Fall in Dartmouth with the Kids

Maritime Fall Fair is an annual event at Exhibition Park. This year I went with a school group, the 8-year-old and his whole class.

The Fall Fair includes exhibits of giant vegetables, farm exhibits on various Nova Scotia products, a livestock show, a quilting room, and other exhibits, like a dog show.

We started out in an exhibit room with exhibits all sponsored by the Government of Canada. There were puzzles and quizzes, but the kids were not terribly interested in most of it. It was more for adults... a lot of reading and browsing computer sites. At this point we were still all together in a large group. After that, we ended up splitting up quite a bit.

The second area had a lot of booths sponsored by individual farm products, such as apples, honey, blueberries, etc. At one booth you could get a free apple for answering a trivia question. The center stage of the room was the milk area. There was a stage and chairs set up. There were demonstrations that rotated between butter making (where the audience got to make a pill bottle size butter) and banana smoothies, where everyone got a smoothie sample.

There was also a scavenger hunt type game. You could go to 12 different booths and do an activity which you answered on a card. At the end you put it in a box for a draw. Most of the activities were geared for older kids, around 10 or so, but the kids I was with could do most of them without too much help.

We left that area at the time our group had designated to meet for lunch and to watch Moe's Dog Show. This was a show the kids really liked, with dogs running obstacle courses, performing jumps, and in one case, collecting 10 Frisbees in her mouth. There were even a couple of goats that ran the course. After the show, the audience was invited back to pat some of the dogs. It was really noisy, and the older couple sitting near us grimaced each time the kids roared.

After lunch, we split up again, and the kids I was with wanted to go see some animals. We saw cows, horses, sheep, llamas, chickens, ducks, goats, etc. We didn't get to pat many of them, but being 'city kids' the children liked seeing the farm animals.

With about 1/2 hour left we headed back towards the large room to finish the hunt. We got free samples of flavoured milk and sour cream on the way. There were also several events that cost extra money, such as vendors, kids play area, and carnival midway. We skipped all of those, but the baked PEI potato stand was awfully tempting.

We all had a great time, and at $5 for kids it was a good deal. The kids learned lots too. It was very loud, so hearing a cell phone ring was tricky, but it was fun.

Being huge fans of 'free' we decided to check out the Alderney Landing Pumpkin Carving Contest for kids this year.

The event was scheduled to take place from 10am until noon the Saturday before Halloween. We got there around 9:55am and there were already 1/2 dozen kids there working on their pumpkins. In fact, there were so many people who started early that the table designated for pumpkin carving was full.

After a few minutes, the organizer and her helpers (a couple of teen-age girls) managed to get another table and some chairs set up so that there was enough room for about 6 more kids to carve pumpkins. The pumpkins were all free, so some people chose to take them home rather than waiting for a turn at the table.

For those of us who stayed, each child chose a pumpkin (there were about a dozen around at any time to pick from) and found a spot at the table. We were provided with pumpkin carving kits (a pumpkin knife and a spoon to scoop out the seeds and gunk). The kits were cheap and we managed to break 3 of the knives on one pumpkin.

The 8-year-old managed to do all the cutting himself (under supervision), but the 4-year-old was not big enough. We let her pick shapes and a grown-up cut them out. Neither could get all the seeds and gunk out without help. The 8-year-old just didn't want to get his hands dirty I'm sure.

The carving took about 30 minutes, so there were lots of people who got in and out and everyone who wanted to participate could. When we were done, we put a slip of paper with the kids names on them inside the pumpkins and left them there for the judging, which was scheduled for 12pm. We were told we could pick them up later that day or the next day, and that they would let us know if we won (which we didn't really expect to).

There was a Saturday market in the same building, but it is the same vendors there every week and so we didn't bother to stop there, but it was a great place for the baby to go for a stroller ride for a few minutes. He found the pumpkin carving rather boring, strangely.

Another spot we would normally go to kill some time is the Alderney Gate Public Library, however, they were having a huge booksale that morning which started at 10am. In the past, the line-ups for it have stretched down a flight of stairs and out the door, so we skipped it too.

We decided to head off for an early lunch and some shopping. We got back to the pumpkin contest at 12:05 and judging had taken place. As expected, we did not win, but we still got to keep our Jack-o-lanterns, so we had a lovely pair of pumpkins for the front step on Halloween.

We went to check out the Art Gallery of Nova Scotia Family Sunday Halloween festivities. The AGNS had a display on ancient Egypt this year, so the Halloween activities focused on Egyptian symbols. Immediately inside the front door, there is a giant spider to help decorate, with bits of scraps to tie on.

The prices are: Family Rate (2 adults +3 youths) $25, adults $12, senior (60+) $10, students $5, youth (6-17)$3, children 5 and under - free, but they charge an extra $3 for special exhibits (like the Egyptian Stuff). We had a coupon for buy-one-get-one-free so our total cost was $21.

To get to the Egypt display, you take the elevator to the basement and go underground to a second building. The elevators are all well marked with pictures showing which floor to go to.

The Egyptian Theme stuff had a tour guide, which my kids don't enjoy (and they tend to annoy other patrons), so we skipped that, but Mom went on it. I took the kids to see the mummies, and the 8-year-old enjoyed trying the scavenger hunt in the tour guide. It was a great way to learn about mummies and ancient Egypt, without bothering others.

We also looked some of the other displays while we were there, but briefly. We looked at several paintings by Canadian artists. The kids favourite was the model of the large sculpture that is outside in the courtyard.

The gallery does a good job of making things a bit more interesting for the kids by providing spots where they can sit and do related activities for a few minutes. In the featured exhibit section, there is a room with a table filled with puzzles, books, etc., related to the exhibit. So, in this case there was a hieroglyphic puzzle, and several books on Egypt and mummies. It was a nice quiet place where the kids could do something for a few minutes. In the bottom of the gallery there is a room where kids could make plasticine pictures or magnetic poetry.

There were lots of fun things for the kids, including making Egyptian amulets, necklaces, rings out of standard craft stuff. There was lots of room for all the kids, and a few adult helpers. The kids were free to do whatever they wanted, but there were ideas presented.

There was a preschool craft room where the kids could make plaster spiders, skulls, or pumpkins, and paint them. They also had some goop to play with. It was a great room for the baby because it had some blocks, a chalk board, and a nice shelf filled with books to look at. It was someplace he could walk around for a few minutes.

We really enjoyed the art gallery, and will go there again on a family Sunday. They had extra stuff going on for Halloween, but the AGNS is always a family friendly place.

The Cole Harbour Heritage Farm and Tea Room is an interesting farm museum right in the middle of a busy town. It is surrounded by subdivisions, and visible from the busiest stretch of Cole Harbour Road.

Mom wanted to go to the ghost stories at the farm, which were available on either Friday or Sunday before Halloween. She bought a ticket in advance for $4. The tickets were sold at the Tea Room, which is open and serving tea Monday-Saturday. She also bought herself a new (used) tea mug with a Norman Rockwell print for $1 while she was there.

The farm also had a farm museum that the kids have been to, with animals wandering about, etc. The museum closed for the season October 15 and reopens in May. Tours are $10 for small groups, $15 for groups of 15-30. There are also other activities that can be added on for another fee. The 8-year-old class went there on a field trip once, and the kids enjoyed it.

It is a farm, however, so there tends to be mud and animal droppings around. You need to wear appropriate footwear. There are many buildings on the farm, including the Giles House (two room farm house), 3 barns, and the Tea Room house. The farm buildings are all from the 1800's or so, as is the farm itself. However, some of the buildings were originally built and used in other parts of Nova Scotia before being moved to Cole Harbour in the 1970s as part of the museum.

The Tea Room continues to offer programs throughout the winter, such as kitchen parties, teas, craft sales, and story telling. Reservations are recommended or required for most events. Ghost Stories fit this category.

Anyway, Mom decided to go to the ghost story night, and we decided that it would be a good thing for the kids to NOT go to. My kids don't deal well with spooky stuff, and it was going to be after their bedtime anyway. The stories started around 7:30pm.

They were divided into 3 small groups of about 10 people per group. Each group went in turn to a different building and were told stories by local prominent storytellers (one was a local author). Then they went into the tea room for hot chocolate and maritime music with a ghost theme.

It was very small, they could have taken probably 60 people altogether. The stories themselves were not overly scary. It was designed as a family event and there were a lot of families there. Some of the stories were spooky, but mostly they were the kind of stories that end with a big 'boo'. Mom definitely got her $4 out of it.

On Remembrance Day here in Canada (November 11th - same as US Veterans Day) we honour veterans and those who gave their lives defending our Country. On the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, we have a moment of silence to remember those men and women who fought for us.

There are ceremonies all across Canada at local monuments (Cenotaphs). The ceremonies all have a lot of common features. The ceremony that I attended this year with the 8-year-old took place at Cole Harbour Place Cenotaph, which is at Cole Harbour Place, a local community center which has a swimming pool, a skating rink and a library.

Everyone wears a poppy as a symbol of remembrance. The poppy's are given out for a donation by the Royal Canadian Legion. They are small red flowers with straight pins to attach them to your coat or hat. This is a reference to the famous poem "In Flanders Fields the Poppies Grow" by John McRae.

The ceremony started by a parade of veterans, current military personnel, and members of service organizations such as Boy Scouts and Girl Guides (the Canadian version of Girl Scouts) all dressed in uniform. The parade starts about a block away at a local high school, marches right up the street to Cole Harbour Place. It starts at 10:45am.

Standing guard at the Cenotaph throughout the ceremony are several soldiers who are not to move at all. They have to be in place before the parade arrives.

Once all of the parade members are in place, the ceremony begins. The ceremony consists of singing "O, Canada", prayers, readings, hymns and of course, 2 minutes of silence at 11am. There was a bugler to play "Reveille" and "Last Watch" at appropriate times.

Near the end of the ceremony wreaths are placed on the cenotaphs. The wreaths are also covered in the red poppies. Wreaths are all labeled with the name of the group they represent, such as the Government of Canada, the Korean War Veterans, the Air Cadets, etc. There are also personal wreaths in memory of specific soldiers who died in the war as well as one for the 'unknown soldier'.

This year, the wreath section of the ceremony was marred, in my opinion. Along with the above mentioned groups, there were wreaths on behalf of various schools in the area and various churches, which seemed appropriate enough. Then, there were wreaths on behalf of specific political parties - a bit less appropriate, and finally specific businesses, which seemed just tacky and wrong.

In Nova Scotia, there has never been Sunday shopping allowed until a few weeks ago, except for drug store and convenience stores. Within the last month or two, Sunday shopping has become fully available, with malls, grocery stores, and all sorts of businesses opening. In the new law, stores were no longer banned from operating on any day, except for Remembrance Day. I found it very tacky that some businesses, (restaurants, weight loss centers, and plant stores) would use a solemn ceremony as a means of advertising.

I took my 8-year-old to the ceremony as a member of a service organization. Even he noted how odd it was that a weight loss center brought a wreath.

After the ceremony concludes, the flag is set at half-mast. Then all the observers are given the opportunity to place their poppy pins on the wreaths at the base of the cenotaph.

Parking is notoriously awful at these events, and we ended up walking about 3 blocks from the car. (Taking a bus wouldn't work because the buses don't run on holidays in our neighbourhood.)

After the ceremony there is a reception for the children participants inside Cole Harbour Place, with cookies and hot chocolate (especially important when the weather is nasty). There is also a reception held at the local branch of the Royal Canadian Legion for adult participants.

Overall I recommend taking part in a ceremony. It is important for our children to learn about war, and even more important while we're fighting currently. However, that being said, it does tend to be a long service and small children would find it boring, which would not be good considering the occasion. So, I recommend children go only when they are old enough to stand and listen (usually when they go to school).

Because weather in NS is unpredictable, it is a good idea to bring a toque and mittens as well, since you have to stand outside for a long time.