UsedEverywhere.com

Donor Breast Milk Needed In Vancouver

Sometimes you read a post that makes your own problems diminish – POOF! This happened when Vancouver’s Prenatal Coach, Crystal Di Domizio posted a plea to Vancouver moms asking for donor breast milk for a local mom starting chemo treatments to fight breast cancer. While mom undergoes treatments she wants her three-month-old baby Linnea to receive donated breast milk nourishment. The goal is to get baby to six months of age exclusively breast fed. Here is what the result of local hero moms donating their milk looks like (image belongs to Prenatal Coach):

After reading a plea like this, you experience tunnel vision because even without having breast milk to donate, anyone can help by reaching out via social media or to community partners. UsedEverywhere.com has smaller chapters in most Provinces of Canada and if you aren’t aware, has a wonderful Community Angel program. When people in the community need help, Community Angels are there to assist. I am lucky enough to help with the role of Vancouver Angel and write this article to ask for your help if you have breast milk to donate. I’m thrilled with the help already received from UsedVancouver and our partner in kindness SPUD Vancouver because these two companies are now supplying the family with eight weeks of organic food boxes. We have no doubt that trying to manage high quality nutrition while receiving treatments for cancer is important, not only for mom but the entire family. Dad responded to our news with “We are humbled by this generous gift by SPUD and Used Vancouver to make life easier during this challenging time. Thank you so much!!! ” We also wanted to bring attention to the issue of donor breast milk. The well-documented benefits of breast milk consumption in early life are present in all human milk but when a child is unable to thrive solely on the milk of their biological parent, human milk is available as an alternative. Crystal recommends checking out milk sharing groups like Human Milk for Human Babies for more information.

Checking in with Crystal today, she reports they have approximately one week of donor milk left in hand for the family to use for baby Linnea. It takes a lot of milk to give a baby continual support of donated milk. We ask if you live in the Vancouver area and can deliver donor milk to Crystal (drop-off downtown), please get in touch via email crystal@cultivateyourhealth dot com. Our community is lucky to have Crystal with her obvious devotion to prenatal wellness. When Crystal is not collecting milk for a special mama and baby in need, you can find her mentoring pregnant women through their journey to motherhood. She is passionate about helping women have easier and more comfortable birth experiences through Hypnobabies Childbirth classes.

Community connections keep the light in our steps as we navigate through darker journeys. It is very reassuring as a Vancouver resident to know that UsedEverywhere Community Angels, SPUD Vancouver, and Crystal are keeping a watchful eye out. Sometimes feeling the warmth on our backs from unexpected acts of kindness makes all the difference in times of need. We hope this article gives the topic of community support and donor breast milk more light.

Related Articles:

Our own Used blogger Erin wrote about her personal experience with milk sharing; read her article here.

 

Talking to your kids about the news

It’s been an emotional couple of days and our thoughts and prayers are with the community of Boston and the friends and families of those affected by recent tragic events.

The news coming out of Boston has been awful, and if you’re a parent you are probably fielding all kinds of questions from your children.

There’s an image going around on Facebook with a quote from Mister Rogers that I think is good to remember during times like this:

“When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, ‘Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.’ To this day, especially in times of ‘disaster,’ I remember my mother’s words and I am always comforted by realizing that there are still so many helpers – so many caring people in this world.”

I like this, don’t you? To focus on the helpers – the police, the paramedics, the fire fighters, and the bystanders who risk their own lives – reminds us that there is much, much good in the world. I don’t think we should ever lose sight of that. Remembering that there are good people out there gives us hope… and this is something we all need.

It’s tempting to shield little ears from bad news, but they are likely going to hear about it anyway. They may overhear you talking at night, or something in the schoolyard. It’s best that kids hear bad news from their parents. That way they’re getting the facts, and the much-needed assurance that it’s very unlikely to ever happen to them.

What I wouldn’t do, is search the web for news about bad news with kids by my side. Many of the articles online are accompanied by very graphic imagery, which I don’t think is helpful for anyone.

If you’re looking for some ways to help talk to your kids about news, check out this helpful tip sheet at MediaSmarts.ca. (Full disclosure, I write for the MediaSmarts blog.) What this tip sheet doesn’t mention is how to answer the question WHY. WHY did this happen?

I don’t have a good answer – it’s an impossible question – but I will say this, there are bad people in the world, but so many more good people. And that’s what we have to focus on right now.

DIY Beds for Spring

Valentines day is supposed to be the symbolic day of Love. I, among many others, think that one day just isn’t enough. And no offense, February… you are kind of a stinky month. Do you know what gets me in the mood? SPRING.

Yes that’s right. I get spring fever. All the melting of snow and the bursting forth of flowers…well I’ll leave the imagery alone cause this is a PG blog but you get the drift.

I always feel romantic in springtime. I like spending as much time outdoors as I can. But when I come inside there’s got to be a continuation of that feeling. I like to buy hothouse bulbs, or cut tulips, or go to the woods and chop a few pussywillow brnaches down. I get cleaning out the dusty crammed corners of my kitchen. I want to move.

After all that moving is done, I am exhausted. Which brings me to bed. I also like to spend a lot of time in there. (Yes just sleeping).

A long time ago, people bedded down beside each other under and on top of furs. Eventually we moved on to bigger and better things, beds. Where they better? Well that is up for debate. I recently watched a program care of the BBC that spoke all about the history and anthropological niche of beds. It got me thinking: in society today, a bed is a real symbol of love. Whether it is carnal love or domestic bliss or even chasteness, beds are an important fixture in our homes. So I thought I’d look at a few examples of fantastic beds that might stir the fire inside you. And they are all things you can make!

First off, is this awesome LED panelled headboard. How cute is this? The directions are here if you want to know a bit more, but all I know is its sparkly and big and i like it!

LED lights create a fairytale look

Next is a romantic metal bed with swirls of chiffon. Now, this particular bed is a four poster canopy. But, if you made a frame as big as you wanted it out of either metal or wood, and attached it to you ceiling, you could definitely recreate this look with the bed that you already have. Soft yellows and whites are very dreamy (and springy!). There are even canopy frames that you can buy. Alternately you could do something a little simpler, like hang a circle over the bed for a neat and crafty look. Who doesn’t like being romanced behind closed curtains? I personally think I’d get a better sleep behind chiffon.

an easy to recreate look, if you’re crafty! not just for a doggy to enjoy!

This next bed is super easy and looks very beautiful. I like a simple, woodland fantasy look. Get a few big sticks from the woods, attach some twinkle lights, voila! You have a super awesome starry bed.

using a feature from nature with some twinkle lights

Next up is a good use of pallets. Now, do be careful as some pallets are treated with some pretty nasty chemicals. If your pallets are good to go, you can make a platform bed very easily. This example shows them in a raw wood form, but I have seen ones that are painted as well. I would probably seal the pallets, and maybe give them a sanding, just to make sure they wont snag your linens or your toes. But this would give you lots of room for candles and whatever else you’d want by a sexy bed.

pallets: usually untreated pine that’s very sturdy. Be careful with fire and wood, readers!

I could show you a million beds that are easy to make and are super awesome. However, I like to leave something to the imagination. What kind of things would you do to your bed if you could, to make it a little more sexy? Me, I’d make a whole bunch of pretty pillows and get some cool old vintage quilts to put on it for snuggling in.

Allergies 101: What Treatments Work For You?

Here in Victoria it takes about three weeks for most people to realise it’s not a cold they have but in fact, spring has sprung and they have seasonal allergies.

Allergy season here is long and mighty, the blossom drives most people crazy and combined with our relentless April showers and sea winds, pollen really does get up our noses for a good part of the spring, summer and early fall.

Last winter, I wrote an article on Cold Treatments, comparing how different remedies work for the treatment of the common cold. Today I am going to take a look at allergy remedies:

• Antihistamine: I’ll be honest, I have tried A LOT of allergy remedies, but for the most part, I always go back to a decongestant with antihistamine. Reactine, Clarityn, Allegra, Alleve – I’ve tried them all. Just be aware that there are different ingredients in different allergy medications, and what works for me might not work for you and vice versa. For example pseudoephedrine can have caffeine like effects for some although it is more effective than phenylephrine as a decongestant. It can raise your heart rate and keep you awake, so if you are prone to high blood pressure or restlessness, you might want to avoid the medication that includes it. Talk to your pharmacist, they will be able to help you choose which medication will work best for you and try different ones to find the best fit. For example, I now know that Diphenhydramine works better as an antihistamine for me than Loratadine, so that’s how I choose what I buy.
• Eye Drops: don’t laugh – I know that people on the West Coast are notorious for carrying eye drops for very different reasons, but for those with itchy and painful eyes, eye drops can provide a lot of relief. Just be careful that eye drops don’t increase your symptoms in the long run. Ask your pharmacist about natural tear eye drops that offer relief without unnecessary medicines. Some eye drops contain lubricants as well as astringents such as Zinc Sulphate. Check with your pharmacist to see if this is necessary for you.
• Nasal Sprays: you can get decongestants in nasal spray form but again, check with your pharmacist as with prolonged use, they may not be effective. If your nose is dry and cracked, a simple saline solution spray could provide a lot of relief.
• Neti Pot: I was a neti pot user for years until I realised it wasn’t helping! I just thought it was the best way to go because it was natural. No, I wasn’t brain washed by Oprah, this was years before the neti pot hit the mainstream, but it really has grown in popularity over the last few years. What the neti pot does is allow you to clear your sinuses by filtering sterilised salt water solution through them. You pour water up into one nostril and the mucus flows from the other, then you swap nostrils. This is a really effective treatment and preventative measure for many people. The reason it didn’t work for me is that my sinuses were just too blocked to drain. If you do decide to try a neti pot, make sure you read some proper drainage instructions. I have seen so many neti pots sold by people who don’t actually know how to use them – you have to get all that water out.
• Painkillers: yup, I’ve popped a painkiller when the throat burn and headache has been too much to bear… you do what you have to do!
• Wash: sounds crazy doesn’t it, but remember if you are outdoors, the pollen can get all over your clothes and in your hair. Shower regularly to get rid of it! A hot shower with steam may also open up your sinuses just a little and the clean water can help with itchy eye relief.
• Peppermint Tea: hot tea can help with a sore throat or go a little way in relieving the sinuses. Peppermint apparently acts as a decongestant, and substances in peppermint contain anti-inflammatory and mild antibacterial constituents. Interesting.
• Wear Sunglasses: protect your eyes from pollen.
• Steam: you don’t need to visit a sauna, just fill a bowl with hot water, cover your head with a towel, lean over and breath. This for me has replaced my neti pot action and when I was a singer, my doctor advised I do it every day to keep lubricated. I ofetn add some Vicks vapour rub or a tiny scoop of menthol crystals.
• Mustard: and if all else fails, eat some hot English mustard (or wasabi). It will definitely clear your sinuses, though you might cry like a baby!

What do you use for your allergies? How effective is it? Leave a comment and share with our readers.

Tea Cup Bird Feeders

Living on the West Coast has its advantages. For example it’s spring here while I know the majority of Canadians are still suffering winter’s fury.

And there are certain disadvantages. Like it hardly stops raining.

This year I wanted to welcome the season by making a bird feeder. I know, not so glamorous. But with all the rain I thought having little birds visiting me through the window would make me feel better about being stuck indoors.

As a kid I used to make pine cone bird feeder’s by spreading peanut butter on the cones and then rolling them through birdseed. I would then hang them on branches throughout my parent’s yard and then investigate every other day to see which mixtures and locations were popular.

But now I don’t have the luxury of trees. I have a covered balcony.

A quick browse through Pinterest showed me tea cup feeders are popular this year. I’ve never seen these before but I do happen to have quite the collection of tea cups. If you haven’t got a stash of tea cups on hand, you can find inexpensive vintage and gently used ones through your local UsedEverywhere.com site.

I thought about going all out and setting up a tea party for my bird friends but reason won out and I decided to do some testers before committing to the bit.

Here’s the recipe I used:

• Warm 1/3 cup of peanut butter and 1/3 cup of natural honey in a saucepan
• Mix in 2/3 cup of birdseed, sesame seeds, or other seeds, 1/3 cup of sunflower seeds, and 1/4 cup of flax seeds
• Press the mixture into desired dish
• Cool and serve

Although it was a bit messy the actual project only took about 15 minutes from start to finish. And if I wasn’t doing a test run of the stuff I would have thought ahead to make a bit for me…it is so tasty!

The birds in my neighbourhood will have to be crazy not to come by my deck for tea.

Unfortunately it was evening when I set out my project and although I could hear the birds in the bushes below I probably won’t see any until daylight.

I’m eager to see how this works and I’m in the market for bigger and better birdseed recipes so if you have one please pass it along!

"Waste Not, Want Not" Series: Leftover Veggies

In last week’s blog, I showcased a way to reuse shrivelled up oranges as an ingredient in muffins in order to avoid throwing them in the trash. It’s an ingrained trait in my family to be able to find alternative ways to use items rather than simply tossing them out. I was chatting with my Mom about this yesterday and she says it comes from our Mennonite background to try to avoid wasting anything. She was telling me how my Grandmother would save something as small as a piece of string because you never knew when you might need a piece of string later on.  Some might say this could be a sign of hoarding but, when done in moderation, I think it’s a good lesson to learn that there are always ways to recycle or upcycle almost anything.

My challenge in this series is to be able to come up with ways to reuse veggies and fruit for consumption, even if it doesn’t look all that aesthetically desirable. This week’s topic is a couple of tips from my Mom on reusing leftover veggies that you’re tempted to just throw away.

Veggie Leftover: Potato Water

For most people, potatoes are a regular side dish and preparation usually involves boiling them first. Once the potatoes are cooked, it’s customary to simply poor the leftover water down the sink. But did you know that that murky water actually contains wonderful nutrients that have leeched out of the potatoes? Once boiled, potatoes lose a large percentage of their vitamins such as vitamin C, vitamin B, potassium and calcium.

So here’s what you can do with this vitamin rich water…don’t worry I’m not going to tell you to drink it! Simply pour it into a container, put it in the freezer and then take it out next time you are planning to make homemade chicken or turkey soup. You can use it in place of regular water to pump up the health value in your yummy soup.

Veggie Leftover:  Steamed Veggies

How many times have you prepared a lovely home cooked meal of chicken, potatoes and steamed veggies only to find that by the end of the meal, the only leftovers that weren’t completely scarfed down were the steamed veggies? You could put them in the fridge and pray that someone in the house gets a hankering for some steamed broccoli as a midnight snack or…you can prep them to be used in your morning omelets!

Just chop up the leftover asparagus or broccoli into small pieces and place small handfuls of them into individual Ziploc bags. If you don’t think you’ll be having omelets in the next couple of days, put them in the freezer and just pull them out when you need to add some healthy ingredients to your omelet. You don’t even need to defrost them beforehand as they’ll thaw out quickly in the frying pan.

If you have any tips on how you like to reuse your leftover veggies, I’d love to hear them! Next time, I’ll have some magical tricks to bring your produce back to life. Shazam!

 

Lettuce 2.0

After a few days

Lettuce is a funny thing. It gets my vote as the unsung hero of the vegetable world. It’s everywhere; slipped between salami slices, shredded in salads and sequestered as a side-garnish. I don’t have the statistic but I’m positive lettuce is one of the most consumed veggies out there. 

Personally though, I don’t touch the stuff. It tastes like dirty water. My allegiance lies with lettuce’s distant cousins, spinach and arugula. 

So why even give lettuce the time of day? Well, because in our household, we have four big fat guinea pigs that slop down lettuce like it’s going out of style. Between the lot of them, they eat a large head of the green stuff every two days. If you are starting to do the math on that, here, let me do it for you: Roughly 182 heads per year.

And if the guinea pigs fill their lifespan of 5-8 years, we’re looking at making 900 lettuce purchases. In case you are not aware, lettuce ranges in price from 99 cents in the summer, to $4 per head at the end of winter. If an average price is taken ($2.50/head), another quick calculation will show that my household will spend approximately $2,250 to feed a quartet of critters some leafy greens.

Though chances are, that you’re probably not hoarding guinea pigs like me. If this is the case, worry not, as you still can benefit by saving on a human-lifetime’s worth of lettuce consumption. Plus urban farming is trendy and hip, so what better way to delve in than by stump-growing a head of crispy Romaine or succulent Boston Butter?

So it was with delight that I randomly came across an article demonstrating how a new head can be regrown from a normally discarded lettuce-stump. At this discovery, I did a little dance, celebrating how the internet just put 450 lettuce-heads back on the shelf and $1,125 back into my pocket.

The even better part? Growing a second head is ridiculously simple:

- Save a lettuce stump

- Place in an inch of water

- The lettuce starts to regrow within 24 hours

 

After a week and a half

 

To keep the water fresh, change it every day. Keep doing this until the stump grows small roots. The leaves can either be eaten then or the stump can be transferred into soil for full, sustained growth.

As I was looking into this, I also learned that other vegetables can be regrown from stumps: celery, garlic, onions and from some reports, even cabbage (I wonder if bok choy would work?). Of course the idea of growing new plants from cuttings, roots and shoots isn’t new, in fact, it’s very old – ancient even. So what really ‘gets’ me about this lettuce trick, is that it’s one of those rare things that just works. I’ve got the furthest thing from a green-thumb and even my lettuce-stumps are thriving.

So this is my official thank you to the internet. You’ve come through in a big way and I’m here to pay it forward. And to pose the question: Can a third head be grown from the stump of the second? I’ll soon find out. 

3 Ways To Make Your Community Beautiful

Have you heard the quote “Magic is everywhere…you just need to look for it”? Discovering magic can happen in your own neighbourhood when a person spies something unique and unexpected nestled in nature. Memories are created and a sense of community pride is increased. The following three projects will not only make your neighbourhood more beautiful, but the lasting effects on how the community felt will remain for years. The projects are also low budget and mostly created from upcycled materials making them great for families to plan this spring.

Fairy Doors

Have you ever seen a tree knob created by nature on the outside of tree bark and instantly checked twice to see if it was real? That feeling of wonder can easily be handcrafted by a child and placed at the bottom of a special tree by making your own fairy door. It doesn’t matter if the cut around the door is made by a first-timer with a jig saw or the polished design of someone more professional – fairy doors evoke a strong emotion and always bring a squeal of delight when discovered. And when I say there is a little Peter Pan syndrome inside all of us, this video that was shared via George Stroumboulopoulos, will prove even grown-ups and teens see the magic.

This spring, select a few lucky trees along your favourite trail or yard and create fairy doors to live at the bottom. Measure out a perfect size that can be secured without too much difficulty in the nook of a tree, have your family decorate the door with weather resistant paint, and add a doorknob for the perfect finishing touch. Unless the fairy doors are going into a person’s yard, don’t invest too much money in the project because the chance of vandalism is high. But when a child wonders where the door has gone – you can reassure them that the magic of the fairy or gnome moved the door to a new home. Notes can be left for the fairies inside the tree or if the door doesn’t open, offerings from nature can be left outside for fairies to find; pinecones, flowers, feathers, acorns, etc.

Yarn Bombing

This activity is for the inner grandma in all of us; unless of course you know that knitting and crochet has become hip this year thanks to Pinterest inspiration and handmade love! Knitting is also a great activity to teach children and what could be more magical than making a sleeve for a tree in your yard, fence post, or pole. Yarn bombing is extremely beautiful – something about the bright, knit colours resting against nature that is very memorable. This photo and yarn bomb project was completed by Knitta.

Working with your city’s Art Council or Museum is a great idea if you want to expand yarn bombing into the community with kids. It will help ensure your project lasts since a pair of scissors can quickly bring this project down – but that is the key reason why it’s considered to be a harmless method of graffiti. A breathtaking example of yarn bombing actually happened in Vancouver March 2011 when the cherry tree behind Joy Kogawa’s (Vancouver author and poet) childhood home no longer blossomed. 50 crafters gathered together to change that and yarn bombed her tree with stunning knit bark and garlands of knit blossoms. The effect was stunning and I encourage you to read the entire article shared via Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival Blog. Below is a picture from that article – notice how beautiful the knit blossoms look in nature?

Little Free Library

With so many parents trying to detach their children from electronics and re-introduce them to the love of reading, the time to build or use a Little Free Library is now. And with the growth of thousands more of these libraries popping up around the world, their popularity is easily understood. The concept is to approach a Girl and Boy Scout troop, carpenter, or artists and see if they would be willing to build some Libraries as a community service project. Ask neighbours and friends to contribute books. Keep them informed about what they can bring by leaving a note in your Library asking for a certain type of books. Real people sharing their love for special books is the best part of building a Free Library and I love this quote from the Little Free Library site “These aren’t just any old books, this is a carefully curated collection and the Library itself is a piece of neighborhood art!”

Check out the examples of finished community libraries from the Little Free Library Facebook page and you’ll see why they are so special and would really enhance community spirit!

 

From being involved in community projects with my family, I know the people creating projects get just as much fun and joy out of the planning, building, and crafting. Harness your own imagination and bring together a team of people committed to creating magic this spring.

Getting creative with furniture restoration

Something that I always try to be, whether it is fashion, housewares or furniture, is original. Having something different is fun, to me at least. Vintage clothing is usually fairly unique and different. You won’t have to worry about someone else showing up to the office party wearing the same dress as you! Awkward moment avoided!

I like thrifting. A lot. A lot a lot a lot. My house is a veritable treasure trove of weird and wonderful things. Nobody else has my candlesticks or place mats or chair covers. And I like that. It is fun to tailor your home to be something that is totally unique and awesome. And while it does take some time, your creativity and You-ness can really shine.

It is really easy to make furniture be a centrepiece of this identity. Its usually big, you probably actually use it, someone besides yourself will sit on a chair or couch. What are some things that you can do, you ask. Well, I am so glad that you want to know

Cushions: probably the easiest thing you can do is get cushions, or even make them, that either blend in to your style or contrast with it, depending on what you like. A simple throw cushion can take a boring beige chair from frumpy to fabulous in mere moments. And because cushions generally don’t cost too much, you can replace them whenever you want to mix it up a bit. I know some people that bring out new combinations of cushions with each season. While that is a bit much for me, it is a great way to refresh your living space. And if you sew, making cushions is super duper simple.

These chairs would look quite boring without some awesome bright cushions. Look at how they really pop against the neutral decor.

Paint: while I generally cringe at the idea of painting wood furniture, sometimes it needs to be done. A fresh coat of paint on a tired old plant stand can make your plant pop out of the woodwork so to speak. Have an old broken kitchen chair languishing in the basement? Pull it out, paint it, you have a new plant stand for indoors or out. You can paint a chair, couch legs, picture frames, really anything. You can even paint fabric (click here to see some instructions. It sounds like a lot of trouble but hey who am I to tell you what not to do). Paint is usually fairly inexpensive and if you go to your local home improvement store often you can troll for cheap mis-tint paint like I do.

sick of looking at your faded scratched wood table and chairs? look how cute this is!

Fabric: it isn’t that hard to make slipcovers, if you know your way around a sewing machine. You can pick any fabric you’d like, and if you can’t sew it, you can have someone else do it. This way you are reusing your existing furniture but giving it new life. Dining chairs are easy to redo, and you can really let your creativity shine here. I am currently fixing an old chair up and using a cable knit sweater for the cushion! You could sew together old doilies and layer that over a contrasting fabric for a really cool effect. The possibilities are really endless when it comes to chair bottoms. I change mine all the time. I think my husband believes I have some commitment issues!

look at this great refinishing project! see how to do it here

Using things that aren’t intended for that purpose: an old barrel with a cushion on top becomes a fabulous chair. An old door mounted on the wall becomes a headboard for your bed. An old office credenza becomes hallway storage. Old fabric remnants can be framed and hung for a cool and vintage look. An old dining table can be an office desk. There are so many things you can use in different ways, just thinking about it makes me excited. If you want some inspiration click here and have a Re-Imagining Weekend; fun for the whole family!

an old ladder hangs down for a great small space reuse pot rack

What sorts of creative things have you done in your home? Let us know!

 

Get Your Bikes Ready for Spring!

Biking is a great way to get active and enjoy the outdoors come spring. It’s something the whole family can enjoy, and can be planned ahead or done spur-of-the-moment. Maybe your spring weather has hit already, maybe it hasn’t, but there’s no denying that now is the time to be checking your bikes over and shopping for new ones if needed.  Looking early means more choice and more selection.

But of course, there’s a better way than just heading off to the nearest store! Before you ever buy a brand new bike, have a look at your local UsedEverywhere.com listings to see if you can find what you need there. Kids outgrow bikes, people upgrade to a new style – there can be many reasons why bikes hit the used listings, but they all benefit you!  You can also find bike parts and accessories like locks, racks and mudguards.  If you have very young children, watch for trailers that can be pulled behind a bike so you can bring your little ones along for a ride until they can pedal their own bike.

There are a few things you need to do before you hit the road this spring:

Sizing:

First, check sizing on everyone’s bikes at the beginning of each season. Make sure everyone has the proper bike for their size and ability.  This will help you decide if you need to be looking for anything new. Check to be sure everyone has a helmet and other safety gear and try everything on to check for fit.

Cleaning and prep:

Give the bike a good cleaning, check for damage or loose parts, tighten the seat, add air to tires, test brakes and add lubricant as needed to hold off the rust all season.  Here’s a great resource on tuning up your bike for spring and basic repairs.

Safety reminders:

When it comes to bicycle safety, make certain things non-negotiable.  Kids need to learn that they wear helmets or they don’t ride, period. You can decide if you want them wearing elbow and knee pads, and when they are first learning it’s best they wear long pants and even long sleeves to help protect them in the event of a fall.

Bicycle safety training is so important – your kids can’t be safe if they don’t learn the rules of the road. This goes for adults too. Sign kids up for a neighbourhood safety camp or afternoon, be careful where you allow them to bike and let them earn their freedom through safe and careful biking.

Here are some great resources for bike safety for families: Safe Kids Canada, Canada Safety Council and CAA Bike Safety.

Where to bike?

Start with your own street, nearby parks, green spaces in your city, and look for bike paths along rivers and other attractions. Do a search online to find routes in your city – you may find a list of popular paths. When I searched for “bike routes in Calgary” I found links leading me to our own city site, to bikecalgary.ca, to bikeyyc.ca, a family site with routes broken down by city area and a local cycling club. Try it in your own city and see what resources you find!

Do you cycle alone? Bike with your family? Any tips for families just starting out?