Bloggy business: new ad, new gig

Got a few items of bloggy business to take care of today.

First, thanks to all of you who chimed in to let me know the reasonable rates for a live-out nanny. Got a few interviews scheduled but most importantly, signed up for an account with CanadianNanny.ca. It’s lousy with nannies in the neighbourhood; hoping none of them are lousy. Sheesh, why didn’t I do this three months ago? Thank you thank you thank you!!

Second, you might notice that I’ve added an ad to the sidebar over there. I wasn’t actively looking for advertisers when the owner of Evymama — a Toronto maternity and breastfeeding boutique with a new online store — contacted me. I took a look at her site and her business, and it seemed like a great fit. I wouldn’t put up an ad for just anybody, but a Canadian owned and operated site for new mothers? I’m all over that. (And heck, the money does come in handy!) Welcome, Evymama, to the Postcards from the Mothership community!

Third, I’ve been stepping out on you again. A couple of months ago, I was asked to contribute a weekly column to a new online bloggy magazine about living with technology called TechLifePost. My column, which appears every Thursday, is loosely focused on technologies and families. It’s called Digital, Baby! It’s been driving me crazy to be writing in a commentless vacuum, so feel free to wander over there and chat up the place. It’s been fun writing in a new forum, but surprisingly stressful because I’m writing as part of a team and not just on my own whim and whimsey. I’m always scrambling for ideas, though, so I’d welcome your input.

Phew, I’ve been meaning to get around to posting some of this stuff for weeks. Feels good to finally get it out of my head!!

Hey Dani, how is the search for child care going?

It sucks. Thanks for asking.

Since the end of August I’ve posted at least a dozen ads in various online and IRL places. I’ve talked to or e-mailed probably 20 people. I’ve invited three people to come to our house for an interview, and two of them didn’t even bother to show up. No call, no e-mail no apology, just me sitting there explaining to the kids that I don’t know where the babysitter is or why she didn’t come, and yes as a matter of fact it IS extremely rude to just not show up when you’ve been invited somewhere, interview or not. And the one person who did actually show up called us the next day to say sorry, she’s decided to go back to school in January, but she’d be happy to sit occasionally on weekends for us.

Two and a half months down, and no leads whatsoever.

Am thinking of moving beyond the free online classifieds that have worked for me thus far and beyond the notice pasted on the community board at the supermarket. Would you pay $70 to have access to an online database of nannies? Any other thoughts on how I can broaden my search?

Anybody got Mary Poppins’ number?

Happy birthday, Sesame Street!

Like me, Sesame Street is 39 years old — and still going strong! I’ve blogged before about my love for the show, especially the old skool ones where Cookie Monster loved his cookies always and not just as a sometimes food. I’ve got the Old School DVDs, the Songs from the Street CD collection, and I’ve got my favourite clips bookmarked on YouTube.

I would have loved to craft a fun and creative post incorporating the news release I received today, but I’m also dreadfully short of online time right now. It’s too good not to share, though. For the rare exception of Sesame Street, I’ll just cut and paste the entire release for you!

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE. New York, NY- Fans of television’s longest-running children’s series, which celebrates its 39th birthday today, will have three new digital platforms to access their favorite episodes according to executives from Sesame Workshop, the nonprofit organization that produces Sesame Street.

iTunes – For the first time, beginning today, fans will be able to download full Sesame Street episodes right to their computers for $1.99 per episode. Launching with 12 episodes from season 35, this new offering adds to already-existing content on iTunes including free outreach videos on the Learning Along with Sesame TV series such as Talk, Listen, Connect – a program helping military families and their young children cope with the challenges experienced during deployment and Happy Healthy Ready for School where Elmo discovers some wonderful things as he learns to get ready for school which will launch on November 17th.

Sesame Street You Tube Channel – Provides access to over 100 of the best Sesame Street clips and currently has 1.3 million video views. Fans can look forward to seeing more segments on a monthly basis.

Hulu – On this new channel, which went live last week, Sesame Street fans can view over 100 Sesame Street segments plus over 30 of the series’ most popular celebrity segments including Julia Roberts and Laurence Fishburne. New clips will be added on a monthly basis.

In addition, the Workshop was awarded a Google Grant, an in-kind donation program awarding free AdWords advertising to select charitable organizations. When Google users search on keywords related to Sesame Workshop an ad will appear next to relevant Google search results under the Sponsored Links sections which will only help the Workshop reach more of their audience and fulfill their mission to reach all children.

When brain is fried, memes are good

Lucas is sick. Not serious sick, just buckets and buckets of snot sick. So much snot that I’ve given up on kleenex and now use receiving blankets like giant flannel hankies. (A good tip, BTW. Works like a charm!) He’s fitfully asleep in my lap as I type, and I have just enough mobility to blog, if not brainpower to come up with something engaging. And lo, I have a meme to do, courtesy of one of my bestest bloggy buddies Dean Dad.

THE FAVORITE MEME. Fill in your favorite for each of the following:
Continue reading “When brain is fried, memes are good”

Wherein Beloved becomes a blogging chocolate whore

In the nearly four years I’ve been blogging, Beloved has gone from bewildered to perplexed to tolerant. He really started to embrace the whole idea of the blog when it started bringing in free stuff, though. And when I recently signed up for a blog tour that involved free samples of Ghirardelli chocolate, he was suddenly not only supportive of my blog habit but willing to contribute a post of his own. Way to take one for the team, eh? So, without further ado, here’s Beloved:

There are only two arrivals that could draw me into the blogging fray; a child and chocolate. I just couldn’t pass up the opportunity to put in my two cents and taste buds on this critique. I had the pleasure of savoring five different samples of Ghirardelli chocolate bars; Crisp, Hazelnut, Milk Chocolate, Duet, and Almond. Here are my ambrosial findings:

Taking his duties seriously

Starting with the Crisp. A bar of chocolate in which I could savor the taste of the cocoa bean. I found that the milky chocolate was not too sweet and did not leave any of the heavy or sticky aftertaste that usually come from a bar of chocolate. I didn’t feel the need to run for a glass of milk to rinse my palette. The only con with this first bar were the amount of crispies. I think they could concentrate on a better crispy-to-chocolate ratio. Overall a pleasant bit of chocolate.

Next I tackled the Hazelnut. A nice light nutty flavor in puddles of smooth milky chocolate. Again, none of that sticky aftertaste. The only thing I didn’t get was the “deep-roasted” flavor of the hazelnuts, which is probably a good thing. The nuts were light and not overbearing like some “deep-roasted” nuts can be.

From cocoa beans grown on the north slope, I believe

The Ghirardelli Duet bar is an interesting combination of Creamy Milk Chocolate and Rich Dark Chocolate. I can see how this would be a wonderful experience for those who enjoy a dark chocolate. It adds a hint of the sweeter, creamier milk chocolate to the bitter of the darker chocolate. To me, however, the dark chocolate is still a bit too dominant. I would prefer a bit more of an equal combination of the two types of chocolate. Not to say that I’m not going to finish this bar. It won’t last the week. I like my chocolate like my women though; smooth and silky.

The plain milk chocolate bar was a bit of a surprise to me. The other bars seemed so creamy and not too sweet. However, the all milk chocolate bar tended to be a bit sticky and not as smooth as I would have expected. Still a fairly good piece of chocolate, but make sure you have a glass of milk on hand.

Heh, 'smooth and silky' she'll love that one

Last, but by far not the least, was the Almond chocolate bar. The best of the lot. This bar of chocolate came into a close second to Mimi’s homemade chocolate almond bark. The almonds were roasted the way an almond deserves (they must’ve found out your secret, Dad!) This bar was a little piece of heaven on earth. I highly recommend going out and buying this as your next sinful treat, you won’t regret it.

Overall I have to compliment Ghirardelli on making chocolate that doesn’t have the usual American, department store, waxiness. They seem to care about how the cocoa bean is used in their product.

Tristan moves in on the action

Well that’s it for me. I need to go wash my hands and face. If anyone has any tips on how to get chocolate out of the keys of my laptop, pass them along.

To everyone, BON APPETIT.

Beloved

(Disclosure: for participating in this MomCentral blog tour, we received free chocolate bars and a $20 Amazon gift certificate.)

Canadian Blog Awards now open for nominations!

Hey all! It’s that time of year again. The Canadian Blog Awards are now accepting nominations of your favourite blogs and bloggers.

Once again this year, I’ve been honoured with the task of helping Northern BC Dipper and SaskBoy administer the awards. Some fun stats from last year: In 2007, more than 700 blogs were nominated in 28 categories, and more than 45,000 votes were cast — an impressive number, considering only one vote per IP address per round was permitted. And did you see some of the great videos they put up to announce the winners? (I can’t decide if my favourite was Jack Layton, the bobble-head doll or the talking ball of yarn.) I was at the end of my pregnancy and totally bailed on the end of the competition, but the organizers did a fantastic job in making the awards presentation fun and funny in a lot of the categories.

I’d love to see even more great blogs nominated this year, so don’t be shy. You have until November 22 to make your nominations!

Christmas in the Capital, 2008 edition

Edited to add: Click this link for the 2018 Santa Claus and holiday parade info!

With Halloween barely put to bed (with a sore belly from all that candy, no doubt) we’ve nary the time for a breath of air before the season of Santa Claus parades is upon us. This is the third year I’ve scoured the internet and a handful of community papers to bring you details of the Santa (or, if you prefer, “Holiday”) parades in the neighbourhood. Can you believe this is one of my most-trafficked posts of the year? Turns out a lot of people love parades as much as I do!

Without further ado, and in chronological order, here’s the local 2008 parade information:

Kanata Santa Claus Parade
Saturday November 8, 2008, starting at 10 am. Parade runs from Castlefrank to Abbeyhill Drive to Hazeldean Mall.

Gananoque Santa Claus Parade
Sunday November 16, 2008. Join us at 2:00 to welcome Santa to town to kick of the festive holiday season.

Barrhaven Lions 12th Annual Santa Parade
Sunday November 16, 2008, starting at 5:30 pm. Follows Strandherd Drive from Beatrice to Greenbank. Note the new Sunday date this year!

39th Annual Ottawa Help Santa Toy Parade
Saturday November 22, 2008, starting at 11 am. The parade will start at 11 a.m. at Elgin and Laurier (City Hall), head West on Laurier Street, turn South on Bank Street, and finish at Landsdowne Park. Please note that the parade will only accept donations of new, and not used, toys. See their website for more details.

Smiths Falls Santa Claus Parade
Sunday November 23, 2008, 1 pm. Location: Downtown Smiths Falls.

Gatineau Santa Claus Parade
Friday November 28, 2008, starting at 7 pm. “There will be fun and games for you and your friends starting at 6:30 pm” at the marina on Rue Principal in Aylmer.

Brockville Santa Claus Parade
Saturday November 29, 2008, starting at 2 pm. “The Magic of Christmas.” See their website for parade route and details.

Carleton Place Santa Claus Parade
Saturday November 29, 2008, starting at 5 pm. The theme for 2008 will be “A Toy Box Christmas”. The parade will travel from Townline Road down Bridge Street. It will then travel down Lansdowne Avenue and end at Coleman Street.

Santa’s Parade of Lights, Orleans
Saturday November 29, 2008, starting at 6 pm. Once again the Ottawa Professional Firefighters Association will be hosting Santa’s Parade of Lights on St-Joseph Blvd. in Orleans.

Stittsville Parade of Lights
Saturday November 29, 2008, starting at 7:30 pm. Edited to add: The Stittsville Village Association will again organize the annual Parade of Lights on Stittsville Main Street. The Parade starts at the School Board grounds and ends at Carleton Cathcart Street. When Santa arrives at the Village Square the lights on the trees will be turned on for the duration of the festive season. Hot beverages will be served and everybody is invited to join in singing festive songs. (Thanks to Kristi for the additional info!)

Richmond Christmas Parade
Saturday, December 6, 2008 starting at 11 am. Starts at South Carleton High School (3673 McBean Street) and travels to the Richmond Plaza.

Pakenham Santa Claus Parade
Saturday, December 6, 2008 starting at 1 pm. Parade begins and concludes at the Stewart Community Centre, Pakenham. The parade theme this year is Ole Tyme Christmas. Santa and Mrs. Claus will make their way to the Upper Hall of the community centre following the parade where they will be available to meet with children of all ages. Complimentary hot chocolate and hot dogs will be served. There is also free public skating from 2 to 3 pm following the parade.

Perth Santa Claus Parade
Saturday, December 6, 2008, starting at 6 pm. The Annual Perth & District Santa Claus Parade of Lights starts from Sunset Blvd. Please Note: Parade route only goes to Cockburn Street.

Almonte Santa Claus Parade
Sunday, December 7, 2008, starting at 1:30 pm. The parade begins at the Almonte Community Centre Parking Lot. Santa and Mrs. Claus will make their way to the Upper Hall of the community centre following the parade where they will be available to meet the children. Hot chocolate and hot dogs will be served compliments of the Almonte Lions Club. There will also be free public skating from 2 to 4 pm.

In addition to the parades, here are some other ideas for Christmas fun in the national capital region:

Upper Canada Village – Alight at Night
Thursday, November 27, 2008 to Sunday, January 4, 2009
4:30 – 8:00 pm Monday to Thursday until December 18
4:30 – 9:00 pm Friday to Sunday until December 14
4:30 – 9:00 pm Nightly from December 19 to January 4
Bundle up for an evening stroll around the this gorgeous 1860s-era village, and see heritage buildings all magically lit, with over 200,000 lights – a true winter wonderland! For an additional fee, take a horse-drawn carriage ride, skate outdoors under the stars or ride on an illuminated toy train!

Christmas Lights Across Canada
December 4, 2008 to January 9, 2009
Launched in 1985 by the National Capital Commission (NCC), Christmas Lights Across Canada is one of a host of unique programs which was created to liven up the winter months. Canada’s Capital will come alive as more than 300,000 dazzling Christmas lights illuminate the heart of Ottawa-Gatineau.

Canadian Pacific Rail Holiday Train
The Canadian Holiday Train will embark on its two-week journey on Saturday, November 29 from Montreal, Quebec, finishing up in Port Moody, B.C., on Friday, December 19. Local stops include Smiths Falls on November 30, and Perth, Belleville and Trenton on December 1. Check out their website for schedule details!

Don’t forget, you can write to His Jollyness and get a reply, too! Send snail-mail to before December 18 to:

Santa Claus
North Pole
H0H 0H0

Or you can send an e-mail through canadapost.ca/santascorner.

Got any other tips or ideas to share? Leave a comment or e-mail me at danicanada (at) gmail (dot) com and I’d be happy to add them to this post.