HRM Parent Blog

There's just over four months left to save with your ABC Family Card - even if you don't already have one, there's still plenty of ways to save big with it in the time left, so make sure you scoot off to buy one asap, OK? At only $10 for the card, it's easy to save money at participating businesses, over and over again. Here's my top ten picks (but there are more ways - check out the full list of discounts here)*:

1. Enjoy our wonderful city and be a tourist with 25% off a family pass or one adult pass for the Harbour Hopper and Theodore Tugboat! You save $15-18 off a family pass, which more than pays for your ABC Family Card and still means savings! (If you only have one child under 5 though, you are probably better off using the 25% discount on one adult pass, saving $5-6, and paying full price for another adult and your child. Check out the rate pages for the Harbour Hopper and Theodore Tugboat to figure out what's best for you.) Theodore runs into September and the Harbour Hopper until late October.

2. Get your family's holiday photos organized! Now's the time to be booking for this, and with the ABC Family Card you can save money on your photos from five local photographers! Choose from a 10% or 25% discount on products and services, or receive free prints with your photography session, with savings starting at $30 and going up - another way for your ABC Family Card to pay for itself quickly! If you are planning family photos this year, make sure to check out the work of these wonderful local photographers.

3. Now that I have number two on the way, I've been reviewing my cloth diaper stash and seeing what I'd like to add to it. There's lots of options available: for the best selection, check out Nurtured and Enchanted Forest and get 10% off purchases; also Klassy Kids in Cole Harbour are now stocking cloth diapers and My Lil Package has a limited selection too! I love love love my cloth diapers and the thought of using them makes going back to changing diapers a *little* bit more tolerable!

4. Get those back-to-school haircuts at Sharkey's Cuts for Kids in Bedford, saving 10%. The kids enjoy movies and games while getting their hair cut without any fuss!

5. Who doesn't like pizza? Save 10% at Pizza Delight in Halifax Shopping Centre, Bayers Lake and Tacoma Drive in Dartmouth. Or head over to Smitty's in Dartmouth and kids under 10 eat free after 4pm! Mmmmm...food...

6. Looking to shed a few pounds before Christmas? Use your ABC Family Card to receive a free trial class with Outdoor Fitness at Point Pleasant Park or receive 5% off classes and workshops at Core Essentials in Dartmouth. Lemme know how it goes - I'll be at Pizza Delight... ;)

7. Oh, books, how I love thee, and how I love Tattletales. Get 15% off all merchandise at this local bookstore - this includes their wonderful selection of toys as well! I try to use the library as much as possible, but just can't resist the pull of books at a discount. I suspect I'll be doing a large portion of my Christmas shopping there...

8. And speaking of Christmas shopping, your ABC Family Card has lots of options for unique Christmas gifts at a discount for your loved ones! Check out our shopping section for all the details, but here's a few that pop out at me: the very cute custom glass tile photo pendants from local business Storybird Designs (save $5 - a great gift for grandma!), the impressive selection of toys and games at My Lil Package, and the fun science-related toys at the Discovery Shop. Christmas can be expensive - make sure you use your ABC Family Card to cut back on those expenses this year!

9. Last year my son participated in music classes with Andrea from Andrea's Music Studio , and our report is that Andrea is simply wonderful! If your child is showing some musical interest, why not try a free trial lesson in piano, guitar or voice at Andrea's Music Studio to see if it's time to pursue regular lessons?

10. If you want to escape the heat of the summer, head indoors for some air-conditioned fun at the Discovery Centre (free child admission with purchase of an adult admission), Aplaydia ($2 off admission), Fairlanes Bowling ($5 off an hour of bowling), or Tree House Cafe (10% off admission). And with summer going to an end, there will be lots more opportunities for indoor fun as we head into winter. Summer has been great though, hasn't it?

OK, that's a lot of ideas! For more ways, to save, check our the full list of discounts here. I really hope you find your ABC Family Card useful - I know I've been enjoying it this year! If you don't already have one, you can buy one online here, or for a list of participating stores that also sell the cards, click here.

* Check abcfamilycard.ca for a full list of discounts and exclusions. Offers mentioned may have restrictions.

Here's an ambitious and impressive looking project from Carolyn Clegg - good for older kids to make, or younger kids to enjoy after it's made! Thanks Carolyn!

If your family is going to have some time on their hands in the near future – say, over the March Break – then plan to gather up some old newspapers and make a fun newspaper hut.

What you’ll need:

A stack of newspapers
A pen or pencil
Some tape
A stapler
A large bed sheet

Step #1 – Grab your newspapers. Lay 4 sheets of newspaper on top of each other. Place the pencil on a 45° in the corner and roll the 4 sheets diagonally to make a tube.



Step #2 – Tape the middle of the finished tube and let the pen/pencil slide out. Repeat 25 times.



Step #3 – All 25 tubes should be close to the same length. Trim the length if needed.



Step #4 – Use 3 of the tubes to make a triangle and staple at each corner. Repeat until you have 5 triangles.




Step #5 – Lay the 5 triangles out on the floor in a row. Staple bottom corners together.



Step #6 – Connect the tops of the triangles using some of the individual tubes and staple in place.



Step #7 – Make sure you have at least two pairs of hands for this step! Stand the connected triangles up and staple the two ends together (making a circle). Add a tube to the last top spot and staple in place.



**if my circle of triangles looks a little unstable in this photo, it’s because it was – I didn’t follow the instructions properly at this point and missed the part about stapling the bottoms together!*

Step #8 - Use the 5 remaining tubes to make a star. Staple in the middle. This is going to be your roof.



Step #9 -  Staple the roof in place so it makes a sturdy dome shape.



Step #10 – Cover your hut with a large bed sheet. Enjoy!!

Today Alex and I spent the afternoon at the Discovery Centre with friends. I'm a big fan of the Discovery Centre - it's a bit like a second home to us, and we visit it often, spending long afternoons there enjoying the various exhibits, both old and new, and the warm welcome from familiar faces. I think today was our third visit since the Wheels, Wings and Wave exhibit opened in January. I am now congratulating myself on finally posting about it - third time's a charm, like they say.

Wheels, Wings and Wave is a fun LEGO exhibit at the Discovery Centre until April. Amazing structures and replicas have been built using LEGO - space shuttles, airplanes, the Titanic, and even a race car big enough for kids to sit in! The kids enjoyed building with LEGO and racing their inventions down the race tracks.

It was difficult to get good photos with my little camera, but hopefully these will give you the idea. 

 

Part of a LEGO city

 

Much more impressive in person - all built from tiny LEGO bricks!

 Building the perfect LEGO racing machine

Who won? The blurry bits towards the bottom are the LEGO racing cars. Please excuse the bad photos!

This exhibit is definitely worth a visit or three. The Discovery Centre Shop now also has a good selection of LEGO kits and will be adding more to their selection in the future.

If you think you will visit the Discovery Centre often, consider purchasing an annual membership - a family one costs $75. Or use your ABC Family Card and get a free child admission with an adult admission, and receive 10% off purchases from the Discovery Centre Shop too. Kids two and under are always free. 

More information on hours, location and rates can be found on the Discovery Centre's snazzy new website.

Thanks so much to Carolyn Clegg for this - her response to my desperate plea for Valentine's Day help! You are a lifesaver, Carolyn - thank-you thank-you thank-you! :)

There are literally hundreds of crafts and activities floating around on the Internet to choose from this Valentine’s Day season (look to the end of this post for a list of links). The trick for me was finding a couple that were age appropriate for Eden, my 2 ½ year-old. I know from experience that I can only keep her in one spot for so long! So, the experiment began with two little activities...

Marble Heart Painting

Supplies: Construction Paper, Marbles, Shoe box (or tray with a lip), Paint (remember marbles are a choking hazard, so please be careful)



Cut hearts out of your paper and lay flat on the bottom of your box. Place your marbles into the paint. Cover the marbles completely with your paint and drop them into the box. Roll your marbles around by slightly tilting the box in different directions.



Puffy Valentine’s Day Hearts

Eden does like to paint. So, I thought I would have her try out a different texture of paint for her Valentine hearts. I don’t think she really noticed the difference until she dove her hands into the mixture and proceeded to smear it all over the place! The results were pretty fun. This paint really does dry puffy.

Supplies: Shaving Cream, Elmers glue, Tempra Paint, Poster Board or Thick Paper, Paint Brushes



Mix your shaving cream, glue and tempra paint to make a puffy paint texture. Give children paint brushes and let them paint onto poster board hearts. The paint dries puffy.



Valentine’s Day Craft & Activity Links

http://familyfun.go.com/valentines-day/

http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/valentine/

http://familycrafts.about.com/od/valentinesday/a/valentmain.htm

http://holidays.kaboose.com/valentines-day/

http://www.nickjr.com/valentines-day/

Thanks very much to Carolyn Clegg for this simple activity idea that keeps the kiddies amused and we even get to call educational!

Here is a fun and easy activity for kids with a focus on cause and effect. This is where your grade school science lessons come in handy!

Grab some vinegar, baking soda, food colouring and an ice cube tray.



Fill the ice cube tray with vinegar and add a drop or two of food colouring to a few of the compartments.



Then pour some baking soda into a bowl and give your little one a spoon. Stand back and watch them discover what happens when they add a spoonful of baking soda to the vinegar.

Be prepared to replenish the vinegar and baking soda over and over again. This activity is sure to become a fast favourite!