The ability to snap quality photos with a point-and-shoot camera is now virtually effortless thanks to the 10.1 Megapixel Image Sensor and DiG!C 5 Image Processor of the PowerShot S200. The 3.0" LCD screen allows you to achieve true-to-life colour reproduction while the new Intelligent IS System automatically switches between seven different types of Image Stabilization controls. The end result? Mary Poppins approved photos that are practically perfect in every way. Even my eight year old daughter managed to take this lovely photo of myself modeling my outfit of the day. 

Above all, I was thoroughly impressed with the macro feature. Check out this close-up of a flower from my garden taken after a light rainfall.

It was also impressive to see how well the PowerShot S200 captured the rainbow of colours in this photo of handmade teacher thank you cards my daughter and I put together.

And the way it captured the contrast of light and dark while maintaining the vibrant colours of the outdoors is truly remarkable.

The Canon® PowerShot S200 is also great for taking video and offers 720p HD movie with stereo sound capability. Weighing in at less than half a pound, this camera sure packs a punch! It includes a wrist strap, a battery pack and a battery charger. Originally listed at $349.99, the PowerShot S200 is currently available at a cost of $249.97 at Staples. Fortunately, I have the opportunity to give one away to a lucky reader here on Toronto Teacher Mom! For a chance to win, complete the Rafflecopter form below. Open to Canadian residents only.

After a long week at work, regardless of the pending chores to be done around the house, I make it a priority to find some 'me time' that usually encompasses escaping reality and catching up on my favourite shows on Netflix. We recently re-subscribed to TV services but quite honestly,  I don't watch regular TV as often as I though I would. There's something about the nagging fear of missing a show or a movie that is set to run at a specific time that makes me choose Netflix in the end. No commercials. No set schedules. No worries about missing a good scene while you tend to the kids. Plus, with the exception of The 100, I don't have to wait a week for the next episode to air. Here are some of my favourite shows available on Netflix that I have enjoyed watching from beginning to end:

Orange is the New Black - Season 2 now available and even better than the first; a Netflix Original

House of Cards - Seriously bad in all the right ways, it's so good; a Netflix Original

The 100 - An apococalyptic sci-fi with a cool storyline and underwhelming acting; a Netflix Original 

Breaking Bad - I watched this one from beginning to end all on Netflix. Well worth it!

And here is a list of what I am currently watching or planning to watch during summer vacation:

Sherlock - No, he's no Robert Downey Jr. but he is quick-witted and charming.

The X Files - I'm sure I've seen most of the episodes when they first aired but I need to make sure.

LiylyHammer - My husband watched this and raved about it. A Netflix Original

Disclosure: I am a member of the Netflix Canada #StreamTeam and receive special perks as part of my affiliation with this group. Any opinions expressed in this post are my own.

This week, my grade 8 students graduated and I am so proud of their accomplishments. The ceremony was wonderful and my two grade 8 singers did a great job. They performed a rendition of "Say Something" while I accompanied on the piano (as best as I could). It was a special evening so it was a perfect excuse to get dressed up, put on some makeup and yes, I even plucked my uni-brow! My daughter took this photo before I headed out using the new Canon PowerShot S200 that Staples sent over as part of the #30SummerDays Photo Challenge. The challenge of the day was to snap a photo of your favourite pair of sandals. I went with my new pair of Michael Kors wedge sandals. The skirt is from Mexx and the top is from Mirabelli. It's the one I bought for my meet and greet with Oprah Winfrey and Christine Magee. I am also wearing some of the new Yves Rocher Summer Collection as well, including my coveted gold nail polish.

Stay tuned during the week to come. I'll be posting a giveaway for the same Canon PowerShot S200 valued at $349.99!

Participating in Wordless Wednesday? Link up using the thumbnail linky below!

Summer is officially here and what better way to ring in the sunshine with bright new makeup colours and refreshing scents. Now you can escape to the shores of the Mediterranean with the 2014 Summer Collection by Yves Rocher, the maker of Anti-Age Global. Begin with a fresh and sparkling Eau de Toilette with its subtle notes of flowering citrus. With a base of soft woody notes, you will discover the sensuality of a fragrance designed for summer by internationally renowned perfumer Francis Kurdjian. This 75 ml spray bottle contains botanical-based ingredients: bergamot, lemon and mandarin essential oils. Also available: Summer Collection Gel.

One of my favourites from this collection are the mini 3 ml bottles of nail polish available in five trendy shades to suit any mood: Gold, Copper Brown, Royal Blue, Bright Pink and Lemon Yellow. I am personally loving the gold nail polish to fancy up my little piggies. And it matches my new gold sandals, too!

These nail polish bottles are an ideal size for storing in your purse for touch-ups on the go.

With the Yves Rocher Crackle Nail Polish, you can get that cool graphic look everyone was raving about last year. I don't particularly care for the crackle style but they pair well with the Lemon Yellow and Royal Blue shades. Plus, it boasts a practical formula that dries fast.

For glamorous lips, check out the Summer Collection Lip Gloss. Get irresistible lips in Bright Pink, Copper Sun or Golden Beige. This paraben free formula has a delicious light fragrance that is easily applied using a soft applicator.

Tomorrow is the first day of summer and, for teachers like me, it is a welcome reminder that summer vacation is just around the corner. For the next two months, I'm taking the kids out of daycare to spend some quality time together, whether it be a day at the amusement park, a trip to the zoo, an overnight stay with the grandparents or just sitting down as a family on a rainy day reading our favourite books. And this summer, we will get to enjoy some new summer reads, e-book style, thanks to our new Kobo Arc 7HD.

Weighing in at a mere three quarters of a pound, the Kobo Arc 7HD is an ideal solution for those looking to buy an HD tablet for reading books, magazines and even comics. The 7-inch HD+ screen delivers beautiful 323 ppi quality and is easily customized for optimal reading or viewing enjoyment. It also comes with a built-in 1.3 MP HD camera as well as a 1.7GHz quad-core processor to accommodate your game-playing, movie-watching or web-browsing needs. You can even read your favourite blog, too. (Ahem!)

Apps for Android

• Feedly: A new way to browse the content of your favourite news sites, RSS feeds, tumblr blogs and YouTube channels.
• McAffee Mobile Security: Protects your Android tablet with award-winning antivirus, privacy and security software.
• Rdio: Get unlimited access to incredible music, create playlists, discover new artists, and share your favourite jams with friends.
• 7Digital: Search over 20 million songs and discover your next favourite tune wherever and whenever you want.
• Officesuite Viewer: The world's number 1 mobile office is a universal document viewer that allows you to open, print, and share any file format you want anywhere you want.
• PressReader™: Read over 2,000 full newspapers from over 95 countries, including every article, ad, crossword, and cartoons in this fully interactive app.
• Pocket: When you find something on the web that you want to view later, put it in Pocket.
• WildTangent: Get instant access to hundreds of games with the WildTangent Games app.

Borrow Library Books

These past few days, I've been reminiscing over the past by going through some of my parents' old photo albums. It reminded me that I should make prints of some of the thousands of digital photos on my computer. As I was going through my digital albums, I came across this old handmade birthday card I created using the Cricut Paper Pups cart. It made me smile!

Every year it seems to get harder and harder to find Father's Day gifts for my husband and for my father. Even when I do find something, I often second guess myself. And I hate that feeling. The other day, however, I thought of the great gift idea for my husband - a fire pit! It would be perfect for roasting marshmallows and s'mores or just to keep warm when entertaining guests in the evening. The problem is, our deck is made of wood which doesn't mix well with flying embers. It's a shame really, since I really like the one above that converts into an occasional table.

Currently on our deck, we have a simple patio dining set and a cantilever umbrella with a non-functioning lever. If I had my druthers, I would toss the umbrella and invest in a comfy sofa patio set just like this hometrends Rushreed 3-piece sectional I saw on the Walmart site. It includes a cute little ottoman that doubles as storage which can store the decorative pillows, also included. But I don't think it would make for an ideal Father's Day gift.

Then I thought of purchasing a flat screen TV to replace the tube TV my husband has had since long before we started dating. It's World Soccer Cup season and he's currently watching the games on the HP Rove20 we received as part of the HP back-to-school Brain Training Challenge last September. Surely a  larger flat screen would be a perfect gift, right? But, overwhelmed with myriad of choices, I opted instead for a power washer and it was just what he wanted. Let's see if he'll actually use it...

For my dad, I suggested a commemorative soccer shirt for my dad. And sure enough, my husband found one earlier today at Sporting Life. This Portugal Authentic League Polo by Nike is perfect for my father, a die-hard soccer fan. 

 

So, while my husband is at work tomorrow, I need to find time in between my son's soccer game in the morning and my daughter's tennis practice in the afternoon to pop by Walmart and pick up a power washer. Not to mention work on the final class set of reports I need to finish. And the do the laundry. And mow the lawn...

Next week, my son graduates from senior kindergarten. I'm not sure I'm quite prepared to accept that but I will, without a doubt, be prepared with my camera on hand to preserve the memories of his special day. In the meantime, as a Hallmark Press Pause Blogger Panelist, I wanted to share with you some graduation gift ideas from Hallmark. Read on and you will find a little giveaway for you, too!

School is nearing an end and parents are undoubtedly making plans for some summer fun with the family. But before we say goodbye to another academic year, we will likely be on the lookout for the perfect teacher gift that says, "Thank you for your dedication and hard work." While I sometimes struggle with what to buy for my children's teachers, I have been in the profession long enough to know that I personally do not need any more coffee mugs. (Although, they are always a welcome addition to the staff room kitchen cupboards!) I was recently approached by the lovely Nicole and Dana of myrealreview.com to participate in a Google Hangout where we discussed teacher gift options. In this candid video, I share some practical ideas as well as my personal favourite. This was taped on the Friday night before my son's LEGO® make-and-take birthday party while taking a break from cleaning the house and setting up decorations. Thus I make no apologies for my appearance. Ha!

In three weeks, I will finally be on summer vacation. I know, aren't I lucky? That's two whole months off to spend with the family enjoying the summer weather and heading out in the Jeep on day-trips. We hope to head out on a camping trip as well. I love camping! Packing up all the gear and making sure we haven't left anything behind? Not so much.

Planning a family getaway can be a little stressful, especially if you’ll be spending lots of time in the car for day-trips or heading overseas for a family vacation. You need to be prepared for the unpredictable and remember to bring everything that you need. To ensure your vacation starts off on the right foot, here is a list of top summer travel tips and tricks from my friends over at P&G along with some of my own:

"Mom, can I have a birthday party this year?"

Cue mom guilt.

My son turned six last month and, never having thrown him an official birthday party with his school friends, I couldn't possibly say no. I blame his melt-your-heart puppy dog eyes. Granted, we have always celebrated his birthday each year with family and close friends but I knew he desperately wanted to invite some of his friends from school and daycare. So off I went to Walmart in search of brightly coloured decorations and party supplies.

I found amazing deals on hanging decorations, tablecloths, napkins, paper plates and cups. We even ordered some helium-filled balloons from the party store. But with a house full of kids ranging from five to nine years of age, I felt a little apprehensive about how on I earth I could possibly keep them all entertained.

Luck seemed to be on my side when I happened across an email regarding Creative Club Inc. – "a unique concept in ‘edu-tainment’ that combines the fun and creativity of LEGO® building with education to help kids develop skills in important areas like problem-solving, team work, communication and presentation skills and overall confidence-building." Based in the GTA, Creative Club has been delivering programs to over 100 schools in the area for the past five years. In addition to their in-school programs, they also offer school break and summer camps as well as LEGO® birthday parties. When I browsed their selection of birthday party themes, I knew instantly that my son would love to host a Make-and-Take party where each guest gets to build and keep their very own racecar. After booking a date and time, I went ahead and custom designed the following Creative Club Inc. invitation. Isn't it cute?

Once the big day arrived, my son was bursting with excitement. With every knock at the door, he would run to greet his friends. They played, they laughed, they played some more. We ordered pizza and set out some fresh fruits and vegetables. 

It wasn't long until LEGO Man Rob arrived. Given that we had a dozen kids at the party, Rob brought along another team member to help with the build. They brought loads of LEGO and a special LEGO book to give the kids a brief history on the well-known bricks. For example, did you know that LEGO means "play well?"

Soon, the kids were each given a little basket full of different coloured bricks and tasked with building their first initial.

The kids took great pride in their final product. They even got to keep them and place them in the gift bag supplied by Creative Club Inc.

Now that "busy season" at my office has reached its conclusion, I thought I would take this opportunity to share with you one of my favourite subjects to photograph: birds.

Living in the Hamilton area, there are many excellent places to go birding. These include:

While Hamilton is easily dismissed as an industrial town, there are many green spaces to enjoy with your family. On a suggestion from a friend, I moved slightly out of the boundaries of Hamilton to attend a "Raptors in Focus" event at the Mountsberg Conservation Area.

The Mountsberg Conservation Area is located in Campbellville and is easily accessible from Highway 401 (if you are coming from the GTA) or Highway 6. One of the main features of Mountsberg is the Raptor Centre. At the Raptor Centre, employees and volunteers of the Halton Conservation Authority care for various raptors that are no longer able to be released back into the wild. Many raptors are in care at the Centre and include owls, hawks, eagles, and falcons.

One of the more frequently appearing raptors, is a Great Horned Owl named Octavius.

The Raptor Centre holds various events to promote awareness and education of various birds of prey. Available with general admission to the park is access to the Birds of Prey shows. These occur regularly on the weekends at 12 p.m. and 2 p.m. and at varying times during the week (depending on whether school is in session).

For those that are a bit more brave and have a few extra bucks, you can have a more private show by booking a Raptor Encounter. The Raptor Encounter allows you to have a personal introduction to some of the birds at the Centre. You may be able to experience some training or even hold one of the raptors!

On a monthly basis, the Centre holds a Raptors in Focus event. For a small fee, up to fifteen photographers can engage in a private photo shoot. During the hour-long event, four raptors are brought out and perched in a easy to photograph position. I attended two of these events this year. The first on March 29 and the second on May 31. It was a great experience and I believe that the results speak for themselves.

While it was quite cool (okay, freezing) in March, the surroundings were quite picturesque and allowed for great contrast between the bird and the background. The weather was much more friendly on May 31 and allowed for some more exploration of the park after the event concluded.

If you ever wish to attend a Raptors in Focus event, I recommend bringing a DSLR camera with a telephoto lens of around 200mm or more. A tripod is not necessary but may be advisable if you use a heavier lens. A shameless plug, but you can see more of my Mountsberg photos on my Flickr page.

There are plenty of other activities to enjoy at Mountsberg which include observing the bison, watching the nesting birds from the blind at the reservoir, attending the maple syrup event, enjoying the surroundings, etc.

I hope that in reading this post, you feel a bit more inclined go out and enjoy more of what nature has to offer. Don't forget to share some of your photos, too! Feel free to use the linky below.

Oh, happy June! For a while there, it seemed this month would never arrive. And we had that relentless winter to blame for it. Now that summer is just around the corner, I am going to soak up the nice weather as I count down to summer vacation. I may even consider bringing out the laptop and working on report cards while sipping pink lemonade on the patio. In fact, I'm going to embrace everything summer this month. With the Staples #30SummerDays photo campaign, I am going to be taking pictures that capture summer moments and sharing them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Using the calendar I designed below as inspiration, you can join in, too. Just be sure to tag your photos with the #30SummerDays hashtag.

On Day 1, we're sharing photos of something that brings us luck. I took this photo of the half-heart necklace charm my husband and I received as a wedding gift from his relatives in Italy. On our first anniversary, I had our first initials engraved; mine on his and his on mine.

At the end of the month, I will be giving away a WiFi-enable point-and-shoot camera similar to the one Staples sent me for this campaign. So stay tuned to find out how you can win. Participation in the photo challenge is not required but if you still want to share, tag me in your tweets and posts so I can see some of your #30SummerDays photos!