June Activities for Kids in Ottawa

June is right around the corner (if you can believe it!) There are many upcoming FUN activities for the whole family. Have an event to add? Just email us at kidsinthecapital@gmail.com

Italian Week

Italian Week Ottawa is taking place June 9th to 19th. There are a lot of fantastic activities taking place, including:

• Italian Puzzle Quiz (scavenger hunt through Little Italy)

• Outdoor screening of the 2019 film Pinocchio

• Online bedtime story readings of "Strega Nona Takes a Vacation" and "Strega Nona's Harvest"

• Amusement rides

• Soccer tournament

• Ferrari and Italian car show

• And so much more!

https://italianweekottawa.ca/

The Buzzing Carnival

On June 4-5th, 2022, KingDom Theatre is hosting a huge event that will showcase the immense talent of Ottawa children!

https://www.kingdomtheatre.ca/buzzingcarnival

Children's creative groups from Ottawa, Toronto, and Montreal will participate in the Buzzing Parade that will walk through the scenic Andrew Haydon Park, 200+ young artists will present in the Buzzing Concert on the welcoming outdoor stage, perform shows on the theatre stage at Nepean Creative Arts Centre, exhibit works of visual art, run arts workshops and make arts installation, and celebrate together at a breathtaking outdoor dance party!

Most of the activities at the carnival will be free. Buzzing Carnival is supported by the City of Ottawa Equity and Inclusion in the Arts Fund 2020 and many dedicated volunteers of KingDom Theatre who believe that children deserve a beautiful celebration and a place to share their art after two tough years of the pandemic.

Bike Days

Weekend Bikedays are back! Enjoy cycling on our parkways without any car traffic.

Saturdays and Sundays, from 8am to 4pm

Bank of Canada

After a long closure due to the pandemic, the Bank of Canada has reopened! Located on Bank St. this Museum provides an entertaining and educational perspective on the role the Bank of Canada plays—and the important part Canadians play—in keeping our economy healthy.

Open Thursday through Friday, and it’s FREE!

https://www.bankofcanadamuseum.ca/

Freedom of the City Parade

Not to be confused with the Freedom Convoy, this 150th anniversary event for the Governor General's Foot Guards regiment marches from Cartier Square Drill Hall to Ottawa City Hall's Heritage Building on Elgin Street to conduct the Freedom of the City ceremony with the Mayor of Ottawa. The Foot Guards will be in full ceremonial dress including scarlet jackets and bear-skin hats. The parade will include two guard contingents, a colour party, and the regimental band.

June 4th, 2022: https://ottawatourism.ca/en/see-and-do/freedom-city-parade-governor-general-s-foot-guards

The Ottawa Fringe Festival

June 16th - 26th, and always a favourite for adults and children alike.

https://ottawafringe.com/

Planet Ice is Back at the Canadian Museum of Nature

We have been lucky enough to have a family membership to the Canadian Museum of Nature since my oldest was a baby (with enormous thanks to my aunt who gifts this to us for Christmas every year- seriously the best gift!), so we visit a couple of times a month and know the exhibits well. So when a new special exhibition opens, we can’t wait to check it out!

We were treated to a preview of the newly returned Planet Ice: Mysteries of the Ice Ages exhibition this week before it opens on Friday (May 20th). This exhibition initially debuted in October 2020 but sadly was closed early due to provincial lockdowns, and had limited interactive elements even when it was open. But now it’s back and promises a fascinating look at how different ice ages have shaped our planet, with displays that cater to all age groups.

When you arrive, you’ll see some interactive games that illustrate the conditions necessary for ice ages to form on Earth. My kids favourite game was one where you can create unique snowflakes using different types of ice crystals, and see them appear on a big screen!

Continuing on into the exhibition, you’ll see some full sized woolly mammoth tusks, as well as some of the museum’s collection of Arctic animals such as muskox, caribou and arctic fox, adapted to live in the kinds of conditions present during ice ages. One of the star attractions of this section is the full body sensor activated mammoth or American lion emerging from a snowstorm. My five year old referred to this as her ‘Elsa powers’ to conjure animals- be prepared to spend a long time playing here!

Another highlight for my kids was seeing some skeleton casts of some ice age mammals such as a sabre-toothed cat and a mastodon. My seven year old recently did an 8 week Outschool class on ice age mammals, and found these especially cool, most notably the short-faced bear skeleton (‘you can see how people who found these skeletons thought they were giant humans, mama!’)

If you are visiting on a weekend, or a Thursday evening you will have the opportunity to speak to one of the educators at the museum who has some casts of woolly mammoth and mastodon teeth that kids can actually play with. In July and August, there will be an educator present every day with some extra activities about different animals’ adaptation to cold conditions today.

We spent over an hour at this exhibition, and when combined with a visit to the rest of the museum this was a very full morning of over three hours! Next time we visit (which I am sure will be very soon!) we will bring a picnic lunch to enjoy outside by the woolly mammoths. Grab some tickets and head on over to see this spectacular exhibition soon!

Where: Canadian Museum of Nature, 240 McLeod Street
When: May 20th - September 5th 2022, Tuesdays-Sundays 10:00am-4:00pm (open til 7:00pm Thursdays, open holiday Mondays)
Cost: Free with membership; adults $17.00; children 3-12 $13.00; under 3 free

Tips and Tricks on How to Connect With Your Tween/Teen

Today we’re welcoming Catherine Sullivan to the blog! Catherine is a Registered Social Worker who provides therapy for parents of youth who are struggling with mental health and behavioural challenges.

---

As a parent it seems to be harder to connect with our kids than ever before. There is so much information accessible to them and they are often lost in a digital world - playing video games, watching YouTube videos, etc. How can you make sure that you’re maintaining a positive connection with them? I’ve created a list of things to try and things to avoid to help you with this.

TRY:

Making time to connect by:

○ Doing a daily check-in at a specific time;

○ Having a family dinner or movie/game night;

○ Writing sticky notes and leaving them on their door or in their lunch;

○ Texting them to let you know you’re thinking about them; or

○ Doing things that they find interesting.

Being warm and approachable by:

○ Making time for them so they feel you’re available - they likely won’t approach you if you’re always busy on a device or doing other things; or

○ Being open to what they want to discuss.

Being curious by:

○ Asking them about their day;

○ Talking about their interests;

○ Asking questions like: "I wonder why..."; "I wonder if you’re feeling (name a feeling) because..."; or

○ Hazarding a few guesses if you’re not sure what’s going on (i.e. “Are you upset because of something that happened at school?” or “Are you angry because your friends didn’t invite you to the movies?”) - don’t overdo this or else it will seem too pushy.

Creating a safe environment by:

○ Having consistent structure and boundaries that become expected and respected; or

○ Setting and enforcing limits - with time on devices, with how much time is spent with friends, with bedtimes, etc.

Validating their feelings by:

○ Communicating that you understand a feeling and it makes sense in the situation. It does not mean that you agree with the resulting behaviour. For example, I understand you’re angry; however, it’s not okay to yell at me.

AVOID:

Invalidating their feelings by:

○ Saying things like - "It's going to be fine; you’re okay"; "It's not that big of a deal”; “Don’t be so dramatic". Kids will learn that their feelings don’t make sense and they can’t trust them. They also won’t feel that you understand and will be less likely to approach you.

Shaming by:

○ Making them feel that there is something wrong with them for feeling that way; or

○ Making them feel that they are bad vs. that they did something wrong.

Isolating them or isolating yourself from them.

Giving them the silent treatment to show you don’t approve of their behaviour.

I hope that you find these tips and tricks useful and they help you create a more meaningful relationship with your youth. If your youth is experiencing significant mental health and/or behavioural challenges it can be difficult to establish connections with them. If this is the case, please contact me at catherinesullivancounselling@gmail.com or visit my website at www.catherinesullivancounselling.ca to see if my services would benefit you.

Mother's Day Gift Ideas - What Moms Really Want

When I was little, I remember my dad buying my mom a bottle of perfume every Mother's Day. He'd show me and my brother the little bottle and we'd happily give it to her, along with whatever card or craft we made at school. I don't remember whether we did anything for her that day. I sure hope so, but it isn't something that sticks out in my memory. I hope she knows that we loved her and appreciated what she did for our family.

Now that I'm a mom, I don't want perfume - a sensitivity to smells will do that - but I do really enjoy the handmade cards and crafts from my kids. I keep them all in the drawer in my bedside table and pull them out every so often.

I was thinking about Mother's Day gifts. It might have had something to do with all the ads I was seeing anytime I went on the internet or used an app on my phone. Companies pushing personalized jewelry, products to pamper, and t-shirts with cute sayings. The only thing that I really want for Mother's Day is a picture of me with my kids. Maybe that's just me though so I asked a group of moms what they really want for Mother's Day. Many of them said that they wanted to spend time with their kids, maybe go for a walk or get ice cream.

The biggest theme in the answers was that no one wanted to have to plan anything or cook on Mother's Day. I think we can all agree that moms in general spend a lot of mental energy keeping their families happy. Moms don't necessarily need a day at the spa or expensive jewelry (though I'm sure they'd love either), they just want to relax. The greatest gift you can give a mom is some enjoyable time with her kids with food or snacks that she didn't have to plan or prepare. Maybe throw in a load of laundry for bonus points.

Obviously you know your mom best and if you think she'd appreciate a store-bought gift, by all means you should get that for her. But, from what I'm hearing, a homemade card from the kids and a simple family walk works well. Other than that, a meal at a restaurant (or take home), doing some chores around the house that she normally does, or a massage are popular ideas.

How do you celebrate Mother's Day? What do you think moms really want?

Win a family pass to Songs My Mother Taught Me with the NAC Orchestra

We’ve got two family passes to give away to a Family Adventures Show with the NAC Orchestra called Songs My Mother Taught me!

Read a bit about the show and then check out the contest details at the bottom of this post!

Details

Songs My Mother Taught Me with the NAC Orchestra
Saturday May 7th at 1:30 pm

Southam Hall - 1 Elgin Street, Ottawa
For children 5+ and the whole family
For your comfort, the venue capacity for this show is set to 50%

A Musical Tribute for Mother’s Day

Mom, your special day is almost here, and we’ve got the perfect way to introduce your little ones to the music you love!

This year, before breakfast in bed and the beautiful presentation of those glorious handmade gifts, treat yourself to this bilingual musical offering with the whole family.

This Mothers’ Day, join the NAC Orchestra and guest conductor Naomi Woo for 50 magical minutes of music that celebrate and honour mothers of every generation. Your kids will beam as they escort you into Southam Hall, and you can watch their imaginations grow with this beautiful introduction to the captivating world of orchestral music.

For the kids, we’ve got selections going from Disney (including music from Encanto) to songs about Mother Earth and Mama Africa!
For you we’ll have enchanting favourites like Debussy’s Clair de Lune, and songs by African American composer and mother of three Florence Price—all performed by mums like singer-songwriter Kelly Bado (Francophone Artist of the Year, 2021 Western Canadian Music Awards) and the NAC Orchestra’s own Jessica Linnebach.

Enjoy an afternoon exploring the wonders of music with fun and engaging musical experiences.

Contest details

We have two family passes to give away! Simply comment below and tell us if you’ve ever brought your kids to a show like this before (don’t forget to leave your contact info in the comment form - this is only used to notify you if you win, and is not visible to the public). Deadline to enter is end of the day Sunday, May 1.