Vintage Village of Lights at the Cumberland Heritage Museum

By Wendy Sure, you can find Santa in just about any mall these days, but one of my favourite places to find him is at the Cumberland Heritage Museum Vintage Village of Lights.  The Museum, which depicts rural life in a circa 1920s-30s village setting (think Upper Canada Village on a smaller scale), is located at 2940 Old Montreal Road; just 30 minutes from downtown Ottawa – and mere minutes from Orléans.

Since November 30, when the switch for the thousands of twinkling lights adorning the heritage buildings was flipped on, the Museum has been open to welcome the young and young-at-heart on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings from 3:00-8:00pm.   There are still two more weekends to enjoy the magic of the Village (December 13, 14, 15, 20 and 22 – note that the Museum does not seem to be open on Saturday, December 21).  The cost of admission is $7 per person or $18 for a family.  Having enjoyed our visit last year, our family will be heading out this weekend to experience the festivities once again!

Last year, upon arrival, the kids (then ages 2 and 6) were given pennies to purchase vouchers at the General Store for cookie decorating and two crafts, as well as a map to find the buildings on the village site where the activities would take place.  Before leaving the main reception building, they were given the opportunity to send a Santagram at the Village telegraph office, but opted out of this activity, having already written and sent letters to Santa via snail mail!

Dashing through the snow (from building to building - it was cold that night!), enjoying the warm glow of the lights, the kids decorated and devoured gingerbread cookies, made tree ornaments from buttons and pipe cleaners, and built and painted wooden planes with the help of friendly museum staff.   We toured the site in a horse-drawn wagon while singing Christmas songs, and enjoyed a cup of hot chocolate by a bonfire.  And, of course, we had a visit with the man in red himself – no line-ups, and no photographer or fee – definitely bring your own camera!

The actual program of activities for this year’s Vintage Village of Lights may vary from those described above; let me know if you make it there and what you think! I will be sure to check back in with a report on our visit too.  Nevertheless, if the Museum follows last year’s winning formula for a magical night, a visit to the Cumberland Heritage Museum will definitely make many spirits bright!

For more information, including directions to the Museum, visit:  http://ottawamuseumnetwork.com/index.php?page=cumberland-heritage-village-museum ; or   https://www.facebook.com/cumberlandmuseum .

GivingTuesday

Have you heard about the new movement that encourages people everywhere to band together and support those charities and organizations that they feel are worthy? GivingTuesday, initiated in Canada by CanadaHelps, GIV3, and several other partners, marks the opening day of the giving season. After you've done all your holiday gift buying on Black Friday and Cyber Monday, it's time to pay it forward  on GivingTuesday.

Giving Tuesday is a day for each and every one of us to really make a difference. It's also a great way to get your kids involved in learning about helping those who are less fortunate.

Be a part of this new tradition of generosity and give back to a cause that matters to you.

Who will you support today?

Giving Back at the Holidays

Now that December is upon us, many people are starting to get into the holiday spirit. For some, that means thinking about what they are thankful for during the year and wanting to pay it forward in the season of giving. Over the past year, my girls have volunteered in a few ways. Both have visited the Ottawa Food back and learned that not everyone in Ottawa has enough to eat each and every day. They've visited residents in nursing homes to play games and sing with them and have shared their allowance with the typhoon victims in the Philippines.

Giving back doesn't need to be big. It just needs to be meaningful. For kids, learning that there are people who need a helping hand is a great lesson in empathy and kindness. There are so many ways to get your kids involved. Here are a few ideas for you and you kids:

• Donate to a charitable organization
• Invite an elderly neighbor or someone who lives alone to join your celebration 
• Deliver a meal to a family in need
• Write a thoughtful note to someone special
• Donate clothes you've outgrown
• Donate food to a local charity or food bank
• Volunteer at a soup kitchen
• Send a care package to a soldier
• Visit hospital patients
• Foster a dog or cat
• Adopt an endangered animal through a zoo
• Shovel snow for a neighbor
• Help pick up trash at a local park
• Join a church or school group that does community service projects

Giving back is a great thing to do all year round, but the holidays tend to bring out the charitable side in most people. Try some of these ideas with your family and make a difference this holiday season.

How does your family give back at the Holidays?

211: Helping You Find the Answers You Need!

Did you know that in Ottawa, there is a number parents can call to find out about the different community resources that are out there? Until it was pointed out to me, I had no idea. In order to access it, you just call 211. With information on more than 56,000 agencies and services, 211 Ontario can help you find the answers you need, quickly and easily. Their phone service is open 24 hours a day, every day of the year, and is available in more than 150 languages. When you dial the 211 hotline, you are connected with a Certified Information and Referral Specialist who has been trained to assess your needs, answer your questions accurately, and advise you about the services and programs that are best for you and your loved ones.

Here's some info about 211 - an amazing community resource too few people know about.

• 211 is the 911 for people's every day quiet emergencies.
• 211 has been in place for 5 years in Ottawa.
• 200,000 calls answered since then.
• Expanded to Eastern Ontario in 2011.
• Now available across all of Ontario, 24/7/365 in 150 languages!
• For families and moms, it's the place to call to get connected to breastfeeding support, daycare options, chess clubs, day camps, March Break camps, special needs activities, and so much more.
• For women in the sandwich generation, it's the place to call to get help for a parent who may have Alzheimer, a senior who may need non-emergency medical transportation, home care help, etc.
• You name it, they will connect you to it.

Have you ever called 211? We'd love to hear your experiences!

When Your Kid Goes to a Co-op

By Amy My daughter was born in January, two weeks past the cut-off date for kindergarten for September 2013. We decided to put her in preschool and found a good fit at Katimavik Cooperative Nursery School.

We took her to an open house during the summer and she started the afternoon program in September.

Katimavik has three excellent teachers, and my daughter has made fast friends. They do lots of crafts, which is her favourite thing, they play outside every day and they sing and tell stories. Some days she doesn't want to leave.

But this isn't about our great nursery school, this is about a cooperative.

When your child goes to a cooperative preschool, you as a parent become responsible for a lot of the things that happen with that school. Each family at KCNS has duty days, where a parent actually hangs out and helps out in the classroom. We have cleaning duties, we provide snacks for the whole class and we help supervise the kids when necessary.

The parents also make up the school executive – I accidentally volunteered for a position on ours – and committees. As cooperative parents we fundraise to help the school budget for resources and supplies.

I was a little overwhelmed when we went to our introductory meeting and learned about all the things we would be involved with at KCNS, but now that we're a month in I feel great about the school we chose. I got to spend a day watching my daughter interact with her peers and I've had the chance to have some great conversations with the teachers and other parents.

I think there are a lot of things I'll miss about the cooperative environment when the kid starts kindergarten next year.