What a gong show!

I know it's been a few weeks since my last post but dealing with the death of our dog has been harder on us than we ever could have imagined.

I've never had a family pet so Gazza played a huge part in our lives. When we talked about our family it was always: mom, dad, Oz, Lola and our Gazza dog, too!

Right after I posted about his death, we had a bit of an incident. While Ron was digging Gazza's grave, he hit and punctured a gas line. We have 5 acres of land so what are the freakin' odds??

Anyway, while I was actually writing that blog, I heard him running upstairs yelling for me. He's the calmest person in the world but I didn't really care that he was in such a panic because I was BLOGGING and really EMOTIONAL!!

After he called me again, I posted the blog, went upstairs and wondered WTF that smell was. And that's when he told me he hit a gas line.

This all happened within a half hour of finding our dead dog. Our kids were upset, I was an emotional wreck but our neighbours were incredibly sweet, even though I kept apologizing in advance if Ron happened to blow up their house.

The fire trucks and gas company came, asking Ron, "Um, sir, what were you doing digging a grave in the middle of the night?"

And then they wondered what he hit the gas line with because it's unusal for anyone to be able to puncure a gas line.

We ended up not getting into our house until 1:30 a.m.

The next morning when Oscar and I were talking about Gazza, Lola piped up and said, "Excuse me mom, but do I have to explain this to you?"

Oz and I looked at each other, wondering what wisdom she was about to bestow upon us. "Don't you understand," she said? "The fireman came last night to take Gazza so that he could live with them."

It was the sweetest, most saddest thing I'd ever heard.

If you've ever lost a pet, you know how hard this has been for us. I used to hear about those movies like Marley & Me and think, "How dumb. Dog's dead, get over it!!" I know, I know, heartless and lacking in empathy!!

I don't believe in replacing a family pet. It's like replacing a husband (of course if Sheldon Souray came along a week after Ron kicked it, I would be easily tempted to hit that!).

But we have decided that our house is lonely without our dog and so we are getting another Boxer puppy. He will come home at the end of the month and we are really looking forward to having him in our family.

Gazza will always be a huge part of our lives - we buried him underneath a tree in our front yard and the kids often go to see him before they go to bed. I used to tell him, "Who's the biggest dog in the world?? Gazza's the biggest dog!!" and he would twist his body and get all excited and jump on me.

I won't forget him and I am a better person for having him in my life.

xoxoox Gaz.

Dear Diary, I am devastated,

Tonight, Big Daddy woke me up to the sounds of, "Gazza's not moving."

Usually I thank my lucky stars because usually my dog wakes me up 3 0r 4 times a night, he's worse than a kid! But tonight, when Big Daddy said Gazza wouldn't wake up, he wasn't kidding around.

My dog was dead.

Laying in the grass, comfortably dead.

Big Daddy discovered him less than an hour ago and I am crushed. I can't imagine what my kids are going to feel when they wake up and their dog is dead.

Gazza has been with us almost as long as Oz has been here. He turned 6 this year in March just when Oscar celebrated his 7th birthday. We've taken him for granted over the years much like you take anything or anyone you love for granted, expecting them to be there forever.

When I came downstairs to the "dungeon" I half expected the little bastard to follow right behind me as he usually does, clicking his toenails on the floor, nudging to get past me.

My poor, sweet. loyal dopey dawg. I loved him and rarely told him so. I was looking forward to a summer of hiking with him, and playing in the yard.

I will miss my dog and think of him always.

My heart is broken.

t.

Dear Diary MOM's going south

That's RIGHT! MOM Magazine is officially expanding to Calgary!

We have had tonnes of interest in the magazine from the women of Cowtown, how could we possibly deny them any longer? This gives me even more excuses to escape to Calgary on a regular basis! Woot! Woot!!

I am currently looking for potential advertisers who want to reach that demographic so email me tamara@mommagazine.ca for more details.

Also, this summer marks a whole helluvalotta events for MOM starting June 5th at Social Script in Spruce Grove. This party will be one you SHOULD NOT MISS!
$5 gets you in the door and a free drink PLUS enjoy a snazzy fashion show, dancing, prizes and KILLER discounts!

June 20
Big Daddy's BIG Appetite
Servings in Spruce Grove
Get your Father's Day meal ready for his special day all while enjoying maragritas, games, prizes and FUN!
Tickets available at Servings in Spruce Grove or by calling me at 780-940-8337

July 25
Naughty Girls Only Pajama Party
Boudoir Photography, Pole Dancing, a Penis Pleaser party presented by the Travelling Tickle Trunk and SO much more!!
Tickets available June 15

August 13
MOM's First-ever Foursome!
Join us for a golf night like you've NEVER experienced! Duffy's Challenge takes the yawnnnn out of golf with a laid back atmosphere and family-friendly greens.Here's the deal:This is not serious golf. This is not a serious tournament. This is just a FUN day to get together, smack some balls, and have some fun!
Prizes, food, FUN!!! This is a 18+ over, mixed event, 9-holes and BBQ.

September 25
2nd Annual Scavenger Hunt
Teams of 2 compete in 30 different stops in and around the Edmonton area then RACE to the finish line!
More details to come.

So, as you can see... it's kinda busy for us at MOM but we want to keep you interested.

If you are interested in particpating in any of the events, please contact me or JOIN OUR FACEBOOK group http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=4177949591

Also, if you are a business that would like to advertise or distribute MOM please contact me directly and I would be MORE than thrilled to chat with you!

For now, I'm taking the rest of the day off to play with my little girl! After all, this is what being a mom is really all about!
t.

Summer Getaways...

I'm in awe of the women out there who look like they can balance it all. I have a really tough time getting my shit together for the day, let alone planning for a family vacation.

Lots of the moms I know, camp. They love it! Personally, I don't get it. You're transporting your family from the cozy comforts of home to the confines of a camper. Why? And they don't just do this once or twice, they do it MULTIPLE times a month! There's so much prep work involved plus, the thought of peeing outside is enough to make me go, "Nuh uh!"

I have a hard enough time planning the meals for the week and executing that little event, I can't imagine taking it to the wilderness and having to cook over an open flame.

Getting away from it all takes planning. And organization. Two things I am not good at. How I ever get the magazine done is beyond me... I probably would do a helluvalot better if I were more organized.

My ideal getaway involves anything last-minute.

Big Daddy: "Wanna go somewhere?"

Me: "Hmm.... production doesn't start until next week... why, yes. Yes I do!"

Big Daddy: "Vegas ok?"

Me: "I'm packed BABY!!"

See? Super simple! No fuss, no muss, no kids!

Theoretically, we're going to Disneyland for Lola's 4th birthday but, once again, that involves planning. My impulsive nature wants me to just wing it but the "grown up" in me (and I use that term loosely) thinks I need to make sure I have my shit together.

I'm torn! Torn, I say!!

This summer, I would love to spend more time with the kids. My goal is to schedule time into the week, specifically for that. But summer vacations seem so... overrated.

I prefer lots of one-day excursions to the corn mazes or the Prairie Gardens. Too much time alone with the family drives me to increase the prozac dosage!

Yeh, it's gonna be a good summer with no planning.

What are you doing??

t.

Are you a Smokin' Hawt mama??

In preparation for the next issue (good GAWD why do I do this to myself???!!!) we're asking readers to send in their favourite pics of themselves doing their FAVOURITE summer activity!

Now, the response for this has been pretty good but I am concerned about all you moms who have msged me about the shoot and want to send a pic of you drinking!

*GASP*

Are you saying - no correct me if I'm wrong here - that MOMS DRINK!!!???

But doesn't that go against the moral code of being a MOM!?

Shhhhhaaaaammmmmeeeee!!

LMAO

Ok Seriously, it does surprise me a teensy weensy bit that there are other moms out there who enjoy the drink as much as I do! Hell, I'm just happy I'm not the only one who admits it!

Now, back to the shoot. Send us your best - or worst - pics of you doing your fave summer activity and I will do my best to make sure it gets into this issue. ALL of the pics will be posted on the website, so buyer beware.

If you live in Edmonton or surrounding area and want us to shoot you, feel free to message me.

For all of the out-of-towners who LOVE us, just send 'em our way!!

Looking forward to getting YOU between our covers!!

t.

In the May/June issue of MOM, I wrote a Dear Diary about Twitter/FB and RECENTLY, as in just this moment, I have discovered that FB has added a page where I can connect with our readers without having to add you as a "friend."

I don't have any friends on FB anyway - except Big Daddy - but I love connecting with the readers! Here you can have discussions with other MOMs about anything you want! Topics you want to see in the magazine, complain about Big Daddy, ask us questions... anything!

http://www.facebook.com/pages/MOM-Magazine/94114998487?v=wall&viewas=564176206#/pages/MOM-Magazine/94114998487?ref=nf

Thats our fan page... check it OUT!

Gotta run! (not literally because I run like Sid the Sloth from Ice Age!)

t.

My MOM is cooler that yours

Ok, so I've had it.

I'm tired of the lame-ass assumptions that MOM is a parenting magazine or is compared to the other shit that's out there.

All you have to do is take one little peek between our covers to see that MOM is not like the boring, dry, regurgitated puree that you're used to. Even the so-called "innovative magazines" that claim to be all about YOU and your life, really aren't.

Blah.

The word MOM doesn't have to be associated with June Cleaver, yet people still do. I'm baffled by this but I guess I shouldn't be. Most moms I meet still like to come across as