Magic Writing
Magic Writing
How did you do that?
That is so cool!
It’s magical!
What supplies did you have to buy to make that?
Oh yeah! This activity is a huge hit, and it is embarrassing how easy it is!
Supplies
White paper
White crayon
Paintbrush
Water paints
On a piece of blank white paper, write a message with white crayon. This can be tricky, as it is hard to see what you are writing. Do it in bright light, and it’s a bit easier.
Give the child a paint brush and water paints. Paint over the paper with the water-coloured paints.
Wherever the crayon is, it will come through white. Then, you will be able to read the message.
I usually write a message about where the kids’ snack is hiding! They love a good hunt!
We also used this idea for my son’s Harry Potter Birthday party. I hid the treat bags around the house, and gave each child a message (brought in by a stuffed owl) as to where their treat bag was hidden!
Try this activity. Trust me. You’ll look so cool, and you’ll be so happy how easy it is to do!
Eating with Kids at Acadia
Eating with Kids at Acadia
Acadia University in Wolfville has a lot to offer for families from great athletic to music programs. But, have you ever thought about taking your kids there to eat?
There are two ways to eat with your kids at Acadia.
Nutrition Department
Students in the Management in Dietetics course in the School of Nutrition and Dietetics are required to put on a large-scale dinner. This happens on Wednesday and Friday evenings at 5:30 on the 4th floor of Huggins Science Hall on University Avenue.
MAP
One of the science labs is turned into a full-scale dining hall.
Each week, students in the course take on different duties from planning the menu, cooking, serving and pot washing.
The general public benefits as we get to go and have a 3-course delicious meal out while helping the students learn!
My husband and I have gone to these dinners for years, or I’ve gone as a girls’ night out with my friends. This time we thought we would take the boys! We will definitely be taking them again.
Here’s how it works.
First you need to sign up to be on the email list. A few days in advance, the menu is sent around (it’s completely different each time). Then, you email back to say how many tickets you want. Do NOT hesitate, because they go very quickly!
Email lynn.coleman@acadiau.ca to be added to the list.
Dinners run from September to November and January to March.
The price is $6.75 for kids; $13.50 for adults
You pay at the door.
It’s worth every penny!
Wheelock Dining Hall
You may think of the dining hall as a place where students in residence go to eat, but think again!
It’s a kid’s paradise.
A buffet style of all you can eat!
This is my boys’ all-time favourite place to go. They love the freedom of choice for their own food, and feeling grown up in amongst all the students. I’ll remind them of this when they are students!
(I won’t mention how old it makes you feel being amongst the students, though!)
There are a wide variety of healthy choices and the boys do well, but it’s hard to resist the all-you-can eat cheeseburgers, nachos, pizza and Fruit Loops!
Anyone from the general public is welcome to eat at Wheelock any time.
Adult cash door prices are
Breakfast $6.90; Lunch $11.50 and Supper $14.60 taxes included;
Children under 12 are half price, and under 2 are free.
During the Academic year, Wheelock is open 7am-9mp Mon-Fri, and 9am-9pm Sat, Sun & holidays. It’s all you can eat at every meal – and really, it is the best deal around (just no one knows about it!)
Website
Outside the academic year – Joe Public is still very welcome, but the prices change at the end of the term in April (they go up – but go down again in September), and they are only open as business requires.
Your best bet, then, is to go between September and April.
Happy Eating!
Boy’s Room Makeover
Re-Decorating Thomas’ Room with Clevelands
**Disclosure: I received complimentary and discounted products from Clevelands to help with this project.**
Thomas, being the second child, seems to get the short end of the stick. There are fewer baby pictures of him. We don’t work as hard with him on writing or riding his bike.
When Thomas was born, I didn’t even do a nursery for him. We simply put him in the spare room and added a few wall stickers from the dollar store and called it his bedroom.
Thomas is now 6 years old. His room has not changed.
In fact, as you can see in the attached picture, it’s a giant junk pile!
In September we finally bought him a desk instead of the two tv-trays he was using before.
It’s about time I did something about it!
I want to decorate Thomas’s room.
I need to decorate Thomas’ room. I owe him that much!
Thomas is obsessed with Hot Wheels. He has hundreds of cars, bedsheets and paraphernalia. I want to make him a Hot Wheels bedroom.
It started with his idea of wanting an orange room. I wasn’t sure about a whole room done in orange, which then made me think about using blue as an accent colour to mimic the Hot Wheels logo.
This was my plan for last fall.
I am not an interior decorator. I am not a painter. I am a busy mom who is trying to create a nice space for her son.
I’m not great at choosing paint colours (we had someone hired to come in and pick the colours for the house) but, I can do the physical labour.
I know I am not alone. We struggle to make nice spaces for our kids – a place where they can feel at home, and feel that they have ownership over.
We know it can be overwhelming and stressful to pick the colours, designs and come up with the ideas to make it perfect – or close to perfect.
We also want to do it on a budget.
This is where Cleveland’s Carpet and Décor in Kentville comes in! I always get my paint from Clevelands because it is conveniently located in downtown Kentville, and the staff are so friendly and ever so helpful!
I spoke with Debbie Chisholm from Clevelands who agreed to help me with Thomas’ room. I was relieved, because I was beyond my comfort zone in choosing colours or knowing where to start.
I brought in a pillowcase from Thomas’ Hot Wheels bed set and we picked a blue and orange that matched. We decided to paint one accent wall orange and the others blue. Debbie thought a race car border would go well with the theme, so I took home a few books for him to choose.
That was the plan until Thomas heard it. Always to have a mind of his own, he decided to have half of every wall orange and half blue. “Mommy, you can choose if the orange is on the top or the bottom, though!”
The next problem was the wallpaper books. I should have done what my instincts told me and just take a picture of the border, but I brought home the whole book.
A week later, I wrote this message to Debbie:
“I am in a bit of an impasse with my son who has a mind of his own! He LOVED the wallpaper book! In fact, he found three borders that he wants all stacked one on top of the other!
I told him, that wasn’t happening!So, now he’s determined to have Hot Wheels paint and a dinosaur border. (Have I mentioned he’s stubborn?) I’m trying to convince him we should change the paint colours and just have a dinosaur room, but he’s having none of that!
I’m going to give him the weekend, and hopefully my mom can convince him.Otherwise… I might just do the paint.”
There was no convincing Thomas. After discussing, arguing, demanding, negotiating and talking to Thomas I took a breath and realized something.
It is his room. It is his space. His choice. His empowerment.
Does it really matter?
No, it doesn’t.
So, over November I painted his room – the top orange, and the bottom blue. Because it was so dark, it required a lot of coats.
Next, the paint had to cure for several weeks before we could put the wallpaper border on.
Debbie helped me order the border, and figure out how much we needed based on the room measurements. Another great relief since I am terrible at math!
Another snag. That border was discontinued!
Again, home came the wallpaper books, and Thomas picked another dinosaur border.
Actually, he picked 3 borders. He wanted all three stacked one on top of the other! I managed to get him to pick ONE.
LUCKILY, it matched perfectly with the paint colours!
When the border arrived, my mom came over to help me wallpaper. Correction. She wallpapered and I held the tools. I have no patience for precision, so it worked better this way. And, Thomas came and helped, too. He was a much better helper than me.
He even took the scraps and wallpapered our hallway.
When all was said and done, Thomas’ room looked amazing. Combined with the new dinosaur sheets he got from Nana for Christmas, it was the perfect room.
“Mommy, I just want to lie in here all day and look at it,” said Thomas.
And, that made it all worth while.
A huge thank you to Debbie at Clevelands in Kentville for all her help and patience and advice!
Located in downtown Kentville, head to Clevelands for all your painting, wallpaper, and flooring needs. You won’t be disappointed!
Now, I will need some help re-doing my hallway!
Paint colours used:
Dulux Lakemont Blue 70BG 11/257
Dulux Harvest Spice 70YR 29/559
Wolfville Watershed Nature Reserve
Wolfville Watershed Nature Preserve
Update: March 2016
According to my friend, Mark, the trails are all nicely cleared (late last fall), by the town of Wolfville, with the wildest part still being the far-side of the Havey Trail, which may not get as much use.
Some signage is visible, but it is not permanent, and may not last long.
Photo courtesy of Mark Davidson
**WARNING: This hike is not marked. Print off and bring the map along with you! **
UPDATE August 2015: We hiked this trail again in the summer, and had an even worse experience. The trails were overgrown, not labeled and we ended up completely lost. We do NOT recommend taking this hike until conditions are improved.
I had often heard of the Wolfville Watershed Nature Preserve. There are often guided snowshoe hikes or bird watching expeditions that happen here. Funnily enough, I thought this hike was in Wolfville.
It isn’t.
It’s actually on the South Mountain in Forrest Hills, behind Gaspereau.
To get there, you can follow the instructions on this map.
In essence, go up past Gaspereau Elementary School. Turn left onto Forrest Hill Road and park at the parking lot at the end (where the road turns to dirt).
There is a big sign and an obvious parking lot to let you know you have arrived.
The trail is not sign posted, so you need to figure out where you are going. It is particular tricky in the winter when the trails are covered, but it is manageable.
As an aside: I am not sure why so many recreation departments cannot spend $50 to paint some plywood triangles or put up some hunting tape, is beyond me!
There are three main loop trails (which could be combined to make more combinations). We decided (or so we thought) to do the Ravine Loop Trail which was listed as moderate.
However, upon meeting some people on the trail (being the Valley, of course I knew them!) we were told where we went astray.
So, I will give you the directions to what you SHOULD DO!
Ravine Loop Trail
When you leave the parking lot, continue walking down the road.
On your left is an orange metal fence.
Turn that way and follow the path along the edge of a field. There will be some great views out over Cape Blomidon.
This trail will connect at a junction.
If you take the left fork in the road, this will take you to the waterfall. It’s gorgeous.
We recommend you walk down to the waterfall (to the log bridge)
and the return back up to this junction path and carry on to what would have been the right fork at the junction.
By returning this way, you will come up in the “centre” path written on the map. It joins up with the main road.
Then turn right to return to your car.
Havey Trail
To do the more difficult loop, from the parking lot head down the dirt road.
Go through the triangular-shaped gate.
On the left there will be a trail head. Take that path.
You will come to a junction. This is the same one as mentioned above.
Keep to the right (around a sharp bend).
We were a bit confused because the trail was snow covered and there were a lot of trees down.
Climb over the trees and carry on till you get to the log bridge (as mentioned above) and the waterfall.
It really is beautiful!
Cross the log bridge
and pick up the trail on the other side until it loops back to the main road again.
Turn right and head the parking lot.
Mud Dam Loop (easy)
After passing through the triangular gate, continue down the dirt road.
On the left is the entrance to the harder trail, while on the right, there is a trail to Mud Dam.
This is a short loop – less than 1km, that is flat and takes you to the dam.
When we were there, it was frozen and people were skating!
The perfect place!
The trail hugs the edge of the shore before cutting back to the dirt road.
Turn left to head back to the car.
Our Adventure
We mistakenly took the trail down the “centre” of the map (to the start of the Havey Trail) thinking we were on the Ravine Loop Trail (moderate trail).
When we got to the log brook, we could not easily see the trail on the other side, for all the snow.
We ended up hugging the bank and walking along the edge toward an old cement dam from the 1930s.
There, we scaled the side of the bank and joined back up onto the path where we had come down through the “centre” of the map.
It was also VERY icy under foot when we went, so the boys ended up sliding a lot of the way!
Next Time
There will be a next time. We will go again in the spring to try these trails again.
I recommend going for your first time in the spring (so you can see the paths) and follow my directions.
We are looking forward to following a proper trail and having the footing a bit easier to trod!
All in all, it’s a beautiful place worth exploring!
UPDATE
We went back in the summer, and the trail was much easier to walk!
After visiting the waterfall, we returned to the junction to try the ravine loop.
We followed the map, but did not see any path to loop back to the parking lot. The trail kept going down the mountain. I had remembered that the Local had told me that you could hike to the base of the mountain. We were afraid we were on that path.
We tried to loop back up where we thought there was a path, but once again got completely lost.
And, it was raining.
We returned to the car eventually, based on our good sense of direction. We were soaked, tired and angry. We vowed to NEVER do this hike again until conditions have improved.
Please be safe!
2 Easy Card Holders for Kids
Cardholders for Kids
When my kids were little they loved to play card games like Go Fish and Uno. However, they had a really hard time holding all of their cards in their small hands.
This is when we did some research and came up with 2 easy ways to make cardholders for kids!
Mousepad
1. Go to the dollar store and buy a mouse pad.
2. With an exacto or other sharp knife, cut some slots in the sides of the mousepad. We experimented with a few different “designs” but in the end found that 4 slots up each side is ideal.
Voila! You are finished. Help kids to stack their cards in the holder. You may have to help them do this, or if there are a lot of cards, put two cards in one slot.
Egg Carton
By far the easiest – turn an empty egg carton upside down and stack the cards between the “bumps”.
Have fun playing, and kids not getting frustrated because they can’t see their cards!
