Home, Furniture & Kitchen

There are plenty of things you need to bring along any time you head out with baby. But when it comes to warm weather days, there are a few extra items that become particularly essential. 

Emergencies can happen at any time. Some emergencies are more serious than others, but all emergencies have one thing in common—they all call for action! Whether it’s an earthquake (like this week in Vancouver), a major snowstorm, a physical injury, a broken down vehicle, or an untimely power outage, there’s no reason in the world why you can’t be prepared for it. So, when you’re making your 2016 new year’s resolutions, why not resolve to be prepared for anything? 

Today on Shelly’s Friday Favourites, I’m going to share my favourite sugar cookie recipe with you and show you how easy it is to decorate these cookies. If you get overwhelmed by roll out cookies because they’re too sticky or they don’t turn out right, you’ll love this recipe. The dough is light, fluffy, and rolls out like a dream.

Canada is considered to be one of the safest countries in the world, but that doesn’t make us immune to natural hazards like floods, earthquakes, landslides, power outages, or storms. That’s why it’s important to always be prepared for the worst, even if the worst never ends up happening. With a few essentials at the ready, you’ll help minimize the impact an emergency may have on you and your family. 

I love heat and sunshine, but I still think summer desserts are one of the best parts of summer. Because we’re celebrating my daughter’s elementary school graduation this weekend, I’ve been in the kitchen with kids and up to my elbows in summer desserts. Here’s what’s been chilling out in my kitchen this week. 

I’ve learnt a lot about how to travel with kids over the years, but the number one thing on my road trip checklist is always road trip snacks. Packing your own snacks saves you time and money while you drive, and because you aren’t always stopping for fast food, you can eat healthier too.

Patio season is almost here and I’ve been doing some yard clean up to get ready. Next I’ll be setting up my patio furniture and deciding if I’ll be needing or wanting anything new this season. I love to entertain when the weather is nice, and I’m thinking this is the year to treat myself to a patio swing. Read on to see how you can make your patio beautiful with some great new pieces.

Another New Year is upon us, and that means that it’s resolution time again. Like the vast majority of people who make resolutions, mine typically revolve around making positive changes to my diet and fitness regimes, and tend to be broken within a matter of weeks. That’s why this year I decided to change things up a bit and have resolved to live a greener life at home. If you want to do the same, here are some simple solutions that will help reduce your carbon footprint and increase your green-factor.

Understand the different types of baby monitors and their features, including hack-proof options and movement detection.

Where I grew up, we didn’t have ‘food trends.’ Everything we ate was simple, basic, and comfortable – from roast beef and mashed potatoes to chili and mashed potatoes. If we were going to spice things up, maybe we’d have spaghetti or pizza.   So imagine my surprise when the person who did all of the cooking during my formative years, the woman who actually served me lasagna and mashed potatoes (I’m not joking), called me up and started talking to me about quinoa. And she wasn’t just calling for a definition of what quinoa is either – she was talking about her long list of personal quinoa salad recipes. I almost dropped the phone in shock. After all, quinoa doesn’t include ground beef or mashed potatoes in the ingredient list, so this was quite a detour.