January, 2012

Top 10 Reasons Why Blogging is like Sex

Our momstown team gets lumped into the so-called "Mommy Blogger" space often and while our team blogs, momstown does a ton more than write. We host events, we connect local moms and we run businesses. A byproduct of our business are our blogs and the fabulous content (well, we think it's fabulous!) that we create to add to our membership focus and interest. We blog to engage with our clients in a bigger way and in addition to our businesses. 

 

In a recent team development meeting our momstown entrepreneurs were debating the relevancy of blogging in their business and how it's just "one more thing to do". Some team members had writers block, which then extended into a longer than usual hiatus from blogging. I made a joke that blogging is like sex, and thus, this post was born.

 

I hope bloggers will find a little chuckle in it, even if non-bloggers have no clue what we're talking about!

 

i love blogging

 

Top 10 Reasons Why Blogging is like Sex



1. When it’s good, it can be really good. Addictive even. You’ll keep writing and writing and write all night.

2. When it’s bad, at least you can look back and laugh about it.

3. When you think it’s only okay, it’s actually not all that bad, in fact, it was more fun than you thought it would be. You might want to try that again. Tomorrow.

4. When you haven’t blogged in awhile, you know you should, sometimes it’s a chore, but you do it just to keep your stats happy. Check-check.

5. Sex for the first time after you’ve had a baby is like when you’ve been on blogging hiatus. Just push through, write the damn thing, and hit publish. There. You’ve done it. You broke the barrier, next time will be better.

6. It’s always more fun after a couple glasses of wine. (right?)

7. If you don’t blog, your readers may look somewhere else. Keep the home fires burning.

8. Pictures are fun, but content is better.

9. Don’t compare to your best ever, just do what you can with what material you have today.

10. All the cool kids are doin' it! ;-)

 

Do you have a #11???

 

Written by our main momstown entrepreneur, Ann-Marie Burton.

 

 

Image credit

Posted by momstown mompreneur on 01/28/2012 - 14:03
Labels:
ShareThis share this post

Hit the road... without hitting the wall!

Road Trip

 

If you’re looking to escape the endless drones of “I’m bored” this March Break but are afraid that your car doors suddenly seem more restricting than prison walls, have no fear – the successful road trip CAN be done… Sanity intact!

 

Last year my family was fortunate enough to be invited on a road trip to Orlando, Florida, courtesy of GM Canada and, of course, their new Chevy Orlando.  While thrilled to be able to add this adventure to our summer agenda, double digit hours spent in the car with a busy 7 year old filled me with terror. What if he gets bored after the first hour? What if I brought the wrong activities to entertain him? What if there’s no Starbucks for miles???

 


Needless to say, we not only survived but even thrived, so I’m paying it forward to help you survive the dreaded ROAD TRIP…


Chevy OLrlando

STEP 1:    Break the drive up into manageable chunks of drive time. Unless you have those kids who will pass out for 10+ hours at a time without waking, in which case, you’re already a winner!

 

STEP 2:    Plan something fun to see or do at each stop – a landmark, a fun restaurant, an ice cream, 10 laps around the car… whatever works for you & your brood.

 

STEP 3:    Load up on the car tunes - a little something for everyone's tastes. Not only can a group singalong pass the time, but if the whining gets to be too much, you can always crank the tunes and drown it out!

 

STEP 4: Stock up on “pleasant little time wasters”! Now’s not the time to take a stand against the “evils of the Electronic Babysitters” – embrace them… enjoy them… I might have even hugged them at various points of our journey! We were lucky enough to have an iPad with us that was loaded up with games, music, movies, TV shows…  Happy kids = happy parents. Enough said.

 

STEP 5:    Have some “off line” back up plans. I have a friend who plans a scavenger hunt that works for in-car time & break time (i.e. find 3 gas stations, 2 McDonalds, license plates from four states/provinces, a picnic table, 3 kinds of leaves, a straw, etc.) Winner gets their choice of some fantastic dollar store prize you stocked up on before you left!

 

STEP 6:    Snacks, snacks & more snacks! Stopping for treats on the way can be fun – but if you don’t have your own stash ready & waiting to supplement the stops, you could spend your entire vacation in line at the local McDonalds! And while I did make a concerted effort to load up on the fruits, water, and healthy snacks, its amazing the extra mileage and bonus “cool mom” points I got for the extra container of mini-marshmallows – good times!

 

STEP 7:    Put everything you need within arms’ reach. Seems like a no-brainer, right? But punctuating the ‘bliss’ of our family road trip with continual not-so-silent grumbles every time we had to pull over to grab extra snacks/games/DVDs/blankets/books/sweaters/whatever, was definitely less than idyllic!

 

STEP 8:   This one was definitely a new one for me, but I’m now a huge advocate of using the local Tourism boards to help plan your trip. Perhaps I’m late to the party but I always assumed that as a somewhat intelligent multi-tasking mama, planning my own trip should be a piece of cake. But thanks to the incredible assistance of the wonderful people at Visit Orlando, I now know that the cake I thought I was enjoying was actually stale bread crusts, in comparison to what they could do for me. They not only planned all of our day trips & excursions with incredible ease, but even assisted us on things like securing a taxi to the airport on our way home (something I thought would be easier than it actually was!).  Seriously – they’re now my new secret weapon – I won’t leave home without them!

 

STEP 9:    Have fun. Despite all of your planning, best efforts, and good intentions, there will be bumps in the road along the way – someone may get car sick, someone may have forgotten their toothbrush, someone will get bored…. Just remember that in spite of – and even because of – all of these imperfections, your road trip will be absolutely perfect because you’re creating some of those family moments – good, bad & otherwise – that you’ll all remember for years to come.

 

So map out those Starbucks stops, take a deep breath, and enjoy the ride……………….

Posted by Christy mama of... on 01/25/2012 - 00:39
ShareThis share this post

AppleCheeks as Green Dragon Slayers

dragons den applecheeks

If you’re a cloth diaper mama then you’re familiar with the AppleCheeks brand and the incredible design and functionality of their reusable diaper line.


The rest of the world is about to meet AppleCheeks live and in person tonight, on CBC’s Dragon Den, as the dynamo pair of founding owners, Amy Appleton Venu and Ilana Grostern  pitch to the investor dragons.


I’m beyond excited for the mom entrepreneur company on many levels. Regardless if the company seals a deal with the dragons, the national exposure to the broad traditional audience is simply PR magic. As a mom entrepreneur, I love to see other moms in business excel, and proud that small businesses with good ideas and solid brands are finally getting recognised at a national level.


On a personal level, I’m thrilled for my friend Amy Appleton. My pride in Amy is based on a lifetime of knowing that Amy does everything with a whole heart, with her truest of intentions, and pursues things that really matter to her. Ultimately, she’s the same relentless and passionate girl that used to knock at my front door to play outside.

 

applecheeks

AppleCheeks Amy is in the middle, momstown on the right at Ann-Marie's 3rd Birthday


I’ve also seen her negotiate and banter with her dad and if she can wear Bruce Appleton down, I’m telling you, this Dragon thing will be a piece of cake!


Born in the same year, to families across the street in an Anglophone suburb of Montreal, Amy and I grew up together. She was my first friend and playmate. Some of my earliest memories include Amy and her family. Amy visited our house so much that a few times she was mistaken as my mom’s third child!


Amy was environmentally conscious before being ‘green’ was cool. I recall as a teenager, when it was super cool to carry a shiny new Roots or Gap plastic shopping bag,  Amy made me refuse a bag and put my brand new purchase into a crinkled grocery bag she had brought tucked into her pocket. Amy was determined to save the Earth and ahead of her time.


Passionate about women and community, after we graduated from university while I was heading to tour Europe,  Amy went on a mission connected to her International Relations degree to help in poor, underdeveloped countries. Amy returned home from her travels  with stories of being invited by poverty stricken women to help deliver their babies. BABIES.  I was drinking beer in Germany while she delivered babies. She told me the horrors of the situations with no medical care, of women with no support, no respect, no anything, birthing in rough conditions. She was both inspired and made more determined by this experience. I was in awe of her commitment.


Soon after, Amy traveled to New Zealand, met her soulmate, married and decided to stay. Next came news of a baby. My parents were coincidentally out for dinner with her parents when the birth announcement call was made and they celebrated their first communal grandchild together.


Next came news of a second baby on the way and a permanent return to Canada to her childhood home. My parents called to tell me the Appleton’s were installing a birthing pool in the basement.  It was 2004, birthing pools and homebirths weren’t as common as they are now. I knew I didn’t have the guts to do what she was planning. Inspired by her mission Amy was focused on following her body and the baby. Amy is one strong woman, determined, focused and committed.  I’ve seen pictures to prove it too!


News came via my mom that Amy and her friend Ilana were into babywearing and decided to make baby wraps.  I had to google what a “baby wrap” was. My mom’s old sewing machine made it over to the Appleton’s basement so more wraps could be sewn. The company was christened “Azure Wraps” after Ilana’s firstborn.


What was with this basement? First babies being birthed there and now a sewing business? The word ‘mompreneur’  was not in existence. They were sewers in a basement with an idea for something that wasn’t mainstream or popular – yet.


When my baby was born, an AzureWrap arrived in the mail. One long stretchy piece of fabric. It freaked me out and I tucked the wrap away. It wasn’t until I met another mom wearing a similar wrap who gave me a lesson on how to tie it did I find the confidence. And then I fell in love. Such a comfortable and natural way to carry a child, I became a full convert defining myself as a “babywearer” too.

Suddenly, Amy looked different to me. As a fellow mother, I totally got her point of view.


Fast forward to the launch of AppleCheeks, an incredible, innovative and charming diaper line that’s been developed and created by these brilliant entrepreneurs.


Living their passion, being green, impacting mom’s lives, creating an entity that was once niche and is now the ‘norm’ are incredible achievements. These partners are forward thinkers, brand creators and proud Canadians.


What I love the most, is the kid who Amy was, is who she STILL is. The reality is all her life experiences - education, travel, family –  has netted into this blossoming business.  Amy (and Ilana) I am so freakin’ proud of you!

 

dragons den applecheeks


6 Mom Entrepreneur Lessons I’ve learned from the AppleCheeks rockstars:


1.    Be Who You Are

Find something you have always been passionate about, in this case Green Living, Motherhood & Community, and develop a concept or work in an industry that meets those passions and values.


2.    Find a Void and be Unique

Were there cloth diapers out there? Yes. But Ilana and Amy created their own spin on the cloth diaper and users rave how it’s better and different than competitors. 


3.    Start Again

The preliminary Azure Wraps business provided learning curves which allowed AppleCheeks to excel at a greater pace with the gifts of lessons learned. Make room for action in your business plans and don't be afraid to move off the path to explore a new opportunity.


4.    Think Big
Thinking Big and Beyond allowed the company to take the stab at the AppleCheeks  expansion and aren’t we glad? Keep planning and dreaming by keeping both stretch and smart goals.


5.    Small Actions Matter
Act with humility, represent locally, excel at customer service and deliver what you promise.  Small actions mean a lot to the overall service and brand impression. Leading by example as AppleCheeks grows will establish a consistent culture based around the same values that are core drivers for the pair..


6.    Be a proud Mom
Both Ilana and Amy have continued to grow their families while their business has boomed. Don’t let your business stop you from growing your family if that’s one of your goals.

 

Good Luck tonight AppleCheeks! WATCH Wednesday, January 17, 2012 on CBC Dragon's Den at 8pm EST

 

Photo Credits:  The Montreal Gazette, Dragon's Den

Posted by momstown mompreneur on 01/18/2012 - 01:11
Labels:
ShareThis share this post

Losing a Mama Friend

Such a fabulous post by Julie Cole about the impact our very first mama friends have on our life and our parenting and how critically influencial the early mom groups, like momstown, are to us.

 

first baby friends

 

Twelve years ago I gave birth to my first beautiful baby. When he was a few weeks old, I was invited by a local midwife to a neighbourhood centre to meet other women who had also just had their first babies. It was my introduction to the “moms group”.

Moms groups get mixed reviews. Some say that having a same-aged child in common is not enough to form a social relationship. Others report that these organizations are a breeding ground for competitiveness – whose kid is rolling over, who toilet trained first, which mom has already lost the baby weight…Sometimes people have different expectations around what the group will provide for them.

These are only things I have heard. From that first moms group and through the following years I’ve spent completely immersed in the mama community, I have never experienced these things. Instead, I have been supported by other moms who want nothing but my kids to flourish and succeed. They have been my cheerleaders, friends, confidants, reliable advice-givers and opinion sharers. We have laughed and cried together, us mamas.

There is one less mama to laugh and cry with now. One of the beautiful and talented mamas I met in my very first moms group passed away on Christmas Eve. I still picture her as I saw her that very first time – sitting peacefully at the neighbourhood centre before our first meeting, nursing her beautiful daughter, Harper, with a look of love and adoration in her eyes.

You share something special with the mamas you have travelled the whole journey with – those in that first moms group. These are the people you filled the days with – walking the neighbourhood together with your strollers, chatting as you pushed toddlers on the swing at the park, taking care of each other’s kids when a sibling arrived. For over a decade we have watched each other’s children transform from newborns to pre-teens.

Of course, I can’t stop thinking about my friend’s now motherless children and what that will mean for the rest of their lives, but this passing has been a reminder to me of how special our mama relationships are. I am thankful that she was a part of my amazing introduction to the mama community, a community that will never be the same without her.

Her loss also made me think about moms groups and the very different experiences we all have. What does “moms group” mean to you? What was your experience?

Posted by Julie mama of many on 01/17/2012 - 22:31
Labels:
ShareThis share this post

Moving on to the Next Stop in Parenting

Today I participated in my first-ever Parent & Tot Gymnastics Class while NOT pregnant or wearing an infant. As I was chasing my energetic 22 month old around the gym, hauling her up onto the beam and negotiating with her to get off the trampoline I realised how much easier it seemed than all the classes I took with my older two.

 

Ah Ha! No baby belly getting in the way. No pregnancy exhaustion or morning sickness. It was fun and I saw a glimpse of the future.

 

I finally saw the light at the end of the tunnel.

 

I realised, that this, parenthood, IS  getting easier. Small children have small problems in the grand scheme of things, but they are consuming, millions of small problems daily from bum changes to carseat buckles. Their constant need of attention has made me worn out after the last 6 years of being a mommy. Most days are still really hectic in a “Mommy-come-wipe-my-bum!” kind of way.

 

My neighbour, who is also the mom of 3 kids inside of 4 years, has always cheered me on and told me that when baby #3 hits age two, it’s like making it to the top of the summit. With baby years behind, it’s possible to start to look ahead, start to imagine no naptime, no diapers, full family outings and new adventures. I’ve been focused on that marker for the last 22 months and more, hoping for the clarity getting to the top can bring.

 

Our baby will turn 2 in eight weeks. Recently, she’s taken to climbing out of her crib, using full sentences, and ripping off her diaper with a demand for the potty. In two weeks! Very soon there will not be a baby item in sight here, no crib, no diapers, no breastfeeding.
All things I have been looking forward to in this crazy climb with 3 small children.

 

Then, this week a friend of mine had her 4th baby. Tightly packed together like mine, each of our children are very close in age. Her new baby arrived this week, and I attended my first mom & tot class without one growing inside me.

 

Imagine that.

 

A little seed of sadness, not quite regret, but a wisp of “I-wonder-if” opened up inside my heart. I felt like maybe I missed a turn? Like I forgot to jump off the subway at the right stop and I went whizzing right by to the next station. Did I miss a step? Should I go back?

 

Each of my children are exactly 27 months apart (by coincidence, I swear) which means each was conceived when the older one was 18 months. With Megan being 22 months, I’ve spent the last 4 months celebrating my freedom actually. When Megan turned 18 months our family made a permanent decision not to have any more children, so a 4th is not in the cards. And I’m plenty happy and beyond fulfilled with the 3 rambunctious and wonderful children I have. I’m looking forward to the next stage. I’m living the life I love, and loving the life I live.

 

So why did I keep staring at another mom in gym class and her beautiful belly? I’ve been there, I’ve done that. Why is that wisp of “wonder-if” there?

 

The subway has many more stations and I didn’t miss my stop. In fact, we’ve just moved to a new station.

 

So why do I still feel like I left something behind on the train?

 

How did you feel after you decided on no more children?

Posted by momstown mama on 01/12/2012 - 00:12
Labels:
ShareThis share this post

"Should new acquaintance be forgot...?"

Okay, so forget the “auld acquaintances” we all sang about and toasted with far too many glasses of champagne on New Year’s Eve – I’ve got bigger fish to fry! Well, truthfully, if fish were the issue, this wouldn’t be a problem, but that’s another story…


Recently, my husband and I finally made the decision to cave in to my son’s numerous requests for a dog. Yes, we tried to distract him with fish, frogs, hamsters and other ‘low maintenance’ pets… We even tried to take his mind off of it with fun family getaways – how can a mere dog compete with the happiest place on Earth?? Unfortunately, my son is not only a fun-loving 7 year old – he is also an elephant. He never forgets. And when it comes to this particular issue, he’s like a dog with a bone (pun intended!).

 

So we researched, planned, analyzed, deliberated, organized… and eventually welcomed Gryffindor Sokz to our family - A.K.A. "Gryffin" (deliberate ‘tip of the hat’ to my son’s other obsession, Harry Potter!).

Gryffin

The house was in chaos, the carpets were a disaster, but the kid was elated and Mommy had a chance to earn back a few of those long-gone “Mommy-of-the-Year” brownie points. Sounds like a perfect Hollywood ending, right? Insert image here of the boy & his dog frolicking off through the sunshine-filled fields as the credits start to roll… (I realize its January and the sunshine-filled moments are few & far between, but work with me here!)

 

And then it started.

 

A few eye rubs here & there…. A persistent tickle in that space where your ears & throat meet that you can never quite reach… Then full-on itchy, puffy, watery swollen eyes – the kind you get from the funeral scene in Steel Magnolias. A cold? No… feels a bit different. Could it be…? No… there’s no way…. It couldn’t be…. Oh no.

 

I think I’m allergic to the dog.

 

Now I’ve been around dogs on & off throughout my lifetime with absolutely no issues (barking, biting & pooping aside). I have absolutely no allergies, other than a self-diagnosed allergy to housework, but I don’t seem to get much sympathy for that one…

 

To say I feel absolutely sick about this is an understatement! “Here you go, little boy – here’s the gift you’ve wanted every day for your entire life. Enjoy! Now, just kidding!” Seriously, I have no idea how I’ll be able to afford the life-long therapy! And any chance of recouping those long-lost “Mom of the Year” points is obviously shot to hell.

 

I know what you’re all thinking (other than “Sucks to be you!”) – don’t put the cart before the horse (Lord, don’t introduce a horse to the equation, too!) – figure out if you’re truly allergic to the dog before you figure out the best way to crush your son’s hopes & dreams and scar him for life. Check. The appointment with the allergist is booked & I’m crossing my fingers that it isn’t the dog but is in fact my long pleaded for symptoms to that housework allergy...

 

In the interim, however, as each day passes and more balls are thrown, walks are taken and hugs are shared, the situation stresses me out more and more. Seriously, could you disappoint this face?

Evan & Gryffin

Posted by Christy mama of... on 01/10/2012 - 11:11
ShareThis share this post

Top 10 momstown moments blogs of 2011

Looking back over the past year is almost as much fun as looking ahead. If you don’t know where you’ve been it’s tough to know what to do next. In that theme, we took a look at our top 10 momstown moments posts this year and love the variety of this year's favourites! Some coffee-spitting funny, others tear-jerking and others debate sparking. 


In case you missed these posts this year, grab a coffee, sit down and catch up! Your fellow momstown mamas can’t be wrong about their favourite reads.

best blogs of 2011


Listed David Letterman style with #10 first and counting down to the most popular:


#10: Who’s Your Daddy?
How do you explain to your child why your own father is not in your life? Truth or soft white lies? This post addresses head on the awkward explanation required to describe why someone has chosen to miss out on his own family.

 

#9: How to Embarrass Yourself in less than 20 minutes
Ever had a nightmare about a social situation gone array? Like broccoli in your teeth during an interview or horrible gas at a terrible moment? How about toilet paper waving out of your black pants during a swanky magazine launch? Yes. It happened. Read about an embarrassing remnant from the loo ….

 

#8: August is my Special Birth Month
The journey of the launch of the momstown business and of the miracle baby who inspired it.

 

#7: Mrs Judgy McJudgerson at the Mall
Ever dreamed of telling off the head shaking old lady who disapproves of your tantruming child? Julie Cole scored a slam dunk for all mothers while holding her head high and facing Mrs Judgy McJudgerson head on.

 

#6. Weaning: Whose breasts are these anyways?
Follow the heartwrenching debate of a mom who's been nursing or pregnant for 6 years and her wavering decision to take back her body. The mother and toddler pair flip-flop between weaning or making the leap into full extended breastfeeding. Who’s got the power to make the decision? Mother or toddler?

 

#5: A Funny Thing Happened on the way to the ACC

A truly inspiring story about a little boy who was thrilled to be going to an NHL game at the Air Canada Centre and what special act of kindness transpired.

 

#4: Do your breasts hang low?  Do they wobble to and fro?
Need a laugh? Let’s imagine what a preschooler must think of watching his mother use a breast pump and picture the conversation they have about it. Put your coffee down, you might spit it out laughing.

 

#3. momstown Wins Mom Entrepreneur of the Year!
A proud moment for momstown along with a super feel-good video about how momstown has changed motherhood in Canada.

 

#2: The Rise of the Disposable Entrepreneur
This post hit a tender nerve. Readers either cheered and loved this opinion or simply hated the suggestion that many mompreneurs give up too easily. This article has been passed around, debated, patted on the back and flushed down the toilet. What’s your opinion?

 

#1: The Pain of Miscarriage
momstown mama Ann-Marie opens up about her own miscarriage finally after 7 years  and talks about the things that still haunt her, the elements that brought strength and about the lack of support and awareness for women going through loss. Shared on infant & pregnancy loss websites, we’ve received the most traffic in 2011 from this post. It saddens us that such a tough topic was the 2011 traffic highlight, but also happy that it brings support to those who need it.

Posted by momstown mama on 01/07/2012 - 00:15
Labels:
ShareThis share this post