Tim Horton’s

I do not have to blog about how good Tim Horton’s is, we all know that it is a great place to go, for breakfast, for lunch or for coffee.  I am sure we have all been there countless times, and will go many more.

I went to lunch at Tim Horton’s at 347 Southland Dr SE.  My Mom and I take my three kids (4 years, almost 3 years, and 1 year) there on a regular basis, and have been doing so for years.  We have always enjoyed ourselves, and our biggest problem has been finding a table, because it it so busy.

When we got there today, it wasn’t so busy, as we were a little earlier then we usually arrive.  We found a table at the back no problem, ordered our food and ate.  My kids were being good, but being kids.  They were all on their chairs, and no one was having tantrums.  The baby was loud, and was screeching a bit, but not overly. 

We had finished our meal, and my Mom and four year old were at the counter buying doughnuts for desert (read – spending more money!).  The manager came over to my table and said “Its been 45 minutes”.  I just kinda looked at him, cause I was confused, I didn’t know what he meant.  Then he says, “Your kids have been screaming for 45 minutes, are you going to be here much longer?”  Standing there at my table, for everyone to hear.  I was very embarrassed, and insulted, especially since the kids were not being bad.  I told him I was leaving and not coming back, not that he cared I’m sure. 

I grabbed the stuff left at our table, and the two kids I had with me, went to the counter and told my mom we were leaving.  When she asked why, I told her in a not so quiet voice, that the manager thought my kids were too loud and had asked us to leave. 

As we still had doughnuts to eat we crossed the parking lot and sat on a grassy area to eat before we left.  While we were sitting there, an employee and a patron (the one the must have complained to get me kicked out?) came out and said, “You ladies forgot your drinks” and handed us our pops.  I said, “that is the least of the problem”. 

I will never go back to that the Tim Horton’s on 347 Southland Dr SE.  I was very hurt.  I mean really, it is a family restaurant, it has highchairs, and they serve doughnuts.  Give me a break.  Disappointed.

Theatre Calgary

Theatre Calgary is located in the Epcor centre in Downtown Calgary.  I love going to the Theatre.  You can buy seasons tickets, and I know a number of people who do this and are very happy with them. 

People used to dress up in their Sunday best to attend the theatre, but now the dress is much more informal.  Many different ages of people enjoy the Theatre, but I wouldn’t think young children would benefit from the experience.  You are expected to sit quietly through each act.

There is an intermission between the two acts, at which point you can get up and move around.  In the lobby you can get drinks, which can be pre-ordered, but don’t have to be.  I believe there is also ice cream treats for sale, but I have never had one.

For more information you can check out the website http://www.theatrecalgary.com/

Jubilations Dinner Theater

Jubilations dinner theater is a wonderful experience.  The waiters and waitresses are part of the cast, and are all dressed up in costumes.  The food is great, you get a four course dinner that is served before the show and at intermissions.  To start, you get a salad, soup and a dinner roll.  Then comes the first act.  Then you have four choices of entrees; usually they are beef, chicken, fish or a vegetarian (usually pasta).  Then comes another act, followed by two choices of desert and the final act.  The entrees are different for each show, but remain the same for the entire show.

I really enjoy going to Jubilations.  Although I have never taken my kids, I have seen  many kids there.  The show is fun for everyone.  I think they are all musicals, and it is very entertaining as they involve the audience.  They often have people from the crowd up on stage dancing with them!

Tickets range from $60 - $70 depending on which night you go, but it does include dinner and entertainment.  You can also get tickets from Costco, and I believe they are $100 for two.  This makes it much cheaper.

A show runs for approximately two months.  Their website has a list of upcoming shows as well as the current show.  Find out more at http://www.jubilations.ca/jubilations/cal_whatis.html.  I highly recommend it!

Calgary Zoo

The Calgary Zoo is a great place to visit.  My kids love it, but I have seen so many different types of people there. Older couples, parents, grandparents, teens, kids, babies as well as handicapped people.

The Zoo is open year round, and is only closed two days a year – Christmas day and New Years Eve.  There are so many animals to look at, but they also strive to educate.  Most (if not all) enclosures have plaques outside with the animals information.  Over the years the homes of the animals have been enhanced so that their surroundings mimic their natural habitat.

There are many different areas of the zoo.  There are the hippos and giraffes (and a new baby!) in the African Savannah; gorillas in the Transalta the Rainforest; Eruasia has tigers and camels. There is also the prehistoric park, Creatures of the Night/Australia, Canadian Wilds, Elephant crossing, and South America.

Dorothy Harvie Gardens has a wonderful display of flowers, and in one of the buildings (I believe it is the newly renovated Conservatory) is a wonderful butterfly garden. 

		Butterfly gardens VIEW SLIDE SHOW DOWNLOAD ALL

In the summer months there are many vendors open selling snacks, lunches and beverages.  In the winter and colder months the Kitamba Cafe is open, which offers snacks, lunches and drinks as well (it is also open all summer too).

There are two different areas with playgrounds, one is a large fenced area that has three different climbing structures with stated age ranges on them.  The other playground is by the tigers, and it is just for kids under five.  This is part of the Co-op kids zone.  There is also a kids train and a carousel, each of which you need to buy tokens for.

You can buy seasons tickets for the Calgary Zoo.  We have bought them for the past two years, and I think they are fabulous!  We pack a lunch and head to the zoo and spend the day.

For more information and to buy passes you can visit http://www.calgaryzoo.org/

Indoor Beach Party!

I don’t usually write about things that are private, but I thought this was so cool.  My Uncle turned his garage into an indoor beach party for the kids!

It is not nearly nice enough outside for kids to play in the water and the sand, so he set it up inside his garage. On one side of the garage he laid out astro turf (the green outside rug) for grass, and put a small pool filled with warm water.  On the other side was a plastic sheet (the kind used for construction).  On the plastic was a pile of play sand, with sand toys.  There were some chairs set out for the parents to watch, and around the edge of the garage were some riding toys and push toys (the race track!).

Since none of the kids were actually his (they were grand kids, and cousins and such), he put out candy, pop, chocolate and chips.  There were hot dogs for lunch.  (Not the diet most of us have in mind for our kids, but once in a while it’s alright!)

The kids had such a great time!  He had water balloons, and a little tykes kitchen, and they were allowed to play however they wanted.  They helped themselves to candy whenever they wanted (until parents had had enough), and were just kids.

What a great idea!  I think any garage could be set up for this (as long as it’s heated!) any time of year.        

Wordless Wednesday

Moving with Kids

Moving with three small kids is a lot different then moving without kids.  I recall a time when I packed everything up and lived out of boxes for the last week or so before moving and everything was fine.  We just moved, and I will tell you, it is not that easy.  You can pack up everything but the essentials, but it is not one small box that is left open.  The day before moving day I had to run around and put all the miscellaneous  toys, dishes, diapers wipes, soothers, blankets and other odds and ends into boxes. 

Thank goodness for my Mother who kept the two older kids over night so I only had the baby to worry about.  I had kept out a change of clothes for all of us, but what I didn’t have was wipes.  The movers came and started loading things into their truck, and the baby pooped.  What am I to do without wipes!?!?!  I realize that there was a time in the not too distant past that people changed diapers all the time without wipes, but I am not that lady, and what would I have used anyway?  I had cleaning rags, but that didn’t seem right, and I no longer had use of the washer and dryer.  I sent my husband to the store to buy a new pack of wipes.  I didn’t know what else to do.

When we had all our stuff moved into the new house, we realized that we did not have a spot for the computer!  I do not know how to live without my computer.  I cannot pay bills or keep in touch with reality (Facebook, Blog..)  We decided to buy a laptop.  But as the funds are limited when you move, it cannot happen quickly.  I ended up setting up our desktop in our unfinished basement, and here I sit writing this now.  I am sitting on the cold cement floor in a very un-ergonomically correct position.

My kids really like the new house.  We were unsure if they would take the move well, so we bought them each a toy to help ease the transition.  They both love their new toys (we didn’t get one for the baby – she does not know the difference).  We made sure we set up their rooms right away.  Our new house has a playroom (it is the bonus room), so I am excited to not have toys all over the house, but the bonus room now looks like a toy box exploded.

I am not sure what spring will bring as we do not have a fenced yard yet, and there isn’t even grass!  There is a park down the street, so I think we will have to frequent it a lot. 

It has been a week since we moved, and almost everything is done (aside from some pictures).  When you have kids, you cannot really leave the boxes unpacked.  They need everything.  Plus it is dangerous to have boxes around when you have a little boy who climbs on everything!

It is a very different experience to move with kids, and I don’t want to do it again any time soon.  Hopefully the next time we move they will be old enough to help more!

Pisces Pet Emporium

We decided to check out the Pisces Pet Emporium because I heard that it was a great place to go.  And they have monkeys!  I thought the kids would really love the monkeys, but they were more interested in finding dogs and kitties.  I was expecting great things, and was a little let down (and so were the kids because there were not any dogs/cats out for petting).  If you are going there expecting a really good pet store, it is.  I guess we thought it would be a little more hands on.

That being said, we did spend an hour there wandering around looking at things.  There was the largest variety of aquarium things I had ever seen.  There were lobsters and eels, fish of all shapes sizes and colors, so many different lizards I could not keep count.  There were turtles and snakes (little ones) too!

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In one corner of the store, they have a large rock wall with waterfalls coming out draining into a large pond with some very large fish. Beside that they have a place for small monkeys!

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I thought it was really cool, my kids were not as impressed (maybe they have been to the zoo one too many times!)

They did not have a wide range of dogs or cats, but we did have to circle around to see them twice. Although we could not touch them, the kids really enjoyed looking at them.  There is a set of display cages, and we saw (and pet) Guinea Pigs, but most of the cages were empty, so there was not a lot to see in that area.

Over all, it was a nice place to visit, and I am sure we will be back to check things out again!

Petland

We went to two different Petland stores last week (the one by Sunridge Mall in the Future Shop parking lot, and the one in Market Mall) and they both stores had puppies out, so people could pet/hold/play with them.  It was great.  You could really get a hands on experience.  I was able to pick up the puppies so the kids could get up close.

There is a wide range of animals (or rodents) available for viewing, and if you like that kind of thing, as my kids do, it is a great (FREE) place to see them.  They have mice, rabbits, dogs, cats, birds, hamsters, guinea pigs and more.  At the back of the store they also have aquariums.  Not only fish, there are also spiders, lizards and snakes.

When we were at the Sunridge location one of the workers was feeding the fish.  Madison asked her if she could help.  I fully expected the lady to tell her no, and was prepared for that.  I did not expect her to let all the kids we were with take turns feeding the fish.  There were four kids, and she got a stool for the little ones, and let them each take a handful of the fish food and throw it in the tank.  That was awesome!  It made the kids so happy and I was astounded that she was so patient.

Calgary Science Centre

                        

The Telus World of Science has it’s last exhibit at their current location - 701 - 11 Street SW.  The Titanic exhibit was really cool.  We decided to take our three kids (all of them were free because they are under 4), and it cost us $58 to go.  Adult admission is $23.50, plus it cost $2/ half hour to park.  Because of this price we are unlikely to go again any time soon.

Aside from the cost, we had an amazing time!  We were not sure what to expect, as we had never been there before, and we were pleasantly surprised.  The exhibit itself was very interesting and even the kids enjoyed looking at the artifacts.  Friends of ours came with us, and we had a total of five kids with us (aged 10 months to 6 years), and they were all entertained the whole time.  It was neat to see all the things that were found in the wreckage and they had them set out in various ways.

In the exhibit there is a section where the kids can do an experiment with floating.  It is parent supervised, and more for the older kids.  The small kids didn’t understand and didn’t want to stay.

 

 

The part the kids found most interesting was kids center (which I cannot for the life of me remember what it is actually called).  There are so many different things for the kids to do in there, it is nearly impossible to name them all, but I will try to mention as many as I can.  There is a table of nails when you first walk in the door, that you can lay on; a music type room that has shapes on the floor that make musical notes when stepped on and further through there are some guitars the kids can play with. There is a drama ‘theater’ where a stage is set up, with dress up clothes, a puppet theater, a sound/light station, and large props.      There are a couple of craft tables.  A section is divided off for kids under 6 with a lego table, water table and small climbing area.  There is a tunnel for the kids to go through, and a floor trap in the centre.  My kids did not want to leave

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You are not allowed to take pictures in the exhibit, but you can elsewhere (like in the kids part).  They discourage big strollers, but there are umbrella strollers there to use free of charge.  It was very hard to find a parking spot, but we did go on a Saturday afternoon.  There was a guy in the parking lot directing us to park across the street.

This exhibit is open until June 27, and I am under the impression that this is the last exhibit at this location.  The new location is being constructed by the Calgary Zoo.

(The pictures are all from the kids area due to the fact that you cannot take pictures of the exhibit)