If you’re in need of any clothes for your kids, there’s an awesome sale you need to know about.

Our friends at Growing, Growing Gone online kids clothing store are having a Toonie Sale: Baby, kids and teen items reduced up to 90%, with most only $2-$8!

Owner Jennifer had a similar sale a while back, and we got the cutest matching t-shirts, dresses and shorts for Lucy and Alice — six items total — for just $12.

Seriously, you can’t beat it. And the stuff is all brand name: GAP, Children’s Place, OshKosh, Carters etc. so you know it’s good quality. And if you’re into the matchy-matchy thing (c’mon, admit it…) you’ll find tons of the same style clothes in various sizes.

Here are the details.

What: Toonie Sale – 72 Hours only!
When: 10 p.m. Mon, June 29 – 10 p.m. Thurs. July 2
Where: www.growinggrowinggone.ca
(Due to the super discounted prices all extra discount % coupons will be temporarily suspended during the duration of the sale.)

Happy shopping!

Today is Lucy’s last day at daycare for the summer.

Our wonderful home provider, Julia, closes down for the summer to spend the school vacation with her three boys (she’s a single mom). So far this has worked for us, with me working from home and getting help from our teenager Shelby and our parents. But we’ve had many conversations the past two years about how much longer we can handle the shut-down.

Certainly next summer — when I plan to be working three days a week — it will not be viable.

But we’re not thinking about that right now. We’re thinking about:

• a) it’s summer!
• b) ohdeargod, it’s summer!
• c) what am I going to do with two kids for nine weeks?
• d) how am I not going to go nutty with two kids?

We’ll be getting various breaks from each other at daycamp, the cottage and help from Shelby again and our parents. But people: There are a ton of loonnnng days ahead. And you can only craft away or hang out in the backyard so much.

So, let’s help each other out. What do you do all summer? Where do you go to play? Splash pad? Park? Trail? Best indoor place on a hot/rainy day? Festivals? Museums?

Leave a comment, and we can build up a fabulous local resource to refer to all summer.

As an added bonus, I’ve got a set of Fisher Price Laugh & Learn Keys to give away to one lucky commenter!

Here are my faves:

• Any and all local fairs (click here for a list of all the fairs in Ontario, including Durham Region)
• Libraries, early year’s centres (full list of Durham’s are on the site here!)
• Brooks Farms (tractor rides!), plus Cooper’s Goat & Veggie Farm, Uxbridge (corn sandbox and…goats!)
• Port Perry’s waterfront — soon to have a splash pad! And they have great restaurants, picnic area and park
• Picnics in the park (there’s something so…summer about doing this)
• Indoor malls on hot days to cool down
• Ditto indoor play centres (see our list here!)
• Kiddie pool in the backyard with friends
• All of Durham’s local festivals and celebrations can be found on the Tourism Durham website, and others — see the local events page

After much hand wringing, some general freaking out and a few tears, we seem to have a solution to the State of the House (post and comments here). Or, at least we think we do.

Anyone who knows my husband will not be surprised at how he took to this dilema: He created a spreadsheet.

(Apparently this is what he gets paid to do all day. Who knew!)

I’ve had to give up the notion of a clean house all at once (as Ang does), and we’re now focusing on a specific few tasks each night. Aside from laundry, each night should only require each of us to spend around 20 minutes cleaning. Of course, this does not include the monumental task each night of cleaning the kitchen up from dinner, but that’s just part of life.

We’re on day two, and I’m loving it so far. I feel like we’re both in this together more, and like that I have a specific thing to do each day. It appeals to the planner/controller in me. But I also told Eric The Schedule and he need to be flexible to accommodate my work, too.

We’ll see how it goes. Maybe something you can try?

In other news, on Sunday night I ate a piece of cheese on my chicken burger. REAL cheese from a cow. And Alice was completely fine.

Perhaps we’re seeing the end of the daily allergy?

At Durham Mom’s Night Out tonight, we’re trying out Mexican Cuban. And I am SO having some more cheese…maybe even *gasp* sour cream.

This is just the second photo in existence of my little family, taken this weekend at the Durham Mom’s Night Out playdate at the park to meet each other’s partners and kids (we had lots of fun, and look forward to planning another this summer. Perhaps with name tags. And food.).

This photo is so fitting of what life if like right now: Me with Alice permanently attached, Eric and Lucy always smiling and playing together. I’m so glad to have a record of it.
It’s so hard to get all four of us together, happy, clothed half decently, and have someone else around to snap a photo! Thanks, Jen O.

Speaking of elusive, have you ever tried to get six people — including two babies and two toddlers — to look up, smile, not fiddle or dance or twist or kick the ground or each other, with open eyes?

My eyes are closed. Jen is being wooed by Alice, while Avery contemplates hitting someone with that bottle. And who knows what planet Lucy and Eirinn are on.

Now the babies are going at it, and the rest of us are looking at different…what? Specks in the sky?

Eirinn and Lucy: “Tra-la!” Avery: “Grass!” Jen: “Did you get one yet?” Carly: “Wha?” Alice: “Ba-ba-ba-ba.” Also: strange dude in the background.

Success! Or as good as it’s going to get.

It seems like from here on in, there’s some family fun-ness happening in Durham.

This weekend is no exception.

Saturday is the much-anticipated Mom2Mom Sale in Ajax. All the details are here.

Many of Durham Region’s Farmers’ Markets open this weekend or next. All winter, when we drive by the location of our local one, Lucy yells, “Therrrrrrre’s the Market!” Can’t wait to get some fresh and local food again. Click here for a list to find your closest one.

Saturday is also the Region of Durham’s annual National Public Works Week celebrations, where you can tour various recycling, traffic, water and compost facilities. It may SOUND boring, but they’re actually lots of fun for kids to see where our stuff goes. Plus, you get to see big tractors and diggers and dudes in hard hats (perhaps that last one is something for the moms?).

Finally, and this one is for us north Durham folks (go Boonies!), there’s free compost to be had at the Uxbridge Arena from 8 a.m.-noon.

Take a spin through your local paper to find all the garage sales, too. This weekend seems to be the unofficial kick off to the season.

(Eric, I’m gonna be gone for a few hours on Saturday morning. Good luck with the kids!)

Don’t forget to visit our local events page here for more.

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Want to advertise your event to our targeted audience? Email info@durhamregionbaby.com to find out how!

Lucy once again enjoyed reaching into the ballot box and throwing paper in the air fishing out winners. Alice was on her belly nearby, and almost ate three names. Good thing y’all wrote in pen!

Here are the prize winners from the Mamas & Chicks Show (check your email, ladies):

• Cathy R: Haircut, shampoos & accessories from Melonhead Children’s Hair Care
  
• Tara P: Funky maternity shirt from Spegg Wear
• Laura M: Free portrait session, and Kelli M, Melanie F, &Sarah K.: gift certificates from Shelly Ferguson Photography
• Nicole G: Tagalicious Blankie from Balaboosta Baby
• Lisa G: Eight-week workout session from Mommy and Baby Fitness
• Tang S: Baby wrap from Wee Ones by JaJoC
• Nicole W & Alicia C: Two one-hour treatments and coupons from Feet First Reflexology

If you live in Durham Region or anywhere in south central Ontario today, you know it’s GORGEOUS out — currently 28 degrees up here in the Boonies! Unfortunately I’m spending some of the afternoon getting ready for tomorrow’s Mamas & Chicks Show, which includes this reminder blog post, which in hindsight is probably pointless because you’re probably all outside!

Eric, Alice and I will be there just inside the front entrance, so be sure to say hello and enter to win all this booty:

• Haircuts, shampoos & accessories from Melonhead Children’s Hair Care
• Funky maternity shirt from Spegg Wear
• Free portrait session and gift certificates from Shelly Ferguson Photography
• Tagalicious Blankie from Balaboosta Baby
• Eight-week workout session from Mommy and Baby Fitness
• Baby wrap from Wee Ones by JaJoC
• Two one-hour treatments and coupons from Feet First Reflexology

Another special thanks to our friends in the Durham Region parent-geared business community for the support and product donations. Don’tcha all love freeeeee stuff?

See you there!

CONTEST CLOSED: FREE TICKETS ALL GONE!

It’s spring shopping time, and the Mamas & Chicks Show in Oshawa this Sunday is just the place to mingle with other moms and support local businesses (my fave!).

There’s free parking, tons of great prizes to win, more than 55 exhibitors, and the Cutest Spring Chick Competition to win a photography and art portrait. We’ll be at the very first table when you enter the show, so be sure to say hello.

Want to go and not pay? I don’t mean sneak in the back door (is that even possible with a babbling baby and ginormous stroller?), I mean get on The List for free tickets.

These contests are always so challenging. My brain hurts from coming up with this skill-testing question:

How much is admission for the suckers who have to pay because they won’t be on The List? You’ll find the cost somewhere on the show’s website.

The first 50 to send the answer to info@durhamregionbaby.com win, so enter soon!

Here’s what we’re giving away on Sunday:

• Haircuts, shampoos & accessories from Melonhead Children’s Hair Care
• Funky maternity shirt from Spegg Wear
• Free portrait session and gift certificates from Shelly Ferguson Photography
• Tagalicious Blankie from Balaboosta Baby
• Eight-week workout session from Mommy and Baby Fitness
• Baby wrap from Wee Ones by JaJoC

See you there!

Lucy had great fun drawing these names for the Baby & Toddler Show winners, which included grabbing a fistful of ballots and throwing them in the air like confetti. Note to self: 3-year-olds make terrible office assistants.

• Vanessa B & Carrie D. win haircuts, shampoos & accessories from Melonhead Children’s Hair Care
• Samantha T. wins an Alien on Board maternity shirt from Spegg Wear
• Lynn W. wins a spa gift basket from Finest Expressions
• Tiffany W. wins hair & soother clips from Clippopotamus Hair Clips & Accessories
• Julia H. wins the homeopathic gift certificate and cough syrup from Keri Wilkins Homeopathic Services
• Reena M. receives bath & hand yummies from Breathe Natural Bath & Body Products and MarketMomsOnline
• Rebekah W. wins the free portrait session, while Liz A., Dana N., Chantelle A., Lorenza S., and Susan W. win gift certificates from Shelly Ferguson Photography
• Sherry H. pics up the Tagalicious Blankie from Balaboosta Baby
• Traci A. wins a gat, headband and clips from Sugar & Spice Bows & Accessories
• Jenny W. wins an 8-week workout session from Mommy and Baby Fitness
• Julie M. wins gourmet chocolates from My Pretty Sweets

If you think one of these is you, and you haven’t received an email, that means your spam folder ate my note. And if you get home tonight and there’s a message from a stange woman with someone blowing spit bubbles in the background? It’s not a crazed person from the mental health ward at the hospital calling…that’s Alice and I.

Congrats to all!

I’ve got more goodies to give away at this Sunday’s Mamas & Chicks Show in Oshawa, including free tickets. Stay tuned!

The show went great. There were more than 1,000 people through the doors (I wonder if they count babies, too?), and the place was steadily busy until around 2 when nap time hit. I met a ton of people, said hi to some readers, and received lots of interest in both sites (and giveaway entries, too! Winners announced tomorrow).

Thankfully Alice was like this most of the day. She slept for a bit in the morning in her car seat, then Eric took her to the mall for a while so she could doze in the stroller. I keep meaning to write about how she’s freaked out at strangers since, oh, birth, and how worried I was about how she’d react to everyone. But like a true baby, she surprised us all.

My (pregnant again!) friend Colleen sent the girls these fabulous matching Easter pajamas from Old Navy (there’s an egg with sunglasses on, and the caption says, “I’m a cool egg”). Lucy is so tickled when she and Alice match. I’ve got to find more paired clothes for them. This was at bedtime on Saturday after a long day at the show, and Alice is quite understandably done.

She was in a much better mood in the morning.

Lucy went absolutely bonkers over the eggs the Easter Bunny hid for her. She shuffled around the house in her bunny slippers, squealing each time she found one (”Look, Mumma, ah-nudder one!”). The Easter Bunny was supposed to keep track of how many eggs s/he hid to make sure Spencer Dog did not come across any, but s/he was slightly tired. And Lucy loved the hunt so much, she’s spent the last two days re-hiding all the eggs herself, then finding them (or asking us too, all along the way showing us where they are). Makes for much hilarity and eye-rolling, as the kid hides the eggs in the same places over and over again. Still, I think we’re down three or four.
They’ll probably show up at Christmas.