Blog posts in Home & Family.

Affordable accessibility in Calgary just got even closer for residents of Livingston and Carrington. "Calgary Transit On Demand" arrives on August 9, 2019.

Many parents feel that September is “the most wonderful time of the year.” It’s the month when kids head back to school and structured extracurricular activities commence. However, the transition from lazy summer days to busy weeks filled with jam packed schedules can be stressful. To help you tackle the lunch box battle, we’ve come up with some of our favourite grab-and-go meal and snack ideas.

If you’re planning to host your child’s birthday bash at home this year, be sure to check out our tips and tricks for throwing a stress-free party that everyone – including yourself – will enjoy.

When you’re planning a meal out with the family, check out our top picks for delicious kid friendly dining in and around Calgary.

Teach your kids about nutrition and the importance of eating healthy, homemade food. Having children help in the kitchen will foster a lifelong love for cooking, and provide them with an important life skill. Cooking also helps with fine motor skills and incorporates time management, science, reading and math. Here are some of our favourite ways to inspire your pint-sized chefs.

Greater Calgary is tops for year-round family fun. During winter, when it’s a bit too cold to play outside, families have a host of indoor kid-friendly gyms and activity centres to choose from. We polled our Excel staff and come up with our top spots for monkeying around with your little ones.

Parenthood is a joyous, never-ending rollercoaster. Days can quickly turn into weeks, months and years when we’re juggling work and family life. Taking a few moments for ourselves every once and while is important to maintain balance. With its host of parks, playgrounds and recreation centres, Greater Calgary is an amazing city for parents with young children. Even better? You’ll also find some innovative health and wellness focused businesses that offer onsite childcare – allowing you to focus on your treatment or practice without worrying about your little ones. Here are a few of our favourite R&R spots in and around Calgary.

December is the season of giving. Throughout the month we’ll buy hostess gifts for holiday parties and thank-you gifts for our mail carrier, garbage collector, hair dresser and children’s teachers. And this of course is in addition to the presents we buy for under our tree – and in our stockings. Needless to say, January credit card bills are never a joy. So to help with your holiday budgeting we’ve come up with a few chic DIY gifts that will impress both the recipient and your wallet.

Calgary has been blessed with an unseasonably warm fall this year. We’ve all enjoyed the double digit temperatures that have allowed us to spend more time outdoors. However, we can’t expect the dream to last forever. Winter is on its way, and we say let’s greet the change of season by refreshing our interior décor. Check out our favourite new tips, trends and treasures for Winter 2017.

Colder weather means cozy sweaters, warm wool socks and lots of layers. As bulky winter clothes tend to take up more room in the closet, now is the time to take inventory of your wardrobe, store your summer favourites and purge all of the items that you no longer wear. Check out our top tips and tricks for decluttering your closet:

Plan the perfect All Hallows’ Eve bash this year with a few of our fabulously frightening tips and tricks. Tantalizing treats and glamourous, ghostly décor will impress even your most discerning of guests. After all, the devil is in the details – so why not knock ‘em dead.