.@TeddyOutReady: May 2012

Thursday, May 31, 2012

"Bye - Bye" Spring - Wordless Wednesday


Enjoying last Spring days and saying "HI" to Summer fun!
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Monday, May 28, 2012

New kid on the block


New sites are launched every minute of every day across the world; a majority make little to no impact on the way we browse, interact or shop on the internet.

Sites that offer you coupons to use both online and in-store are not a new concept and you have no doubt come across them but there is a new coupon code site that is looking to take hold of the industry and shake it up completely!

MyDeals coupon site is launching to rival all others that you may have used in the past! The company behind it have focused the model around the customer interface to deliver the coupon codes in a format consumers want rather than just a generic list.

What makes this new site different is the fact that it is clever and does what you want it to without having to ask, it’s like the perfect (money saving) husband! Trying to find coupon codes that are meant exclusively for the Canadian stores can be very difficult due to the dominance of the American market.

What normally happens is that we have a tab or small section on an American site to filter through to find what we are looking for (or not as the case may be) and that’s why this new coupon site is going to change the way many of us frugal Canadians get hold of our coupons!

Here is why:

1. Like most Canadians, you probably live in Canada!

2. You probably want to save some money, who doesn’t?

3. You have probably come across coupon sites online in the past.

4. You have probably trawled through the sites looking for coupon codes that can be used in Canada rather than USA-only.

The solution this new site has come up with is simple; only show you relevant results to you.

If you are in Canada you will automatically land on http://www.mydeals.com/ca, the dedicated Canadian page. As soon as you start browsing the coupons and discounts on the site, the software powering it will learn what you really want and show you those results first.

With the addition of price comparison and intelligence this site should make a nice change to what is currently being offered in the market place.


Why not have a look at the site that is launching soon? If you have read down to here and are thinking, “I’ve never used a coupon site, I must try one out” then you have been missing out so make up for lost time.

It really is a satisfying feeling saving money on goods you would have happily paid full price on or even been able to get the next version up of a product because the saving made it financially viable.

It is particularly rewarding when you dig and find it but if it comes and finds me then I won’t be complaining!
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Sunday, May 27, 2012

Spring day in Sibbald Point Park


It is good to have hot and sunny days back. We decided to check out Simcoe Lake in Sibbald Point Ontario Provincial Park on Saturday, first day of Victoria Day long week end.

Teddy was glad to put on some sunscreen and his favorite sunglasses again. We took with us Teddy’s portable house, a couple of balls to play, a picnic blanket along with food and drinks and intended to enjoy the great weather, fresh clean air and picturesque views.


We were happy to escape from our metropolitan city for a day to be one to one with Mother Nature.

Teddy dashed to the lake as soon as we got there. Water was very cold and almost unbearable to stay in, but for him the biggest fun was to play with lake stones and throw them into the water.



We walked around the park and found a big blooming lilac tree. There were so many bees, butterflies and bumblebees around the tree. Teddy had not seen bumblebees before, was very curious, event tried to touch them.


He also liked to play with pine cones that left from last year as well as with new ones. After all activities we enjoyed our lunch and spent our afternoon time sunbathing.

Beach ball became handy and Teddy played with it quite a long time, kicking ball around, and then played volleyball with us.


When we came back home tired and happy, it was already a dusk. What a wonderful day it was! And we still had two more days ahead to enjoy great weather and relax.
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Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Victoria Day Weekend - Wordless Wednesday


Last Sunday we spent at Canada's Wonderland, taking rides and watching Victoria Day fireworks. Teddy found one of his favourite rides so far. But there are so many others to discover. We got passes for this year, so hope to visit Canada's Wonderland quite often, Teddy does not mind.
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Monday, May 21, 2012

Learn about #CircleSquare Ranch and win a trip to fabulous Punta Cana.


Summer is fast approaching and the first words coming to my mind are summer camp. When I was a kid I spent almost all my summers at the camps. Fun activities, new adventures and discoveries, camp fires, walking trips just to mention a few how my summers were. I was so happy to leave the school for a while heading to a camp, meeting new friends and just being active all days long.

So I was excited to learn about Circle Square Ranch, an overnight kids camp that has been operating in Canada since 1978 and offering locations in Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario. These Christian camping centres are dedicated to the children and youth in Canada providing incredible adventures in horseback riding, swimming, crafts, archery, zip line, wall climbing, ropes course, mountain biking and many others just check their locations sites.

Besides being a great summer camp for kids and teens, Circle Square Ranch is also offering a chance to win a Trip for two to Punta Cana as the grand prize and secondary prizes one week free camp (which is fabulous!) and Mabel’s Label Kit.

Entering the contest is easy, just fill out your first name, last name and e-mail address.  There are also special offer bonus coupons available during the registration for Mabel’s Labels, Crossroads and discounts for first-time campers.

This contest is open to Canada, excluding Quebec and runs until June 15. A full list of rules and regulations can be found here: http://www.CircleSquareRanchContest.com/Rules-and-Regualations

You can also increase your chances of winning by sharing the giveaway on Twitter, Facebook and e-mail with your friends so that they participate too.

Happy summer adventures!!!
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Happy Victoria Day from Teddy!


Have a bright and wonderful Victoria Day!
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Thursday, May 17, 2012

Monday, May 14, 2012

4Cats Spring Season Finale

This spring we decided to expose Teddy to the world of art. Is it too early for two year old to paint with acrylic paints on a real big canvas? We gave it a try, luckily we found 4Cats Studio close to us and a convenient class schedule. It took 1 hour a week for 6 weeks to finish the painting. The theme for the painting was a Horace Pippin’s “Maple Sugar Season” work.


Horace Pippin (1888-1946) was a self-taught African-American painter who worked in a naive style.

When we came to 4Cats studio for first time, a big canvas stapled to the wall was waiting for us. All kids in the class were older then Teddy and attended the similar sessions in 4Cats before.


First we drew with crayons on white paper until all kids come. Drawing exercises were stretching for a few minutes. After that we learned and practised to draw shapes that related to that class activity on a white paper. Then we drew those shapes on the canvas with chalk and finally applied a layer of paint.


Every week we had a home work to practise drawing shapes required for the next week painting. Teddy was very serious about his homework and worked hard trying to learn how to draw circles, squares, triangles, rectangles and straight lines.


It is very difficult for toddler to draw something meaningful with paints. There is a very limited room for mistakes. Once Teddy smashed some black paint over white surface on the painting and was so upset that started crying. We fixed it applying one more layer of white paint over a black spot and Teddy was happy again.



At the end we added our feature to the original Horace Pippin’s idea – skating ring. It added some warm colors to the painting and made it unique among other students’ masterpieces.


The good thing is that Teddy liked it and anticipated next class. He was always eager to go to the art studio and enjoyed being there. Of course, we helped him to do the most of the drawings, but it was a good experience for our family. We plan to take more classes next fall, when Teddy grows up and can be fully in charge of his work. Until then we’ll keep drawing at home – it was another new world discovered by Teddy.
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Wednesday, May 9, 2012

Vaughan Mills Fun - Wordless Wednesday


What is more exciting than visiting Vaughan Mills mall, fun for everyone!

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Tuesday, May 1, 2012

Teddy at the ROM exploring ancient Maya

Last month we attended the Royal Ontario Museum, one of the world's leading museum with incredible exhibits and it's impressive collections of Natural History and World Cultures. It was Teddy's first time at a museum and I wanted to show him something special and incredible, some wonders to feed his kid's curiosity.
One of the exhibition we intended to see was Maya: Secrets of their Ancient World, featured many artifacts including masks, jewellery, utensils, incredible writing pieces. We were impressed with Maya's temples, houses and buildings with unusual styles and designs. Teddy liked the Maya's map looked like a prototype for war battles with little houses, hills and rivers. Maya's writings or glyphs were like art works. It was difficult to imagine that many years ago people lived in these buildings, used these utensils, celebrated their special holidays, followed their leaders and idols.


Unfortunately, photography was not allowed in the exhibit, only the stand at the entrance and a gift shop were our photography spots.


Next discoveries were Natural History Galleries with Dinosaurs and Mammals. Teddy was so excited to see all these large dinosaur skeletons, Ice Age animals, fossil birds and insects. He was running from one exhibit to another with interest.


Then we walked into the CIBC Discovery Gallery, where was an amazing pre-schooler play area with tables, toys, puzzles and costumes to try on.


Teddy tried two costumes, one for Asian warrior and another one is for a Medieval knight.


After that Teddy went to dig for dinosaur bones as a real archaeologist and tried to relax inside a kid-sized tipi.


When we came to the fossil animals exhibit Teddy was so tired so we decided to leave, but with a feeling that we are coming back very soon. 

So many adventures and discoveries are waiting Teddy in the ROM.
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