This story is part of a series in the Summer 2026 issue This summer, hit the road with your kids A popular youth cycling program gets the entire family rolling. Tracey Tong gets in the saddle If you’re […]
family
The Night Before Giftmas: A DIY holiday poem
Parenting Times did not receive any financial compensation for this piece. We all love the twinkling lights, the merry music and most of all, the gathering of friends and family this time of year. While we are more […]
A matter of survival
Getting lost in the woods can happen to anyone, says outdoor educator Sonia Vani, and can be avoided if one puts thought into preparation Sonia Vani has enjoyed a feeling of “belonging outside” since childhood. “My parents encouraged […]
When life gives you lemons
Positive changes to your health may come from adversity A life-altering situation can prompt change. Its sudden appearance runs interference with whatever is experienced as routine, typical, or expected. More neuroscientists, psychologists and researchers are saying a lot of our […]
Family ties
Experts say that grandparents are the glue that hold families together Storytellers. Family historians. Givers of great hugs. As Nora Spinks, CEO of the Vanier Family Institute says, “Grandparents provide depth and richness to family relationships. They really can […]
(Un)boxing day
Whatever your interest, there’s a subscription box for that Subscription boxes have been around for a while, but their popularity has skyrocketed in the past couple of years, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic, when people were sheltering in place, […]
To my Dad with love
Columnist Kita Szpak shares a poignant portrait of her beloved father My father had been operated on to remove a cancerous tumour in his hip and was still in hospital recovering. He knew he had to gain weight to stay […]
Love makes a family
Writer Samantha Ball sits down with Ottawa’s Knox family in the wake of bestseller ‘Love Lives Here’ Six years ago last month, Alexis Knox came out as transgender to her parents. Alexis, now 17, shared this with […]
12 Great family fun events
The Casino Lac-Leamy Sound of Light When: Wednesdays and Saturdays, August 10 through 24 Where: Canadian Museum of History, 100 Laurier St., Gatineau What: With a mission of encouraging cultural discoveries through a varied and international artistic program, the Sound […]
Living large
Three bigger-than-average Ottawa families share how they make it all work When Melissa Ferland’s first child was born, her midwife sat on her bed with Ferland’s husband and they jokingly predicted how the births of the couple’s next four […]