Category: Outdoor Family Activities
There and Back Again – Heading Back To B.C.
If you’d have asked me a few months ago if we would be packing up our lives and heading back to B.C. when Ken’s 1-year contract wrapped up I would have told you that it wasn’t even up for discussion. Nova Scotia and I had been living out a torrid love affair and I was [...]
Old Skool Winter Fun For The Whole Family
Ask anyone just about anywhere – Canadians are winter. Winter is Canadian. While beaches and cottage afternoons, the smell of Spring in the forest or the sight of leaves cluttering the walk at an urban public garden in fall are lovely, there is something about the frosty chill in the air, spotting kids hauling their [...]
May Long Weekend Adventures – Family Gardening
Editor’s Note: While going through old posts this morning, I found this sweet gem about gardening with kids. What better time to get out into the back yard and get digging with the tiny people in tow? This was originally posted on Comox Valley Kids in May, 2007. Enjoy. While I watched the tiny person [...]
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 [...]
Spring Break Plans – Get Out and Go Geocaching
Editor’s Note: Today, Martin and Lisa Pedersen from familynavigation.com are here to inspire us all to get outside and spend some time on a treasure hunting adventure. Geocaching is one seriously popular pastime and there are tons of geocaches all over Vancouver Island. I’ll let them share their adventures and get you excited about this [...]
Don't Chicken Out On Nature Just Because It's Cold
We’ve all done it a million times, taken a look out the window on a dreary January day and decided that the walk in the woods, trek around the park or hike to the beach we had planned is canceled due to weather. Then, inevitably, the kids spend the day inside screaming and arguing, running [...]
Kids Not Sleeping Well? Get Them Outside
I‘ve been reading a lot lately about how to help kids sleep better as I’ve been trying to figure out if it’s even possible to get mine on a somewhat matching – or at least complimentary – schedule. There’s everything from relaxation techniques (which so aren’t working in this house) to the old read-em-a-story trick [...]
Top Family Favorites to Take Camping
I‘m in serious wind-down mode. August in our house every year generally consists of turning off all electronic devices (including the phone) and checking out for the four weeks of sunshine we may or may not have. This year is particularly sweet since the grandparents are in town and we are planning a long series [...]
Top 10 Summertime Ways To Spark Kids Natural Creativity
Now that we have survived June-uary here on the West Coast and the kids have made their formal exit from the classroom there is only one thing to do – wonder how we are going to fill the next 12 weeks. Summertime can be a great break and one heck of a grind in terms [...]
Planning for Family Camping
While we spend a heckuvalot of time outside, it would be a bit of a stretch to call us a camping sort of family. Lots of our friends are avid tent pitchers and small RV lovers and we LOVE to meet up with them around the campfire, at the beach or on the lake – [...]
10 Ways to Enjoy a Rainy Day Outside
Lately my commitment to getting the tiny persons outside for at least an hour a day has gone the way of the dodo. I’d blame it on the holidays or the mad rush of company that invaded our house the last few weeks. But, since the holidays were actually pretty chill, and we had no [...]
Sunday Morning Walks – Fungus Amongus
Moving into these last couple months of the year can be kind of a drag as the weather turns cold, gray and blustery and we start thinking more about hibernating rather than spending lots of quality time outside. But, it turns out that late Fall and Winter on Vancouver Island are actually the most fantastic [...]
Sunday Morning Walks – Fall Seed and Leaf Walks
With misty October mornings, a bit of a chill and gorgeous sun breaks settling us all into the Fall season, nothing seems more lovely and even a bit cozy than taking a walk through the forest or along a local creek with the family. The colors of the season, which are just now starting to [...]
10 Things To Plan For Your Kids Summer Break
The school year has nearly wrapped up and even for those of us who have yet to wonder what’s going to happen for those months when the kids aren’t in the classroom, there’s still a bit of dread that sets in about what to do with the family during the summertime. With preschoolers – really [...]
Sunday Morning Walks – The Art of Collecting
Good Morning. It’s not quite summertime weather yet. But, not often a day goes by lately where we aren’t out on the beach or in the forest when we don’t run into lots of other families feeling that serious need to get back outside and log some major time in nature. This is such a [...]
Sunday Morning Walks – Marvelous Mushrooms
Editor’s Note: Don’t forget to drop back in here this afternoon when we get the discussion going about Kindergarten options in the Comox Valley. Now, it’s time for a fun Sunday Morning Walk: One of the biggest challenges of making it through the permagray this time of year, is figuring out what can distract you [...]
Nature Journal – It's The Peak Season for Swans
Editor’s Note: Good morning. Naturalist Jocie Ingram is here with some great information on swans. Until now, I had just admired them for their beauty and grace! Here she is: I’ve recently introduced my toddler to the story of the “Ugly Duckling” by Danish poet Hans Christian Anderson. He loves the way the ugly duckling [...]
Nature Journal – Animal Tracking Basics for Family Nature Fun
Editor’s Note: Good morning! Jocie Ingram is here with some great information on animal tracking. Now you can hit the trails like a pro! Here she is: Tracking wild animals is a skill that takes years of experience, but anyone can follow a set of footprints and learn to become a keen observer of nature. [...]
Nature Journal – Sensational Slug Sightings
Editor’s Note: Good morning. Today we have nature lover Jocie Ingram giving us the scoop on slugs. It’s interesting and educational, and may have you looking at those slimy creatures differently! Here she is: I went to the forest for a specific purpose this week – to find some slugs. It had just rained, and a yellowish, dark [...]
Nature Journal – Leaf Watching 101
Editor’s Note: This morning we have naturalist Jocie Ingram on site, giving us the low-down on identifying leaves. Jocie is new to the OBE team and will be sharing her knowledge with us monthly. Here she is: My toddler son is keen to collect fallen leaves, clutching fistfuls in each hand and sorting them by [...]
Nature Journal – Captivated by Raptors
Editor’s Note: Good Morning. Today we have a special guest on site helping families learn about some of the coolest birds on the planet – raptors. Joanne Bentley runs Emrys Raptors in the Cowichan Valley, a fantastic spot for the whole family to learn and experience these majestic birds. If you are headed south on [...]
Nature Journal – The Edible Forest
Editor’s Note: Today, join us out at Tannadice Farms, 3465 Burns Road (just off of Condensory Road), for a great farm tour as part of the the Know Where Your Food Comes From Tour and the Eat Real. Eat Local 30-Day Challenge. Heather and Allan will be on hand from 1 to 2:30 p.m. taking [...]
Reclaiming Our Childhood Connection to Nature
Editor’s Note: Good morning. Today, local mom and outdoor education advocate Barb Haffner is her to kick off her regular Nature Journals column on OBE. In my own experience, getting kids outside and letting them discover the natural world for themselves is a remarkably eye-opening experience. From the relationships that they develop with other children [...]
Sunday Morning Walks – Time to Tide Pool
The starfish are calling. I’m totally serious, they’re wondering where all of the humans are. They’ve finally come up for some air after a long, chilly Winter under water. So, it must be time for us to dig out the wellies and head for the waves… or at least the low tide line. This is [...]
Nature Journal – Family Listening Walks
Good morning. Between sickness (mostly mine), insane amounts of snow and the general hibernation-like blah blahs this Winter, it’s been a tough sell to get us out the door every day and into the fresh air lately. It’s not that we don’t want to (in fact, we all well know how squirrely each of us [...]
Nature Journal – Winter Tracks
Up earlier than anyone in the house this morning, the tiny person sprinted to the window, wrenched on the blinds and gasped that stunning “Oh my goodness” moment when she realized that yesterday’s snow hadn’t washed away. Nearly impossible since we got nearly a foot – with a bit more on the way I’m told [...]
Nature Journal – Winter Bird Feeding Walks
I saw the light in her face the first time our daughter and a chickadee made eye contact – and it was pure magic. We’d walked the Lazo Marsh loop what seemed like a thousand times before then – through a Summer of sunshine and a mild Fall. But, the birds hadn’t made their debut [...]
Nature Journal – Trumpeter Swans
When I was a kiddo, nature and I had an odd relationship. Growing up at the base of the mountains, the grandeur of nature’s “big-ness” struck me every time I walked outside. I wanted to explore, just to be left alone to check out the world. On the other end of the deal, a mild [...]
Nature Journal – Mushroom Magic
It’s a story up for hot debate in our house right now, “Do fairies ACTUALLY live under mushrooms in the forest?” Our daughter is adamantly against the whole theory. They may use these cool weather blooms to escape from the rain, stay out of the sun or hide from odd creatures (like humans, according to [...]
Nature Journal – Nutty Buddies
So, I’m crashed out in bed here after a huge day of walking (Mother Nature loves the NeighbourWoodies, holding back on the rain until we were on our way home) totally chilling out to the Ray LaMontagne CD my lovely pal Karen McKinnon gifted me with recently (oh how I love the Ray, Karen). I’m [...]
Nature Journals – Great Blue Heron
Editor’s Note: We had a fantastic launch to our Fall NeighbourWood walks yesterday, with an incredible crew of families out watching the salmon run at Morrison Creek. Check out some of the photos from the day on our NeighbourWood Walks page One of the great rainy season survival tools that I dug into while slugging [...]
Nature Journal – Gone Batty
It’s actually a bit true, our house has turned into a bat festival this year. It seems the tiny person can’t get enough of those creatures of the night. She has a million questions – do they bite? Will the drink your blood? Are there nice bats? Why do bats sleep upside down? Doesn’t it [...]
It's Raining – Time to Head Outside
Editor’s Note: OF COURSE the sun is back out today. Ha, ha Mother Nature. But, do save this post for later reference. The sun is bound to disappear again, soon.:) Mother Nature, she’s not exactly the subtle type. No easing us into Fall, giving us a few clouds here and there before commencing with the [...]
Creative Parenting – Have Beach Gear, Will Travel
My mother-in-law is a genius. I have long lamented the process of getting all of the food, plastic and dry beach-related gear to and from any sandy spot on the shore. This would actually apply to picnicking in parks or basically anything that requires massive amounts of stuff in order to properly entertain. Generally it’s [...]
