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This is Summer: The Kiddie Pool

August 15, 2012 By Lena

I have a long list of perfectly preserved memories from my childhood summers.

Late nights on the porch with my little friends, swatting mosquitoes until my mom hollered from inside. Riding my bike to the neighbourhood park (which was much too far a jaunt without parental supervision by today’s standards – sans helmet or cell phone for emergencies too!). Watching MuchMusic endlessly as one lazy day stretched into the next, hoping to catch A-Ha’s video for “Take on Me” or Belinda Carlisle’s “Mad About You”.

Of course, if I had to isolate one summer memory – just ONE thing that defined my entire summer – it was the kiddie pool. How I entreated my parents to fill it up every morning! Heating under the strong sun, the temperature would be perfect for a late afternoon swim (and by swim, I mean sloshing around in water about 12 inches deep). I sat in the pool and took my Barbies for a dip. Boats were constructed of Lego. Tiny shovels and pails rhythmically scooped and tossed water over the side. This was summer.

(I begged and begged my parents for a Crocodile Mile to no avail. Pfft. They didn’t even seem mildly interested in how this one piece of plastic could take my neighbourhood popularity to unforeseen heights. Ah well.)

With my own two little boys, I’m happy to carry on the tradition of the kiddie pool. In fact, after recently inflating the specimen, my husband and I concluded that kiddie pools have made few changes by way of structure and innovation since the 80’s. But why mess with a good thing, right?

And the boys LOVE it. Donning their adorable swim trunks and large arsenal of water toys, they make their own magical summer memories.

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Filed Under: Family Tagged With: Coppertone, Coppertone Kids Clear Continuous Spray, review, sun protection

Can You Read This? Let’s Keep it That Way.

May 23, 2012 By Lena

If there’s one thing I don’t take for granted, it’s my vision.

Seriously now, is there anyone out there who wants to lose their sight? I don’t think so. Especially with 50 Shades of Grey being made into a movie… potentially starring Ian Somerhalder. I NEED to see that, please!

(Insert Eye Candy Here)

For me, I’ve got a little something called glaucoma working against me. Having a very strong family history of the disease, I was diagnosed with high intraocular pressure (IOP) at just 14 years old. Hence, I’ve had to undergo visual field tests once a year for the past twenty years. My last test results suggested that I had a *small* blindspot on my upper left side, but thankfully, no therapy has been indicated just yet. Kind of sucks that I have to dance around a condition that normally affects seniors, but I’m eternally grateful for preventative medicine and technology.

Did you know that many types of vision loss are preventable? It’s true – and with May being Vision Health Month, the CNIB is challenging Canadians to take action to maintain their vision health so that we can eliminate avoidable sight loss in Canada….

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Filed Under: Lifestyle Tagged With: CNIB, Shades of Fun, sun protection, Vision Health Month

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Lena Almeida

Toronto Blogger, Social Media Strategist for Listen to Lena Inc. Television & Radio Personality, Columnist and Speaker. Family Travel Expert. Star Wars Fanatic. Perfecting the Art of Conversuasion. Read More…

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