Sorel Winter Boots

 

 

 

 

 

Winter Boots- Sorel (similar)  *   Winter Jacket- Dynamite (similar) (similar)   * Hat- Aldo  * Skinning Jeans -H & M (similar)

I think the last time I bought myself a good pair of winter boots was when I was living back at home, about 8 years ago. So, I think buying these new Sorel Winter Boots was way over due, lol!

 

These are one of Sorel's premium boots. They are waterproof full grain leather at the bottom, and oiled suede on top. They also have fur on the top collar which makes them so warm and cozy.

 

I have already shovelled the driveway, and gone tobogganing in these boots, and never have my feet felt cold. They are so comfortable too! They also have amazing rubber soles which give me great traction in the snow and icing conditions. I have to walk my son to school each day so I wanted to make sure I got a good quality boot.

 

I bought them in the black, but I think they might already be sold out, so I linked the brown ones above.

 

I hope you all had a great Christmas, and have a wonderful New Year!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 



Disney On Ice presents Dream Big is coming to Toronto!

 Yes, you read the title correctly! Disney On Ice presents Dream Big, will be playing at the Rogers Centre in Toronto from December 23 to January 1, 2017. Just in time for the Holidays!

This is a perfect family event. I took my son last year to the Disney On Ice: Dare to Dream show and we loved it! We decided to surprise him with the tickets as an early Christmas gift, because we wanted to go to the opening night show. We had a blast! It was so wonderful to see the excitement and smile on his face when we gave him the tickets. I even remember trying to get him to go to the bathroom during intermission, but he was so reluctant to go, thinking he would miss some of the show! I had to promise him he would be back in time. lol

Being that the show plays after Christmas as well, you don't have to make it an early Christmas gift like we did last year. If you have some time off over the Christmas break, you could go as a family. I know a friend of mine bought tickets already. She also added 2 Disney princess dresses wrapped in a box, with the tickets inside to give to her girls on Christmas Day! Isn't that such a great idea? They are going to love that! I saw so many little girls wearing their princess dresses to the show. So, if they have one already they are more than welcome to wear it.
 

 

Enter a world where adventure is awaiting and courage leads the way at Disney On Ice presents Dream Big. Join Tinker Bell as she takes you on a journey of beloved Disney tales LIVE ON ICE. Make a splash with the fearless dreamer Ariel and watch Rapunzel, Cinderella, Snow White, Tiana and Belle remind you to always be strong, kind and fearless. Travel to the wintry world of Arendelle with Anna, Elsa and Olaf from Disney’s Frozen as they learn that true love is the greatest magic of all. Be there to discover a whole new world with the daring Jasmine. Believing is just the beginning when Disney On Ice presents Dream Big skates into your hometown!

 

 

To purchase tickets, visit www.ticketmaster.ca or www.disneyonice.ca. You can also go to Rogers Centre box office or call 1-855-985-5000. Ticket prices start at only $28!

If this is your first time going to a Disney On Ice show, you can read my post from last year here to get an idea of what to expect.

Hope you all have a great weekend!

 

 

 



Our Stay at Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara Falls

 

 

 

 

 

On Monday we got back from our 1 night stay at Great Wolf Lodge in Niagara Falls. This was our 2nd time visiting and I have to say we had a blast! The first time we went was back in March, but there is something about going around Christmas time that makes it that much more special. Everything inside was decorated so nicely, and seeing the whole place lit up on the outside was beautiful.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

You are allowed to start using the water park at 1pm the day you arrive, so we made sure we got there an hour early to check in. After checking it, they gave us a place to store our bags until our room was ready. Once all that was taken care of,  we got into our bathing suits and headed to the water park!

 

Before heading into the park, the kids needed to be measured to see which slides they were allowed to go on. My son was so happy he had grown a bit more compared to last year because he was able to go on some new slides.

 

Out of all the water slides they have, I would have to stay the Canada Vortex and Niagara Rapids Run were my favourite. My husband loved the newest slide that they have called the Wolf Tail. You step onto this launch pad and the floor drops from under you. Then you fall 20 feet nearly vertical. It's crazy! I definitely won't be trying that! My son's favourite was the Wooly Mammoth and went on it with us over and over again!

 

 

 

Being that my daughter was too small for the larger slides, she loved to play in the toddler area. There were 4 perfect sized slides that she was able to go down. I liked that they were side by side because sometimes my son would go down  one next to her and she loved it! They also had basketball nets in the water, so they loved taking turns throwing the ball in the net.

 



 

 

The park also has a wave pool, and lazy river where we spent a lot of time because all 4 of us could be together at the same time. The wave pool was nice because it has a shallow end for my daughter to splash around in, and my son played in the deeper end. They got so excited when the waves started, they were kicking their feet at the waves and jumping into them. The lazy river was nice too because they had a double person blow up ring. I took my daughter in one and my husband took my son in the other and we just followed each other .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

They have complimentary towels that you can use, and if you forgot something they have a "Swim Wear" Store that sell bathing suits, little swimmers (I forgot those last year!), goggles and they even have lockers that you can rent as well to store your stuff.

 

 

 

For the first time this trip, we got the "Paw Pass." My friends always said how good it was, so we decided to try it out. Let me tell you it's so worth the money. It was such a fun experience for the kids, they loved it! The Paw Pass included:

 

*One MagiQuest game

*One MagiQuest classic wand or classic topper

*One quarter pound of fudge

*One animal from their Great Wolf Stuffing Station (outfit not included)

*One 5x7 Paw Prints water park action photo

*20 Paw Points and game card for Northern Lights Arcade

*One gift at Scooops Kid Spa

*Two games of bowling at Ten Paw Alley or one game at Wacky Wilderness Mini Golf

*Two Great Wolf Kids activities in Cub Club

*One pair of wolf ears

 

 

When you book your stay, you get the Paw Pass for only $64.99! It retails for $119.89

 

Getting the passes for both kids worked out great for us. We took advantage of everything after dinner when the water park was closed. We did a MagiQuest game, went to the Arcade, and bowled. It was a lot of fun!

 

The kids loved getting to pick out their animal from the Great Wolf Station and got it stuffed right before their eyes!

 





 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Right before bed we went to the main lobby for a dance party. All the kids danced to music while they played Christmas Carols, and had fake snow blowing in the air. They also stayed for Story Time as well.

 

To finish off the evening, they had fires going out front to roast marshmallows which was so much fun!  

 

For our room, we stayed in the Kids Cabin. It was super cute. It had 1 queen size bed for us,  and a cabin room with 3 beds ( 2 were bunk beds) for the kids. Each section of the room had it's own tv, so the kids could watch their shows and we could watch ours. It also had a nice fireplace, a balcony and a small kitchenette which had a sink, microwave and mini fridge. 



 

 

 

 I'd have to say one of my favourite parts of our stay was waking up in the morning and eating breakfast inside this life-sized Gingerbread House! Hands down!

 

I didn't know this, but since 2007, Great Wolf Lodge has been creating these life-sized Gingerbread Houses for a fundraiser for Ronald McDonald House. The house is absolutely amazing! The walls, doors and features are all baked, iced, candied and sugared. They kids were in their glory. They just couldn't stop staring at it. I couldn't believe that over 700 hours were dedicated to building this Gingerbread House. They have a Pastry Team, and an Engineering Team that worked hard together to make this house for such a good cause. Everything from the outside to the inside was displayed with so much creativity, detail, hard work and LOVE!

 

Inside was a large table in the centre, surrounded by an adorable little window, Christmas tree, and a fireplace that had a mantle made out of candy. They also had the cutest miniature village with a train that rode around a track that went inside and outside of the house. Another special touch they added that I loved, was all the framed pictures of all the past Gingerbread House. It was so neat to see how they all differed from year to year.

 

You can enjoy a private breakfast, lunch or dinner inside this Gingerbread House by making a reservation before your stay, and giving a donation to Ronald McDonald House once you have finished eating.

 

260 families have dined inside the Gingerbread House, and their seating donations have raised over $50,000 since the fundraiser started 10 years ago. Isn't that amazing?!!

 

 

 

 

 

 

I have always loved the food at Great Wolf Lodge. They have an all you can eat dinner which is amazing. They had mussels, all different kids of pizza, flank steak, veggies, salad and so much more. They even had a perogie station!

 

 

 

 

If you want to plan a trip to Great Wolf Lodge, visit their website here for more information.

 

Holiday Gift Ideas & Cards from Tiny Prints!

 I can't believe tomorrow is December 1st! Time is just flying by, and Christmas will be here before we know it. Luckily, I only have a few more gifts to buy and some stocking stuffers.  I still have a lot of other things to do though, such as baking, mailing my Christmas cards, and finding holiday clothes for myself and the kids.

 

How is your shopping going? If you're still looking for some gift ideas, I have some good options for you. When I was looking for ideas for the Great Grandparents and Grandparents, I came across these great finds from Tiny Prints. With all the stores getting busier each day as Christmas approaches, I feel shopping online is much less stressful.

 

Here is everything I got!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 For my parents from the kids, I got this beautiful custom White Acrylic Photo Block. It's going to be perfect for their shared office at work.  It's 5 x7 in size, and you can personalize it as well. You can also choose from many other designs.

 

When ordering all these personalized gifts, I wanted to make sure I used a recent picture. I decided on this adorable shot from our Lavender Family Shoot in August. It's on one of my favourite pictures of the kids. They were both smiling perfectly!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Next, I got this gorgeous White Custom Pillow for my in-laws from the kids. You can choose from 2 sizes- 18 x 18 or 24 x 18. You can also choose if you want the back of the pillow to be in white or black fabric. There are many different styles and designs on the site to choose from as well. You can personalize them too. These pictures of the pillow don't do it justice, it's so nice. The photo is really clear and the quality is amazing!! The pillow also has a zipper so you can remove the synthetic- filled insert and machine-wash it if it gets dirty.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For each of the Great Grandparents from the kids, I got these 5.5 x 4 custom magnets for their fridges. I chose the "Design your own" option and picked the 5 photos, and 1 text box layout. These magnets come in 2 other sizes as well: 3 x 3 and 4.88 x 3.38. You can also choose from a wide range of background colours and designs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last minute right before checking out, I saw they had iPhone cases. My case broke a couple of weeks ago, so I decided to pick this one up for myself. I customized mine with the same picture of the kids. You can choose a glossy or matte finish, and select which phone format you have. I have the iPhone 6, so I selected that case and went with the glossy option.

 

 

 

Now all of these items above don't have to be just for Christmas. They would also be perfect for a birthday gift, new baby, or even a house warming gift!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Now onto Christmas Theme stuff....

 

This ornament I actually ordered for our Christmas Tree. It's a 3 x 3 zinc ornament and it's so pretty. It came in this cute little pouch, and has this beautiful red ribbon to hang it on the tree. I also love that it has the year on the top too. You can choose from other formats as well, such as metal or glass and beautiful shapes and designs.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

For something fun and different this year, I ordered some "Personalized Gift Wrap" to wrap all our gifts. I added 9 holiday pictures of the kids, and got it in the 120 x 29.5 size. You can also get it in a 72 x 29.5 size which holds the same amount of pictures. This wrapping paper is such good quality. I was really impressed with the thickness of it, and thought the photos of the kids on it turned out great!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Tiny Prints has a large selection of holiday cards as well. I have used them many times for the kids baptism, and birthday invitations, but this is the first time I have ordered my Christmas cards from them. I am just so happy with the way they turned out! I absolutely love them!

 

There are so many different styles and designs to look at! Believe me, it's going to be so hard to choose. I went with a tri-fold format this year, and I think it turned out great! I was able to add so many pictures on it! For the front of the card, I added the kids Christmas photos.  On the back, I added a greeting and family pictures from our Lavender session. The card size is 5.25 x 5.25 and comes with plain envelopes.

 

Now a standard option is Matte or Semi- Gloss cards, but I decided to upgrade to the Pearl White Shimmer paper, and I definitely think it was worth it. They turned our beautiful.

 

For a small fee, they also have an option for a designer to review your order to make sure everything looks ok, and no spelling errors. Great for peace of mind!

 

 

 

 

Another upgrade I went with was getting custom Slip-in liners and Pearl White Shimmer envelopes to match the cards. To add the liners in the envelope was very easy. They come with a sticker on the back, so you just place them in the envelope. Then pull the plastic off the sticker, and attach it to the top of the envelope.

As a final touch, I purchased this embosser which I am so excited about!!  I customized it with our family name and address on it.  I can't wait to seal up my Christmas cards and use it! I also picked up these Foil Embossing Seals in red to go with the design of my cards. Now, you don't have to buy these seals to use it, it will work fine on the back of a regular envelope. 

 

 

 

That's everything! What did you think? Anything you loved ? Tiny Prints has everything from Invitations, Stationary, gifts and Home Décor items. I received a confirmation email when I completed my order, and another one once it shipped. They even provide a tracking number as well. My order came pretty fast too.

To check out everything that Tiny Prints has to offer, visit their website here

 

 Disclaimer: All items in this post were given to me for review but all opinions are always my own.