Earlier this fall, I attended Best Buy Canada's Smart Home preview event in Leslieville where their super smart technicians had decked out a spectacular home with the coolest (dare I say sexiest?) smart tech I have seen in a long time. From smart cameras and smart lighting to smart locks and smart alarms, the place was outfitted from top to bottom with the latest and greatest home security gadgets. On the top of my list of must-have smart home products? Philips Hue Personal Wireless Lighting.

You aren't mistaken. You did just read, "wireless lighting." Using Smart LED light bulbs along with a hue bridge and your smart phone, you can have customizable mood lighting at your finger tips. You can adjust bulb tone and contrast, choosing from up to 16 million different colours and various tones of white. You can also use a timer that lets you set your lights to turn on and off when you're not home or have them gradually illuminate by a few degrees at a time to gently bring you out of sleep. Philips Hue lights aren't cheap, though, but they estimate these bulbs will last over 15,000 hours. The Philips Hue starter kit seen above will usually run you $200 but it is on sale for $50 off at Best Buy until December 24.

In addition to Hue light bulbs, Philips also makes Bloom Luminaire lights, Hue Go Portable Lights which you can take with you from room to room, LightStrips for unique lighting options and Hue Iris Add-On Smart LED Lights that are dimmable and are able to sync with your music. And if that isn't smart enough for you, Philips Hue also works with Nest.

When you purchase a Nest Thermostat, Nest Protect or Nest Cam, they recognize other 'Works with Nest' products in your home and learn from one another. For example, you can connect the Philips Hue app to Nest and when Nest Cam senses motion in your home while you're away, Philips Hue lights can turn on and off as if you were home. Nest's newest product is their 3rd generation Learning Thermostat. It remembers what temperatures you like, learns your schedule, and programs itself to save energy. The LCD display is ultra sharp and lights up when you approach. It is WiFi connected so you can control it with your mobile device, too. Then there's the Nest Protect WiFi Smoke & Carbon Monoxide Alarm which can distinguish between levels of urgency in smoke and CO levels, and instantly send you alerts on your smartphone upon detection. And because it is part of the Nest smart home ecosystem, it can work with your Rachio Smart Sprinkler to turn on the outdoor sprinkler system when a fire is detected. How smart is that!

For more on the latest Smart Home products, visit the Best Buy Canada web site. And don't forget to check out some of the exclusive PayPal only deals at BestBuy.ca for more smart home product savings from December 12 to 14, 2015.

As the leading retailer for all things technology, it may come as a bit of a surprise that Best Buy has launched a new online shopping hub called VIVA. So now, in addition to their expansive array of technology offerings, Canadians can access everyday products ranging from health and wellness products and natural beauty products to items for baby and the latest fashion accessories, all in one easy place – bestbuy.ca. Because who doesn't love shopping online for a Maserati watch for your significant other during the wee hours of the morning, right? And afterwards, you can stretch out those hard-working fingers with a post-shopping yoga session using your newest Gaiam gear from VIVA, of course. 

The yoga mat is 3mm which is fine for me because I find when the mat is too thick, it is more difficult to maintain balance during standing poses. The strap is handy for wrapping around your feet if you have a hard time reaching them while in a standing or seated forward bend, for holding your arms in position during bridge or plow pose, or during shoulder stretches.

The Gaiam 3-in-1 Strap & Sling can also be used as a strap but because it is elasticized, I'd recommend using it more as a resistance band. It is also ideal for slinging your yoga mat, making it easier to carry.

A couple of weeks ago, Allison Tate published an article in the Huffington Post entitled, "The Mom Stays in the Picture." After having read it, I realized why the article kept showing up in my Twitter stream. It is a sobering reality that many moms feel the same as Allison who writes, "I avoid photographic evidence of my existence these days. To be honest, I avoid even mirrors. When I see myself in pictures, it makes me wince. I know I am far from alone; I know that many of my friends also avoid the camera." And while my friends may not exactly avoid the camera, many of them do feel reluctant to leave the comfort of being behind the camera in exchange for a position in front of it. The end result? A family scrapbook full of adorable snapshots of the kids but very few, if any, memories of mom for her children to look back upon.

Last Christmas, I received a #LittleHelp from Best Buy in finding just the right gift for the kids. When it comes to the latest video games, I could use all the help I can get. Thankfully, @BBYCanada came to the rescue and sent over a copy of the Mario Party 8 Wii game. And it was a hit! It's easy enough for my little ones to play but offers plenty of challenges and loads of fun. Not only does Best  Buy offer a list of Favourite Things that make wonderful gifts, but they also take great pride in being able to help Canadians with their tech troubles. Now they have taken it one step further with the launch of Twelpforce in Canada.

Twelpforce is Best Buy’s army of technology pros who are available on Twitter to answer any type of consumer tech question. Go ahead. Ask them anything you want. With their speedy service, you can get answers to your tech woes, whether big or small, from changing your mobile phone settings to hooking up your entire home entertainment system. All you need to do is send your question as a tweet to @Twelpforce and within minutes you will get a reply from some of the most experienced tech experts in the Twitterverse. And it doesn't cost you a penny. A brilliant idea, in my opinion!