momstown Victoria is for sale!

momstown Victoria seeks entrepreneur!

The momstown mission

Our mission is Connecting neighbourhood moms. One community at a time.

momstown.ca is a social networking, media and event company geared for moms with children aged 0-6 years old. The dual goal of each momstown chapter is to connect neighbourhood moms both online and in-person with over 20 local, in-person events monthly. Additionally, as a media company we invite and integrate brands and local advertisers into our mom dialogue.

momstown is here at the right time and the right place. momstown is part of the social networking wave that is changing the way the online world operates and how society is behaving, learning and most importantly, parenting.

Join the momstown movement

We’re looking for moms, like you, to join the momstown movement.

Are you searching for a business that is flexible and family friendly? Are you passionate about children, parenting, and connecting with like-minded mothers? How about internet-savvy, enthusiastic, self-motivated and leadership driven? Are you looking for an income, a fulfilling way to contribute to your family and an at-home business you can be proud of?

momstown is a dynamic small business to run - fun event planning with revenue earned from advertising sales and membership fees. It's perfect for a mom who wants to continue being the primary parent while owning a family-focused and mommy relevant business. momstown may be the right choice for you.


A bit about momstown

momstown is the original Canadian mom network, the only mom ‘website’ to plan regular events and achieve massive reach within the social media sphere.

Initially launched in August 2007 in Burlington, Ontario, with a focus to create a more integrated moms group, momstown was an immediate success because it met a relevant need in a unique and modern fashion. Our teacher-developed momstown educational curriculum is focused on early literacy, community involvement & local parents.

Today, with strategic partnerships with CBC Kids, Scholastic Canada and a study commissioned by the University of Waterloo on the benefits to mothers brought by momstown, we are not the only ones to recognize the value that momstown brings to a community.

Our national network of momstown influencers and bloggers, with real-life neighbourhood connections, is the host of hundreds of monthly community events for moms and is unique gem in Canada.

Our National momstown team - Spring 2012

A momstown License Includes

• Exclusive license to own and run your momstown geographic territory
• Revenue from all local membership fees, local advertising via online, newsletter & email advertising, event sponsorships, & social media campaigns.
• Territory specific, social networking Website, up and running from Day one
• License to run proprietary momstown event programming complete with in-depth 5 year momstown national educational curriculum.
• momstown Training & Business Support

momstown is a turn-key operation, ready to be fueled by your vision and energy for your community.

Good Night, Sleep Tight at momstown Victoria Scholastic sponsored Tales for Tots

Good Night, Sleep Tight is perfect bedtime reading by international bestselling author, Mem Fox. In this beautifully illustrated story, the children beg their favourite babysitter to tell them nursery rhymes. The kids in the book want to hear these old rhymes again and again, and your kids will too!

For our craft we made spiders dangling from a string using beads and pipe cleaners. The kids loved doing the actions to the nursery rhymes in the storybook and then making crawling spider puppets in theme with Halloween! 

Congratulations to the winner of our Scholastic book prize! Join your local momstown chapter to enjoy Tales for Tots and other great programs that connect and support local families!

Mommy & Me Game Day sponsored by Mattel Game On!

momstown Victoria moms and kids enjoyed a great afternoon of family board games at our Mommy & Me Game Day sponsored by Mattel Game On! Our chapter received a Games Pack of five new preschool-age games to try, plus a bonus Uno card game for each of the moms to take home!

Angry Birds Knock on Wood was an immediate "hit" with our toddlers! They could recognize the characters and had fun setting up the "wood" blocks, pigs and eggs, and then using the catapult to launch the rubber bird toys. This is a great game for toddlers to practice their building skills and learning to take turns.

We also enjoyed trying Chipmunk Chompers. The large-headed chomping chipmunks became a favourite toy, and moms liked that there were three ways to play for different levels of literacy. It's a great game for both toddlers who are learning to identify letters and preschoolers who are already learning to spell.

Uno Moo was the overall favourite, since it was easy to play and kept the attention of our 3 to 5 year olds to the very end of the game. The barn also made a great carrying case for all the game pieces, eliminating the need for a separate box. It's also a great game for teaching colours, farm animals, and introducing game concepts like "wild card" and "lose a turn."

Our moms and toddlers also loved the high quality and brightly coloured pieces of Parrot Pile-Up and Go Piggy Go! These would make great family board games for our preschoolers as they acquire a bit more skill and patience. Each mom also got to choose their favourite board game to keep. Thank you to our gracious host, Emily, and thank you to all the moms and toddlers for sharing a fun afternoon with us! 

These games would make great gifts for any preschooler on your Christmas list. Follow Mattel Game On on facebook and check out the Mattel website for more great family board game ideas, and enter to win a Mattel Games Prize Pack at momstown.ca!

momstown Victoria hosts Alphabet Play sponsored by Post Alpha-Bits Cereal

momstown Victoria moms and preschoolers enjoyed a fun craft, tasty snack and parachute play at our Alphabet Play event sponsored by Post Alpha-Bits Cereal!  Our preschoolers and tots coloured their alphabet placemats with bright, scented markers, then matched the letters in their Alpha-Bits snack to the letters on the colouring sheet. It was a fun and tasty alphabet scavenger hunt that the moms enjoyed, too! Then we played parachute and sang the alphabet song, and at the end, each mom brought home their own box of Alpha-Bits. It was a great event!

Post Alpha-Bits Cereal has the great taste and alphabet delight that kids and moms L-O-V-E! But Alpha-Bits cereal is more than fun and games. Post Alpha-Bits cereal provides a source of 9 essential nutrients plus is an excellent source of Iron and Thiamin, so you can feel good about including Alpha-Bits in a healthy snack! Also check out the Post cereal website for great recipe ideas for Alpha-Bits cereal. 

momstown Alphabet Play will now feature a tasty Post Alpha-Bits Cereal snack in momstown chapters across Canada! Alphabet Play is a monthly program which focuses on early literacy and letter sounds. Join your local momstown chapter to enjoy Alphabet Play and many other high quality programs for your whole family!

momstown Victoria Scholastic Books at Sing, Rattle & Read

We gave away two great titles from Scholastic Canada at our Sing, Rattle & Read program in September. "Fox and Squirrel" by Ruth Ohi is a delightful story of two very different animals who only see their differences. Yet they become the best of friends and begin to see that they may not be so different after all! 

Our baby book of the month was "Giggle!" by beloved author and illustrator Caroline Jayne Church. Our Victoria moms, babies and toddler couldn't get enough of this book, as everyone loved to press the "giggle button," which made a happy giggling sound to complement each new verse and page! 

"There's no greater thing to do/Than laugh and giggle here with you!"

Thank you to our member Jane for leading this fun program with puppets and stories borrowed from the Greater Victoria Public Library! 

Congratulations to the lucky winners of this month's books! Please join us again for a free drop-in storytime and Scholastic book prize draw at at Chapters Victoria on Wednesday, October 16th from 10-10:30 am. Everyone welcome! 

momstown Victoria Chef Boyardee Junior Chef

momstown Victoria moms & kids made Chef Pizza-roni Skillet and Ravioli Lasagne at Junior Chef this month! Chef Boyardee makes meal time enjoyable for the whole family by providing quick and easy meal ideas! Yummy enriched pasta, cheese and meaty tomato sauce, Chef Boyardee is a hot and hearty meal or snack. It’s kid approved pasta, and has no preservatives! Combine with different protein options, veggies and cheese for a new take on your regular way to serve Chef Boyardee!

The kids helped to shred the cheese and cut the green pepper and pepperoni for the Chef Pizza-roni Skillet recipe.

The green pepper, pepperoni, Mozarella cheese and Italian seasoning were combined in a skillet with Chef Boyardee Beefaroni.

The skillet was folded into a healthy whole wheat tortilla for a satisfying meal!

Then the kids got busy layering Ravioli, Ricotta and Mozarella cheeses, spinach and Italian seasoning into their lasagne pans sprayed with Pam cooking spray. 

The Ravioli Lasagnes were covered for the moms to take home and bake for dinner!

Each kid received a kid-sized Chef Boyardee apron, and each family received a gift bag with Ravioli, Beefaroni, Pam Cooking spray and a recipe booklet! Thank you, Chef Boyardee!!!

How to Make Chef Boyardee Ravioli Lasagna

Ingredients

• 2 cans (2 x 425 g) Chef Boyardee® Mini Ravioli®, Beef Ravioli or Lasagna

• 1 cup (250 mL) finely chopped spinach

• 2 cups (500 mL) grated Mozzarella cheese, separated into 1 cup (250 mL) portions

• 1 cup (250 mL) 2% cottage cheese or Ricotta cheese

• 1 teaspoon (5 mL) Italian seasoning

Directions:

1. Spray 8" square or round baking pan with PAM®.
2. Spread 1 can of pasta on the bottom of the baking pan. Place chopped spinach in a glass bowl and microwave for 10 seconds; drain. Spread spinach over pasta and top with cottage or Ricotta cheese, 1 cup (250 mL) Mozzarella cheese and ½ teaspoon (2.5 mL) Italian seasoning.
3. Layer second can of pasta. Top with remaining Mozzarella and Italian seasoning.
4. Bake at 400°F for 20-25 minutes or until heated through. Allow 10 minutes to stand before serving. 

Nutritional Benefits:

Adds calcium and protein.

Find Chef Boyardee on Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/chefboyardeecanada

You can find more recipe and meal ideas:

http://www.chefboyardee.ca/en/recipes/default.html

You can also learn about the Chef Boyardee history:

www.chefboyardee.ca/en/history.html 

momstown Client & Partner Appreciation Party presented by Diggit

Friends and members of momstown Victoria enjoyed delicious appetizers and cupcakes by Crumsby's, Diggitini cocktails, a butler in a tuxedo, a slideshow from some of our 300 events over the past year, and brought home party favours and sunflowers. Thank you to everyone who made this a truly memorable event and year!

Mary Lloyd, founder of "Tinseltots at the Odeon," talks with local teacher and science performer, Glenn Kachmar.

Ian Kula and Kyrie Smith are greeted and announced at the party by Chambers, our butler in a tux!

Dr. Lisa Lau, ND, Martin Newham and Christina Gilbert.

One of our two gracious presenters of the evening. Thank you Erin Richards and Connie McConnell for being so much fun and for making this evening of gratitude possible. 

Thank you to Crumsby's Cupcake Cafe for supporting momstown over the year and for providing the wonderful venue and catering for this event!

I am especially grateful for my members!

Candies and chocolates from Diggit and Tuscan Sunshine soap from Dragonfly Dreaming!

Thank you Diggit for being a fantastic presenter and event sponsor! 

Diggit is so much more than a free marketplace. They're taking a grassroots approach to bringing people together, and they have a beautiful online marketplace where local home crafters, artisans, home businesses and taste makers can connect with local shoppers in a safe and fun environment! 

Check out Diggit and subscribe to their newsletter!