1. DJ Mixer – the Scratch Box is our fun novelty gift this year. Though not exactly like the one I found, it mixes up pre-recorded or recorded music
2. Lego Kits – like the Lego Creator series, or Mixels, are super small Lego sets, perfect for a stocking! You often find these end-of-aisle in stores like Walmart. This year, I didn’t get Lego, but instead a Mega Bloks set, since the Hot Wheels was a perfect fit for my boys!
3. Novelty Toys or Candy – I like to throw in a small toy or candy toy, just to be fun. This year I found some light saber candies, and many options exist including this M&M version
4. Super Tubes Science Kit – these little science experiments in a bottle are perfect for the stocking! Lots of options to choose from. In the past, we’ve had other sicence-y things such as a dinosaur egg dig, growing creatures or fake snow
5. Star Wars Pez – or other novelty pez dispenser. Who can resist these?!
6. Gummies Game Book – since big brother is getting the gum book, I thought the gummies life safer book would be more appropriate for age 3!
7. Minifig or squish figure – this would be depending on age. Damien doesn’t love Lego as much yet, but there are many “minifig” grab bag type products. We found some cute Paw Patrol ones!

See also my Stocking Stuffers for a 6 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for a 5 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for a 4 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for a 1 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for a 2 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for Men, and a Guys’ Guide to Stocking Stuffers for Her.

1. Lego Minifugres – you can never go wrong with a minifig! Specialty toy stores, or shopping online, are your best bets to find the widest variety in which minifig series you can buy from
2. Lego Kits – like the Lego Creator series, or Mixels, are super small Lego sets, perfect for a stocking! You often find these end-of-aisle in stores like Walmart. This year, I didn’t get Lego, but instead a Mega Bloks set, since the Hot Wheels was a perfect fit for my boys!
3. Last Mouse Lost – is a super quick game we recently discovered. Made of silicone, you pop the bubbles to take your turn, filling up one or more bubbles per line. If you’re stuck with the last bubble on your turn, you lose. Just flip over to restart. It’s flexible enough to keep in the car or a purse!
4. Novelty Toys or Candy – I like to throw in a small toy or candy toy, just to be fun. This year I found some light saber candies, and many options exist including this M&M version
5. A book from a series – we read a lot of book series’, so I often have a drawer of books I’ve purchased from Scholastic that I haven’t yet given the boys. Too many books at once and they don’t read them! So, for Christmas I have a few to choose from, but I’m leaning toward one of our Magic School Bus books. Anything small and flexible is perfect for a stocking!
6. Super Tubes Science Kit – these little science experiments in a bottle are perfect for the stocking! Lots of options to choose from. In the past, we’ve had other sicence-y things such as a dinosaur egg dig, growing creatures or fake snow
7. Star Wars Pez – or other novelty pez dispenser. Who can resist these?!
8. Hubba Bubba Fun Book – though I don’t like to fill the stocking with junk, there is inevitably some candy and chocolate! Aiden is learning how to blow bubbles with gum, so this cute Hubba Bubba Fun Book was right up our alley! Plus, it comes with a fold-out game board!

See also my Stocking Stuffers for a 5 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for a 4 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for a 1 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for a 2 Year Old, Stocking Stuffers for Men, and a Guys’ Guide to Stocking Stuffers for Her.

Held at the scenic 73-acre horse ranch, Timberline Country Christmas aims to deliver what we all seek at this time of year: a simple and relaxing Christmas wonderland! Secured through a time-based reservation system, you avoid lines and crowds during most of your stay. You start at your pre-reserved time, but can spend as long as you like on the ranch: visiting the petting zoo, taking a hay ride, playing in the game area, making ornaments, taking a hay ride, listening to stories, or riding a pony (extra ticket required, but still reasonable)! There’s even an assortment of snacks and food available, if you want to extend your stay.

Compared to many Christmas events, this is both reasonably priced as well as more laid back. I felt like we truly enjoyed our two hours at the ranch – no rushing or dealing with impatient kids! We were welcomed with cookie decorating (hooray, no gingerbread! We all get gingerbread-ed out this time of year!), then took the short hay ride to the petting zoo / pony ride / hay maze barn. The whole event is either indoors or covered, so weather isn’t really an issue, but we lucked out with a mild day. Our kids loved interacting with the assortment of animals (goats, llamas, cows and more!), and we were impressed with how immaculate the entire barn was. The highlight, of course, was the pony ride! Both boys had huge smiles on their faces to be riding the large horses!! I was so impressed with them. 

Every inch of the ranch, including the animal areas, was kept pristine and each person who we interacted with actually seemed to care for their job. Nobody seemed frazzled or annoyed or overwhelmed with their roles interacting with so many people. I was especially impressed in the barn, where I didn’t feel overwhelmed by animal poo!, and in the craft area, where I commended the assistant for keeping all the craft supplies so tidy! I know that can be a daunting task with kids!

Our boys loved the snowball fight area!! We spent a lot of time there and freely let the boys play and play and play. Eventually we coaxed Aiden away by suggesting he set a goal for how many targets he wanted to hit / go through – his final score was 40 hits / hoops!

Timberline Ranch is a year-round camp and retreat, transformed for the special holiday season. On its own, it is an immaculate ranch with a beautiful tree-lined entrance and whimsical town-front cottages. I loved it. If we lived closer, I would totally enrol my boys in the day camps with the horses and playground and swimming and more! So amazing!

Disclosure: I received complimentary tickets to the event, in exchange for a review. My opinions are honest and I’m nothing but impressed with such a beautiful ranch!

From trees covered in jellyfish and sea stars (each one incredibly stunning) to the appearance of Scuba Claus at set times, it’s a real treat to pay a visit at this time of year. 

Scuba Claus pays a visit to the aquarium to seek out some bells he has lost. My kids (5 and 2) were mesmerized by the experience, and loved the opportunity to go up to the tank and give Santa a high five after the little show. It was such a fun time! They talked about it for days after. 

Have you been to the Vancouver Aquarium during Christmas? We can’t wait to go again this year! 

Update: we went and it was lovely! Also fun was the 4D Experience of the Polar Express!! Great integration of sounds and smells and even some snow!

Timberline Country Christmas

New to our Christmas line-up this year is a visit to the Timberline Ranch for their Country Christmas event, running from December 2-20. This is the second-annual Country Christmas for Timberline Ranch, a horse ranch located in Maple Ridge, and features cookie decorating, a Christmas ornament craft, a wagon ride, an indoor hay maze, a petting zoo, a photobooth, a snowball themed ball pit, Storyland, and even pony rides (for an extra fee). It sounds like a very unique event, so stay tuned for our review in early December! If you do want to attend, reservations are required. 

The Polar Express

Every year, we trek out to Squamish for the West Coast Railway Heritage Park’s exhibition of The Polar Express. As Aiden’s most favourite movie, this event has always had the most special meaning for us. We must have watched the movie dozens of times and, when it comes to the magic of Christmas, for us it’s all about the Polar Express. The event has evolved over the years and now involves a more elaborate “North Pole” experience, with a visit with Santa, a mini train ride, crafts & cookie decorating and many great displays. 

Bright Nights in Stanley Park

Adding to our train-themed event, we visit Bright Nights in Stanley Park to view the three million light display and ride the train through the ever-changing themed displays. This is often an event that people do in large groups, with extended family or friends, and it’s great that a portion of donations and ticket sales go to the BC Professional Fire Fighters’ Burn Fund. This year, a “Grinch” stole a lot of materials from the venue, so we plan to give a larger donation in recognition of our support.

Canyon Lights 

As annual members (one visit pays for itself for BC residents!), we often visit the Capilano Suspension Bridge for their seasonal displays. While lovely for Halloween, the park truly shines at Christmas. Canyon Lights features the world’s tallest living Christmas tree, thousands of lights throughout the park and on the bridge, plus events including live music and cookie decorating. As this event is nestled close to Grouse, be sure to dress extra warm! Holiday activities begin daily at 4pm. 

Park & Tilford Hi-Light Festival

Local to North Vancouver, the Hi-Light Festival at the Park & Tilford Gardens is a favourite for it’s close-knit community feel. We are frequent visitors to the gardens, so that makes the Christmas event so much more special. On Family Friday Nights, there are Santa visits, hot chocolate, live entertainment, face painting and more! This is an annual tradition for us to do with many of our friends.

Christmas Markets

Last year we were frequent visitors to the Shipyards for their Christmas market and events. This year it’s not as frequent, but there is a Christmas Festival on December 5th and the Christmas Market on December 18-20th. Not to be outdone is of course the Vancouver Christmas Market, which we attended for the first time last year. Be prepared that this event is very busy and crowded, so it can be overwhelming for kids. The highlight for us was the carousel!

You may wonder, are we missing out on major events here? And yes, of course we are. The two biggest events we never seem to get to are:

Rogers Santa Clause Parade

Who doesn’t love a parade? Up until now, it’s never seemed reasonable to attend given the age of our kids, and even this year we can’t make it because of a scheduling conflict. Miracle on 34th Street is my favourite holiday movie, so a Christmas parade is a magical idea to me. Hopefully next year we can include it in our plans!

The Peak of Christmas

Top on my wish list is a visit to the Peak of Christmas where you can take a sleigh-ride, go skating, visit Santa and his reindeer and so much more. It sounds like a beautiful Winter wonderland. The age of our kids and their dislike for cold has kept us away so far, but one year! Plus, if you do every major event, it does get costly (and this is a very costly one).

Other holiday ideas we’ve tried are the VanDusen Botanical Garden display, which is beautiful but similar to our local Hi-Light festival, 

You’re 6 now! How is it that at 6 years old it feels like you’ve become such a grown up boy? I feel like moving into Grade 1 is such a momentous occasion, even more so than Kindergarten. It has a number associated with it. It is about more than just playing. Suddenly, you are on a path that will propel you all-too-quickly forward to Grade 12. 

You can see how much you’ve changed since you were five, my boy, and how much you have learned and how much you have pushed yourself! 

You have tackled some major fears and anxieties and overcome them, so proud of your own bravery at challenging those fears. Not only did you learn how to swim, but it became one of your most favourite activities. You learned to love our boat and to love swimming from the dock on Keats. Even as those times have challenged us, I have watched you become aware of your own self in these moments and feel that knowing yourself, at your age, is such a gift!

You skate, you play (and now love) soccer, you are part of a swim club. You learned how to ride trails (and bike ramps) with no fear. You love Lego and Star Wars and Pokemon (you really love Pokemon). You can turn any building material into a ship, particularly MagnaTiles. You learned to read (more than just a few words here and there) and now devour chapter books in a handful of days and constantly need to be reminded to stop reading and go to sleep!

You have lots of friends to greet and be greeted by, and have your solid best friends that will always be by your side. You always have a compliment for others. You are the first one to notice something nice about someone else and always make a note to say so. It’s a beautiful trait of yours that, whether it shines my way or not, makes me so proud of you. 

Your smile can light up a room. Your excitement infects those around you. Your courage inspires me. And each and every day, I’m thankful as you walk groggily to my side for your cuddles, together starting our day with love and ending it each night with a song, a kiss and an ‘I love you.’ 

Be courageous, my love. Be open. Continue to notice the little things in the world that are beautiful. And tell us about them. Devour as many books as you want. Love the world and all it has to offer. Learn about it. Explore it. And know, wherever life takes you, I’ll be by your side. 

Love, 
Mommy 

In their debut box, featured products include a beautiful jar of vanilla cotton candy from Petite Puf, which was the first item to be snagged by our very excited children. You can just see Damien’s nose in the photo below as he eagerly awaits the unboxing! My husband then snagged Billy Bob’s Jerky, which went to his office for snacks (my husband loves jerky). As the only blueberry-eater in our house, I got to enjoy all of the Living Lotus blueberry macaroons (that worked out nicely!). We we are extremely excited to try the Infusion Kit supplied by Graveley & Sons, we just need to go out and get the right rum. Perfect for Fall!

It’s not often we would go out and get treats like these, so having them arrive at the door made it such a nice surprise. I think the box could function as a great showcase for products and companies you may otherwise have no exposure to, which is great for both vendor and consumer. A solid first box!

Disclosure: The Vancity Box was supplied for review, all reviews expressed are my own.

I made lists like these. Earlier this year, I started my second list. Today, as most of the items were checked off, I made a third. Some items have remained static (projects I’m obviously avoiding or are not bothering me as much), but others get added. Some projects seem to be yearly, like reorganizing the pantry and bathrooms. Others are always fluid, like going through the toys. We don’t have a huge stock of toys anymore, but there is always room to keep trimming.

This last list feels so much more final. I had to really think about what should be on it. When I mentally picture our house now, most places are tidy and easy to keep organized. When you get down to just what you need, it’s very easy to figure out how to organize it.

Now I’m thinking beyond the last few projects (some big, like the office, some small) to thing that would make our house better: new countertops in the bathroom, new desk in our office. 

Now, whether it was wise to arm this child with the ability to go faster than we can… we are working HARD on his listening skills!

 

When the 3 year old starts to keep pace with the 5 year old!!

A video posted by Arieanna Schweber (@arieanna) onAug 11, 2015 at 5:38pm PDT

Myrtle Park retained its “big kids” playground area, removing the older play structure AND the swings area, adding in more green space and a new splash area. While not exactly to the concept drawings, the revised park is still quite nice. Still, I feel like the park got more of an aesthetic upgrade than an actual PLAY upgrade. The AWESOME swing set was removed and replaced with a tiny baby swing set, no big kid swings, and one of the swing rockers that I’m not the biggest fan of. The splash pad is nice, great for small kids, but it’s not as interesting as the older version. 

With ample green space, this is still a very nice park and very worth the visit. My kids spent more time in the forested area than in the new park though!!

For more of my playground reviews, check out the full directory of North Vancouver Playgrounds. You can also specifically check out the 5 Spray Parks in North Vancouver,