BMO Eco Smart Blog Tour and Giveaway!

Making a decision on which bank/financial company to use for your mortgage can be very overwhelming to say the least.  Nearly half of all Canadians are planning energy efficient upgrades to their homes in the next year as utility costs are a big part of home ownership so reducing costs is the smart thing to do.  BMO wants to reward homeowners who have done things to reduce their energy costs with a special mortgage rate.

BMO is introducing the Eco Smart Mortgage for Canadians who meet their energy efficiency criteria.  The Eco Smart Mortgage has a five-year fixed rate of 3.89% (subject to change)  which is lower than other comparable green mortgage products.  What the homeowner does is download the checklist for house or condo from the BMO.  After reviewing the checklist if the homeowner thinks that they qualify then they contact BMO and talk to a mortgage specialist.

I went through the checklist for our house and it's really easy to do.  To qualify your house has to have 6 out of 7   energy efficient features that are listed.  The list includes things such as appliances, window, doors, hot water tanks and furnaces.  Our house has 2 out of 7 and part of the appliance category which is a fail.  Our house isn't very energy efficient at all.  Coincidentally though our current mortgage rate is the same or lower than the 3.89% offered anyway without giving away the actual number.  We would love to have all the energy efficient features listed but the biggest thing holding us back is money!  Windows can get very expensive when there's a house full of them to replace.  We're just going to start small such as with doors and if the furnace kicks the bucket then we'll look at replacing that too.  For more information visit the website here.

I get the opportunity to give one of my readers a $50 Rona gift card!  For a mandatory entry you must comment about your efforts or future plans to make your home more energy efficient.  Contest is open to Canadians only and ends on May 15th.

For bonus entries:

1.  Follow with GFC and comment that you did
2.  Follow my facebook page and comment that you did
3.  Follow with networked blogs and comment that you did
4.  Subscribe by email and comment that you did

Disclosure – I am participating in the BMO Eco Smart Mortgage program by Mom Central Canada on behalf of BMO - Bank of Montreal.  I received a gift card as a thank you for my participation.  The opinions on this blog are my own.

Mommy Needs a Mental Break!!

I was surprised when my son went from 2 naps to 1 at 9 months old.  Most books say they usually do this at 18 months.  He was sleeping 11-12 hours a night though so his total sleep for the day was good so I didn't worry about it.  Now at almost 18 months I usually only get an hour out of him.  What can I do in an hour after having a shower??  Not much.  I get jealous reading about other children giving their parents 3 hours!!  I only wish.  I don't get that unless he's sick.

Today I'm getting no nap.  The routine is always the same, lunch, quiet activity, story then nap........or not.  He has in the past very very rarely missed his nap and I'd leave him in the crib for an hour for a little quiet time and mental break for me.  Well today that wasn't an option.  He's been sick for 11 days and still quite congested so when put down for his nap he began jumping in the crib (normal for him) which made him breathe faster and with the congestion it was hard for him to catch his breathe which led to coughing, then crying and hysterics so I couldn't leave him there!  I tried laying down with him (worked yesterday) but no luck so he's been running crazy all afternoon though not really bothering me too much so I guess that's almost like a break though I can't rest my eyes.

I'm hoping this is just because he's sick because when he's better I'll be trying my best to keep pushing a nap even if it means playing in the crib for an hour.  I can only imagine what'll happen when he goes into a big-boy bed in a few short months when the baby comes!  We'll see what tomorrow brings...........

My Review of Yo Gabba Gabba Muno Cuddle Pillow

Originally submitted at CSN Stores

Features:

• 100% polyester shell and fill
• Cuddle up with your favorite Yo Gabba Gabba character - Muno
• Spot clean only
• Coordinates with the Yo Gabba Gabba toddler bedding set

Yo Gabba Gabba Muno Cuddle Pillow

My son loves this!!

By carrieberry from BC, Canada on 4/10/2011

 

4out of 5

Yo Gabba Gabba is my 18 month old's favorite shows. The products can't be found in Canada so I was happy to order him the Muno cuddle pillow. He loves it. Muno sleeps with him in the crib for every nap and nighttime sleep.

(legalese)

10 weeks to go!!

Until I give birth give or take a week or two!  It's an exciting but scary thing because my son is only 17 months old.  I know what to expect for the whole birthing process and such but he's too young to understand what's happening right now so I'm not completely sure how to prepare him or how he's going to react.  I'm trying my best to have his new "big boy" room painted and prepared before the baby comes so he can get used to the idea.  I don't want to just kick him out of the crib right away so we have a bassinet the baby can sleep in for 2-3 months during which time I hope to get him used to a single bed.  Scares me to think that he won't even be 2 years old and he'll be able to get out of bed whenever he wants!  I plan on gating off the hallway and only giving him access to our room during the night.  Hopefully we won't be getting any late night visits too often!

I'm debating on getting another stroller.  He'll still be kind of young to be walking too far and right now he's in the habit of taking off so it's easier to contain him while shopping.  I haven't looked too much into double strollers but I know that I wouldn't want something huge!  I was thinking about the sit n' stand strollers.  These don't look overly big and would allow my son to stand or sit as he likes.  Now I understand how parents end up with 3-5 strollers.  We have 3 so this would be number 4.

Any advice for preparing a toddler for #2 or stroller recommendations??