, 2010 by 14 Comments
We'd hardly cut into the long drive ahead when my hubby asks if we could pull into the Canadian Tire he'd spotted. I knew what he wanted. "Oh, come on," I pleaded, "We really don't need a bike lock. Your bike is the only one worth anything and we can bring it into the hotel room if we have to." He countered saying that it would be really quick -- he could just run in while I drove to the Tim Horton's for a caffeine fill-up. "No ... these … [Read more...]
Random recommendation from my book shelf: The Turning, by Tim Winton
July 13, 2010 by 3 Comments
When I love a book, then I am compelling to force encourage others to read it. And so it went with Tim Winton's The Turning. I convinced my husband to read this collection of short stories, and then my father, and then my brother ... and so on, and so forth. If you've never lived in Australia, you can be forgiven for having never heard of Tim Winton. But, really, he is way better than Vegemite sandwiches. Trust me. He's written 9 novels, and … [Read more...]
BOLO: faces behind blogs
July 8, 2010 by 18 Comments
Not long back, I wrote a post which shared my excitement in being able to hear the voices behind blogs. In it, I noted that many of the blogs I read include a photo of the author, so the voices were going to be the big draw for me. Well, I was wrong ... my dear Ottawa bloggers and their readers are just so darn gorgeous in real life that the faces really made the entire night last night a real treat. A real treat that was entirely made … [Read more...]
Here’s how you can tell if a working mom has a big report due the next day
July 7, 2010 by 6 Comments
If you were a fly on a wall, you'd easily be able to tell whenever a working mom has a big day ahead of her in the morning. This is what you'd see: 11:30 pm: Shutting down computer after putting some finishing touches on a report. 1:00 am: Youngest child wakes up. Mom makes sure everything is okay, puts in some cuddle time and offers some milk. 1:30 am: Youngest child now settled, Mom returns to her bed. 2:00 am: Youngest child … [Read more...]
Camping lesson #1: If there’s no nature, it’s not worth it
July 3, 2010 by 4 Comments
In an attempt to bring ourselves back into the camping spirit now that we have children, we bought a pop-up tent trailer this spring. I admit that we swallowed our pride when we parked it in our driveway. It really put a damper on our camping "street-cred." Just as we defiantly swore we'd never buy a minivan just because we had children (and, for the record, we still have not succumbed ... yet), we also swore to never "car camp." Our first … [Read more...]
BOLO: voices behind blogs
June 25, 2010 by 12 Comments
Some people hate it when their favourite books are made into movies. The movie just never measures up. That's generally a given. But personally, I love it. I love comparing how I imagined a character to look -- and move and speak -- to the movie's version. Sometimes it's very close, but sometimes it is so vastly different that it simply reinforces why reading is just such a wonderful, uniquely personal experience. In some ways, reading a … [Read more...]
Who wears short-shorts?
June 23, 2010 by 5 Comments
Do you dare wear short-shorts? If you’re my age and can pull off short-shorts, all the power to you. If you’re a young woman with long tanned legs you want to show off, all the power to you. But please — let’s not dress our young girls in short-shorts. {click here to see why I'm such a prude about … [Read more...]
Commercials are bad for my mental health
June 21, 2010 by 9 Comments
Lately, I have found myself watching commercials more consciously. And it seems that pretty much everything about me is simply not good enough -- not my skin, my body shape, the way my house smells, or even my own role in my family. This constant barrage of criticism can't be good for my mental health, can it? Even though I can intellectually reject it, messages can still creep into my subconscious. And if it's not good for my mental … [Read more...]
Stuff that happened this week
June 18, 2010 by 9 Comments
I didn’t get around to posting anything on my blog this week because my husband has taken to making these beautiful after-work drinks called Brandy Lime & Soda. Mmmm… they are such a refreshing summer drink. But trust me that you will lose any desire to be productive after having one (which isn’t such a bad thing of course, but just be warned). I’ve been missing you though and even though I’ve already consumed said drink, I’ll attempt to … [Read more...]
I’m breaking my chain letter rule to share with you the story of a “female Schindler”
June 11, 2010 by 10 Comments
I've got a confession to make. You know when you sent me that email chain letter that said we would all have bad luck if I didn't forward it on? Well, I deleted it. And that one where if I didn't send it on to my seven dearest friends, they would never know how much I cared? Deleted. That internet meme that I you sent with best intentions? Sorry, deleted. Even that chain letter full of stickers for your kids' friends? Yes, I'm the bad guy who … [Read more...]
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