There are so many fabulous bloggers out there, and we want to highlight them on Cityline.ca. We’ll be profiling different lifestyle bloggers from month to month — they might write about food, fashion, beauty, décor, parenting, entertaining, gardening, you get the idea! For April 2015, we're putting the spotlight on Raising Healthy Kids. Run by Deb, we love her emphasis on healthy and active living, an idea she's instilled in her children from a very young age. Find out how she makes health a priority in our Q&A with Deb: When did you start Raising Healthy Kids? I have been writing since high school -- a regular contributor to our local newspaper, a few front page stories and regular High School Beat column and thought I would be a journalist, but investigative reporting was not really my thing. After completing my 1st year of journalism school, I changed my university major and gave up on writing as a career. Fast forward 20 years, 3 kids and a successful career in the private sector and I have finally come full circle to writing again. I created Raising Healthy Kids in March 2014 after 4 years of writing and creating healthy family content for the company my husband founded, Life Science Nutritionals. What was your inspiration behind starting the blog? I started blogging as a way to share our healthy lifestyle, to provide readers with quick and easy tips for healthy meals, overnight oatmeal for fast breakfasts and tell how I organized school lunch making so the kids could do it all themselves. It has become our personal story of how we continue to stay active as a family as the kids keep getting older. Now that the girls are tweens, it is interesting to see how my role has changed. I don't just feed them healthy meals or take them to the park, I educate them on better food choices, teach them to cook and encourage them as they join school volleyball teams and cross-country run clubs. Ever since your children were very young, you’ve encouraged them to embrace a healthy and active lifestyle. Why was this so important for you to instill in your children at a young age? I was fortunate to have parents that encouraged family activity growing up. From the age of 10 I can remember being in my basement and having pull-up competitions with my brother, going for family jogs around the neighbourhood and making a game of who could do more sit-ups. Our family spent Sunday mornings hiking through local trails, we skied, skated, played soccer, did gymnastics and I took enough swimming lessons that I eventually became a lifeguard. By 15 I was a runner. I have run countless 21km half-marathons and even completed a 70.3 half-Ironman triathlon in 2013. Being active and outdoors was a part of my childhood and it carried over into my adult life. I want that for my kids. I want them to grow up strong physically because I believe that will give them confidence and encourage a lifetime of active living. My husband and I started them early, we crossed a finish line of a half-marathon with each of our babies in a jogging stroller when they were each 8 months old. But it doesn't have to be to that degree! Just going to the park, learning to pay tennis together, or walking the dog through a local forest encourages the whole family to be active. We don't have a scale in our house. With 3 daughters, I want them to have a relationship with fitness, not weight. We don't use words like fat or diet. We discuss nutrition, we discuss the benefits of real food vs. processed, we find ways to make brownies healthy and include oats in our chocolate chip cookies. I have taught them to run at a young age and now at 9, 11, 13 they all want to train for a 10km race this spring. They have completed more triathlons than I can remember, all 3 are accomplished skiers, they rock climb, they hike. My oldest is taking her Bronze Medallion, my middle is an excellent gymnast and my youngest cannot dance enough. What advice do you have for other parents who want to teach their children the importance of a healthy lifestyle?  Do it together. We discuss and prepare food together. We stay active together. Eating healthy and being active is for all ages! We love ice cream and birthday cakes, but make school snacks with oats and flax, we love pizza and mac 'n' cheese but add veggies to the sauce, and we use every holiday as an opportunity to be active together. Birthday parties at the skating rink or pool, Mother's Day we ride our bikes 15km along the water to get ice cream, Father's Day we go rock climbing or roller skating, Easter and Thanksgiving we go hiking and geocaching. The whole family has bikes, not just the kids. We have snow pants to get outside in winter to hike and build forts. We go to the local pool to swim laps so we can keep up with the kids as they progress through swimming lessons. We get out on the water and learn to paddle board with them, we did our first triathlon as adults in our 40s after we realized our kids were loving the sport and had each done 10 triathlons, and we had yet to try even one! For the record, we also LOVE our family Sunday nights on the couch watching Survivor and The Amazing Race together with a giant bowl of popcorn. We do know how to slow down and do nothing, but it is usually after a full day outdoors doing something fun! Tell us about a post that you’re particularly proud of and want to share with Cityline.ca readers. My favourite post by far as a mom, is this one: Raising Runners - When Your Kids Make You Crazy Proud. We never force our kids to participate in organized events like races. They have done it since they were very young and honestly have grown to enjoy them. But this race was different. It was their first 5km race alone -- without mom or dad -- and it was POURING rain. What they accomplished and just the fact that they even did it, still brings tears to my eyes. They did this one for them, not me. They understand the journey and the joy of fitness, of setting and reaching goals and feeling proud of themselves. I could not ask for more. What do you hope readers get from visiting your blog? That eating real food and staying active as a family is not difficult. It's not expensive, it doesn't require fancy recipes or tons of time. We are a busy family. We built a large company, working full time while raising our daughters and still made time to make quick healthy meals and be active as a family. You can feed a family fast and not rely on processed food, you can teach kids to make their own lunches without packaged snacks, kids can still enjoy their favourite mac 'n' cheese, pancakes and brownies if you tweak the recipe a little to make it healthier. And parents can learn a few new skills like rock climbing and paddle board yoga if you are willing to get out there and have fun with the kids. What are some other blogs you love reading? I currently have a blog on YummyMummyClub.ca called Family On the Run and I LOVE being a part of that community. The amount of diverse writers, blogging about everything from family to fashion, from food to fitness, is a wealth of knowledge! The business side of me likes to follow websites like Momeomagazine.com and for health and fitness I love Health Your Way Online Magazine. What’s your top advice for other bloggers? Blog, write, tweet, Instagram, and pin what is important to you. Your audience will find you. I have heard many times over that people love the fact that we live what we write. My blog really is about my family and our life. We really do spend all day every weekend outdoors in the winter and spend all summer in pools, lakes and riding our bikes or running. We really do put squash in our mac 'n' cheese and the kids pack spinach brownies for school lunch. Follow Deb on Twitter and on Facebook for more great active living ideas! We want to hear from you! Do you know a blogger we should feature on Cityline.ca? Maybe it’s you! Email us at submissions@cityline.ca and include “Cityline Featured Blogger” in the subject line. And don’t forget to include a link to the blog! Look forward to hearing from you!

There are so many fabulous bloggers out there, and we want to highlight them on Cityline.ca. We’ll be profiling different lifestyle bloggers from month to month — they might write about food, fashion, beauty, décor, parenting, entertaining, gardening, you get the idea! For March 2015, we're putting the spotlight on Travels with Baggage. Run by Jody, we love how she blogs on a variety of lifestyle topics, with a strong focus on travel. Jody has gone on some amazing adventures both as a solo traveller and with her family, and so we chatted with her about some of her most memorable experiences. Here's our Q&A with Jody: When did you start Travels with Baggage and what was your inspiration behind starting the blog? I started Travels with Baggage almost three years ago. I work as a freelance travel writer and at the time, I felt like I needed more practice. Blogging is a fantastic way to increase your writing speed and skill. The best advice I received was to write about anything that interests you for six months. I quickly realized I didn’t want to write about travel all the time, so it’s become a lifestyle blog with a significant focus on travel. How did you come up with your blog’s name? I’m notorious for packing way more than I should into my suitcase. My motto is "never let the size of your suitcase determine your potential". I think this all the time and especially when finding great bargains on my travels. I think the airlines started charging for baggage solely because of me. And like most people, I have emotional baggage. I’m not afraid to admit it or share it. I do travel with baggage, it’s part of who I am, and my blog is one avenue I use to sift through it. Tell us about your most amazing, most memorable, once-in-a-lifetime travel experience. Our family spent a magical few days at Puakea Ranch on the Big Island of Hawaii last winter. It was one of those places where you keep pinching yourself. It felt like I was a guest on Oprah’s Hawaiian ranch. There are only four plantation cottages to rent, but each comes with its own pool, hammocks and tree swings. There’s a petting zoo, horses, chicken coop and garden on the property. Our daughter morphed from being a tween back into a sweet little girl here. (You can read more about Jody's trip to Puakea Ranch here.) And, on the flip side, could you share with us your most disastrous travel experience? And did you learn any lessons from your trip-gone-wrong? In my 20s I travelled overland from Beijing to London on the old silk route. I was on a 40-hour bus ride through China’s Gobi Desert and I had a tummy bug. Real bad. There were no rest rooms, shrubs or trees for privacy. The bus would stop when I made the signal, I’d rush out and loads of curious passengers would glue themselves to the window to watch the foreigner relieve herself. To make matters worse, the pervy bus driver was also suffering from the same predicament and he would squat right beside me. It was the worst! Fortunately, when you’re really sick, you lose all sense of modesty. I now never go anywhere without Imodium and when trouble arises, I know I’ll eventually get through it. Travelling with kids can be tricky! Do you have any advice or tricks of the trade for our readers? Travelling with kids is indeed challenging. The secret lies in your preparation. Make sure you’ve chosen a destination that offers something for everyone. Load your car or carry-on bag with activities for the kids. Save devices for the last few hours when nobody’s fresh anymore. I bring silly putty, pipe cleaners, licorice, gum, wipe off activity cards (like these), sticker books, new magazines/books, a pack of cards and dollar store trinkets. Dole them out one by one, not all at once! On your trip, be sure to schedule in downtime every day or time on your own if you’re vacationing with others. Let them know in advance you hope to have a few hours each day for just your family. If you plan only one major activity a day and take those few hours to chill, you’ll set yourself up for success. Tell us about a post (or two!) that you’re particularly proud of and want to share with Cityline.ca readers. What to Do When You Lose Your I.D. Travelling: I recently lost my wallet a few hours before flying. While the situation was quite harried, I think I’ve been able to help others from what I learned. How to Stop Comparing Yourself to Others: I hate to admit it, but I’m a competitive person. I learned this easy trick to get out of the habit. Fashion Mistakes Moms Make: One of my friends is a stylist and she’s always give me the push I need to look like I give a damn. We came up with this post over a bottle of red one night. (And yes, I’m guilty of making all these mistakes!) What do you hope readers get from visiting your blog? Encouragement. I’m not the best traveller, wife or mother, but I do try to give it my all. Sometimes I try too hard. Sometimes things don’t work out as planned, and that’s life. I share all experiences (the good, the bad, the ugly) on my blog, so others can have better ones. What are some other blogs you love reading? I’m a big fan of A Cup of Jo. She’s a Brooklyn-based lifestyle blogger and I always get great ideas from her. For food my go-to is Dinner with Julie. For travel inspiration and outdoor adventure: Hike Bike Travel. What’s your top advice for other bloggers? Just do it. I spent a full year taking course after course until I first published. I wish I just dove in. Once you feel you’ve got some basics down, join some Facebook blogging groups or attend blogger meet-ups so you can share and learn from each other. We want to hear from you! Do you know a blogger we should feature on Cityline.ca? Maybe it’s you! Email us at submissions@cityline.ca and include “Cityline Featured Blogger” in the subject line. And don’t forget to include a link to the blog! Look forward to hearing from you!

There are so many fabulous bloggers out there, and we want to highlight them on Cityline.ca. We’ll be profiling different lifestyle bloggers from month to month — they might write about food, fashion, beauty, décor, parenting, entertaining, gardening, you get the idea! For February 2015, we're putting the spotlight on Jessica Nadel, author of the blog Cupcakes and Kale, and the newly-released cookbook Greens 24/7. Here's our Q&A with Jessica about both the blog and her first-ever cookbook (answers have been edited for length and clarity): Tell us about the birth of the blog Cupcakes and Kale, and how it evolved into your cookbook, Greens 24/7? The blog started as a hobby. I love food and am endlessly talking about it anyways. I’d been vegan for a couple of years already, and people always asked me, ‘What do you eat?’ So I began to think, maybe I should show people what I eat, if they’re interested. My first post I baked muffins, and shared the recipe and a couple of terrible photos. I thought my mom would read it – but as it turns out other people were interested and a community of vegetarian and vegan bloggers welcomed me with open arms. It really fuelled my creative energy. Luckily, amazingly, a publisher [The Experiment, based in New York] found the blog and decided they wanted to work together on a book. They wanted to do a book all about greens, and it went from there. [You could WIN an autographed copy of Greens 24/7, courtesy our friends at Thomas Allen & Son! Leave a comment below telling us your favourite way to eat your greens for your chance to win. Cityline contest rules] I think it’s fair to say that many of us could use more greens in their diets – the challenge for a lot of people is incorporating them in more creative, interesting ways... beyond salads and simple sautéed greens. Tell us about the recipes in Greens 24/7 and some of the different ways you incorporate greens into your diet? That was really important to me [in writing the book] -- I wanted greens to be the focal point, not an afterthought. I say green smoothies will change your life, because they do camouflage a green. You’re drinking them, and they’re delicious, because you’re throwing all sorts of different fruits and flavourings in there. You end up with a blast of pure, raw health. You can use collard greens, lettuce and cabbage as wraps and cups, or shave Brussels sprouts and turn them into lettuce. Start massaging your kale – it breaks down the fibres, but it still doesn’t wilt down. The rainbow shredded salad [in the book] has all these hearty vegetables that are cut really delicately, but it still holds its own over three days in the fridge. Basically, I want to turn veggie eaters into veggie lovers. Although the recipes in this book are vegan, this isn’t a book just for vegans – in it, you mention that there’s plenty here for vegetarians and omnivores to help them eat more greens. It’s about the veggies, first and foremost. But because the recipes are vegan, they’re also very versatile. So if you’re cooking for a vegetarian, or someone in your family with an egg or dairy allergy, most of these recipes will work. A lot of the recipes are gluten-free, also. You can accommodate for [various food intolerances]. Many parents face challenges getting their kids to eat vegetables – is your two-year-old son a picky eater? How do you get him to eat his veg? Smoothies are a great way for kids to get more of their greens. [My son] won’t eat anything leafy right now. For a while I would make tomato sauce with chopped up chunks of broccoli, spinach or kale, but he’s going through a phase where everything has to be separated. He loves broccoli on its own, which is great, but he’ll tell me, ‘Something’s wrong with this,’ if it’s mixed into something. In the summer when we pick up our CSA (community-shared agriculture), he always comes, and meets the farmers. Having a hand in choosing the recipes or going to the store, and giving kids some power, does a lot. But I’m big on not forcing it, I think that often causes more friction than anything else. Sometimes he won’t touch the vegetables on his plate, and that’s fine. I just keep trying, keep offering. Greens in baking – such a cool concept! Among the baked goods in Greens 24/7 are Spinach Ginger Cookies, Chocolate Hazelnut Avocado Torte, and Triple Chocolate Beet Greens Cake. Tell us about that. It’s not to say have this instead of a salad, but in addition to, why not? Things like the beet greens and chocolate cake – beets and chocolate cake is something that’s done, but I hate the idea of throwing out those beautiful, luscious tops that are so good for you. So, steam them and throw them in the cake too. What are some of your favourite blog posts and recipes from the book? One of the most popular from the blog is the High Protein Cauliflower Alfredo Sauce – it makes use of pureed cauliflower and white beans to make a creamy Alfredo sauce, and then I fold kale and sundried tomatoes into it. Also, the 4-Ingredient Turtles are really fun -- they're quick and easy, few ingredients, and perfect for a little sweet fix. From the book, the Spinach and Mushroom Galette is a favourite. It's also an easy foot in the door for people who don't know what to do with tofu. I take the same tofu ricotta [from this recipe] and put it in pasta shells. The Pesto Polenta Fries are great because they're a little bit inventive, and also the Rhubarb and Chard Pie -- it's gorgeous and I love rhubarb. In terms of greens, I love Swiss chard but sometimes those stalks end up in the compost, which is sad. I save them and put them in pie! We want to hear from you! Do you know a blogger we should feature on Cityline.ca? Maybe it’s you! Email us at submissions@cityline.ca and include “Cityline Featured Blogger” in the subject line. And don’t forget to include a link to the blog! Look forward to hearing from you! Photo of Jessica Nadel: Stacey Lalande Photo of Shredded rainbow salad: Jackie Sobon Photo of Turtles: Jessica Nadel

There are so many fabulous bloggers out there, and we want to highlight them on Cityline.ca. We’ll be profiling different lifestyle bloggers from month to month — they might write about food, fashion, beauty, décor, parenting, entertaining, gardening, you get the idea! For January 2015, we're putting the spotlight on The Sweet Escape. Run by Melissa, we love her stunning DIY projects and creative décor ideas. Here's our Q&A with Melissa: When did you start The Sweet Escape and what was the inspiration behind starting the blog? How did you come up with your blog’s name? I started The Sweet Escape in March of 2013 and "kicked it up a notch" to the blog you see today in September 2013. The blog was a way for me to create and share my own "sweet escape" from my daily routine which wasn't super inspiring at the time. It started as an online scrapbook of inspiration that I had collected and has evolved to include mostly my own original content. On your blog you write a variety of different posts, from décor to DIYs to recipes and more. What do you like about covering different topics on your blog, and what’s your favourite type of post to write? I've thought about making the blog a little more focused but then I realize that would go against my personality. It's really hard for me to pick a favourite -- it totally depends on my mood. Like my blog, I'm kinda all over the place! If I ever do too much of the same thing I tend to get bored and I think that's the same for those that read my blog. I would hate to feel like I can't post about things that inspire me if they don't fit under one specific category. Tell us about a post (or two!) that you’re particularly proud of and want to share with Cityline.ca readers. I'm particularly proud of some of my before & after makeovers. I'm an absolute fanatic about thrift store hunting and get so much satisfaction from taking something old and giving it a fab new & modern look. My favourite is this chair makeover that combined an old chair and old dress that I transformed into a super funky chair. It also got featured on the internationally popular site Design*Sponge which was a big deal for me. And I can't name favourites without mentioning the HUGE project I created this past holiday called Merry magazine. I gathered 15 of my talented blogger pals and took everyone's awesome holiday projects and put it in the form of a beautiful online magazine to share and be inspired by. It was a big success and we're all super proud of it. Stay tuned for a Spring/Summer 2015 issue! What do you hope readers get from visiting your blog? Like the title, I hope readers have a little sweet escape from their everyday when visiting my blog. I hope they leave inspired in some way, big or small, to be creative in their daily life.   What are some other blogs you love reading? There are just so many fabulous blogs out there, it's almost impossible to choose a handful. My fave blogger superstars are Design Love Fest, A Beautiful Mess, and Emily Henderson...just to name a few. Some of my fave smaller blogs are all the bloggers I worked with on Merry magazine of course! What’s your top advice for other bloggers? Well my advice differs depending on intent. If you're blogging strictly for a hobby then there are no rules, just enjoy your little corner of the internet. If you're blogging as an extension of a business and want it to grow, then you definitely have to treat it more like a job (that you love!) and take the good with the bad, but never lose sight of yourself or your personal brand. The best thing you can do to learn and grow is to network both online and offline. There's so many opportunities out there to mingle: conferences, Facebook groups, meet-ups, media events, etc. Just be involved in some way! I've met so many great people from blogging, some of whom I now consider close friends. We want to hear from you! Do you know a blogger we should feature on Cityline.ca? Maybe it’s you! Email us at submissions@cityline.ca and include “Cityline Featured Blogger” in the subject line. And don’t forget to include a link to the blog! Look forward to hearing from you!

There are so many fabulous bloggers out there, and we want to highlight them on Cityline.ca. We’ll be profiling different lifestyle bloggers from month to month — they might write about food, fashion, beauty, décor, parenting, entertaining, gardening, you get the idea! For December 2014, we're putting the spotlight on northstory. Run by Alex, we love her take on décor and DIYs, as well as her honest insight into her day-to-day life as a woman and a mother. Here's our Q&A with Alex: When did you start northstory and what was the inspiration behind starting the blog? How did you come up with your blog’s name? I used to work in television and lived downtown in the city. I joke that when you go from being a TV producer to staying at home in the suburbs with your kids, it’s kind of like the equivalent of being grounded as an adult just because the two worlds are so different. I needed to maintain my love of creative story telling so I started a blog. That was back in early 2012. By late 2012 I had changed names to reflect more of the direction that my blog content had taken me and northstory came about. The name is reflective of my life: I live in the Great White North (Canada) and this is my story. I often use the expression that "I like uncomplicated" as my blog mantra, both in regards to my décor sense and the projects I do. My style is very Scandinavian mixed in with a bit of Canadiana. On your blog you write a variety of different posts, discussing everything from décor and DIYs to the life of a mom. What do you like about covering different topics on your blog, and what’s your favourite type of post to write? Originally my blog was supposed to be a journal of our home renovations but I realized really quickly that was not going to be the case. The dramatic Before and Afters that everyone loves to see take a long time to finish in real life, despite what you may see on a 30 minute TV show. I also had a lot more I wanted to write about in between, so I started blogging about everything from buying a couch in a snowstorm like a good Canadian would, to making card crafts, to upcycled home décor projects. I spend way too much time in our recycling bin and thrift stores trying to sort out what I could turn objects into. My favourite posts to write surprisingly are not the DIY ones despite doing a ton of them. I actually love writing product reviews, talking about blogging, day-to-day life and the craft fails because that’s what I find readers respond to the most. Don’t get me wrong, great photos are important especially in this visual medium (plus I’ve discovered a love of styling photographs) but nothing is better than people writing to you saying, "That made me laugh because I can so relate!" My writing and the storytelling aspect of my blog is a big part of who I am. I don’t want to just be a pinned image. Tell us about a post (or two!) that you’re particularly proud of and want to share with Cityline.ca readers. I love Halloween but the Evil Queen costume was by far my (our) favourite Halloween project to date. I do a ton of projects with embroidery hoops which is funny because I have no idea how to embroider anything but I’ve turned them into not just planters but also wreaths. Readers really responded to the first time I ever used a sewing machine. For the record I am still terrible at sewing. But these types of posts are my favourite ones to write. What do you hope readers get from visiting your blog? If I can make you laugh or relate to me in any way I've done my job. I am serious. I should warn you that I do write with a dry sense of humour and it's not everyone's cup of tea. And always take what you see as inspiration not expectation. Just because I enjoy making cards doesn't mean I expect others to do the same. Decorating cakes for example, I am just going to leave that one to the talented food bloggers and bakers of the world. What are some other blogs you love reading? Oh, this could get really long so I'll stick to Canadian ones for this one, as there is a ton of talent in this country. I know I am going to forget someone and feel terrible the moment I publish this. Design the Life You Want to Live A Pretty Life in the Suburbs Storefront Life The Uncommon Law Rambling Renovators The Sweet Escape Fynes Designs Suburble Hello Lidy What’s your top advice for other bloggers? I thought about this one for awhile. Then I wrote 10 different answers and erased them all. Because the truth is no matter what advice I give, it may or may not apply to your blog because no two bloggers are the same. What works for one may not work for another. The only thing I will say is as your life and interests off the computer screen evolve, give yourself permission to let your blog evolve along with it. Follow your own path. This is your story and no one else’s. We want to hear from you! Do you know a blogger we should feature on Cityline.ca? Maybe it’s you! Email us at submissions@cityline.ca and include “Cityline Featured Blogger” in the subject line. And don’t forget to include a link to the blog! Look forward to hearing from you!