Hello & Welcome

…to Babbling Panda Blog.

Welcome to a place for fellow parents, pet moms, voracious readers, & kindred creatives.

About me:

I’m a parent of two wonderful kids, now teens, and I share a lot of my parenting experience on this blog. My belief is it that it does take a village, even if it’s an online village of opinions where we read shared experiences. I hope to spark conversation and I welcome feedback and questions. My kids are twice-exceptional, which means they are gifted and neuro-divergent. For my son, it’s high-functioning autism spectrum disorder and ADD and for my daughter it’s ADHD and anxiety. I wouldn’t change anything, since they are practically perfect in every way, but it does mean there are some unique parenting techniques and challenges. Thankfully, I have a wonderful husband who parents with me; learning and adjusting as we grow.

I Love

  • the smell of trees in Autumn
  • a great cup of black coffee in the morning
  • a good cup of tea in the afternoon
  • emptying out and organizing almost anything because I find it calming (that same feeling is attached to folding laundry)
  • stationery-there is something deeply satisfying about my favourite uni-ball pen gliding smoothly over quality paper

I Dislike

  • noise pollution
  • people touching the tips of my fingernails
  • feeling cold
  • olives
  • scratchy sweaters

I currently live in Calgary, AB., Canada. A lot of people talk about the weather where they live but Calgary has the craziest weather of any place I’ve been. In the summer, I’m filled with memories of summers spent at my grandparent’s cabin at the Emma Lakes, in Saskatchewan, and tell my kids the same stories over and over. In the winter, I’m again reminded of my home province, Saskatchewan, and constantly mentally compare the cold and snowy winters there to the rainy winter spent teaching English in Japan or the dreary winter seasons I spent slinging coffee in Vancouver. Yet, nothing compares to the winters I’ve experienced in Calgary. Calgary winters have bouts of freezing cold snowstorms between days of warm Chinook winds that melt the snow. This is on repeat for the entirety of winter. I’ve even seen it snow in June, instead of a rainstorm (!), but born and raised Calgarians take it in stride. Weather, landscape and culture here are like no other city I’ve previously lived. It’s wild and I love it here. This city feels like home.

I graduated from the University of Saskatchewan with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in English literature with the initial goal of pursuing journalism (but deciding to keep it permanently unpursued). I have successfully “used” my B.A. to teach English as a second language, sell retail clothing at the mall, book flights in the WestJet call center and to serve coffee. Now I use it for creative writing. I’ve written for newspapers, had articles printed in independent magazines, and been published on notable blogs. On Babbling Panda, I share my personal experiences and moments.

Let’s get real and share honest conversations about parenting exceptional kids with incredible love. I hope you feel a sense of community and kindness here. Welcome.

Start here:

Read more about Isabella’s story HERE.

Read more about Hunter’s story HERE.

————————————–

And add me here:

Add me to IG: @babblingpanda

Or Pinterest: Babbling Panda-Tianna

—————————————-

IMPORTANT-If you would like to submit, PLEASE read the guidelines –>HERE<– first, as long as you are planning to submit original articles. Thank you.

—————————————-

About the author: Tianna Morison is the creator and author of Babbling Panda Blog. She was a contributor for The Sheaf, the Saskatoon Star Phoenix, MindBodyGreen.com and several independent online zines and blogs. Tianna specializes in writing about parenting, mental health, and living gluten-free.