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Hey there!

It's winter break and I'm having fun keeping the kids entertained - and off screens as much as possible!

Our family are all local, so we don't travel for the holidays, but if you will be venturing away from home (or just driving the local roads) I want to wish you safe travels - and happy holidays to everyone!

In today's newsletter you'll find:

• Lots of winter break activities (free admissions, indoors, outdoors, and some frozen science)
• Ice fishing guide
• Christmas Day activities
• Leftover turkey recipes

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✨ What's Happening at Alberta Mamas

It's winter break and I'm doing what I can to keep the kids busy. The kids will be playing plenty of games while it's too cold to go out, and we're going take advantage of free admission:

• Everyone gets in free to National Parks & Historic Sites that are open during the winter
• 17 and under get in free to Alberta historic sites & museums​
  • Tip: if you plan on going to several of these, consider getting yourself an Alberta History Pass​
• We're going ice skating during free sessions at our local rink (many rinks offer this - be sure to check yours!)

And when they get bored of all of that, I plan to pull some of these tricks out of my hat:

9 Indoor Activities to Give YOU a Break Buy yourself 10 minutes to an hour or more with these activities! Read article

12 Creative Outdoor Activities It will warm up later this week - get the kids outside with these at-home friendly activities! Read article

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🛍 Find of the Week

As a family prone to cold fingers, we go through a lot of hot packs. Last year we got a little Panda as a gift, and I've got little circles for everyone's stockings this year.

To activate you just "click" the little piece of metal to kick of the reaction. Once "done", the warmer will be solid. You boil the packet for 5 minutes until liquid again and you're ready for its next use!

If you hop on it ASAP these colourful triangles or these watermelon hand warmers should arrive in time for Christmas.

DYK: Amazon.ca has already launched their Boxing Day sales page!

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⭐ Featured Destination

The lakes are completely frozen - it's time to go ice fishing!

Whether you're a seasoned pro, have never gone before, or are perpetually skunked (🙋 - I never catch a thing!), ice fishing is a relaxing way to spend a day. Just make sure you go in with expectations set.

Guide: Renting an Ice Fishing Shack in Alberta ​ Discover Ice Fishing

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🏠 At Home Activity

Take advantage of the deep freeze and blow some bubbles or toss boiling water to watch science in action - and make these ridiculously cold temperatures a little more fun!

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📅 Events Around Alberta

Don't have Christmas Day plans yet? Here are 5 Things You Can Do on Christmas Day!

Need more or travelling around the province this holiday season? Find out what's happening wherever you are through your local event calendar! I've curated useful lists for family-friendly events across the province.

Hit reply and let me know if a spot you're interested in is missing, and I'll do my best to find a local calendar for you!

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👨‍🍳 Recipe to Try

Plan ahead for the 26th with these turkey leftover ideas:

5 Easy Ways to Use Turkey Leftovers ​ Get the Recipes

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📌 Alberta Fact of the Week

It's that time of year we're inundated with Operation Red Nose, CheckStops, and other don't drink and drive campaigns. If you want to be the nerd at Christmas dinner:

• In 1989 Alberta has a ratio of 756 impaired driving charges out of every 100,000 people. That works out to just shy of 19,000 incidents.
• In 2023, there were 175 impaired driving incidents per 100,000 residents. That's around 8,200 incidents.

Culture has certainly shifted, but that number is still too high!

Source: 1989 - The Alberta Trivia Book; 2023 - Stats Canada​

Find more about Alberta in any of these great books about Alberta.

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💭 Share Your Thoughts

What are you doing to stay busy this holiday season?

Hit reply and let me know!

Merry Christmas!

Jen

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