Special $5 Savings for Moms!

Save $5 per ticket when you purchase tickets for Disney on Ice Mickey and Minnie's Magical Journey at the Rogers Centre. Just enter the code 'BLOG' at the checkout. Tickets are available now at Ticketmaster.

Venue: Rogers Centre, Toronto

Dates: December 25 to January 2, 2011
Ticket Prices: $90 (Rinkside), $65 (VIP), $39, $26, and $15. Additional fees may apply.
Tickets on Sale Now! For the fastest and easiest way to buy tickets, log onto www.ticketmaster.ca or www.disneyonice.com or visit the Rogers Centre Gate 7 Box Office or call 416-870-8000

Chance to Win a Jonas Brothers Concert Experience

Brought to you by Cadillac Fairview

You and 3 friends have a chance to win a "once in a lifetime" Jonas Brothers experience. Their worldwide fan base has been nothing short of explosive and the momentum they have created makes this an unstoppable band.

The 2010 Tour features special guest Demi Lovato and music from the Disney Channel Original movie Camp Rock and its sequel.

Win concert tickets, CD's plus an intimate pre-concert event with the Jonas Brothers.


Concert Date: Thursday, September 2
Location: Molson Amphitheatre, Toronto

Enter to Win Here

Fun at Lionel's Pony Farm with Free Portraits by Picture This Portrait Studio

Picture This Portrait Studio is welcoming children of all ages to come out to Lionel's Pony Farm and Petting Zoo to take some cool and fun pictures with ponies. You’ll receive... FREE Sitting Fee and 1 artistically edited Digital Image for FREE. (1 Image per family). A DVD with all the photos (10-15) is available for $25. $5 from every DVD will be donated to Lionel's Pony Farm & Petting Zoo.

• Friday August 13, 2010 - 11:30 am to 2:30 pm
  Saturday August 14, 2010 – 10:00 am to 1:00 pm
• Lionel's Pony Farm & Petting Zoo, 11714 McCowan Road, Stouffville

Parent Survey - Help Us Help Kids!

You can win $100 in just 10 minutes!

Are you a parent of a child age 5-14?

By filling out our 10 minute online survey on child safety, you can help create programs that keep our kids safe!

Please go online to the website listed below for more information with no obligation!

www.helpus-helpkids.ca

Brought to you by the
University of Guelph

Win a Colourful Label Out Loud™ Essentials Combo Pack!

Two lucky winners will win a Colourful Label Out Loud™ Essentials Combo Pack!

If you're going to label, why not Label Out Loud™? It's the new line of full colour sticky labels from Mabel's Labels.

Label Out Loud™ Sticky Labels are fantastic for toys, bottles, dishes and more, providing that famous Mabel's Labels durability in an exciting NEW look!
Each Label Out Loud Combo Pack includes:

• 30 Sticky Labels
• 40 Iron-on labels or 70
• Tag Mates™
• 12 Shoe Labels
• 2 Teeny Tags

Available in 20 designs! The name on the labels can be whatever you like to a maximum of 20 characters. Names are printed exactly as you type them.

ENTER HERE

TD Summer Reading Club Kick Off

Markham Libraries Summer Reading Program

Keep the kids reading all summer long in this fun, free reading club!  

Read (or be read to) at home or in the library and then talk to us about what you've been reading.  Participate at any branch except Thornhill Community Centre (currently under renovation).  Visit your branch for details. Join us for fun games and activities as we kick off the TD Summer Reading Club.  Pick up your reading package and get a head start!
  
 
Locations:

Angus Glen: Saturday, June 26, 11:00 am – 1:00 pm
Milliken Mills: Monday, June 28, 6:30 - 8:30 pm
Markham Village: Saturday, June 26, 1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Unionville: Wednesday, June 30, 6:30 – 8:30 pm

More info

Summer Saturday's – Animation Workshops and Screenings for Families

The long weekend is just around the corner, and that means that the NFB's Summer Saturdays animation workshops are starting! Every Saturday in July and August, the NFB Mediatheque is offering hands-on animation workshops for children ages 3-5 and 6-13. Each child is only $5 per workshop, and parents can attend for FREE! 

Enjoy NFB's 'Can't Sit Still' and 'Animate This!' workshops for families, along with a free screening program. Each week, we'll feature a different theme and animation technique. No previous filmmaking experience required!

Schedule for each Saturday:
10:30 am – 12:00 pm Can’t Sit Still (ages 3 – 5)
12:00 pm – 12:30 pm Screening program
12:30 pm – 2:30 pm Animate This! (ages 6 – 13)

Register for only $5 per child, per session (an adult, at no extra charge, must accompany children). Call 416-973-3012 to register.

Full program details

FREE Photo shoot at Lionel's Pony Farm and Petting Zoo!

Picture This Portrait Studio is welcoming children of all ages to come out to Lionel's Pony Farm and Petting Zoo to take some cool and fun pictures. You’ll receive...

No Sitting Fee and 1 artistically edited Digital Image for FREE (sample photo).

1 Image per Family. A DVD with all the photos (10-15) is available for $20.

$5 from every DVD is donated to Lionel's Pony Farm & Petting Zoo.

• June 16 & 17, 2010
• 11:00 am to 2:00 pm
• Lionel's Pony Farm & Petting Zoo, 11714 McCowan Road, Stouffville
• Free!
• visit website

City of Toronto Play Areas Now Smoke-free

When you and your children visit a City of Toronto park playground, wading pool, splash pad, park zoo or farm, remember that under the amendment to the Municipal Bylaw, Chapter 608, smoking is not allowed within a 9 metre or 29.5 foot radius of play areas including:

• The surrounding edge of any playground safety surface or playground equipment. 
• The surrounding edge of wading pool basins or safety surfaces of splash pads.  
• There are over 833 playgrounds in Toronto parks. Here’s some reasons why City park play areas are smoke-free:  
• Second-hand smoke harms your child’s growing body.  
• Seeing a caregiver or loved one smoking increases the chance your kids will try smoking.  
• Young children could eat toxic cigarette butts or choke on them.  
• Your child has more smoke-free places to play, now that both the schools and Parks, Forestry & Recreation playgrounds ban smoking.  
• Cigarette butts release harmful toxins into the ground and take a long time to decompose or biodegrade.  
• Be a good role model – be smoke-free.

March Break 24/7

It's looming for me – March Break 24/7 – with my 2 crazy, high energy boys – they are best friends and mortal enemies all wrapped into one!

For a self-employed, single mom I find spring break an immense challenge each year. I should look forward to it, and in a lot of big ways I do – quality time with my boys, no rushing to school in the mornings, no lunches to pack, no squeezing in afterschool homework and playdates. But if I'm totally honest with myself, I feel a real sense of anxiety that sits uncomfortably in the pit of my stomach. It's flash backs of summer holiday, and the loss of the 'me' time that keeps me sane. So this year I am determined to be more organised and prepared for the week of mayhem that is sure to come.

Here is my 3 step 'process' to saving my life next week (I'll let you know later if it works!)

Step 1: Plan and Schedule! I’ve almost finished planning our week. We started by making a list on the fridge of what the boys each want to do during their break. Next, scribbles on the calender, when we can fit things in, and what we can afford to do. We'll hit the zoo, check out a movie, do the Syrup Festival, but the 'scribbles' also include the quiet time they love at home (please let it be quiet!), bike riding in the park, or going swimming at the local pool.

Step 2: Free Childcare! Playdates, visit the Grandparents, Daddy day, Aunts and Uncles. Anyone they spend some time with to give Mom a fighting chance at keeping on top of the workload is a good thing (no I cannot take a week off work and still pay my bills!). Thank you to all who have offered up their time for this noble cause! I LOVE you!

Step 3: Jump Around! I'm trying to exercise everyday right now, and for as long as I can manage before the kids take over all my free time. I don't know about you, but if I don't give myself a real workout every couple of days I just can't cope, it's my natural Happy Pill that helps me smile and remain calm through the fighting and whining. I highly recommend it – year round!

Lot's to Do
If you're looking for something to do with the kiddies next week, there certainly is no lack of entertainment out there. Check the Child's Life March Break Guide for loads of events in York Region, Durham and Toronto.

Hey it's only 7 days, and I may get some work squeezed in, I think I might actually be looking forward to March Break this year!

Got any great ideas for March Break fun? Post a comment, I would love to hear from you.

Valentine Giveaway!

You could win this adorable handmade heart shaped bag from Fuchst Bags.

The draw will be held on Febraury 14th - so enter today! Enter Here

What are your kids Googling?

By Common Sense Media
January 8, 2010

Where Kids Go Online
Ever wonder what your kids are looking for online? Hint: It’s not the name of the 26th president. In fact, because kids use search engines like Google to explore, your kids’ online queries may never show up when you check their browser histories. So how can you manage what you can’t see?

Norton Family Online's Top 100 Searches of 2009
Luckily, Norton Family Online, a free family safety service that helps protect kids online and fosters dialogue between parents and children about their online activities, compiled an eye-opening list of the top 100 searches done by kids in 2009. Since they had access to more than 14.5 million queries by kids, we have total faith that the results are not only accurate, but also a great window for parents into the average kid’s online curiosities.

The Results
Norton looked at the top 100 searches conducted by kids age 18 and under and also broke down results by age and gender. (For the complete list, click here). Here are a few highlights:

• YouTube, Google, and Facebook topped the lists for both boys and girls.
• Searches for “sex” and “porn” came in at #4 and #5 for boys.
• For girls, “Taylor Swift” edged out “sex” for slot #4, dropping “sex” to #5.
• “Sex” was the #4 search for teens and tweens, but “porn” was the #4 most searched term for kids 7 and under.
• Teens love Swift, but tweens and kids under 7 sought out Michael Jackson.
• 35% of teens and 27% tweens spent their search time on music-related subjects like Chris Brown, Rihanna, and Lady Gaga.
• Kids under 7 spent most of their time checking out sites like Limewire and Mininova -- sites that offer “free” but mostly illegal downloads.
• Social networking sites were in the top five of every age group. Facebook and MySpace for teens, and Club Penguin for both tweens and kids 7 and under.

Read the full article here on CommonSense Media