Come and tumble, jump and play with us at Starr Gymnastics

It has been a long time since we've put together an event but this September we've got a great one for you!  Starr Gymnastics, one of our wonderful sponsors (we couldn't run this blog without them!) is welcoming us for an afternoon of fun at their Orleans location. What: One hour of gymnastics activities followed by one hour in the party room

When:  September 9 from 3 - 5 pm

Where: Starr Gymnastics, 520 Lacolle Way, Orleans

Who: We can accommodate 35 kids (plus their parents) and it will be first come first served. We ask that kids be at least 2 to participate in the activity. Please do add yourself to the wait list if the event is full though, we often get last minute cancellations.

Cost: FREE (though we would love if some people brought some peanut-free pot luck snacks to share in the party room)

How: Register for the event on our eventbrite page.

See you there!

Summer of Awesome - Pinto Valley Ranch

So my girls are still heavily into horses, and the Olympics did not help matters any. So to (hopefully) further dissuade them against the whole idea, I took them out to Pinto Valley Ranch. The ranch is located in Fitzroy Harbour, which makes it a bit of a hike - it's about 1/2 hour north of Kanata. What makes it worth it, though, is that it's one of the few places around where amateurs can have a go at horseback riding.

They have several ponies on hand for younger kids. You can pick out a pony, then take a 10 minute or 20 minute ride around the paddock - your pony will be guided on the ground by an experienced rider, and your child will just be able to get the feel of a gentle walk and enjoy visiting with the horses.

Once you hit 11 years old, you're old enough to qualify for their trail rides. The trail rides are for all levels of riders - their horses are seriously so gentle and easy that even total beginners will be safe and sound. The horses and riders travel as a group along a pretty trail for about an hour, so you and your child can get a good feel for what it means to be on horseback.

The ranch is a quiet, laid back kind of place. It's not like other in-town attractions, where you're running from one high-octane activity to the next. Besides the horse riding, there's nothing "to do," per se.

But just being out on the farm was a surprisingly fun experience for the kids. There are plenty of animals about - llamas and goats, funny loud roosters in a pen, pigs that are allowed to roam free (my kids LOVED them), kittens in the barn. If you're lucky, you might bump into a free-running peacock or two. You're free to walk up and down the stalls in the barn, too, visiting quietly with the horses, stroking then on the nose, imagining you own one and it sleeps in your bedroom and you ride it to school every day and Mommy, can I please please please have a horse???

Sigh.

There's a small tuck shop where you can sit inside and have a snack, and buy treats or drinks. There's plenty of outdoor toys for little ones to explore. It's quite pleasant to just sit and enjoy the barn smells and sounds. A slow-going afternoon in the country, if you will.

We were there for about 2 1/2 hours total - enough time for a pony ride, a snack, a visit with the other animals...and then another pony ride. I am a sucker.

If you are at all interested in the ranch, now is the time to go, and I mean like now, today. The ranch is facing some hard times right now - first of all, the drought this summer has caused a massive hay shortage in the area, and the ranch is looking at selling up to half its horses to make ends meet. Secondly, the owners' kids are all in full day school now, so they're starting to wonder when (or if) it's time to hang up the saddles. It's too bad, as it's the perfect place to introduce a possible horse-loving child to these kind, gentle animals.

Also I should mention, they have day camps all summer long where your child can spend a week learning basic horse handling skills in the summer; and in the winter, you can head on out for a sleigh ride (advanced booking required).

So go, now, today, while you still have a chance to support this great local business.

Some important details: The day camps run in the mornings, so the rides are only open to the public from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the afternoons. You can show up any time for a pony ride; trail rides run in the summer on this schedule. IMPORTANT NOTE: if the temperature is above 30 degrees, rides for that day are cancelled due to the weather being too dangerous for the animals. They're open every day in the summer, then Thursdays through Sundays for September and October.

The pony rides are $10 for 10 minutes, $20 for 20 minutes; trail rides are $40 per rider (no double riders allowed). A wee bit expensive, but it's the only expense you'll have there, and it was SO worth it to my girls.

Shout out to Ponyboy and DotCom - best horses ever. You'll live forever in my daughter's dreams.

Lynn is mom to three tombliboos and blogs over at Turtlehead.

Recipe: J's French Toast

by AmandaY My 5 y.o. son is a picky eater.  I admit this freely and try to accommodate his preferences and introduce new things slowly but surely. (last week we had a breakthrough with pineapple!)  He has issues with smell, texture, colour, and must know every detail about what it is that he's eating.  I do strive to feed him food that he likes however.

This is my own recipe for French Toast.  I don't own the copyright or anything but it's the balance of flavour that I enjoy and he will eat and then ask for more!  That's all a parent really wants, is to see their kids eat!  I love to make this on weekends when we have time to cook in the kitchen together.  He's an expert mixer, soon he'll be ready to learn to crack the eggs!  His favourite part is the eating, and really can you blame him??

5 eggs 1/4 cup of milk 1 tsp vanilla 1 tsp cinnamon 1/4 tsp nutmeg 6-8 slices whole wheat bread (at least day old works best) 1-2 tbsp vegetable oil

The key to this recipe is to preheat your pan then lower the temperature to about medium or slightly lower.  Don't crowd the pan, I use a fairly large skillet and only two slices at a time.  Halfway through, add some fresh oil.

Serve with *real* maple syrup and your choice of fruit!  My picky eater likes bananas, but they can't be on the same plate as the toast.  :)

Amanda was born and raised in Ottawa where she continues to live with her husband and son “J”. Amanda is bilingual and interests include reading, blogging, socializing, and advocacy on children and teen issues.

Summer of Awesome - Mini Golf Gardens

It took me years, years to admit that I have a secret love: mini golf. Oh, I try to play it cool, act like it's no big thing, it's "for the kids." But I have to admit that it's me who loves the putt putt. It's not even about the competition or the personal challenge of achieving par or the thrill of the hole-in-one. It's just about the mental challenge of calculating the angles. And also, the little coloured balls. I'm a junkie.

So I took the kids to check out Mini Golf Gardens, which is an outdoor mini putt place at the corner of Merivale and Colonnade, that's only open in the summer months (April through October). It's straight up mini golf here; two courses, each 18 holes, and nothing else. Just you, the putter, and open expanses of fake green grass.

Heaven.

Both courses are really pretty, with waterfalls and streams and trees, and also well thought out. It's not the kind of place with giant windmills and or loop-the-loops for the balls. Instead, the course relies more on wacky bumps, bridges, and barriers to make it interesting. I personally found the two courses to be the perfect combination of challenging and fun. The kids were well able to handle it - my nine-year-old and seven-year-old were able to get par a few times, and finished the courses in about 65 strokes, which is not too shabby.

The five-year-old did a lot of stick-handling moves with her putter. We were down with that, too. Meanwhile, I got three holes-in-one. I ROCKED it.

It's a lovely little course, a nice place to spend a morning or afternoon outside, and a good challenge for both kids and adults. It will take you about an hour and a half to do both courses. Plus, I'd recommend stopping halfway through for a visit to the tuck shop, which features ultra-rare banana slushies, along with other drinks and treats. It's a little exposed in spots, so be sure to wear sunscreen and bring hats.

Mini Golf Gardens is probably not the cheapest miniputt in town - $9 adults, $7.50 for kids under 12. But for a junkie like me, it was well worth it - definitely my favourite of all the courses we've done in Ottawa.

We'll be back. I have like, five other ball colours to get through!

Lynn is mom to three tombliboos and blogs over at Turtlehead.

Product review: Peekaboo Beans

by Lara I started putting Kiernan in Peekaboo Beans when he was one.  My friend Vicky and I had opened an online clothing store and of all the lines we brought in to sell we both fell most in love with that one.

Now, five years later we've gone through a LOT of Peekaboo Beans and I keep on buying it.  Here are my top five reasons for loving these clothes:

1)  They are easy to put on - no buttons or ties means that kids can get themselves dressed without needing a lot of help.

2) They are comfortable. SO comfortable - I never worry about them being cinched in the waist or having buttons or zippers digging in.

3) They have resale value!  I resell my Peekaboo Beans regularly, often for 1/3-1/2 of what I paid for it.  There's a huge market for used Beans.

4) The line is fun.  Kids love the thumbholes and the hoods and the fun patterns.

5) It's cute and stylish and every new season there is something I just can't resist!

The Fall line launches today and they even have a new Tween line this year!

Vicky and I no longer run our online store but she does still sell Peekaboo Beans (she's one of our lovely sponsors!)

If you're interested in finding out more about Peekaboo Beans like her Facebook page and sign up for her newsletter.  You can buy the line from her or host a Soiree and invite your friends over and earn free product. Soirees are nice casual home parties that you can bring your kids to.

It's a great time to order or host a party with back to school around the corner and Vicky is offering free shipping for Kids in the Capital readers in September - just mention code KICshipping. Go check it out!

Peekaboo Beans is one of our sponsors but the thoughts on the line are all my own ~ Lara