Hallmark Gift Items for Mothers

Hallmark is keeping mothers in the spotlight with beautiful products that have a touch of spring. The warm colours and heart-felt sentiments on these items make them thoughtful gifts!

Spring and Summer Collection from Columbia

Columbia Sportswear Company's Spring and Summer Collection has a beautiful selection of clothing for both women and men. We think that this selection is perfect for all occasions especially when travelling and doing outdoor activities.

Win Your Own Copy of What Plant Where Encyclopedia

This time of the year, my family and I spend lots of time gardening, shopping for the garden, tending the plants, and weeding to keep our garden a clean and well maintained space. For us gardening is exciting, tiring, and relaxing. We love reading books about gardening, trying a variety of different plants and flowers every year, growing to love some plants more than others, talking about plants, recommending our favourites and our tips to family, friends, and neighbours. Recently, I got a wonderful book from DK that tells all about what plants go where in our garden.

Express Yourself By Winning Scotch Expressions Prize Pack

Scotch Brand’s Expressions Tapes are a fun, affordable tool to help add bright and glam colours to our home, and event décor. Expressions Tapes offer us creative, and easy ways to decorate our home whether it is used to create DIY centrepieces for a party, to add colour to glasses or planters, to do crafting with our children, or to update plain walls with a splash of colour. These Spring Planters are an awesome idea from Scotch to add some creative fun in our home. To make these, you will need... 

Simple Ways To Freshen Up A Room For Spring

Scotties has partnered with internationally-renowned Canadian architect and interior designer, Dee Dee Taylor Eustace to launch three next fashion-inspired tissue boxes. The designs on these tissue boxes are the perfect touch of design and softness to any room, like a soft throw on the bed, and a simple accessory to transition a room from winter to spring décor.

Digital Books about Spring

In the first ever collection app from the Cat in the Hat’s Learning Library: Outside Your Door! contains 4 favourite adventures that teach kids all about nature and the great outdoors. Perfect for springtime, parents can read the titles with their kids then go outside and observe what they have learned. 

Celebrating Spring and Moms With Hallmark

After a long, cold winter we are all longing for spring. Spring is a time for all of us to stretch out, including the plants and animals and think of fresh beginnings. Many us of are already thinking about flowers, bunnies, eggs, and being thankful for our moms. Hallmark has specialty gifts that include singing plush toys, children’s books, exquisite stationary and Signature Greeting Cards that easily and beautifully express our feelings and celebrate all our special spring moments.

Sugarbush #MapleSyrupFest Is Extended

We love going to the Sugarbush Maple Syrup Festival that is held at Bruce's Mills and Kortright almost every year, and appreciate the gifts nature has to offer. Going to the festival is a wonderful family occasion because we can take a walk and get excited about the upcoming warm weather and learn about the process of making maple syrup. This year due to the weather the festival will be extended until April 13th.

Winnie the Pooh: Springtime With Roo

Join Roo and the gang in an all-new "Winnie the Pooh: Springtime With Roo" full-length feature as it pounces on Blu-ray and Digital High Definition March 11th for the first time. This edition also comes with an enchanting never-before-seen bonus treat and a springtime Roo mobile.

Rain Bootz from Stonz

Soon it will be spring and all the snow will turn into puddles. My children are going to love this, as they enjoy jumping in puddles. To make sure they have fun and stay dry, I want to equip them with proper footwear. These durable and tear resistant Stonz rainboots are sturdy, comfortable and good looking that they will be enjoyed by children. 

Science and Style in These Vionic Flip Flops

I prefer to wear orthotics in all my footwear for daily use, as it gives me the support and prevents backaches after long stretches of standing. However, I have not seen or owned a pair of shoes or flip-flops that has built-in orthotics. I am glad I got to check out the Tide Vionic flip-flops with built-in biomechanical orthotics. This year they will also be expanding their popular wedge line by debuting the demi-wedge and platform that are stylish and has concealed contouring to provide support for all-day wear.

Three Season Tram Footwear

Tram footwear is perfect for all our winter, fall and spring activities from playing in the snow to slush or tobogganing and more. We really like the functional design with the grab-n-pull rubber handles that allow children to easily put the boots on. Having an easy to wear boots will give children the confidence to do things on their own. This is very important to young children like my son who is in kindergarten, as he is learning to get ready independently.

Win $100 Walmart Gift Card To Help You With Spring Cleaning

This "Spring Cleaning" giveaway event is sponsored by Tip Hero. Tip Hero has featured many ways we can save money on spring cleaning. Their free homemade cleaners ebook features wonderful homemade cleaner recipes. 

Giveaway:

To help you get started with spring cleaning and redecorating you can win a $100 Walmart gift card before April 24th. This giveaway is open to everyone over 18 in US. 

Use the PromoSimple form below to enter,

Cookies to celebrate spring

We made these cookies to celebrate the arrival of spring. These soft, delicious cookies would be wonderful to take on our upcoming trips to the park.

Crocus

These cookies are also easy enough for little ones to help make and give as gifts to grandma, mom and loved ones. Adding Callebaut Crispearls* to the cookies give it a slight crunch and adds colour. Callebaut Crispearls* are tiny toasted biscuit kernel coated with chocolate.

Spring comes with many occasions to celebrate

Spring is here, with it comes lots of wonderful celebrations...  My daughter bloomed in spring, along side with hyacinths so we totally look forward to spring to celebrate her birthday.  

With upcoming celebrations such as Mother's day, Father's day, achievements like graduations, birthdays, and anniversaries I look for thoughtful things to give my loved ones.  My family and I have been able to rely on Hallmark cards and products to help us make our statements of love to each other.

It Is Officially Spring, Time To Spot Bugs and Butterflies

Today is the official first day of spring, but the weather outside is nothing like spring.  Everyone in my family is missing the warm weather, the beautiful sunshine, flowers, birds and even the bugs.  

As an adult I am not a big fan of bugs, however when I was little it was a different story as my brothers and I use to collect flies and look for other types of bugs in our garden... thinking back I feel bad about this activity of ours as it wasn't cool for the bugs.  

My children are big fans of insects as well, and they are both in the age of exploring about them.  When they saw this book Spot the Bug by Tom Jackson they became very excited.  

Kidorable Dinosaurs are backpacking

My son is a huge dinosaur fan, so we were quick to choose this cute dinosaur backpack from Kidorable.  He was very excited to see the colourful bag and loves it.  

Bennetts Designer Boots

Do you love wearing boots, but can't seem to find good looking boots that are knee high?  Look no more, as these boots from Bennetts Boots will make us look tall and slim by camouflaging the right areas.  I like how beautifully it fits and the comfort of wearing the boots.  Bennetts Boots are uniquely designed for people with wide calves and curvy legs/ankles.  

Bennetts Boots found in 2007 by Amanda Bennetts is world leading Australian company that specializes in wide calf boots.  Amanda came up with these boots as she couldn't find boots to fit her calves and was a frustrated with fashion industry that created boots only to a certain size.     

This Jude boots from Bennett Boots has a heel height flat, which I like.  It comes in black and chocolate.  The full length zip allows us to wear the boots with ease and there is no need to squeeze the legs into the boots :)  I have got wonderful compliments, while wearing these cute boots.  This pair of Jude flat boots is in riding style and goes well with pants or skirts.  I wore the boots for a long period of time and it was comfortable.  The boots are light, flexible and have a lovely soft blue lining with anti-perspiration and anti-smell qualities.  There are no elastics to worry about.  

The boots are stitched by hand with genuine leather.  They use leather as it is comfortable, absorbs moisture and breathes.  Leather protects the foot and also shapes it self to the foot and calf.  Napa leather is used for the upper part of the boots, as it is good quality, lightweight, strong and the softest leather that comes from the Napa cow.  They use full grain or top grain leather, as it is the strong part of the hide, which is durable.  This natural form of leather is expensive and has no polishing or finish done to it.  Cowhide is used in different weights and cuts.  Pigskin hide is used in the inner sole.  I removed the pigskin hide and replaced it with my own orthotics because of religious reasons and still find the boots very comfortable.      

If we care well for these boots it will last long.  The boots come with guidelines on how to care for the leather.  If we clean the boots with leather cream to nourish, condition and polish i.e. using products like Zorbel the boots will get an instant shine.  
Using water and stain protector spray, and allowing the boots to naturally air dry are other ways we can take care of it.  The boot comes with shapers, so it is best to put these on when the boots are not worn, as this would prevent the boots from bending or having creases.  The boots also come with an extra heel so we can replace without cost, if needed.  

There are a few stores in Australia and worldwide.  I like the new design and pictures on their site, which makes it is easy to buy online as they ship worldwide for free.  The sizing chart on the site is helpful in deciding the perfect fit.  There are wonderful collection of designs and choice of colour available.  I would like if Bennetts Boots mention the type of leather that are used in different parts of the boots.      
If you follow Bennetts Boots on Twitter and Facebook you will be able to see their new collections and get to know about deals and coupons.

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Summer products for children

If you are looking for cool sunglasses for kids and teens, then check out Eyes Cream Shades.  They have a cute colourful collection of sunglasses for children over 3 years.  These are good quality sunglasses that will keep the eyes protected from harmful UV rays.   
The sunglasses have shatter resistant polycarbonate lenses, which are thinner and lighter than regular plastic lenses.   

Kidorable will be celebrating July 4th by offering us free shipping with purchases over $50.  Use this coupon code JULY4TH from July 1st through July 8th to shop for fabulous unique goodies that children will enjoy.
We are enjoying the Kidorable umbrella, raincoat, boots and hangers and I think you will too so do check it out.

All rights reserved on photographs and written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First

Oofos footwear

Oofos footwear is very comfortable and ideal to wear during this season.  These slippers are available in men and women's sizes.  Oofos footwear are anti fatigue and lightweight.  It would be lovely to wear for a causal look.  The slippers have reduced body impact so it can be worn for long periods of time, for shopping and walking.  The underfoot arch support feels good on the feet.  I don't know of any flip flops that orthotics can be inserted to, so having this built in arch support is helpful.  I like that the footwear is flexible.  


These slippers are water resistant, which would be wonderful to have by the swimming pool and wading pools.  It doesn't sweat so keeps the leg well snug in the slippers without slipping off.  The slippers are safe to wear when we are walking, taking the children to the park and playing in the park as it doesn't slip off easily like other flip flops and open sandals. 


I thought it is interesting that this footwear is machine washable in cold wash, I didn't try it because it is easy to wash by hand if necessary.  The slippers cannot be put in the dryer and it doesn't need to either.  Temperatures over 150F might shrink the shoes so don't leave it in the direct sun; which we must remember :)
These durable oofos ooahh slides come in mocha brown and black.  Oofos also has ooriginal thongs that are available in pink, orange, brown and black.  Oofos is sold at all these places in the USA and these countries.


All rights reserved on photographs and written content Createwithmom © 2012. Please Ask First