Thanks-getting

If the back-to-school (and work) grind already has you frazzled, you’re probably looking forward to Thanksgiving—not just for the turkey, but for the extra day off and the family time. The question is what will you do with that time?

Here is a slate of simple ideas to celebrate fall in all its glory before you have to batten down the hatches and survive another winter:

Go Agro
The Agriculture Museum is planning a special day of Thanksgiving-related activities, including apple cider making and tasting, leather crafts, and baking corn bread. The regular October list of daily demonstrations is custom-made for families, with rabbit care, calf-grooming, children’s crafts and stories, and a fabulous exhibit on honey bees.

Pick Your Pumpkin
Halloween has a way of sneaking up on us, and most kids would love nothing better than to start getting ready right now. This year, Saunders Farm is offering something new—the Pumpkin Patch Tour Wagon Ride. Take a hayride around the farm and tour the pumpkin patch, get off and choose your ‘jack’, then pay in the Farm Shop on your way home. Don’t miss the full array of ‘haunting season’ activities at the farm, including mazes, a pirate ship, the kids’ discovery barn and the haunted hayride.

Eat Pie
Pumpkin is traditional, and Life of Pie, Old Ottawa South’s newest Bank Street shop, is the best place to get it. Life of Pie specializes in pies of all kinds—fresh and frozen, sweet and savoury—so stop in and stock up. Pies for Thanksgiving weekend include pumpkin, apple, and berry crisp, and there will be homemade cranberry sauce made from local cranberries. Order as soon as possible—like right now—to avoid disappointment.

Plant Fall Bulbs
Daffodils, tulips, allium and snow crocuses are examples of spring-flowering plants that emerge from bulbs planted in the fall. Sell it to your kids as a seasonal science experiment. Head to Artistic Landscape Designs (or your favorite local garden centre) to pick up the bulbs.

Pick Apples
Thanksgiving weekend is usually your last opportunity to go apple-picking in Ottawa. Beware: It takes very little time to amass far more than you will ever be able to eat! But your neighbours will love the overflow. We still like Cannamore and Mountain Orchards best because they also offer activities the kids will love, like mazes and (at Cannamore) a Spooky Wagon Ride. Picking goes on until the trees are bare—and since that can be any day now, it’s a good idea to call ahead and check.

Take advantage of the weekend to enjoy all the quintessential autumn activities you can find in Ottawa. Soon enough we’ll be bringing you ideas for winter!

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