Sometimes being a photographer is really amazing, other times it can be a little bit boring. It truly depends on the time of year.  After making it through last Fall alive and well, I was never happier to have a bit of a break in January and February to just relax, get caught up around the house and enjoy life.  I knew what lay ahead, two months of lots of travel. Last year I attended a photography conference in New Orleans and met Jen Osojnicki, an amazing Wedding photographer in Massachusetts. We decided together that we would attend the annual conference in March in 2013 that happened in Las Vegas.  I had never been before and was a but nervous but knowing Jen was going to be there with me I forged ahead.

I flew out of Philadelphia as it was Spring Break here and Hubby was taking the kids to the Beach House for Spring Break. We had a great ride to Phili but once I arrived I found out my flight had been delayed by a few hours. I grabbed my book and some dinner and enjoyed a beer at the pub.  By the time we took off, I was ready for bed and slept almost the whole way, which was great since I arrived at 4am EST in Vegas.  The sunrises in Vegas are one of the most amazing things I have seen, every colour of the rainblow peeking out over the mountains, we had a great view out our window first thing in the morning.

The classes we attended were amazing and uplifting, and I am pretty sure there wasn’t one room with less than 600 people in it!! Jen and I did take the opportunity to sight see a little, even if it was only for 15 minutes. I needed fresh outside air that wasn’t below freezing and snow covered.  In a strange twist my cousin from Alberta was also in Las Vegas so we met for a quick soda and caught up as best we could.

I didn’t bother cashing in my 10 cent winning, but at least I could say that I won in Vegas!!

It was so beautiful that we even took an extended lunch by the pool, where I happened to order a $20, yes, $20 drink.  Jen and I measured out each sip, and I savored it as long as I could!  All in all an amazing adventure. I came home with fabulous new ideas, inspiration and a little tan.  I was home in Ottawa for all of 24 hours and I was back on the road again.

Last February, while it was cold and very snowy here, I traveled to Nashville, Tennessee to attend Blissdom ’12. I went with my girlfriend Krista and made the escape very early in the morning, landing in some very turbulent skies over Nashville. It was my first time in Nashville and I only hope it is not my last. Nashville is a gorgeous city and although we spent most of it at the Gaylord Opryland we did get to sneak out for some fried chicken and cowboy boots. I wrote a post about Finding my bliss at Blissdom.  It was truly an amazing experience and a lot different than attending conferences locally, especially because we hardly knew anybody, which makes you push your boundaries and talk to strangers!!

I acted as a Community Leader in the Photography sessions last year, which basically meant I was there to help out and assist the speakers if needed and answer questions that couldn’t all be answered during the sessions.  This year, I am pleased as punch (if I can quote my Grandma here) that I have been asked to speak. I did put up a post on my Photography blog, but I thought perhaps you would all like to hear about it too.  I will be hosting a “Rock Your Camera” session where I will be essentially teaching you how to use your camera.  It will be more of a workshop than a session, so if you are planning to attend bring your DSLR with a charged battery room on your memory card and be willing to play with the buttons on your camera. You will be leaving with the knowledge on how to take your camera off of auto and use the functions to get great photos.

I will also be hosting a photowalk on the Thursday before the conference officially starts. We will be walking through the Gaylord Texan and photographing all the amazing things that make the Gaylord resorts so special. Look for more information on how to sign up for that closer to the date. And for the photowalk, you don’t have to have a DSLR. You can use your phone, point and shoot or DSLR if you like. If it takes pictures you are welcome to join us!

Here is a shot of the group of us last year before we headed out. To see more of the photos from Nashville, go to my flickr set Blissdom to see.

Look forward to seeing you in Dallas!!

I don’t tell a lot of tales of A here on the blog because I respect the fact that he is in his 20′s and may not enjoy me sharing his life story anymore.  For those of you who don’t know, A is my Stepson. I have known him for almost 18 years as a StepMom, but truly have known him since he was born since I have known his Dad since we were kids ourselves back in High School (yeah that would be… umm.. 29 years!!!) and to be completely honest I have known his Mom just as long.  Hubby and I did not start dating until almost 18 years ago, but since our best friends were brothers we saw each other a lot throughout the years one could say it was inevitable. And before any of you cast stones, no I did not break up Hubby and A’s Mom, they were long over/never really together so yeah, put down the rocks.

For anyone who isn’t a StepMom or StepDad you may not understand what it is like to love someone and feel like they are part of your family, but then have to say goodbye for a week or two and really, never know when you will get to see them again. For many years our time together was every other weekend, one night a week for dinner and a few holiday long weekends. We packed as much as we could into those little bits of time and then had our hearts broken when we sent him home.  Sure Hubby could have fought more and demanded more time, but in his heart he did not want his child to go through what would have been an ugly time in court, but rather sacrificed his time together so that the time we did have together was nice instead of strained.  In the end I think it has all paid off.

A has grown into such an amazing man (and that almost kills me to say man, but truly that is what he is). He lived with us for about 9 months last year, which we savored every moment we had with him. We kept J and Apple quiet so he could sleep. I may have seen him the most as he slept late and got up to head off to work during the day while I was home. He would spend time with the kids on his days off and often helped me out by picking them up at school if I had a shoot.  He even surprised me with dinner a few times, which was amazing given that he is a fabulous cook in a great Italian restaurant.  Then last Spring he moved out on his own, got himself an apartment has a couple of roommates and loves being Mr. Independent.

Last week he texted out of the blue and says he wants to bring his girlfriend over for dinner.  Of course the answer is YES!! But, he has never brought a girlfriend over because we tend to embarrass people we love, unintentionally of course, but it happens.  And I go into full out Party Planning mode, something I haven’t done in a while and only realize I am doing it halfway through. I clean and tidy and scrub. I prepare an elaborate dinner, after checking for any dislikes or allergies. I pick up Apple and J from school, and this is when I realize that I am not the only one nervous. For some reason I feel like I have to extra hard for A, not because he doesn’t show me any love because he does, but because I want to make sure he is always happy to come over. When I pick up the kids, J says to me, “I wish school wasn’t over yet, I am not ready to go home”. I look at him, feel his forehead and wonder what has gotten into my child.  I ask him why to which he replies, “I am so worried I will embarrass my brother tonight that I don’t want it to be time yet”. WOW. I guess my little, “Can you guys behave tonight?” at breakfast sat with him all day and he took it to heart.  He cleaned up a little more of his games and room, just in case she wanted to see, and washed up and talked nice to his sister and waited, with baited breath for their arrival.  Apple on the other hand was bouncing from pillar to post asking every five minutes when they would be arriving.  I sent them off to the basement so I could finish dinner and wait for our guests to arrive.

And they did, she is lovely, and he was excited to introduce her. Apple and J behaved, talked the least through a dinner since they were babies. We chatted, asked questions, and then they were off to the basement to check out some of the stuff A left here when he moved out.  They didn’t stay too long, just long enough. Hubby drove them home and I later sent a text thanking them for coming.

And so my life as a StepMom continues as we go into a new era of girlfriends and visits that are further apart. I hope we did alright, but only time will tell if he brings her (or other future girlfriends) over again.  And then we I look at the grand scheme of everything I have to be reminded that I am not his Mom so I still get very little say in anything. I just have to give my love and hope he returns it. And I have to look at the fact that he is a good man, he is caring and kind and a hard worker and I just have to hope that I had a little hand in that being around him for the last almost 18 years.

To leave you with one photo, here is an older one of Opa with J and A playing Monopoly.

Cleaning up my office for a great start to 2013, I looked up to my inspiration board and saw this posted there. We spent so many summers going to the beach and each year we would do a pyramid. So many cousins are missing here and now with us all married and have kids of our own I am sure we could have several pyramids lining the beach.

This particular one is from 1984, I was not even 14 yet, oh my!! I remember that summer well and although the beach has changed a lot since then, the memories are still with us. Each of us has changed a wee bit but we are still so much the same and I am sure you would recognize us all if I had an updated pyramid to post as well. My youngest sister was just a baby and I remember Dad holding on to her as we built the pyramid. Lots of laughs and always a few tears, but all of it made for some amazing memories.

Thanks for taking a stroll down Memory Lane with me, here’s to many more memories to be made.

I left you all hanging, but knowing we were in a good place. After a week of wondering if our little beach house was really ok, Hubby and I packed up and headed down to the beach.  That week I was scheduled to try out a new Ford Escape.   I was looking forward to trying out a car around town for once, but when we got word that the beach was no longer flooded and that the roads were clear, I asked if they wouldn’t mind me taking the Escape down to the beach. Usually my girlfriends are the ones who get to try out the Ford cars that I borrow but this time Hubby was a willing participant. On a regular day he drives a very small car  and on a nice Summer’s day he rides the bike, we keep talking about switching up the smaller car as it isn’t the most comfy for 8.5 hours of driving even though both Hubby and I did it this Summer, but not with the kids in the back.  The Escape was quite a treat.

I am not going to lie, the Ford cars that they give us to test drive are fully LOADED! Something that I truly love because I do drive a vehicle that is fully loaded and although I may be a bit spoiled, when you drive as much as I do you appreciate the comforts that come with that.  I am no longer in my twenties when driving a Chevette from Winnipeg to Ottawa was considered fun I am in my forties and appreciate all the extras that come with the luxuries.  The single most important thing for me is seat comfort.  And I noticed in the Flex in August and again in the Escape that the seats are so comfy that I can just sit molded into the drivers seat and drive.  It takes a few minutes of adjusting but then I can lean my head back on the headrest and enjoy. I don’t get tired at all, which is why I was able to drive New York City – Ottawa- Delaware in one day last summer after driving the Flex. Add to that the fact that the Escape had heated seats and I was in heaven and it wasn’t just high and low, there were five (5) settings of amazing.

After the seats, my next favorite part is the SYNC system by Microsoft. Hubby just could not figure it out, but since this is my fourth time riding in a car with SYNC I was doing pretty good. We had my phone hooked up to play music through Bluetooth, the Satellite stations were set up and we settled on some old ’80s tunes for fun. The maps were fully up-to-date and gave us gas stops and exact mileage (something not all GPS’s do) door to door. We loved the construction alerts that would pop up so we knew what was up ahead and why. I love it! I know there is a lot with the SYNC that I don’t know how to do, but if we owned one it would be a hotspot and we would make good use of all the tools, one week just isn’t enough time to fully figure that out.

Last of all, LEG ROOM! I am all leg at 5’10″ and Hubby is not too bad at 6′ once we get into the seats there is usually not much room to spare in the back seat for anyone but Apple since she is still in the carseat.  J was able to sit comfortably (bear in mind they didn’t go to Delaware, but they did drive around the city with me a bit) and he loved the curve of the seat in the back, something he complains about a lot in our other vehicles.

Hubby insists that I include the gas mileage.  With the EcoBoost we should have been getting 6.3L/100km according to their handbook, but I think we weren’t driving 90km/hr the whole time, so we got 8.5L/100km which is about 4L better than the vehicle I drive now. The end result is that we spent $80 less on gas on the trip than we do normally.  The Escape is a 4 cylinder and we drive a massive 6 with a high performance engine, but the only time you could tell the difference was when you were first starting from a stop position.  The Escape was just as quick on the highway when passing as our current vehicle but it used less gas. Hubby was quite impressed and now understood why I say yes whenever I am offered a Ford for a Road Trip.

What did we find at the Beach? Well thanks to some misunderstood directions and amazing neighbours we had almost no damage to the beach house at all, we had one roof leak because our handy man had sealed the roof two weeks before and none of our chairs or tables floated away because our neighbours put them in the porch. Our flag was in the porch as well, so it wouldn’t blow away in the storm.  We had some minor electrical problems that we had to fix while there, but that was something we were going to have to do by next summer anyway, and this way it was easier to do without the kids with us.  All in all most of our time was spent raking and cleaning up debris on the lawn, then checking out neighboring towns and the main beach.  There was an air of quiet jubilation since we were supposed to get a direct hit, but the storm moved a few hours before landfall and hit further up the coast.  Everyone was thankful, but also thoughtful of others that weren’t as fortunate.  You take a chance when you live on the ocean, not something we have taken for granted in the past having been in a few Hurricanes and Tropical Storms, but this was the first time we had to worry about our own property and if it would have been floating out in The Bay. We feel very Blessed to have met so many amazing people at the Beach and knowing they were looking out for us Canadians from afar was quite touching. We received phone calls and notes and feel like part of the community after only one summer.  We just returned from celebrating Thanksgiving as we felt it was most appropriate to be there this year as we have so much to be Thankful for.

A HUGE Thank you to Ford Canada and Kristine at Thornley Fallis for making our post Sandy trip a little more fun and exciting with the Escape. Here is one of my fave pictures of the Escape. This is Surf Avenue at the north end of the Boardwalk, CNN was reporting from this spot several times as this is one of the areas where the waves breached the dunes and as you can see, the sand on the road had just been plowed, only three days before we took this picture the road had been flooded out.

This is looking at the same spot from the beach side. The photo above, the Escape was parked on the right side of this photo just where I cut the picture off (we weren’t parked there when I took this photo as there is no parking, but that is where we stopped to get the shot). The gentleman in the house with the porch wouldn’t evacuate as he is in his 70′s and his wife couldn’t travel well. They made out just fine.

The boardwalk got a lot of sand, but the dunes and the new beach did it’s work and the breaches only happened at walkways like at this one, they pushed all the sand to the side so people could walk, and brought the benches back out so we could sit and survey. It was strange to see the rocks up on the beach, but they came up the walkways as well.

The beach was still wide, which is a blessing since the replenishment only happened last summer, the one good thing is that the Jetty’s were once again visible, they were buried in the replenishment last year and it was a little disconcerting to be allowed to swim everywhere but to not know exactly if you were standing on a jetty that could reappear at any time. Here’s hoping they get to stay!

If you would like to look at more photos of the beach, I have a flickr set with more here.

Some images I tweeted out @Beach_Mama. I got to drive!!! The Escape in Rehoboth Bay, which was under water three days before we got there, The Escape packed for the ride home and one last stop at the Boardwalk, Driving through some snow on the way home.

I could tell you all that I have been up to since August, but truth be told, this is my busiest time of year with my Photography Business and silly me, added another business to the round up, so double that and you will know where I am. Spinning out of control.  I promised myself I would blog on my birthday, but I had to work, for the first time ever on my birthday so instead I am blogging tonight, almost a week later. I haven’t forgotten about my blog as some of you may think, I have been told that people have given up on me. That is Ok because if you know me well you know where to find me: Photography Blog, Twitter, Instagram, email and we would still be in touch. I haven’t dropped off the face of the earth, I have just been working hard.

Since August, I have had Apple start school full time, started my Arbonne Business, Ballet, been to Delaware three more times (and another trip coming up), Birthday parties for J and Apple and Fall Family Sessions along with Photographing conferences, Photo walks and actually meeting people in person instead of online. Phew.

All this talk of Hurricane made me remember that I never shared the after photos of the Beach House. The very Beach House that had us praying for its safety.  You see, our little dream is located on a flood plane on Rehoboth Bay in Delaware. We are mere steps from The Bay, which empties out into the ocean. When we stand on the crabbing pier we look out to the Indian Inlet Bridge that was closed Sunday due to flooding. So you can imagine what we did for Saturday, Sunday and Monday. We trolled the internet for any signs that our Beach House was not floating away into Rehoboth Bay. As Rehoboth Beach (which includes us) was evacuated on Saturday we knew we lost any hope of contact with our neighbours, some of which live there year round. Our handyman Rich and his wife, not only have a home in Rehoboth but also in Chincoteague Island, Virginia. We prayed for their safety and are happy that at least their home in Rehoboth was spared, not so sure about Chincoteague but we will find out soon.

Our Beach House was indeed spared. With talks of flooding in The Bay, and the main road into our community we thought for sure the water would be up to the doorway or worse. We had no illusions of grandure, we expected to find out that we had to start from scratch. We were prepared for the worst. When Hubby called the office today after we heard the driving ban was lifted, he was surprised to talk to the ladies in the office, laughing and telling him that it was a miracle that there was no flooding to our houses. The water did come up our street a little but nothing more than a regular summer storm would bring.  Miracles to happen and although I am saddened by the news for others in other States like New York and New Jersey, I can’t help but be thankful that we were spared.  We will make the trek this weekend to check that the roof didn’t leak and that there isn’t anything to be taken care of that can’t wait for Thanksgiving. Yes, we will return later in the month for Thanksgiving (unless there is lots of snow up here) as we have so much to be Thankful for this year.

Here is a little peek into our Beach House, post renos. And honestly all we did this year was replace the floor (which included patching holes), wash the walls and bring in new beds and a couch. Next year we are going to update the bathrooms (which are 1969 old), paint and possibly add an outside shower. After spending three weeks here in June and July it was amazing what you can live without. We had very little with us, a few toys, an xbox (for games and movies) and our computers. We spent mornings on the beach and afternoons by the pool. We alternated nights with staying home and going to the boardwalk.  My cousin even lent me her 1989 Jeep Wagoneer so I could stay longer with J and Apple and she hadn’t even driven it yet!

Our Living Room (with lunch to head home already packed on the table) and the hallway leading from the backdoor to the living room.

Front Bedroom, with powder room attached (otherwise known as J’s room or the guest room)

Kitchen, with retro cabinets that will see an update sometime in the future and Apple’s mini room that just fits a bunkbed. Great place for J to sleep when we have guests (which we have had a few times now)

And the Master Bedroom, complete with ensuite/full bathroom.  We chose to go with Queen beds in the main bedroom and front bedroom so that we could sleep comfortably, it means that there isn’t a lot of room to walk around the beds, but they do move easily on the floor and it makes for a much more comfy sleep in the heat… trust me on that one.

And that is a little tour of the Beach House. Hubby and I will head down to check it out later this week, while the kids stay home and go to school.

We were thrilled to be at the Beach House for Canadian Thanksgiving, where we cooked a turkey and had our family over for supper, we were tight, but we managed with eight of us watching a football game and enjoying Canadian turkey. We also had two amazing days on the beach before the weather turned cold. A little last fling of summer for sure.

Here is a little Summer Recap from Instagram:

Thanksiving… Labour Day

August with my Sister…. Watching the view

Borrowing my Cousin’s car in July… at Cape Henlopen with MamaLang (we met through this blog and I cannot express how grateful I am to have met her and her family)

Now that I am missing Summer terribly, I will try hard not to wait as long between posts. I may even post from the beach again this weekend, we shall see.  Until the next time.

I have been trying to think of a way to share and post all about my amazing trip to New York City and after many edits and corrections, I decided the best way to start would be with an iPhone visual. I have so many amazing images both from my iPhone and my Nikon and I just wasn’t sure how to start.
As much as I would have loved to title this post ‘BlogHer’12‘ that is not what my trip was all about. You see my girlfriends, Krista and Brie, and I decided we wanted to go on a little girls weekend away. It just so happened that we enjoy attending conferences together so we combined both a girls weekend and a conference all in one in New York City.  We made sure we attended events connected to BlogHer’12 but we also did things in New York City that we wanted to do, mostly for me because although I have been to New York twice in the last two years (prior to this visit) I really had not seen much of the city.  I wanted to be sure to see more than the conference location and Times Square and I do believe that we accomplished that and more. We arrived before the conference began and left after it was over, taking our own time to explore and discover. Our only sad part is that one of our traveling companions had to change her plans at the last minute, but she was with us in spirit and was definitely missed.

A HUGE thanks and shout out to Ford Canada for the Ford Flex that we drove down. Hubby and I are interested in changing up one of our cars, so having the opportunity to try out several different vehicles from Ford for more than just a test drive around the block is very helpful in our decision making.  I will admit straight out that when they offered me a Flex to drive into New York City I thought they were crazy! The Flex is very roomy and very long, so I was a tad bit worried we were going to get sideswiped by a local driver. Thankfully with a few smiles a wave of my hand and an Ontario tag on the vehicle most native New Yorkers jumped at the chance to get out of my way.  The Flex is an amazing vehicle and if I could get away from the exterior looks I am sure we would be driving one in a minute.  We had both the legroom that I need and the power to pass a semi that I love. The Ford Sync is an awesome tool, we had three different temperatures going at one time and with a touch of the hand we could pull up our maps or bluetooth music.  I think the only true complaint would be the lack of luggage room, it is truly not meant for you to bring large suitcases and extra shoes. The drivers seat was super comfy, so much so that I didn’t realize that my right ankle was swelling on our drive down, thus the photo of my feet below. I should also say that I drove home from New York City (7.5 hours) switched suitcases and jumped into a teeny car for a trip to Delaware (8.5 hours) all in the same day, since I was so comfortable in the Flex, I was able to turn around and drive without any trouble at all, my ride to Delaware was definitely not as smooth, thus the interest in changing up one of our cars.

While in New York City, I had drinks with my good friends Jennifer and Laurel, attended a Tweetup with Kristie from Phoenix at the Roger Smith Hotel and saw Times Square both at night and during the day. I got to taste Magnolia Bakery, twice! See Grand Central Station, Shopped on Fifth Avenue, visited the New York Public Library, attended a party with amazing Canadians on a rooftop in SOHO thanks to Mom Central Canada, dreamed of a dress from Anthroplogie, had my nails done at the Four Seasons, ran in to my good friend and neighbour from home Allison (ok, we may have danced our pants off). Attended an amazing luncheon at Ruth’s Chris with Glamorous Moms. Saw Martha Stewart and Katie Couric in person and watch President Obama address attendees Live.  I learned a few new things at the sessions I attended and had a drill sergeant make me work hard like I was in the Army. Thanks to Pepsi we had dinner at the Rock Cafe in Rockerfeller Center and thanks to StumbleUpon I saw St.Patrick’s Cathedral and learned how to navigate North and South in NYC.

Thank you to One2One Network and The Moms for inviting me to the Premiere of “Won’t Back Down” where the stars of the movie, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Rosie Perez and Viola Davis arrived after the movie to talk about it and answer so many questions. I have so much to say about this amazing movie that it deserves a post of it’s own for sure. When it opens on September 28th you should all be in line for tickets. Make it a girls night out and bring lots of tissue. These amazing actresses show you how important it is to finish something you start and to not back down, no matter how many people tell you no when it is something you truly believe in. Based on true events you can only imagine parents and teachers needed to band together to fight for their children.

Phew.

I am sure I am missing so much, but really I could go on and on about the amazing six days I spent in New York. I ran into great friends and acquaintances and I got to drive in New York City, again! I look forward to my next visit and perhaps the next time I will have the chance to see a Broadway show or Late Night with David Letterman, I imagine I will need a few weeks to see the whole thing, so best not do it all at once.

A special thank you to Krista, Brie, Megan and Carla without you my trip would not have been the same.

It is amazing what people will do for just a smile and some kind words.

A book by Alli Worthington, get your copy today!

I would like to introduce you all to a good friend of mine. Her name is Pam. She has no idea that I am writing this post about her and that it leads to a special nomination. Pam and I are ‘In Real Life’ friends. We met about four years ago when our children were in Kindergarten, her youngest and my eldest.  I met her at a time when I could barely see straight, you see Apple was born on J’s first official day of school, so his first year is nothing more than a blur to me since Apple was much more work than her brother and somehow still is. She is much more demanding and vocal about everything. Some days I am just plain exhausted from all the talking.

Enter into this blur a special ray of sunshine that is Pam. Pam is mother of two, her daughter has been in J’s class for the last couple of years so we meet most days at the end of the school day and chat. Or maybe I should say I chat, Pam listens and offers amazing words of wisdom. Sometimes just talking to an adult can make all the difference in my day. I spend a lot of time working at home with Apple not far from me for half the day. By the time 3pm rolls around, I am finished work and thankful that the end of the day has come.

With the thought of this post in the back of my mind, I have spent a little extra care watching Pam. Pam is the Mom who gives her all to her children. The minute they exit their classrooms, Pam gives them her attention 100%. Questions about their day at school, time with their friends what they are going to do that evening. No matter what, Pam has loving words and lots of hugs for her children.  Pam also a frequent volunteer at the school, spending time in the classroom with her children and supporting the teaching staff. She also brings her children to Scouts and Girl Guides which means that she sometimes participates in weekend excursions camping and whatnot.

With all of this going on Pam still has time to listen to tales of woe from the rest of us (ok, me) and offer sound advice or just talk us down off that ledge. But the truth of the matter is that Pam deserves so much more than my thanks for her words of wisdom, she deserves to be recognized for all she does and more because even though it sounds like she is like the rest of us she is clearly not. You see Pam’s eldest son has autism, so he requires a little extra effort from his parents and teachers and others around him. He is lovely and does very well at school, but there is a little more that his Mom has to give to keep everything running smoothly. And she does it with so much Grace that you forget what she goes through each day. Forget that things aren’t always smooth sailing for her, and yet she smiles and listens and even does extraordinarily amazing things, like bring you fresh strawberries she picked because you are missing strawberry season or go out to hear her friends speak at a local blogging event (see photo above).

If there is anyone who deserves to be recognized as Walmart’s Mom of the Year it would be Pam. So with this post I am nominating Pam to win Walmart’s Mom of the Year award as she is so deserving in everything that she does for her children and those of us that know her.

You too can nominate someone you think should be recognized as Mom of the Year, just go to Walmart’s Mom of the Year site and enter your nomination there.

Disclosure: I’m part of the Walmart program by Mom Central. I received compensation as a thank you for my participation. The opinions on this blog are my own. Mom of the Year Award: NO PURCHASE NECESSARY Internet access and valid email account required. Nominations open May 10, 2012 to July 8, 2012 for legal residents of Canada over the age of majority.  Entrants cannot nominate themselves. One (1) grand prize available to be won consisting of $10,000 cash, a $100,000 donation by Wal-mart Canada Corp. to charity/cause and a trip to Toronto (ARV $22,000). Seven (7) runner-up prizes available to be won consisting of $10,000 cash, a $10,000 donation to charity/cause and a trip to Toronto (ARV $22,000).  Charity/cause subject to verification and final approval by Wal-mart Canada Corp., at its sole discretion. Odds of winning depend on how the judging panel evaluates each entry according to the criteria. For Official Contest Rules and to nominate an entrant, visit [www.momoftheyear.ca].