Loulou's views

One of the things I loved the most about being a child was spending countless hours at the park near my house, playing on my own or with my friends. I had three parks all within walking distance of where I lived, and I have great memories of the time I spent at all of them.  I'd go to these parks as a child and get lost in the world of imagination, swing with my friends, play in the sand, and go down the slide, over and over again. As I got older, my best friend and I would hang out on the park bench, talking for hours about all the important things in our lives, while watching our friends play basketball or soccer. Now, I go to the same parks with my children, and the memories come flooding back as if it were yesterday. Whether they're kicking the soccer ball around, riding their bikes around the paths, or playing tag around the play structure, I love seeing them lost in the world of outdoor play. Although my children love playing at the same park I did when I was a c...

As the mother of two boys, my house is home to many electronic devices. From the newest Nintendo DS, to ipads and ipad minis, my boys are what I'd call very tech-savvy. More than me, even. I had to ask my seven year old for help recently about something I couId not figure out on my iphone, and he came to my rescue. I was quite impressed. My five year old has better skills using my Canon camera than I do. Times have certainly changed! I surprised my children the other day with the  Google Nexus 7 tablet by ASUS , which was sent to me from Staples . I was so excited to receive this, and it has been a huge hit in my house. Of course my two boys fought over who would get to use it first, but after they decided to take turns and share (sigh!) they started playing around with it right away, and they loved it. I couldn't wait to check it out myself! The Nexus 7 tablet is sleek, slim, and easy to use, even for the little ones in your family. Here are ...

It's no secret—I love to shop. I love to shop not only for myself and for my children, but for my friends and other family members, too. I love special occasions because it means I get to go shopping for the perfect gift for the people I love. Whether it's shopping for a gift for my child's friend, or a gift for my mom or best friend, I enjoy looking for things I know they'd love and appreciate. Besides hitting my favourite mall to find the perfect gift, I love shopping at Givopoly . Givopoly is a local gift concierge—a gift and gift basket delivery service. How amazing is that? Givopoly has over 70 partners and has over 1000 gifts to choose from that can be delivered the very next day. So let's say you just now remembered tomorrow is your best friend's birthday? No worries—check out the amazing gifts online at Givopoly, select your gift, and your friend will be calling you to say thanks the very next day! Like many of you, I don't have the luxu...

Now that summer is almost here, I plan on having guests over all the time to enjoy the gorgeous weather outside and making good use of my patio furniture and newly renovated kitchen. I love entertaining in my home, no matter the season, but there's something so laid-back and wonderful about having guests over when the weather is nice out.  Because I work full-time and take care of my two children and all their summer activities—swimming lessons, tennis, camp, playdates—I like to try new things in the kitchen that won't take hours to prepare. At the same time, I want to serve my guests food and appetizers they'll love. I love that Triscuit crackers go well with everything—served as a side with a cheese platter, dipped in homemade salsa, or used to melt cheese on top of. That's one of my favourite snacks—mine, and my boys! Whether it's the Original Triscuit crackers you're munching on, or the Thin Crisps (my personal favourite) you and your guest will be plen...

I still enjoy... Going on vacations. Buying new shoes. Spending time with my family and friends. Swimming in the ocean. Watching my favourite TV shows. Getting lost in Saks. Going for my weekly blow-dry. Pedicures. Manicures. Massages. Dinners out. White wine. Sitting in my favourite chair with a good book. Going to the movies and eating popcorn. A night out with my closest friends. However... no matter what I'm doing, there is one thing that is always on my mind—my children. No matter what, I'm thinking about them, and hoping they're okay. As soon as I became a mom, life shifted for me in a way I never expected. There is only before and after . Life before children was mostly worry-free, in the sense that I had no one to worry about 24 hours a day, for all of eternity, except myself. I could be irresponsible, if I wanted to. I could stay out as late as I wanted to. I could sleep in if I was tired. Life after children is wonderful in a...

Every morning I wake up at the same time as my children and the mad rush begins—shower! Make-up on! Fix hair! Find something to wear! Dress the children! Run downstairs! Make breakfast! Make lunches and snacks! Beg the children to brush their teeth! Pack the backpacks! When will I learn to get up and get ready before the children? Hopefully one day soon... seriously. When I'm stressed to the max about getting everyone out the door on time, I thank goodness that I don't sweat it—I handle it! Seriously, I'm thankful for the awesome   Lady Speed Stick Power because it provides long lasting protection to help me not lose my cool, so to speak, when I'm in  stressful situations like the daily mad rush out the door with two children. It works. I recently reviewed two new Lady Speed Stick products and they worked like a charm, helping me through all my daily crazy sweat-inducing situations at home, on the way to school and to work, and in any situation you can imagine. ...

I'm awesome. Because I'm a mom. Here are 15 reasons why: 1. I survive—in fact I can function— amazingly well on three hours of sleep a night. I know this to be true because it's been my reality for the last seven years, give or take an hour (or two). 2. I can carry more in my arms than the average human at the same time. We're talking a suitcase , a child, a bottle of water, a purse, two sweaters, a pair of running shoes, snacks, passports, and a stroller. While walking down a broken escalator trying to catch a flight. 3. I host playdates with children and I let them invade my entire house. 4. I live with little dictators and I am a calm and rational person in spite of this. 5. I can put together impossible LEGO creations. 6. I eat Goldfish crackers off the floor for dinner. 7. I put all sorts of weird things in my mouth to clean them. 8. I have endured listening to many hours of that annoying brat, Caillou, without breaking the television set in a f...

I don't know how I'd handle breakfast in my house if my children were picky eaters. Thankfully, I've lucked out in that department—I have children who consider breakfast their favourite meal of the day! It's always a mad dash in the mornings at my house, so knowing that my children have a favourite food to eat for breakfast is a huge help.  My boys love cream cheese, and I love how easy it is to prepare breakfast beacuse of this. We spread Philly Cream Cheese on bagels, tortillas, pita bread, and toast, and with a side of fruit and maybe some oatmeal, breakfast is served! Anything to make things run smoothly in the morning, I'm a fan of. When I saw the new  Chocolate Philly I knew it would taste incredible—and yup, I was right! It's so, so good. You really do have to try it for yourself. I promise—you'll love it. My favourite way to enjoy my Chocolate Philly ? Spread on a warm, toasted bagel, with a side of strawberries. (Grea...

Summer is finally here! Well, almost. It's May, the weather has been fabulous, the grass is growing, and the pools are open for the season. My boys have taken full advantage of this, already, and it's not even June yet. No complaints from me. Not even one. I will not say a negative thing about the weather until it starts getting cooler again. Summer is so easy, don't you think? No more snowsuits, boots, messy slush, hats, mitts, scarves... it's just flip flops, sunscreen, and go! I was flown to Toronto for the day a couple of weeks ago to attend the Summer Lunch and Learn Event on Sun Care and Allergy Symptoms Management with Coppertone , Aerius and hydraSense. It was a very beautiful event that was also very informative. It was great speaking to a doctor and allergy specialist about the effects the sun has on our skin, and especially the effects of the sun on the skin of our young children. It is so important to be aware. Since becoming a mom, I'm keenly ...

When I was in high school, I read The Great Gatsby for the first time. I remember liking it, but not loving it. I decided to visit my past and read the book again, and this time, I loved it. Loved. I didn't want it to come to an end, and now I'm in the I-just-finished-the-best-book-ever mode, where I refuse to pick up another book because I'm scared I'll look at the words and not feel as connected and not love it as much. This is of course nothing new for me, as I easily become obsessed fall in love with things: movies, songs, books... and I sort of expect everyone to feel what I'm feeling, too. To hear that some people didn't love The Great Gatsby , the book, or the movie? I don't get it. I get annoyed. "What do you mean you don't want to see it again RIGHTTHISSECOND?" "How could you NOT love it?" "You haven't even read the book yet? What are you waiting for?" I saw the movie. And it was beautiful . And...

My Hair: It's no big surpirse—I love being blonde. What started off as a few highlights when I was 16 years old turned into me having a head full of blonde hair a few years later. The thought of going dark scares me almost as much as the idea of cutting my hair does, but having to do my colour every month was getting to be a bit much. This week I took a brave step and let my hair dresser add low-lights to my hair. Okay, it was more of an intervention, but that's all behind us now. I love my new hair colour! A lot! I'm still blonde, but with more depth and definition, I guess.   Abercrombie & Assholes OR Abercrombie & Filth When I was younger, I shopped at Abercrombie, mostly because as a Canadian I loved shopping at stores we didn't have here. Also, because I thought some of their t-shirts were cute and funny, like the "Dependently Wealthy" one that's still somewhere in my closet. Of course, once I passed a certain age I stopped shopping a...

Seems like only yesterday I was complaining about the cold weather. It pretty much was yesterday, though. We skipped spring, and suddenly, summer has arrived! You won't hear me complain about the weather until probably the end of October, when things start getting cold and miserable again. What can I say? I'm a summer girl, 12 months a year. While I'm currently stuck in my office working, my five year old is enjoying himself swimming at his grandparents beautiful heated pool. Great way to cool off after school, isn't it? I'm counting down the hours until I can join him and his older brother. You know what goes great with summer, and swimming? Cold, delicious frozen yogurt. And because I'm in such a great mood, I thought I'd treat you to some Menchie's frozen yogurt, because... well, it's yummy, and good for you. Actually, you'll not only receive coupons for free Menchie's froyo , you'll also get a cute little gift basket filled wit...

A lot has changed in the blogging world over the last couple of years. Certainly a lot has changed for the better , but I sometimes miss the days when we used our blogs as a bigger platform than Twitter. Remember blogging, back in 2009? Although Twitter has been amazing for me and my blog as a business, I still miss old school blogging.  I'm happy to join in with my friend Elaine this week to host another Old School Blogging meme. I'd love it if you joined in , too. Let's kick it old school, shall we? And let's talk about one of my favourite things: entertainment! After all, I love movies . A lot. And TV shows, too . 1. What was one of your favourite shows as a kid? Why? I can't pick just one! My favourite television shows when I was a kid were The Facts Of Life, Who's The Boss, Growing Pains, and my two all-time favourites, The Cosby Show, and The Wonder Years. (Which I just discovered on Netflix, so now I'm watc...

One of my favourite movies is Troop Beverly Hills. I can actually recite the entire movie by heart, in case you were wondering. Although I am not crazy about camping now, (roughing it anything less than a four-star hotel!) when I was a child, I loved it. I have vivid memories of my first experience sleeping in a tent for a few days—good memories, but also frightening memories, because I was convinced a bear was going to attack me and my friends. I slept in between my two best friends one night and I felt like they provided me with enough protection so that I was able to fall asleep. The next night, however? I wasn't in the middle and of course with my over-active imagination, I couldn't stop thinking I could hear a bear. Yeah... I didn't sleep much that night! I much preferred the days of camping when we stayed in cabins, in more civilized bunk beds. Despite my sleeping arrangements, the fun camp memories have stayed with me throughout the years. I r...