Please Vote For Care For Community Organizer Of The Year At MomsTo MomFest!

This summer marks 6 years running my business. Community is a huge part of why I love the work I do. So I was incredibly honoured to be nominated in 2 categories (Momboss & Community Organizer) for the MomFest Gala Awards this fall.

I’ve now been named a finalist for Community Organizer Of The Year, and would love to ask for your support in voting for me.

Living in West Toronto for the last 6 years raising my family, connecting with so many local families, and offering support to our community, has been incredibly fulfilling. I love hosting my Free local programs. Over the years they have included my West End Breastfeeding Cafe, West End Walking Group, Community Babywearing Drop-In (Next: Sept 18th), Monthly New Mom Project Donation Collections (Next: Sept 17th), Bloor West Moms Group Online Meetup, Movies for Mommies Screenings (Next: Aug 28th), and so much more. It’s been wonderful to collaborate with other local businesses to create events and safe spaces for families to meet, connect and thrive.

Just to be clear, I think all moms, and all parents, deserve an award! Cause this gig is not easy ;) But I would love it if you could take a minute to cast a vote for me. Voting is open until August 26th and daily voting is allowed. I appreciate your support so much.

Huge thanks to everyone who has come out to my events over the last 6 years. Wishing everyone a wonderful final few weeks of summer.

- Care

The Bump To Baby Show Spring 2018 *Free Family Friendly Event!

I can't believe May is almost here! That means it's time for the 5th annual Bump to Baby Show. This is personally my favourite baby show in the city, and the one that I'm always excited to take part in. The Wychwood Barns is such a beautiful venue, and the organizers do such an amazing job of bringing together the best local vendors for their marketplace (Of course I'm not biased at all). Most vendors offer amazing discounts and specials for the show, so it's worth the visit! Especially since admission for the whole family is FREE!!

In addition to amazing products, enjoy the family fun zone, face painting, music and dancing, swag bags, delicious food, an amazing raffle, and so much more. Plus a portion of the raffle proceeds will be donated to The Stop's Healthy Beginnings Program; a pre- and postnatal program for women and children that need support in our community. So make sure you grab a ticket!

This year I'm very excited to be partnering with The Big Carrot again for a talk and live food demo covering "Healthy Recipes for Starting Solids." Join me from 2-3 pm in the Play & Learn Area for this special event. You must Pre-Register for this talk *Please note that remaining space for this session is limited. So don't wait! 

Learn More & Pre-Register for the rest of the amazing talks and classes here. This year's lineup includes free prenatal yoga, a fun fam jam, a puppet show, a session on pelvic floor health, and talks on family nutrition & natural sunscreens. There's so much for the whole family to enjoy!

Hope to see you at the show on May 6th. Make sure to pop by my table or workshop to say hi!

- Care

Introducing With Care - Education & Inspiration From Pregnancy Through Parenthood (Formerly Fifty-Seven)

I'm so excited to announce the official arrival of With Care - Education & Inspiration from Pregnancy Through Parenthood.

Some of you might have noticed changes on my social media and website over the last few months as I was getting ready to launch With Care. Little hints that something new and exciting was coming. As you can imagine things don't happen quickly with several munchkins in tow, so thanks for your patience. 

For the last few years I have been running my classes and workshops through my business Fifty-Seven, and recently moved my blog to With Care. Although I felt like I had built up a community brand with Fifty-Seven, I felt a pull toward something else. Offering all of my Classes & Workshops, Community Events, Amazing Partnerships, Blog Posts and Videos in one place seemed like a dream. Well, I finally decided to do the work and make that dream a reality. After a long and gruelling rebrand I'm so happy with how everything has come together. One of my favourite parts is my logo, which was created by tracing my mom's handwriting. I love having a little piece of her with me on this journey. 

So what is With Care? Living a life With Care means choosing products and services wisely, with the earth and your family's health and wellness in mind. It means becoming educated and informed so you can make choices that work for your individual family. It means creating a home and life that makes your family thrive. I'm here to provide a little education & inspiration to help you do that. 

I would love if you would take a minute check out With Care and follow me on social media - Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, Twitter & Pinterest. I have lots of amazing Giveaways, informative posts and videos, as well as amazing classes and workshops coming up this spring and summer. You can also stay up to date by signing up for my newsletter. As always feel free to get in touch if you have any questions or topics you would like covered, or if you need any assistance registering for classes or booking a private in-home session. 

I want to take this opportunity to say a huge thank you to my community. Thanks to all of the amazing families and businesses that I have worked with over the last 4 years. I can't wait to see where the next 4 take me.

I hope you enjoy what's to come With Care. 

Warmly,

Care xo

*I'd also like to send a huge Thank You to everyone who has made this project possible. My amazing friend Laurence, my cousin Sarah who made my logo, Danielle for my beautiful promotonal materials, and 2 of my favourite photographers Silvia (Anchor Studios - Pregnancy & Outdoor Photos) & Carrie (Four Bees - Newborn Photos) for these beautiful images.

Delicious Banana Blueberry Bran Muffins

These banana blueberry bran muffins are a perfect healthy treat anytime, but especially in pregnancy & postpartum. They are a great source of iron, fibre, healthy fats & energy, all things new mamas need. They freeze really well, so they are a perfect recipe to stock your freezer with before baby arrives. Plus they taste great!

These are a favourite recipe in our house. I make them at least once a month and everyone loves them. Even my toddler gobbles them up!

Warning: These muffins are very high in fibre so you may want to limit how many your little ones eat ;)

Enjoy!

- Care

Banana Blueberry Bran Muffins

INGREDIENTS:

• 2 cups wheat bran
• 1 cup oat bran
• 1 cup whole wheat flour
• 2 tsp. baking soda
• 1 tsp. baking powder
• 1/2 tsp. salt
• 2 large eggs
• 2/3 cup whole milk
• 2/3 cup full fat yogurt
• 1/3 cup coconut oil
• 1/3 cup molasses
• 1/3 cup unpasteurized honey*
• 1 tsp. pure vanilla extract
• 2 small bananas
• 1 1/2 cups fresh or frozen blueberries

Store in airtight container up to 3 days or freeze. 

*If making these for babies younger than 12 months, simply substitute the 1/3 cup of honey with a 1/3 cup black strap molasses*

INSTRUCTIONS:

• Heat oven to 375° with rack in middle of oven
• Grease your muffin pans or line with paper liners. (Recipe makes about 18 giant, 24 regular, or a combo of 12 regular & 24 mini). 
• Combine the wheat bran, oat bran, whole-wheat flour, baking soda, baking powder, & salt in a large bowl and set aside
• Combine eggs, milk, yogurt, oil, molasses, honey* & mashed bananas in a small bowl and mix well
• Pour wet ingredients into dry ingredients & mix with a rubber spatula just until combined
• Gently fold in blueberries
• Fill muffin cups generously with batter & bake until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean, 17-20 mins for regular size muffins, 12-15 for mini muffins and 20-23 for giant muffins. 
• Remove from oven and cool in pan on wire racks for 10-15 minutes, then carefully remove from pan and serve warm, or let cool on a wire rack completely before storing. 
• Store in airtight container up to 3 days or freeze. 

• *If making these for babies younger than 12 months, simply substitute the 1/3 cup of honey with a 1/3 cup black strap molasses*