Getting Ready for School and Rearranging Our Workspace

It is very important for children and adults alike to setup a separate space to either do homework or office work without distractions. We have a dedicated room to study, work, and practice our creative flow. We spruced up our creative corner by adding a couple of office and school furniture from Canadian Tire. The CANVAS brand Blair office chair and the Clara desk go well together and bring a whole different, refreshing feel to the room.

Getting Ready for a New School Year

I can't believe how quickly summer holidays are passing by, soon it will be time for us to start our back to school routines. Here are a few items that will come in handy for families during the school year.

Ease of Shopping Online

We love shopping online! There are a few reasons, why my family and I love to shop online and have been doing this more frequently in the recent past. With online shopping, we can conveniently buy what we want, when we want without trying to beat traffic, driving to a store and looking for the items in the shelves, or carrying the items and standing in line. Especially with the busy lifestyle, making purchases online is quick - simply search for the items and buy it - and the products get delivered right to our front door. Also, depending on the items, it is quite easy to return without regretting the purchasing decision.

More Convenience with Keyless Schlage Connect

Last year, with the help of the Schlage Touch we started our journey to the Keyless future. This made things convenient for us, and we had one less thing to worry about. The Schlage Touch uses a custom pin to unlock the front door, which makes it very convenient for the adults and children. In the mornings when heading out, there is no waiting near the door for everyone to be out to lock the door with a key as all it takes with the Schlage is to turn the lever to lock the door.

Help Your Body Cool Down this Summer with Hans Dairy Products

My grandma always reminds me about the ample benefits of yogurt; for example it helps cool our body, strengthen the immune system, and aids digestion. In our family, we have lots of yogurt in different forms - from making side dishes like raita, or including it in beverages and desserts to adding it to meals when we cook and bake. 

Appreciating Nature and Giveaway for The Bee Book

Bees are an important part of our lives! We need to learn, as well as teach our children the importance of bees and how we can help care and protect them.  

Paper Crafts: Paper Folding and Origami Fun Kit

Origami is a fun craft to do when you have instructions that are easy to follow. It is less frustrating for beginners when the instructions are simple, clear, and build on the skills. We found the Origami Fun Kit for Beginners is a wonderful starter kit priced at $18, which has three books to make origami animals, birds and easy designs.

Microsoft Celebrates #Canada150 Through #ExploreTeachBuild

Microsoft's #ExploreTeachBuild challenge celebrates Canada's 150th anniversary of confederation through a series of educational opportunities that students from Kindergarten to Grade 12 across Canada can engage in. Students can connect with a tour guide from national heritage sites and engage in real-time through Skype Virtual Field Trips, use Minecraft: Education Edition to re-create Canada's historical sites and submit their creations into a national collection and win prizes. The student created collection will be featured globally on July 1st 2017 on Microsoft Canada's 150 National Sway.

Toronto International Boat Show

It was exciting to see the Ricoh Coliseum transformed to the world's largest indoor lake when went to this year's Toronto International Boat Show. 

Review of the Alcatel IDOL 4

We reviewed the Alcatel One Touch IDOL 3 smartphone last year and loved it. This year Alcatel has released a newer version – The Alcatel IDOL 4. We have been using the IDOL 4 on the Bell network and enjoyed some of the features in this phone.

What Next, Where to Go When and Arm Knitting DK Books

We love books that inspires us to try new things or develop the skills we have. Colourful books with lots of tips and techniques are the ones my family and I lean towards. We had been taking a look at a few interesting DK Canada books during the holidays. 

Our thoughts on the 2017 Mazda3

We enjoyed driving the Soul Red Metallic Mazda3 that has an impressive exterior and interior design. We like the smooth design and safety features of the Mazda3 and feel it is a wonderful everyday vehicle. 

Inspiring Cookbooks

I enjoy baking and cooking recipes from different cuisines. I find colourful and detailed cookbooks are an inspiration to try different recipes, and a delicious way to introduce healthy and flavourful dishes to family and friends. The books below are a few that I enjoy baking and cooking from.

Phantom Glass Screen Protector

We have used Phantom glass on our previous devices and love the quality of the product. With larger screen smartphones, such as the new iPhones it is becoming necessary to protect the screens of our valuable investment. This is where Phantom glass screen protectors help us. They are a valuable addition to our smartphones, as it helps protect the screens from scratches and fingerprints.

Books for Children

Books make a wonderful gift for children and adults. We enjoy reading books that have colourful images with detailed, well researched information. We enjoyed reading a few books from Lonely Planet Kids that are interesting and fun for everyone. 

Avery Labels for holiday shipping and mailing season

Avery labels are quite handy to have when we wrap gifts, as we can customize them easily on the computer and stick it on to our gifts, packages and envelopes. I enjoy using the Avery labels website to customize a variety of labels to place on gifts that we plan to present to family, friends and colleagues this holiday season.

The 3-Step Werner Project Step Stool is Handy for DIY projects

The 3-Step Type II Project Ladder Step Stool available to purchase at Lowe's is ideal for any task in our home, kitchen or garage. We find the utility tray on this ladder to be useful for our painting and DIY projects as it can hold paint cans and tools that we need. We like having the option of either being able to keep the tray attached or removed depending on our need. 

Perfect Gifts for Sports and Adventure Fans at Sport Chek

When my family and I look to buy sports and outdoor adventure items, the first place we go to is Sport Chek! They always have what we are looking for - from the best quality sports gear, outdoor clothing for all our adventures, and everything related to fitness and training. We find this Sport Chek's Holiday Gift Guide makes shopping online or at the store easy, as it is categorized and easy to browse.

Spicy Pumpkin Soup and KenmorePro Blender Giveaway

I like using the high powered KenmorePro Heavy Duty Professional Blender to make both cold and hot recipes, as it is versatile. This blender is special because we can prepare warm soups within a few minutes by simply adding the ingredients, puréeing it and blending it on maximum speed for 5 minutes until it starts to steam. We can also use it to make smoothies, soups, sauces, and for other meal prep. 

Make Your Own Holiday Gifts using Klutz Kits

It is always fun to make handmade gifts to present to friends and family. Holiday gifts that are made with love are more valued and treasured. My children and I love using Klutz Kits and have learned a variety of crafts using these Kits to get a better idea about a particular craft. These kits come with instructions and materials that make it easy to learn the craft and get to it right away! There is no need to look or shop for the tools and materials.