Back-To-School Essentials For Tweens That Won't Break The Bank



My oldest, Emma, is going into grade 3 this year and I cannot believe I have a tween daughter! 
I still remember her first day of kindergarten like it was yesterday.
This is the first year that Emma no longer fits into the children's only clothing stores, so I was really excited when Sears Canada asked to partner with me for a back-to-school post.
I remember shopping at Sears Canada for back-to-school clothes with my grandma as a kid, so it was a no brainer saying yes to partner with them.


Emma has had a strong opinion on her clothing choices from a really young age, but more so now than ever.
She's at that age where she's starting to care about her appearance and wants to be on trend.
I let Emma have the majority of say when choosing her back-to-school clothes as long as it is appropriate (no crop tops in this house) and within our set budget.
Sears Canada has great selection for bigger kids like Emma, with clothing that is on trend and at affordable price points.
This Social Media Expert Shirt she chose was only $3.97 !!!!
Can you believe we #GotItAtSears ?!






 Emma's whole outfit is from the Sears Canada Private Label and the total cost of her outfit was only $40 !!!!
Emma asked if we could buy some stationary for her room to have on hand for any projects that come up over the year, so we were really excited to see that Sears Canada had several stationary sets to choose from.
We purchased the The Magic Maker set that came with a bucket of crayons, pencil crayons, markers & two notebooks for only $20!
We also grabbed this cute water bottle for $7.97 and this clear organiser for $8.





This post was sponsored by Sears Canada and was compensated for this post.
As always, all opinions are 100% my own.
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Windsor Essex Family Fun Guide


A couple weeks ago, my family went on a road trip to the Windsor-Essex area. I went to Windsor for the first time back in July on a girls trip with a few other bloggers and honestly, I didn't have high expectations.
I'd never had any desire to visit Windsor before because I thought it had nothing to offer - but I was SO wrong!
I had so much fun on that girls trip that I decided to go back again before the summer ended - this time with my family.
I had a bunch of questions from you guys on Instagram after I posted stories of our stay.
You guys wanted to know where we stayed and the must see places for families, so today, I'm sharing where to stay and what to do on a family road trip to Windsor, Ontario.


Stay in a Luxury Cottage



Is this not the most gorgeous little cottage you've ever seen?!
It's actually a luxury trailer and it was the perfect place for our family to stay while visiting the Windsor- Essex area.
It is located at Rochester Place Resort and our cottage looked out on a beautiful 18 hole golf course.
I wrote a review of our stay at Rochester Place Resort HERE.



Visit A Surf Shop


I first introduced you guys to Urban Surf in my Millennial Entrepreneurs post last month.
I knew as soon as I visited Urban Surf back in July that my family would LOVE it here.
Water sports, smoothies, good music playing, art and good vibes.
The staff at Urban Surf are so incredible it  literally feels like you are hanging out with best friends in California or something!
My kids asked me more than once if we could move to the Windsor area just so we could hang out at Urban Surf and paddle board all the time. 
We visited twice on our three day trip.
The first time Myself, Louis, Audrey and Luca went for a canoe ride while Emma stayed back and learned some skateboarding tips from the owner, Danielle.
We came back on the last day so the girls could go paddle boarding and they had a blast!
You can see more of our time at Urban Surf in the VLOG above.
 
Visit A Museum






On our second day in Windsor, Ontario we visited the Chimczuk Museum. I was actually super nervous to go visit a museum with the kids. Luca is four now, but he is a BUSY four and doesn't do all that well at quiet activities. I envisioned boredum turning into tantrums but thankfully, I was way wrong. The Chimczuk Museum is the perfect museum to visit as a family! They have this wonderful interactive children's gallery that the kids absolutely loved. You'll see in the VLOG at the top of this post all the fun they had.


 Eat At A Yummy Restaurant






After the museum the kids were hungry so we stopped at Bubi's Awesome Eats which was just a 5 minute walk away from the museum. It was featured on the Food Network and is known for it's copious garlic usage across the menu. We sat outside on a lovely patio to enjoy the beautiful sunny day and so Luca could walk around a bit. Like I said, this kid is busy haha.
My favourite dish off the menu were the garlic pizza crusts my daughter ordered. It was basically a giant plate of garlicky crusts (my favourite part of pizza)with dipping sauce. I highly reccomend this place if you are in the area.

 Splash Around At Adventure Bay 







 

 


















After Lunch we walked to Adventure Bay Family Water Park.
We were a little upset upon arriving because we found out they had temporarily closed the Cannon Cove Play area that Luca was really excited to play at but Adventure Bay has so much to offer we still had a blast! There were 10 water slides, a surf simulator, wave pool, lazy river, slides for the younger kids and more!
The kids didn't want to leave!

Thank you so much Tourism Windsor Essex Pelee Island for having us.
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Heading Back-To-School with Carter's | OshKosh


I have partnered with YMC and Carter’s | OshKosh and have received compensation for this post.
All opinions in the post are my own.

You may remember my post from last year when I took the girls back-to-school shopping at Carter's | OshKosh.
We have partnered up with Carter's | OshKosh again this year and I am so excited about it!
Carter's | OshKosh is one of our go-to's for our back-to-school shopping needs.

Do you want to win a $500 back-to-school shopping spree with Carter's | OshKosh ?!
Of course you do!
Canadian parents can submit a photo of your child to the My Canadian Cutie Contest and use the hashtag #MyCanadianCutie for a chance to win one of three $500 shopping sprees and a professional family photoshoot!
Click HERE to enter.
Carter's Chambray Tie-Front Shirt $4.99 | Carter's Floral Skort $4.99


This year is the first year that I have all three kids in school, which is really bitter sweet.
I've had at least one kid home with me since 2009!
I'm not sure whether I should throw a party the first day back or spend the day crying - I'll probably do a bit of both haha.
Buying back-to-school clothes for three kids can be quite costly, which is why I always shop a mix of the clearance rack and newer items to put together affordable looks.

Our oldest daughter, Emma, has unfotunately outgrown the clothes at Carter's | OshKosh so this year I took my youngest two shopping with me.

My middle daughter Audrey LOVES clothes.
Her love of fashion was even mentioned in her report card haha.
I may just have a future stylist or fashion designer on my hands.

 I told Audrey that she could pick her own back-to-school outfit this year but she had to choose one item from the clearance and one from the newer items.
My girl headed straight to the clearance racks to put together this adorable back-to-school look.
She found and fell in love with this Carter's chambray tie-front shirt and Carter's floral skirt which were both only $4.99 !!!

The clearance rack is usually filled with summery items this time of year, but pairing a skirt with a pair of tights like we did makes a perfect fall outfit without breaking the bank!

For my son, Luca, we paired newer full price pants with a clearance rack shirt but I will share his look with you in another post on the blog next week.








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Rochester Place Resort Review


Do you guys remember the girls trip I went on last month to the Windsor Essex area?
Well I had so much fun, I decided to go back again, this time with my family in tow!
Louis had booked off a week in August months ago, but we couldn't decide on where to go.
While visiting Windsor back in July, I had the opportunity to tour the luxury cottages at Rochester Place Resort, and immeditaely knew this would be the perfect place to bring my family for our little summer getaway.

The cottage itself is actually a trailer, but unlike any other trailer you have ever seen or been in.
The contemporary design and top of the line finishes throughout the cottage made it feel like we were staying in a high end condo.
The cottage comes with stainless steel appliances, vinyl flooring, quartz counter tops, a ton of storage space, and my personal favourite - the indoor/outdoor propane fireplace.
The model we stayed in was The Berry which offers 533sqft 1 bedroom, 1 bathroom.
The living room is furnished with a pullout couch, which Louis and I opted to stay in, so we could  watch our favourite shows on the wall mounted LED television.



The design and colour scheme of the cottage was so beautiful and calming.
The kids had so much fun eating their meals and snacks on the beautiful kitchen island where they could turn around and watch their favourite shows at the same time.



The resort offers a ton of recreational activities for the whole family as well.
There is a park and pool located on site as well as a recreational room where they host events and have it stocked with arcade games, board games and more for rainy days.






When the kids weren't busy swimming at the pool or playing at the park, they had a blast just enjoying the back patio of the cottage.
The patio is furnished with beautiful outdoor seating and a top of the line BBQ so you can make your meals and eat them together as a family.
Rochester Place Resort is the perfect place for a girls/guys weekend, couples getaway or family vacation.
These cottages are also available for purchase for as little as $200 Bi-Weekly.

Amenities Available

18 Hole Golf
Aqua Fit
5 Star Restaurant
Yoga
Playground
Weekly Live Entertainment
Kids Club
Ice Cream Socials
Pool & Splash Pad
Recreation Hall
Volleyball, Pickleball & Horseshoe
& More

Services

Golf Cart Permit
WIFI
Laundrymat
& More


For more resort info click  HERE
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My Favourite White Shirt




For the past five{ish} years my signature outfit has been a pair of jeans and a black t-shirt.
Pretty boring, right?
I wasn't always this boring when it came to my style, but in the midst of motherhood this style was just easy and comfortable.
I mentioned in a previous post that as the kids are getting older I want to start playing with fashion again.
I used to love shopping and putting together outfits.
I would spend hours at the mall, thrift stores etc putting together stylish outfits and I can't wait to get more creative with fashion now that I'll have more time on my hands when all the kids are in school.
I've been slowly introducing clothing items that I have shied away from the past few years into my wardrobe again, like this white open back top from Pink Blush.
For years I have been scared to wear white because of all the tiny finger prints I was sure to get on me but I'm ready to step outside my comfort zone and wear some lighter colours.
The material of this shirt is so comfortable and the empire waist hides all my mama lumps haha!
 



 **This is a sponsored post which means I was provided compensation and/or product for this post. As always, all thoughts and opinions are 100% my own. **

 
 
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