Kidding Around Vancouver Island

Well, the snow may be fading away (at least til April), but it’s still the rainy season, and for our family that means one thing: indoor gardening. I’m referring of course to raising couch potatoes. With frequent channel-changing and plenty of snacking, you’ll soon have prize-winning potatoes all over your couch.
Or… You can [...]

Hockey fans in the Central Island area are being treated to some world-class hockey right now, with the 2009 World Under-17 Hockey Challenge taking place at arenas in Port Alberni, Nanaimo, Campbell River, Courtenay, Cowichan, and Oceanside.
View the entire schedule and get up to date scores here at the official website.

Having taken a break for Christmas, it’s time to continue our central island pantomime crawl:
There’s Mother Goose at the Bailey Theatre in Nanaimo, from December 26 to January 3, with matinees most days.
Then it’s on to Chemainus for Rumpelstiltskin at the Chemainus Theatre Festival. It runs now until January 3rd, with special Family Nights [...]

Panto time is here! For those who’ve never been to a traditional Christmas pantomime, it’s a bit difficult to explain in words. Imagine being in a movie theatre and wanting to jump up and boo at Darth Vader or cheer wildly for Hans Solo – well at a pantomime you get to [...]

Our kids always enjoy a visit to the North Island Wildlife Center and during the holiday season this year they’re extending their hours – Friday and Saturday they’re open until 8:30pm and Sunday 11am – 5pm. They’ve also decked the halls, so stop by and say hello, and consider giving the gift of an animal [...]

Milner Gardens and Woodland always makes for a great family outing, but imagine filling the woods with lights and music – that’s what Milner Christmas Magic is all about, and the first of three weekends is upon us. Each night there’s a different musical group playing as you enjoy the walk through the magical [...]

Christmas craft season has been in full swing here on the Island for a while now and just the other day the four of us were off to visit the Kris Kringle Craft Market in Qualicum Beach. When I say the “four of us” that means my mum was substituting for George, who often [...]

We always enjoy a good breakfast with Santa. The Rotary Club of Lantzville puts on a great event at Costin hall – tickets for the December 22 event are only $10 per family – and we’re looking forward to the pancakes and sausages again this year, but most importantly, the arrival of Santa. [...]

Happily free of awkward questions is the annual ritual of getting a Christmas tree. As we pulled into the lot, the kids don’t recognize it as our usual tree-picking spot, yet as we were paying for the tree on our way out, they were quick to remind the owner that he gave them chocolate [...]