CSN Winner Announcement!

Hope you all had a great weekend!

I'm about to make one momma's week!

Congratulations to Domestic Diva....you are the winner of the $35 CSN gift code.

I'll email you shortly with the details.

Thanks to everyone else who commented. It's always great to have the advice of other moms when trying to solve a tricky problem!

Shop Together, Save Together

So first it was sale websites like Gilt, Hautelook and Rue La La.

And while I still visit these sites regularly at 11am daily, I am currently obsessed with group buying sites.

Recently, the Montreal marketplace seems to have become invaded with sale sites like Living Social, Groupon and PriceDodger. Oh, and don't forget about One Spout which rounds them all up in one neat email.

And while there are only so many massages, dinners and gym classes one can purchase, there seems to be a void in the market when it comes to moms.

At least, there was a void in the market.

Launching this spring, DealSpark is bringing family-friendly discounts to moms throughout Montreal. They already have secured partners like Geordie Productions, Rose Bowl Lanes, Apple Cheeks which are sure to take a load off our budgets.

You can find out more about DealSpark here. Be sure to sign up for their newsletter so you know when the deals are ready to be had.

Eight Hours

8 hours, 480 minutes.

That is how much sleep I got last night. Hurray! And Hannah got closer to 11 hours!

My plan worked, now let's just hope I'm not jinxing it and it will repeat tonight.

So, the minute we got home from school we went into her room and starting re-organizing furniture. I wanted to move the crib temporarily into the office but it wouldn't fit through the door so we pushed it aside, out of the way.

Then I let her pick out her own sheets and blankets and told her how exciting it was to sleep in a big girl bed.

I also showed her the huge calendar we bought and the accompanying happy face stickers that would be placed on it for every night that she spent in her room.

Major hyping up happened until 7pm when we started to get ready for bed. We read stories as usual and I got her lying in bed, under the covers for the last one. And then I left.

And she cried.

And cried.

For 30 minutes.

That was it.

We looked at each over at 6:45am when the alarm went off, in shock. Nothing all night. Not even a peep.

I had to wake her up at 7:30am. We made a huge deal of her accomplishment, with lots of hugs, kisses and smiles. Then she chose a yellow and purple happy face to put on her calendar.

Success!

Hopefully tonight 30 minutes will shrink down (or cease to exist completely).

So while I seem to have my problem under control, please continue to post your comments for the CSN giveaway. There are plenty of other moms who could use your advice!

Big Girl Bed & CSN Giveaway!

So it's been a week of co-sleeping...and no one is well rested.

We were in NYC for the weekend and the crib that the hotel provided to us was teeny tiny so Hannah ended up sleeping in our bed. Her first night back at home was a great one but that was probably due to 3 days of late bedtimes and an 11:30pm arrival.

After some negotiating the past two nights, I managed to get her to sleep in her own bed - more specifically, her mattress on the floor. It lasted a good 4 hours before she came walking into our room and hopping into bed.

So while I've been re-arranging our home office furniture, looks like my new home decor project is Hannah's room. I'm going to keep the crib in there for a while but think she might need proper sheets to be tucked into every night.

And since I'll be shopping, I figure you might as well too!

Leave me a comment with your suggestions on how to keep Hannah safe and sleeping in her room all night long and you could win a $35 gift code to use at any of the CSN stores. (Sorry, this giveaway is only open to residents of Canada and the USA).

I'll pick a winner next Wednesday February 23rd at 9pm (EST) so leave your comment before then.

Good luck!

Daddy's Bed

Houston, we have a problem.

Got a fantastic 8+ hours of sleep on Tuesday night and totally thought we had gotten an easy pass out of our co-sleeping problem.

Until last night...

Hannah went to bed without a fuss at 7:30 but promptly awoke 2 hours later. We let her toss and turn for a while but I eventually had to go in. What a mistake!

"Daddy's bed....daddy's bed..."

Oh no, I thought. I want my pillows all to myself. So I offered to read her some stories but was met with absolute hysteria. I had the idea of bringing daddy's pillow into her bed which calmed her down instantly. So I began to read her books, sing her songs and sit beside her but almost an hour later I was freezing on the floor and she was jumping up and down.

So, I logically got out a blanket and a pillow and made myself comfy. But wouldn't you know she wanted to join me in slumber on the floor.

So we slept together for a good 2 hours on the hard floor. At about 2am, she was fast asleep and my side was in excruciating pain, so I gently lifted her up and plopped her into bed. She didn't move...until I left the room when she popped up and started shrieking.

Another floor attempt with lots of rustling around and we ended up back in "daddy's bed" at 4am.

Oy vey. What a mess I've made. It doesn't help that we'll be away for the weekend sharing a room with her.

Tonight, I will not go into her room. No matter how loud the crying gets.

Kind of feel like I'm ferberizing again.

Any suggestions? I want my bed back!

Sick Breath

The temperature outside this weekend hovered around 0 degrees celsius. And while most families were out an about enjoying the mild weather at multiple kid-friendly carnivals throughout Montreal, we were stuck at home.

But our indoor temperature was more than mild. Hannah had a 103 degree fever all weekend long. No fun. Lots of tempra, fluids and soup but she just couldn't shake it.

She morphed into a new child. A calm, TV-watching little girl that only wanted hugs and to be carried around. Snuggles on the couch...who is this child?

And while I savoured our moments of love (her sick breath aside) all I wanted was for her to feel better.

Not wanting her to cry unnecessarily, she made it into our bed every night. And while my back is aching from her sideways sleeping position, we are most concerned about a new habit we may be developing.

We worked so hard to break the co-sleeping habit at 8 months but it came back so naturally.

I hope with all of my might that once she is feeling better (which may be today seeing as it was a Tempra-free day) she will break the habit on her own and snuggle up under her covers all night long.

Maybe I caved too easily. Maybe she will bounce back to her old routine.

Whatever the outcome, I think I need to get myself a new sick strategy...any ideas?

Mommy goes MIA

What a week its been....

5 days in Toronto, an incurable cough and an unexpected sick day for Hannah today with a fever of 101.

Guess that's what happens when mom flies the coup. Payback, baby.

So as much as I'll admit that I was quite content to have a few days to myself, working trips are anything but relaxing. I logged a total of 25 hours on my feet manning a trade show booth and could now use a pedicure and a massage.

Granted, I did have a Saturday to myself that I quite enjoyed. It started with breakfast in my hotel room, a visit to the hotel gym (still so proud of myself for this), 6 hours at Yorkdale mall and a solo visit to the movie theatre. I admit, it was quite heavenly.

But while I was pounding the trade show pavement, Hannah and her dad and doggy were at home fending for themselves. Sure, I left a detailed calendar, pre-scheduled plans for playdates and a fridge full of food, but they did very well on their own.

Props to daddy for taking care of Hannah and Winston for 5 whole days. I honestly doubt that I could have done the same myself (mostly just the Winston part). But he managed to set up a high-tech system between the baby monitor and his iPhone to make the late night dog walks happen.

Pretty ingenious if I do say so myself.

With any luck my next work trip will only be in April (San Antonio, Texas anyone?) But instead of worrying about it already, now I know that they can manage without me. But the real question is can mommy manage without them?

Probably. If there's a spa, that is.

Mini Boden

Wow, has it really been almost two weeks since my last blog entry?

Five days away from my family in Toronto and weeks of trade show prep seem like a good excuse but, not good enough. So while I'll recap my big "getaway" in a subsequent blog, today I thought I'd make up for my absence on a lighter note.

Sure, we may have just gotten 15-20 cm making the roads a mess and sweaters all the more comfy but I'm already thinking about spring. You'd think my 6 hours of "alone time" at Yorkdale mall would have had something to do with it but my inspiration arrived in the mail the other day.

The Mini Boden Spring 2011 catalogue.

Just about the cutest kids' clothes I have ever seen. And while I admit to having never ordered anything from their catalogue (yes, they do ship to Canada), the steep price tags might be slipping my mind while flipping through the pages of this catalogue.

Here are just a few of my favourites that you may see Hannah sporting this spring/summer:

Stripy Boat Neck - so classic

Printed Classic Jeans - have you ever seen anything cuter? Strawberries!

Vest Dress - only $40!

And for baby girls and older boys...

Stripy Chambray Dress

Graphic T-shirt

Just a few of the absolutely adorable items available. And the women's stuff is pretty cute also.

Ever ordered from Boden? Would love to hear your feedback about their quality.