Gabriola Island Lifestyle Blog

Archive for the ‘Kids’ Category

Peter and the Wolf

Monday, May 23rd, 2011

This past long weekend was abuzz with activities! The Farmers Market kicked off with the first of the Saturday openings, there was a bicycle race, the grand opening of the Hen House - a working Studio and Gallery, a play at The Centre, live music at Raspberry’s Jazz Cafe, Comedy at the Silva Bay Restaurant, a photography show and more! Peter and the Wolf, produced by local dance teacher Miss Mara, was well attended. This lively little show was danced delightfully by local children aged 3 to 17. With three of our granddaughters involved it is no wonder this was our favorite event.

Winter Day

Monday, January 17th, 2011

They have told us to be prepared for one of the coldest winters on record.  Yesterday, as if mother nature was thumbing her nose at the whole idea, the afternoon temperature crept up to an absolute balmy 15 C and sunny. We spent the afternoon outside walking in the woods and checking out our pond which is much larger than usual (In the picture the pond usually ends at the brush in the background).  The girls had a blast pretending to fish and splashing in the water.  What a treat in the middle of what should have been a winter day!

Snow Day

Monday, January 10th, 2011

It was a beautiful day yesterday, the snow fell most of the night and the clouds parted to give us a beautiful and sunny winter day.  The kids and the dog spent as much time as possible outside knowing that the snow never stays long enough for their liking.  We went for a wonderful afternoon walk and came in to have hot chocolate and oatmeal cookies. It was a wonderful day!

First Snow

Saturday, November 20th, 2010

First snow of the season and first snow for our 7 month old Boston Terrier, Fargo. Fargo loved it and so did the kids who had the pleasure of making a great big snowman with their dad. We saw about 4-6 inches of snow in our neck of the woods and more snow is in the forecast for mid-week. It sure is cold out there!

Halloween on Gabriola

Sunday, October 31st, 2010

Halloween evening for most families on Gabriola consists of joining with friends and going out trick or treating then off to the park at Twin Beaches for hot chocolate and a fabulous display of fireworks reflected in beautiful Taylor Bay, the smallest are soon exhausted and need a little nap.

Halloween Fun

Saturday, October 16th, 2010

We were so lucky today to have the chance to take the girls to a pottery class at Feedlot Studios here on Gabriola.  We were greeted by an extremely fun and warm Mariko and her husband Bryan in their large, bright studio space located at 800 Valli Place.  The girls started by getting in the Halloween mood with some ghoulish drawings to get the creative juices flowing.  Once they had done a drawing Mariko showed us how to create a Halloween landscape complete with owls, pumpkins, snakes, crows, tombstones, cats and “Do Not Enter” signs as well as so much more.  Once the creepy landscapes were formed the kids were able to paint them with a non-toxic ceramic paint in fun colours such as orange, green, black, red and white as well as a myriad of other “non-Halloween” colours.  Once they were finished the kids were told that there pieces would be put in the kiln and would be ready for a later date.  The finishing touch for the kids was a lovely little treat bag with Halloween candy and stickers.  What an incredible way to spend a Saturday morning in October!  To keep up to date on what this talented couple are doing subscribe to their blog http://feedlotstudios.blogspot.com/ and check out their website at http://feedlotstudios.ca

Photo courtesy of Bryan and Mariko

2nd Annual Gabriola Theatre Festival

Sunday, August 22nd, 2010

This largest of summer art festivals on Gabriola promises to be a favorite with locals and visitors alike. Two days of  a variety of theatre performances, show and sell Street Art, music, and dancing, with the Gabriola Lions Club providing a pancake breakfast on Saturday morning. There is something here for everyone. The main theater tent holds 220 and there were still a few tickets available on Saturday for some of the performances.

Berry Picking Time

Wednesday, August 18th, 2010

August is blackberry time, and Gabriola has lots of thickets of these luscious treats at the south end of the island. We try to go out a few times each season to pick berries. This time we took the kids and they helped, mind you they ate as many as they picked. We brought home enough to make jelly, a pie and blackberry ice cream. Yum!

Cathedral Grove

Tuesday, June 22nd, 2010

This past weekend my husband and I had a couple of days off and met up with some friends from Vancouver and camped at the Living Forest campground in Nanaimo.  We spent one of the days with them and our girls heading up to Coombs and continuing on to Cathedral Grove (MacMillan Provincial Park).  The girls loved Cathedral Grove, the big trees, “fairy holes”, streams and flowers.  It was a wonderful and magical day topped off with ice cream cones for all at the Old Country Market while watching the goats gambol on the roof.

Solid Gold

Sunday, June 13th, 2010

Two of my grandaughters go to dance school in Nanaimo and I was invited to attend the year end dance recital ‘Solid Gold’. It turned out to be a tremendous production held at the Port Threater with dozens of dances lasting for just a few minutes, all with elaborate costumes. What a delight! The youngest dancers were about three and the oldest were grandparent age. Each class danced and there were awards and lots of flowers. I was impressed.