This Saturday, Vancouver Island Baby Fair producer Shirley Broback will be out at the last in a series of special events leading up to the Baby Fair on Sept. 26 & 27. Shirley will be at Sprouts Children’s Boutique on Saturday from 12-2pm. For these two hours only, advance tickets will be available to “buy 3 – get 1 free”, plus Sprouts is putting the entire store on an extra 10% off on in-stock items (including sale items already marked down 50-70% off!). In addition, everyone who places an order for a Bumbleride stroller during the event will get a free snackpack.

We’ll also be promoting Shirley’s SavvyMom Entrepreneur of the Year award nomination and campaigning for votes! Online voting ends this Sunday, Sept. 13, so please vote now!

There will be treats, refreshments, balloons and face painting for the kids too! AND on top of it all, visitors can also enter our draw for $25 Sprouts Gift Certificate!

Hope to see you at Sprouts, 202-536 Herald St. in Downtown Victoria, on Saturday, Sept. 12 from 12-2pm!

Come visit us at Mothering Touch Centre (975 Fort St.) this Tuesday, Sept 8th from 1-3pm for our pre-Baby Fair mini event! We’ll be there promoting the Vancouver Island Baby Fair with tix on sale for $5 each or buy three-get one free! (Weekend Passes are regularly $7 at the door)

We’ll also be promoting Baby Fair producer Shirley Broback’s Savvy Mom nomination and campaigning for votes! Click here to vote now.

There will be treats, refreshments, balloons and face painting for the kids too! AND on top of it all, Mothering Touch Centre is putting EVERY THING IN THE ENTIRE STORE 20% off, ONLY during the time we are there, from 1-3pm.
Visitors can also enter to win a 3 pack of baby legs!

Hope to see you there on Tuesday from 1-3pm at Mothering Touch Centre!

Come to JamTots Baby & More Store this Saturday, September 5th for their pre-Baby Fair mini event!
From 12-2pm only, Shirley Broback, Producer of the Vancouver Island Baby Fair will be there promoting the Baby Fair and her Savvy Mom Entrepreneur of the Year nomination.

During this time only, advance Weekend Passes for the fair will be on sale: Buy three and get one free. (And they are only $5 each when purchased in advance in the first place!)
All regular priced diapers are 20% off and all Stonz Infant & Toddler Booties and Stonz Linerz are 20% off as well.

While you’re there, be sure to enter to win a Baby Ganz Frog Security Blanket and a Frog Family Pull Toy! We’ll have snacks & refreshments, balloons, and face painting too! And please don’t forget to vote for Shirley Broback as Savvy Mom Entrepreneur of the Year!

All these special offers are only from 12-2pm only on Saturday, Sept. 5th at JamTots Baby & More Store, 748 Goldstream Ave.

Hope to see you there!

The Vancouver Island Baby Fair has been featured on UrbanMommies.com! This post is copied from their feature. The original post is here.

Picture this: Victoria in September. Leaves falling on the Empress; late summer flowers making their final show; parliamentiarians bustling about… and thousands of moms and babies descending upon the Pearkes Recreation Centre to attend the annual Vancouver Island Baby Fair. Bobs and Lolo will sing and dance, and so many photos of babies will be snapped that you might think that there is paparazzi in the room… oh yes, and Urban Mommies will be there with bells on (or very cool give-aways anyway).

Vancouver Island Baby Fair creator and producer Shirley Broback has been hard at work on the show, and has been nominated for the SavvyMom Entrepreneur of the Year award. With a grand prize worth $15,500 in prizes, we’d love to help her along! Shirley works hard all year long to create a fantastic event that celebrates the growing families on Vancouver Island, and provides a great marketing opportunity for businesses like Urban Mommies. Please visit Shirley’s nomination page and vote.

www.vancouverislandbabyfair.com
$6 per person, Children 12 and under are free
Saturday, Sept. 26/09: 10am-5pm
Sunday, Sept. 27/09: 10am-4pm
Pearkes Recreation Centre
3100 Tillicum Road

Come see us on location at our Pre-fair Mini-Events!
What are we doing? Promoting the upcoming Vancouver Island Baby Fair, as well as Baby Fair creator and producer Shirley Broback’s Savvy Mom Entrepreneur of the Year nomination. Vote! Vote! Vote!

We’ll be offering special deals: Weekend passes for the Vancouver Island Baby Fair (Buy three, get one free!), doing face painting, and serving up special treats, refreshments & balloons. You’ll also find special discounts on store products only during the hours that we are there… and you can enter to win fab prizes!

Saturday, August 29th – 1pm-4pm
Bellies In Bloom Maternity Store – #104-4489 Viewmont Ave. (Royal Oak Shopping Centre)
You can enter to win a beautiful Smart Mom Teething necklace, plus all of Bellies In Bloom’s new See Kai Run shoes are 25% OFF for this limited time only! Don’t miss out!

Other Upcoming In-Store Events:
Saturday, Sept 5th – 12pm-2pm
JamTots Baby & More Store – 748 Goldstream Ave.   

Tuesday Sept 8th – 1pm-3pm
Mothering Touch Centre – 975 Fort St.

Saturday Sept 12th  - 12pm-2pm
Sprouts Children’s Boutique – 202-536 Herald St.

For details on the discounts and prizes at these other pre-fair mini-events, join us on Facebook or Twitter, or subscribe to this news feed.

The full main stage lineup has been announced for the upcoming Vancouver Island Baby Fair. Enjoy this unique opportunity to see several parenting professionals & great children’s entertainment all under one roof! We are so excited to announce our headline children’s performers: The Kerplunks on Saturday, September 26 and Bobs and Lolo on Sunday, September 27!
All speakers and performances are included with the price of admission to the Vancouver Island Baby Fair.

SATURDAY, SEPT. 26 MAIN STAGE BIOS:

The Kerplunks
12:00pm and 2:00pm
Called “Canada’s hippest new children’s entertainers,” The Kerplunks play catchy tunes guaranteed to get kids engaged, singing along, and joining in on the actions. They’ll have kids of all ages groovin’ to the music!

This four-piece band has won many awards including the 2008 Western Canadian Music Award for Outstanding Children’s Recording, and 2008 Canadian Folk Music Award for Children’s Album of the Year, and was nominated for a Juno in 2009! The Kerplunks will feature songs from their brand new album, “Walk On,” and their debut self-titled CD.

Eva Bild
1:00pm – Brilliant Babies: How our babies can teach us to breastfeed – if only we listen!
Human babies are born with a whole repertoire of reflexes which help them to get to the breast and feed. Our culture, with its birthing Practices, clothes, furniture and sleeping & eating patterns, does not give our babies much of an opportunity to show what they are capable of. Can we adopt a more “laid-back” approach to feeding and nurturing our babies which makes it possible for them to teach us what they are born knowing? Learn about the baby’s natural habitat, preferred positions and instinctual behaviours. And maybe, once we understand our babies better, we can live with them and care for them more easily.

Eva Bild is a Childbirth Educator, Doula and Breastfeeding Educator. She has been working with birthing families since 1992. She is the owner of the Mothering Touch Centre and the mother of three (almost) grown children.

Shirley Broback
1:30pm – Where do we start? Becoming a Mom-entrepreneur
Shirley Broback is the creator and producer of the Vancouver Island Baby Fair. She took her diverse interests and experience in the perinatal field, sales, marketing, and event planning and combined them to create an event that gives new parents a place to learn, to shop, and to be welcomed with their little ones. Shirley will talk about the benefits and challenges of becoming a mom-entrepreneur, with a focus on the steps you need to take if you’re serious about starting your own business.

Shirley is currently a nominee for the SavvyMom Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Please take a moment and cast your vote for her online.

Cristi Lundman
3:00pm – A Bum Wrap: Cloth Diapering Solutions for every Budget and Lifestyle
Cristi has a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from UBC and has spent the majority of her career working with expectant parents and families with young children. She runs Huckleberry Baby Shop in Nanaimo, providing cloth diapering and baby wearing products and information to parents. By far, her most important role is “mommy” to three little girls.

Join Cristi to explore how easy, affordable, and fun cloth diapering can be. Learn about the various diapering systems available today and gain insight into why cloth diapering has become the newest hip and eco-friendly thing to do!

Lisa Argue
3:30pm – Foster Parent Support Services Society: Room for One More
Do you have room for one more? On Vancouver Island there are more than 1500 children from newborn to age 19 that need a temporary home. Are you a family that can provide loving care, support and a safe environment to these children in our community who need our help? Learn more about these children and how together we can make a difference. Lisa Argue is the South Island Recruitment Coordinator with Foster Parent Support Services Society – a Grass Roots, non-profit organization that is committed to providing meaningful and accessible support, education, and networking services for the foster parents of the Vancouver Island Region. Programs include: the BC Foster Care Education, Mentoring, Safe Babies, Advanced FASD Caregiver, Foster Hope Recruitment, and Protocol Support Team as well as numerous on-going training, workshop and networking opportunities.

The FPSSS is the charitable partner for the the Vancouver Island Baby Fair’s fundraising efforts through our Photo Contest, face painting, and stroller parking.

Amie Brotsky, RMT and Dr. Maja Edgar, DC
4:00pm – Benefits of Chiropractic and Massage during Pregnancy
Is your body feeling ready for pregnancy? Beginning to notice aches and discomfort while you’re pregnant? Interested in having your body as ready as possible for delivery? We’ll discuss what to expect during your appointments, postural symptoms that may occur during pregnancy, how things like low back pain, sciatica, or swelling may be addressed through treatment, how to support your body post pregnancy and the benefits of adding massage therapy and chiropractic to your health team.

Dr. Maja Edgar, D.C. is a member of the International Chiropractic Pediatric Association. Dr. Edgar has a special interest in the areas of chiropractic that include pre and postnatal care, and childcare. Amie Brotsky, RMT has been a Registered Massage Therapist for 4 years and a body worker for 10 years. She is currently a teacher at the West Coast College of Massage Therapy. Both work out of John Douglas Chiropractic & Massage.

SUNDAY, SEPT. 27 MAIN STAGE BIOS:

Bobs and Lolo
12:00pm and 2:00pm
Bobs & Lolo will bring their energetic and colourful show to the main stage on Sunday. Young fans will recognize this duo from their video on Treehouse TV!

Bobs & Lolo are dedicated to connecting kids to the natural world with music, movement and make-believe. Sharing musical stories that engage, inspire and educate, they teach kids to care about themselves, their neighbours, and the planet. Their latest album, “Action Packed,” earned them a 2009 Parents Choice Gold Award.

Kristin Van den Bos
1:00pm – How & Why to Wear Your Baby
Kristin Van den Bos is a mother of three who has a passion for babywearing and natural childrearing. She and her mother, Suzanne, designed the West Coast Sling and are the founders of Baby Slings Canada. She has 9 years of personal experience researching and using many different baby carriers and has been working for the past 3 years helping new parents realize the ease and benefits of babywearing.

Kristin will discuss the benefits of babywearing from infancy through toddlerhood, as well as the benefits of different types of carriers to help suit individual needs.

Diana Cronin
1:30pm – What is HypnoBirthing?
Afraid to give birth? Afraid of the pain and complications? This fascinating childbirth program allows you to give birth in a calm, relaxing, and stress free way. HypnoBirthing reduces and often eliminates the need for chemical painkillers, shortens the first phase of labor and leaves the mother alert, awake and with energy to bond happily and healthily with her baby.

Diana is a HypnoBirthing practitioner with Victoria HypnoBirthing, certified by the HypnoBirthing Institute using the Mongan method developed by Marie F. Mongan. Diana is the mother of four, all born in a natural and calm manner. It was during the birth of her first grandchild that Diana learned about HypnoBirthing. She was so impressed by the program she decided to become a practitioner so she could share this gift with other women.

Drew Binette
3:00pm – BC Ambulance Paramedic, St. John Ambulance: Infant First Aid and Choking
St. John Ambulance is Canada’s leader in First Aid. Thier award-winning courses teach the skills necessary to care for infants, toddlers and pre-schoolers and emphasize safety, dealing with emergencies, and first aid basics, Come see our infant CPR demo on the main stage and see if you would know what to do in an emergency

Advance tickets for the Vancouver Island Baby Fair are now on sale!
You can purchase your Weekend Passes for $5 at these participating stores:

Bellies In Bloom Maternity Store – #104-4489 Viewmont Ave (Royal Oak Shopping Centre), Victoria
JamTots Baby & More Store- 748 Goldstream Ave., Langford
Kinderbeez Children’s Consignment – #110-2755 Beverly St., Duncan
Mothering Touch Centre – 975 Fort St., Victoria
Sprouts Children’t Boutique – 202-536 Herald St., Victoria
The Good Planet Baby Company – 1005 Broad St., Victoria

You can also get tickets at the door during the weekend of the fair, Sept. 26 & 27 for $6/day or $7/Weekend Pass.
Kids 12 and under are free.
Fair location: Pearkes Rec Centre, 3100 Tillicum Rd., Victoria BC.

Our friend Charlotte Wood-Dobson leaves today on a trip to Africa with Watoto. Over the past month, Vancouver Island Baby Fair producer Shirley Broback helped Charlotte reach out to the community for donations of new underpants for girls in Gulu village. Read the full story here.

‘A’ News reporter Astrid Braunschmidt (who also travelled to Uganda recently) did a story on Charlotte and Shirley’s efforts:

We are so excited to announce our headline children’s performers: The Kerplunks on Saturday, September 26 and Bobs and Lolo on Sunday, September 27! Admission to these great performances for toddlers and preschoolers is included in your admission to the Vancouver Island Baby Fair!

The Kerplunks – Saturday, Sept. 26 – 12pm and 2pm
Called “Canada’s hippest children’s entertainers,” The Kerplunks play catchy tunes guaranteed to get kids engaged, singing along, and joining in on the actions. They’ll have kids of all ages groovin’ to the music!

This four-piece band has won many awards including the 2008 Western Canadian Music Award for Outstanding Children’s Recording, and 2008 Canadian Folk Music Award for Children’s Album of the Year, and was nominated for a Juno in 2009! The Kerplunks will feature songs from their brand new album, “Walk On,” and their debut self-titled CD.

Bobs and Lolo – Sunday, Sept. 27 – 12pm and 2pm
Bobs and Lolo will bring their energetic and colourful show to the main stage on Sunday. Young fans will recognize this duo from their video on Treehouse TV!

Bobs & Lolo are dedicated to connecting kids to the natural world with music, movement and make-believe. Sharing musical stories that engage, inspire and educate, they teach kids to care about themselves, their neighbours, and the planet. Their latest album, “Action Packed,” earned them a 2009 Parents Choice Gold Award.

Our full schedule of speakers will be announced soon. To be notified when it is announced, you can subscribe to our blog, follow us on Twitter, or join our e-Newsletter. (We recommend doing all three!)

Exhibitor space is now 90% 95% full! If you’ve been thinking of participating, call now! 250-686-5693.

Highlights of the fair for our 5000+ attendees include:

• On site photo studio/Photo Contest
• Main Stage with full line up of guest speakers & entertainers
• Unique shopping
• Excellent resources
• Kids Corner
• Baby Feeding Area
• Diaper Change Zone
• Prizes, Samples and much more!

Be sure to check out testimonials from exhibitors of previous Baby Fairs.

(Post updated Aug.7, 2009)