Mystery solved

So, this pretty much sums it up.

From the ever awesome Failbook

Mother's Day

May 13th is Mother's Day in Canada this year. The husband is out of town, so it's just me and the kid. He's already given me a wonderful hand-made card, decorated with hand-drawn Star Wars characters! I also got a handmade flower bookmark courtesy of his wonderfully creative nursery school teachers, and this morning I got a 'Greatest Mom Award' that he decorated at cooking class. The cooking class theme today was of course 'Mother's Day Tea' and we had a lovely time mixing up fruit salad, and baking orange coffee-cake.

So, this is all lovely. The 'Star Wars' card and the Mom award are pinned on the fridge of course. I'll get plenty of hugs and kisses tomorrow, and we're meeting my sister and mom for a Mother's Day picnic. But the annual showering of thanks on Mother's Day, while massively appreciated, always seems a bit funny to me. Funny, I think, because, frankly, it's me that's the thankful one. Why is he thanking me? It's nice for sure, ...I'll bet Hallmark thinks it's really nice...but honestly, I don't think he needs to thank me. I need to thank him.

I really should thank my boy for being the freaking awesome kid that he is. Like, every day.

I really am so thankful for being his mom, and here's why. Firstly, it's pretty crazy wonderful to be his mom when we're hanging out. Reading, cooking, eating, playing, cycling, tickling. When we're learning...which is pretty much always. When we're laughing and talking and giggling, or when we're sitting in silence, busy in thoughts. Either or. He makes everything so wonderful and young and fresh and curious. Thanks to him I see life through his inquisitive, open eyes, absorbing the simple beauty and amazing adventure in everyday things. We plant sunflowers, have worms as pets, collect rocks and leaves, chase butterflies, make mud pies, accumulate 'treasure'. We colour and paint and craft. Cotton balls are clouds. Q-tips are fairy wands. Pretty much everything can be a Light Saber. Words are wonderful. Songs are funny. Music is awesome and loud and a marching band. Books are magical.

Thanks to him, I am never bored. We have thumb wars and arm wrestles and play Rock, Paper Scissors. My imagination is challenged always. We cloud watch, and people watch and wonder where people in airplanes are travelling to; making up crazy stories about their families and lives. When we're driving we play eye-spy and he wins a lot. We play silly games where we pretend to be cops and 'run licence plates' on pretend computers that sound like space-ships. It's awesome.

And even when it's hard....really hard....which it can be, it's still wonderful to be his mom, because I know that whatever happens, whatever his mood, whatever the obstacle, whatever the outburst, or sulk or stubbornness is about, it will pass, and we'll get through it, out on the other side with a hug, and a kiss. I'll smooth his thick mop of hair, or stroke his back gently, or just lie next to him, side by side on his pillow, making sure he's cool - knowing that this...me...here, is his safe place to be. His safe place to test out the waters, to push buttons, to face and show emotion, to challenge, to feel, To Be.

My biggest, greatest most important job in this lifetime is being his mom. His home, his ally, his champion.
It is a massive responsibility. Being in charge of the start of his life. His start. That's a huge, important deal and I'm kinda serious about it. And he doesn't need to thank me for it.

Every night before he goes to sleep, I check that he feels safe, happy, cozy and warm. That's my job. For as long as he feels safe at home, for as long as he can tell me if something is bothering him, and for as long as he  lets me hug him, he doesn't need to thank me. If he's doing okay, then I'm doing my job properly and that, all by itself, is thanks enough for me.

Happy Mother's Day x Thumbs up to moms everywhere - from this kid. Who I love an actual insane amount. : )

A Chain of Girl Goodness

Hello my lovelies, I have a small request of you today!
If you haven't already, I would love for you to head over to A Chain of Girl Goodness, and have a look at what Inês is working on.  Inês has been crazy busy, creating and managing the start-up of a coalition of pro-girl, anti-stereotype, values driven 'chain' of businesses, experts and not-for-profit organizations that aims to promote all the wonderful products and services that truly have our children's best interests at heart. 

I would love to hear what you think of the project. And I know Inês is thankful for all the feedback and support you have to offer. So, please head over there. Have a look around and see what you think. I think it's super exciting and has great potential as a resource for parents to find products that acknowledge and encourage girl's potential, rather than limiting and defining it. If you like the idea, spread the word! : )

Beach Bodies

I'm getting a bit sick already of the Springtime push on weight-loss and fitness regimes to achieve the 'perfect beach-body'. Here's the thing...in my opinion all you need for a beach body is

a) a beach and

b) a body.

Health comes in many shapes and sizes, and while we can all afford to make our health and physical fitness a priority, fad diets and panic-driven exercise plans to slim down for bathing suit season are not the best ideas for your physical or mental well-being. There is no such thing as the perfect body. The companies who want you to buy their product will try and make you think there is, but it doesn't exist. Your body is perfect for you. Be nice to it, be kind to it, LOVE it for all that it can do, and the health and wellness will come. This picture is full of lovely, perfect 'beach bodies'. Happy Spring everyone.

(Photo credit)

International Women's Day 2012

It's International Women's Day 2012. I know I need to blog about this.

It's kind of a must do. A good must, but a must.

Here goes. I'll blog about what International Women's Day is all about for me. For me it's about raising awareness. Reflecting. An opportunity to tell women's stories, draw attention to troubling trends and statistics, remember achievements, celebrate advances, rally for support for the challenges that still face women in our communities and around the world. To talk. To think. To take action.

Maybe for some, it's a good chance to say 'feministy' things to people who might not otherwise listen or care, or put up IWD posters in an office where the boy's club still exists. Maybe you'll read or see something that shocks you. Like, the fact that gender-based violence causes more deaths and disabilities among women of child-bearing age worldwide than cancer, malaria, traffic accidents and war combined (Source: The Great Debate UK) or that women do two-thirds of the world’s work for just 10 percent of the world’s income (Source: The Great Debate UK).

Maybe you'll watch something or hear something that wakes you up to the violent and gut-wrenching truth about sex-trafficking. (Warning: The link will take you to a brutal, graphic film depicting the reality of sex-trafficking.) Or you'll see something that makes you think twice about how girls and women are being sexualized, and objectified everyday, in Western mainstream media. Maybe you'll be the one waking those around you up.

If you do nothing else on International Women's Day, watch Miss. Representation. Watch it with your teen sons and daughters. If you're a teacher, show it to your class. If you're a decent human with a functioning cerebral cortex, then watch it, and consider it's message. Consider the media you buy into. The products you buy. The companies and outlets that you keep allowing to devalue and objectify our kids, and jeopardize their futures. Then sign up to get involved with a Chain of Girl Goodness, a platform that has the interests of our kids, and especially our girls at the forefront. If you're a parent of a girl, connect with Pigtail Pals, who want to 'Redefine Girly', and consider checking out the wonderful work of Beauty Redefined, who are inspirational in 'taking back beauty' for women.

Perhaps International Women's Day 2012 will make you talk. Make you think. Perhaps it will make you thankful for the choices you have. For too many women, there are no choices. Education, marriage, work, childbearing. All their decisions are made for them.

International Women's Day makes me thankful for all the choices I have, for the wonderful women I know and have in my life, and it reminds me to keep raising awareness about the injustice, violence, sexualization and objectification that women around the world face every day, because of their gender.

Hopefully International Women's Day will inspire you. Will you spread the message?

Peace and love to all x

Kitchen Diaries - 1st Edition

So, if you read my New Year post - you'd know that my big thing this year is going to be improving my (ahem) skills in the kitchen. I use the word 'skills' loosely. Maybe I should say develop instead of improve...

Anyway, I'm trying to make a concerted effort to cook more. I actually enjoy it - and it's just a matter of creating the time to enjoy making things, rather than stressing out about what's for dinner, when it's going to be ready and who's going to hate what.

Pinterest has been a tremendous (albeit addictive) resource - and I've found quite literally hundreds of recipes that I'm inspired to try. Yay. For example, the other night I made 6 (yes, SIX) freeze-ahead slow cooker meals, loaded with veggies. I felt like a kitchen superhero.

I clearly now I think I should be up for some Martha Stewart type award for kitchen-newcomers. And this brings me to my fantastic time-saving idea for a nutritious breakfast or snack for kids (or big people with little stomachs!) I've done this for a couple of weeks now, so it's tried and tested and time to share!

I give you...frozen fruit smoothie popsicles.


Just blend up banana, strawberries, raspberries, and blueberries with some yogurt and milk, pour and freeze. You have a healthy breakfast add-on or snack for the whole week : )

Here's why I love them:

1. You only have to use the blender once. Which means you only have to clean up once! Yay.

2. Each one has all kinds of fruit in it : ) Yay, fruit.

3. Your kid(s) will love them. It's like a treat...for breakfast. Awesome.

4. My kid even gets to bring one in the car if we're running late.

5. Your kidlets will love helping you make them. Fun times. : )

So, anyway - there's the big idea from my kitchen this week. It might well be the last ; )

A High-Flying Birthday Party!

So this is a little off topic for the Mauve Dino - but I'm so excited, I have to share! This year, we decided to throw our little aviator an airplane themed party for his 5th birthday. It was a fabulous day - and perfect fun for a 5 year old pilot-in-training. Here are some pictures and links, if you're looking for ideas on how to throw a high-flying airplane party that kids will love.

First, we ordered these awesome invites from La Petite Party Shoppe on Etsy. Aren't they adorable? They were a hit!

During my Etsy adventures in aviation, I found these cool airplane confetti decorations from Missy Made It - made by Missy's 6-year old son, Griffin for extra pocket money - so clearly I had to order these too! They were awesome!

We were able to book a large classroom at the local flying school, which luckily wasn't being used on the party day - so we could have the airplane party at the airport! With the venue booked, the invites sent, it was time to start planning some fun games and activities, and finding goodies for the loot bags. I filled the loot bags with gliders, foam planes, parachute jumpers, Whirl-A-Copters, and a craft instruction sheet on how to make a craft airplane. I picked everything up at the local party store and popped them in sky-blue bags. On the day of the party, I pinned up a 'Baggage Claim' sign next to the loot bags!

I also made these little bags of 'Cumulus Clouds' for the loot bags - which was just white (cherry flavour) cotton candy! I love how these turned out!

On the day of the party, I was super excited to set the room up. I love it when a plan comes together! I love how it all looked. I picked this green plastic-backed paper tablecloth and green napkins up after Christmas at a party store for 90% off. I love a deal!

The cloud 'tablecloth' was just a roll of printed paper from a local craft store, which doubled as the backdrop for the Pin the Propeller game. It worked out really well for both purposes!

My fabulous and talented friend Paula, created this wonderful cake and these awesome 'propeller pops' - an idea I got from the Not Just a Mommy blog. The detail on the cake was incredible - and it was soooo delicious!

The beautiful airplane cupcakes were made by Renee's Fine Cakes - as usual the attention to detail and the cupcakes themselves were divine!

We had some great activities planned for the kids. We played Helicopter Landings - which was basically a take on Musical Chairs, but with big Heli-Pads instead of chairs. The kids loved landing on the Heli-Pads when the music stopped! We cut big black circles from black paper and made an H with white tape on the front. I didn't get any pictures of these, or the game, because everyone was having too much fun!

We also played Pin the Propeller on the plane, which was hilarious fun.

The kids did a great job, with one of them getting the propeller right on the bulls-eye, blindfolded no-less! Of course there were airplane-related prizes for all the winners!

We made paper airplanes and raced them down a runway. A big thumbs up to my fabulous husband for his handiwork in creating the runway and the Pin the Propeller game.

We had a trophy for the winner of the paper airplane race, and handed out pilot's wings to all the other pilots in training. I found these printable ones online at a kid's games site. I printed them in colour on card stock and attached pins to the back. The kids loved having this pinned on!

After the games, the kids all went outside for a look inside a real airplane, and had their pictures taken in the Captain's seat - complete with a headset.

We made the food easy - and ordered pizza, and served 'Jet Fuel' juice and some chips and veggies. While the kids ate, we played a cute video called The A-Z of Flying!

It was a great day. The kids had an absolute blast and you never know, maybe they even learned something too! I had such fun planning this one. I almost can't wait for next year!