Homemade Babywipes

October 6, 2015/in Family Life /by ValleyFamilyFun

Homemade Baby Wipes

We discovered this recipe for homemade baby wipes when our first son was born. We can attest to the fact that it saved us hundreds of dollars over the life of our two babies.

Materials Needed

1 4L ice cream bucket with lid

1 roll of Bounty paper towel (we have tried several kinds, but Bounty is the only one that will work!)

1 Tbsp baby oil 1 Tbsp baby lotion

1 Tbsp baby wash

1 cup boiling water

How to Make

Cut the paper towel roll in half. It should end up the size of two rolls of toilet paper.

Measure 1 Tablespoon of each the lotion, oil and wash.

Pour in 1 Cup of boiling water. Mix

Put the roll of paper towel in the ice cream bucket.

Pour the mixture over top of the paper towel roll.

Put the lid on and let cool before use.

How to Use

Rip off one sheet at a time of paper towel to wipe your baby’s bum.

Modifications

There are many modifications to the process. – Some people cut a slot in the top of the ice-cream bucket to pull out one sheet at a time – Some people use wash cloths rather than paper towel to reduce the environmental impact – Use whichever oil, wash and lotion products that you feel comfortable using on your baby’s skin.

Learning through Art

October 5, 2015/in Activities, Craft /by ValleyFamilyFun

Learning Through Art

There is nothing better than a messy craft activity. For us, that’s getting out the paint set. Over the last year, we have been doing some fun art projects with an added educational component. Here are a few ideas to try at home.

Learn about Michelangelo: Let the kids know that Michelangelo was more than a Ninja Turtle! Did you know that it took Michelangelo approximately four years to paint the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel in Rome? Although Michelangelo didn’t technically lie on his back to paint the ceiling, he often had to bend backwards and paint over his head — an awkward position.

Have the kids recreate this sensation by taping a piece of paper to the underside of a table. Lay out the paints and have them create a masterpiece and see how difficult it is!

Learn more about Michelangelo here

2. Painting with the senses: I set out paper and paints for the boys and then blindfolded them. They had to paint a picture without looking. It was really fun for them to see what they came up with.

3. Body painting: If you are willing to let the kids get a bit messy, then let the kids experiment with how it would be for artists who don’t paint with their hands. Let them mouth paint by only using a paintbrush between their teeth. Or, put a piece of paper on the floor at let them paint with their feet.

You never know where painting will lead and how messy it will get! Remember, it’s all part of the creative process; you can always hose them down in the tub later!

It’s amazing what creativity can happen when you just leave the art supplies out.

When the children were small, I kept a sketch pad and package of crayons or markers in their seat pouches. During every long drive, the boys would automatically pull it out and create!

Now that they are older, they love to watch YouTube video of how to draw different things, or we also have a stack of books along the same theme.

Let their imaginations draw wild!

What painting projects have you done with your kids? Leave me a suggestion.

Rural Family Pass at the Discovery Centre

October 5, 2015/1 Comment/in Halifax, Museums /by ValleyFamilyFun

**Although the Discovery has paid for advertising space with Valley Family Fun, the opinions expressed here are entirely my own**

Did you know that it pays to be a rural family? When it comes to the Discovery Centre in Halifax, it certainly does!

Our family is a huge fan of the Discovery Centre. We have been going a few times a year since the boys were about two-years old. One of the highlights is seeing the traveling exhibition on the main floor. We’ve learned about psychology, grossology, space travel, and with the current exhibition – animal grossology.

The boys (now six and seven) never grow tired of exploring the top two floors of the Centre. What kid wouldn’t love blowing human-sized bubbles, building towers, running like a sprinter or playing with Lego? The entire Centre is a hands-on, kids’ paradise for learning. I love seeing how the boys interact with the exhibits differently each time they go, as they age and mature.

Yes! We are big fans of the Discovery Centre! So much so, that we buy an annual Rural Family pass.

Rural Family Pass

Did you know that it pays to be a rural family? If you live 100km from Halifax (Windsor and beyond), you are eligible to purchase the Rural Family Membership from the Discovery Centre in Halifax!

With the Rural Family Pass (which you can fill out online) it’s only $50 for the year! For a family of 4, one visit would cost $34 – so in just 2 visits, the Rural Family Pass pays for itself!

Membership dues also support their work improving science education at the Centre and across the province. In addition to free year-round admission to Centre, members receive free admission to over 200 science centres around the world!

When we went to the Ontario Science Centre in Toronto, we got in for free! A family entry would have been $70, where we only paid $50 for our Discovery Centre’s annual pass!
When we go to Crystal Palace in Moncton, the kids love that we get free tokens for the arcade and we love that we get a discount on the hotel!

Here’s a full list of member benefits:
• year-long admission
• discounts on camps and birthday parties
• discounts on Discovery Shop purchases
• member-only events
• subscription to DISCOVER, our monthly newsletter
• free admission to over 200 affilliated science centres around the world – Canadian Association of Science Centres & ASTC Passport Program
• 15% discount on daily rates at the Ramada Crystal Palace in Moncton – based on availability and not applicable for group rates
• 20 Crystal Palace tokens with the purchase of a Crystal Palace family pass – based on availability and not applicable for group rates
• one free kid’s meal with every adult entrée at Boston Pizza (downtown Halifax location only)
• $15 off the CAA enrollment fee + $50 discount on travel bookings of $1,000 or more – limit one per customer – conditions apply. CAA Instructions & CAA Application available online.
• $50 off the initiation fee at the YMCA Halifax

The next time you are in the city, or are looking for a fun adventure, I highly recommend checking out the Discovery Centre. You might learn a thing or two!
MORE INFORMATION

Leave me a comment and tell me what is your or your children’s favourite thing to do at the Discovery Centre!

Taco Soup

September 23, 2015/in Recipe, Uncategorized /by ValleyFamilyFun

Taco Soup!

This soup recipe was one of our favourites from childhood. The recipe originally came from a woman in our village who would make gallons of it for church and community functions.

I recently made it for my boys and was thrilled (and admittedly) shocked by how much they loved it! Well, who wouldn’t love supper when you get to add chips to it!

Taco Beef Soup
½ lb. ground beef
¼ C chopped onion
1 ½ C water
1 16 oz can of stewed cut-up tomatoes
1 8 oz can of tomato sauce
1 16 oz can of kidney beans
½ envelope or 2 Tablespoons of taco seasoning mix

Grated cheese
Nacho chips
Sour Cream

Brown hamburger and onion. Drain fat.
Pour into a large pot.
Add water, cans of tomatoes, kidney beans and tomato sauce. Do not drain. Pour them in the pot with their juices. Add taco seasoning.
Simmer covered for 15 minutes.

After you serve it, crush up nacho chips and add it to the bowl. Top with grated cheese and a dollop of sour cream. Mix.

My boys use the nacho chips to dip into the soup. However you eat it, it’s great on a winter’s day or doubled for a family gathering.

My original recipe actually has quantities for 60 people on it!

Serves 6

Keep Your Kids Safe on YouTube

January 17, 2012/in Family Life /by ValleyFamilyFun

Child Security Measures for Youtube

“Whoa! What was THAT??”

The only internet-connected computer in our house to which the boys have access is located in a high-traffic location right by the kitchen. We put it there so we can keep an eye on their online activities, which consist mostly of watching Youtube videos or playing web-based games.

On Youtube, though, it can be only a couple of clicks for children to get from something you’re comfortable with them watching to something that you most definitely aren’t! On more than one occasion we’ve been brought running from the kitchen by language or other things that have been totally inappropriate!

There’s a couple of things you can do to limit exposure to inappropriate material on Youtube though.

If you have a Google account (which you will if you use Gmail or Google+, for example), you can access Youtube‘s safety settings. Scroll to the very bottom of any Youtube page and you’ll see a button called “Safety: Off”. You can select it and, by signing into your Google account you can set that safety setting to “On”.

Note that this is a filter, not an absolute ban; as the setting itself says, “No filter is 100% accurate, but it should help you avoid most inappropriate content.”

Of course, one content area that Youtube definitely DOES want viewers watching, but which can also contain content inappropriate for children, are the advertisements that precede almost every video. Believe it or not, you can block these ads, too!

We use a free add-on for Firefox called Tube Enhancer (www.tubeenhancer.com). Among other features, you can set it to block the ads that appear in or before Youtube videos – a great feature when those ads are full of the latest death-and-mayhem of Call of Duty: Ghosts or GTA 5! There are also Tube Enhancer add-ons for the Chrome and Internet Explorer browsers too.

Again, though, add-ons such as Tube Enhancer will only filter content inappropriate for kids, not guarantee total blocking.

There is no substitute for being involved in your children’s internet activity!

**Thanks to my husband, David, for writing this blog post**

What other tips do you have? Leave a comment!

Valley Family Fun in the News

January 14, 2012/in Valley Family Fun /by ValleyFamilyFun

I write a column in our local paper that is distributed to four papers under Transcontinental Media umbrella. All my columns pertain to fun things to do in the Annapolis Valley with your family.

Here is the archive of those articles.