Canada’s Top 10 Mommy Bloggers
Updated: Feb. 28, 2021
For most of the country’s nearly 4,000 mommy blogs, the payback is simple: being heard. Learn, laugh, and cry with ten of the loudest moms in Canada. (And one daddy blogger, too.)
One is finally pulling her kids from private school-despite all the gossip. Another has coped beautifully with the loss of a son. And one woman can even show you how to save money on absolutely everything.
Smart, hilarious, and often profound, this group of parents is vocal and candid about (almost) everything.
1. Annie Urban
Lives in: Ottawa
Mom to: Two kids, ages eight and five
Topics: Attachment parenting, environment, social justice.
Believes parents should never be complacent and “just accept that good enough is good enough.”
Blogger most likely to: make you take stock of your parenting choices.
2. Leanne Shirtliffe
Lives in: Calgary
Mom to: Eight-year-old twins
Topics: The lighter side of child raising.
Hates crafts. “Glitter was clearly invented by a child-free man or by a woman with a cleaning lady.”
Blogger most likely to: make you snort coffee out your nose.
3. Robin Farr
Lives in: Calgary
Mom to: One child, age four
Topics: Postpartum depression and rage.
Thinks postbaby rage is more common than people realize. “I was desperately sleep deprived. I had no patience. Anger was my constant companion.”
Blogger most likely to: help you spot a parent going through a rougher-than- normal patch.
4. Ali Martell
Lives in: Toronto
Mom to: Three kids, ages 11, nine and seven
Topics: Work-life balance, history, television.
Complains her children can’t entertain themselves. “I try to explain to my kids that I did all the playing when I was a kid; it’s their turn to play now. I am not responsible for building fun into every minute of every day.”
Blogger most likely to: impress you with her frankness.
5. Emma Waverman
Lives in: Toronto
Mom to: Three kids, ages 12, nine and six
Topics: Politics, currents affairs, celebrity news.
Wants government to take a more explicit antispanking stance. “I still don’t understand how it is illegal to hit a stranger but okay to hit someone who is vulnerable.”
Blogger most likely to: make you see the world through a kid’s eyes.
6. Brandee Brown Barker
Lives in: Vancouver
Mom to: One child, age two
Topics: Cooking, fashion, child-rearing neuroticism.
Believes couple trying to reignite their sex life should move out of the bedroom. “You have an entire house, a yard, a car, a dark parking spot, a rarely used stairwell…you get the picture.”
Blogger most likely to: inspire you to swear like a truck driver whenever sharing a profound insight.
7. Laura O’Rourke
Lives in: Halifax
Mom to: Two kids, ages two, and three months
Topics: Mommy trends, child development, family values.
Candid about her memories of life without kids. “It meant full nights of sleep. It meant being social. It meant having a moment to myself. It meant showers and hair straighteners and makeup. It meant freedom and quiet and dates with my husband.”
Blogger most likely to: teach you how to take a proper maternity photo.
8. Catherine Connors
Lives in: New York City (formerly Ontario)
Mom to: Two kids, ages four and six
Topics: Feminism, social media, bullying.
Believes in being a bad mother. “I let my children watch more television than I’d ever publicly admit. I let them have cookies for breakfast. I let them stay up too late.”
Blogger most likely to: crush every mommy cliché you’ve ever conjured.
9. Tanis Miller
Lives in: Alberta
Mom to: Three kids, ages 16, 15 and nine (adopted, severely disabled). Youngest son died suddenly in 2006.
Topics: Rights of disabled children, grieving process, adoption.
Believes handicapped kids get a raw deal. “There will always be someone who sees Jumby [son] and looks away in fear or disgust. There will always be someone who can’t see his beauty beneath his drooling smile or slumped frame.”
Blogger most likely to: surprise you with her mix of wisdom and wit.
10. Tenille Lafontaine
Lives in: Saskatchewan
Mom to: Three kids, ages eight, four and one
Topics: Deals, coupons and giveaways on family-oriented products.
Has a soft spot for Thomas the Tank Engine. “The thing is, while trains may seem to be a ‘boy’ thing, they most certainly are not. Thomas the Tank Engine has huge appeal for little girls, too.”
Blogger most likely to: Help you fly your kids to Disneyland for free.
Daddy Blogger: Kenny Bodanis
Lives in: Montreal
Dad to: Two kids, ages seven and five
Topics: Challenges of being a working parent, vasectomy, road trips.
Peeved by aggressive sports parents. “These five- to seven-year-olds are playing for Popsicles, while the adults are demanding rule clarifications and yelling at kids for not running fast enough or for dreaming while waiting for fly balls in centre field.”
Blogger most likely to: make you wonder why more daddies aren’t blogging.
