Lions and rhinos and giraffes... oh, my!

The month of May marked the official launch of African Lion Safari's 45th season and with this milestone year comes the exciting news of the birth of their newest giraffe named Safari. This isn't your regular baby giraffe, however. Check out this CTV News video to find out what makes Safari so special - Safari: A Giraffe Success Story.

This summer, my family and I will return as guests of African Lion Safari in the hopes of meeting Safari herself. We will enjoy a Safari Bus Tour, a cruise on the "African Queen" boat and a ride on the "Nature Boy" scenic railway. Of course, weather permitting, we will also be sure to cool off at the Misumu Bay Wet Play area.

There is so much we enjoyed last year, including the super jungle playground, but we never had a chance to check out the Pets' Corner or any of the bird and animal shows so we are definitely going to try to fit those into our day trip. Located in my hometown of Hamilton, African Lion Safari is about a one-hour drive from Toronto and well worth the trip.

In the meantime, I am partnering with African Lion Safari to give away a family pass for four valued at approximately $130. This giveaway is open to Ontario residents only and the pass will be valid until October 13, 2014. To be entered for a chance to win, please complete the Rafflecopter form below.

My kids are growing. I know, kids are supposed to grow. I just don't like it. In part, it has to do with the fact that I will miss the preschool years. A lot. But it also has to do with the never-ending need to buy bigger clothes. The costs can sure add up. Fortunately, our dual-income family lives fairly comfortably and can afford to buy new clothes when necessary. But I know that is not the case for many families around the world. TOMS is the One for One company that is trying to change that. With the goal of using business to improve lives, TOMS provides a pair of new shoes to children in need for every pair of TOMS shoes purchased. To date, TOMS has given over 10 million pairs of new shoes to children in need in 60 countries around the world.

TOMS kids shoes are available in Tiny sizes (for children 0 to 5 years of age) and Youth sizes (for children 5+ years of age) at TOMS.ca and retailers across Canada. Most recently, I saw a nice selection of kids and adult shoes at Sporting Life and even tried on a couple that were on sale. Below you will find some of my favourite kids styles that are new this season.

For review, TOMS sent over a pair of TOMS Classics Ash Canvas for my son. I love the streamlined look of the shoe and the stitched detailing. The shoe lining has a fun One for One motif and the sole looks sturdy.

Last month, Danone launched the first ever Greek yogurt for kids called Danino Greek. As with most Greek yogurts, it contains two times the protein as regular stirred yogurt and are available in different flavours including: Grape, Banana Caramel and Yellow Fruit. These are not your typical yogurt flavours so I decided to opt in for a chance to try these yogurts with my kids. The only problem was being able to find them. I went to ValuMart, Longo's and McEwans and neither of these stores carry them. I did manage to find two flavours at Metro and brought home a package of grape and a package of yellow fruit.

Looking at the ingredients, I found they each contain yogurt as the main ingredient and a grape flavour preparation and yellow fruit preparation respectively as the second ingredient. Each preparation has sugar listed as either the first or second ingredient and each includes modified corn starch. While I could do without the latter, the amount of sugars per 100g of each flavour is 10g. This is a little bit less than some Greek yogurts I've seen but I would hope that Danone will consider reducing the amount of sugars even further and/or replacing sugars with a natural sweetener such as honey.

In terms of the flavours and texture, my kids both enjoyed the Greek yogurt and selected the grape flavour as their favourite. I preferred the refreshing taste of the yellow fruit flavour with its subtle peach notes. If you would like a chance to try them out for yourself, I have some product vouchers to give away. Simply leave a comment below telling me which flavour you'd like to try and fill out the Rafflecopter form for a chance to win 5 free product vouchers.

Looking back on my early years (we're talking 1980's here, people!), I remember harbouring a fondness of learning and an eagerness to do well in school. I excelled in many subject areas and I was proud of it. Sometimes too proud. I am quite certain I annoyed many of my peers and even some of my teachers by making a point of correcting their mistakes whenever I could. Needless to say, my social skills were somewhat lacking and making friends didn't come easily. Recess time proved to be a challenge since I would often be left out or picked on. Sure, I could skip rope and play ball just as well as the rest of them but, having moved to a new school in grade 2, it was hard to muster the courage and self-confidence to ask to join in the fun. Later, I spent many of my recesses volunteering in the kindergarten room or helping out the secretary. It wasn't until I joined the senior girls volleyball team that things began to change.

Now, allow me to clarify that volleyball wasn't my best sport. I made the cut as a sub who would fill in if someone couldn't make it to the game. There were two of us and we often joked about how poorly she and I played. As nerve-racking as it was to actually take a spot on the court, I realize now that it was such a worthwhile experience. Those two years on the team helped to solidify a bond with a true friend, my oldest and dearest friend, who's father would often drive us to the games since I had no other alternative. And because of our friendship, I was able to feel more confident in myself despite my poor volleyball skills. Because what better way to get over the fear of failure than by taking that risk with a close friend and even sometimes succeeding?

Did you know that 1 in 3 Canadian kids can't play the sports they want to due to financial barriers?

Canadian Tire Jumpstart is a national charity that helps financially disadvantaged families give their kids the opportunity to participate in organized sport and recreation. Jumpstart helps cover registration fees, equipment and/or transportation costs.

Since the inception in 2005, Canadian Tire Jumpstart has given more than 720,000 kids across Canada the chance to play. Canadian Tire Jumpstart is dedicated to removing financial barriers, so children can participate in organized sport and recreation.

Jumpstart’s signature fundraising campaign, the Jumpstart Red Ball campaign has been taking place throughout the month of May. The month-long program raises donations, with 100% of the funds staying in the community in which they are raised. Canadian Tire stores and their partners invite customers to support kids in their local community by making a $2 donation in exchange for a little red Jumpstart ball.

100% of customer donations go directly to help kids in financial need participate in organized sport and recreation.

The Canadian Tire Corporation funds all the general and administrative expenses as well as the program delivery costs of the Canadian Tire Jumpstart program.

To find out more and get the facts, visit Canadian Tire Jumpstart.

Prizes: Available to Canadian Residents Only, but all are welcome to the party. RSVP below to be eligible to win {Canadian Tire Gift Cards and merchandise}. We’ll be talking about the Red Ball campaign and getting kids to participate in sports activities as well as chatting with celebrity guests!

RSVP: Make sure to enter your Twitter Handle “@yourTwitterhandle” in the Link/Blog Title field, and Twitter URL “www.twitter.com/yourtwitterhandle” in the url Field*

New to Twitter and/or Twitter parties? I have written the following tutorials to help you out, complete with screenshots:

In just a few short months, I will be an aunty yet again. My brother's wife is expecting her second child and I couldn't be more excited. A part of me misses the anticipation of giving birth to a newborn but luckily I can live vicariously through my sister-in-law. She always has on the cutest outfits and looks so beautiful sporting her baby bump. And now she will have a new maternity dress to add to her wardrobe courtesy of Dressed to Deliver.

Dressed to Deliver first launched last year and was created by Guelph Ontario Resident and Mompreneur Julie Berg. Her 3-in-1 birthing gowns can be worn as a maternity dress, labor and delivery gown, and postnatal nursing wear. When she had her first child in March of 2012, she wore a beautiful Dressed to Deliver birthing gown which allowed her to feel comfortable, concealed and confident on one of the most important days of her life.

Dressed to Deliver offers ladies an alternative to uncomfortable, ugly hospital gowns. These roomy dresses provide easy access for hospital staff to conduct baby monitoring, administer IV's and epidurals, c-section incision inspections, and provide ultrasound access. Expectant moms can freely walk the hospital hallways without worrying about being exposed and allows them to be covered up and still look great. Dresses are sold in a variety of colors in sizes small-3XL.

My sister-in-law was sent a royal blue Monica gown in a size medium. I tried it on myself and I could see how versatile it could be from the first trimester to the weeks that follow the delivery. The dress reminded me a little of the dress I wore on Mother's day, which I wear all the time. The Monica gown is made with a soft, breathable jersey knit fabric and has an empire waist. It is really such a smart idea. No wonder Julie Berg was recently named a top finalist for the 2014 MOMpreneur of the Year Award of Excellence!

"An empowering afternoon to celebrate the bond between us and the most important women in our lives."

Last month, I joined a glamtastic group of bloggers as part of a fun Glama Gal Tween Spa Glambassador program. I had never before been to a Glama Gal spa but really connected with their belief that inner beauty is far more important than outer beauty. Plus, I have a tween who loves to get her nails done so it was a perfect fit! For our first experience, my daughter and I were invited to participate in the Bonds in Bloom Mother's Day event at the Toronto location not far from Yorkdale Mall. 

Aside from the glamorous pink, black and white décor, one of the first things I noticed upon entering was the myriad of positive messages that adorned the walls. They focused on being confident, being positive and being yourself. Soon afterwards, we were ushered to our first of five stations - the hairpiece creation station. We were able to choose a headband, a bow or a floral clip and additional bling which a station leader offered to adhere for us using a glue gun. My daughter is a craft-a-holic so this station was right up her alley.

At the next station, we were offered a lavender facial refresher - slices of cucumber for the eyes and a lavender facial spray. My daughter felt a little uncomfortable at the idea of having anything applied to her face. This is not unusual as she will often refuse to wear makeup of any sort. Thus, she politely declined. She was much more excited to get her nails done. And I must say, this next station was simply fabulous! We began by selecting our nail polish colours (yes, they carry Piggy Paint!) and then soaked our hands in a lovely scented rose petal bath. We even had pretty designs painted, too!

Next, we made our way over to an adjoining room with a beautifully set dinner table to enjoy mock-Mimosas and munch on scrumptious Belgian waffles topped with an array of fresh fruit.

The smile on my daughter's face was proof positive that this Bonds in Bloom event was a perfect way to celebrate Mother's Day together while strengthening the special bond between the two of us.

At the final station, my daughter filled a keepsake box which she intended to give to her grandmother with motivational messages, special coupons and reasons why she loves her so much. She really put a lot of thought into it.

Flappers and gangsters and guns... oh, my!

When a recent invitation from Mysteriously Yours Dinner Theatre landed in my inbox, I knew I couldn't resist the opportunity to get dressed up in 1920's themed costume. I didn't have much in the way of flapper dresses but a black dress paired with my new gold sandals and a floral hair clip seemed to have done the job. My date Deborah (@Mom2Michael) was so kind as to give me a couple of long pearl necklaces and loan her black feather boa to make the outfit complete. Once we arrived at Mysteriously Yours Dinner Theatre, we met a group of equally colourful characters dressed in Roaring 20's garb.

As you can imagine, the storyline took inspiration from the Wizard of Oz and included funny twists and hilarious puns. The audience involvement was lots of fun, especially when the 'mayor' made a special appearance. While this particular show wasn't my all-time favourite, it still landed among my top three alongside Apprentice to Murder and Once Upon a Murder. 

As always, the food was wonderful and I thoroughly enjoyed the roast breast of chicken topped with caramelized Dijon onions, roasted almonds and rosé wine cream sauce served on a bed of quinoa and with a side of green beans. Delicious!

It's Thursday which means it's time to jump on the #ThrowbackThursday bandwagon. And this month, Netflix #StreamTeam members are compiling a list of our favourite childhood classics from The Smurfs to Honey, I Shrunk the Kids. Two of my ultimate favourite cartoons are now available on Netflix and I am so excited to be able to share them with my kids that I decided to try this classic cartoon art activity with them. You can use clipart and print it out at home or you can use magazine clippings of people's faces. I remember first doing something like this back in elementary school  and I loved it so much. In fact, I submitted six art pieces instead of just one! For this particular activity, I chose clipart that is fairly symmetrical and easier for my kids to draw.

And voilà! A fun art activity that can help teach symmetry and build on drawing skills.

As a reward for their hard work, my kids can choose to watch an episode of one of my favourite classic cartoons and TV shows:

I read that when it comes to being in the kitchen, moms usually fall under one of two categories; the "Cuisine Queen" who loves to cook, tries out new recipes and can whip up a gourmet family dinner from scratch in no time. And then there's the "Master of Multitasking" mom who is likely too short on time to follow a complicated recipe and prefers a quick, easy to prepare meal that still has a gourmet feel. I am one of those moms. Working full-time, taking care of two kids and blogging here on Toronto Teacher Mom sure keeps me busy, which is why I consider myself lucky to have a husband who is a-ma-zing in the kitchen. But no matter how much I try to avoid kitchen duty, there are still plenty of days when I need to prepare most, if not all, of our family's meals. And just the very idea stresses me out. So when it comes to time-saving and simple-to-use culinary tools that will make my meals all the more appealing, I am all over them like white on rice. Here are some shiny kitchen countertop appliances from Breville, currently on sale at The Bay, which would make a great gift for Mother's Day!

Breville Juice Fountain Elite

For the health conscious mom

With easy, lightning-quick operation and simple clean-up, this home kitchen appliance provides 1000W power up to 13,000 RPM for up to 30% more juice than traditional juicers. Over 40,000 filtering pores ensure smooth and delicious refreshment. Breville’s patented Nutri Disc™ stainless steel filter basket and patented juicing system that will extract more nutrients than other juicers and transfers less than 1.8°F of heat to protect enzymes and maximize nutrient absorption.

Breville Tea Maker 

For the mom who has done it all and deserves a little “me” time with a perfectly steeped cup of tea.

The Breville One-Touch Tea Maker has a fully automated magnetic tea basket that lowers into the water once it reaches the ideal temperature and knows when to bring the basket back up so you never risk over-steeping your tea. There are five pre‐programmed tea settings and a “custom” option to select your own unique temperature and steeping time. It also doubles as a variable temperature kettle.

Price: $299.99 on sale at The Bay for $239.99

Breville Smart Waffle 2-Slice

For the comfort food indulging mom.

Breville’s Smart Waffle lets you enjoy delicious, sweet or savoury waffles without the mess of overflowing batter and hard‐to‐clean surfaces. Its unique moat design collects and transforms excess batter into snackable waffle fingers for easy clean up and no waste. It is equipped with an LCD interface, smart crispiness/darkness control and a timer.

Price: $249.99 on sale at The Bay for $199.99

Recently, I was asked what I would love to get from my kids on Mother's Day. While I love opening up their handmade cards and gifts, I always secretly hope to be able to sleep in, have a late breakfast in bed and then snuggle back under the covers to read a good book or watch a movie. (Just in case my husband is reading this, I am still wondering what that would be like. *nudge-nudge*) Being the techy mom that I am, however, a nice new eReader would also make for a wonderful gift, especially if it can double as a tablet. And the Kobo Arc is just that - a tablet for eReaders with Internet browsing capabilities and downloadable apps. 

Listed below are two great eReaders that mom will surely love - the Kobo Arc 7HD and 10HD. I will be testing out the 7HD model and will be posting a review of the device soon. In the meantime, I wanted to share with you a special offer just in time for Mother's Day!

On the weekend, my little baby turned into a little man. He's so old now he needs TWO hands to count the years! Even his fashion sense has matured as noted by his dapper outfit. Here he is at Sarcoa Bar and Restaurant in Hamilton where we had attended a private function in the Pier room. It was a windy day by the water but that didn't stop my little guy from taking a stroll outside to enjoy the sunset.

I am currently in the middle of planning a special birthday party for him and his friends, albeit a few weeks late. More on that soon!

Participating in Wordless Wednesday? Here is this week's linky:

You know that moment when you're trying to fit in one last tweet before your smartphone runs out of battery and then you realize you don't have a charge cable on hand? Yeah, can't say it's ever happened to me either. (Ok. Yes, it has.) If there's one gadget I cannot live without, it would be my smartphone. It's the main medium through which I communicate, calculate and calendarate. (And no, that's not a real verb.) I use it to take notes, pay for my coffee, snap photos, and control the Roku remotely. If there were a way to configure it to take care of the dishes and never ending laundry, I'd be in heaven. The point is, I use my phone. A lot. Every day. I rely on it enough that the very sight of a diminishing battery indicator lit up in red is enough to send my heart palpitating slightly with anxiety. The reason is I am notorious for misplacing my USB cable, and heaven forbid if I should have to actually leave my house to retrieve the cable from my Jeep while still in my pyjamas. It's a good thing I now have a new little friend to rely on - the NOMAD ChargeKey.

My review unit of the NOMAD ChargeKey arrived via mail nearly two weeks ago and has proven to be quite convenient. It is currently attached to a key ring with my house key and car key so it pretty much goes wherever I go. It's also quite thin and small so there isn't much added bulk to my key ring. Recently launched in Canada, this NOMAD accessory allows for charging from any USB port and full data transfer when connected to a computer.