We recently did some giveaways in our e-newsletter “Inside the Pea Pod” and would like to send out a BIG Congrats to:

Jennifer B. from Gold River, BC who won the Milkie’s Milk Saver from Bellies In Bloom Maternity

Leslie D. from Victoria, Chrissy W. from Duncan and Julia W. from Campbell River- Each won a pair of tickets from our recent Franklin the Turtle giveaway!

There are still tickets available at each of the upcoming Franklin shows in Victoria, Nanaimo & Campbell River! Check here for details!

In our May issue of “Inside the Pea Pod” we are giving away an awesome bike from West Coast Strider Sales. Sign up on the right hand side of our blog to receive our monthly e-newsletter & to be eligible for our exclusive prize giveaways!

I’d like to let small business owners know about a teleclass I am guest speaking at Tuesday April 13th at 1pm PST.
It is about exhibiting at events- How to choose the right one so that you are making the most of your time & advertising dollars and how to have success at the event.

Participating in a well run event can provide unique and extensive exposure for your business with a vast array of benefits

Here are some of the reasons businesses exhibit:

• To sell product

• Promote your business to your target demographic

• Collect contacts of qualified potential customers to follow up with after the fair

• Network with other business owners & exhibitors

• Reach your potential customers face to face, in real life.

• Survey & get feedback from those you are trying to reach

• Participate in any variety of pre or post fair opportunities

• Participate in any non-booth fair related opportunities for exposure

• Keep up with your competition

• Recruit reps for your business

• Benefit from the extensive marketing campaign of the event producer

• And the list goes on…

It can be a very cost effective way to spend your advertising dollars!

Once you have chosen a show that is right for your business, well advertised, well attended & organized- what do YOU need to do to achieve success for your business?
Join the teleclass to find out!

Sign up now with host Kim Page Gluckie of Mindset Marketing & Money!

I look forward to chatting with some of you!

Warmly,

Shirley Broback, Producer
Vancouver Island Baby Fair

So your little bundle of joy has arrived, and the weight gain you were hoping was mostly water and baby has not disappeared overnight. What’s a new mum to do? First, relax and give your body time to recover.  Your body has gone through incredible changes during the nine months of pregnancy; don’t expect to be back to your pre-baby self in a few short weeks.

Right after baby arrives, kegel, kegel, kegel! This often neglected exercise engages the pubococcygeus (or PC) muscle, helping to prevent urinary incontinence and uterine prolapse. Tighten your front and back passages, feeling a gentle squeezing and lifting in the pelvic area. Practice several times a day, varying the amount of time holding the squeeze, e.g. doing ten kegels, holding each for a count of three, then doing ten kegels in quick succession. Another important post–natal exercise is the pelvic tilt. Lying on your back with your feet on the floor, contract the PC muscle, imagining that your pelvis is a bowl filled with water that you are trying to spill onto your chest. In the starting position, you should feel a space between your lower back and the floor; as you tilt your pelvis, your lower back should be flat to the floor. Hold for a count of three, relax and repeat. Try three sets of ten repetitions to start.

When you feel up to it, short walks with baby are a great way to gradually reintroduce exercise into your daily routine. Each day, walk a little further and stimulate your body’s “feel good” chemicals, endorphins. Research has shown that exercise can reduce the risk of post-partum depression. Exercising with your baby is a great example for your little one, and the rest of the family!

The information provided in this article is of a general nature. Consult your health care provider before starting any post-natal exercise program.

Article written by Anna Wessell, instructor for Core Essentials’ Baby Stroller Boot Camp in Nanaimo, BC. She can be contacted at 250-390-3160, or email core_essentials@shawbiz.ca. Core Essentials is an exhibitor at the Vancouver Island Baby Fair in Nanaimo, June 5 & 6 at Beban Park Social Centre.

We were disappointing this week to learn the B.C. government decided to cancel funding for Success By 6 - an early childhood development initiative that the Vancouver Island Baby Fair has partnered with in the past. Luckily, public pressure appears to have gotten them to change their minds, so it looks like the program will still be around after all! News story here.

In 2008, Success By 6 was our charity partner, receiving a free exhibitor booth, exposure at the Vancouver Island Baby Fair and all the donations raised at the photo contest. The program is a partnership between the United Way, Credit Unions of B.C., local businesses like ours, and the provincial government. Their funding is being cut in half this year, and was to be eliminated in 2011. As of earlier this week, the government has said they’ll talk to Success By 6 and the United Way to find out just how much they need to make sure they don’t have to close down.

Not only does Success By 6 support hundreds of programs in areas like pregnancy and parenting support and early learning literacy and music programs, but they also provide an important bridge that enables the business community to become more involved in the community. Many businesses recognize the need to give back through community partnerships, but don’t always know how best to do that. Success By 6 helps to fill that gap.

We want to encourage you to write or email your MLA (look them up here) and urge them to make sure Success By 6 gets the funding they need. We haven’t seen any dollar figures or commitments for funding yet – just comments in a couple of news stories – so keep up the public pressure!

Today we attended Baby Days at Sears in Nanaimo North Town Centre and had the pleasure of meeting many new and expecting parents and grandparents! We did a draw for 4 pairs of Weekend Passes to the upcoming Vancouver Island Baby Fair, June 5 & 6 and would like to congratulate winners Rhonda S., Chrissy T., Trevor H., and Sue P.

Thanks to everyone for entering to win!

Those who missed out can still take part in upcoming giveaways by signing up for our e-newsletter. (See e-newsletter sign up on right hand margin of our blog)

We are thrilled to be part of the Sears Baby Days this weekend!

You’ll find us at Sears in the Nanaimo North Town Centre-4750 Rutherford Road this Saturday, March 20th from 9:30 until 1pm.

Come say hello and enter to win Weekend passes to the upcoming  Vancouver Island Baby Fair taking place June 5 & 6 in Nanaimo, B.C. at Beban Park Social Centre.

Originally posted by an exhibitor of the Vancouver Island Baby Fair, Cristi Lundman of HuckleBerry Baby Shop

Car Conversations: Courtship Camp

Tonight, I am definitely posting something different.  I recently shared this with friends on Facebook.  Everyone seemed to enjoy it to such an extent, that I am going to share it on this blog as well.  What follows was a conversation I had with my seven-year-old as we drove from the post office to Huckleberry Baby Shop yesterday.  Often vehicular discourses with our children can be the most revealing and entertaining of any conversations we have with them in a day.  What follows is a prime example:

Olivia: Mommy was there anything in the mailbox for me?

Me: No, just some bills for me.

Olivia: What about for Daddy?

Me: No, but he can share the bills with me. That’s what married people do.

Olivia: They share a bed too right?

Me: That’s right.

Olivia: That would not be good if the man was a really loud snorer. A woman should get to sneak in and listen to a man sleeping before she marries him. Hmmm. They should make a marriage camp that ladies can go to to pick out a husband. The men would have to go to stations and wear name tags so that the women could remember who the men were when they moved to the next station.

Me: That’s an interesting idea. What would take place at each station?

Olivia: The first station would be a sleeping station so that the woman could find out if the man snored loudly. It would be really hard to sleep and share a bed if he was a really loud snorer.
The next station would be an eating station. You would not want to marry a really sloppy eater.
After that, they would go to the bathroom station to check and see if they were very very stinky in the bathroom.
After that would be the waiting station. The man would have to sit for a very long time and the woman could watch him to see if he was patient.
The last station would be the love station. It would take place in a room decorated with pink hearts. The men would lay around on pink couches and the woman could look at them to see if she loved them.

Me: What about the men? Would they get to choose which women they loved?

Olivia: Yep. They could raise their arm on the couch and wave and yell, “Hey woman. I love you!”
The last part would be the pick-up area where the woman would get to pick up the man she chose. They would leave together to go plan their wedding.

Ideal courtship, according to Olivia, age seven!