All That Glitters Christmas Party!

Saturday, December 11th, 2010 was momstown Oshawa - Port Perry's first annual Christmas Party! What a fantastic start to this new annual tradition! The party was open to all momstown Oshawa - Port Perry families, not just moms and kiddies! Dad's came out too! The event was held at Boston Pizza Oshawa where a special menu of All You Can Eat Pizza and Pop for $10 was offered! Rice Krispies also sponsored the event and so there were lots of yummy Rice Krispies square "presents" for the kids to snack on (although some couldn't help but snack on the Rice Krispies Christmas Tree as well). There was also a gift from Rice Krispies that was raffled off and won by one lucky mom who is sure to be baking up a storm with all the great items in the gift bag!

 As soon as the children arrived they went straight to work! They decorated cardboard gingerbread men with all sorts of creative materials including felt, sparkly beads, glitter glue, googly eyes, pom poms, stickers, foam shapes, sequins, ribbon, markers and more! They also made some more Glittery Snowflakes (as they had at our ornament making event earlier in the week) since they were such a hit the first time around! The children enjoyed them just as much this time! Also using the same idea as the Glittery Snowflakes, the children made Glittery Christmas Trees as well! Using a brown pipe cleaner as the trunk and bending it at the top to make a hook for hanging on the tree, these ornaments were easily made by using sparkly green pipe cleaner to wrap around the "trunk" to make the branches and then decorated with sparkly beads!

The children also had blocks and Christmas books available to them to play with on the floor to keep them busy!

As everyone gathered around to enjoy each others company, a very special guest arrived!

The children all took turns meeting Santa and telling him all about the things that they wished for, for Christmas!

Some children were a little too shy to sit on Santa's knee and so instead made it as close as they had to in order to receive their present! Even if Santa didn't get a hug or a high five, he still gave each child a brand new book wrapped up with a candy cane!

Then we had a special surprise visit from Boston Pizza's Lionel! Santa and Lionel gave each other a hug...

which was followed by some of the children giving hugs to Lionel...

and of course, more hugs for Santa!!!

Thanks again to Santa for taking time out of his hugely busy schedule to come see all the families of momstown Oshawa - Port Perry and for bringing all of the children presents!!! Also, to Boston Pizza Oshawa for providing us with a location and delicious Pizza lunch! And finally, to Rice Krispies for the tasty treats and special gift!

We were so thrilled with the excitement and fun surrounding our first Christmas Party! momstown Oshawa - Port Perry plans over 25 events per month to help get moms out of the house and meeting new moms, but it is always the bigger events like this that really bring families together! Thanks everyone for coming out and participating in this event! Hope to see you all again next year...and some new faces too!

Parenting Seminar with Nanny Robina!!!

Parenting Expert Nanny Robina, as seen on "The Mom Show", NBC and CityLine, is going to do a seminar for momstown Oshawa - Port Perry members as well as sleepless non-members! The main topic? You guessed it - SLEEP!!!

Here's what Nanny Robina has to say about this seminar:

"Hi Moms, come and join me for a chat on how to get your baby to sleep through the night...

This class is very informative and sprinkled with lots of fun. Listen on how a few small changes to your day time schedule could be the answer to the gift of sleep, or how a little patience and perseverance could have your baby sleeping unassisted! How to transfer your baby from crib to bed and how to keep that run away toddler in bed! Need to know how to soothe, then join my class and learn with a few simple techniques.

I am here to teach you how not to be defeated!

This class is approx 90 minutes with Q&A period to follow."

The date of seminar is Sunday, November 21st from 1-3 pm. The fee is just $20/mom. momstown members can pay via paypal right from the event listing on our calendar, but if you or a friend have not yet joined momstown but would like to attend the seminar, please email info.oshawa-portperry@momstown.ca and directions to the location will be given to you and payment arrangements can be made! All registrants must pre-pay for this class!

Nanny Robina has done presentations for other momstown chapters as well! Here is the testimonial from Barrie:

momstown Barrie
Feb. 2010
Topic: Sleep - covering all the reason on why your baby will not sleep through the night and much more.
From sleep to bullying, picky eaters to potty training, we talked about it all.
· How do you get your toddler to stay in their own bed?
· Was it normal for their child to prefer to sleep on a cold floor rather than a warm bed?
· Is it ok if their child prefers to snack all day instead of eating meals at the table with the family?
· How do you discipline a child that finds joy in pushing their sibling down?
· How do you get your child to poop on the potty? And the questions went on from there!
Each question came with an informative and insightful answer, coupled with a witty and often hilarious anecdote from her years of experience.
The moms all left with ammunition on how to tackle their unsuspecting children.
Thank you Nanny Robina!
Karrie - barrie.momstown.ca

Ladies, you won't want to miss this!!! There are only a couple of spaces left, so act quickly!

Email: info.oshawa-portperry@momstown.ca

momstown will provide light snacks and refreshments.

This is a babes in arms only event! No mobile infants/toddlers/children. We want to be able to focus on learning all Nanny Robina has to offer!!!

Picasso's at My House or Your House?

"Picasso's in the Park" is a famous event held at all 18 chapters of momstown.ca that involves, you guessed it, art activities in the park! It is so much fun for kids of all ages to be given the chance to get creative, make beautiful masterpieces, and sometimes, get a little messy! Children work on many areas of development including cognitive, fine and gross motor, and social emotional (a big one for the kids and moms)!


With this cold weather we are now getting, and with the end so very far in sight, momstown Oshawa - Port Perry decided to bring "Picasso's" inside! In the spirit of November's theme, "My House, Your House" momstown members were given the opportunity to host the event! momstown brought all of the art supplies including paper, paint, markers, crayons, modelling clay, scissors, pipe cleaners, pom poms, sparkles, stickers, glitter glue, foam letters and numbers, feathers and glue.

The kids got busy, and yes - a little messy! But they all had fun, including some of our younger members who watched from the sidelines with a huge smile!

After the little "Picasso's" were finished creating, they did a little role playing, building with blocks and worked on a couple of puzzles! The hostess' home was one of all girls, but even the boys enjoyed the princess stuff! ;)

"Picasso's at My House or Your House" was so much fun, momstown Oshawa - Port Perry will be sure to put it on the calendar monthly until our beloved "Picasso's in the Park" returns!

Halloween Boo Bash!

Our little goblins couldn't wait until the 31st to start celebrating! The day before Halloween, all the little momstown ghosts and goblins came out! Actually, there were no ghosts or goblins but lots of cute animals, a couple of witches, a sheriff to keep us all in line and a pumpkin, of course! :)



Other than when the kiddies got over-heated and sick of photos, everyone had a great time! It was so nice to see all of the children playing so nicely together and all the moms chatting.

The Mamas & Chicks Show

On Friday, October 22nd, momstown Oshawa-Port Perry and momstown Whitby-Ajax teamed up yet again to be part of The Mamas & Chicks Show!

As sponsors of the show we were very excited! We arrived very early to get our table all set up for big day! We had the opportunity throughout the day to meet many new moms and moms-to-be and tell them about all the wonderful things momstown can bring them!

We accepted payment for membership as well as took many new registrations for our four week free trial! It was a great day! Thanks Mamas and Chicks!

If you missed the show, you can still get on our site and register! We will still be honouring the four week free trial period until the end of the month! Beginning November 1st, our trial period will be reduced to two weeks!

momstown music & movement - Spiders & Bats

On Tuesday morning, momstown Oshawa - Port Perry gathered at the Port Perry United Church for another great momstown member exclusive event! "momstown music & movement" is a monthly themed event at which we sing some songs, read some stories, and get busy making crafts all while having fun and making friends!



This month's theme was a fitting "Spiders & Bats"! We talked about Hallowe'en, what we'd like to dress up as, where we'd like to go trick or treating, and what creepy things scare us!



The children really enjoyed story time and the book "The Busy Spider" by Eric Carle. This isn't actually a Halloween story, but it has a spider in it and that was good enough for the kids!

It wouldn't be a momstown event without some great art activites to keep the kids busy! After circle time, the children made some Halloween decorations - creepy crawly spiders and oh-so-cute handprint bats!

The mommys loved that the kiddies were busy and that they were all wore out by the end of the morning! Ready to head home to decorate the house for halloween before settling down for a nice, long nap (hopefully)!

Want to sing momstown Oshawa - Port Perry's favourite Halloween song at home?

If you'd like to join in the momstown music & movement fun, you need to first make sure you've joined the momstown Oshawa - Port Perry neighbourhood!

Oshawa Centre FUN!!!

On Thursday, October 14th, momstown Oshawa-Port Perry went to see Toopy & Binoo from Treehouse Live at Oshawa Centre!!! This was a free family event for all and WOW did the community LOVE IT! There were actually four shows Thursday at 11 & 2 and Friday at 11 & 2. I'm not sure if it was because we were at the very first show, or if Toopy & Binoo always pull in this size crowd, but it was packed! We knew ahead of time that it would be busy, so we arrived an hour before the show with lots of toys and snacks to keep the little ones happy and we waited. It was tough, but finally the hour passed and the show started! The kids all dropped their jaws in amazement and admiration and the fun began!

This is just one of the many great family events at Oshawa Centre. There seems to always be something fun going on and momstown Oshawa - Port Perry is sure to be there for all the excitement! momstown members have also been regularly visiting the mall for monday mall marathons to keep us active even on cool and rainy days, book club meetings to help moms socialize and work on getting rid of that "baby brain", and new member meet n' greets to get moms out of the house and meeting new moms, and that's just to name a few!

Grand Opening Launch Party!

The big day finally arrived and our Grand Opening Launch Party was a great success! With all the excitement in the community leading up to the event we drew in quite a crowd! There was stroller parking, but as you can see by the stollers in the picture there was a while there when the space allocated for strollers just was not enough! But, that didn't stop anyone! Moms with babes that ranged from 2 weeks to 5 years all came in to see what momstown was all about!





momstown Oshawa - Port Perry was celebrating with momstown Whitby - Ajax the opening of the two newest chapters of momstown.ca and Durham Region was SO ready for us! Nicole (left) from Whitby - Ajax and I from Oshawa - Port Perry were able to meet so many great moms and explain to them what makes momstown so fantastic! The response that we received was pretty much the same across the board - "When and where can I sign up?!"

While the kiddies got busy playing with blocks, puzzles, books, manipulatives, and a variety of art materials, moms had a chance to sit back and relax and talk to other moms!

Then, Keri-Ellen Walcer from MusiGo came!!! Everyone was very happy to see her! The kids loved the music and movement program that she was doing with them and were especially happy when she brought out some of her props! The children were able to wear animal masks and use musical instruments, there was ball play, 'Roll Play' (of course) and a whole lot of dancing!!!

Throughout the whole morning, our very special guest Bellybutton the Clown made the children and adults alike smile and laugh! She did some fabulous facepainting, made lots of children very happy with balloon animals, and told lots of jokes! Even children who thought they might be afraid of clowns, warmed up very quickly to Bellybutton! What's not to love?!

At the end of the day, all of the children went home with some homemade playdough and a recipe card so that they could make more at home with mom! Homemade playdough is the best because it's fun to make (and it doesn't take too long), it's all natural (so even the littlest babes who put everything in their mouths would still be safe to play with it), and it's an excellent fine motor, creative and sensory activity that's suitable for all ages (a perfect thing to get out when you want to get children of different ages to be able to play together)!

It wasn't just the children who went home with something, there was stuff for mom too! We did a contest for a bouquet from Bobbi's Cake Lollipop Shoppe, and gift certificates from FitMom, Once Upon a Child Ajax, and of course, momstown!!!

What a wonderful day! Thank you to all of the people who made this event the success that it was, and a very big thank you to Oshawa Centre who made it all possible! momstown Oshawa - Port Perry and momstown Whitby - Ajax are both so happy to hear that so many moms were able to enjoy their morning out and were given the opportunity, if they hadn't already done so, to sign up to become a momstown member so that they could get out like this more often!

If you missed the launch party, that's okay! There will be plenty more events coming up! Each chapter offers over 30 events per month to help get moms out of the house and connecting with other moms! There is always a wide variety of events on the calendar to suit every schedule and interest - but if there is something that is not on there that you would like to see happen, we are always more than happy to hear your suggestions and will do our best to accomodate them!

If you are the type of mom who just cannot seem to find the time to get out to events, we have a 24/7 online message board just for moms! This offers you the ability to connect with local moms right from your own home!

We also offer great member discounts and privileges that are momstown exclusive so that your membership will pay for itself, and then some!

If you are not a member yet, check us out now for your free 4 week trial membership! This offer is only good until the end of October and then we will be going back to the standard 2 week trial. So now is a great time to join the neighbourhood!

Hope to see you soon!

FREE One Year Membership!!!

To help us celebrate the exciting launch of momstown Oshawa-Port Perry we have decided to give away a FREE ONE YEAR MEMBERSHIP!!!





That's right! As soon as we hit 50 members a name will be drawn! You do not have to enter to win, you just have to sign up for a free trial membership and your name will automatically be placed in the draw.

momstown Oshawa-Port Perry launched just over 48 hours ago and we are already at 26 members - more than half way to that free membership!

So if you are a mom in Oshawa, Port Perry, Uxbridge or any of the surrounding towns and you haven't already registered at momstown Oshawa-Port Perry, why not? Get over there now and get signed up! momstown offers support, conversation and a whole lot of fun to neighbourhood moms!

With 25+ events every month, great member privileges and discounts, and a whole 'neighbourhood' of moms just waiting to connect with you, you have nothing to lose, and so much to gain!

For a limited time, momstown Oshawa-Port Perry will also be offering an extended free trial period! Instead of the usual 2 week free trial, we will be giving you 4 weeks! But this offer will only last for a short time! So register now! And tell your friends to join too!

See you around the neighbourhood soon! And good luck in the draw for the full year's membership FREE!

We have arrived!!!

Today is opening day for momstown Oshawa-Port Perry! We are so pleased to be able to say that we have arrived! The last three weeks have been full of excitement as we've prepared the website, planned our fun-filled September calendar of events, and gotten ready for this official launch!

Now, our message board is already getting people talking and getting moms connected for the support and companionship they have been looking for and our events calendar already has people signing up!

If you're a mom in Durham Region, or a surrounding community, head on over to our site and get registered! If you join us in the next 2 months, you will receive an extended Free Trial of 4 weeks! If you know a mom in Durham Region, spread the word of mom to her too! We don't want anyone to miss out on all the fun we're having!

momstown Oshawa-Port Perry has arrived!