Lovable labels is a great Canadian company that offers a wide range of labels for things our kids loose.  It's definitely worth checking out!

I'm sorry I haven't been around much for...ever.  I do apologize for that.  I'm not going to say much else other than I'm sorry!  I'll try harder! :)

So, I'm back at it. I'm back to trying to loose the "baby weight" I gained after I had my daughter 4.5 years ago, which is what made me start this blog in the first place.  I think right now I'm pretty much at the heaviest I've been and trust me I'm not happy about it.  I'm trying...all the time, I'm trying, I feel like all I'm ever doing is trying to loose weight and NOTHING seems to work.

In the past 6-8 months, I've tried Slimpods (I have a post coming up about this soon), I'm running again, I've been writing a food journal, I'm eating better, I'm trying to stop my night time snacking, but NOTHING helps!  I'm at a loss and really starting to feel down about it.  I want more than anything to be healthy for my family, to feel good about myself, to have nice clothes to fit into, feel great while shopping rather than upset, depressed and uninterested. 

I NEED to figure this out.

So from now on I'm leaning on you my readers to help me with this.  I'm going to be  posting pictures, weigh in's, my running schedule, my eating habits, etc.  I need to be held responsible for all of this.  If you have any suggestions I would love to hear it.  I'm at a loss!

As I'm sure some of my readers know, I am a part time photographer on the side of my full time job, and raising two kids and being a wife.  I know, I know apparently I think I have a ton of extra time on my hands! haha!  So when I got this email from Daphna, regarding spreading the word about Retinoblastoma I just couldn't turn it down.

So, what is Retinoblastoma?
A rare cancer of the eye triggered by genetic mutations in one or more cells of the retina.  It typically affects children between birth and five years of age, and about 23 Canadian children each year.

If detected early, Retinoblastoma is 98% curable but early detection is critical!

So this is sort of where I as a photographer comes into play...

Although I am a natural light photographer and don't use flash, I know that as a mother, we parents, grandparents, aunts and uncles LOVE to photograph our children.  We charish all of those cute little smiles, the rollie pollie arms, chins, legs, the first roll over, the first crawl, the first walk...you get my point - we take a LOT of photographs. I encourage this for a variety of reasons!

We as parents can find signs of Retinoblastoma by looking at photographs taken using flash.

The signs of Retinoblastoma are:

• Whiteness reflected in the pupil, particularly noticable when the pupil is dilated (noticable in flash photography). 

A few other symptoms that could be associated with Retinoblastoma or other eye conditions include:

• inward or outward turning of the eye
• redness of the eye
• swelling of the eye

Why does Retinoblastoma make the eye white?
Typically with a healthy retina and the layers supporting it will reflect light back from the camera flash as  "red eye" when a flash photograph is taken but a child with retinoblastoma, the tumor prevents the light from reaching the retina, giving the pupil a white appearance.  This whiteness may not be visible in ALL pictures, size and location as well as angle the photo is taken on can all play a role in what is visible.

 What can you do at home?

• Use the flash on your camera
• Turn off the red eye feature
• Take pictures from a variety of angles (as a mother, is this even that hard! LOL)
• Lightly light room
• If you notice anything "weird", bring the photograph to your doctor ASAP

NOTE: Cell phone's use a different type of flash (LED) and will not aid in early detection.

The Canadian Retinoblastoma Society raises awareness and promotes early detection of Retinoblastoma cancer using flash photography.  They are the only charity in Canada dedicate exclusively to education, advocacy, and support for Canadian retinoblastoma families.  They are shedding light on this condition and encouraging parents to monitor their children closely so those affected can be detected early.

The CRBS has set up this campaign and website to promote further information on early retinoblastoma detection.  You can also read a personal story of a mother Maria - here and how photographs helped in the early detection of Leo's retinoblastoma in his left eye.

So as a mother and as a photographer, I encourage you to take as many photographs of your rollie pollie children as you can!


I encourage you to turn on the flash (NOT every picture needs flash by the way (that's the photographer in me)) but do it.  Early detection is key and it's simple enough for anyone to do it!

I've got a challenge for you, my readers!  Are you ready?  It's a good one and of course there is a chance to win some great products.

I was contacted by company that had just recently done an online survey of Canadians moms about how often they have to say no to their children's request for family time.  65% said lack of time is the major barrier because of such busy busy schedules.  95% of moms WANT to spend more time with their children but 64% have to say no.

I say It’s time to say yes! And so does Procter & Gamble.  We were lucky enough to receive a Yes Kit one and it was filled with everything we needed to make a GREAT yes day!

Included in the Yes Kit was 

• Tide® original liquid laundry detergent, 
• Mr. Clean® Magic Eraser, 
• box of Puffs® facial tissue, 
• Charmin® Freshmates, Bountry® paper towel, 
• 1 adult and 2 child-size aprons,  
• Along with ideas to create more fun-filled family moments. 

This package is valued at $50.00.

So go ahead, make your child’s day and say “Yes”! 


Need a few ideas on what you can do with your child?  

Arts and crafts that we love doing

• Finger painting/Painting
• Play-doh - we ALWAYS make our own check out this recipe
• Glue sticks and glitter - lots of fun things happen with these two things!
• Bomb painting the the driveway!