Chamberfest Bring The Kids Series - Summer of Awesome

by Lynn Did you know that Ottawa has this thing called Chamberfest, and it is not, as you may fear, about monks chanting or flueglehorn playing or chamber decoration? Rather, it is a celebration of all sorts of different types of classical music, in unique and interesting venues, by talented, unique, and internationally feted musicians?

And did you know they have a program called Bring The Kids, which invites children of all ages to come and explore music? I know! Just when you think you know of everything there is to do in Ottawa, you hear about something amazing like this, and wonder where the heck you've been all this time.

Chamberfest runs from July 23 through August 5, and there are dozens and dozens of concerts happening all over the place. You can get tickets and/or passes for the grown-up events on the Chamberfest site - there's tons of great stuff to choose from, something for everyone.

But the best part about the Bring The Kids series is that it is free. Let me say that one more time: FREE. Fabulous music in a gorgeous setting, feeling like a supermom for exposing your kids to the classics, and a cool way to get out of the house for the afternoon? PRICELESS.

I took my three little ones to the first in the series on Monday. It featured brass quintet True North Brass, playing at the Dominion-Chalmers United Church downtown. The quintet was just SO good. They talked about their instruments and what makes them similar yet different, and what it means to be a brass instrument. They pulled out a shell and a garden hose - and then played each one - to demonstrate the basic physics behind their instruments. They were funny and entertaining and did not seem phased at all by crying kids, crawling toddlers, random light saber duels, or the crunch of goldfish crackers.

I was pretty impressed with my kids - they actually sat and listened. The older two are 8 and 6 1/2, and they were entranced, actually listening and paying attention and learning stuff. My youngest, at age just-turned-4, got a little squirmy after about a half hour (the concert was just about an hour long). But between a snack (totally allowed) and some energetic clapping and lap-bouncing from me kept her going. Other younger kids had varying levels of concentration but no one complained or felt awkward. It's all good.

The concerts are aimed at kids aged 3 through 8, but there were a few older kids there who seemed to especially enjoy it, so don't hold back. The chamberfest volunteers were absolutely welcoming and friendly and obviously really enthusiastic about music and the whole event just had a great community feel to it.

I even learned stuff - did you know that O Canada has a few totally ripped-off lines, including an opening stolen almost in whole from The March Of The Priests from Mozart's opera The Magic Flute? I feel cheap.

There's just one more concert left in the Bring The Kids series (although many more Chamberfest concerts remain). The last kids' concert features the Sounds Of The String Quartet and it's this Thursday, July 28, at 3 p.m. It's at the Dominion-Chalmers United Church downtown and you'll want to come early to get a good seat.

But most of all, you'll just want to come. I'll see you there - this one is such a big winner that we won't miss a chance to go again.

Lynn is mom to three tombliboos and blogs over at Turtlehead.

Summer footwear

By Vicky Let's talk about feet for a minute. Kids' feet. Kids' feet in the summer. It's so hard to get it right. It's too hot for socks with running shoes. Crocs are a good option, but not great for running in. Some summer camps require closed toed shoes so flip flops are out of the question, not to mention they hurt little toes.  And what if it rains? Again too hot for rainboots, but sandles can get slippery.

I have a solution. The Keen. (No, not as in Capital Keen). A cool name, for a cool shoe.

I first heard of Keens last summer when I saw them on Lara's feet. (Yes! They make adult sizes too!) Then I saw them on her son Kiernan's feet. I would have bought some for Joel but we had already bought his summer sandals.

So what are they? Footwear that offers the support and protection of a shoe, with the breathability of a sandal. They have a rubber toe guard, and an antibacterial lining. No laces or buckles, they have a quick-lock toggle system (much like a bungee cord). They have excellent traction on wet surfaces, and can even be worn in the water!

Why did we buy them? I liked the fact that they were easy to put on (like Crocs) but more sturdy and durable. I liked that Joel could wear them to run around at the park like a running shoe, but that they would also work while playing at a splash pad. Also, I asked him what kind of shoe he would like, and he picked the Keens!

They retail for around $59.99, but are well worth the money. We got our Keens at Kiddy Kobbler Place D'Orleans (follow them on Twitter @KKPlacedOrleans)

Vicky is the mom to 4.5 year old son named Joel and 2 year old daughter named Mieka. You can read her blog at blog Some Kind of Mom. She is also an Independent Stylist with Peekaboo Beans. Visit her on Facebook for more information, www.facebook.com/ottawabeans

Yoga on the Hill

by Brie My kids love to do yoga. And given that they are kids it is easy for them to move in and out of downward dog and cobra. Way easier then it is for me! Sometimes they even love to do their own versions of yoga poses. What? Haven't you heard of astronaut post?

I thought for sure the kids would like to check out the weekly Yoga on the Hill classes every Wednesday at noon on the front lawn of the Parliament Buildings. (Find out more here along with other free things to do on Parliament Hill). It definitely seemed like the place to be with over a hundred people sitting on their yoga mats waiting for the class to start.

My kids didn't last as long as I would have liked, although they did get in some downward dogs and cobras.

I am pretty sure that my four year would have stayed for the whole class but my two year old was ready to go after ten minutes. I was okay with that though. We came, we did some yoga, we left. Then we went to visit the cat houses behind the Parliament Building and watched a raccoon eat cat food for ten minutes.

Yoga on the Hill would be a summer great outing for older kids, even if they aren't too familiar with yoga. There is an instructor leading the class and lots of other participants to watch and follow. The front lawn isn't shaded though, so bring lots of water and sunscreen because the sun will be hot at noon!

Have you been to Yoga on the Hill?

Brie is the mom of a 4 year old daughter “the girl” and 2 old son “the boy”. You can read her blog at Capital Mom.

Ahoy Mates! Sailing with Pirate Adventures

Pirate Adventures is no longer located in Ottawa but you can check out Pirate Life instead! Our bloggers last visited Pirate Life in 2020 right in the height of Covid protocols.  

by Valancy

In search of adventure to entertain and delight a pair of four-year-old boys, we recently set sail with a band of pirates on the stormy seas. Okay, they were only pretend pirates. And, it wasn’t the sea, it was the Rideau Canal. But it was stormy before our trip was over, and it was an adventure that did entertain boys and girls young and old.

Pirate Adventures offers passengers a chance to immerse themselves in an imaginary pirate adventure, with a theatrical and interactive ride along the Rideau Canal aboard the vessel the Grey Ghost. My four-year-old son gets a kick out of all things pirate-related, so we thought this might be quite a treat for him to experience with his friend and little sister. The boys were very excited about the trip, and it was hard for them to wait all day until our 4 o’clock departure.

When we arrived, however, my reserved and often-shy little guy wasn’t so sure about the small crowd of about 40 passengers and the energetic pirate crew. He hid behind my legs, scowling and wanting nothing to do with the pirate costumes provided, the face painting, or the pirate name tags. The rest of our little troupe was undaunted and cheerfully donned vests, belts, and bandannas and submitted to some creative face painting. Little kids running around with painted-on beards and moustaches was an adorable sight to see. We couldn’t let our reluctant pirate off without a name-tag at least, and suggested that “Angry Andrew” would be fitting. I was dubbed “Vicious Val” - argh, beware mateys!

On board the ship we met our crew and captain, and were entertained with stories about their pirate pasts. The little pirates on board were all invited to gather at the front of the boat to listen to the stories and take part in the action, while we older, er, more seasoned pirates settled ourselves on benches. Angry Andrew stayed sitting with me, watching the performers and the passing scenery with interest, but still refusing to crack a smile. At least our two-year-old daughter, “Eagle-eye Ella”, was having a good time, fascinated with being on a boat and somewhat mystified by the theatrics of the pirate crew.

Just when I was starting to wonder whether Angry Andrew would have any fun at all on this trip, dastardly Pirate Pete arrived to save the day. After Pirate Pete shot at us with a water gun from his dinghy, the Captain announced it was time to man the cannons! Angry Andrew laughed with glee watching Pirate Pete get pelted with water from cannons fired by other kids on the boat, then eagerly rushed to have his turn on the starboard side. The captain and crew made sure that every little pirate on board had a chance to fire a cannon at Pirate Pete before he was finally vanquished, falling ever so melodramatically backward into the water. 

From that point on, even Angry Andrew thoroughly enjoyed the show and the rest of the trip. Before we returned to dock there were songs, sword-fights, and treasure found and divvied up. While it had been hot and sunny when we set out, it clouded over and we were cooled with a bit of rain before a looming thunderstorm forced our captain to cut our voyage a little short from the standard 75-minute trip. I can’t complain about missing a bit of time on the boat, however, since for our younger group, I think that the slightly shorter ride was just right.  As we disembarked and returned our costumes to the crew, everyone was smiling, and the kids were excitedly showing each other the loot that they’d chosen from the treasure chest.

While Pirate Adventures is definitely not cheap ($10 for kids 2 and under, $18 for everyone else), it is a fun special outing worth doing at least once. Kids slightly older than ours would probably enjoy the adventure the most, as they would be more able to really listen to the pirate tales and get immersed in the imaginary world. But with the mix of story-telling, jokes, action and slapstick there is definitely something to entertain would-be-pirates of any age. The crew on shore and on the ship were all friendly and full of enthusiasm. They did a great job hamming up the pirate “arrghs” and making sure all of the little pirates on board had a good time.

And us big pirates got a kick out of the experience too. Who doesn’t want to dress up like a pirate and shout “arrrrrgh!” at least once in their lifetime?

For more information, visit www.PirateAdventures.ca. The ship sails several times daily, Tuesday through Sunday, and reservations are strongly recommended.

Valancy Reynolds is an Ottawa mom of two - soon to be three - little ones. She journals about day-to-day life with her family, motherhood, and her crafting exploits on her blog, The Daily Meow .

Flashback: Camping with Kids

This was a great post that got lots of comments last year by Julie. We're bringing it back for all of you who are going to be camping this summer! by Julie

Did you give up your camping adventures the minute diapers entered your home? Ya, me too.

I had never camped as a child, only as an adult. I fell in love with camping for:

•    The satisfying feeling that would come over me from having pushed my body hard from the hiking, canoeing or portaging to get to the site. •    The heavenly feeling of being in the middle of nowhere with nothing to do but read my book or take a nap. •    The romantic nights, sitting around a campfire sipping red wine.

Now, review that list again and imagine putting children in the picture. Doesn’t work, does it? All the reasons I loved camping … *poof* … gone.

But recently, my husband and I have headed back into the outdoors – two kids in tow. Although our much-loved list is now adapted, we haven’t had to give it all up entirely.

•    If you’ve been a hard core camper, the notion of “car camping” is depressing indeed! But rather than throw in the towel, seek out quiet, more rustic sites (hint: look for sites that don’t offer facilities like showers). These will have far few people and don’t line up camping sites in a parking-lot style. Instead, each site has been carefully developed for some privacy and remains treed. (You can see photos of a camping site we recently stayed at in Algonquin Parkhere.) •    Take turns with your spouse to allow for some quiet time. One parent takes the kids for a hike or simply stays as the alert and awake supervisor, while the other is free to doze off or get completely absorbed in a book. •    After all that time in the fresh air, your children will be tired and ready to drop into bed! But, unfortunately, so are you. Try hard to stay up for at least 15 minutes of time together – alone – cuddling and staring at the camp fire, before you join the kids in sleepy-land.

There are plenty of great tip-lists available via a simple google search on camping with kids, so I won’t even try to replicate them.

Instead, I will share with you a list of tips directly from my seven-year-old daughter.

•    Go for hikes! Go on an animal safari and look for garden snakes. •    If not in public, let your kids swim nudie! •    Let the kids get as dirty as they want. •    Collect sticks and make a tipi or a fort. •    Let the kids read as late as they want! •    Bring your two-wheeler bike. •    Make s’mores after dinner.

And, last but not least, she offered these wise words of wisdom to camping parents:

•    Don’t be worry warts!

Julie is an Ottawa local and mother of two. Her personal blog is Coffee with Julie.