by Sara The Cumberland Heritage Village Museum is located 10 minutes east of Orleans. The museum consists of several acres of historical residential and agricultural buildings, including a blacksmith, school house, church, and community hall. For train-lovers, the entrance to the museum is a Canadian National railway station and during summer months children (and adults) can go for a ride on a miniature steam train with the Ottawa Valley Live Steamers and Model Engineers.

Although the museum closes for the season on October 30th, it re-opens on December 5th, 12th, and 19th for a Cultural Christmas Event. Between 10 am and 5 pm, the village is alive with holiday activities including choirs, horse-drawn wagon rides, and even Santa is in town. Families can learn about how the Irish and Germans celebrated Christmas as well as traditional holiday foods. Regular admission fees are charged for the activities (Adult: $7 / Student: $5 / Senior: $5 / Family: $18)

We visited the museum this week with the 2.5 year old monkey's preschool class. The firefighter, who missed his field trip to the museum last year because he was sick, tagged along for a morning of fun.

There was a blanket of snow on the ground when we arrived and the boys were happy to roll around and make snow angels. We started our morning decorating sugar cookies and then took them outside. The boys were happy to sit around the fire drinking hot chocolate and eating their sprinkle-covered snacks. The museum is a beautiful location year-round but it was especially nice taking photos of the buildings, surrounding by freshly fallen snow and decorated with wreaths. We finished our morning out with a visit to Santa Claus and a ride on a horse-drawn sleigh.

Our visit to the museum was a great opportunity to participate in some holiday activities while also enjoying time outside together as we trekked from building to building. I encourage everyone (adults included) to bundle up in snow pants and if you have small children, it might be helpful to bring a sled in case little legs get tired.

Sara is a photographer and mom to a 4.5-year-old ” firefighter” and 2.5-year-old “monkey”. You can also find her at her blog, My Points of View.