My Favourite Kind of Morning

4 / 11 / 134 / 13 / 13

This morning was my favourite kind. Gracen woke up just past 7, we snuggled in bed until we were good and ready to start the day, and we made our way to the kitchen. She sat on her toddler bench gobbling up wholewheat pancakes with peanut butter, and I threw a mix of green veggies and frozen fruit into the blender with a splash of cold water. After breakfast, we gathered a blanket, a book, our smoothies and headed off for an adventure in the wagon. I snuck in some exercise by choosing the hilliest routes and made sure to pass by a park so Grae could have a good long play. Afterwards we made our way to a local coffee shop where Grae slurped up a warm milk and I enjoyed my first iced coffee of the year. Before heading home, I pulled the wagon {and my little love} through our local market and we filled it up with fresh fruits and veggies. She helped herself to bananas and clementines on the way home, and I enjoyed the sunshine, cool wind, and cherry blossoms overhead. It was a good day.

♥

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Saturday Snippets

4 / 6 / 134 / 10 / 13

While our morning consisting of a drizzly visit to Granville Island, our afternoon was all about enjoying a little bit of sunshine and soaking in the sights of spring scattered about our yard…

♥

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A Local Favourite: Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company {& a Giveaway!}

3 / 8 / 133 / 9 / 13

After our recent Shopping Sense tour, some of my {awesome} mama blogger friends and I planned on grabbing a cup of coffee, sitting down, and catching up for a bit. The thing was, it was already lunch time, we were all hungry, and the kiddos were tired of being restrained in shopping carts. They needed to play. So where can you go to catch up with friends, grab a fresh delicious meal, and let your kiddos play all at once? Luckily we were in my hood and I knew the perfect place. Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company.

I’ve written about Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company before, but if you haven’t heard their story before, it’s truly pretty amazing. First off, their entire menu is designed to use the freshest, most nutritious ingredients possible. The produce they use is local and organic, the meats are Canadian and free range or organic, and their seafood is all Ocean Wise approved. Their promise is that their food includes minimal salt and sugar and absolutely no GMOs, additives, or preservatives. (Talk about a place you can feel good about eating out at!) Of course, every single thing – from dough to sauces to breads and desserts – is made fresh on site. And it doesn’t stop there. Rocky Mountain Flatbread restaurants are all carbon neutral. Amazing, right? (Read about how they do it here.) In addition to all of this, they pride themselves on being family-friendly, which is huge when you’ve got munchkins in tow. The Main Street location, which we visited, has an awesome little kitchen area, complete with felt food and miniature aprons, that kept our wee ones happy during a nearly two hour visit. And as always, the food was delicious.

What I just learned about Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company, and didn’t know before is that they do all kinds of fun special events. Some, like their family nights, date nights, and pizza making nights happen on a weekly basis, and others, like the Green Cleaning Products workshop I’m attending next week, happen only on special dates.

In addition to the cleaning products workshop, the Main Street location is hosting a Kid’s Camp this Spring Break too. It takes place on March 21st, from 9:30 a.m. until 12 p.m. and kids aged 7 to 12 will have a blast learning how to make their own lunches out of fresh, local, organic ingredients. Included on the menu is homemade ginger ale, healthy kale chips, individual pizzas, veggie dips, and their signature BEET brownies! Goodness gracious, how I wish Miss G was old enough to attend. The next best thing is being able to help a couple of other local kids go though. Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company has very generously given us TWO spots (valued at $35 a child) to give away to Mama.Papa.Bubba. readers. Yay!

Please note that this camp takes place in Vancouver, BC on March, 21st and is open to children ages 7 through 12. The winners will be chosen at random on Friday, March 15th, 2013.

There are FOUR ways to enter. Please leave a SEPARATE comment for each:

–> Leave a comment telling us why your child would enjoy this camp

-> ‘Like’ Rocky Mountain Flatbread Company on Facebook, come back here and leave a comment saying you did so (or already did)

–> ‘Like’ Mama.Papa.Bubba. on Facebook, come back here and leave a separate comment saying you did so (or already did)

–> Follow us on Twitter come back here and leave a separate comment saying you did so (or already did)

–> Tweet about the giveaway and leave a separate comment saying you did so

(Win a FREE @flatbreadCo Kid’s Camp spot on Mama.Papa.Bubba.com! https://mamapapabubba.com/2013/03/08/a-local-favourite-rocky-mountain-flatbread-company/ #YVR #giveaway #springbreak)

Obviously the more times you enter, the better your chances of winning. ☺ Don’t forget to leave your email address! The winner will be announced on March 15th and contacted via email. Good luck!!

♥

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Ballet Day

3 / 5 / 1311 / 13 / 13

So, on Sunday evening I had a bit of an unfortunate {and awkward and embarrassing} incident with a set of stairs and a poorly placed tee ball bat. The end result (other than me laying face down on the front lawn in agony as neighbours were out for their evening strolls?) was a very sore swollen foot and crutches I’m terrible at using. Not good when you’ve got a busy little lady that’s used to go-go-go-ing.

A perk to being the lame mom who has to sit and watch on the sidelines during our usual parent and tot ballet class however? Being able to snap a few photos of our little ballerina in action.

She’s sweet, isn’t she?

♥

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Sunday Adventures

3 / 3 / 133 / 6 / 13

Something I absolutely love doing on weekends is going on little family adventures. Driving to a part of the city we don’t frequent often, parking the car, and exploring. Add in a sunny gorgeous day after a long run of rainy ones, and it’s that much better.

Today, we made our way to the Dunbar area, an old university stomping ground of both Brad and I. We parked the vehicle, toured a toy store, and found the nearest playground. Afterwards, we walked along, Miss G stopping at each bus stop, sitting on each park bench, and hanging on each bike rack {because these are all very important things when you’re 2}. We eventually made our way to somewhere I’ve had on my ‘to visit’ list for a very long time now… Kokopeli Cafe. Well-known for being family-friendly, the place was absolutely packed with munchkins and their parents. So packed in fact, that we actually couldn’t get a table – inside or out – for quite a while. We’ll definitely be back to experience it at a quieter time, but I can already tell that it will become a rainy day favourite. We just had drinks this time around, but the baked goods looked amazing, I was envious of our table neighbours’ lunches, and the kids play area was the biggest I’ve seen in a cafe in Vancouver. Oh – and the bathrooms have special toddler-sized sinks, they sell world’s yummiest granola, and there’s a 25 cent ridable alligator out front. Can’t ask for much more than that, can you?

Here’s to Sunday adventures.

♥

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Family Day at the BC Home & Garden Show {& a FLASH Giveaway!}

2 / 21 / 132 / 22 / 13

Today Gracen and I were lucky enough to be invited to check out Family Day at the BC Home & Garden Show at BC Place. Admittedly, we didn’t spend a whole lot of time browsing what most people come to the show to see (the home and garden exhibits obviously), but we definitely would have spent a whole lot more time down there if a) we owned a home and b) if we didn’t have plans to move overseas come August. From spa pools to lane way homes to landscaping and cleaning products, every topic pertaining to home owning/renovation/care was covered.

Where we spent most of our time was in the Kid Zone, set up especially for Family Day. Gracen had a wonderful time roaming around visiting all of the booths and was thrilled to see her favourite ever photographer, Bethany, from Images by Bethany at the Vancouvermom.ca booth. Bethany took some photos of her in front of a rainy day backdrop which are bound to be gorgeous, so I’ll be sure to share them when we get them back. Along the way, we picked up some Monkey Toast, learned about Kibooco, and did a little project at Beesafe.

One of the highlights was definitely having Miss G’s face painted by Kristal of Faceaballoonza. Grae selected a turtle and Kristal decorated her face with this gorgeously elaborate turtle painting in two minutes flat.

The BC Home & Garden Show continues tomorrow, Saturday, and Sunday (22nd – 24th) and they’ve generously given us two tickets adult tickets (a $30 value) to giveaway! Kids 12 and under get in for free, so this means the whole family can attend.

This is a FLASH giveaway, so get your entries in now! A winner will be chosen at random tomorrow evening (Friday, the 22nd) at 5:00 p.m. PST. There are multiple ways to enter, so please be sure to leave a separate comment for each.

To enter to win TWO complimentary tickets to the BC Home & Garden Show (taking place in Vancouver, BC this weekend):

Leave a comment below telling me one thing you’d love to update or change in your home.

For additional chances to win:

–> ‘Like’ Mama.Papa.Bubba. on Facebook, then come back and leave a second separate comment saying you did so (or that you had previously).

–> Follow @jkossowan on Twitter, then come back and leave a separate comment saying you did so.

–> Tweet about the giveaway and leave an additional separate comment saying you did so.

Don’t forget to leave your email address! The winner will be announced on Friday the 22nd on the Mama.Papa.Bubba Facebook page and will be contacted via email. Good luck!!

♥

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Ballet Day

2 / 19 / 1311 / 13 / 13

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again… There’s nothing as adorable as toddler ballet. The toe tapping, the pizza feet, the beach ball arms, and the freeze dancing… It’s ridiculously cute. We’re back for a second round of our Ballet with Billie classes, and though Grae can still be a little shy walking into the studio, she settles in right away, lets loose, and even gets a little silly sometimes. The best part is that she’ll often ask in the morning, “Is today Tuesday, Mama? We go to dance class today?” and when it’s not, she wants to know exactly how many days are left until we get to go again.

Keep up to date with all of Billie’s classes around Vancouver here.

♥

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The First Snow {2012]

12 / 18 / 1212 / 25 / 12

Though not a lot, Miss G has definitely seen snow before. But today, when she woke up and I whisked her off to the window to show her the surprise that had arrived overnight, she said to me, “Mama? What’s dat white stuff?”

With that, we promptly layered on some winter gear on top of our pajamas and headed outside to play in the {barely there} first snow of the year.

“Dis is snow? Santa likes snow.”

Perfect snowball making snow.

“Yook, Mama! Yook what Grae Grae has.”

Snowballs.

A collection.

Attempted snow angel.

For the freezer.

♥

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Stanley Park Bright Nights

12 / 17 / 1212 / 25 / 12

Today my little lady and I headed down to Stanley Park for our second year at Bright Nights. Last year, Miss G was just a tiny little thing still riding around in the Ergo, but this year was a whole new ballgame. She rode the train and pointed out things with one hand while holding my hand with the other, she cruised around the displays taking in the lights, she made friends with the Frosty the Snowman mascots that were strolling around the park, and enjoyed a warm milk and a bag of popcorn as a special treat.

Here’s our evening in photos…

All aboard!

Beautiful light displays.

Through the tunnel.

Chillin’ with Frosty.

Firefighter Grae.

The happiest little girl.

Taking it all in.

Magical.

“Mama, take Grae Grae’s picture!”

Warm milk to end a lovely {and chilly} night.

♥

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Letting Loose, Play Palace Style

6 / 1 / 125 / 13 / 13

After waking up to yet another {very} rainy day, I decided it was time for some dry, indoor fun this time around… So off to the Kerrisdale Play Palace we went! I don’t know what it was about today (perhaps it was her nearly 13 hour sleep last night or it being her second visit – she’s a veteran now), but Gracen was absolute WILD woman! Walking into the rink was like letting a bucking bronco loose after keeping him in the gates for an abnormally long time. The moment she stepped foot onto the concrete, she was running and jumping and squealing and flinging her little body around like it was the last day she’d ever get to play in her life. Just a guess, but apparently she thinks the Play Palace is pretty awesome.

She didn’t waste any time getting down to business. First she hit up some old favourites…

And then it was off to try some new things… See that little monkey climbing up that inflatable ladder? Last time she got half way up, panicked, and we had to retrieve her. Not this time though. Apparently she’s a big girl now because she climbed up and zoomed down on repeat.

And then there was this. Never in her life has she ever gone down a slide on anything but her bottom, but today she was all about belly-down, face-first.

Oh, and going down with her little ‘yeehaw arm’ in full effect.

Later on, she saw a big girl climb up for a ride on the shark’s back, and she was desperate to do the same. After letting her try and try again to get on, I finally broke all the rules, climbed up onto the inflatable while the supervisor wasn’t looking, and helped her up. (Shhhhh… Don’t tell.)
Strangely enough though, today’s absolute favourite was the foosball tables. She kept going back to them again and again and when I told her we only had time to do one more thing, she picked going back for some more table football.

It was the perfect way to spend our rainy morning. I left with a dishevelled, tired little monkey who was more than ready for her nap when we got home.

♥

Kerrisdale Play Palace

5 / 3 / 125 / 13 / 13

This morning, as we stepped foot into a little old arena on the westside, I was transported back in time. A time in the late 80’s / early 90’s where I spent hours and hours in little old arenas, freezing my tush off while watching my brother’s countless hockey games. Only this was Kerrisdale. And it’s quite obviously 2012.

But despite the dingy smell, yellow lights, and chilly temperature, the Kerrisdale arena, which is transformed into the Kerrisdale Play Place each spring, is truly a hidden gem for those of us who live in a city that gets as much rain as we do. It’s filled with inflatable slides, obstacle courses, and bouncy castles, gym equipment, musical instruments, and ride-on cars and toys, making it much more than just your usual play gym drop in session. And let me tell you, Gracen LOVED it. I don’t think she stopped squealing for more than 5 seconds during our entire visit. Here our some photos from our visit…

On the pirate-themed ocean inflatable in the preschooler area:

Playing with floor toys and equipment in the preschooler area:

In the preschooler bouncy castle:

Riding plasma cars in the main area:

Shooting some hoops in the main area:

A couple of hours of squealing-good fun for a few bucks? You really can’t go wrong. My only advice if you plan to visit.. Firstly, dress warm (it’s chilly in there!) Second, wear or bring socks (they’re mandatory in all areas for children and in the preschool play area for adults). And lastly, don’t be fooled by the jumping jack/push up/karate choppin’ sit up-doing attendant… He’s surprisingly on his game and will catch and scold you if you sneak up the giant inflatable slide with your munchkin. ☺