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Thursday, March 7, 2019

A Substitute Teacher's Note

Brandon received a very warm note from a new substitute teacher from school this week. I thought I'd post and share it. It reads,

"Hello! I have been in HUNDREDS of classes in Vancouver and in Surrey. Brandon's drawings are the BEST I have ever seen. PLEASE put Brandon in professional drawing & art classes. He's amazing! - T. Champagne (substitute teacher)"


- Jennie (Proud Mama)

Sunday, May 20, 2018

Mother's Day Gift for My Mom

Sorry for the late post. I has been a very busy month. I wanted to share what I made for my mom for Mother's Day. It's flower pot with beans with an artificial daisy. My mom loves daisies. The daisy stem is a pen for mom to write notes.

- Brandon

Friday, March 9, 2018

Kid Food Nation Commercial Filming Experience

It was Thursday morning and my Mom woke me up very early to get ready to head out for the Kid Food Nation Commercial filming. It was at Kimount Boys and Girls Club in Vancouver. We used their kitchen to prepare the food and I had a lot of fun making my recipe. I get to skip school for the day.


I was nervous at first, but Mom helped me stay confident.

I felt quite happy and met with Oliver again (one of the other Kid Food Nation winners who’s from Squamish, BC). Having another kid with me made me less nervous. During the filming, we were asked to help each other with the ingredients and learned about each other’s recipes. My winning recipe is the Cheesy Quesadilla and Oliver’s winning recipe is the Salmon with Roasted Vegetables. Both were so yummy!


After we finished cooking, we got to eat our creations! Oliver’s salmon recipe was really tasty. My cheesy quesadillas were delicious too!



Tuesday, February 13, 2018

Mott's Fruitsations New Rasperry and Tropical Flavors {Review}

As part of the ChicksAdvisor program, we received vouchers for a sample package of the Mott's Fruitsations +Fibre Raspberry and also the Mott's Fruitsations +Fibre Tropical.


When Brandon saw the parcel, he wanted to open it himself. He found a couple of coupons, fancy-designed napkins, and a pair of golden spoons.

Brandon was excited when we got it and wanted to have it for dessert after dinner. He loves this! We both love the taste. Great for kids lunch box snacks. I love the raspberry flavour most from the two choices. It's one of my favourites. The sweetness is just perfect -- not too sweet. It's so good on vanilla ice-cream. I would buy this product again.




Made with the goodness of Mott’s Fruitsations apple sauce, plus the benefit of added fibre that is essential to a healthy digestive system. Each cup contains 2 grams of fibre, and has no added sugar, no artificial colours or flavours and contains no peanuts or gluten.

Wednesday, January 10, 2018

Study: Only 11% of all kids wear the right shoe size

Did you know that only 11% all children are wearing the right shoe size with room for growth? Wearing too small shoes can cause serious foot deformities. This is unbelievable when you consider how simple it is to measure the correct shoe size.

Survey Finds That Minority of All Kids Wear the Right Shoe Size

Your kid’s cool Adidas sneakers may look great, but do they fit properly? Shoes that are too small put children at risk of foot deformities and other serious health issues. The bad news for parents; almost two thirds of all children are wearing shoes that are too small!


Blitzresults conducted a survey and found that 65% of all kids are wearing shoes that are too small. Of these, 47% are one size too small and 18% are even two. Only 35% are wearing the correct size and only 11% of those have “room to grow”.

Improperly fitting shoes can cause hallux valgus. This is a foot deformity, it happens when the big toe starts to angle inward, which causes a swollen lump just below the big toe. A study conducted by the National Health Institute found that almost 30% of children had irreversible foot deformities, like hallux valgus.

To help parents make sure they are buying shoes that fit their kids properly, keep the following advice in mind:

  • Go by the longer foot: The right and left foot are rarely the same length. A difference of up to half an inch is normal, that’s almost one whole shoe size. Therefore, parents should always go by the longer foot when buying shoes.
  • Don’t rely on the shoe size: Shoe manufacturers label shoes with standard sizes, the ones we all know. But, there is no mandatory industry standard for shoe sizing, so each brand will vary. Be sure to try on every shoe carefully.
  • Give ‘em room: Most parents are aware that feet need some room, but usually underestimate the actual room needed. At least ½ inch of additional room is optimal, it’s the only way kids can roll their foot properly when walking.
  • Do a regular check: Tim Lilling, expert at blitzresults.com, tells us that, "Because the sense of touch isn’t fully developed in children yet, they have a tendency to squeeze their feet into shoes that are much too small, they don’t even notice it. Therefore, parents must measure their children’s feet every 2 months." A measuring guide, useful conversion tools and a lot of information on how to choose shoes with the perfect fit can be found at https://www.blitzresults.com/en/childrens-shoe-size.

Unfortunately, many parents still use these "tricks" to judge whether shoes fit:

  • Trick: Hold shoe to foot. The shoe sole is held up to the child’s foot to estimate the size, but the length on the inside of the shoe can’t be estimated from the outside, and is often much shorter than you’d expect (lining, seams, foot bed). Better: Use an appropriate measuring device.
  • Trick: The thumb test. The thumb presses on the toe of the shoe to see how much room there is to grow. The problem; children often draw their toes up by reflex, so the foot is rolled under. It may seem like there’s enough room, although, in reality, the shoes are too small. Using the heel test is just as bad for judging free space in the heel. Many kids push their feet forward until their toes are crammed in. Better: Carefully feel your child´s foot inside the shoe. Place one hand on the front of the shoe, so the child can’t draw their toes up. Then, with the other hand, check the position of the toes. This way you can feel whether there is enough room to grow.
  • Trick: Size comparison using a stencil. The shape and size of the foot is traced and compared with the shoe sole, but this comparison is usually imprecise. Better: If there is a removable insole, take it out and place the foot on the insole, there should be 1/3 inch of space behind the heel and half an inch in front of the toes.
  • Trick: Asking them how it feels. Parents ask kids; "Does the shoe fit?" Unfortunately, the answer will likely be wrong. Often, the nerves in kid’s feet are not fully developed yet and their awareness of pain is clearly lower than an adult’s, so, kids don't realize if the shoe fits. Better: First and foremost, measure their feet.

About the study

2109 parents were asked about their kids’ foot length and shoe size. Afterward, special measuring devices and instructions on how to measure feet properly were given to the parents. The measurement values were used to calculate the actual shoe size, then these results were compared with the parents’ hit or miss values.
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