Indigenous students encouraged to pursue engineering

June 21 marks National Indigenous Peoples Day. It's an important day to celebrate and acknowledge our Indigenous neighbours and community members, and a small step on the path of truth and reconciliation. The road is long, but the more we engage and continue to listen and learn about one another, the closer we will get to a place where true equality is possible.

As part of that process is hearing and sharing stories about Indigenous peoples, including this one that I wrote for Innovation.ca about efforts at Queen's University to get more Indigenous students to pursue engineering--a field where they require far greater representation, especially given that Indigenous communities are increasingly involved in the proper management of Canada's natural resources.

Radon Gas...It's Literally Killing You Softly

Illustration by Taryn Gee via Avenue magazine

A few years ago, my hub and I found out our house had high radon gas readings. We knew it wasn't a good thing, but we also didn't have the time or resources to really deal with the situation. We shelved it for a while, but we knew we had to tackle it, given that radon is the leading cause of non-smoking-related lung cancer. Especially since we have kiddos, we had to do something. Our radon-mitigation journey was a crazy one--documented here for Avenue magazine--but one we don't regret. (Thanks to Avenue for nominating this story for an Alberta Magazines award; didn't win, but was a finalist! Yay!) Please please please have your home tested for radon!

Back-to-School Blues

Istockphoto via TodaysParent.com

It's currently -20, but it's a big improvement on the -30 we experienced over the last couple of days! Winter is in full effect! It's hard to believe we are already into February. Seems we just celebrated the holidays and the kids just went back to school. That back-to-school transition can be tough after a break, especially after a long summer. (Although right now, I'd definitely trade for summer!) I wrote about this restraint collapse phenomenon for Today's Parent.

Maui Continues to Wowie!

This past February/March, I got to head back to one of my favourite places in the world, Maui. Honestly, there are few places  like it that simply complete me. I share some of things I love most about this tropical paradise in the April issue of WestJet magazine. Check out one of my fans (that is, my dad) reading my piece. Aloha!

Got History? Nat Geo does.

In celebration of Canada's 150th anniversary, National Geographic Books in partnership with Parks Canada, put together this latest guide book on the nation's historic sites. I was happy to be asked to contribute a couple of chapters--the Prairie Provinces and the Rockies. It's a helpful companion if you're planning on exploring the country's national historic sites, or even just for learning about Canada's history. Happy reading!

Potty Training: Boys vs. Girls

Photo: istockphoto courtesy Today's Parent

My little man just turned three, and thankfully, we are finally diaper-free! Wahoo! It was interesting, actually, to see the differences between training my son vs. my daughter. Here's my latest piece for Today's Parent, detailing the oh-so-lovely experience. 

Sibling squabbles...or is it more than that?

Photo by Getty images, courtesy Today's Parent

Recently, I took my six-year-old daughter to a friendship course, aimed at helping kids her age proactively identify and deal with "friendship fires" instead of just shrugging off or ignoring issues that arise with friends. She hasn't had much trouble with her buddies, but when she mentioned that one of her older friends was bossing a group of them around on the playground at recess, I thought, well, maybe we do need some guidance. I figured it wouldn't hurt to equip both her and me with skills to address such situations before we have to tackle any "mean-girl" scenarios that are bound to arise as she gets older.

What's interesting to note is how we're so quick to respond when we feel like other kids might be making our kids feel bad, but when it's our own kids making each other feel bad, we're a little slower to respond. Some parents barely respond at all, letting siblings just sort it out among themselves. While this can work to certain degree, often, it ends badly. And for some, it can end really badly when one sibling gets bullied by another. Imagine having to live with your bully! I address the topic of sibling bullying for Today's Parent magazine.