The day starts early with the traditional pancake breakfast at the Lantzville Legion (George says, see you there for the opening at 7am.  I say, see you later.)  Then at 10am there’s a parade down Lantzville Road ending up at the school grounds, where the rest of the day’s activities are centered.  The highlight of the parade is the several dozen decorated bikes that kids have entered in a contest, all riding down the street.

Years ago at our first Minetown Day, there were more people in the parade than watching it.  Now you need to get there early to get a good spot.  There are over 22 games and rides – all no charge – lots of music, storytelling and dancers.  Among our kids favourites:  the rock climbing wall, the velcro wall, the dunk tank, and the nail hammering contest.  They’ve always been fascinated with the 50/50 Chicken Poop draw.  I think the 50/50 stands for 50% interested in winning and 50% interested in seeing the chicken lay its… whatever.

Oh yes, there’s a watermelon eating contest that the kids love to enter – who cares if you win!  They also love making cars out of Zucchinis and then racing them for prizes.  And maybe, just maybe this year, Grace will be brave enough to take a spin on the human sphere.  I think George really wants to do it and is hoping to live the thrill vicariously through his daughter.

There’s also a main stage for musical entertainment all day from noon until 7pm, and historical displays of the town’s rich coal mining heritage, so bring your picnic blanket, a couple of chairs, and spread out on the school grounds to spend the day in Lantzville!

The Lighthouse Country Fall Fair – Saturday Sept 5 in Bowser/Deep Bay.  Features plenty of activities for the kids, including pony rides, a petting zoo, and bouncy castles (how did we manage before bouncy castles came along?), and the theme this year is home gardening, with lots of tips and displays,  as well as fresh produce.  The fair is at the Lighthouse Community Centre from 10am until 4pm.  Adults are $5.00 and kids under 12 are free.

Port Alberni Salmon Festival – Fri Sept 4 – Mon Sept 7.  Grace will be too busy ripping out fence posts to be able to take part in the fishing – there’s a $10,000 prize for the largest salmon caught during the Festival and hundreds of other prizes.  Fireworks will be on Friday night, and there’s a dunk tank, lots of great food and entertainment all weekend long.  There’ s a free bullhead derby early Sunday morning.  All takes place at the Clutesi Haven Marina.

Labour Day Swim – Mon Sept 7, Nanaimo – With the Aquatic Centre closed for maintenance and the ocean losing its “make you think you’re living in Hawaii” temperatures, you can grab a good long swim between 12 noon and 5pm at the Beban Park pool.

Hike to Labour Day Lake – Ok, you’re really celebrating the weekend if you make the trek to this lake – yes, that really is its name – which is literally half way between Port Alberni and Nanaimo (as the crow flies – see the map below).  It’s a pretty hefty hike for a family, but what are days of labour for, as George would say.

Or you could just relax at home and have a nice barbeque – maybe do a New Year’s Eve kind of countdown to the kids going back to school.  Oh wait, that’s for later at night when they’re in bed.

We love Transfer Beach as you probably know, and that’s a great place to have Canada Day, which is why the clever folks at Parks and Rec are having it there from 1 to 5pm.  There’s going to be music and lots of family activities.  And of course they have the water park there and one of the best concession booths around – great burgers!

Nanaimo’s Maffeo Sutton park boasts one of the best playgrounds around with a wonderful view of the Harbour, plus it’s getting all polished up for the opening of the new Spirit Square, so what better place to hold Nanaimo’s Canada Day celebrations.  Our kids love the Kerplunks and guess who’s going to be there!!  A multi-cultural food fair promises lots of good eating and there’ll be plenty of fun activities as well.  It all starts at 11am and runs until 3:15pm.

If you like your celebrations to start early, then Parksville’s Canada Day celebrations will get you going at 8am with the popular Shriner’s pancake breakfast.  What could more Canadian than piling on the butter and the maple syrup!  Then it’s the annual Canada Day parade down the Island Highway starting at 10am.  Get your seats early because this is always well attended and this year everything about the Parksville celebration is supposed to be even bigger!  Then it’s off to the Community Park for a full day of fun starting at noon.

No matter where you spend the day on July 1st, though, you’ll want to end up in Parksville around dusk because it’s time for fireworks!  Our littlest one has turned out to be the biggest fireworks fan after a couple of years of ear-covering, so she’ll be there.  With her family of course – can’t have the 5 year old driving by herself to Parksville.

We have a great sprinkler toy that fills with water and then waits… waits… and then sends a blast of water way up in the air when you least expect it.  George calls it the scream machine because of its effect on the kids.  But even the scream machine can’t hold a candle to some of our favourite watering holes.

The water park at Transfer Beach in Ladysmith is one of the best around.  George wanted Ella to try out the bucket dump;  the bucket fills with water and then wait… wait… down it pours on unsuspecting children.  Yep, more screams.  But George didn’t properly calculate the water-to-Ella weight ratio; she was no fool and left the deluge to her big sister.

Nanaimo has several city parks with water equipment, but our favourite is the Harewood Mining Community Park on Howard Ave in the south end of the city.  A lot of the water features are built around a painted train track and the kids love to race around it and get sprayed as they go.

Parksville community beach has a classic old water park with some particularly tricky sprays built into the ground, which unsuspecting parents can get caught it while they’re keeping an eye on the kids.  Ok, only George, who keeps forgetting that the nozzles are there.

While up in Parksville the kids also can’t resist going on the bumper boats at Paradise Fun Park – the place with the giant mini-golf courses.  Tip for parents and older kids – the taller you are, the more you’ll get sprayed.  Hmm, I guess that’s kind of a tip for the younger kids too, isn’t it…

Over 25 local kids are involved in the production, and for many of them this is their first foray into the world of theatre.  With the help of director Eliza Gardiner and choreographer Silvia Knapp, that foray has been an exciting journey – I know Grace is chomping at the bit to do more musical theatre.  And the dedication of all the kids, and the Red Room Studio staff has been amazing.

For weeks on end now, they’ve been attending two three-hour sessions, learning lines, practicing songs, performing their dances, and trying to stay quiet when they’re not in the number being rehearsed at that moment.  We’ve seen the organized chaos that is any large musical rehearsal and as non-actors, it made us a little nervous.  Until we saw the piece on Shaw cable the other day, where the kids were all in their costumes and performing their numbers beautifully!  Now we’re feeling more like cucumbers heading into final rehearsals and then the performances.

The first show is Saturday May 23rd at 7pm up at Vancouver Island University’s Malaspina Theatre in Nanaimo.  Then on Sunday May 24th there’s a 2pm show.  Tickets are just $10 in advance or $12 at the door.  BTW, our youngest is dressing up as Jasmine for the show, so put on your best Aladdin outfits and we’ll see you there!

Now we’ve also got some tickets to give away – just click here for all the details

Heather’s work is collected around the world and this is a chance to see her workshop and how she produces her enchanting creations, including her new air-brushed 3-D wall plaques celebrating the rugged west coast of the Island.  Joining Heather will be photographers, quilters, water colourists, and glass artists, not just displaying their works but showing you how it’s done.

In addition to seeing all  the beautiful art, kids can make their own wind chimes, get their faces painted, and enjoy the musicians and singers who will be entertaining throughout the weekend.

This art spectacular runs both days 10am – 4pm, and there’s plenty of cover, so stop by rain or shine! Admission is free and delicious picnic lunches from Lantzville’s popular Black Dog cafe can be pre-ordered for just $10.00 by calling 250-390-1514.

The address is 6998 Strait Road in Lantzville.

The chocolate part of the day has its own challenges.  Like figuring out new places to hide the eggs.  After four years they know enough to go straight to the little lip at the top of the wooden water wheel or they develop clever chocolate-maximizing strategies like shaking every tree until the leaves fall off.  But we’ve got a few tricks up our sleeves this year, like the half tennis ball that will be sitting innocently out on the lawn.  You have to get up pretty early… well, 10am, to fool this bunny.

Now the chocolate madness doesn’t end at our driveway.  After loading up here, we’re off to one of our favourite public easter egg hunts, down at Seaview School in Lantzville.  That’s where the Lantzville Rotary Club puts on its annual hunt on Sunday, complete with prizes, best Easter hat contest, and non-candy food to eat.  Things get underway at 1pm. [my apologies, we got this wrong in the newspaper and it said 11am]

Up in Errington every day of the long weekend from 10am – 4pm, Tiger Lily Farm has a “Candy in the Hay” game along with easter egg and basket decorating, and of course visits by the Easter Bunny (second only to Santa Claus in being in several places at once).

On Saturday, Sunday and Monday, enjoy the annual Milner Gardens Children’s Easter Bunny Hunt from 10am – 4:30pm. Armed with clues, the kids have to find the bunnies hidden around the grounds and then trade in the bunnies for treats.  Adults are $7.50 and kids under 12, accompanied by an adult, are free.

Down in Cedar on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, Yawning Acres is holding their 2nd Annual Easter Egg Hunt and Hayride.  After a mile and a half ride in the covered hay wagons, you’ll stop by the banks of the Nanaimo River, where adults can settle around the campfire with a hot chocolate, while the kids search through the forest for easter eggs.  Runs from 10am to 4pm each day – $10 for adults and $5 for kids.

And then you can move down the mall to Centre Court and enjoy free easter crafts, as well as the odd treat or two (kids only!!).