Author Archives: admin

Four Easy Tips For Dealing With Reactive Red Sensitive Skin

One of my first memories related to anything skincare was watching my Grandma apply her Olay night cream to her face and neck. I fondly remember our bedtime routine – the smell of the Olay night cream and how that routine made my Grandma feel… relaxed and cared for. Sometimes looking back I think this is why I absolutely love the ritual of skincare and how it creates those little self-care moments for you to stop, breathe and do a little something for yourself.  I’m so excited to partner with a brand I recognize from childhood, and have used for years myself, to share the new products with the same science-based reputation they are known for. If you’ve followed me for years, you would know I have had my fair share of sensitive skin issues when trying to find products that work for my skin as well as my family’s. I have winter dryness coupled with itchy, sometimes reactive, sensitive skin. While both my children have their own skin challenges: one with seasonal eczema and contact dermatitis. We have over the years adapted a few strategies for finding products that can fit into our lives and help ease some of our skincare issues. With our journey in mind, I’m so excited to share my four top tips I’ve adopted for living with my sensitive skin: 

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Fall Home Tour || Autumn Inspired Decor Ideas

It’s that time of year again. I don’t know if it’s me but Summer flew by this year and the weather wasn’t super warm. So this early chilly weather transition to fall hasn’t been a surprise. Plus, we all know Fall is my favourite season, so I’m in full on Autumn decor transition mode and I honestly don’t hate it. Just like years past I’ve teamed up with a handful of very talented content creators to give you a glimpse into our homes. Please see a full blog post link up at the end of my tour!

I haven’t brought out all the fall decor yet… SCARY is yet to come but this the perfect start. Here is my fall home tour 2019.

pink door black exterior tricorn black halloween front door decor bats
sherwin williams charming pink tricorn black paint
sherwin williams exterior house paint tricorn black charming pink door
sherwin williams charming pink tricorn black paint house exterior

Because it’s only early September our front stairs only have touches of decor but I will say I’m loving this magnetic bats. They are a subtle modern take on halloween decor and I love how they pop on the newly painted pink doors. For those who may ask the colour is “Charming Pink” by Sherwin Williams.

fall mantel ideas
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Parent Talk: 3 Tricks for Winning the Screen Time Battle #AD

Back in June I talked about Shaw’s newest product the BlueCurve Home app and how it was helping with the tablet time battle in our home. I’m excited to report back on how connecting and pausing as a family. You can read about that here: https://northernstyleexposure.com/sponsored/lifestyle-tablet-wars-parenting-tip/

The Tablet Time Battle

It’s no secret that I have a love/hate relationship with screens. Clearly my job as a content creator has me on my phone for way too many hours in the day. Unfortunately my kids see that. It has been my parenting mission in the last year to strike a balance when it comes to technology in our home and especially when used by our kids. The countless articles I’ve read over the years on the internet have been linking excessive blue light exposure to some negative potential impacts. Although I’m no expert I’ve tried to be mindful of some of the potential impacts screen time can have on my kid’s health. From a disruption to the bedtime/sleep routine, to digital eye strain or retina damage and the impact it may have on early childhood development. Blue light does occur naturally but I’m referring to exposure to screens of all kinds: TV’s, phones, and tablets. I’m happy to report on this front, I feel like I’ve had some big successes in our household with our daily screen time battle. So I thought I’d share my Top 3 Mom Tricks for beating back screen time usage: 

1) Know Where You Are At: Tracking, setting alerts and seeing usage is the first step to finding balance in the home. We set a limit, let’s say 25 minutes on YouTube Kids. I set an alert on my Shaw BlueCurve Home app. When Alastair reaches his limit, I get an alert on my iPhone. Plus, the app tracks Wi-Fi usage per device/ person. So if Alastair gets hold of his tablet without me noticing, I can see that usage on the app and can adjust our day according to my goal for screen time consumption. 

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Lifestyle || Tablet Wars || Parenting Tip

The “tablet time battle” is real. I honestly have a love/hate relationship with connected devices both in my life and my family’s life. Like most parents, I am very aware of the potential negative effects of too much screen time on childhood brain development.

Our kids received tablets for Christmas this past year, and while they have LOVED that gift, it has always brought with it some battles in the parenting department. Before I had kids I thought I would NEVER let them go on tablets. In my previous career as a Rec Therapist before becoming a blogger, I saw firsthand the negative effects of excessive gaming and internet bullying had on my teenage clients. The bullying followed teens everywhere and home was no exception because of the internet.

Fast forward a decade, I have kids and the tech world has exploded even more! I quickly realized technology is going to be in their lives via screens but, as a parent, I can hopefully guide them towards a healthy usage lifestyle. I’m so excited to partner with Shaw yet again to add a powerful tool to my parental toolbox.

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Style || Protecting Those Peepers

Because of my skincare routine I was very aware that Ultraviolet (UV) radiation is always present and prolonged UV exposure poses some health risks. By partnering with ZEISS I learned UV exposure can also be harmful to the eyes and surrounding tissue. I definitely wear sunglasses for protection but now with my new ZEISS lenses I get protection with my eye glasses too! ZEISS has created a new standard of care by including full UV protection in all clear plastic lenses – something no other lens manufacturer is offering. This is the highest in the industry and helps protect against photoaging and some eye diseases. Best of all? They have not patented this technology in hopes other manufactures will also adopt this technology in their lenses to provide protection for all eye glasses wearers. I love that they are willing to share this technology for our safety and I am so proud to partner with a brand with those values.

If you are local, stop in at Smith & Wight Opticians. I loved my shopping experience at this optometrist. The frame selection is MASSIVE and their team is beyond helpful when you need to narrow down your selections. The exam was so smooth and the whole process was a breeze. My optometrist even took the time to explain to me the differences between the different types of lenses offered and educated me on why my vision has changed after my pregnancy! Plus they are a local ZEISS retailer.

disclaimer: this post was not paid by ZEISS or Smith & Wight but sample product was supplied for testing purposes.