July 2024 Issue

July r.e.p.o.r.t.

📚 Reading: The List by Yomi Adegoke (started this just before I gave birth in January, and I finally have time to pick it back up!)

🤤 Eating: Shawarma, specifically OTTAWA shawarma… IYKYK.

🎶 Playing: Tem’s latest album, Born in the Wild. Been on repeat since it came out.

😍 Obsession: Walking!!! Ever since I got a personal trainer, I love how much more enjoyable walking is, especially now that summer is here. I have a 30,000 step goal which I look forward to accomplishing each week (and I haven’t missed one yet!).

🗣️ Recommend: If you haven’t negotiated your cell phone plan in a while (like me), this is the time to do so! We’re approaching Back to School season and the deals will be flowing.

🍬 Treat: A luxe solo staycation at the W Hotel and shopping for my birthday. It was everythingggg. See a breakdown of how much I spent on my birthday staycation here (I did way better than I thought)!

🤔 Make it Make Cents

• 20% of 60 grocery items are showing signs of ‘shrinkflation’

  Shrinkflation is when products get smaller but cost the same. A report found that 20% of items in Canadian grocery stores have shrunk in the past five years, especially those in boxes or packages. Products like bread and drinks usually stay the same size because shrinkage is more noticeable (the nerve!). To avoid getting less for your money, compare product sizes at the store with what you have at home and consider trying brands that haven't downsized.

• Canada may be looking to adopt its own digital currency

  As fewer people use cash, the Bank of Canada is thinking about creating a digital version of money. The reason being because they believe we might need digital cash due to people using way less cash and more cryptocurrencies. In 2022, only 10% of payments were made with cash, compared to 59% five years ago! This digital money would be like cash you can keep on your phone or a card, and it would be worth the same as regular cash. Countries like Australia and China are already using this kind of digital money, but the overall reaction to Canada following suit hasn’t been positive. Don't worry though! If you still like using cash, the Bank of Canada says this digital money would be used along with cash, not instead of it.

• Inflation has dropped, but what about those rates? 👀

  Today Bank of Canada announced another 25 basis point drop, bringing the rate the policy rate to 4.5%! What does this mean?

  • It SHOULD spark more confidence for first-time home buyers since this will improve affordability, especially if there are more rate drops to come.

  • Debt is “cheaper” for those carrying a balance on debt products that have a revolving portion such as lines of credits, student loans and variable mortgages.

  • On the other hand, interest being paid in savings accounts will decrease if cuts continue (since banks now make less on debt)

👶🏾 Corner 

July 11th marked 6 freaking months of being a mom to Oye and I can’t believe it! We really look at him and think, “how have we been able to keep a whole human alive and happy for this long???” 😂

That said, we (100% me) decided we needed to take a 6 month birthday picture - I’ll add that we took all of our pictures ourselves which make them that much sweeter.

🍎 We start solids this month, and I can’t wait because formula is getting expensive! We’ve experimented so far with…

• Nigerian style beans with a pepper sauce (ewa agoyin)

• peanut butter (was not supposed to do this yet, oops!)

• eggs (was also not supposed to introduce yet!)

• watermelon

• sweet potato

Honestly, it’s a very random list but we’re getting better as we learn more. We went H.A.M. buying some new vegetables and fruits to puree, as well as cereals to try. Will provide some of our favourites in an upcoming newsletter!

😣 Oye officially got diagnosed with eczema last week - this was not a surprise to us since he has been battling with itchy, dry skin for a few months now, but it was SUCH a relief to know it wasn’t anything more complicated than that.

Our visit to the pediatric dermatologist was very informative (highly recommend getting a referral for one as soon as you notice any skin issues with your baby… I wish we went sooner vs trying to figure it out). We were suggested a few things to try which I shared on my stories but guys, I’m SO EXCITED to share that the creams prescribed to us worked!!!!!!

I don’t want to get too excited because it hasn’t been up to a week yet, BUT BUT BUT his skin is baby smooth. No more scratching, no more rough patches… it honestly feels like a miracle.

We were prescribed Desonide (has a very very small amount of steroids) and Eucrisa (not medicated but she’s pricey - $200 but with my insurance we only paid $80)**

**this is not intended to be medical advice, I am simply sharing what worked for US! Always seek the advice of a medical professional before making any medical decisions or purchases

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