‘Tis the season for holiday shopping and gift guides! It’s arguably the most stressful (expensive) time of the year and yet, you still love it! If you’re like me, your list is long and you have barely made a dent in it, as December hits. Realizing of course, that this is mostly because the kids […] Read more…
When a child dies, you lose the choice to be a carefree, free-range mother. Here’s why one mom wants the indictment of helicopter parenting to stop. Here’s the first kind of mom I was: a nervous—but thrilled—first-timer. When my oldest son, Ty, was born with the help of IVF 14 years ago, I worried about […] Read more…
We live and breathe hockey, as you know. Hockey and Canadian families just go together, right? Being a hockey mom AND a coach’s wife means there is no shortage of ice and rink talk at the dinner table, on family car rides and even in the bedroom! In the beginning, I’m not sure if I was […] Read more…
Dear Puberty, You and I need to talk. You see, since you’ve entered our home and invaded my teenage son’s body, he’s not the little boy I once knew. Don’t get me wrong, I knew this was bound to happen and I was even excited for him to reach this new stage, but did you […] Read more…
It’s hard to believe that my son Ty is graduating grade 8 this June! It’s been a roller coaster of emotions as he leaves our neighbourhood school and moves to high school in the fall! As fellow parents chat about buying grad suits (do you know how much suits cost?), planning end of the year parties […] Read more…
I can remember when Zack was little I could share intimate and difficult details about his life and his medical needs, but when someone asked me “What about you? What do you do for yourself as his caregiver“, I lost it and dissolved into tears. Taking care of ourselves as caregivers…as mothers…is so complex and […] Read more…
When Ty and Jayden came home with MY name written on their stickers for the Terry Fox Run, it hit me again that I had cancer this year and that I’m now a thyroid cancer survivor. Having also had “pre-cancer” warnings after pap tests and colonoscopies, I’m really nervous about the future of my own […] Read more…
Jayden had been counting down to his birthday for months. Over the summer, we had looked online and visited some local outdoor skateparks and hit Joyride (it’s $17 after 7pm) to practice for the big day! Jayden recently had his 9th birthday party at Joyride 150 Bike Park in Markham with 12 of his best buddies. “Best […] Read more…
I’m a very involved parent at school. I sit on the Parent Council, volunteer and communicate regularly with the teachers. Last night was curriculum night at our school and after spending time with Jayden’s teacher, I realized that after only 1 month in the class, these teachers are just starting to know our kids, how […] Read more…
The kids are back to school and it blows my mind to think of how fast the summer has come and gone! Reflecting on the last two months, I have to say that it’s been full of fun and family time, for sure. We’ve had some adventures, lots of family fun, new camp activities, lake relaxation and […] Read more…