The Ultimate List of Indoor Fun with Kids in Ottawa

Beaverbrook Library. Photo: Doublespace Photography

This post was inspired by my family - I often wonder what to do with kiddos when I don't feel like doing crafts at home or just simply need to get out. Unfortunately, no online blog/source encompasses a full list.

Here is the list of places to go and things to do with kids under 10 when the weather is not permitting or you just don't feel like being outside.

Activities marked with SAVE$ are free or almost free. Enjoy!

• Kindergym at select City of Ottawa Recreation Centres

Schedule can be found under Gymnasium schedule for each RC.
SAVE$: drop in $2.30 per child.

• Family or Open Swim at Ottawa Pool

• Ottawa Public Library

SAVE$: Children's area with books and puzzles/games or free drop-in program such as Babytime, Toddlertime,  or Family story time.

• Chapters

SAVE$ Enjoy Starbucks coffee and stay to read or play with trains and other toys.

Check with stores for specific program times.

Chapters Pinecrest
Monday to Friday - 10:30 am, Storytime

 Chapters Kanata, Kanata Centrum

Monday to Friday -10:00 am, Storytime

Indigo Barrhaven, RioCan Marketplace
Monday to Friday - 10:30 am, Storytime

• Bayshore Shopping Centre - Lifestyle Lounge

SAVE$. Relax and recharge inside Bayshore's Lifestyle Lounge, located on level 3 by Moxie's. Enjoy kiddie rides, colouring pages, complimentary Wi-Fi, and massage chairs. With comfortable seating and room for strollers it is the perfect place for you and your family to unwind. 
Open Monday – Sunday, 9:00am-8:00pm.

• Carlingwood Mall 

Zazazoo plush animal rides ($5.65 for 10mins); SAVE$ animal farm toddler play area (free, for kids under 4).

• Hazeldean Mall 

SAVE$. Free Story Time is held every Monday in the empty unit next to Razzor Sports at 10am. Come join other families and enjoy some stories and sing-a-longs. Story time does not operate on Snow Days and runs throughout the year. 

• Brookstreet Hotel

Saltwater pools, Starbucks cafe, Zone 525 games room.
Drop-in during our regular season is $15 (plus tax) for adults and $4.42 (plus tax) for kids aged 5 & under per visit.

SAVE$: Join our Activities partner in Zone 525 for free family weekend activities  Each week we have a different selection of activities including; cookie decorating, science experiments, treasure hunts, crafts, movie nights and more. Check with our guest services team when you arrive for the latest schedule.

• IKEA

SAVE$: Free Smaland playroom up to 1 hour - must be toilet trained, socks; ability to understand basic English/French.Budget friendly meals at IKEA restaurant.

• Ottawa Museums - Our Favourites:

Canadian Museum of Nature

Children' Museum at Canadian Museum of History

Canadian War Museum

Canadian Aviation and Space Museum

Canada Agriculture and Food Museum

Not completely indoor - but there are many indoor exhibits.

Canada Science and Technology Museum (re-opens in Fall 2017)

SAVE$: On Thursday evenings, admission to the permanent exhibits of the National Gallery of Canada and the Canadian Museum of Nature is free from 5:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Admission is also free at the Canadian Museum of Historyand the Canadian War Museum from 4:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m.

• McDonalds PlayPlace 

At participating locations.

SAVE$ Enjoy free play structure and coffee or a meal.

• Kids Kingdom

From the indoor playground to the parents lounge, every aspect of Kids Kingdom is designed with comfort and safety in mind.

Adults: $3
Kids 3-12: $16
Kids 1-2: $8
Kids 0-1: $5 – unless accompanying an older sibling
Mondays: Parents FREE!
Thursdays: 1/2 price ADMISSION! (ages 3-12)

• Funhaven

Toddler area, jungle gym, climbing wall, mini golf, etc.

SAVE$: FREE FOR CHILDREN AGED 0-3 YEARS

$12.99 admission to Jungle gym for kids 4+.

• COSMIC ADVENTURES

0-11 months: FREE

​ 12-23 months: $13.99

​ 2-3 years: $16.99

​ 4-12 years: $19.99

​ 13-17 years*: $19.99

​ Adults - $8.99

• XTREME TRAMPOLINE PARK

·        30 minutes:     $12.39+tx = $14

·        60 minutes:     $17.70+tx = $20

·        90 minutes:     $22.12+tx = $25

·        120 minutes:    $24.78+tx = $28

·        Kids (4yo and under) 30 minutes:   $7.08+tx = $8 (kids are only allowed in Kiddie Kourt)

Am I missing a fun place? Please let me know in comments!

What to Do with Kids - Fall Edition

This is a continuation of my seasonal posts on family and children's activities. Fall is so much fun - the colours like no other season - warm hues of orange, yellow, and red. The season inspires me to bake (with cinnamon, hello baked apples or pies) and prepare homy meals to cozy up the family during somewhat cooler days. I even compared fall to autumn flowers in my last year's post.

VIA

Fall brings out and marries perfect combinations of rain,  puddles, and rain boots; chilli and rice; butternut squash, pumpkins, and pies; baked apples and vanilla ice cream.

So what are family favourite bucket things to do?

OUTSIDE

1. Visit Canada Army Run - Kids zone and equipment display - the interactive area will be filled with fun activities for kids and families.
Saturday, September 20 – 9 a.m. – 6:00 p.m
Sunday, September 21 – 7 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.

2. Richmond Fair - Sep. 18-21, 2014

3. Carp Fair - Sep. 25-28, 2014

4. Apple Picking at a local orchard - check out this Agritourism Guide for Ottawa

5. Pumpkin Picking at a patch

6. Pumpkin Festival at Proulx Farm October

7. Haunting Season at Saunders Farm Sep. 27 - Nov. 2

8. Jump in the leaves

9. Visit local ranch for some horse or pony rides - Captiva farms

INSIDE (for those rainy days)

1. Sign up for Fall or Halloween themed cooking class with PC Cooking School

2. Create any fall related fall craft - just google "easy fall craft kids"

3. Make a pumpkin or apple pie

4. Take crayons and some of your favorite leaves and layer the leaves between pages of paper. Rub on the pages with a crayon to see the leaf pattern emerge..

5. Indulge in some seasonal coffee at Starbucks

6. Attend a library or free program at OPL

7. Enjoy an indoor pool

 

 

And here are a great list of:
FREE things to do in Ottawa with kids.
Mostly free family fun ideas

 Enjoy the season!

Planned and Done

Some weekends are more productive than other I must admit. Some weeks, I may have lots planned, and nothing accomplished. It takes self-motivation and encouraging my husband to get our team together and get all those to-do's finally done! Not easy. Coordinating my husband's rotating weekend work, kids' naps, and even some adult time is always a balancing act.

In my head, come Friday, and I am go-go-go excited for the two days ahead. But our moods and even weather can influence us as to what we actually do. Half the time I just give up and do nothing. Well, not really nothing, but you know what I mean. Just cook, play, run around and pick up mess and toys, go outside, and relax during nap time (oh, and run that dishwasher).

Somehow this weekend was an exception, I blame good weather (+10 in November, hello?) and tons of "husband, can you help me with this it would be really great?"

Here is what we did (or crammed into our 2 days off):

1. Mowed front and backyard lawns, covered BBQ and A/C for winter, cleaned outside toys and put everything away.

2. On our way to the pool, saw Santa Parade, and detoured there instead with kids (the sunny day was perfect to be spent outside and not in the indoor pool). They loved it. We love it too, and so much free chocolate and candy!

3. I finally planted daffodils and tulips for spring and mulched the flower bed. SO excited to see them peaking in April.

4. Went to French bakery and picked up a delicious berry cake.

5. Cooked duck, brown rice, made a salad and had dinner with the in-law family.

6. Sorted and organized most of our toys. Wow, I am impressed.

7. I started ordering Christmas gifts for the family, this year I am doing something personalized.

How was your weekend?

Spring is Almost Here

And I don't mean that spring is here because of the weather. In Canada, survive 3 months of winter, and get the 4th for free! It still feels like winter (although the forecast is showing some milder temps by end of the week, +8, i'll take that).

Spring is here, because the days are getting longer, and we are changing the clocks 1 hour ahead this weekend. Woohoo, even lighter evenings. My favourite time, period. Everything awakens.

And yes, it is time to think about:

1. Gardening and planting plans (i.e. what are you going to get at the nursery in April?)
2. Spring activities (finally) OUTSIDE  and inside with kids
3. Fun spring long weekend plans (Easter weekend and Victoria weekend), maybe even BBQ?
4. Shopping for new clothes for kids (if they had outgrown their last year's wears) AND for yourself
5. Summer vacation plans!

Revamp School Snacks and Lunches

When I started thinking about winter and what to plan for the cold months, I immediately thought about food. Okay, so are you tired of making and packing school snacks and lunches? Do you hate putting the same thing every day? Do you feel like sandwiches are boring? This holiday season that is exactly how I felt after I have made lunches and 2 snacks daily for two months.

I started searching online for some new ideas. I concluded that most moms out there suggest making food more visually appealing and most of all nutritious. And no, I don't have time to make these:

or these:

First of all, I did invest into a few key items that would make lunches and snacks look more fun.
Here they are:

1. Foogoo Food Jar/Thermos

2. Bento Lunch Box

3. Fun Lunch Bag

Second, I accumulated lots of ideas on what to put into these jars/containers. Some ideas are from a book called "Superfoods for Babies and Children" written by Annabel Karmel. (Excellent, highly recommend this book to parents from newborn up to school age.)

Mini Snacks:

• mini cheese
• chunks of raw vegetable or fruit
• mini yogurt or yogurt drinks
• mini packs of dried fruit or raisins
• cereal and dried fruit bars
• individual portions of fruit puree
• for winter, include vitamin C-rich juice like cranberry or orange

Hot Foods for Thermos

I usually put what was left from dinner, so when making dinner I always keep in mind 5-year old friendly lunch for next day.

• macaroni and cheese
• pasta (whole wheat or rice noodles) and ground meat (beef, turkey, chicken)
• soup (chicken noodle, vegetable, tomato, so on)
• long grain or brown rice and cubes of meat of ground meat plus steamed or sated vegetables (corn, peas, beans, carrots, etc.)
• other combos of grains (buckwheat, quinoa, millet)  plus veggies or meat
• white fish or salmon with grains
• pelmeny (only people from Eastern Europe will know ;)

Sandwich Fillings

• egg, tuna, or chicken salad
• cream cheese and cucumber
• sliced turkey or ham with cheese
• grilled chicken breast with avocado and tomato
• ham, swiss cheese, and cucumber
• hummus with grated carrot or cucumber
• turkey and sweet relish

Sandwich bread options: variety of bread (French, Italian, raisin), bagels, mini pita pockets, tortilla roll-ups.

What about you? Any items you invested in to make lunches more fun? What do you pack?