April 20, 2015
Designing Your Home Your Way with Art Prints From Artollo
My home is my sanctuary. It is where as a family we come together to relax, eat, laugh and enjoy each other’s company. I want our home to reflect our uniqueness and personalities. In order to do this sometimes we have to think and make purchases outside the box.
Artollo is a creative studio founded in 2011 designing limited edition Art prints, posters, watercolour prints, vinyl wall decals, mini decals, mugs, t-shirts and more! Artollo consists of a group of artists located in Brooklyn, New York who are dedicated to bringing you the best selection of art elements for your home, office, restaurant, children’s room, nursery or teen bedrooms.
You can find a great variety of unique designs on their website which also includes wall decals and onesies. You literally have easy one stop shopping!
We received this print for our youngest son:
He loved it! It suits his personality perfect and he decided he was the Elephant leader and the three followers were his cousins and brother (of course since he is the youngest this makes the most sense!). The print is on a water-colour textured paper with a similar look and feel to a water colour painting which I loved. I love working in water colours and have created my own designs for them using superheroes. This print was just fantastic and felt like it was created for my son alone. We put his print in a frame that we had picked up over the weekend and easily hung it up in his room.
One of the most unique sections on the Artollo site is their wall decals. I fell in love with their nursery selection (what child would not want to have their room look like this!). It feels like a story that came to life in their room.
The art designs vary in price on the website and all are within a very reasonable rate for the quality and unique design you receive.
Artollo is offering one of you the chance to win your own unique design from their website! My Canadian and American readers can enter via the Rafflecopter form below – GOOD LUCK!
Make sure to follow Artollo on Twitter and Facebook to keep up to date on current news and new designs!
Disclosure: I received the above mentioned product in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.
April 15, 2015
But It Was Just a Little White Lie? #StreamTeam
“You better be good or Santa won’t come visit you”.
“If you tell a lie, your nose will grow just like Pinocchio”.
“Mommy can see out of the back of her head, so watch out!”.
We all tell lies. Sometimes they are little ones to avoid hurting someone’s feeling, others keep the magic of holidays going for their childhood and other times they are major lies that hurt everyone involved.
While it may seem like we foster a culture of lying to protect those around us, I want my children to understand that a lie hurts, no matter how good their intentions might be. I also want my children to understand that they should come to me with anything that they did. I have always encouraged and told my children, while I may be upset at the situation I will never be upset with them. Lying will only make things worse.
One of my favourite movies of all time, Mean Girls, is the perfect example of how those little lies can spin out of control. What starts out as a little bit of a fun game quickly turns into cruel and unintentional (at times) lies and actions that hurt everyone involved. This is an important lesson for children, teens and adults! What may start out as a small lie can quickly turn around to damage your reputation and more importantly the trust others have in you.
Another great flick you can catch on Netflix this month, Just Go With It starring Adam Sandler and Jennifer Aniston.
Oh Adam! In this film he is just full of nonsense (but oh so funny!!) – talk about a serial liar! But it has an ending that will make your heart warm inside.
iCarly is a huge hit in our house (although I am beginning to wonder if my boys just like the two main actresses!). This series is full of moral lessons for your children that comes across in a fun and light tone.
How do you teach your children about lying and the consequences that come along with this?
Disclosure: I am a #StreamTeam member and receive special perks associated with this affiliation. All opinions expressed are my own.
April 14, 2015
Inspirational #WW with linky
This week’s Wordless Wednesday is all about inspiration!
I am sharing my favourite quotes with you this week and encourage you to link up so that I can visit you too!
Have a great week!
Make sure to link up below:
April 10, 2015
The Journey to Pregnancy: Patience, Forgiveness and a Little Bit of Science with #TheStork Conception Aid
As many of you may know I am the Mother to two beautiful young boys. I have also suffered with PCOS, survived four miscarriages and seven years of failing to conceive. This has never been an easy topic for me to discuss because of all the pain and frustration that goes along with miscarriage and failing to conceive. But the truth is, we are not alone. 1 in 5 couples will have difficulties conceiving. Many of my female readers reading this post will have lived through a miscarriage or infertility. We can each take a positive step at this very moment with patience and forgiveness. The Stork wants to help take care of the science part (because let’s face it if you have been dealing with fertility issues you understand that becoming pregnant comes down to science) with their home conception aid.
My journey started over eight years ago after the birth of my first son. I have always loved children and wanted a large family but this was not meant for me as we soon found out after I miscarried three times in one year. The pain of these miscarriages was awful and haunted me for months afterwards. I kept thinking what would my child have been like? Following these miscarriages came the worst six years of my life. I could not conceive at all. I was barely having monthly menstrual cycles. I saw an endocrinologist, a gynecologist, a homeopath and finally a fertility clinic. I put myself through rounds of vitamins and medications that made me so sick I couldn’t leave the house at times. I also knew that I could not afford the fertility treatments that I wanted so badly. That hurt even more.
Here are some tools to help you on your journey to pregnancy and parenthood:
Be Patient.
Pregnancy does not just happen right away so be kind to yourself and be patient. These little miracles can take time to happen. Some couples can even take up to a year to conceive!
Be Forgiving.
Do not be hard on yourself. It is not your fault that becoming pregnant is not happening right away. Don’t blame yourself or your partner. Learn to be kind to yourself.
Try to focus on the positive.
While it can seem impossible to see the light at the end of the tunnel, it will come. In the meantime focus on the positives in your life. Focus on de-stressing, eating right and getting enough exercise. Take time out for you even if it means reading a book in the bath! These little things help.
Speak With Your Doctor
Take the first steps to talk with your doctor. They may want to order blood work to rule out any causes for infertility. They may order other tests but it is always a good idea to keep your family health care team informed of your concerns and what is going on with your health.
Try a Home Based Conception Aid
The Stork has invented a safe and private way to help couples conceive at home. Dealing with fertility treatments can be personal and most of the time we crave our privacy (I was one of those individuals – it hurt to sit in the waiting room at the fertility clinics and it hurt to see others in the middle of their pregnancies). I was hurting and wanted to be able to take control of the situation more.
So how does the Stork Home Conception Aid work?
The Stork home conception aid uses a cervical cap insemination method. The Stork uses a condom like sheath that collects the sperm and a tampon like applicator to deliver the sperm close to the cervical opening. This helps to increase the chance of pregnancy (the success rate of this method is 20% which is comparable to the 16-21% success rates of IUIs). The Stork home conception kit is drug free, safe and a cost efficient first step on your pregnancy journey. The Stork provides a first step in fertility treatment for couples that are experiencing low sperm count, sperm mobility issues, unfavourable vaginal environments and ovulation timing.
Here is how it works:
The best part:
The Stork and Working Mommy Journal want to give you the chance to win your own Stork home conception aid!
Canadian residents can enter via the rafflecopter form below – good luck!
If you are looking for more chances to win check out Influence Central’s The Stork Social Engagement Contest (with a grand prize of a $500 Visa gift card!!). You can enter here.
Disclosure: I am part of The Stork at-home conception aid campaign with Influence Central and I receive special parks as part of my affiliation with this group. The opinions on this blog are my own.
April 9, 2015
A Sparrow in Terezin by Kristy Cambron | New Book Plus a Book-Inspired Giveaway
Bound together across time, two women will discover a powerful connection in Kristy Cambron‘s new book, A Sparrow in Terezin. Connecting across a century through one little girl, a Holocaust survivor with a foot in each world, two women will discover a kinship that springs even in the darkest of times. In this tale of hope and survival, Sera and Kája must cling to the faith that sustains and fight to protect all they hold dear—even if it means placing their own futures on the line.
Kristy is celebrating by giving away a basket filled with goodies inspired by her new book!
One grand prize winner will receive:
- A set of poppy notecards
- A poppy pin
- A copy of I Never Saw Another Butterfly
- A copy of the Mrs. Miniver DVD
- Literary tea bags
- Tumbler
- A copy of A Sparrow in Terezin
Enter today by clicking the icon below. But hurry, the giveaway ends on April 28th. Winner will be announced April 29th on Kristy’s blog.
