Canada's Olympic Flag-Bearer

Did you know Canada, it's Simon Whitfield who has been named Canada's Olympic Flag-Bearer.

37 year-old Simon, from Kingston Ontario, won the gold medal in the triathlon at the 2000 Sydney Olympics (the first year the triathlon was in the Olympics).  In Athens he placed 11, but brought us home a silver in Beijing.


Simon's glory is not all in the Olympics, he's also won 10 consecutive Canadian Triathlon Championships titles.


Known as a friendly and likeable person, we will be so proud to cheer Simon on as he carries our flag at the Opening of the Games, congratulations Simon!!




Image source: Wikipedia

My Royal Birthday Adventure

Did you know Canada..  we've mentioned before how much we love I See Me personalized story books.  With my boys birthday coming up, this was the perfect time to check out their new "My Royal Birthday Adventure" book.

The boys version we received had the boys as knights in their story going to their royal party.  I LOVED how often their name was used, their name was even spelled out in special places like in the castle's garden and flags, there was a party guest list mentioning friends and family, just fantastic.

I can't speak enough about the quality either, the cover is beautiful and glossy, the pages are perfect, nothing stuck together, a beautiful intro about celebrating the birthday boy.

We have read this again and again nightly, I can't even begin to tell you how special it is to see my boys faces light up when they see their name in the book.  It is a great resource for helping the boys with their reading as well, as they are following the words waiting to spot their name again.

I highly recommend this book for every special boy in your life, for that special girl there is also a Royal Birthday Adventure, I spy a unicorn on the front too, every little girls dream!

Great news, we have a discount code to share with our readers!!  Use code royal at check out to receive a 15% discount off My Royal Birthday Adventure at I See Me!!

BBQ Turkey Drumsticks

Did you know Canada.. over at Canadian Moms Cook, we have shared an awesome recipe for doing Turkey Drumsticks on the BBQ!!

You would not believe how easy it is to work with turkey, so delicious too!

Thanks to Turkey Farmers of Canada, we have an awesome giveaway to share with you too. Enter for your chance to win a BBQ Prize Pack from Turkey Farmers of Canada to get you grilling some turkey cuts of your own!

Giveaway

Burt's Bees partners with Canadian accessories designer Jenny Bird

Did you know Canada..  A favourite of ours, Burt's Bees, just announced a partnership with Canadian accessories designer Jenny Bird!

Jenny has created a custom, Limited-Edition friendship bracelet commissioned by Burt's Bees to help raise awareness and funds to help work to save Canada's depleting bee populations!

How is great it that 100 percent of the proceeds from the sale of this Limited-Edition bracelet will go to the Pollinator Partnership, a not-for-profit organization whose mission it is to protect and restore populations of pollinator species, bees in particular.

Bees of course are a critical part of our ecosystem and they pollinate our crops!

Did you know - 43 types of Canada's bumblebees are currently threatened, and 99% of the Rusty Patched bumblebee populations has already been lost!

The bees are in trouble because of pesticide use, diseases, pollution and loss of habitat.

For the Bees bracelet is available nation wide at The Bay locations and the web at www.burtsbees.ca/forthebees and http://jenny-bird.com

LEGO SpongeBob Bikini Bottom Undersea Party

Did you know Canada..  I am SO happy to be a Nickelondeon Mom so I can share some of their awesome promotions with you!

This past week we started summer off with a bang by cracking open the LEGO SpongeBob Bikini Bottom Undersea Party Playset!  Recommended for children ages 6 to 11 and at 471 pieces, this gives you an awesome part of Bikini Bottom.  You get a big assortment of characters: SpongeBob, Patrick, Squidward, Mrs. Puff, and our favourite, Gary.  Plus SpongeBob's house, Squidward's house, play sets, a juice bar and a D.J. stand.

We had a fantastic time as a family building this at our kitchen table, the boys have a blast making SpongeBob and all his Bikini Bottom friends come to life.  We are HUGE SpongeBob fans, not only do we watch the show, we also read SpongeBob books at bed time, the boys re-enact their favourite parts, work on their SpongeBob laugh - it's a fun part of our life.

I was so impressed with the quality of the pieces, the houses are still standing, even after some rough play!  It really amazes me how lego pieces can turn into these amazing shapes like SpongeBob's pineapple, and Squidward's house. The attention to detail for us die hard fans is so appreciated, like including Gary's bowl in SpongeBob's house.

A fantastic indoor activity for this summer, especially with the crazy hot days we have had!  We are so excited to share a set with our readers as well!  Enter below for your chance to win a  LEGO SpongeBob Bikini Bottom Undersea Party!!

Giveaway

Wrap Trap

Did you know Canada.. last week on Canadian Moms Cook we shared some fun Summer Wrap recipes and shared an awesome new product - Wrap Trap! 

Designed by a Canadian Mom, this awesome tool keeps the ends of a wrap closed so the yummy stuff doesn't fall out on to the floor or kiddos laps.  So all you do is fill your wrap like normal, roll it, clip the ends and cut the wrap in half!  Lunch for everyone and I found my boys managed to eat right to the end of the wrap instead of it falling apart halfway through.







We loved the funny faces on the wraps and everyone has their favourite colour.  Perfect way to get the boys excited about a lunch like healthy wraps!





Visit Canadian Company ONS GEAR to purchase the Wrap Trap and many more innovative solutions!  Great news: use coupon code: WrapMom (case sensitive) for 10% off, valid until July 31st 2012.

Be sure to check out our post on Canadian Moms Cook for some yummy wrap recipes!!

National Fishing Week

Did you know Canada..  National Fishing Week starting tomorrow!  Running July 7 - 15, this week is to encourage more Canadians to experience recreational fishing.

In Ontario you don't even need a licence to fish this week, check the National Fishing Week website for info on licence free days in other provinces.

We love fishing here, have gone many times during camping and cottage trips.  I fabulous way to spend time together as a family, learning some new skills, and enjoy some of Canada's natural beauty!

According to the National Fishing Week website: Outdoor organizations, government resource agencies, tackle retailers and volunteers are preparing to host hundreds of events in almost every province and territory. Clinics, seminars, tournaments, interpretive classes, retail sales and derbies are being held in over 100 communities across the country.


Who's getting out to fish this week??

Recipe Round Up 07/06

Did you know Canada.. it's been some crazy hot days this week!  What are your favourite meals in the heat, cool wraps and salads?  Straight for the BBQ to keep the heat outside? Remember to chat with me and co-author Muli-Testing Mommy on Twitter and Facebook about meal ideas, fun recipes and more!






Hidden Valley Ranch Potato Salad - we tried a new twist on potato salad that was a huge hit!

No More Composter or Green Bin Stink! ~ a new product has hit the shelves that will help keep the stink down in your kitchen, garage and backyard!

Ants on a Log ~ a classic fun snack for children (and adults too!).

Look forward to sharing more recipes next week.

ZAMOOF!

Did you know Canada..  I have found an amazing Canadian magazine for children - ZAMOOF!

ZAMOOF! is, well it's just awesome!  I think the best way to tell you about it is to tell you about the amazing features that were included in just one magazine..

* comics
* puzzles
* stories
* posters
* quizzes
* recipes
* colouring
* pet horoscopes
* submitted art
* an interview

This is all in ONE magazine!  And there was only a couple of kid friendly ads at the back, that's it.

This was awesome, perfect for my boys to practice their letters and us reading as a family, it was funny to look up the pet's horoscopes, the boys loved looking at the comics, the funny pet pictures and reeeeally loved the Madagascar 3 take-out posters.

They accept all kinds of submissions for youths, including recipes, pet photos, drawings, puzzles, jokes and more.

A subscription would make a fabulous birthday or back to school gift this year, a magazine the entire family can enjoy!  Yes - I was giggling at the pet horoscopes and the "Mutant Cat Swallows Van" story.

Check out their website for some great articles on their blog as well, the cupcake recipe sounds fantastic!  I hope they update the blog more often to get some more great info.  I loved their article about The Little League Canadian Championships last year, my own boys play T-Ball, so we're going to be looking up info about this years Campionship!

I really recommend picking up a copy or subscribing to ZAMOOF!  This is fantastic for all Canadian families!  We are SO excited to share not one, but TWO one year subscriptions with our readers.  Enter below for your chance to win!!

Giveaway

Twistos

Did you know Canada..  it's time to put a Twist in your snack routine!

We've been trying the new Twistos by PepsiCo Canada and they are awesome!  Coming in 3 flavours..

* Parmesan & Garlic
* Bruschetta
* Asiago

I thought the flavours were very adult, but the kids love these too!  The family favourite is the Asiago, I think both the Asiago and Parmesan & Garlic would go great with salads and dips, the Brushchetta is yummy on it's own.  I bet they would also be fantastic in soups this coming fall, the possibilities are endless!

These are the perfect treat to have our at all your BBQs this summer, a yummy snack to take to work and more.  Available across the country, I've already seen people picking them up at our local grocery store, you gotta try them!

Have you had them yet?  What's your favourite flavour??