Flashback: RCMP Sunset Ceremonies - Free and Fun!

The musical ride is a highlight for many every year. This year it runs from June 26 to the 30th.   by Josee

I've lived in or around Ottawa most of my life, but I'd never seen the RCMP Musical Ride until last spring. My husband Dan and I decided to take our kids (our then two-year old daughter “B.G.” and three month old son “Bonhomme”) to the RCMP Sunset Ceremony at the Rockcliffe Stables.

The ceremony was slated to start at 7:30 p.m. and we arrived (later than planned, as usual!) at about 7:00 p.m. We managed to park on St. Laurent Boulevard, close enough to the stables so that BG was able to ride on Dan's shoulders the rest of the way to the stables. We found a shady spot and set up our lawn chairs, and Bonhomme and I guarded our spot while Dan and BG went exploring. There were lots of displays to check out. Dan enjoyed sitting in an airplane cockpit (I think it had once been part of a fighter jet) and BG came back waving a poster and stickers she'd gotten from an RCMP officer.

The show began with a comedy routine, which I admit I wasn't able to follow because we couldn't see the whole ring, not to mention the fidgety three-year old sitting in my lap, asking question after question. Then we noticed an airplane circling above, and suddenly parachutists from the US and Canadian armies started dropping out of the sky. They circled so close overhead that we thought they would get caught up in the large tree that was providing our shade. Everyone around us laughed when an excited B.G. pointed to a parachute and shouted out, “Mommy, I want one of those!”.

After that came the marching band; that was also a huge hit with BG. Then, finally, the RCMP musical ride. I have to admit that by the time the ride started BG was done with the sunset ceremony, and we ended up leaving before it was over. But even though we didn't get to the end, we had an amazing time. BG still talks about the parachutes!

The RCMP sunset ceremonies are back this year and run from Wednesday, June 23^rd to Sunday, June 27^th, from 7:30 to 9 pm  June 23 to 27.We're planning on going back this year, but we'll (hopefully) head out much earlier and bring a picnic supper, so that we can snag a spot a bit closer to the ring and keep both kids occupied until the show starts. Maybe this year I'll manage to catch the whole show!

Josée is mom to three-year old daughter B.G., and one-year old son Bonhomme.  She is always searching for fun and frugal Ottawa events and activities, and puts her research to good use at her website, www.frugalfunottawa.ca.

Flashback: My Park: St. Luke's Park

Over the last two years we've had some great park reviews.  If you would like to submit a post about your park we'd love to share it with our readers!  Email us at kidsinthecapital(at)gmail(dot)com

by Zach

St. Luke's Park might not look like much if you're walking by on Elgin Street, but it certainly is worth checking out.

For kids and parents, the layout of the main area is nearly perfect. The park has a wading pool in the centre, which can be its own play area for hockey / soccer / random ball games for ten months of the year (though a concrete, uneven one, so toddlers might need some watching), and a well-supervised swimming area while the public schools are out. For some reason, swimming season ends near the middle of August, so try to get the most out of July that you can. As of summer 2009 many of the lifeguards there have been working for several seasons, are well-known among the parents, and are excellent with the kids.

There are some trees providing shade, but sight lines are still great within the main area. There are two play structures on the south side, a smaller one for kids aged 2 to 5, and a larger one for 5 to 12-year olds. On a busy day, try to count the two- and three-year olds flinging themselves down the twisty slide on the larger structure.

Both play structures are exceptionally well-designed, with plenty of climbing surfaces and slides. They're easily my favourite play structures of all the parks we visit.

The surface on the south side of the park is sand, which allows for castles, soft falls, and moats made with swimming pool water, for the really motivated.

The west side has three swing sets, for babies, mediums, and big kids. The small and medium swings are old school, facing in just one direction, and set low to the ground to maximize the swinging arc and parental back pain. The swings have great shade from nearby trees, and the St. Louis Bar and Grill right behind will torture you with smells of fried food. The Second Cup is right next door for quick caffeine hits.

The north side of the park is a large grassy area, with a picnic table. The city quietly and quickly hacked down a beautiful old growth tree in the summer of 2009, so the area isn't nearly as shaded as it once was. We'll give the city the benefit of the doubt as to why it had to go, but that tree is sorely missed, and its scrawny replacement is probably something your great-grandkids will enjoy. The grass tends to be under-used, except when the pool is open, when finding a free patch of grass for your beach towel becomes challenging.

The east half of the park is taken up with a basketball court, field house, and then another grassy space between the field house and some tennis courts. Kids who aren't paying attention, or who want to use the field house bathroom (open when the swimming pool is open), might dart into the middle of a game, so keep an eye out.

The grassy area in the east half of the park is a blessing and a curse. It's an old bowling green, and it's nice to have a dog-free, relatively level play area. You can see Frisbee, soccer, football, yoga, and boot camp fitness classes being held there, but bigger kids can also dart behind the field house and out of a parent's view with remarkable speed.

Overall, St. Luke's is an excellent park, and the number of parents and kids there on a nice day (and even less nice days) speaks to its well-deserved popularity.

Zach is the dad of a 3.5 year daughter "the girl" and eighteen month old son "the boy". Zach doesn't have his own blog but he is blogged about at Capital Mom.

Flashback: Proulx Sugarbush and Berry Farm

Proulx Sugarbush and Berry Farm is located 5 minutes east of Orleans. The Sugarbush is open from late February until early April, and there are special Easter activities on Easter weekend.

The Sugar bush hours vary, but is usually open from 9 am until 3 or 4 pm on the weekends and is open during the week if you make a reservation.  There is also a buffet that is open from 9 am to 3 pm on the weekends.  If you'd like to visit the buffet during the week, you need to make a reservation.  Although its not required, Proulx recommends that you make a reservation to visit the Sugar bush on Easter weekend because its the busiest weekend of the year.

Admission to the farm is $5 + tax (kids under 37 months get in for free).  Included in the price of admission is access to the petting farm, nature walking trails, and the play parks and slides.  These activities are located in a different part of the farm than the maple syrup shack but a horse drawn wagon ride is included in the price of admission so you can visit the Sugar bush to watch sap being collected and visit the syrup shack to see how sap is transformed into maple syrup.  A variety of maple syrup products are available for sale at the farm, including maple taffy on snow ($3), pure maple taffy lollipops, maple taffy filled cones, and maple sugar leaves (3 for $2.50).

My boys both loved visiting the play houses and slides.  Despite the freezing cold temperatures we were outside for over two hours playing in the mud and snow. Learn from my mistake: wear snow pants and winter boots!  Until the temperature warms up, rubber boots make for a cold outing.

Last year when we visited the temperature was hovering around 0 and rubber boots and splash pants were a necessity.  The farm and sugar bush are very muddy so be prepared to wash everything your kids wear that day when you get home.

There is little in the way of scheduled activities and the petting farm is pretty sparse at this time of year (a donkey, a goat, a few sheep, and some ducks).  There isn't any entertainment and our three hours visit was occupied by the wagon ride and free play in the play structures and slides.

Unfortunately, the cold temperatures meant that the sap wasn't running.  We saw a lot of frozen sap in the bottom of buckets but the boys weren't able to watch is flow through the types and drip into the buckets, which sounds a bit like watching paint dry but is remarkably exciting for 5 year olds!

If you're planning to eat at the buffet, be forewarned: its expensive and on the weekends the line-ups are long.  We were lucky only to have to wait in line for 30 minutes.  We had friends who visited the weekend before and waited for over an hour.  The buffet is $23 (plus tax) for an adult, $18.60 for children ages 9 to 11, $15.05 for children ages 6-8, $10.40 for children ages 3 to 5, and free for children 3 years and younger.  They're pretty vigilant about counting family members as you arrive and plate sharing is discouraged.

Proulx Sugar Bush is a great family outing but a lot more fun when the temperatures are hovering closer to zero.  They do have a large heated tent so I would suggest packing a picnic lunch instead of visiting the buffet.

Sara is a photographer and mom to a 5-year-old ” firefighter” and 2.5-year-old “monkey”.  You can also find her at her blog, My Points of View.

Whales Tohorā at the Canadian Museum of Nature

The Canadian Museum of Nature has a new exhibit, Whales Tohorā, that is sure to be a hit with your children. E and I had the opportunity to attend a preview event before the exhibit opened on March 2nd and we can't wait to go back for more!

As we approached the Museum our excitement grew with the view of the large inflatable blue whale in the Queen's Lantern.  We soon learned that the whale has not been named and the Museum is currently holding a Name-the-Whale contest. Check out the website to vote or suggest a name - you could win a free one year membership or a special souvenir!

The exhibit highlights three elements - Whale Lab, Whale People and Strandings. The gigantic whale skeleton that hung above us throughout the exhibit was amazing. We loved reading the facts posted, viewing the large whale teeth and skulls and following the whale trail stations (ideal for children older than my almost 3 year old). Another one of the neat features was the life-sized model of the blue whale heart (the largest on the planet!) that the children especially loved to explore.

There are a number of interactive activities to keep the children busy including touch-screen games and short videos. We stayed and watched a sperm whale on the hunt for a squid in the Search and Destroy video a few times because E found it absolutely exhilirating.

While we were at the Museum we were also sure to visit the dinosaurs, polar bear, grizzly bears and the rest of our favourites.  E and I are especially looking forward to go back to watch the new 3D Movie, Turtle Vision.

During March Break, the Museum will be hosting a number of activites from a Whale Dinner, Whale Bingo, Whale Crafts and Ocean Curiosities. For more information about Whales Tohorā visit the Musem's website and pack up the kids for a visit!

Alicia is mother to E (2 ¾) and blogs at I Found My Feet.

Winterlude: Confederation Park

by Lara It's February in Ottawa - time for cold, snow, and Winterlude!

We took the kids for a quick outing this weekend to check out the festivities downtown.  We aren't skaters so we avoided the canal all-together but had a great time wandering around Confederation Park:

Saw sculptures of ice, and of other things:

We saw tipis and totem poles and heard lovely music:

I think I want one of these for myself to sit in while the kids play outside:

And of course, we couldn't leave without:

We parked at City Hall which was easy and convenient and cost under $2.

Have you been to Winterlude yet? Do you have a favourite activity? (want to blog about it? :)

Lara is mom to five year old Kiernan and two and a half year old boy/girl twins Quinn and Juliette.  Between the kids and her social media consulting business, she spends most of her time running frazzled.