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A Few of My Favorite Things

Who do I think I am, Oprah?

I'm blogging my butt off right now because I have time, which I don't think I'm going to have much of next month when school starts again. This is just for fun.

Food

Kettle valley organic fruit leathers - I have tons of these stashed everywhere, the car, my purse, the stroller, the kitchen...the kids love them and it keeps them quiet, even if just for a few minutes. They are made of organic fruit and no added sugar. Just make sure to brush teeth afterwards.

Life Choices - This company makes all sorts of healthy versions of kid friendly food. Little A loves the meatballs and fish sticks. Big A loves the chicken nuggets and both girls love the pizza. I also just found out that they make all beef, nitrite free hotdogs which are much cheaper than the Beretta Farms nitrite free turkey hotdogs I've been buying Big A (Little A won't touch hotdogs!). Their perogies are good too.

Healthy Handfuls - Organic, whole grain cookies that kids love. Need I say more?

President's Choice Organic Fair Trade Coffee - It is delicious and much less expensive than comparable name brands. The decaf is excellent too.

Stores

Costco - Who doesn't love this place? Aside from being great for finding huge jars of organic peanut butter, cinnamon, and bottles of vitamin D and fish oil at great prices, you can almost always find amazing deals on kids clothes (Carter's outfits for $10), toys and books.

Children's Place - This is my favorite kids clothing store. It's way cheaper than Gap Kids and the stuff is cuter too, in my opinion. They always have amazing sales and the clothing lasts (Little A is wearing all of Big A's old stuff and it is still as good as new.

Bonnie Togs - Also a great kids clothing store which sells lots of Carter's and Osh Kosh at fantastic prices.

Joe Fresh - Great affordable clothes for adults and kids alike. They have everything: lingerie, swimwear, athletic wear, business-casual, etc. Prices are insanely good.

Target - Great for everything...just wish it was in Canada.

Trader Joe's - Foodie heaven, but sadly also not available in Canada.

Beauty Products

Coppertone Oil Free Sunblock - I have very sensitive skin and most products give me an allergic reaction (even Neutrogena!), but this one never does. It also absorbs quickly and is not greasy at all.

Argan oil/Moroccan oil - This stuff is great if your hair is at all dry or frizzy. It's a leave-in conditioning treatment. It is pricey, but a little goes a long way. I buy an organic brand called Dermorganic but there are lots of brands available now.

Maybelline Unstoppable Eyeliner - This stuff doesn't smudge as much as other brands (which is good for a sweat-bag like me) and makes application a cinch for someone who essentially doesn't know much about applying make-up (like myself).

Books

Book of Negroes - I read tons and tons of literature but generally forget the titles immediately afterwards, however, this will always stand out as one of my favorites.

Other good ones I've read recently:

I don't Know How She Does It - Allison Pearson
The Man in the White Sharkskin Suit - Lucette Lagnado
The Girl With the Dragon Tatoo - Stied Larsson (Can't wait to read the other two in the series!!)
Unaccustomed Earth - Jhumpa Lahiri

I have read a billion other good ones, but I can't remember their names...

Movies

Milk - Adam and I don't get out to see many films but this stands out as the best one I've seen in a couple of years. Sean Penn is exceptional.

Television

Flashpoint - This is a Canadian show filmed in Toronto (yay!) that is carried on CTV in Canada and CBS in the U.S. Check it out, it is so so good.

Music

Take a Minute - K'Naan. I like a wide variety of music genres including stuff from the 70s, 80s, 90s as well as current stuff. Right now I'm loving this song. And K'Naan is Canadian!!



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