With summer season here, the BBQ will be in full use and there is nothing easier than cold salads to have along side a BBQ burger.  Especially on a hot day when you really don’t want to have the stove in major use.  This is my favourite potato salad. It’s inspired by a restaurant that I used to go to on Spark Street when I was working in the area many, many years ago. And yes, it’s so simple family members have been known to say ‘um, you don’t peel the potatoes?’ – not in a bad way. They just can’t believe how simple it is. Enjoy! Ingredients: 6-8 large potatoes (or a small bag. I l ..read more

Many years ago, we decided it was time to do an outdoor Easter egg hunt. What makes this even more wonderful is that we were at my Mother in Law’s house. She had acres and acres of property to hide eggs on, so it made for a really fun activity. You don’t need a lot of space to make it work! Here are some tips to set up an Easter egg hunt! 1 – An outdoor hunt depends heavily on one thing in particular: The Weather. Check the weather forecast often and make sure it’s going to work out. Nothing worse than having colourful eggs waiting to be found outside and you tell the kids they can’t go out. I ..read more

The upcoming long weekend doesn’t have to be all about Easter (and for many who don’t celebrate it, or welcome the Bunny, it already isn’t!).  There are other ways to spend the long weekend as a family and still get out of the house for a bit. Below I’m sharing a few suggestions for you to consider if you want to fill the time this weekend but don’t want to see another pastel anything for a while. 1- Go to the Movies Right now, there are many family friendly movies playing. 2- Find a sugar bush This won’t help if you are trying to avoid the crowds this weekend, but it’s still maple syrup ..read more

March Break for many families in the Ottawa area is March 11-17. Not sure what to do? While we are looking forward to some quiet days without the hustle and bustle of a busy high school semester, I also know that many families (ourselves included) will be looking for some new and fun activities to enjoy for kids of all ages. Please note that some activities are free, and others are ticketed/paid admission events. March Break with Kids in Ottawa Go Goat snuggling Do I need to say anything else? Since our Beach Goat visit when we were in PEI this summer, goats have become a bit of an obsession f ..read more

*edited for 2024! So you want to do something special for Valentine’s Day, but prefer to stay home. Or maybe you have to stay home since finding a babysitter or heading out for the night can be difficult and expensive. Whatever the reason, keep reading for some delicious at-home take out ideas: Andy and I used to go out for Valentine’s Day. It was a guaranteed date night and always meant good food. That didn’t change when we had the kids, although going out for a Wednesday night exclusive menu wasn’t as easy, so instead, we started bringing Valentine’s Day to our own dinner table. We would set ..read more

In typical ‘me’ fashion, it’s almost the end of January and I’m just sharing my word of the year. I’ve done this word selection before but I’m not sure if I’ve ever done it so late. There were a few words I considered as I headed into 2024 (I did also create a list of ‘ins and outs’ which has been going well so far – except the moving my body part. That has to increase) I mostly want a kind, gentle year. So I almost chose gentle. 2023 was a trying, difficult, emotional year to be perfectly honest. And so as I headed into 2024, I felt mostly exhaustion and caution to think about anything to gr ..read more

It’s almost that time again! Advent Calendar season – a countdown to Christmas. But in addition to our chocolate countdowns, our family continues to have an activity calendar countdown, something we have had since the kids were babies and it’s a tradition we continue even as they grow (and both are now teens). If you have younger kids, search ‘advent calendar’ on my blog search bar for previous years, especially 2009-2012ish when the kids were little. We did different activities that were more age appropriate then. This calendar grows with our kids! The history of the activity advent calendar ..read more

I call the day before back to school the ‘last day of summer’, and then a whole bunch of people tell me how wrong I am because summer doesn’t end for a few more weeks. Fine. More accurately, it’s the last day of summer vacation. And one reason we love vacation so much is all of the travel we fit into the summer. As we begin school and get back into a work routine in the Fall, we forget that our days of adventuring don’t need to end just because summer does. Fall is a gorgeous time of year for a local day trip or even an overnight staycation. As the leaves turn colour, and the temperatures drop ..read more

This post is a part of a paid partnership with the City of Ottawa Excited about Christmas craft shows and holiday events? Keep reading! While I happily sing ‘This is Halloween’ over and over again during pumpkin carving, I quickly change from Scary season to Festive Season as the clock strikes 12. Sure, I’m not decorating yet or putting on the holiday music (we have a November birthday in this family mid month that we use as our starting point) but that doesn’t mean I’m not already dreaming about sugar plums at night (and during the day). That’s why I love hearing about craft shows and shoppin ..read more

Halloween is on a Tuesday this year, which means that weekend right before October 31 will be filled with family friendly and fun activities around Ottawa. There’s always something about a Halloween/Fall event that I love. Although this year I may spend part of the weekend carving pumpkins, here are some activities in Ottawa that you might want to check out! Halloween Activities in Ottawa 2023 First, I’m going to share some of the Halloween haunts and highlights from when my own kids were little. Every year, I happily tried to find Halloween activities to take them to because, let’s be honest ..read more