Halloween is coming and there's nothing cuter than kids dressed up as monsters, ghouls, princesses, pirates and minions. We'd love to see pictures of your little monsters as they get ready to trick or treat.
Send your photos to kidsinthecapital@gmail.com and we'll post them here!
Stay tunes for some cuteness.....
My favorite season of the year is fall. I love the changing leaves, the cooler temperatures and the need for funky looking blazers. And, of course, fall means Halloween. I love carving pumpkins and roasting the seeds. It’s a tradition we've had in our house for a long time. But when my girls were small, carving pumpkins was a tricky and scary ordeal. So, we came up with some other alternatives that our girls could help with that didn't involve sharp knives.
Instead of carving faces in this Jack-o-Lantern, we would use candy instead and glue or pin it to the pumpkins. It’s a great way for kids to be able to decorate the pumpkins themselves - and a sweet way to do it. From experience, hot glue guns don’t work so well - it melts the candy but craft glue or push pins will do the trick.
If your toy box was anything like mine, the Mr. Potato Head pieces are always floating around. Using the pieces to create fun and goofy faces is always a fun job for the whole family. The pieces go in fairly easily by twisting back and forth.
You can get those packages of sticky foam pieces at any craft or dollar store. You can get them in all different shapes and sizes to decorate your pumpkin. Even the littlest fingers will have fun helping with this.
Paint, glitter glue, puff paint and even glow-in-the-dark paint can all be used to decorate After you’ve painted, you can spray glitter paint to make the whole thing sparkle.
Do you have any other ideas? We’d love to hear them.
I love the idea of establishing a few special back to school traditions to start things off on a positive note. No matter how old your kids are, going back (or starting) school can be a bit overwhelming. I’ve had the chance to look online and I found a couple of cute traditions that are pretty neat:
I love all these ideas and will likely pick a few to make this year’s back to school a memorable one for all.
What will you do to celebrate back-to-school?
By Angèle There are always a million things to do during the holiday season, but how much is really what matters to you? I know that for me, concentrating on the basics and creating traditions that my child (and her mother) look forward to every year is what matters. So if you’re looking for a simpler Christmas, even an old-fashioned Christmas, here’s a good place to start.
Heritage Villages Cumberland Museum (East of Orleans)
On a late Sunday afternoon last December, my daughter and I, along with friends, went to the Cumberland Museum to experience the Vintage Christmas Village of Lights. We admired twinkle lights as we walked in the dark and sang carols on our horse-drawn wagon ride. We then decorated gingerbread men in the old town hall (yes, we ate most of the icing straight from the bag), and admired the handmade decorations in the schoolhouse. Of course, after warming up with hot chocolate around the camp fire, we saw Santa in a very old, charming house. We left filled with Christmas spirit; it was an event to remember.
Needless to say, I plan on going back this year: http://www.ottawa.ca/en/rec_culture/museum_heritage/museums/cumberland/events/ http://www.facebook.com/cumberlandmuseum
Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays in December, 3 p.m. to 8 p.m. Families (two adults and unlimited children) $18.
Upper Canada Village (South of Ottawa, in Morrisburg) We haven’t been to Upper Canada Village’s Alight at Night Festival yet, but if it’s anything like what we can do and see there during the summer, it will be impressive. Starting November 30th, we can go on a horse drawn wagon ride or on the lit up toy train, spot the Dickens characters and enjoy carollers in the old church or have a traditional Christmas dinner. Or we can simply stand and stare at the twinkle lights for hours.
It’s definitely worth the drive from Ottawa. http://www.uppercanadavillage.com/index.cfm/en/activities/alight-at-night/
Angèle is a goofy mum to a daughter and a wife to an evil genius (retired, apparently). She’s also a social media strategist, a podcast host and a teacher in training. In her other life, she’s a fan of fresh air, yoga, good friends, new places and keeping things simple. She is the author of two blogs: More of Less (http://moreoflessblog.
by Jayda
Let’s be honest, we will all consume more calories/food/sugar than we should over the holidays. Keep moving. Continue your normal workout routine, or adopt a new one. Round up your friends and family and go out for brisk walk around the neighbourhood or play snow tag after that heavy meal. Aerobic exercise stimulates the release of appetite regulating hormones.
Don’t starve yourself all day in anticipation of the dessert buffet being served at the holiday party. Eat a meal rich in whole foods at home before you go; you will be less inclined to make poor food choices driven by a ravenous appetite. Remember to eat breakfast. A nutritious breakfast will set the tone for your day. Additionally, feed the kids one of their favourite meal before attending holiday parties. This a great way to avoid behaviours related to hunger, in the case of a delayed or late meals. Children are easily distracted at parties and may not eat to fullness so by pre-eating you can relax and enjoy your meal knowing that they had a wholesome meal at home and anything they eat at the party is a bonus.
Plan to meet friends and family for an activity in lieu of a meal. An afternoon of tobogganing or skating will take the focus off food and burn calories. Bonus! Too cold? Bust out the board games, get crafty or plan an indoor scavenger hunt. Host the activity between major meal times and serve a healthy snack or light meal.
When plating your food fill up on healthy, whole, foods first then hit the dessert table. Consider incorporating all five flavours (pungent, sour, sweet, salty and bitter) when choosing foods. By satisfying all tastes, you are less likely to experience cravings after a meal.
Eat with awareness, not just awareness of foods but rather awareness of the experience of eating. Mindful of the smell and taste of your meal. How does the food make you feel? Savour it. Enjoy it. Don’t forget to breathe. Take your time eating. Take a deep breathe between bites. Allow your body to feel full before going for a second helping.
Drink water, lots of water. Water will dilute the effects of the alcoholic holiday beverages and help flush the extra sugar out of your system and curb those cravings.
Jayda Siggers is a Mom of 2 ( JWS, 6 and LLS, 4), a nutritionist, a coach at Clean Plate Cleanse, a master mediator living under a co-dictatorship, whole food advocate, trying to live a little greener everyday.
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