Author Archive: Sue Urie
Sue Urie is Our Big Earth's Managing Editor. She lives in North Qualicum Beach with her husband, three kids, three goats, two cats and one ridiculously large dog. Her work has been published in various magazines, websites and anthologies.
Act For The Planet – Making Green Fun With Earth Day Canada
It’s April, which means flowers blooming, rain falling and – of course – time to be a part of learning how to live lighter on the Earth as annual Earth Day celebrations begin. We here at Ourbigearth.com have long been lending a hand in that department and are super excited to Earth Day Canada’s new [...]
The Green Family – Making Cleaning The Fridge Nutritious
The chill of winter is duking it out with the warming sunshine of spring right now. It even looks that way in our refrigerators. All of that winter veg that we have been whipping up cozy meals with for the last few months is starting to give way to a few more spring-like items. But, [...]
Digging In The Dirt: Helping Kids Grow Their Own Garden
“ Might I,” quavered Mary, “might I have a bit of earth? Fans of “The Secret Garden” will recall orphaned Mary Lennox’s timid request of her uncle for space “to plant seeds in – to make things grow” on his huge English estate. What started with an ivy-covered door, revealed by a friendly robin to [...]
Summer Cocktail Season: Finding the Perfect Blend, Our Top 5
The few summery-like days that graced the Island recently saw everyone at my house clamouring for sunglasses, beach buckets, shorts and flip-flops. That first day on the beach with the kids was magic; crabs, shells, warm tidepools filled with slippery seaweed and frisky little fish, the sun shining warm on my shoulders. With the wee ones searching happily among the rocks [...]
The Summer To-Dos – What’s On Your Bucket List?
It’s the first Beach Days of the season with my wee kids and the effects on me and mine were wonderful. With all three of us at the tail end of a sniffly/sneezy bug, the salt air and sea breeze were just what we needed. My 5 year old is pumped following his morning soccer game and although my [...]
Best Mother’s Day Gifts List – Sleep, Food, Quiet
Over one hundred years have passed since Anna Jarvis decided to host a private gathering in West Virginia in memory of her dear departed mama. A year later, in 1908, she took it one step further by organizing a church service that saw over four hundred mothers and their children in attendance. By 1912 the Mother’s Day International Association was up and [...]
Cupcakes: You Know You Want One!
I arrived at kindergarten a few minutes earlier than usual so I sat in my car leafing through the newest Avon book dropped off the day before. I’ve found the odd nifty gift through Avon though not to mention their catalog fits in my bag. Perfect for when I get that sacred minute for myself. Avon’s [...]
Prom Night 101: Getting Mom Geared Up For Grad
At just under two months to go until my son’s high school prom I was itchin’ to get him fitted for his tuxedo. A few of my chick pals with two or three graduated kids recently had given me the go ahead to get on it. With the grad parade and prom to follow scheduled for the first [...]
Teens Do Stupid, Dangerous & Sometimes Illegal Things – Is Mom To Blame?
With a heavy heart I placed my husband’s Canucks jersey on a hanger and tucked it away in the back closet for another year. As a die-hard Canucks fan I felt sadness and relief when that game winning overtime goal hit the back of Cory Schneider’s net last Sunday. Sadness that my favorite team had finished the regular season with the President’s Cup but [...]
Earth Day in the Bag – When Reusable Bags Aren’t So Green
Recently my son’s Kindergarten teacher asked parents if we had any plastic grocery bags we could bring to the class. Art projects were having a hard time surviving the trip from the classroom to the car. A recent soggy, wind-blown, tissue-paper flower garden project came to mind as he spoke. “And my wife and I only [...]
Speak Your Teen’s Language – Text Them
“So….what’s your plan tonite?” I said to my big son a few days into Spring Break. He had spent most of the break at a friend’s place, coming home for a change of clothes and a quick check-in before heading back out into the throes of his Grade 12 spring break. “I’m stayin’ here again [...]
Confessions of a Not-So-Crafty Mom
It was that last frantic week of school before Christmas break and I was running late to drop my son at Kindergarten for the day. Rushing through the door to his classroom my 2 year old daughter was the first to spot them. “Ooooooohhhhh…..Mamaaa….” she said, her tiny finger pointing to the ceiling. “Pritty..” Hanging [...]
