IN THE IVY

Budgeting Ideas For Families

Look into child subsidy in your area

One of the biggest costs for parents is childcare, but for most parents it’s unavoidable. If you’re returning to work soon and you’re looking for childcare, speak to your local subsidy office about childcare options.

Plan your meals in advance

After a long day, it can be tempting to pick up take-out food for the whole family, but this can add up and become a huge cost. Avoid the temptation by planning meals in advance; you’re less likely to buy take-out if you know exactly what you’re having for dinner, especially if it’s already in the fridge.

This can also help you to save money, because you’ll plan to use up all of the ingredients, and it can help your whole family to eat healthier. We recommend that you plan your meals one week in advance so that you don’t become overwhelmed and you can go based off of flyers as well!

Be thrifty

Children quickly grow out of their clothes, shoes, and toys, which means you are regularly spending money on new items. You can halve these costs by buying secondhand items instead. Check out thrift stores and ask friends with older children; they may have exactly what you’re looking for at a lower price that you can give to your child instead of something that’s new and expensive.

However, make sure you buy car seats and cribs new; the safety regulations often change for these items, and you want to make sure you have the safest option.

Create a stockpile- you don’t need to overdo it

You probably don’t need 50 bottles of laundry detergent, but always having a backup on hand will save you from dashing to the store for a full-price replacement when you run out. As you notice sales, replenish your stock.

You can do this for many things – Canned goods, shampoos, conditioners, body soaps, cleaners.

Use reward programs

These programs include’s; Pc optimum, Triangle rewards, Esso points, etc.

Go in on pc optimum days and plan your shopping around special points offers if possible.

Get crafty

If you have the time and patience, homemade anything will stretch your dollar. Why spend six dollars on a store-bought greeting card when your kids can make one (and it will be much more appreciated by the recipient). You might also be surprised at the array of crafting goodies at your local dollar store.

You can craft home decor,

Tips For Road Trips With Toddlers

I know so many moms that just don’t go anywhere because they don’t want to have the dreaded ‘road trip’. Well you and your family deserve a trip and here are some tips to make the road trip exciting and bearable!

Don’t overdo it

Keep in mind that babies and toddlers do not have the patience for super-long road trips that you might. If you have quite a long distance to drive, try to break the journey into manageable segments with stops for playing, eating, and sleeping.

Distract them with snacks/meals

Bottles for babies or finger foods for toddlers provide tasty diversions during road trips. Your partner can also join your baby in the backseat if you to spoon feed pureed baby foods or rice cereal on the go. It’s important to keep children safely buckled in their car seats, though, so if your little one is still nursing, you’ll need to schedule stops for mealtime.

For toddlers, pack some healthy travel snacks like whole grain cereals, fruits chopped into bite-sized pieces and cheese cubes. Put snacks in separate containers and provide them one at a time to avoid overwhelming youngsters. I always advise bringing along a “forbidden treat” or two as well. If you’ve got a child who is particularly prone to choking, though, I’d wait to do snacks and meals at a rest stop, park or restaurant.

Bring a bucket

Plan to bring a bucket along on your road trip and keep it within arm’s distance. If your child has a bout of motion sickness or stomach flu, this will save you. A simple plastic beach pail works well.

Bring a child’s potty

Have a potty training tot? You may not always have a ton of notice when your little one needs to go, and if you are like me and live up north, there is not much rest stops. Keep a child’s potty in the back of the car for those times when your tot really needs to go and there’s no rest stop in sight.

Time the trips around nap time/bed time

Car sleep is your friend. Many people suggest driving overnight to reach a destination of over five hours or more so the kids sleep the whole time, and this is a great option for those who can swing it.

We also try to time our trips so that only one “sleep” is interrupted, thus leaving before nap so that we can arrive at our destination in time for dinner and bedtime in a proper bed.

Ultimate Guide On Making Baby Food

How To Make Baby Food

Are you ready, or starting to think about making your own homemade baby food purees? Then you have come to the right place.

Making and serving homemade baby food is easier than you think. Plus, when your baby wants to devour your delicious homemade purees it’s a priceless moment that is worth the work.

Why To Make Your Own Baby Food

1. The first reason I began making my own baby food purees was simple – I am a control freak.

2. Food always tastes better using fresh ingredients. Most commercial baby food purees are heated to extremely high temperatures so they can last upward of three years on the shelf, which means the food you spoon into your little one’s mouth is most likely older than your baby.

3. The ability to control the thickness of your baby’s puree is also a tool that will not only help you get though the picky-eating days, but also help transition your baby from purees to solid food. The biggest thing about control over the food is the biggest nutrition win I feel you get for making your own purees; you can tailor them to your child’s needs at any particular moment. Constipated? Make a prune or fruit puree. Feeling under the weather? Make a puree high in vitamin C.

4. This might come as a surprise to you, but making your own baby food with all organic ingredients is more than 50 percent cheaper than buying food.

What Will You Need?

The tools you need to make your own homemade baby food can usually already be found in your kitchen.

While there might be a couple of items you need to purchase, don’t let that derail you. I started with the very minimal kitchen appliances and tools and upgraded as I kept exploring (and blogging) my way around the kitchen.

Blender or Food Processor

Any brand will work just fine. Don’t let the price of a new blender scare you away from making your own baby food. If your blender or food processor is older, then you will probably just need to add a little more liquid to your baby food then stated in the recipes to get them completely smooth.

Freezer Trays or Baby Food Storage

This is probably one of the few items you will need to purchase. You can get freezer trays from the dollar store. I personally LOVE these freezer trays.

Steamer Basket or Insert

You will nee a steamer basket or insert in order to steam the produce for baby’s purees.

Baking Sheet

Medium and Small Saucepan

Knives

Spatula

How To Blend Baby Food

To get a completely smooth baby food puree, you have to give your blender or food processor some time to work it’s magic.

You might have to add in extra liquids (water, breast milk, formula or stock) into the blender or food processor in order to get the blender going. Hard root vegetables (carrots, sweet potatoes, beets, etc) often take at least 1-2 cups of liquids because they themselves do not have a high water content. I recommend slowly adding liquid into the blender.

Also, while blending make sure to scrape the sides with a spatula to get all the produce.

How To Freeze & Store Baby Food

Freeze

Whenever you make a puree, put several ounces in the fridge for your little one to enjoy that week, then freeze the rest of the batch for her to finish up at a later date.

After making your puree, let it cool slightly and then transfer to your desired storage.

Cover the ice cube trays, and place in the freezer. Let them freeze completely before you crack the purees out of the trays and place them in plastic freezer bags. Label and date each bag.

Storage

Most purees can be stored for three to four days in an airtight container in the fridge. If freezing them, Most produce-based purees can last up to three months in the freezer. Purees containing meat, beans, or grains will last two months in the freezer.

Mom Hacks To Live By

There are so many occasions where I choose the most difficult way to do things. Not because I want to. It’s simply because I just don’t know how else to do it. Here are some hacks to make those difficult tasks/parenting issues harder.

Label all your child’s clothes

When you have little ones that are close in size, or are ins daycare/school, labeling laundry is going to be your new favourite trick. Schools/daycares can’t possibly keep track of 15 kids wardrobes, and when kids are close in size it’s easy to mix up clothes, the smart thing to do is to simply initial the tags of everyone’s clothes. You no longer will go through laundry wondering whose child’s clothes these are or which child it belongs to!

Cleaning Toys

Okay, so you know those Legos and action figures that pretty much either live on the floor or in your kid’s mouth? Putting them all in the sink and washing them sometimes just doesn’t get the job done. Here’s a super easy way to get it done: take a mesh laundry/bra bag and place the toys inside. Pop that bag inside your washing machine.

You can also throw toys in your dishwasher if you have one!

Bins for EVERYTHING

I love bins so much I literally had a dream about them last night, HAHA! No matter how old your kids are, they always seem to have a lot of stuff. And that stuff can get really, really messy really, really quickly. Assign everyone in your family his/her own basket or storage container (these can be kept in the mud room, entry way, homework room, laundry room, wherever). As you clean this is where you can put all the miscellaneous items laying around that your children/husband/you can put away at the end of the night.

Keeping bins around to keep your children’s toys in as well makes cleanup fast and easy.

Cheerio Necklaces

My friend who is actually an ECE suggested this to me! This is for mamas of little ones, especially teething ones, or ones that LOVE sensory activities and food. Take a string/piece of dental floss and string Cheerios on it to make a necklace. When your baby gets fussy, pick him or her up and let your baby snack while you get your errands/chores/work done. And just a reminder: do NOT place the necklace around your baby’s neck and leave them alone, make sure you are right beside them or just hand it to them without it around their neck.

Mark your kids shoes

As you kids are getting more independent, they are probably wanting to put their shoes on themselves. They don’t often ask “is this the right shoe?” until they realize its uncomfortable when they start walking. To make things so much easier and avoid temper tantrums and blisters , simply grab a Sharpie and write a small but easy to read “L” and “R” on the soles of your kids’ shoes.

Bathroom Deoderizer

Keep your bathroom smelling clean and fresh by adding a few drops of essential oil to the inside of your toilet paper roll – the cardboard bit. This sends a fresh smell into the room every time someone spins the toilet roll.

Popsicle Catcher

Stop a popsicle drip with a cupcake liner. Cut a small hole in the centre of a paper cupcake liner, and slip it up over the stick to the bottom of the popsicle. The cupcake liner will catch any the drips and keep clothes clean.

Save buttons

Stop buttons from falling off and keep threads from running by simply painting a bit of clear nail polish or top coat over the threads.

Stop doors slamming

Cut a pool noodle in half and slide it on the side of the door (Only needs to be like a foot long!) to prevent the door from slamming on small fingers.

Must Haves For An Eco-Friendly Home

We waste tons of plastic a year, and it ends up polluting our planet. that being said you can shop to do your part. Everyone can make a difference if we just think differently about what we buy and how we choose to live.

Reusable Straws

Silicone straws are very safe, not only because they are bendy & chewy, making them safe for kids to use and less worrisome for mothers, but they are also safe in that they are healthy for our bodies. Unlike plastic and even metal, silicone also does not leach chemicals when exposed to certain heat.

As an environmentally conscious consumer, you don’t want to create more throw-away plastic filling our landfills or oceans and the best way to do so is reusable straws. One of the most popular types of reusable straws are those made from silicone.

These ones are perfect for kids, come with a cleaner brush and comes in a pack of 10- 5 bent 5 straight!!!

Price: $12.99 CAD

Reusable Bags

Apart from causing land pollution, plastic waste has spread to the sea threatening the aquatic life. By using the eco bags, you will be contributing towards the reduction of pollution that is caused by plastic waste.

These reusable grocery bags are equipped with their own Integrated Square Pouch and you will NEVER lose it. It folds up to fit in your pocket or purse. These come in a pack of 5!

Price: $18.99 CAD

You can also get some from your local dollar store behind the counter!

An Indoor Food Compost Bin

An indoor compost is a great way to reuse your scrap veggies. When you empty your bin you can throw it in your garden or a family’s. This creates amazing nourishment and nutrients for your plants.

If you have a small pet such as a rabbit or a guinea pig, they can eat most of your scrapes instead!

Price: $29.95 CAD

Reusable Bamboo Nursing Pad

Not only are these great for breastfeeding, they are great reusable makeup remover wipes!!

Price: $20.90 CAD

100% Compostable Poop Bags

Using 100% reusable poop bags are a great alternative to your regular poop bag! These have an easy to remover sticker – no tears. The core is also recyclable.

Eco-Friendly Bamboo Sponges

These eco-friendly sponges last longer than traditional sponges, so they don’t need to be replaced as often.

Price: $15.96 CAD

Reusable Diapers

If you go cloth and launder them yourselves, the cost over three years will be between $800 and $1100, half as much as disposables. And diapering a second child will only cost you the laundering (about $400 for three years).

You are also saving all those diapers from entering the trash!

Price: $72.50 CAD

Mesh Produce Bags

Don’t forget to take them with you to the grocery store so you can skip the plastic ones. Not only are they a more environmentally-friendly way to bring your fruits and vegetables home, but they’re perfect for transporting wet bathing suits home from the pool or the beach, great for laundry while traveling, and excellent for collecting small toys like building blocks.

24 for only $9.99CAD!!

Silicone Huggers

Food huggers are a great choice when you have half a tomato or onion left over that you’d normally put in a disposable plastic bag. You have an airtight seal which helps your produce last longer. They’re great when you’re missing a lid for your jar or can, too — they’re also infinitely reusable, made from heat-resistant silicone, and clean up easily in the dishwasher.

Housework Toddlers Can Help With

Think your toddler is too young to help around the house? Think again. Toddlers are the perfect age for pitching in — given their sense of independence. Of course, your toddler’s “help” may slow you down, but resist the urge to finish the job yourself. By giving your child small chores, you’ll be boosting their confidence and making them feel like they are helping around the house.

Putting away toys

If your toddler is anything like mine, they want to help clean but get distracted really fast and end up making more of a mess! Break down the job down into manageable parts. Be specific — instead of telling them to clean up their toys, say, “Please take your book and put it on the shelf.” Or try to make a game out of cleaning up – seeing who can pick up faster, make it a race. I’ve also found that making up songs as we clean up helps!

Sorting Laundry

Let them help you unload the dryer and drop the clean clothes into the laundry basket. They will also get a thrill out of tossing dirty clothes into a hamper. Buy a kid-sized hamper and put it in his bedroom or bathroom, and add the chore to their bath-time routine. Toddlers also enjoy sorting and organizing things. So put them to work by sorting the clothes by colour.

Dusting

Slip one of your parter’s old socks onto their hand or hand him a feather duster and let them at the furniture legs or any large surface that’s on their level. To show them chores can be fun, put on some music and challenge them to see if they can finish dusting their spot on the table before the end of a song. When they are finished, give them praise for helping, but wait until they are out of the room to go over there handiwork – you don’t want to discourage what they do!

Sweeping and mopping

Let them sweep alongside you as you clean up the morning’s cereal-fest, even though they won’t be able to sweep the crumbs and dirt into a pile until they are about 4. You can also hold the dustpan for them and let them sweep the dirt your way. Or get a toddler-size broom and mop, and let them clean the floors with that.

Heres the toddler broom and mop I have for my daughter to help while I’m doing housework:

https://amzn.to/2XCStfK

Putting away groceries

A toddler’s love of sorting things can also come in handy when it comes to putting away groceries. They can organize all the boxes into one pile and the cans in another. They can also put the boxes and cans away on a low shelf, as long as you’re specific about what goes where (or don’t care). You can also point out interesting things about the groceries as he organizes them into smaller piles — mention that the apples are red or green, the cans are hard, the boxes are big. You can also get them to hand you the groceries and say them as they hand them to you, this teaches them the foods they are eating.

Feeding the family pet’s

They can learn about pet love as they help you with pet chores. Give your child a kid-sized container filled halfway with water and ask him to replenish the water dish. Tell him you’ll be in charge of putting the food in your pet’s bowl, but he can put it on the floor. Let them choose which can of food to give your pet that day. To speed the decision, give them a choice of only two flavors.

Make The Most Out Of Nap Times

We’ve all been there. You finally get all the kids to sleep for a nap. You plop down on the couch and start scrolling on your phone. I scroll and scroll and scroll…doing NOTHING. Then you hear them waking up. You look at the clock and realize 2 HOURS have gone by. I would always feel like my time was wasted and I didn’t feel rested.

This used to be a daily occurrence for me, honestly some days it still is. I really struggled with being productive. These great nap time productivity tips have really encouraged me. They will help you treasure your nap time so you can enjoy your kid’s awake time even more!

1. Prioritize

Make a list of what is important to you and able to be worked into your day. You WON’T be able to get to everything in a day, so really try to narrow down this list. This tip may take a few weeks to iron out.

Maybe baking is a hobby of yours but your kids take really short naps…that may be an activity you find out needs to be enjoyed after bedtime. Or maybe you like to exercise during nap time, but also want to get in a SHOWER at some point in the day. Experiment with what works best for you and leaves you feeling rested and ready for the rest of the day.

2. Don’t over-schedule nap time

I wanted to do everything during naps, but quickly realized all the things I wanted to accomplish during nap time were leaving me drained. When I narrowed it down to one or two enjoyable or necessary activities, I felt much more refreshed and rested throughout the day. Now, when I can, I save reading, showering, working on my blog, and sleeping for nap times. Those are activities I really enjoy, they leave me fairly rested, and I don’t get discouraged dropping them when the L.O. wakes up from a nap.

I use to try to pack my time during naps full with cleaning, , trying to shower, starting supper, doing house projects. While some of those things really do need to be done during nap time some days, I found that working self-care into nap-times sometimes saves times for your peace and in the end leaves a happier momma.

3. Complete a quick 10-minute chore before you start your list/activity

I don’t love cleaning, it takes time, and it just gets messy again and I do not like spending nap times cleaning.

Working on one chore or house task for a measly 10 minutes will help you rest better and focus more clearly on the activities you have chosen for the duration of your nap time. Obviously some days, your time during naps will need to consist of a long list of cleaning. But most days, if you can just pick one quick chore or task to finish in 10 minutes your burden will be slightly lighter going into your enjoyable activities.

4. Prep Beforehand

This is a big one depending on the project. Especially if you’re doing house projects. Get all your supplies out before the kids go down for nap. Not only does this keep you motivated to do it, but everything is ready for you. Also, Get the noisy projects done before the kids go down for their nap!

Not only does this refer to getting supplies out but plan your day accordingly. This may be doing your usual chores throughout the day so you can relax at night. It might mean doing household chores early so you can work when they’re asleep. Or it may mean getting up early to work so you can relax or nap during nap time. Its whatever works best for you!

5. Use white noise

This is one of biggest life savers in parenting. Hands down. I find my daughter sleeps better with the white noise. You don’t have to worry about every little noise you make while they are sleeping. It really helps you be able to rush around the house and do whatever you want without worrying about waking the little ones. Since nap times and sleep times are when you probably do the things you’ve waited/wanted to do all day.

Being A Work-From Home Mom During COVID-19

With schools closed around the province and companies keeping their employees telecommuting pretty much indefinitely due to COVID-19—working parents and children are figuring out their new normal. And for many, it’s a healthy mix of chaos, family time, stress, fighting and bargaining with their partner on who will take which shift so the other can take a conference call or finish a paper.

It is important to remember that children are likely to need a period of time to adjust and they may not just fall into placed perfectly. They will be hearing and seeing the changes and are likely to be feeling just as anxious as us. Go easy on yourself!

Create A Schedule

As most of us probably already know, kids thrive on routine! This is especially true for those school-aged children who have grown accustomed to being in classes. A schedule will not only help them stay focused, but hopefully provide periods of productivity for you, too.

This schedule can include time for yourself to breathe, time for them to talk about their emotions, to create or play games, to watch tv or to do homework, and to go to bed.

Rules and timeframes for their days can make their adjustment to this strange time a bit easier. Additionally, it makes it easier for you to structure your work day. For younger children, adding in naps is a great way to get some work in!

Get Up Really Early

The best way to work when your toddler is around is by getting as much done as possible when they aren’t. This means setting an alarm an hour or two before they are typically up for the day. If you do your best thinking in the morning, tackle your largest projects and distractions during this time. But if you’re not a morning person, have a cup of coffee and use this time to organize yourself, respond to quick email requests, clean-up and plan out the rest of your workday.

Encourage Independent Play

Independent play is important for toddler development. For working parents, independent play can give mom or dad some much needed time to get work done. Getting together some activities to keep them busy is a great way to encourage independent play without it being stressful!

Make Them An Important Part Of Your Day

Let your kids be kids! Let your kids do the harmless activities that you don’t necessarily love. Play-dough, laying on the dog bed, making a bed on the ground! This gives you 30 minutes to do something that was needed.

Take your attention off the screen if your child wants it. Embrace and the little memories in life with them!

6 Self-care hacks for busy moms

“You can’t pour from an empty cup. Take care of yourself first.”

“An empty tank will take you nowhere, take time to refuel.”

You hear it said all the time, don’t you? But it is easier said than done – who has the time to sit around relaxing when there is a mountain of laundry and children full of energy making a mess quicker than you can tidy up?

The thing is, you have to look at self-care as more than just a bubble bath with candles, or going to the salon. It is about making sure you are looking after your whole wellbeing – mentally, physically and spiritually.

It’s important to take a little “me time” now and then to recharge your batteries. That way you have the energy (and patience) to take on the difficult job of raising tiny humans.

1. Crack open a book or audiobook when you can.

Losing yourself in a good book has been shown to reduce your levels of stress. This is a way to recharge for 10-15 minutes every morning and if your super busy, audible is the best way to go! Listen on your way to daycare or work. Treat your mind and soul.

2. Put on a little makeup

It’s amazing how much happier and put together I feel when I take a few minutes to put on makeup.

I recently trimmed my makeup routine down to these products: a brow gel, mascara, foundation, blush, bronzer, and highlighter. This means I can quickly do my makeup and be on with my day — feeling happier, more energetic, and confident!

3. Brew a pot of coffee or a cup of tea

I love a good coffee with my double double delight creamer! Its one of the things I look forward to when getting up. If I’m feeling overwhelmed or tired, I usually stop and make a cup of coffee(&& yes have a smoke!) — just to take a minute to slow down and breathe.

4. Drink a glass of water

Many of our aches and pains and health problems can be traced back to being dehydrated. Do your body a favor and drink more water!

5. Clean or organize something

I always feel so fulfilled when I take a few minutes to clean something. This might be putting away laundry, or wiping down the kitchen countertops, or putting away the dishes.

This is best to do first thing after your coffee! After you have completed one task your body takes on that sense of accomplishment and keeps it motivated.

6. Make your bed

Prioritizing making your bed as a daily habit is like a gift to yourself. You get to walk into your room to a beautiful made bed and helps you want to keep order in other areas of your life as well!