A girlfriend sent me this oldie-but-goodie link last night and I couldn’t help but re-post. What’s your Smurf Name? When I type in my full legal name, I’m Brainy Smurf… but when I type in my moniker, I’m Dopey Smurf. Hmm, perhaps a little of both?

Anna is back! I’ve got another article to share from Anna, owner of Bargainmoose.ca. Bargainmoose is a Canadian site about money-saving tips, deals, discounts and promo codes, which aims to help you save money on your everyday purchases. Today, Anna will be sharing some funky gardening ideas, trying to give you some creative inspiration for interesting focal points in your garden.

Take it away Anna!

8 Funky Gardening Ideas

On my last post for Lena (7 money-saving craft ideas), I mentioned that I’ve been looking at some excellent ideas over on Pinterest. I’ve seen on many occasions funky gardening ideas, DIY projects and crafts that you can undertake in the comfort of your own home. Here’s a roundup of 7 interesting ideas that I’ve spotted:

1. Mason Jar Herb Garden

Over on Camillestyles.com, they’ve created an interesting idea, using some mason jars as planters for growing herbs. The DIY project uses pipe clamps and some household items to display the herbs in a really pretty way, that can even be displayed indoors in your kitchen.

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PAGING: Mulder and Scully. 

Okay, so while this is situation does not exactly qualify as paranormal activity, something NOT normal is definitely going on here. (Insert squinted eyes and a thoughtful stroking of the chin.)

It all started last month. As a blogger who conducts product reviews, I’m often given a free product coupon (FPC) as an enticement to try a product (or as an alternative to shipping a perishable good to my door). And so, coupons in hand, I visited my local market to do my usual grocery run – which included trying two new products by way of FPCs. Once checked out, I glanced down at my receipt and noticed that the “Total Manufacturer Coupon Savings” were $3.49, when it should have been $6.98 as I had redeemed two coupons. This had happened once before – recently, actually – so I informed the cashier, she apologized and handed the coupon over, and instructed me to go to customer service to have it sorted out.

No harm done, right? Right.

Yesterday, I once again had a few FPCs to redeem – three, to be exact. I also had a $3 off coupon for a well-known yogurt manufacturer, and a 10¢ coupon for PC Canned Crab. (Don’t ask. It’s delish, though.)

The value of each of the free products was $5.29. So, redeeming 3 x $5.29 FPCs, 1 x $3.00 off yogurt and 10¢ off canned crab, one would expect my total manufacturer coupon savings to total $18.97. With me so far?

It was a crazy Saturday afternoon, the kids were whining, and I was struggling to pack up a huge grocery run while my husband lugged the bags into the cart. I wasn’t exactly paying attention to what the cashier was doing, so it was only as we were walking out of the store that I glanced down at the receipt and noticed the total coupon savings were $5.29. Say what???

My Spidey Sense started tingling. (more…)

With Mother’s Day just one week away, I’m less interested in talk of flowers, breakfast in bed and bon bons – instead, I want to hear about other moms who are an example of courage, determination, and savvy entrepreneurial skills. I want to be secure in the knowledge that I can both care for my children and follow my dreams. I want to feel that I’m always living up to my personal best. THAT is what I want for Mother’s Day – to be inspired.

If you’re a Dragon’s Den fan like me, you’ll recognize Arlene Dickinson as the calculating venture capitalist with a flair for aligning with up-and-coming companies and products (have you tried OMG’s candy? Like, OMG, so good!)

But did you know that at age 31, Arlene was divorced with only a high school diploma, no savings and no clue how she was going to feed four young children? Just one year later, she was a partner in Venture Communications and ten years later, she is the CEO. Now she is one of the country’s most sought-after female entrepreneurs. Arlene is a true role model and inspiration to Canadian women – especially mothers.

And so in addition to being a CEO, TV star, national spokesperson for Breakfast Clubs of Canada, author, a mother, grandmother – I am pleased to introduce Arlene’s new line of personal line of Persuasion products she developed to complement her book, including:

Wine – a beautiful and bold 2010 Sonoma County red wine blended exclusively for Arlene. ”

“Some vintages are aggressive and come on strong; they insist on being noticed. Others are smoother, more balanced, more confident of their worth. They persuade you to pay attention. And, with every glass, convince you of their superb quality.” (more…)

You’ve heard of driving responsibly – but do you MOW responsibly?

I’m sure there are many people who have not given a second thought to the type of lawnmower they use. New or old, as long as it gets the job done, right? In fact, over the years, I can remember hearing neighbours and friends alike declare with pride that their old dinosaur mower/trimmer/chainsaw is still working like a dream.

So why trade it in? Am I trying to make you spend money?

Not exactly. But consider this: just as cars release toxic pollution into the air, so does your lawn equipment, more so over time and with age. And since I’m fairly certain there will never be government-organized emissions testing for your lawn mowers, the responsibility really lies with YOU.

Here’s how you can help keep our air clean -

From Thursday, April 19th to Wednesday, May 2nd, visit your nearest Home Depot for the Mow Down Pollution event. Trade in your old gas-powered lawn and garden equipment for a cleaner alternative. You’ll receive up to a $100 instant rebate on the purchase of a more efficient mower, string trimmer, hedge trimmer or chainsaw and be assured that your old equipment is responsibly recycled.

Think no one cares about silly lawnmower emissions? You’re wrong. Since 2001, more than 54,000 lawnmowers, trimmers and chainsaws have been permanently retired and responsibly recycled across Canada, preventing the release of more than 2,000 metric tonnes of greenhouse gas and smog-forming emissions. And since an inefficient two-stroke gas-powered lawnmower can emit as much pollution in one hour as driving a car more than 320 kilometers – almost the distance from Ottawa to Toronto – this initiative effects everybody.

(Did you know: Asthma, lung disease, cardiovascular disease, allergies, and many other health problems have been linked to smog and poor air quality. Click here to read more about the program, brought to you by Summerhill Impact.)

I admit ignorance on the make and model of our lawnmower, but since it was purchased less than four years ago, I’d like to think we made an eco-friendly choice. (Note to self: ask husband if we made an eco-friendly choice.) There are just a few days left to participate in the Mow Down Pollution event – tell me, will you be checking to see if your lawn equipment deserves a failing grade?

Click here to read FAQs for the Mow Down Pollution event.

For the last three years, I’ve had a blog tradition – on my birthday, I’ve listed 31/32/33 things that I love. Last year, my list looked like this.

But today, I’m at a loss – after all, I’ve cumulatively listed close to 100 things I love! I’m running out of ideas. So this year, I thought I’d share 34 tidbits that you may not know about me. I mean sure, you know I have two little boys and spend a lot of time blogging, but did you know:

1. I have an irrational fear of all spiders after coming face to face with a tarantula when I was three years old.
2. In grade nine, I rolled my kilt to make it shorter (Catholic high school uniform, rolls eyes).
3. I love the spicy, pungent taste of raw garlic.
4. My feet are AAA width. It takes on average 254 days to find a shoe narrow enough to fit my grossly skeletal feet.
5. Before I became a mom, I was a Corporate Trainer for a Fortune 100 Company. I excel in the boardroom.
6. I check the time every 5-6 minutes. It’s a nervous habit I can’t seem to break.
7. I have the most annoying laugh in the world. Kind of like “donkey meets Fran Drescher”.
8. My high school boyfriend cheated on me with a stripper (and later, married her).
9. I love being the center of attention, but enjoy sharing the spotlight even more.
10. Nails on a chalkboard is fine. Cutting into a squeaky apple? Ugh!
11. I met my husband on Lavalife, an online dating service.
12. I don’t have a favourite vacation spot, because I’ve done very little travelling.
(As soon as the boys are a little older, I plan to rectify this.)
13. I’ve obtained a signed declaration from my hairdresser that at 34 years old, I don’t have a single gray hair.

Okay, I seriously can’t go on. Oh wait, I just thought of another one:

14. Although I like talking about the things I love, I have trouble talking about myself.

Have a great weekend friends! I intend to celebrate, as always, with cake and Coca-Cola!

WHOA!

I forgot all about the deliciousness that is Robbie Williams. Today, remembering the drive to and from work, when “Feel” would inevitably make its way into radio rotation. And I – a naïve 24 year old, hoping to feel real love too – would inevitably turn the volume up.

It happens every year around this time. Which shouldn’t really surprise me, because people’s birthdays are usually celebrated on the same date year after year. Still, I get very surly and sour when I realize we have entered into that particular sign of the zodiac called ARIES.

Aries: The Ram
March 21st to April 20th

The Good: Enthusiastic and confident, dynamic and quick-witted.
The Bad:   Impulsive and impatient.
The Ugly:  Moody. Short tempered. Self-involved.

Now I truly have nothing against Ariens, per se, because I happen to share the sign! Yup, proud April baby over here. But I have prejudices just the same, and they happen to lie with with a whole bunch of people from my past – my exes, to be precise. ALL of my ex-boyfriends are Ariens. ALL of them.

It’s not like I chose men based purely on their astrological makeup; instead, it was purely a coincidence that I found myself attracted to the person first, and found out about their zodiac sign second. In fact, I didn’t even recognize a pattern until the third or fourth boyfriend – when I noticed that I was constantly buying cards and gifts in close proximity to my own birthday. After that, I made a conscious effort to uncover a guy’s sign from the start – and was floored to find out that I regularly seemed to gravitate towards energetic, confident, and impulsive men.

Or maybe it was the moody, impatient and self-involved traits I craved.

As one friend suggested, it’s possible that I just enjoyed seeking out others who shared the same qualities as me; a fellow member of the sign. Whatever the explanation, I’ve had five previous boyfriends, all Aries. I briefly dated two other men, also Ariens. And I think I may have had a drunken make-out session at some point… I’m not too clear on the details, but years later (through the magic of Facebook) I am very aware of one detail: he’s an Aries too.

And I suppose the common denominator here is that they’re all defective (trust me) in some way – or I’d still be with one of them, right? Perhaps the whole Aries-on-Aries cocktail does not mix well in my case.

So back to my surly mood. It’s “Ex-Boyfriend Birthday Season!” That’s right, folks – for the next few weeks, I’ll be constantly reminded of all my exes, thanks to my inability to forget “significant” dates. I took the liberty of posting their pictures and birthdays (in order of relationship) so you too can celebrate along with us:

Okay so that’s not really them, but I think I did a good job of capturing their likeness. A bonus: the conversation wasn’t awkward at all when my husband caught me customizing the pictures. “What are you doing?” he asked. “Just creating cartoons in the likeness of my ex-boyfriends,” I responded. (Three second pause.) “Okay. When’s dinner?”

By the way, in case you’re wondering, years ago I finally met a great guy who wasn’t an Aries. So I did the only logical thing: I married him.

Last night I came across a piece of history – a relic, if you will – a jar of glitter gel from the ol’ clubbing days. It was the cheap kind that I’m fairly certain I scooped up from the “4 for $5.00″ tray at Claire’s. My BFF and I would liberally spread the grape-scented glitter on our cheeks, clavicles and arms in an attempt to sparkle under the club’s strobe lights.

(It wasn’t hard. Trust me, we showed A LOT of skin.)

The once shimmery gel has since hardened into a gluey, funky-smelling substance – although the jar doesn’t explicitly list an expiry date, I’m thinking they didn’t have 14 years crammed into an old makeup bag in mind. But it’s not so much the ancient artifact that has me nostalgic; rather, it’s the memories of what Fridays used to be like.

Hushed conversations on the phone at work.
Deciding what to wear; discussing in detail the case for black pants vs. little black dress.
Wondering if I had enough time to re-paint my toe nails.
Popping in a house music CD to get the blood pumping and my head bobbing.
Looping giant velcro rollers into my hair.
Doing sit-ups on the bedroom floor at 8:00pm.
Calling for last minute wardrobe checks.*

*This one makes me long for the days of yore more than anything else; it was the knowledge that I knew every single article of clothing in a friend’s wardrobe. If she said, “I’m wearing my orange tank top which make my boobs look great”, I instantly knew the tank top she was referring to. Because we hung out in casual clothes, went clubbing in dressy clothes and spent copious amounts of time shopping together; hence, all new purchases were mentally categorized as well. Today, not knowing what a friend will wear means that we don’t spend nearly enough time together. Le sigh.

Speaking of today, this is what my Friday looks like.

Checking online grocery flyers, looking for cheese on sale.
Sorting laundry into darks, lights and towels.
Wondering where to take the kids this weekend – animal farm or indoor playground?
Pulling on yet another pair of yoga pants. I don’t do yoga.
Making a mental note to gather all my tax info.
Nagging my husband to clean out the garage tomorrow.
Chatting with my BFF and asking what she’s up to for the weekend, but not really hearing her.

Sheesh. Perhaps I’ll run out and grab a new jar of glitter. What’s sexier than a sparkly mama pulling tots in a wagon?

My favourite throwback to the good ol’ days: Waiting for Tonight by Jennifer Lopez. Should I be pissed that she’s still living the same life as 1999? Um… probably not.

It’s a pleasure for me to introduce Anna, owner of Bargainmoose.ca. Bargainmoose is a very popular website for Canadian deals and discounts, where you can find the latest shopping bargains and coupon codes, helping Canadians save money every day. Today I welcome Anna as a guest blogger on Listen to Lena – she’ll be sharing seven crafty ideas that are easy to create and easy on the wallet!

7 Money-Saving Crafty Ideas

Hi! I’m Anna. I’ve been enjoying seeing all the amazing pictures and ideas over on Pinterest, and that led to an idea for this very post. There are quite a few ideas on there for various art and craft projects, and quite a lot of them could be considered frugal or potentially money saving. Here are some ideas that I spotted on there, which look cool and could save you money.

1. Make a Jewellery Rack from an old rake

Over on Little Lucy Lu, they show us how to make a cool jewellery rack from an old rake! Looks great, and a brilliant way to store your necklaces. It’s definitely something people would admire if they saw it on your bathroom wall.

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Regular readers of Listen to Lena will be surprised to see that I’m reviewing – gasp – a book.

Not that I’m not a big reader; on the contrary, whenever I’ve got a few moments to myself (on average, about 23 minutes per day) chances are you’ll find my nose buried in a book. But since I look to books for self-improvement and entertainment, I normally shrug off requests to review material – I like to call it “using my spare time wisely”. However, when I was introduced to Energy Now! by Michelle Cederberg, I made the decision to accept the review – mainly because since I started on a path to healthier living, I was vitally interested in what she had to say.

About Michelle Cederberg:

Michelle Cederberg has worked in the trenches of the health and fitness industry for more than 20 years as an educator, personal trainer, life coach and speaker. She has a Masters in Kinesiology with a specialization in Exercise and Health Psychology, plus a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology. Cederberg brings hands-on, applied knowledge of energy and health to the challenges facing her readers. (She also happens to be Canadian!)

About Energy Now!:

For a lot of people, a lack of energy is a big problem in day to day life. Michelle Cederberg shares tips for re-fuelling naturally in her new book “Energy Now! Small Steps to an Energetic Life”. Energy Now! explores how mind, body and spirit each play a part in determining one’s liveliness. Digestible small-steps advice is achievable no matter how busy the schedule or demanding the career. Cederberg’s realistic, energy-generating tips include:

• Dehydration is the biggest source of daytime fatigue. Replace one drink (soda, coffee, juice, etc.) with one big glass of water at least three times daily. Don’t enjoy water? Dilute your juice if you have to. Just drink more water.

• A good sleep keeps energy levels high. Spend 30 minutes before bed away from all screens. Allow your mind and body to unwind completely for a sounder rest.

• Exercise is key. Even in small amounts. Skip the coffee run and go for a quick 10-minute walk instead; daily exercise doesn’t have to be a huge time commitment. Ten minutes a day is all it takes starting out.

• Coffee isn’t the answer. Can’t go without a caffeine fix? Make sure you drink it up by 1 p.m.; any consumption later than that will negatively impact the quality of your sleep.

• Create your own energy. Do something positive with your day. Help someone, reach out to a loved one with kind words, or spend time with someone you admire. Positive energy is contagious. (more…)

Happy Monday! Tuesday!

For all my TO-based readers, chances are you’re coming off a splendid weekend spent outdoors. 17 degrees Celsius – Holy Hannah!

And while I had every intention of answering the backlog of about 147 e-mails I have rudely accrued, alas, the sun and warmer temps called… and my inbox remained ignored.

Hence, I’ve declared today Paperwork Monday Tuesday and will aim to tirelessly pare down my messages from 969 to about 600. Surely that’s a start, no?

(I’m not really that popular – I just have e-mails from October 2011 that I still have to action in some way. I hate myself.)

In the meantime, I’ve been listening to an adult contemporary station and was instantly taken down memory lane with this beautiful, haunting duet from Jessica Simpson and Nick Lachey: Where You Are.

Sorry Chris Brown and Rihanna – you can keep your tacky, foul-mouthed collaboration to yourself. Sigh, my heart belongs to this song circa 1999.

My one time good friend, The Sandman, has recently decided to forgo his nightly visit, opting instead to leave me on the outer limits of Insomnia City, Population: Me.

Unfortunately, being awake in the wee hours of morning makes for a very grumpy Lena. I don’t want to toss and turn. I don’t want to channel surf with the volume barely registering at +2. And I certainly don’t want to watch Jack Lalanne power juice his way to health and wealth.

But last night, I stumbled on what could only be described as a blast from the past: an infomercial for “The Doctor’s Book of Home Remedies”. Now I’m fairly certain the segment was originally taped in the 90′s – that is, before a quick Google search would allow you to download the entire book for free – and I almost called the toll-free number to see if operators were indeed standing by. (They weren’t.)

But all those promises of cheap, household remedies got me thinking – do they actually work? Are the answers to all of our everyday problems found in the pantry? Can an infusion of sage, cypress, and juniper oils instantly ward off cellulite? (It won’t.)

So instead of watching a poorly dressed “doctor” drone on and on, I jumped online to find some of the most searched home remedies… and thought, huh? really? (more…)

If you live in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) you’re in luck – serious style can be yours at seriously amazing prices. Yes, I’m writing about Urban Barn again, but I love the stuff, k?

Last week, I popped into the Urban Barn clearance outlet in Scarborough (430 Progress Avenue). We don’t usually venture out east, but we had about a million errands to run that spanned the entire city, so decided to pop in for a quick look.

Two words: SHOPPING MECCA.

The clearance outlet is advertised as “Massive Savings… Small Imperfections” – but in addition to slightly damaged merchandise, you can also grab absolutely perfect stock that has been moved from their regular stores for final clearance at the outlet.

At the store, we did see a few drool-worthy pieces that had a small nick or two, but I just couldn’t live with the imperfections :(  Alas, I’m the type of person who would rather spend full price and then go over the merchandise with a fine-toothed comb to make sure it’s flawless (yes, I’m one of THOSE customers).

Anyhoo, I’m happy to say that I scored a few items at ridiculously low prices. First, while I wasn’t necessarily looking for a new duvet set, I couldn’t resist this simple, modern pattern called “LAUREN”.

REGULAR PRICE: $190 for King Set
AFTER MARKDOWNS: $27.99
SAVINGS: 85% 

(more…)

Definition of Imperfect: Not Perfect.

{Also see: Defective}

I am an imperfect mom.

At least twice per week, I wonder if I can get away with feeding the boys strawberries for breakfast and popcorn for lunch. It’s all they’ll eat and dammit, I am TIRED of trying to force feed them the perfectly crimped sandwiches, heart-shaped cheese slices and stategically portioned celery stalks (complete with dipping sauce) that we’re told perfect moms put in their child’s lunchbox. In my house, sometimes lunch comes from a cracker box that may or may not contain my sons’ entire recommended daily intake of sodium.

I can never remember to brush the boys’ teeth. Yeah okay, I do pretty well in the morning, but before bed? Fail. Their toothbrushes are on the vanity right beside the bathtub, and all I have to do is reach over and brush them while they’re bathing. Problem is, when they’re in the bath I’m usually sitting on the toilet (seat down) drinking a glass of wine and staring into space.

I scream at my kids – often louder, and nastier, than I’ve screamed at anyone in my life. Sometimes I don’t even recognize my voice; it’s a mix of anger, disgust, and most of all, desperation. A deep desperation that is etched in every syllable because I am rendered insignificant and helpless with every cup of spilled milk, every overturned laundry basket, every crayon scribbled across the wall. They just don’t care – and don’t seem to get that I do. When it’s really bad, screaming turns into sobbing.

I spank/hit/smack my kids – in appropriate places and with appropriate force – as a form of discipline. You don’t have to agree with me – I really don’t care if you do, because I’m not here to judge your parenting methods. But I’ll tell you this: last year, Ryder reached for a pot of boiling water in jest. Me shouting (sorry – calmly instructing him) “Go stand in the corner” would not have saved him from 2nd degree burns. I swiped at his arm so hard it knocked him over – and prevented him from knocking over the pot. So maybe I am barbaric. But I love my children and when safety is involved, I do not worry about hurt feelings or egos.

I have no idea how to engage with other children. I don’t know how to kneel down and sip tea from a tea set or feign interest in some silly zombie video game. I work hard at relating to my own kids, and that’s where I draw the line. At this very moment, I can talk about Cars 2 and Thomas and Friends and Courdoroy the Bear and Toopee and Binoo and Hot Wheels and Iggle Piggle and Lego Duplo. And that’s it. And when my kids move on to something else, that’s what I’ll be interested in. I may like your kids, and I may love your company, but please don’t ask me to like the company of your kids. You go ahead and amuse them, please. (Somehow I don’t think I’ll be volunteering on class field trips.)

At least once per day, I wonder what a perfect mom would do. What a perfect mom would say. How a perfect mom would handle a situation. And then I do what my instincts tell me, perfection be damned. Sometimes, that involves letting Reid have a sip of pop at a party (I breastfed him for 20 months, so spare me the bugged eyes and death stare – true story), keeping the boys in pjs all day, or letting Ryder stay up way past his bedtime. Sometimes, I pull marshmallows out of the Lucky Charms box, and divvy them up – one for Ryder, one for Reid, one for mommy. They never keep a close count, so sometimes it’s two for mommy.

I don’t spend a lot of time trying to be perfect. I’m a pretty girl, a good cook, a doting wife and regardless of my prior confessions, I think I’m a great mom. My kids are well fed and well loved. They have average intelligence and above average contentment (though that could be the sugar, which yes, they do receive as a treat).

I’m not quite certain what motivated me to write this post. Perhaps it’s this February blahs thing, festering until the last possible moment. Or maybe I’m just outing myself – behind the shiny pictures, must-try recipes and brand spanking new products (which I’m not gonna lie, arrive by the truckload every day) life goes on and life is hard. Parenting is hard.

I also won’t go on record saying I’m a “real” mom. WTH? Every mom is a real mom, regardless if they fit your definition or drink your brand of Kool Aid. There is no such thing as an “unreal” mom, unless you count those chicks on soap operas who fake a pregnancy and then steal someone’s baby by performing a c-section in a living room/dive bar/side of the road. They’re fake moms.

I’m an imperfect mom. And I’m okay with it. And when I’m not, there’s wine.