Spring-time fun at Maplewood Farm

Over the last few years, it's become a sort of family tradition for us to visit Maplewood Farm in North Vancouver once spring rolls around. Our first visit in 2013 was on Easter Sunday, and involved an Easter egg hunt, some chocolate eggs handed out by the Easter bunny, and lots and lots of goats and bunnies.

Up close and personal with a friendly goat.

Maplewood Farm is a fantastic place to visit with kids, especially on a nice and sunny day. My kids especially love the goat enclosure, where they get to interact with and pet the miniature goats. These animals are so gentle and friendly that they really seem more like dogs than farm-animals! The giant white rabbits are another highlight of every visit: this year there were a couple of guinea pigs in with the bunnies as well, though they mostly tried to hide from visitors.

We ate our picnic lunch at one of the wooden tables at the farm, enjoying the warm spring sunshine, collected some colourful Easter eggs that the kids then traded for a goodie-bag each in the farm's greenhouse, and then checked out the other animals around the farm: free-roaming chickens, tiny yellow chicks in the hen-house, the woolly sheep, the birds in their cages, and the big horses being groomed in the outside paddock.

The farm is easy to get to from Vancouver, and there's a lot of free parking adjacent to it. If your kids want to hang out and play before and after the farm-visit, there's a nice little playground right next door too.

For more information about rates and special events, visit Maplewood Farm's website.

Spring-break fun around Vancouver

In the school district where we live, the kids get a two week long Spring Break, and we're just finishing up the second week of our holidays. It's been a low-key affair, mainly because we've been dealing with the flu, but we did manage to squeeze in some fun as well.

1. Going for a great walk in Lynn Headwaters park in North Vancouver. This is one of my family's favourite hikes, and the lower trail along the river is a smooth and easy walk for any age: even if you're bringing a stroller!

2. Taking our new guinea pigs outside for a taste of grass and sunshine. Recently we made two guinea pigs the newest members of the family, and they are just the cutest, sweetest little pets (with big appetites!).

3. Checking out the new installations and exhibits at Vancouver's Science World. As usual, visiting Science World was a big hit with the kids. They loved the new Creativity in Motion exhibit, the modular railway on display in the upstairs area. The new outdoor interactive play-park was also a lot of fun: it'll be even more fun when the water features are turned on in April!

4. Going for a walk in downtown Vancouver. Walking along the shore in Kitsilano and following the water all the way to Granville Island is a great way to spend a sunny day. Capping things with some ice cream once we arrived at Granville Island made it even better. The sculpture above is in the Kitsilano neighbourhood close to Vancouver's Maritime Museum.

5. Visiting The Vancouver Aquarium. This is one of the best family-friendly destinations in all of Vancouver. We brought a packed lunch which we ate in the dolphin underwater gallery, we got to see the big octopus stretching his arms, did some fun crafts, and enjoyed looking at all the other critters as well. Even on a busy day (and it was busy when we were there), The Aquarium is a lot of fun for kids and adults.

Outdoor fun with kids: visiting the bird sanctuary in Ladner, BC

The George C. Reifel Migratory Bird Sanctuary, located in Ladner just south of Vancouver, is a great place to take your kids for a walk, some outdoor fun, and a chance to get an up close and personal look at nature: especially different kinds of birds.

This past weekend, on the one really sunny day in the midst of our usual grey and rainy winter weather here in our part of British Columbia, my husband and I visited the Sanctuary with the kids. It's a really wonderful place to go for a walk, no matter what age your kids are. The trails are level and well-maintained (you should watch out for bird droppings however!), and can easily be navigated even with a stroller.

You do pay a fee to enter the trail area, currently $5.00 per adult and $3.00 for children 2-14 years old. At the same place where you pay to enter, you can also buy small bags of bird feed for $1.00. It basically consists of various types of grains, and my kids really enjoyed doling out to various birds along the route.

One thing you notice right away at the entrance is that there are a lot of mallards here. And I mean a lot. They are all over the trail in the beginning, and all over the ponds, and well... all over. But there are other kinds of birds too. What kinds of birds you'll see depends a lot on the time of year, since many migrating birds stop by here on their way elsewhere.

On our recent outing, there were owls, cranes, geese, and many smaller birds to be seen everywhere. Bring a camera and binoculars, climb up the lookout towers, take  a break in one of the small bird-watching cabins along the trails, or just soak up the sunshine on a sunny day and enjoy the views of the water.

Facilities

The bird sanctuary has a lot of picnic tables at the entrance, so bring a snack or a packed lunch if you want to. There is also a small gift shop and washrooms. For more information, visit the sanctuary's website.

5 family-friendly hikes around the world

My family loves going for hikes in the woods around Vancouver. It's one of our favourite weekend activities. The kids love it (even if they'll occasionally grumble if it's uphill) and it just puts everyone in a good mood. For some of our favourite hiking trails around Vancouver, you can look at this old post: 5 great forest-y hikes with kids in & around Vancouver.

Of course, there are great places to go for walks and hikes all over the world with your kids. Here are some trails I'd like to hike with my kids:


Mount Rainier in Washington, USA
This article from National Geographic lists family friendly hikes in US National Parks, including in Arizona, Kentucky, Wyoming, and Colorado. The one in Washington is right next door to where we live and the description sounds fantastic:

Fantastic views of western Washington’s snowcapped peaks, including Mount Rainier, make the Sourdough Ridge Trail a mini-adventure the whole family will love.

London, England
The Easy Hiker site has some great suggestions for trails and walks all over the world. I really like the idea of "hiking" in London because I think that walking is really the best way to get to know any city. The walks along the Thames and the "Ghosts of London Past" sound fantastic.


Banff National Park, Canada
The Canadian Rockies are an amazing place to visit, and I hope to take my kids there on a camping trip in the near future. The Canadian Mountain Holidays' website has some great suggestions for trails that are good for the whole family. Tunnel Mountain sounds like a great hike to try out!


Blue Mountains, Australia
This area in Australia is on the World Heritage List, and the photos from the area are amazing. The site BlueMountainsAustralia.com has some great information about how to hike safely, the various trails there, and their level of difficulty. Any of the easy trails sound like they would be do-able with kids, so I'm saving this one for when I finally, finally get to go to Australia.


Mt. Takao, Japan
Located near Tokyo, this mountain apparently offers some very nice hiking trails and there is also a cable car and a lift to help you ascend the mountain. The Japan National Tourist Organization's site has some great information and tips. Japan is definitely a destination on my bucket-list, so I'll tuck this away for future use!

Fun outdoors: sliding on Seymour Mountain, North Vancouver

For Christmas, my kids got some fancy inflatable snow-tubes as presents, and early in January we took them up on Seymour Mountain in North Vancouver to try them out.

Because the designated "sliding hill" on the mountain did not allow inflatable rides, we had to find a small slope "in the wild" to ride on. Once we got going though, the kids did not seem to mind!

I have to say that sliding, tobogganing, tubing... all these snow-activities are just a total joy to do with my children. It's good fun, it's a thrill, and it's a workout. Sure, they usually complain when they work their way up the hill, but going down makes up for all that.

What a great way to spend a day in the snow!

As an added bonus, we got to enjoy some absolutely spectacular views of Vancouver and the lower mainland on that beautiful, clear day.

There are three ski hills in North Vancouver, just across the inlet from downtown Vancouver:

• Seymour Mountain
• Cypress Mountain
• Grouse Mountain

Each one has its own flavour, and they all have great winter activities to offer for families.

10 random tips for living & traveling with kids

Traveling with my kids through the years I've learned so many things I didn't know before. Here are some random tips that I've come to value:

1. Always bring antibacterial wipes on your trip
At home, I swear by regular soap and water, but on trips (especially flights), it's a different story. I used to get sick every time we'd been on a flight, but once I started bringing the anti-bacterial wipes with me, that does not happen anymore. Bring a big tub of them, and then use them to wipe hands and any surfaces you feel are suspect.

2. Always remember to pack your liquids correctly for flights
I've read rumours that the rules for bringing liquids on board airplanes might be relaxed sometime in the near future, but it hasn't happened yet. Each one of your liquids (including gels and creams) have to be in a container that is 100 ml (3 oz) or smaller, placed inside a clear ziploc bag, and one of those bags are allowed per person. Not doing this properly will likely lead to delays in getting through security, and that is never fun.

3. Don't forget the small stuff
When you're traveling with kids, it's sometimes important to forget about the big-deal sightseeing you want to do, and instead look at the small things your kids see that you might miss. On our trip to Maui in 2009, I probably would have never even known that a herd of snails passed by our condo every morning, unless my kids had alerted me to this amazing fact.

4. Kids are sometimes messy eaters: prepare accordingly
On flights and on other trips (in the car for example), it's good to be prepared for messy eaters. For example, I bring:

• antibacterial wet-wipes
• reusable juice-boxes for drinks (great for preventing spills on planes and in cars)
• a change of clothes for each child (definitely on flights, and on longer car trips as well)
• a roll of paper towels in the car
• a bib for babies wherever you go
• reusable snack containers with lids that the kids can easily open and close on their own.

5. Being outside makes for happier kids & parents
Every day, whether we're at home or traveling, and regardless of the weather, I try to make time for some time outside with the kids: a walk, a hike, a visit to the beach... It's the best method to improve my mood and my kids' mood that I have found.

6. Backpacks are great on board & off
I love backpacks. They make great hand-luggage if you're traveling by plane with kids because they free up your hands, and they're great when you're hiking or just going to the park with your kids and need to bring some supplies as well.

7. The backyard can be a terrific destination
Going outside, and finding something to do for your kids doesn't always have to involve travel, or even a car-ride. If you have a backyard, it can be a terrific destination for your kids: trampolines, swings, sand-boxes, a play pool, and outdoor toys can make it fun. Or you can watch the birds, lay on your back and look at the clouds or the planes passing overhead. Or why not put the tent up for a night?

8. On long flights, sleep is best
On long flights, getting some sleep is the best way to pass the time. It will also make your kids less cranky for the rest of the trip. Try to get your kids comfy by taking off their shoes, finding them a pillow and a blanket, and cuddling them for a bit. And if they sleep: take the chance to get some sleep yourself. Even a short power-nap is better than nothing.

9. Beaches are awesome
In the summer, I could live at the beach with my kids. Sand and water to explore and play in, the relaxing sounds of waves... I don't need much to have a wonderful time with my kids there. Sunscreen, bottles of water, snacks, blankets to sit on, and some buckets and shovels are the only supplies we really need.

10. Sometimes, an indoor play-center is the best thing you can do
Indoor play-centers with slides, mazes to climb through, ball-rooms, trampolines, and whatever else is provided can be rather crazy and chaotic places. However, if the weather is terrible (for example, when we visited Sweden a couple of years ago in December, and it was below -20 Celsius for days and days), they can be just what you need to let the kids burn off some energy and have some serious, active fun.

Fun in Vancouver - hiking in Stanley Park

My family, kids and adults, is very much into hiking. We often head over to Vancouver's north shore to hike in the woods there, especially in Lynn Headwaters and Lynn Canyon.

However, in the winter, the trails can be too wet, or snowy, to hike easily with kids. So, like many other residents in and around Vancouver, we sometimes head to Stanley Park in downtown Vancouver to go for a nice long walk there instead.

Our "hike", in red.

That's what we did one recent beautiful January weekend. Even though this "hike" too place in the park, meaning the terrain was not exactly challenging, it was quite a long outing, and there was lots to see along the way.

We started off in the parking lot near the gardens, across the road from the parking lot for the Aquarium. From there we headed down to Lost Lagoon, and proceeded to the Seawall near Second Beach.

Playing around near Second Beach.

We then followed the Seawall all the way past Third Beach, Siwash Rock, and under the Lion's Gate Bridge. At the Ravine Trail we turned into the woods and up towards Beaver Lake, and from there followed the trail back to the parking lot. This hike with the kids took almost 3 hours, and they were quite tired but also quite happy at the end.

Siwash Rock.

Along the way we saw beautiful views, lots of nice dogs, an ambulance on the Seawall (very exciting, and a relief that no one seemed to have been too seriously injured), and we also got a close-up look at some of the destruction the last storm combined with high tide caused in the park (some pretty severe damage to the Seawall itself in a few places).

Best of all, near Beaver Lake, an older gentleman let the kids have some of his bird seed and we got to feed the tiny little birds there: they were so bold that they actually flew over to take the seeds right out of the palms of our hands!

All in all a wonderful day out, reminding me once again that Stanley Park is truly a Vancouver treasure.

• More information about Stanley Park from the City of Vancouver website.