Give Gifts that keep Giving with World Vision

Halloween is over. And even though you won't hear Christmas music in Shoppers Drug Mart, all the stores are stocked with Christmas items and gifts.

Could you imagine giving someone a goat, chicken or cow for Christmas? With World Vision, you can.

I am very thankful that Hannah (and I) were born in a country where we don't need to worry about access to clean water, feeling cold at night or receiving an education. Many children in other countries aren't so lucky.

At SCCTO I met some folks from World Vision and they provided me with their Christmas 2012 Gift Catalogue. (You can view items online here.) I also was given this uber pretty bracelet, which, as you can see, Hannah is a fan of as well. The proceeds from this bracelet go to World Vision programs that help women and girls escape exploitation and abuse around the world. There are other handcrafted gifts you can purchase for a loved one that all support World Vision programs.

There are all types of gifts you can give - as I previously mentioned, you can buy animals. And medicine, food, clothes, and classroom supplies. Soccer balls, musical instruments and toys. You can even give a community the gift of solar power.

All the gifts you can give have a lifetime impact. You can also buy gift cards and let the receiver decide what gift to give.

Lydia, a seven-year-old from Uganda whose family received a goat and sheep, says, "We can sell the baby animals to buy clothes, shoes and books for school."

If you want to help children closer to home - you can. Did you know one in five Canadian children go to school hungry? You can feed hungry Canadian families or provide school supplies to a Canadian child in need.

Last year, as part of my Christmas gift, Chris "bought" me a Polar Bear from the World Wild Life Fund. This year, World Vision is my charity of choice. I'm debating between a pig and medicine - either way, I know my gift will impact someone's life.

Do you buy Christmas gifts that support charities?

Disclosure: I did not receive compensation for this post. All language and opinions are my own.

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

The Top 5 Things I Learned at ShesConnected 2012

As previously mentioned, last weekend I attended ShesConnected Conference, a two-day blogging conference in Toronto.

I met lots of awesome people - bloggers and brand representatives. And I'm still in awe of all the swag (favourites in my house - Hannah loved her Telus stuffed animal, I loved the gift certificate from Molson Canadian 67 and Chris really likes my "Baconista" tee from Maple Leaf Foods).

However, the most important reason I went to the conference was to LEARN how to be a better blogger (and in some cases, a more law-abiding one).

Without further ado, here is my top 5 things I learned at ShesConnected.

1. When uploading your posts to Facebook, use a picture. Pictures get more real estate in people's news feeds and Facebook users are more likely to interact (ie "Like") a picture than they are a status.
2. Brands follow bloggers on Twitter to check them out. Make sure your Twitter account is a true reflection of who you are. If you want to work with a brand, like them on Twitter and engage them - that should get you on their radar.
3. If you approach a brand (which was highly encouraged by many of the speakers and panelists), detail exactly what you want from them AND exactly what they will get for sponsoring you. Highlight uniqueness.
4. If your blog earns more than $10,000 a year the government wants to know about it. Bad news - ANYTHING you received for free to review is included in your annual income. Good news - anything you review which you purchased can be included as an expense. The speaker of this session was excellent, you can follower her @shoeboxbegone.
5. It is illegal to ask people pay to enter contests. The legal session definitely scared me the most, and I left with more questions than answers (we only had 45 minutes after all), but if you do giveaways on your blog I would definitely check out the Competition Bureau website to make sure your giveaways are legit.

Additionally, I learned that no one looks like their cartoon avatar. Glad Chris, Hannah and I aren't alone. :)

Did you attend ShesConnected? What did you learn if you did? If you haven't attended a blogging conference, what would you hope to get from it?

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.

YYZ Without Bambina

For the past two days I was an attendee at the ShesConnected Conference at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. I networked with many other bloggers and learned loads from the panelists, speakers and keynotes. I also got a LOT of great swag from generous sponsors who I hope will work with me someday. I know my attendance has made me a better blogger, and in turn, will make YYZ Bambina the best blog it can be.

But I really missed my daughter. A LOT. There were a few babies at SCCTO, and every time one of them fussed or giggled my heart hurt a little.

Chris was nice enough to switch his days off so he could be home with her. Secretly, I think he was just excited to have two full days of Daddy-Daughter time. Therefore, I wasn't worried that she wasn't being taken care of. I tried to keep the texts and calls to a minimum, and thankfully there was so much going on at the conference I didn't have too much time to dwell on my MIA mini-me.

Baby checks out Mommy's blog

I have no idea how I will handle going back to work in less than 3 months. I like my job and have amazing coworkers, but that doesn't mean I'll miss my daughter any less. I carried her for 9 months and by the time I go back will have spent almost every waking moment with her for 12.

Equipped with this new blogging knowledge from SCCTO, perhaps eventually I will be able to support my family with income I earn from home. While being with my daughter. One thing I learned from networking this weekend is that this is possible.

Former Cosmo Editor-in-Chief and New York Times bestselling author Kate White, a keynote speaker at SCCTO, shared one of her tips for success with us - "Go Big or Go Home." I'm going to personalize it to work for me. I'll Go Big TO Go Home.

 How do you deal with missing your kid(s)?

© 2012 YYZ Bambina. All Rights Reserved.