Category Archives: Sponsored

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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5 Things You Must Do in Harrison, British Columbia

Book a romantic cabin experience. Although there are plenty of places to stay in Harrison along the lake front, we opted for something different. Rowena’s Inn on the River is infused with European flair. Guests can stay in the historical 1920s inn or in four rustic luxury cottages. From a deep soaker tub, in-room wood-burning fireplaces, and magnificent views of the Harrison River, this resort is not to be missed. All guests also receive a complimentary breakfast and use of the outdoor swimming pool. Currently they are constructing more cabins with different layouts from 1,2, and 3-bedroom The new 1 and 2-bedroom layouts have gas fireplaces, TVs, and larger kitchenettes and are best suited for families and friend getaways, but the 3-bedroom units, combine the best of both worlds, with wood-burning fireplaces, TVs, and kitchenettes. We are so excited to go back with the kids and grandparents next year. Our stay with the Rowena’s team was a highlight of our couples trip. It was pure relaxing bliss.

Experience the Sasquatch legend and local history. Twenty minutes up the road from Harrison Mills, in Harrison Hot Springs, visitors can experience the Sasquatch Trail. Harrison is filled with history, breathtaking views and natural wonders including the world-famous BC hot springs, seasonal salmon runs and eagle nests! Harrison Mills is the world’s capital for the gathering of winter eagles. Stop in at the local Harrison Visitor Centre and explore the Sasquatch Museum. They can direct you to the local hikes, festivals, tours and spas in the area and it’s home to the Sasquatch Museum!

Get out on that water! Between the giant inflatable water park , bumper boats or the beach, Harrison Lake has so much to offer. We booked a boat tour with Shoreline Tours. Our guide Chelsea was so knowledgeable, she filled us in on prehistoric sturgeon, majestic salmon and, of course, the stunning bald eagles along the riverbank. We ordered Pinot Gris and took in the natural sights for two blissful hours of relaxation.

Shoreline Tours on Harrison Lake, British Columbia.

Grab an amazing meal with a view. There are plenty of places to grab a meal along the waterfront. The locals suggested several favourite spots: Morgan’s, Black Forest, Milo’s Greek Taverna and Old Settler’s. We opted for an authentic Eastern European meal of schnitzel and sausage at Black Forest. The breathtaking views of the lake are worth the visit alone. In the winter, the patio is heated and covered, so you can still enjoy the beautiful views.

Treat Yo Self. Along Harrison Lake there are tons of businesses to satisfy any sweet tooth. What’s your craving? Chantilly Ice Cream is sure to hit the spot on a hot summer day. Or stop into our favourite cross Canada Chocolatier, Rocky Mountain Chocolate Factory. Almost every where we travel within Canada, we make an effort to bring take the Kid’s speciality chocolate gift sets from Rocky Mountain. This location carries Sasquatch feet!

Disclaimer: This trip was not PAID but some of the experiences and accommodations were in part covered by Tourism Harrison.

Style || These Are A Few of My Favourite Things

I love to find a piece of jewelry versatile enough to wear to the grocery store or a fancy dinner. It can be tough to strike that balance in the style department for sure. Thats why I’m so excited to partner with Harvest Jewels to show you how I wear my moon pendent with almost anything! Their jewelry concept is simple, mix and match necklaces with different pendents. So many different metals and gemstones, so many to choose from it’s easy to add to you collection and get a completely different look. The next one I’m eyeing up to build my Harvest Jewel collection? This gorgeous bumble bee! The perfect mix of oxidized sterling silver, pave diamonds and crimson and hunter green enamel.
Which piece is your favourite?

Disclaimer: This post was NOT paid by Harvest Jewels but the jewelry picture was gifted to me by the designer.

My Disneyland Guide 2019 || Tips, Tricks & All That Park Magic #Disneyland

I just want to start this off with the biggest THANK YOU to Disney Parks & Resorts Canada for hosting and partnering with my blog. If you follow along on Instagram, you may have noticed earlier this month I had the absolute pleasure to visit Disneyland, California Adventure and stay at the Disney’s Grand Californian Hotel & Spa. It was an unreal experience to say the least! I traveled with my little guy and my parents! Incorporating multiple generations into one trip really helped with some travel perceptive for sure. I’m so excited to share some tips, tricks and info on all the magic from this press trip. This wasn’t our first time by any means, some of you may already know although we are Canadians, Disney vacations have been our trip of choice for the past few years. So many of my tips and tricks have been garnered over time in an attempt to save you time, money and help you create the MOST magically Disney experience.

I asked on this Instagram post if you had any burning questions you wanted answered in my trip recap blog post. The response was overwhelming! So I’ve decided to break up my posts to make them far more concise and helpful. I’ll follow up with a Q&A with very specific information requests later this week. And I’ll also do a favourites list of restaurants, photo spots, rides and attractions in the near future. Just hit the “TRAVEL” tab on the right side of this page to look for more travel posts.

Here are my top 4 Disneyland Tips and Tricks to help you and your family have an ideal Disneyland Park experience in 2019:

1) Before buying your park passes please check out the “offers” page on the Disneyland website. As an example, currently the “Canadian Resident Ticket Offer” is giving us a pretty great discount on passes. This offer ends April 11th 2019, you can take advantage of it by visiting www.Disneyland.com/CanadaTicket or calling (866) 285-1422. If you book after that date I strongly encourage you to check the Special Offers page on their website for all available offers and discounts. It always feels great to save a bit of money when planning a trip.

2) A common misconception of many first timers to Disneyland is that the “Fast Pass” line costs money. It is free! Anyone can access the quicker line up and it only costs money to have it conveniently located on your phone. My biggest piece of advice, work that Fast Pass System hard! I’m not only saying that only coming from a mother with a little person that can’t wait in lines too long. As an adult, time is time and if you get great at working this feature you can experience far more attractions in your day. If you are new to Disney, there will be two lines at the front: Standby and Fast Pass holders. You can book fast passes on the app for $15 a day per person in the group by getting a Disney MAXpass. BUT you can still get fast passes without that $15 fee! They are located at “fast pass distributors” at each attraction that has a fast pass line. Basically in short, you can pay a fee to conveniently book them on your phone throughout the day or you can walk to each attraction to manually obtain one. Please note, some rides are more popular compared to others. And there are only a certain amount of fast passes available each day. I find unless you get a fast pass before noon for many of the “popular rides,” there will not be any more fast passes available that day for that attraction and you would have to line up in the standby line. Some of my must have fast passes include: California Adventure: Guardians of the Galaxy: Mission Break Out, Toy Story Mania and Radiator Springs Racer. Disneyland: It’s a Small World, Madahorn, Star Tours, Big Thunder Mountain Railway and the Haunted Mansion.

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