Kidding Around Vancouver Island

The Easter long weekend is upon us and that means two things for our kids:  turkey and chocolate.  If someone could come up with a chocolate turkey… but enough of my dreams.  Cooking turkey is my excuse for teaching the girls math, which does not bode well for their future as we often have to [...]

Stuffed with Love at Nanaimo North Town Centre has a very special event this Friday from 1 – 3pm.  Stop by the store and for a $5 donation (which goes to the Child Development Centre) you can make your own mini-bear. And then you can move down the mall to Centre Court and enjoy free [...]

One of our favourite children’s musical groups – Bobs and Lolo – is back on the Island Sunday April 5th to help put the fun in fundraising for the Errington Co-operative Preschool. I say “back on the Island” because Bobs (Robyn Hardy) and Lolo (Lorraine Pond) grew up right here in the Central Island area [...]

When I was little we had a canary that loved to escape and fly around the house.  I couldn’t imagine over 700 birds having the run of the place, but that’s what you’ll find at the World Parrot Refuge in Coombs.  Two giant wings of the building – if you’ll pardon the expression – allow [...]

We gave Grace and Ella a choice this past weekend – watch paint dry or watch cheese being made. They opted for the cheese, but, as the folks at Little Qualicum Cheeseworks are fonding of joking, there’s not a lot of difference. However, seeing all the animals at the cheeseworks and hearing about how the [...]

One of my favourite musicals of all time – Fiddler on the Roof – is being put on at the Port Theatre in Nanaimo March 13 – 15th. It’s the story of trying to maintain traditions in the face of changing times; I’m definitely going to see it differently as a mother of two! Put [...]

That week is coming. You know what I’m talking about, parents, “the week the kids went” and leave school, only to ask the eternal question “what is there to do?”. The better question is, how do we fit it all into one week? If you’re looking for pre-planned days for the kids, I really like [...]

Readers of this column know our family loves going to live theatre – pantomimes in particular. Well, all of that has given Grace the acting bug, for which we’ve found an excellent cure. It’s called Red Room Studio in Nanaimo and they offer year-round acting programs for kids 7 – 15. What we love in [...]

Have you heard of Wacky Woods (or Funny Forest as others call it)?  It’s up in Fanny Bay and I think it’s a real Island place – fun, unique, creative, quirky, and off the beaten path (literally).  How to describe it.  Well, it’s a woods (or a forest as others call it), and it’s wacky [...]

On our way back from Fanny Bay recently, we stopped in at Qualicum Beach to try the food at a new place called Rawthentic. Our daughters have some “food issues,” as people say these days, and we thought it would be good to try some dishes that didn’t use things like wheat or milk. The [...]