My day starts at 5:45. In the morning. I race through my morning routine. Join the rat race through the underbelly of Toronto. I work a full day. I join the rat race home. I eat dinner with my family. I do supervise three sets of nightly homework. I watch Full House. I read books with my first grader. I pick out clothing for the next day. I help with “Emily for President” campaign posters and speeches. I help Isabella paint her arts and crafts project. I spend hours trying to fix my feed (it’s fixed!). I help Emily get ready for her Wizard of Oz audition. I am reading both the 6th Harry Potter book and The Paris Wife. I write several blogs posts a day (for here and for Canadian Family). I edit for Curvy Girl Guide. I am writing a novel.

I do not have time to go shopping.

Well, that’s kind of a lie. Because, you guys, I kind of hate when people say that they don’t have time to do things; it’s just not true. Because even though I am busy, I make time for things.

I do have time for shopping, but I don’t want to use it for shopping.

I used to love shopping. Walking through the mall, touching the beautiful fabrics, trying things on, making decisions. Magic.

And then something changed. It lost its magic. All I saw were long lines and pushy people and things I couldn’t afford. Perhaps it’s because I am older. Perhaps it’s because I have kids of my own whose needs for clothing and shoes and school supplies and winter coats and boots and training bras always trump my own. Perhaps it’s because in my world my minutes are precious and if I’m not multi-tasking while window shopping, it seems a waste of time.

You see, I will happily scour websites and make an online purchase while I listen to Isabella read about puppies going to the vet and watching homemade moving like Jagger videos and watching DVRd shows. In fact, this is how I buy most things these days. I even buy my tea online. Stores that offer ecommerce? That’s just good business right there. I will buy more; I will buy more often. And I know that I’m not alone. There are tons of busy people out there who don’t feel like spending an evening circling a busy parking lot or squeezing through crowds.

J.Crew, Banana Republic, Gap, Old Navy, Macys, Ruche, Modcloth, Anthropologie…all ship to Canada.

This makes my heart sing. I can eat lunch and work on a blog post and have a coffee and take a phone call while shopping.

Last night, while watching Glee and skyping with my girls and listening to Josh talk about some Xbox game, I hit up my computer for some help with my I DON’T HAVE A SINGLE ARTICLE OF CLOTHING THAT FITS ME problem.

(Again. Lies. I do own one thing that fits. I found a pair of jeans at the way way way back of my closet and they fit. Like a glove. Like a glove made out of double-sided Spanx. So, I can get dressed in the morning, but breathing has become a little, erm, difficult.)

And I wanted to buy Canadian. Jacob. RW&Co. And guess what these stores do not have?

ECOMMERCE.

What?

(Cue the WTF face.)

It’s like 2004 in Canada, it seems. They have lovely websites and Facebook pages and Twitter feeds. They have beautiful fall lookbooks with lots of clothing that I’d like to purchase. But they have no online shopping. That’s just bad business right there. It seems ludicrous that it’s easier for me to buy my clothing from an American retailer than it is to buy from good old Canadian companies. Are you listening, Canada? THIS IS WHY THE AMERICAN COMPANIES ARE COMING INTO CANADA. (Hi, J.Crew. We are so happy to have you here. Finally.) Stop complaining and start fixing. Give me a chance to sink my hard-earned Canadian dollars into the Canadian economy.