Quinoa Sushi recipe. Delicious and nutritious for the whole family!

Posted on May 23, 2013 by Maya Fitz

Dorit Palvanov is a nutritionist and an explorer of healthy foods that are smart and easy for moms to make but fun for kids to eat. She is a busy mom of two toddler girls and enjoys playing, reading and traveling with them as much as possible. As a young mom there are so many things we have to do and preparing a nutritious meal can sometimes just take way too long. So her time in the kitchen is spent developing recipes that usually are made in less than half an hour but are delicious and nutritious for the entire family! Check out her blog smartsalad for more interesting ideas and recipes. For questions or inquires related kids’ nutrition you can reach her at dorit@smartsalad.com.

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I get asked a lot about quinoa as many moms are super curious about this superfood. Quinoa is not a grain, It’s a seed that originates in the regions of Ecuador, Bolivia, Colombia and Peru. It has numerous health and beauty benefits, I’ve prepared a list for you with the top 6 health benefits of quinoa:

1) Quinoa is a complete protein, which means your body gets all the essential amino-acids it needs to build things like antibodies, enzymes, neurotransmitters, etc. Many people think we must eat meat or chicken in order to get enough protein in our diet, which is simply not true.

2) Quinoa is great for energy and wound healing. In fact, historically quinoa was eaten by the Inca warriors to boost stamina and quicken recovery time. It is also an anti-inflammatory food which helps your joints heal better from injuries. Quinoa will also help you to get rid of toxins which accumulate in our bodies and if not eliminated might cause illness.

3) The saying “you become what you eat” is true regarding Quinoa as well. It is a high endurance food, and when we eat lively foods eventually we become like that food. If you experience energy crashes during the day, notice what you have on your plate next time you eat. Are the foods natural, alive and good quality? If not, then this might be the reason behind your energy crashes. I recommend eating quinoa at least twice a week, your energy levels will eventually go up for good! Continue reading →

Why being a Stay-at-home-mom (SAHM) is harder than being a CEO

Posted on May 21, 2013 by Maya Fitz

Ten reason why being a stay-at-home mom is tougher than being a CEO.

1. You do the job of twenty but without pay!

2. Your subordinates can’t talk or properly articulate what they need. They often shout or throw a tantrum to get things done, they are constantly late, and they need your undivided attention 24/7. Basically, you end up working for them.

3. You don’t get any perks like a luxury travel or a private jet. In fact, you’re expected to be a chauffeur and typically the company car is a minivan.

4. You don’t get any sick-days.

5. If you screw-up your job, instead of receiving a sweet compensation (I.e. golden parachute) due to termination, you receive a call from Children’s Aid Society.

6. Because you’re home all day, your spouse doesn’t understand why the house isn’t spotless or why dinner isn’t made.

7. Lunch meetings consist of picking up spilled food from the floor or cleaning puke and / or spit-up from your clothes.

8. Play dates (with other SAHMs) are often taunted by the “media” as an easy day with the kids. But really, they are meetings for us moms to share strategies and best practices.

9. It’s frowned upon when you’re “caught” on the phone and you can’t spend a good part of your day looking at the computer screen while working.

10. As CEO you don’t need to wipe anyone’s butt! Continue reading →

Coconut Peach Chicken with Peach salsa recipe – perfect for the summer!

Posted on May 16, 2013 by Maya Fitz

Agnes is a certified chef and owner of Gourmet Everyday Catering, with over 10 years of catering experience. A few weeks before my son was born, I hosted a cooking class at my house lead by Agnes. I gathered seven of my friends and we learned how make a delicious Thai Green Curry and Thai rice noodle salad. Agnes brought the wine, ingredients, some cooking tools and off we went. We had an awesome girls night chatting, drinking and cooking. The food tasted amazing, and we couldn’t believe how easy it was. Whether you’re looking for a personal chef, catering, cooking class for your girlfriends or KIDS, I would highly recommend Agnes. She’s so much fun to work with and the food is amazing!

With sunny skies finally here, Agnes is sharing one of her favourite recipe’s that has a summer flair. Bon Appetite!

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Coconut Peach Chicken with Peach salsa

Continue reading →

How much sleep does my baby ACTUALLY need??

Posted on May 13, 2013 by Maya Fitz

What’s the favourite topic de jour amongst new moms? SLEEP or rather, lack of it. We all want to know how long each other’s babies slept for and if there are any “tricks” that we can apply. What we wouldn’t do to get one night of uninterrupted sleep!! Whether it’s your first, second or fifth child, we can all use help in the sleep department. Tracy Braunstein is a kid sleep expert and here she shares with us some information on the sleep needs of children and provides tips as well. Here’s to nights full of Zzzzzzzzzs.

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Sleep. It’s a thing you used to get a lot of before you had kids ;) Now it’s seems to be a distant memory.. but here’s the good news, it doesn’t have to be that way!

Babies and children require sleep. Lots of it. It is not a luxury, it is a biological need. When a child is well rested and getting the sleep they need, it allows them to be at their optimal. The best little people they can be. Sleep is to the brain as food is to the body. It causes memory consolidation, enhances organizational skills, planning, multi-tasking and executive functioning. When a child is not getting sufficient rest, they are more irritable, frustrated and tend to get easily angered or upset. Continue reading →

Personalized Wall Art makes a perfect gift! MavisBLUE designs {Giveaway US & CDA}

Posted on May 8, 2013 by Maya Fitz

I’ve already written about my love for personalized gifts, but I’ve recently discovered even something else that you can get personalized. ART! That’s right, ART!

Nattalie Will, a print and digital art enthusiast, has recently launched her Etsy shop MavisBLUE. After a few years of providing her beautiful work of arts as gifts and being repeatedly asked to make more, she decided to make her work accessible to all.

What’s great about MavisBLUE’s products is that there’s something for everyone on your list. If you want to purchase a beautiful newborn gift, her baby birth announcement art are a sure hit. I got some made for both of my sons and I was so impressed with the end result. All you have to do is provide the name, date of birth, pounds, inches, location and select an animal to showcase and Nattalie takes care of the rest. You have an option of receiving your purchase immediately as a PDF for $20 or as a print for $30. I love the option of being able to receive it via PDF. Not only because you can save money, but also because it allows you to print it at home (or at your local photo store) and give it to a new mom when you visit her and the newborn the first time. Personally, I think that would put a huge smile on any mother’s face. Here are my son’s beautiful work of arts! Continue reading →

Five tips for brushing your kids’ teeth

Posted on May 6, 2013 by Maya Fitz

It seems that along with sleep issues, the other problem that a lot parents of infants and toddlers struggle with is teeth brushing. Typically, kids hate brushing their teeth. My son doesn’t mind it, but only because he thinks the fluoride-free toothpaste tastes like candy. So really, he’s mostly eating (toothpaste), not brushing. We can obviously use some help in this department!

Dr. Lori Goldenberg is a pediatric dentist practicing in Toronto. She graduated from University of Toronto and trained at the Hospital for Sick Children. Here she shares her top 5 pointers for brushing your children’s teeth.

1) Start early: get your kids used to having their teeth brushed as early as possible. It’s going to seem weird at first and you may not feel like you’re doing anything, but keep at it. You are. I started making a point of brushing my teeth in front of my daughter when she was really young and telling her about it so that she might be interested in it when the time came to brushing her teeth. There is also a really fantastic Elmo Song called Brushy Brush Brush (see link below) that I have been playing for her since she was tiny and she is in LOVE with it. The more exposure to things kids get when they are younger, the more interested and accepting of those things they will hopefully be when they are older.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wxMrtK-kYnE Continue reading →

DIY Mr. Men “Big” & “Little” sibling shirts

Posted on May 1, 2013 by Maya Fitz

My friend made my sons awesome matching T-shirts featuring Mr. Big and Mr. Little from the Mr. Men book series (one of our personal favourites). They are so cute and such a hit that I had to share it with you all.

Here’s the instructions on how do it yourself:

Materials/Tools:
1. T-shirt transfers (light or dark transfers depending on the colour of your shirt)
2. Printer
3. Computer with publishing software
4. Shirts Continue reading →

Mayahood

Adventure-seeker, world-traveler, turned mother!