A Symbolic Gift for a Kid (or a Kid at Heart) That Has Everything

Today my youngest son received an early Christmas gift from his much older and very thoughtful cousin!  He symbolically adopted a hippopotamus through the WWF for him.   Click here for more details.

My little guy received his adoption certificate and will receive a hippo stuffed animal very soon in the mail.  Plus a donation was made on his behalf to the WWF to help support its conservation efforts.  

Here is what his package includes:

The stuffed animal

The donation certificate with his name on it

A picture and information about the hippo

All in a nice reusable bag ready for gifting! (I love easy packaging)

I am sure this hippo will stay with him forever and it will always have special meaning!

There are other animals to choose from - perfect for an animal lover or a person who has everything.  Click here to see all the options.

If you are purchasing this last minute, I think it is definitely acceptable to just give the donation certificate for now until the stuffed animal arrives by mail.

Kids Christmas Crafts for Christmas Party

I'm attending a Christmas party this weekend.  The kids are included and there will be lots of them. I'm hoping to set up a craft table for the kids.  Here are a few quick and easy ideas to plan for.

This one from Right Start Blog is my favourite because it is also a nice keepsake.

See full instructions Via Right Start Blog

It doesn't get easier than this craft platter from Michael's.  Everything you need in one box.

Via Michael's

This one is cute for older kids.

Via Freaky Pic

Gift for 5yrs plus - Do You Remember Fashion Plates?

Yesterday I shared how much I loved going through the "25 Awesome Toys Every 80s Girl Wanted for Christmas" on Buzz Feed (click here to see the list again if you missed it).  I decided to look my favourite item up and noticed that it is still available, and still popular.  I think Fashion Plates would make a great gift for a girl 5 years and up.  

Via Chapters/Indigo

Via Chapters/Indigo

Via Chapters/Indigo

Funny I have seen this so many times in the stores but never paid close attention to notice that it is the same Fashion Plates I loved for so many years!!  The blue colour fooled me.  I may buy it for myself to see if it's the same as it was, or close to.

If You Are An 80s Girl You Will Love This List!

My brother sent me this article in Buzz Feed yesterday because he thought of me - 35 Awesome Toys Every 80s Girl Wanted For Christmas.  Going through the list made us both feel nostalgic.  Do you remember any of these?  The following were my favourites.  What were your favourites?

I know I definitely played with this game for hours and years.  Actually, it is the toy that mostly stands out to me.

Via Buzz Feed

Popples were so fun and cute.  We found a bunch at my parents' house the other day stored in the basement. The ones we still have are the ones that turned into sports balls (soccer ball, basket ball, etc.).

Via Buzz Feed

I see these often in China Town.  I bought myself a Monchihchi change purse a few years ago with my cousin.  I couldn't resist!

Via Buzz Feed

These were really awesome.  I remember rolling around at the beach resort we used to attend every summer.

Via Buzz Feed

And last but not least, I had this phone and I held some of the best girl talk on that phone...did you have one?!?

Via Buzz Feed

This makes me wonder whether any of these gifts still exist and should be considered for kids these days, or even for an 80s child.  If I loved them then I should feel very comfortable gifting them to other kids.  Stay tuned for more information on these finds.

More Black Friday Deals - Holt Renfrew

For those working downtown Ottawa make sure you check out Holt Renfrew's hourly deals in the next two days (it includes sales on certain Links of London jewelry, Marc by Marc Jacobs accessories as well as Kate Spade and Michael Kors items) plus they have up to 40% on some fall fashion.  Click here for the exact details.  Click here for the details of hourly deals for the Montreal store and here for the details of the hourly deals for other stores in your area.

Via Holt Renfrew

Black Friday Starting Today - Beat the Crowds (Chapters/Indigo: Christmas decor, Stocking Stuffers, Hostess gifts and more)

My intention is to try to beat tomorrow's crowds by taking advantage of Black Friday deals today.  I am sure everyone is slowly finding out that most stores are starting their sales today so I am not sure if my plan will work, but I will try!  If not, I will focus my shopping online - with a nice hot coco perhaps.

Check out these deals at Chapters/Indigo. Click here for a full list.

They claim this is their best Black Friday sale ever and I believe it because the deals seems pretty good. I still have some Christmas Décor I would like to purchase so I am excited to see that all their Holiday décor is 40% starting today.  Their 25% off toy sale starts tomorrow.

Via Indigo

 Perfect hostess gift.

Via Indigo

Best place for cute and fun Stocking Stuffers (and small gift exchange items)

Via Indigo

The Perfect Gift for the Little Ones Who Believe in Santa

For my oldest son's first Christmas, our neighbours gave us a cute little plate to use for Santa's cookies. I can't wait to use it for the first time this year because this year, he understands Santa's story and is anticipating his arrival.

I have been looking everywhere for a similar plate to give as a gift and finally fell upon this one that I absolutely love. Not only is it more than a plate and can be personalized, but it is also on sale for 20% off at Chapters/Indigo.

Via Indigo Kids

This is a perfect gift for any kids who are starting to anticipate Santa's arrival.  It will make for a great tradition over the years.

Kate Spade to Kick Us Off this Season

Funny enough when I opened the blog page to FINALLY start posting again, I realized that the last post we had was for a Kate Spade find and the post I was going to start off with is also a Kate Spade find.

It is now past 10 p.m. on Monday and as I was shopping online I realized KateSpade.com was having a 25% off your entire purchase promotion on their site until midnight today.

I had to share with my Facebook friends.  You have just under 2 hours to take advantage.

I just had time to browse the bracelets and here are my favourite finds as gifts for HER.  I love the looks and the personalized touches.

Via Katespade.com

Via KateSpade.com

Via KateSpade.com

And the bonus is the awesome packaging the bracelets come in.

Via KateSpade.com

Happy Shopping and good luck finding what you like because I am told the stock has gone down from yesterday!

Winners Kate Spade Saturday find!

I was looking for a quick cute gift for a girlfriend at Winners this past week-end. I was so happy to see that they now carry Kate Spade Saturday items! Such fun pieces! You can check out the Kate Spade Saturday line here!

My friend has just returned to school so these fun & modern Kate Spade desk accessories were perfect!

Round desk container via Kate Spade Saturday

Round desk container via Kate Spade Saturday

Kate Spade Saturday notebook (no longer available on Kate Spade website)

Kate Spade Saturday notebook (no longer available on Kate Spade website)

Kate Spade Saturday mini notebook set (no longer available on Kate Spade website)

The container was $12.99 from $40 originally on the Kate Spade website and the notebooks and notebook sets $6.99 each from the original $20 on the Kate Spade site. Pretty great deals considering my friend is a big Kate Spade fan! There were many other items from the line! Definitely worth going to check out if you love Kate Spade stuff too!

Affordable baby bedding coming soon to a Bouclair store near you!

I'm very excited to see that Bouclair Home will now be offering affordable, adorable & modern baby bedding & nursery decor!

via Bouclair

via Bouclair

via Bouclair

Four years ago, when I was pregnant with my first child, it was nearly impossible to find modern nursery bedding that did not cost as much (or more) than the crib! I ended up buying a set from Dwell Studio that I loved but was way over priced!

via Dwell Studio

Since then many affordable & modern options have become available. Target has a great line of mix and match pieces!

via Target

Now Bouclair's new line promises to be just as cute as the expensive sets I've pined over at Serena & Lilly, Little Auggie or the ones over at Land of the Nod and for a fraction of the price! Stay tuned, their website says coming soon!

via Serena & Lily

via Little Auggie

via Land of the Nod

Reasons to Love the "My Little Seat Travel Highchair" in Asia

We recently traveled to Asia with our son who is now almost 9 months.  It was interesting to see that high chairs in most restaurants are actually "high chair" without straps or bars.  Only a toddler who sits very sturdy can sit in one because there are no bars or straps to stop him from falling.  So you can imagine how happy we were that we brought the My Little Seat high chair with us.  I'm not sure what parents do here with their babies. Maybe they are more advanced and can sit alone because at every restaurant they assume that our little guy can sit in this type of high chair as it is the only chair offered to us.

I've mentioned before that the My Little Seat was useful to us in Chicago where a high chair was not always available and now here is another reason to love the My Little Seat.  It is easy to pack and wash, and is an absolutely must for parents who travel with their babies.  You just never know what kind of high chairs you will find or the lack thereof.

Via My Little Seat

There are a few designs to choose from.  Click here to see them all from the My Little Seat website.

Happy Belated Valentine's Day - Valentine Craft

We celebrated Valentine's Day away from home so we had to be a bit creative with how we did.  I saw the following idea on "As Time Flies" and thought it would be suitable for my 2 year old.

Via As Time Flies

Via As Time Flies

It called for a canvas, paint tape and homemade hand paint (see her site by clicking here for the recipe) but all I had on hand was the back of my son's electronic ticket to Singapore, masking tape and crayons.  I thought it was cool to use the back of the electronic ticket as it marked our time away from home.  The result still turned out sweet.  I stuck the masking tape to write out "Love" and then my son drew over it.  He had fun but his attention span lasted only two mins.  Thankfully he coloured enough to get the effect of the letters.

Here is the final result!  Not bad!

And here he is admiring his work before giving it to daddy.

He was really proud of his work and kept going back to it telling his dad that he did it for him.  Priceless!

Valentine's card for Daddy!

It has become a tradition that my eldest son makes a little something for his Daddy for special occasions (with Mommy's help of course ;))...Since my youngest is only 4 1/2 months old I thought a card with handprints of both boys would be cute. The process was quick but neither liked it very much! I used Crayola finger paint that I already had so it was easily washed off.

Initially I was annoyed that my eldest got fingerprints on the front of the card but now I think it's cute and makes it even more authentic:). Daddy was very proud and happy with his Valentine's card from his boys!