Loulou's views

Finally, the long weekend is here! The weather has been amazing lately, despite a little rain. The Victoria Day long weekend is perfect for spending time with family and friends, and getting away from it all, in the great outdoors. It's time to pack up the bathing suits and sunscreen and get the BBQ fired up at the cottage. If you're heading out of town this long weekend, you'll be spending time packing and washing your favourite travel outfits to take with you– little t-shirts, shorts, comfy dresses and leggings, bathing suits, and sweaters, for around the campfire.  One of my favourite getaways was last summer when my family and I and a group of our friends went to Mont Tremblant for a few days of relaxation and fun in a beautiful house right near the village, complete with an indoor pool, 12 bedrooms, and a nice outdoor fire-pit where we roasted marshmallows late into the night.  The only thing I didn't love about the experience was the fire-pit sm...

Mother's Day is coming up this weekend, and even though we should celebrate moms every day for all the work they do, (truly, it's a 24 hours a day job... forever!) it's nice to give something special to the moms in your life—or to treat yourself to a little something sweet, too. I will say there is no gift greater than being a mom, and I feel blessed every day to have two little wonderful people in my life who love me very much.  The greatest gift of all is being a mom to my amazing boys. I love giving practical (and affordable) gifts for most occasions, products I know will be used and loved. Here are some great suggestions on how you can spoil mom this Mother's Day, without breaking the bank: Pantene Daily Moisture Renewal Shampoo and Conditioner: Why not put together a hair and beauty package with some great products you can pick up from the drug store or grocery store for an easy gift every mom will love? The new Pantene Daily Moisture Renewal Shampoo and Con...

On Mother's Day, I always like to reflect back to the happy days when I was pregnant with my two boys. Both experiences were wonderful and life-changing for me. I had easy pregnancies, where I was able to enjoy the many benefits of pregnancy bliss—guilt-free eating, relaxing, and just embracing my natural glow while watching my belly grow. I had relatively easy deliveries with my children, and I was surrounded by family, and supportive doctors and nurses. Mother's Day is a perfect time to remind ourselves that safe, easy pregnancies and childbirth are not always the case. Every day, more than 800 women around the world die from pregnancy or childbirth related complications. When I heard this high number, it astounded me. How can this still be the case?  I'm so honoured to be supporting ADRA Canada and standing up for Maternal, Newborn, and Child Health (MNCH) this month. MNCH is one of the most common acronyms used in discussions about global health, but many of us ...

Now that spring is in the air, it's time to spring clean the house. I love everything about spring–yes, even cleaning. It's so refreshing to finally be able to keep the windows open all day long, and I love spring because we're one step closer to my favourite season of all–summer! Spring cleaning for me means doing some major de-cluttering of every room in the house, and making room in my closet for all the spring clothes I'm going to buy. It also means deep cleaning my house–the kitchen, the bathrooms, the bedrooms, and the living room and dining room. I love using Pine-Sol because it works so well on so many different surfaces. It's basically one powerful cleaner that can tackle even the toughest of jobs. Pine-Sol sent me their brand new multi-surface cleaner in the new Spring Blossom scent, and I love it. This new Pine-Sol smells so delicious... and so very spring-like. The bottle is pink and the smell? A mix of Jasmine, Magnolia, and Orange Blossom. The hous...

Now that spring is here it's time to start thinking seriously about getting back in shape and healthy again, if you happened to have not stuck to a regular program during the long winter months. Hey, I get it–sometimes, it can be hard when it's so cold outside all you want to do is snuggle up on the couch with some not-so-healthy snacks. Although I try to keep working out daily and eating healthy part of my lifestyle routine throughout the year, I take it easy when it's not so nice outside; I still ski, and spend some times outside, but going to the gym tends to not happen every day. However, now that warmer days are coming, it's much more motivating to get my sweat on at the gym on a daily basis, and eat well. Along with eating well and working out, I take a daily multivitamin and a probiotic supplement, Align . If you're not too familiar with Align, let me help you out: it's the number one gastroenterologist recommended probiotic, and it helps relieve and ma...

I always love trying new make-up, and when I was asked to review the Dermablend Professional  line, I quickly said yes. I have been looking for a new foundation for a while, and thought it was the perfect opportunity to try this make-up because of all the great things I kept hearing from other beauty product lovers like myself. Dermablend Professional lets you decide how much you want to cover up when you're applying your make-up, and with their easy to use online 'shade selector' , you can make sure you're choosing the colours that are right for your skin tone. Dermablend Professional is powerful make-up anyone can use, created by a dermatologist. These products provider excellent coverage and they are dermatologist and allergy-tested. They're also fragrance-free—perfect for those with sensitive skin. Here are the products I put to the test and loved: Dermablend Professional Smooth Liquid Camo Foundation: This medium cover liquid foundation helps even out...