I’m really thrilled to be hosting a guest post tomorrow by Julie Henning of Road Trips for Families! But let me back up a little in order to introduce her … While I was at BlogHer, there were “Birds of a Feather” lunches that we could join. I dropped into a seat at the “travel” table and met some really cool [...]
Archive for the ‘Activities’ Category
July 25th, 2010
Postcard from Jonesport, Maine: Are Fishermen Lonely?
We had had only one criterion for our holiday: an ocean view. So I simply searched the internet for all cottages that met this criterion and then booked the one at the best rate, which happened to be in a small fishing town called Jonesport … [to read more, please click here to read the full post on Life As [...]
July 3rd, 2010
Camping lesson #1: If there’s no nature, it’s not worth it
In an attempt to bring ourselves back into the camping spirit now that we have children, we bought a pop-up tent trailer this spring. I admit that we swallowed our pride when we parked it in our driveway. It really put a damper on our camping “street-cred.” Just as we defiantly swore we’d never buy a minivan just because we [...]
May 31st, 2010
What I learned about Ottawa this weekend
This weekend I had the good fortune of attending the Odawa Festival of Aboriginal Culture. I’d like to learn more about Canada’s Aboriginal cultures, so I jumped at a suggestion from a friend to attend with her and her family. (Everyone — Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal — is welcome at these events.) One of the first things I learned is that Ottawa has [...]
May 28th, 2010
Bike safety: More than just a helmet
Keeping your children safe while biking requires more than just making sure they’re wearing a helmet. Give yourself a refresher course on bike safety.
May 14th, 2010
The Spring Haircut
My children were both long over-due for haircuts. And Spring felt like the time for it. It’s an errand that I had kept moving down on the list until this week. I had an hour’s space between after school and when we would have dinner that I thought I’d use this time to strike this task off the list once [...]
May 10th, 2010
8 Tips for Camping with Kids
Good Monday morning! My daughter Stella has shared her top tips for successfully camping with kids in a post that is now live on the Kids in the Capital blog. If you are ever in the care of children in Ottawa, this is the blog to hit for ideas! It covers activities, playgroups, books, crafts, cooking — you name it! [...]
April 28th, 2010
I giggled and stomped, but the cup just kept laughing!
There’s so much happening around Ottawa that I think one can be forgiven for missing out on even something as fantastic as the NAC’s Kinderconcert series. It seems this series is one well-kept secret; one that – happily – I have now stumbled upon! Here’s what I found when I attended my first Kinderconcert, titled Giggle & Stomp … Before the show: [...]
April 27th, 2010
Tom Thomson knew a good thing when he found it
The celebrated artist Tom Thomson and his comtemporaries in The Group of Seven spent a great deal of time in Algonquin Park. The Park was more rugged then, and more quiet I’m sure. But despite the changes over the years, this Park remains as inspiring as ever. Hubby and I have had a long-lasting love affair with this Park. So [...]
April 23rd, 2010
It’s official: spring is here!
Why? Because the ducklings arrived yesterday morning!
April 3rd, 2010
Personal style: Sacrificed at the altar of family
Most of the folks in our circle started out strong. We wouldn’t sacrifice our personal style just because we were starting a family. Hell no! Just because we’d be parents didn’t mean we’d have to give up our sense of “cool.” But, one by one, we’ve all slipped into family-dom. Some jumped in whole-heartedly, while others — like my husband [...]
March 23rd, 2010
The March Break Highlight
So, all the Ontario kidlets are now back to school. I hope most of you were able to enjoy some March Break relaxation. Things here have been busy for me (as I’m sure it is for other Ottawa local readers since government fiscal year-end = lots to do and all on by an immovable deadline of March 31st). Wouldn’t it be [...]
March 15th, 2010
Need to getaway? Make a break for Montreal.
If one day at home with the little cherubs on March Break has you swilling wine tonight, it’s time to consider a getaway. In all seriousness, I do find it hard to feel like I’ve had a “break” if I don’t leave home, don’t you? And I often think children must feel that way too. I’ve got a getaway idea for you that [...]
March 7th, 2010
The Winter Resolution series: Bush party! (shhhh … pass it on)
When I was a teenager, every so often word would spread that a “bush party” was going to take place on the weekend. Unlike the “house party” which took place at some poor unsuspecting parent’s home while they were away, a “bush party” involved no house, just a location in the woods somewhere. The two types of parties still shared [...]
